In my last blog, I mentioned the potential dawn of a new epoch - the Anthropocene - thanks to humans like you and me.
I found myself asking, “How am I contributing to this?” So, starting last Sunday, I began to note how I contributed to this.
Being a vegetarian implies that I do not consume livestock, but what about milk? And all the wonderful dairy products like ice creams, cheese and milk chocolate. Milk implies cows, and therefore methane!
Let’s move on. Those gadgets. I am scared to open this one drawer. That’s where I dumped my old computer. And the charger for that computer. And old phone models. And chargers for those old phone models. Broken headsets. Chords and extensions. Where will all this end up finally? And how much did extract and mine to build all this?
Beyond the gadgets - the plastics. The ziplocks I grab to pack apple slices. And the chips. And sandwiches. And then the plastic forks when I dig into my food or the plastic straws as I sip my drink! And then I dump them. Why? It’s convenient- but hey, I am recycling, right? But plastic suffocates and kills marine life. So there you go!
And then water - how long do I wait for the water to reach the right temperature, be it while taking a shower or while washing hands? How much water do I drain and waste when there are so many places on this planet where water is such a precious resource?
And then those clothes that I have outgrown. Some are in as good as new conditions because of growth spurts. It’s a shame because some were my favorites, and I still want to somehow fit in them, but I cannot. Where will they end up, finally?
And the paper that I consume daily - the tests, science fair posters, articles in print, homework assignments—all these come from trees that are scarce resources! Despite being in Silicon Valley, the center of the digital revolution, it is mind-boggling how much paper a high schooler consumes and uses daily.
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