Again we encourage you to center, learn from, and support Black environmentalists. Here are a few more to add to our list from last week’s post:

@marandas_world [Low-Waste, Sustainability Parent]
@greengirlmagic [Climate/ Environmental Justice Lawyer]
@rasheena.fountain [Environmental Educator / Writer]
@climatediva [Climate Advocate / Writer]
@climateincolour [Climate Conversation Bridge]

reduce food waste

(this outranks electric vehicles & solar farms!!)

News about climate change and our environment seems overwhelmingly negative these days, doesn't it? It leaves us feeling anxious, guilty, angry, resigned … or thinking in panic "we've got to DO SOMETHING!" But what? Well, here's a positive step to consider.

According to Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming, the #3 most powerful environmental action we can take is to REDUCE FOOD WASTE. Think about it: shrinking food waste outranks electric vehicles and solar farms in potential environmental benefit. And each of us can act on this TODAY.

The USDA estimates that 1/3 of available food is wasted each year in our country. And greenhouse gases are released in producing, transporting, storing, and disposing of this food in landfills.

Clearly, what we produce must be better aligned with what we consume. But this adjustment will take time. Positive steps we can take RIGHT NOW are available. We can align our family shopping more closely to our actual eating patterns, for example. Here’s a list of 20 steps that start there and then go on. You can also send some of your food scraps to a worm bin to create nice compost for your garden.

We can also make and donate meals to put our unneeded food to excellent use. Union offers several ways to do this.

The bottom line is that we CAN DO SOMETHING. And in so doing, maybe we can relax a bit, knowing that we’re following the guidance of Jesus after he had fed 5000: “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” (John 6:12)