Where is "Away"?

Last night, I attended the August meeting of the Kansas City Green Drinks group. The goal of Green Drinks KC is pretty simple: good times shared among people working in, or interested in, environmental and sustainability issues. This is only the 2nd month I've attended a meeting, and once again, I left the meeting informed, inspired, and with new contacts!



The next time you start to throw something "away", think about the above picture. Our society has been trained to think that once the garbage truck leaves our street, the garbage has gone "away". We carelessly and thoughtlessly throw "away" items that can be reused or recycled. What humans manufacture and think they are throwing away, is really disturbing all types of ecosystems. The reality is, the world is a closed loop. Nothing leaves the earth. The bottom line...we are the species responsible for polluting. The damage that we have done as a species, has reached the a calamity tipping point, between the earth and mankind. The earth will win, whether it be tornadoes, global warming, fire or other natural disasters, the earth will win. This is becoming an epic battle between man vs earth. Can man live in harmony with the planet. Yes. Is it too late? No. Waste is the byproduct of poor design. What can we do? Be thoughtful. Make conscious decisions.

• Purchase items with minimal packaging
• Write letters to companies demanding responsible packaging
• Reuse and recycle. Really. Think about everything you are throwing away. Can it be recycled or reused?
• Consume less
• Utilize services like freecycle.com

We can each do our part. Be Greener Every Day.