GreenBrig

Earthlust Stainless Steel Reusable Water Bottles

Earthlust water bottles are made of high-quality food-grade stainless steel and feature custom designs using non-toxic paints. Available in 13oz., 20oz., and 33oz. bottle sizes, each Earthlust stainless steel bottles comes with BPA-free caps and a high-quality carabiner. Hand made and available with a variety of nature-oriented artwork, Earthlust stainless steel bottles are an attractive, practical alternatives to disposable, plastic water bottles.

Reusable water bottles like the Earthlust stainless steel bottles help prevent tons of used plastic water bottles from ending up in landfill. 80 percent of all plastic water bottles used in the United States ends up as garbage. Annually, 17 million barrels of oil are used annually in the manufacture of disposable plastic water bottles, making reusable water bottles even more eco-friendly. New studies have also found that water coming out of plastic water bottles contain various chemicals that leach out of the plastic, including the dangerous bisphenol A (BPA). BPA is known to mimic our body’s own hormones, and cause negative health effects.

Hence, Earthlust stainless steel bottles are eco-friendly as well as being a healthier solution to everyone’s water carrying needs. Plus they look good and make great gifts too.

United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP15) 2009 in Copenhagen, Denmark

The United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 15) starts today in Copenhagen, Denmark. Billed as the most significant meeting regarding climate change in more than a decade, the Climate Change Conference will address issues related to the global problem of rapid climate change as a result of human impact as well as ways to promote sustainability. Drawing leaders from more than 60 countries, including the United States, Germany, France, India and China, the Copenhagen conference is hoped to result in pledges by developed and developing countries to reduce human impact on nature.

Tougher environmental laws and better plans to cut emissions by all parties are necessary to promote environmentally sustainable practices around the world. Countries like India and China have recently announced ambitious emissions targets to reduce their carbon footprint, putting pressure on developed countries like the United States, Australia, United Kingdom to do likewise. England and France, meanwhile, have proposed a multi-billion dollar fund set up by developed countries to help poorer nations enact emissions cuts and promote sustainability.

After years of debate and negotiation, it is hoped that the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference will lead to a firm framework to address the root causes of climate change. Running from December 7-18, 2009, the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference will count on more than 105 heads of government in its closing stages to secure a significant climate change accord. The climate treaty that is adopted in Copenhagen will replace the last major environmental protection agreement, the Kyoto Protocal, that expires in 2012.

Ecological footprint refers to humans’ impact on our planets resources. Comparing human demand to the ability of nature to regenerate, ecological footprint measures humanity’s needs. In recent years, ecological footprint has emerged as an important matrix for quantifying sustainability. A subset of ecological footprint, carbon footprint is a measure of the amount of greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted by an organization, product or event. The measure of the environmental impact of a given product or service is also known as life-cycle analysis.

Ecological Footprint

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) publishes humanity’s ecological footprint annually. Conceived in the 1990′s by Mathis Wackernagel and William Rees at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, ecological footprint has emerged as the premier measure of the pressure exerted by humans on nature’s resources. The total ecological footprint of humans in 2005 was estimated at 1.3 earth’s, meaning it would take 1.3 planet earth’s to sustain human needs. Ecological footprint measures human demands for earth’s resources against the planet’s ability to regenerate and sustain those resources for the future. The World Wildlife Federation (WWF), meanwhile, claims that the human footprint has exceeded available natural resources by more than 20 percent.

By assessing a population’s ecological footprint, it is hoped that it will lead to better, more sustainable practices. By comparing how fast humans consume resources and produce waste to how fast nature can regenerate resources and absorb our waste using current technology, we can hope to use our resources in more environmentally sustainable ways as well as prevent over-consumption. The Global Ecological Footprint Network provides more details on the accounting methods used to calculate ecological footprint. The total ecological footprint is measured as a combination of six factors: carbon footprint, grazing footprint, fishing ground footprint, forest footprint, cropland footprint as well as built-up land.

World Map of Countries by Ecological Footprint

Reducing Ecological Footprint

The task of reducing humanity’s ecological footprint is both daunting and imperative. If we continue to use resources faster than nature’s ability to regenerate, it will ultimately lead to an unsustainable future. While improving technology will help offset humanity’s demand on nature, individuals as well as organizations must do their part in reducing our ecological footprint. Recycling and reducing our energy use will help lessen our needs. Furthermore, utilizing environmentally friendly products and sustainable life-practices, we can help bring our ecological footprint more in line with earth’s ability to regenerate.