Green Travels. Green Machines. Green Products. Green Energy. Everywhere you go, the world is becoming increasingly Eco-friendly, and with good reason. Our planet is in a state of peril where our children’s children will have a next to none chance of leaving on a livable planet, thanks to Global Warming.
For this reason, becoming more Eco-friendly and getting re-acquainted with our “grassroots” has become a staple in our popular culture, and has earned the #9 spot on my list.
The modern movement of “going green” began with many scientists growing concern about Global Warming. According to the film by Al Gore entitled The Inconvenient Truth, global warming is:
“Carbon dioxide and other gases warm the surface of the planet naturally by trapping solar heat in the atmosphere. This is a good thing because it keeps our planet habitable. However, by burning fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil and clearing forests we have dramatically increased the amount of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere and temperatures are rising.”
Because of the carbon dioxide in our atmosphere we start seeing strange things happening across our planet like the Arctic Ocean could be ice free by the summer of 2050.(Arctic Climate Impact Assessment.2004) and global sea levels could rise by more than 20 feet with the loss of shelf ice in Greenland and Antarctica, resulting in the devastation in coastal areas worldwide(Washington Post)
Originally, the term for the movement is environmental economics, the term “Going green” is considered lingo for the convenience of the general public. It refers to the steps and actions taken by those who care about the environment to help preserve it, for as long as possible. This means reducing green house emissions, reducing the amount of pollution we create, using “environmentally friendly” products and of course energy conservation.
Though the concern to increase our environmental savvy has become ubiquitous in the last 8 years, it is only now that we are encountering the modern version of environmental movements.
The initial eco-friendly movement began in the seventies, back when most people’s parents sported bell-bottoms, peace signs, and long shaggy manes. Those individuals were cleverly coined “tree-huggers” due to their love for the environment, its inhabitants and its preservation. Back then they chained themselves to trees, or even took up residence in them. But today the average person can do their part even if it is small to help with the preservation of our planet, and countries and their governments are taking it seriously.
For example, in 1997 various governments gathered in Kyoto, Japan to discuss the issue of global warming. They had agreed to set new targets for reducing the emission of green house gases; stating that by 2012 their goal is to reduce the level of emissions of six green house gases to below the 1990 level.
In 2009, we are seeing the number of people putting forth great effort to being environmentally friendly. The fact that Media coverage of global warminng has used the fact that it saves consumers money to help reduce the harmful effects of global warming, has become a significant factor in the exponential growth of the movement.
Numerous companies from General Motors to Starbucks have realized it potential and now offer consumers products that are safe for the environment. There also many products at local grocery stores that have turned over a greener leaf, it has also sparked the creation of the Green Works cleaning products line.
With various companies beginning to be environmental issues at the forefront of their campaign, it is becoming even easier to Go Green, so if you haven’t started there’s no time like the present, its as easy as reading a label, or 1..2..3.. Just watch the video below and you’ll see!
