Do you have a friend or relative that is a green preacher? When I say green preacher, I do not mean a person that is new to preaching. I mean a person that pushes sustainability. They are convinced we must take steps to save the planet. Honestly, I have not made sustainability a major concern. There is COVID-19, social justice, and the economy to worry about. Then Texas had a snowstorm and cold temperatures. Is this a sign that I should give sustainability more attention?

Activities we can do to benefit the environment include recycling, reducing the use of plastic, conserving water, saving electricity, and driving less. There are ways we can consume food to help save the planet. You have probably heard that processed food is unhealthy for your body. Did you also know that processed food is bad for the environment? The preparation of processed food produces greenhouse gases. Reducing your consumption of meat is not only healthy for you; it also helps the environment. Producing meat takes up land and increases greenhouse gases. I had to research why greenhouse gases are bad for the environment. Greenhouse gases can occur naturally; however, industrialization has caused an increase in greenhouse gases and this has helped to cause global warming.

Whenever possible purchase food that is locally produced. This reduces the amount of fuel needed to ship the food to the market. Consider drinking tap water in a refillable bottle instead of purchasing bottled water. Of course, you need to live in an area where the tap water is safe.

I currently do not follow everything on the list for sustainability. However, I plan to increase my sustainability activities to help save the planet. I could eat less meat and processed food. I love bottled water; however, I can recycle the plastic. Each of us could make small changes to benefit the planet. We could impact lives if we worked together.