Earth Day Tough Decisions
Earth Day is for everyone on Earth
Today is Earth Day: a day that requires us all to do some thinking. Earth Day certainly grabs attention now to an extent that Gaylord Nelson could hardly have imagined in 1969:
I was satisfied that if we could tap into the environmental concerns of the general public and infuse the student anti-war energy into the environmental cause, we could generate a demonstration that would force this issue onto the political agenda. It was a big gamble, but worth a try.
The method for getting the message across has certainly evolved. As Reuters points out, Google has gone green and so have dozens of comic strips while President George W. Bush opted for a traditional tree-planting on Tuesday to mark Earth Day, an environmental event that has become increasingly political and corporate. Google.com’s online search site features a lush logo with letters made of moss-covered boulders, a tree sprouting from the “L” and a waterfall flowing beneath it.
A great many people are getting involved. For example, Earth Day Canada is a national environmental communications organization mandated to improve the state of the environment by empowering Canadians to achieve local solutions. However the Rockford Register Star of Rockford, IL raises a provocative question,
Wouldn?t Gaylord Nelson be proud of all the fuss made about Earth Day?
Not really. Nelson, the founder of Earth Day, never meant for today to be the Hallmark holiday of the environmental movement. He never meant for Wal-Mart to adopt the slogan ?Earth-friendly. Budget-friendly.?
Even tougher issues come up when you remember that it’s not just your corner of the Earth. We’ve really got to try to find solutions that work for all of Earth’s inhabitants. The production of biofuels, often suggested for a green planet, illustrates the difficulties. The Gazette suggests it’s time to scrap the ethanol boondoggle.
Government-funded conversion to “biofuels” such as ethanol is scarcely helping with energy efficiency and is exacerbating a global food crisis. It’s time for Canada to reverse course on this failed approach.
The pendulum is swinging strongly in the other direction. Last fall Jean Ziegler, the UN’s “special rapporteur on the right to food,” claimed it was a “crime against humanity” to divert corn from food to fuel. That claim resonates more loudly this spring, because of fast-rising grain prices – and resulting unrest – around the world. The enormous investment in biofuels in the U.S., the European Union, Canada and elsewhere is fuelling a food crisis in poor countries.
The Telegraph highlights Food shortages and asks how will we feed the world?
A global food shortage threatens the lives of millions. Steep rises in the price of staples such as wheat and rice are having an even bigger impact on poor countries.
Venezuela’s oil minister might be accused of bias in proclaiming in Rome that Using Food to Make Fuel Is `Criminal’. However he may well be right.
“Look at the effect it has, the craziness,” Rafael Ramirez told reporters today in the Italian capital, where he is attending the three-day International Energy Forum. “All countries, and particularly in Latin America, have problems with food stuffs. It is such a bad idea to use foodstuffs for fuel, it is criminal.”
As each of us does our bit for Earth Day today, we should not forget all our neighbors in this global village.
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