Green

I am taking a Sustainable Design class this semester. It teaches about all the ways we as designers can build green, energy efficient, and healthful environments for the building’s inhabitants with the use of Eco-friendlier materials. Even before this class I had started to become more aware of the issues we face with our environment and feel deeply that changes should be made in the ways we get our energy, the materials and products we use in every day life, and the ways we can handle their disposal. At home we have started a recycling bin and reuse things when we can, like glass bottles for water bottles and jars to store brown rice, quinoa, etc,  instead of throwing them away. We are involving the kids in the process and they really enjoy helping.

I don’t consider myself a tree hugger, but I am becoming more passionate about living healthier overall, with what you put into your body and the products you surround yourself with. I care about our planet. We were given this one earth to live in and cultivate and we are meant to be good stewards of God’s creation. That’s not the case though and we are destroying our planet faster than we think. And in the process we are hurting ourselves and our family’s health.

Yesterday in class, our teacher showed us a documentary film that talks about the steps it takes to process coal for energy use, and the effects it brings.  As I sat there watching, I choked back tears when it began showing the pollutant effects from the power plants. Children are developing serious neurological illnesses that they have no way to protect themselves from. It breaks my heart and makes me want to spread awareness.

This video is about an hour long, but I hope you will find the time to sit down and watch it, and maybe even share it with your family and friends.

“We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” -Albert Einstein