Share & Voice: Household Water Use

This youtube video is a public service announcement to help educate people on how to help conserve water use at their homes.  It goes beyond the common message of taking showers, and as the man in the video states: not many people make that change anyway.  One thing I found interesting but ultimately I can understand was that landscaping is the #1 use of water in the household.  It never seems to be the one I think of when I use water but whenever it is on, it does run constantly so those gallons of water can add up fast.  Take a look for yourself:

Share & Voice: Whole Foods

One of my favorite stores I have went in to in the last few months was Whole Foods.  There is a Whole Foods Co-Op in Duluth but as I discovered on a trip to Minneapolis that was just a sample of the main course.  The store I visited was located near the Uptown neighborhoods and I couldn't believe how big it was.  There were a lot of new and interesting products that I am very excited to try in the future, along with some really wonderful samples.  Here is a couple links to their website and wiki-page, and I encourage anyone who is interested in the store or learning more to check these out.


Whole Foods Website
Whole Foods Wiki


Two quick suggestions that you read on the wikipedia page are under "Whole Trade Guarantee" and "Environmental Record".  I think it is wonderful that any company would take the steps to help reduce the waste in our world as has been shown by Whole Foods.  They are a company that sets an example that we can all follow.

Share & Voice: Whole Foods + Pricing Power

Here is a link that has a 4-minute clip about the affect that food costs have on our stores and who can afford these new costs.  It is interesting to hear how the masses of people are affected my the recession, rising product costs, and how the company is still growing.

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Share & Voice: Monsanto

Here is an excellent 13 minute clip on how farmers have had to combat Monsanto's lawsuits.  Percy Schmeiser has developed and planted canola for 40 years, but because some of Monsanto's genetically modified seeds have spread and cross-pollinated with plants on his property, they now own the rights to his plants because of the patents on their products.  Listen here, and for more information on Monsanto, check their wikipedia page or search in google.  There is no shortage of information on this subject.

Share & Voice: Mediterranean Diet

During my time working at the American Heart Association and Duluth Area YMCA, I have spent a lot of time thinking about my own heart and long term health after seeing the affects both good and bad health can have on a persons life.  It has given me a lot of time to think about what my good and bad habits are in my diet as well.  I have considered for a while making a change like my sister has, although she went vegetarian and I wont be going that extreme.  I have decided to try an new diet.  The one that is standing out to me as one I would like to try is the Mediterranean Diet.  The Mediterranean Diet is known to reduce the incidence of heart disease, cancer, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.  It is focused on fruits, vegetables, and good fats.  Here is a link to the Mayo Clinic website and the wikipedia page for the Mediterranean Diet.

Share & Voice: Dreamland

Here is a link to an article and trailer for the documentary 'Dreamland' - a look in to the fight for Iceland's natural world.  Iceland has become the target of corporations wanting to extract their natural resources for profit, most notably aluminum.  This documentary, much like 'Tapped', shows how the local people feel about other people deciding what is best for the natural resources they live near.

My personal view is there is no price you can put on the beauty of a country.  But countries must be able to do what is best for most of its residents.  Iceland has been hit hard by the global recession for the past two years. And although through hydroelectric and geothermal power that can support its countries energy needs, they have very little natural resources.  Many people have been moving to Norway to escape the economic crisis.  This is a tough situation for all.

Share & Voice: What is 'Environmental Health'?

When I told people from the beginning of the semester I was taking an environmental health class, more than half of them responded: "What is environmental health?"  This lead me to two questions: 1) Are the people I regularly associate with that out of touch with their health and their communities health? And also: 2) How do you explain to someone what environmental health is, if they have never considered it before?  After completing this class, I believe I can give a much more informed answer.

Environmental health is defined by the World Health Organization as: 'Those aspects of the human health and disease that are determined by factors in the environment.  It also refers to the theory and practice of assessing and controlling factors in the environment that can potentially affect health'.

This is important to all of us because, whether we know it or not, we are affected by our environments as much as we are affecting them.  We are affected through our performance, happiness, health, and overall well-being as much as we are affecting pollution in lakes, rivers, oceans, landfills, and everywhere in-between.  As much as things can be an eye-sore to look at, the bigger problems often lie underneath.  When water is polluted by a factory, those problems will often show up in our bodies as deformities or increased risk for disease.  When we don't take care of our environment, it will no longer be able to take care or provide for us.  That is why it is important to understand why environmental health is important.  And knowing that I can explain that in those terms, I know anyone I describe this to wont forget it anytime soon.