Sustainability is the use of global resources at a rate that allows natural regeneration and minimizes damage to the environment. Humans are biological organisms who are a part of the ecology on earth, where we depend on other organisms for resources to consume and develop more things and as the cycle goes on we humans impact the globe and that impact of humans is the ecological footprint.The consequences or impacts of human activities on the globe is an ecological footprint while sustainability is very different. Sustainability is where natural systems function with diverse organisms and keep the ecology balanced.
The two things that contribute most to my ecological footprint are travelling via airplanes and food waste. I travel very regularly from boarding school in Singapore to India and back while also having many vacations to far off countries throughout the year. The travel sector accounts for 8% of global carbon emissions and this is expected to grow at the rate of 4% per year. Airplanes use a lot of fossil fuels and release a lot of greenhouse gases that damages the atmosphere. Traveling leads to pollution, depletion of resources, damages the ecosystem and destroys habitats. Travel add’s 73% to my carbon footprint.
Another of my bad habits is food waste. I live in a boarding house and the storage is shared and it’s not very easy to keep food fresh so I waste a lot of food. Food waste contributes to pollution. The energy need to grow food like fuels for tractors and other machines and also the greenhouse gases released from these machines into the atmosphere, fertilizers and water are all getting wasted and damaging the earth.
Some approaches that I have researched into to help me travel more sustainably are conserving the natural environment of the destination, supporting local businesses by staying in eco-hostels and eating locally, taking direct flights, supporting cultural projects or taking part in carbon offset programmes. A few other ways are choosing sustainable airlines, taking economy class and smaller flights. Staying longer in the destinations, doing more local things, eating less meat, disposing waste properly and carrying a water bottle instead of buying disposable bottles would make a trip more sustainable. A few sustainable airlines that I can use are Delta airlines, Alaska airlines and Cathay Pacific.
I learnt that my food goes bad easily because there’s enzymes and hormones in them like ethylene. Ethylene is a natural plant hormone released in the form of gas. It triggers cells to degrade, change taste, droop or sproute. While some fruits and vegetables are high ethylene producers others are more sensitive to it. The easy way to avoid this is by separating foods which are ethylene producers from the sensitive ones. Ethylene promotes ripening in foods and leads to spoilage. Some foods that produce ethylene while ripening are bananas, avocados, tomatoes, peaches, pears and green onions. Ethylene sensitive foods are potatoes, apples, leafy greens, berries and peppers. Some other things that lead to spoilage are microorganisms, moisture, air and oxygen which can be prevented by using sealed boxes and proper storage. Only 12.7% of food waste output is recycled. Other ways to recycle food are by using it as fertilizers and compost or using it as a skin product like using apples, coffee or potatoes as face packs.
If I have to make one permanent change to my lifestyle it would be to recycle my food waste and store it properly according to ethylene consistencies. It is an easier change and I can use food for various of my other needs like night creams and plant composts. I will also book more sustainable flights and plan my vacations more locally with less distance sto travel or longer stays.