Last week’s protest in Charlottesville Va and the weak response from President Trump have opened a lot of eyes to the reality of racism in America. It is an ugly issue that cannot be ignored. During the past 5 years, we have witnessed numerous accounts of police brutality against minorities, physical assaults on women and even attempts to roll back the voting rights of the disenfranchised. We have also witnessed the Presidents denial of reports from scientists on how humans are contributing to the effects of climate change. The effects of climate change are felt more on the poor and…
Author: Thomas Sheffield
The climate change issue is a human rights, public health and social fairness issue. It is an issue that was a crisis we all thought was something we must think about tomorrow. It is evident the crisis is here today and we must deal with it now. If you read the headlines, we hear about heat waves, wild fires and floods in our country. Ignoring the facts and not acting, will affect all Americans, however, the effects will be felt more by those least able to cope with, resist and recover from the worst consequences. The real danger is that…
Mother’s Day is here and I would like to challenge the way we see our mothers. I dare say moms are the ultimate sustainability experts. Too many mothers are forced to play the role of both mother and father. Men are also forced to play those roles too. However, for this article, I choose to discuss the traditional roles mothers play in the home. A mother’s love sustains us and they work tirelessly to ensure we live long productive lives. They instill in us our beliefs of innovation, recycling, eliminating waste, risk mitigation, charity and civic duty. Moms do…
Last week we were fortunate enough to celebrate Earth Day. Various events were held worldwide to demonstrate support for science and environmental protection. We should celebrate the planet every day. What can you do to keep that momentum? I had the pleasure of doing some research of some of the top ranking local gross revenue companies. Some were minority owned and owned by women. These businesses were leaders in their industry however, they were not leaders in sustainability. When asked, some did not even know what sustainability is. This is a sign there is a lot of work to do in our city…
The Associated Press has reported that there are a vast array of pharmaceuticals including antibiotics, ibuprofen, mood stabilizers and sex hormones have been found in the drinking water supplies of at least 41 million Americans. Although the concentrations of these drugs are tiny, just knowing these are in our water is rather disheartening. If we consider what it takes to bring clean water to our homes, we can see it is not an easy task. There are miles of pipeline hidden below the ground. The water goes from the source(lakes and rivers) to the plant where it is tested and…
Not even a month into the new administration, and stress levels for many are at an all time high. One day after the inauguration, millions of women across the globe marched for the protection of our civil rights. There was a ban placed to limit refugees and immigrants from entering the country which sparked numerous protests again. The president nominated a new Supreme Court Justice. A global gag rule was reinstated denying women access to safe family planning that includes the option of abortion. A protest a UC Berkley resulted in a threat to cut federal funding. #climatefacts became…
You can believe what you want. But when our leaders believe things based upon “alternative facts”, we all lose. It is horrifying that the government does not believe in climate change. Climate change is not a hoax. It is not made up. The subject is backed up by scientific facts. According to NASA.gov, in article featured on their web site January 18,2017, 2016 was the warmest year on record. It beat the warmest record set just one year before in 2015. That broke the record set in 2014. That is a trend that cannot be denied. No one is effected…
Health and health care are big issues for our community. Last year, my family decided we did not like how we were feeling so we changed our diets. We began eating more fruits, vegetables, rice, fruit smoothies and beans. We removed meat, bread, sugar, caffeine, sodas and dairy products from our diets. I was under the impression I could not do without any of those items. I grew up on meat and bread. I love cheese and coffee so this was a big switch for me. It is now time to get back at it. I have a challenge for…
My opinion is, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was the greatest American ever. Sustainability is a term not used during Dr. King’s time. I do believe he would have endorsed the concepts sustainability promotes. The definition of sustainability is to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. I dare take it a little further. Sustainability is improving the quality of life and the value of the planet without hindering others now or in the future from doing the same. This definition ties into the definition of social justice. …
I am a proponent of environmental justice. According to the EPA, environmental justice is the fair treatment of all people regardless of race, color or income with respect to the development, implementation and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations and policies. We will have environmental justice when everyone enjoys the same degree of protection from environmental and health hazards and equal access to the decision making process to have a healthy environment to live learn and work. A clean environment is the great equalizer. It seems as if society is afraid of the value our communities will bring when we are…