• Good Ancestors and Messengers of Hope
    Jul 12 2023
    Nowadays news travel at an incredible speed and there is bad news everywhere because, yes, we are not taking care of the planet and our health as we should. What we know for sure is that humans are one of the main driving forces of environmental and health crises. Luckily, it’s not the situation we live in that defines us; it’s how we choose to deal with every situation. We can turn a blind eye and cover the sun with one finger, missing our opportunity to be the guardians for tomorrow. Or we can strive to leave a positive legacy for future generations recognizing we are in debt to future generations. It might not be “easy”, but it is very “simple”: it’s all about ensuring that our actions today don't compromise future generations’ well-being or the resources they will need to thrive. Together, choosing wisely, we can accomplish great things for the benefit of people, future generations, and the planet. Let Sir. David Attenborough’s words be clear and loud: “There has been no species remotely clever as homo sapiens, let us live up to that name”.
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    1 hr
  • Nature, Your Partner for Long-Term Wellbeing
    Jul 5 2023
    Development, poor urban planning, and the disappearance of green and open spaces for sports and leisure have also diminished our contact with nature. We have never been so in need of a healthy planet to ensure our own well-being and prosperity. Of course, all-natural elements affect us… so the most important question we should be asking ourselves is how does our environment affect us? Spending time outdoors makes us more mindful of what we see, what we hear, what we smell, and how we feel, and can increase our problem-solving skills and improve our creative capabilities. Science is demonstrating that green and natural environments are a fundamental pathway to human health. Our highest goal should be to incorporate the connection between nature and human health and well-being into policy and practice. We can develop better health and sustainability policies by listening to people and community voices, understanding their perspectives on health and well-being, and inviting their participation in designing their own road map to achieve a healthier lifestyle. Remember that you have a choice: you can do nothing and let things the way they are, or you can strive for a better world. How would you like to see yourself in the future?
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    1 hr
  • The Rights of Nature
    Jun 28 2023
    The Rights of Nature is an intriguing idea that invites us to rethink our relationship with nature. We often talk about the importance of protecting the environment, but recognizing the rights of nature takes it to a whole new level. It's about acknowledging that nature has intrinsic value and deserves legal protection, just like any individual or community. Its goal is to balance benefits for human beings, ecosystems, and the planet as a whole. When an ecosystem is declared a “subject of rights,” it has the right to be legally represented by a guardian who will act on its behalf and in its best interest. This guardian is typically an individual or a group of individuals that understand, care for, and manage the said ecosystem. There are some challenges regarding the implementation of the rights of nature, but there is also a growing worldwide recognition of nature's rights. To overcome these challenges, we will need innovative legal and political thinking, interdisciplinary collaboration, and global cooperation and coordination. But you should know and understand that you have a choice and a voice to claim nature’s rights… you just need to be aware of the problem and willing to be part of the solution… Just imagine being remembered by your grandchildren as one of the leaders that composed the “Universal Declaration for the Rights of Nature”.
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    1 hr
  • Disconnection… in the Communications Age?
    Jun 21 2023
    Even though civilizations have always urbanized and made some part of their lives indoors, in the past three decades we have shifted the way societies settle, produce, consume, and interact which has triggered a massive disconnection from the natural world. For the first time in history, most people live in cities with the trend toward urbanization going up. Our education models, urban planning, and social values highlight achievement in the human-made world rather than cultivating an appreciation for nature. Today, we are more disconnected from nature than we were a century ago, and this disconnection is one of the proposed root causes of unsustainability. The concept of nature has shrunk in our collective imagination and cultural conversation. We spend most of our time indoors, engaged with screens and gadgets, living a fast-paced life centered on immediate satisfaction. Life has become more comfortable indoors, so it's easy to become satisfied and forget the beauty and benefits of the natural world. The truth is that our bonding with nature nurtures us in every possible way and we have never been so in need of a healthy planet to ensure our own well-being and prosperity. Join us to understand the reasons for our disconnection from nature in this age of communications and what are the consequences of this increasing disconnection. There are things YOU can do to reconnect and be mindful of how you use digital technology. It is all about rediscovering the benefits that the natural world and being mindful of your time have to offer.
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    1 hr
  • Is What You Eat Damaging the Environment?
    Jun 14 2023
    Food loss and waste is considered a global problem of economic, environmental, and social impact. On a global scale, 1.3 billion tons of food in good condition is thrown away. On one hand, more than 800 million people in the world go hungry every day and, yet every day we throw away perfectly edible food. On the other hand, uneaten food is the largest component of municipal solid waste, which decomposes and rots releasing greenhouse gases, contributing to approximately 8 to 10% of all global emissions. Our current food production and consumption model is damaging us from every possible flank: it has a negative impact on human health and is the major driver of climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution, and drastic changes in land and water use. What we eat is undoubtedly related to human health and environmental sustainability, and because of that link, our diets have the potential to nurture both. Food loss and waste can improve food security and nutrition, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and lower pressure on water and land resources, which will contribute to improved productivity and economic growth. Join us to understand everything behind food loss and waste and to learn some of the things YOU can do to turn the trends and be part of the solution.
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    1 hr
  • Your Body Your Health
    Jun 7 2023
    Considering the current health crisis, it seems that living sick and fatigued has become our “new reality”. The number of people dealing with chronic or autoimmune conditions is on the rise and doctors cannot explain the root cause of certain conditions, so they are labeled as uncurable. However, we feel relieved because -at least- we have a name for each one of them. What is the culprit of this new set of mysterious diseases? Many fingers will point at your body. Mainstream will tell you that, as your body has gone “crazy”, you will need pills for the rest of your life to conceal your symptoms. Sadly, we are missing the most important key player in this health crisis: we are not paying attention to what we are putting in, on, and around our bodies. And in this blinded race to health, we keep overlooking the most basic of all root causes: “Toxic and nutrient-deficient foods and environments will build a toxic and nutrient-deficient body”.
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    1 hr
  • Can Soils Die?
    May 31 2023
    Healthy living soils are one of the most biodiverse ecosystems on the planet. Just a gram of healthy garden soil contains more microorganisms than there are people on Earth. Healthy soils have a huge effect on the human body and entire ecosystems: they are the foundation of human health and well-being, are great carbon sinks, and regulate hydrological processes. However, as the soil is a living organism, it can also die… every minute we lose the equivalent of 30 football fields of fertile soil. On the scale of a human lifetime, soils are a non-renewable resource because soil formation is such a slow process: it takes hundreds of years to create an inch of soil whereas to lose one inch of soil, it won’t take a minute. Soil degradation is causing significant losses in biodiversity and ecosystem services and compromising the well-being of at least 3.2 billion people around the world. Healthy soils are part of the solution to some of our social, health and wellness, and environmental problems, and you have the power to protect them. There are things you can do as an individual that will give soils (and us) the chance to keep thriving.
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    1 hr
  • What Are We Losing When We Lose Biodiversity?
    May 24 2023
    “The Earth is our home. Unless we preserve the rest of life, as a sacred duty, we will be endangering ourselves by destroying the home in which we evolved, and on which we completely depend.” – Edward O. Wilson. The air we breathe, the food and water we eat and drink, the shelter we build, the clothes we wear, the goods we use, and the medicines we take – all these come from Earth’s rich and vast biological resources. However, within the last 500 years, humans have forced hundreds of species into extinction, and while the Earth has always experienced changes, over the last century, our activities have caused ecosystems to change at an unprecedented rate. This devastating rate of extinction is putting our planet in the midst of an accelerated sixth mass extinction event that otherwise would have taken thousands of years to happen. It has taken us a great effort to accept that everything is connected… and actually some of us still think we are isolated from the rest of the world. But there is still hope as whatever we do as individuals, families, and communities, adds to the global solution. The time to act is now and the world needs all you can give!
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    1 hr