One of my favourite children's authors is Meredith Sayles Hughes for her "Plants We Eat!" series of highly engaging children's books about different sorts of fruits, nuts, legumes, tubers, veggies, etc food groups: https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?p=GLS&u=ubcolumbia&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE%7CH1000322311&retrievalId=f34d59b8-0dd4-4169-8d0d-c140a86b440d&inPS=true&linkSource=interlink&sid=bookmark-LitRC She and her husband research and write about foods - especially plant foods! Another favourite author is James Solheim, who wrote, "It's Disgusting -- And We Ate It!" about historical and current food trivia about unusual and strange unconventional food sources. Kids love it! https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?ty=as&v=2.1&u=ubcolumbia&it=DIourl&s=RELEVANCE&p=LitRC&qt=TI~%22James+Solheim%22~~IB~9780787639952&lm=&sw=w I wish we had copies in our Education Library! I suppose I should be pro-active and make some formal requests! I saw a documentary about the prevalence of palm oil monocultures in parts of the world. Is this an ecologically sound and healthy practice? Or is it not? What is the state of agriculture in today's world? Are we learning lessons from biodiverse ecological environments? Are monocultures unhealthy? Or are they economically efficient? Is productivity and profit the main reason for monocultures? Intuitively, we understand that a biodiverse ecosystem is a healthy one - so do we need to question our modus operandi in agriculture and food production? What alternatives can we explore together?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMdnjGQQlQU

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2214993719300089 Beware of claims that plastics can be recycled and are thus innocuous to human and creature and environmental health. Yes, closed loop recycling works wherever plastic alternatives will simply not be manageable. But we need a ban on all careless use of plastics globally ASAP. There are extremely few rare applications for when plastics use are relevant and necessary. Can you name a few? According to Google October 26, 2023: Although the use of plastics in automobile manufacturing debuted before WW2, by the 1950s most cars were still made entirely out of steel. However, over the decades that followed, plastics became favourable due to their low-cost, lighter weight, and increased safety during an accident compared to an all-steel frame. It is only imperative that plastics be used in certain makes of Marine Grade Hardware and Equipment, such as Pelican Cases that float in water, protecting expensive equipment like non-waterproof film photography equipment, cell phones, cameras, scientific measuring instruments, etc. Only where synthetic textiles and plastics are employed to withstand corrosive environments (such as ocean salt), to enhance floatation and imperviousness to salt water, generally, the qualities of plastics and synthetic fibres lend themselves well to certain specific Marine applications only. As a whole, plastics should be treated as hazardous materials, due to https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0304389420305859 According to Google October 26, 2023: Some VOCs are known carcinogens, meaning they can cause cancer in people. Others are suspected carcinogens, meaning they are thought to cause cancer in people, but more research is needed. For example: Benzene is known to cause leukemia, especially acute myelogenic leukemia. It is said by doctors that my late Dad died of bone marrow cancer - very likely he was exposed to benzenes from things like synthetic carpet, vinyl placemats, plastic kettles, plastics in automobiles and boats, deep freezers lined with plastic, drinking out of plastic thermos cups, party cups, etc due to his "sports fishing habit"and our general ignorance of how harmful they could turn out to be. Early in our new immigrant lives in Nanaimo, BC, there was not yet an effluent treatment centre removing dioxins at our local pulp mills, but at least now, in Cedar BC, there is. We ate seafood because it was "free" for the harvest and my parents and our family friends were willing to work to harvest it. The sad thing is, it didn't seem to take very much exposure to such VOCs to compromise my late Dad's health after only 67 years of life. It is said by doctors that my late Mom died of breast cancer, too. Same might be said about her history of exposure; she died at 68, about a year and a half after my late Dad's death.

The more I think about the chemical potentially carcinogenic environment we grew up in, the more I believe it is very likely I lost both my parents to such types of harmful chemicals as dioxins, voc's and benzenes. Harvesting crabs, oysters, and clams in proximity to the pulp mill before the dioxin treatment centre was installed? New car smell? Deep freezer odours? Microwaving food in plastic lunch containers? Mothballs? Synthetic air freshners? Mom's shoe polish for her work shoes? My mom used bleach (I never do) in laundry and even on white formica kitchen countertops and we might have even had our sofa fabrics and carpets treated with scotchguard; the worst thing I tried to do was treat my winter jacket with scotchguard to keep it water-repellent. Do the little things matter? Certainly, they can add up... In my home environment, it certainly does! It smells clean, not synthetic! Can we do without plastic and noxious chemicals in many cases? What can we substitute in place of plastics? Will glass, or ceramic, or wood, or bamboo, or textile fibres, or stainless steel be better in place of many plastic items? Instead of bleach, I put 10-20 drops of tea trea oil into 2 cups of water and shake it up to clean my toilet and bathroom. Tea Tree Oil is a natural plant-based antiseptic. Instead of chemical cleaners, I use baking soda, vinegar, and detergent in a 1:1:1 ratio to clean heavy grease stains. I still use Vim liquid to clean my bathtub about once every 3.5 weeks; does anyone have alternative suggestions? I've switched from bottled dish detergent to cube/block dish soap in concentrated solid form No plastic bottles of body wash for me; I use bar soap instead; unfortunately, I have not weened myself off of hair shampoo in plastic bottles, yet, but I am quite willing to try unpackaged solid bar soap hair shampoo as soon as I can get my hands on some and give it a try. I support my bike sharing community (ShawMobiGo), and I hope to support my car sharing community (Modo/Evo), too, once I reinstate my DL, but only as undeniably needed. When something breaks, like my blender, I buy a used version of what I already have so that I can salvage all the spare parts for repair or replacement. I sleep on the floor, Korean & Japanese style, on a 4 inch thick floor mattress - the floor serves as an immense side table for books, drinking glasses, eyeglasses, tissues, etc. I don't need furniture for my bedroom beyond a floor mattress with pillows/blankets. It's also safer for infants (they won't fall or roll off the bed), toddlers, children and especially seniors who want to maintain mobility by using their balance and coordination every morning and night to get up and out of or get down and into bed! Same applies to sitting on the floor at low tables! Any other ideas and suggestions? I'd love to hear them! I've discovered - not by choice, but by circumstance - that I much more value the luxury of time than having lots of money! https://www.themuse.com/advice/the-7-best-ways-to-invest-your-time

Below is an example of a draft letter I wrote to one of our famous grocery store brand companies. Here goes my draft/test copy of my letter to the Wonderbread Company, Makers of D'Italiano Bread: 1425 The Queensaway Etobicoke, ON M8Z 1T3 Thank you, D'Italiano, for making the BEST soft baked bread made of excellent ingredients in grocery stores across Unceded First Nations Territories colloquially and colonially known as Canada! Just so you know, though plastic textile bags are temporarily beautiful for protecting the lovely D'ITALIANO Commercial Brand soft baked bread from moderate to heavy rains in cold seasons; rarely in warm seasons; in what is colonially and colloquially known as Vancouver, BC Canada; on Unceded Traditional Coast Salish Territories; where I currently live - I wonder if we can find less harmful alternatives to plastics? I am trying for a 99.9% (rough estimate = “cc” = for “concept conveyance”) global ban on new plastics (just not on reused or recycled plastic products) with a plastics processing fee to sponsor plastic thermolysis as needed to clean the oceans of debris,, recycling only as needed and mitigating waste plastics.  The plastics ban would help people in other parts of the world who are coping with plastic waste debris on our land and in our oceans that has been interfering with the beauty, the people, the creatures, and the ethno-geo-bio-eco-logical life systems that we are collectively trying to steward and protect - BECAUSE Earth's Natural Healthy Ecology and Healthy Biology and Wonderful Geology and Dynamic Physics and Surprising Chemistry IS FOR OUR HOME & HEARTH & FOR OUR HEALTH - ideally for EVERY BODY. Resources and Tools and Home-Building were understood with observations of THE TAO and Holy Spirit of Divine Teaching and Love in Mary2Mary Jesus2Joseph and so on, through CREATOR’s DIVINE INTERVENTION, EARTH’S Natural Resources were processed to produce our best and finest endurable homes & essential goods made from “the stuff of the earth”, but the Pyramids of Egypt, the remnants of Ancient buildings, though a part remains, never stays new forever unless…. Unless forever is meant to be Simplicity and Elegance, known as Zen/Chan/Tien School of Buddhism (which may include understanding of “wabi sabi” as natural effects of living and progressing through time as we pursue our activities and understanding of daily life) GOD WANTS TO BE ALL GOOD and UNDERSTANDING and MERCIFUL for Good Healthy Living of All Creatures who live for moments of Blissful, Peaceful, Serene, Exuberant, Happy, EnJOYment of LIFE and LOVE thanks to Creator, Truth, Good Life, Good Spirits, Jesus/Yesu/Yasu/Essa/ Esja and Heaven’s Angels and our many good learners & teachers!  There is a reason, season and purpose for everything on Earth and every Living Being in and of and under the Heavens' The Blest Machine from Akinori Ito’s Inspiration and Understanding will help us convert plastic refuse into blended fuels, but only until such time a 99% ban on new plastics is achieved GLOBALLY.  By then, and as we progress, Blest Machine might well be used only as needed and necessary to deal with the global pandemic of plastic waste to transform the remaining 1% plastic materials among all other materials used globally to make essential household goods (only a vague estimation for quick cc or “concon”) by turning it into blended fuel using the Blest Machine, along with many other plastic waste mitigation strategies that I hope will be truly sustainable. But!  Before relying on Mr. Akinori Ito's Blest Machine, WE SHOULD reuse plastics until the end of their usefulness so that it can’t be used for anything other than recycling.  For example, we can give our extra food containers and jars to bulk food refill stores, and also scissor plastic bread bags and other food grade textile packaging into useful shapes and sizes for wrapping and unwrapping foods placed or removed for/from storage in the kitchen or fridge or freezer or outdoor kitchen storage areas; remnants of unusable plastic bag scraps can be placed inside another clean used plastic bag for assembling “packaging cushions” - washed to cleanliness - for shipping and mailing. CLEAN stuff like bunched up crumpled paper, plastic wrappers, foil candy wrappers, foil plastic potato chip bags, and other lightweight flexible packaging materials may become lightly voluminous when balled up purposefully into a clean plastic bag used for storage until they can be used as shipping cushions for things like furniture and other items that need protection for safe ground or freight delivery. Thank you for sharing and caring by making & distributing for purchase the D'ITALIANO BREAD from Wonder Bread - the best commercial brand of soft bread in Canada i have tasted so far!  And I hope your business will prosper more as the zeitgeist is changing as people are searching for plastic free alternatives as excellent options in the food packaging protection industry! Can your employees explore conceptual designs for non-plastic packaging for D’Italiano baked breads - for example, the finest option of "real, natural honey bees' wax food wrap", or "organic soya oil wax wrap" or " sunflower oil wax wrap" and all other hard wax-covered clean cloths used for biodegradable food grade packaging?  "Bast" fibre clean cloths dipped in food grade waxes like beeswax, made to wrap/unwrap or protect/uncover bread and other foods and food containers, can become structural with cold temperatures as it stiffens due the nature of wax in hot and cold. Is it possible, at least for a limited time, as a trial product run for Earth Day or as a test pilot project at an Environmental Sustainability Fair for Children. The challenge for the children would be to design a beeswax wrapper style and structure for the D'Italiano soft bread to be wrapped creatively and functionally and imaginatively in wax cloth wrap instead of plastic bags as a consumer/shoppers' kitchen demonstration and marketing project? If plastic bags absolutely MUST be used, they can be cut into custom shapes and secured snuggly with a rubber band or string. ALL TOGETHER NOW for this beautiful gem of a planet Earth Creator Blessed for us to Steward and Protect For Each And Another and All In Togetherness' Understanding, Happiness and Joy. CAVEAT: Sorry if there are any misleading errors in writing, speech, or ideas! For Home and Land and For Our Food, We Thank You Creator God of the Universe For Your Awesome Love and Perfect Care As Exemplified By Jesus And For Teachers of Compassion and Mercy - like Jesus and Guru Nanak; And Teacher of Moderation and Contrast of Opposites of Nature that find simple and sophisticated words to describe “The Dao” that Cannot Be Named (words sometimes fail to describe the full understanding of Creator God); like Guru Nanak, the Original Teacher of Sikhism who exemplified “Love others, be vigilant and pray to Creator of the Universe, and be good to your neighbour” And of course, Creator God Sent Creator’s Divine Holy Spirit of Goodness to all these Teachers so that through sending the Holy Spirit to Jesus, Mary & Joseph, we might, like them, also receive the gifts of God’s Divine Spirit in each and every one of ALL our hearts! Sincerely, Czarina Michelle Lim Carlos Gutierrez #510 - 1601 West 7th Avenue, Vancouver Unceded Traditional Coast Salish Territories BC Canada V6J 0E2 Unceded First Nations Traditional Territories ethnobiolife@gmail.com PS - Comments and Ideas for Improvement will be heard or read, but I cannot guarantee that I will always follow everyone else's advice! Cheers!

Stop Overthinking - Beautiful Relaxing Music for Stress Relief, Mindful Escapes, Calm Your Mind #3,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gAsaeXzyi4 Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!

All relevant; just different aspects of the overall vision we hope to understand and some day achieve or at least realize or witness the fruition of these inter-related ideas for Sustainable Agriculture and Organic Farming to become standard practice rather than the exceptional better choice. Unfortunately, the standard for what constitutes "organic" produce varies according to the produce/product growing conditions and there's a wide variety of certification standards all with variance in compliance standards. It has, quite frankly, just become another word meaning "better and less harmful than conventional" or "closer to the ideal of ecologically and socially sound practice to enhance our quality of life, health, and biodiversity" rather than something we can comprehensively understand for holistic health practices in producing an agricultural product - unless we take the time and effort to speak with the farmers and growers and workers themselves - and quite frankly, who has the means and time and ways to do this? Maybe, to encourage ourselves, it might be worthwhile to do this in our local farms and vineyards and fisheries? Ask questions and encourage producers to share how much more thoughtful we've all become, and how we have enhanced or changed our practices for the better - thanks to the organic foods and textiles and sustainable forestry movements.

With regards to transportation vehicle manufacturers selling vehicles in the country of Germany, the German Government requires vehicle manufacturers to "buy back" their vehicles when they reach the end of their useful repairable life time. This is legislated to encourage the assessment of design durability, wear & tear, mechnical & electrical & engine failures, salvagability, and recyclability, for the sake of Corporate Social and Ecological Sustainability which might lead to overall improvements in vehicle design and manufacturing practices well into the future.

Have Jar & Lid; will travel! Transforming my closest neighbours' consumer tendencies to accept their favourite beverages in single use disposable plastic drink cups was as simple as giving a gift of intention and purpose: one clean glass pasta sauce jar with lid! We talked of all the reasons why carrying a glass jar with a lid is a good way to avoid consuming single use disposable plastic cups and packaging. My neighbours, I was pleased to discover, actually welcomed the gentle nudge. They already knew that we meant well to move forward in the right direction towards sustainability.

In some cases, some Indigenous peoples shun implements such as axes, rifles, machetes and other tools from colonial settlers.  I found some very good videos on the difficulties some tribes are struggling with, like illegal mining causing environmental damage and even homicide when tensions get bad: Amazon | This is how the most isolated tribe lives(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEInrMWqVsw) Texaco's Destruction Of The Amazon's Hidden Tribes(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UImgL4hRu0I) Texaco and the state petroleum company in Equador should be sued billions upon billions for damaging the traditional lands of the Indigenous peoples and for causing cancer and other diseases due to toxic environment and water. But it’s not enough to only pay money; the toxicity in the environment that has caused illness and death needs to be cleaned up COMPLETELY IMMEDIATELY!

These ideas apply generally in most circumstances, but circumstances and special needs always rule our decisions and choices! We can mend our clothes and darn our socks if one is listening to music or watching TV or having a seated, relaxed conversation with a friend or family member; We can wash our clothes in COLD water and use only 3 TBSP of laundry powder for a heavy load; less if the load is lighter; We can bikeshare, carshare, book-share, tool-share, space-share, clothes-swap, hand-me-down, and generally free ourselves of clutter; Soap is highly concentrated to reduce shipping and storage costs, so please DILUTE your cleaning agents with generous amounts of water - the more dilute the cleaning solution, the more effective it is; in fact, water is the universal solvent - soap is merely an additive we can introduce when cleaning tasks become more onerous due to the passage of time and the stubborness of stains. Cardboard laundry soap containers are generally more eco-friendly than plastic laundry containers, even though they are made of recyclable HDPE2! A great recipe for degreaser that cleans stubborn stains and doesn't harm the environment: one part vinegar: one part dish soap: one part baking soda; As amateur materials scientists, WE ALL learn intuitively through our experiences as we try out things we have invested in with our precious time, attention, and hard-earned money. Somethings fail, somethings serve to some degree, and some things exceed our expectations. Here are a few tips from my engineer Dad and our industrial design family friends and our nutritional researchers: Only after careful deliberation and reflection on Someone's 7th Generation Decision/Purchase Assessment Strategy, when we buy an appliance or tool or piece of equipment, we must also assess the mechanical virtues (mechanical simplicity is best) of its design; the fewer moving parts there are in a design, the less likely it will break and need to be repaired. Human beings can only absorb maximum nutritional benefit from one palm-sized portion of meat proteins per day. When we buy groceries and other items, we try to opt for the sustainability hierarchy of packaging materials for Vancouver, BC: • from best to least favourable: 1) nothing; 2) paper wrappers, paper cartons and paper cardboard; 3) aluminum or glass (it's a tie); 4) tin or metal; 5) plastics • can you or someone else re-use the container or packages your food (or other items) come in? • is a bag or container necessary for safe transport and storage of your food (or other) item(s)? • can you bring your own containers and bags from home for refill? • can you make your own bulk food storage bags from clothing remnants at home? • can you invest in a durable and well-designed grocery store trolley bag with wheels instead of relying on power operated motor vehicles? Books worth reading: The man who started it all in my life with regards and respect for the environment is a writer named Victor J Papanek who wrote "The Green Imperative"; The woman who opened my eyes to the challenges and grave problems of the BP Gulf of Mexico Macondo Incident Oil Spill is a writer named Antonia Juhasz who wrote "Black Tide"; The writer who is my "stand in" grampie - when my own were half a world away in the Philippines and now deceased - is Robert L Fulghum who wrote several good light-hearted, entertaining, and good-humoured books!

Heart to heart, the beauty of Nature is awe-inspiring and the adorable little creatures are also very endearing. To instill the value of connection with nature for its intrinsic value, we need to spend time in and among our favourite Earthly elements. Fortunately, there are eco-conscious transportation options available for accessing Nature's parks and "snow gardens" as I like to call ski resorts. Backcountry snowshoeing is free at Cypress Mountain (no lift ticket required - the only lift you get is that of your own two legs making gains on the heights of Black Mountain) and there's a shuttle bus that leaves from Vancouver Art Gallery in the morning that costs about $27 round trip where you can leave the driving to the bus operator. Snow shoe rentals are available at https://yescycle.com/snowshoes-rental-vancouver/ (https://yescycle.com/snowshoes-rental-vancouver/) Carpooling with friends using a private car, Uber, https://www.poparide.com/ (https://www.poparide.com/)or Taxi is also a good idea. This video was taken during Covid; great views and highly oxygenated air were the benefits of this "social distancing" precaution. https://photos.app.goo.gl/Cpd4radwAM7J64KD8 https://photos.app.goo.gl/pFwA4NVQXU9dfJZK6 I am sharing this in hopes that everyone will take advantage of the chance to visit the sea to mountain beauty of Vancouver, BC - Unceded Traditional Coast Salish Territories! And I am sharing this because this place is so beautiful and we are very privileged to live here! I only hope that by sharing this recreational opportunity, that it will help more people to value Earth for its intrinsic value!

https://photos.app.goo.gl/V7BHERXSwp6Kqtq36 Snowshoeing and maintaining safe distances during Covid lockdown... You know how much automobile and heavy cargo transportation costs us in terms of material, logistical, human time & effort consumption? When greenhouse gases go unexploited as a harnessable natural energy source and carbon monoxide is emitted in the air, we have to cope with the potential harms of climatic warming. We've been told about potential flooding due to rising sea levels, for example. We've been told about weather disturbances potentially causing serious habitat destruction. A sign of good health here in Vancouver Canada is the snowline being visible throughout the summer; a warning sign for all of us, when there is no snow in the North Shore mountains throughout the summer season, we are in for low water reservoir levels and more chlorine (causing poorer water quality). When we minimize our carbon footprint and find alternative transportation solutions (seeking solutions beyond driver only daily commutes - like carpooling solutions and carpooling apps), we make way for valuable water sources to last throughout the summers without drying up. We are so fortunate here in Vancouver Canada to enjoy a very high standard for water quality. Tap water is all we need, for most water purposes, because our tap water is the "glacier sourced champagne" of water supplies! Let's find ways to reduce our carbon footprint and lower our impact when we look for transportation solutions! This also means reducing our dependency on industrial processes that have significant environmental impacts, such as mining and petroleum fuel and plastics industries. So, let's welcome winter and the winter snowfalls! Let's welcome the rain for our rainforest climate! These are the reasons why we enjoy such a high quality water supply!

In my weekly posts, I will share some great videos I have found on my journey to a better future for our children and our children's children...the Seventh Generation Impact Assessment Decision Making Guideline is a great way to assess long-term value in terms of benefits and long-term ecological impacts when deciding to make a purchase. How does it work? Ask yourself, how will this purchase/decision impact my family seven generations down the line? After a very public series of failures, with Maersk and Kia among many other sponsors, Ocean Cleanup recently celebrated the biggest haul of plastic ocean waste without any ocean life casualties! 13,875 KG of Trash Out Of The Ocean | Three Latest System 002 Extractions | The Ocean Cleanup,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5ZEA-RhvCo This is a very "moving" success, especially among those who saw this endeavour through many past failures! If at first you don't succeed, try, try, try again! Especially if it's a Seventh Generation sort of endeavour or benefit! Charcoal Made from Human Poop Is Great for BBQ Grilling | New York Post,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rS9H18MW7kg This Kenyan company makes fuel from human poo | Pioneers for Our Planet,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SyOJMUcWMo Giving "crap" a new meaning in life...how can we minimize the burning of fossil fuels and the cutting of trees in Africa? Are there any objections to this sort of cooking fuel?