Water Pollution-Solutions

Hi everyone, it's Julia! So now that Stella has talked about all the different kinds of water pollution and its effects on the planet, I will be going through 5 ways you can all help. 

1. Buy Organic: it was explained in the last post that pesticides ides on farms can end up finding their way into oceans,lakes etc. The solution to this is pretty simple, buy certified organic!

2. Watch what goes down your drain: like the big factories that dump harmful chemicals into lakes and rivers, we can sometimes use the sink and shower as our own personal garbage can. We can forget that the things that go down the drain can get into water supplies and seriously damage ecosystems. Some examples are to use softer dish soaps, detergents, and to use shower products that are more natural. Also, don't wash food down the drain, put it in your compost or garbage. 

3. Buy less plastic: as mentioned by Stella, surface pollution is a big problem because it can be harmful to marine life. Surface pollution is largely made up of plastic, so the solution is to buy less of it. From plastic water bottles to most packaging, limiting the amount of plastic you buy can make a big difference. 

4. Limit you water consumption: this one is pretty oblivious, but taking shorter showers and not leaving the sink on while brushing your teeth can help in limiting your water footprint. If you want to make a bigger different, going vegetarian/vegan is the way to go. If you want to know why, this website explains the reason eating less meat helps: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/08/140804100107.htm

5. Don't litter: this isn't a hard challenge because you shouldn't be littering in general, but when you do it close to a lake, river or the ocean it can contribute to surface pollution. The wind can pick up the trash and it ends up going into the water so that the aquatic life can eventually die choking on it.

Water Pollution

     Hey. It's Stella! This week we will be focusing on water pollution. I am aware this has been a discussed topic here on 1actaday, but Julia and I would like to go into it more since it is a very significant issue we are dealing with.

     The earth's surface is 70% water. What does that mean? Well, water is pretty important, in fact, life began in the water! This is only one reason why it makes sense to keep our waters clean! Water pollution is basically when any type of toxic or unhealthy substance enters a body of water. There are many types of water pollution that I will briefly write about since water pollution can come from different sources.

Surface Water Pollution
     This one is pretty simple. Any toxic element or trash that remains on the surface of the water is considered surface water pollution. This included various plastics such as plastic bottles and even elements such as petroleum. 

Oxygen Depletion
     This one is pretty interesting. When there is an overload or a very increased level of biodegradable matter that is in a body of water a polluting cycle begins. Basically, there are many microorganisms that live in these waters that feed off of these substances. This causes a good kind (aeoribic) to die out causing the bad kind (anaerobic) to thrive. Why are these bad? They can create certain toxic chemicals and can be very harmful to marine life.

Chemicals
     This one is pretty obvious. Harmful chemicals in water just aren't healthy for anyone! So many industries just use lakes and rivers as their trash cans often by just simply getting rid of either poisonous materials or toxic waste into these bodies of water. This is not okay...I mean why is it even okay. Even certain chemicals such as pesticides that are used for our crops can end up in water streams. This is so dangerous for human populations as well as animal ones. Finally, oil spills! Fossil fuel industries mess up many times causing huge messes and eventually contaminating oceans with dirty oils. 

     There are many consequences to these pollutions. Firstly, marine life is in critical condition since they end up consuming so many chemicals and so much trash we create. Many people consume fish and seafood, well often us humans end up consuming these chemicals and can be very dangerous to us as well. Dangerous toxins in waters can cause issues with reproduction, breathing, they can lead to suffocation (many sea creatures choke and suffocate from trash) and they just generally decrease life expectancy. A good example of how water pollution affects our earth is acid rain. It is basically when toxic elements get into the water cycle becoming rain and eventually destroying entire ecosystems. 

     We really need to act on this now. Water is essential to life and cannot be treated like a trash can. Just think of how dependent you are on water. Julia will be posting soon concerning solutions and actions you could make to take your part. 

     Thank you for caring and keep making the world a better place<3             

Love Stella

Bibliographical Sources:

Information: www.water-pollution.org.uk, wwf.panda.org

Images: www.emaze.com, www.linkedin.com, www.keywordssuggests.com

The Fashion Industry-Solutions

     Hey! Stella here! Today's post is about the fashion industry and what you could do to create your own positive impact. As you may know, the fashion industry can be very harmful to out environment considering the fact that so much waste is produced from it and that so much energy is needed and consumed.

     What can you do? There are many things you can do to reduce the negative effects the fashion industry has on our planet. 

1. Thrift Shop

     Thrift shopping is a great way to help this cause. By thrift shopping not only are you getting cute vintage clothing, but you are also consuming way less energy, creating less waste and are not supporting fast fashion. You see, by buying something used, you aren't buying something new that can be associated with the consequences I mentioned previously.

2.Clothing Swap

     Having a clothing swap is a great way to meet up with friends and have some fun. It is always great to give some clothes that you may not like anymore to someone else who may love them. This way you are giving your old clothing away to a new owner who can get something new out of them. Also, you may get some nice pieces from your friends as well!

3.Buying Locally/Ethically

     Buying locally is the way to go. If you must buy clothing, it is way better for the environment, to buy from local businesses that are ethical.The quality is most likely way better, you know where the product is being made (avoiding issues like child labor), you know who is being paid and also you are avoiding fast fashion.

4.Dazzling Up

     What I mean by this is getting creative and giving your clothes a new life. By either adding accessories such as buttons or embroidering on you old clothes, you can make then new again. Sometimes you get bored of that same old piece of clothing, but by dazzling it up it becomes fun and interesting again. Also, nobody will have the same thing as you since your clothes will be completely authentic. 

5.Donating Clothing

     This is a way to be eco-friendly, but also to help others in need. Start donating clothing to organizations and you may make someone's life a little better. Maybe you do not like certain clothing, but I am sure someone else would be very thankful to take it. As they say: "One man's trash is another man's treasure". You can also donate clothing to thrift stores!

6.Borrowing Clothing

     Instead of buying a new dress for that dance, borrow it from a friend or loved one! It is really not necessary to go out and buy a new item every time an occasion arises. By borrowing clothing, you are getting closer with friends or loved ones and can find some really fun and different pieces. Also, you are helping our Earth<3

7.Avoid Fast Fashion

     When shopping, the best thing to do is to avoid fast fashion. Many huge companies that are considered fast fashion industries such as H&M will do anything and everything to produce their products in the cheapest and fastest ways. This includes enormous amounts of pollution from factories, child labor, workers in horrible conditions (that are mostly from developing countries such as Bangladesh), and bad quality clothing so they can get destroyed after one wash making you shop more!! This is a very serious issue so avoid companies like these. Check the labels and what country they are made in, Also aim for organic and natural material such as 100% cotton.

     That's it! I hope this has inspired you to be more conscious of the decisions you make the next time you go shopping! 

Thank you for caring and keep making the world a better place<3

-Love Stella<3

,

Fast Fashion 👕

 Hello! It's Julia. So last week at school, an Earth committee that Stella and I are apart of planned a bunch of things for the students to celebrate earth week. Every year there's a theme, and for this year we chose to talk about the fast fashion industry. I thought it would be cool to talk to you guys about the same thing. You might be wondering what fast fashion is, it's simply inexpensive clothing that is designed in a way that will fall apart quickly so that consumers have to go back to stores and purchase again. Another question you might have is how it's bad for the environment ? Well, first it means that we are throwing out more clothing. According to Value village (a second hand store), Canadians produce 10.5 million tons of textile waste per year. We also have to keep in mind that the fashion is the second most polluting industry after oil. That means the more we buy, the more we contribute to that pollution. Countries like, China or India, where most of this clothing is manufactured also don't have many laws protecting the environment. For example, to power their factories they are allowed to use extensive amounts of "dirty energy", such as coal, which creates green house gas emissions. This is one of the reasons why there is a layer of "brow cloud" that hangs over the northern Indian Ocean and parts of South Asia. Companies situated in these parts of the world are also allowed to dump untreated toxic water into rivers and streams. Another thing to remember is that cotton needs a lot of water, for example it takes 400 gallons of water to make one cotton shirt and 1,800 gallons to make one pair of jeans. So again, having to repurchase more clothing because it keeps on falling apart contributes to this water consumption. This is all awful, and it's not even to mention the ways to workers are treated. Now I'll will list the top 5 stores to avoid because they are know to produce fast fashion.

1. H&M

2. Zara

3. Top shop 

4. Forever 21

5. Gap

Thank you guys so much for reading, tomorrow we'll post some ways you all could help!

Make The Difference

     Hey. Today I'll be writing about what you could do to reduce the effects of air pollution. Air pollution is a very serious issue and creates a huge impact on global warming and climate change. As Julia explained in the previous post, there are many causes and effects of air pollution, but today Ièm asking the question: What can you do about it?

     1. Conserve as much energy as possible.
Sadly, there is a huge relation between energy consumption and air pollution. 80% of all our energy worldwide comes from fossil fuels which, as you know, are burned to produce this energy. Think of it, almost every single thing we do requires an enormous amount of energy. Turn off your lights more often. Reduce your screen time. Air dry your clothing. Use less hot water. There are many things you can do. (If you would like me to write a post one day of all the ways to reduce your energy consumption in your day to day lives, please let me know in the comments or feel free to send me a message on 1actaday's Instagram account)

     2. Greener Transportation.
If you are anything like most people, you move around a lot throughout the day. You are either going to work or school, or maybe simply just running some errands. There are about 1.2 billion people that drive cars which is equivalent to 16.4% of everyone in the world. This may not seem like a lot but our transportation contributes to 12% of all the greenhouse gases that are emitted. If you can start walking or biking to where you have to go. It's more eco-friendly but is also way healthier for you. If this is an issue, try public transportation whenever you can. The bus is on its way anyway so really, you are polluting way less. If you really can't explore any of these methods, at least don't be that person who leaves their car running when they aren't driving. Every action makes a difference. 

     3. Make your voice heard.
Start looking into different ideas such as carbon tax and spread the word. Even by raising awareness you can really leave a mark. Post about issues such as air pollution and climate change on social media, or contact authorities and companies about these issues. You may think that this won't do much, but even if only one person is now aware of something serious like this, they may think before they leave their room and turn off the light. In the end, this blog is based on the same theory. There aren't as many people who read these posts, but as long as I see that there is at least one person, I know I am making my contribution and doing everything I can. 

     Thank you for caring and keep making the world a better place.

Love Stella<3

Air Pollution

Hey everyone, it’s Julia! Sorry we haven’t posted in a while, Stella and I were away on a school trip to Washington DC and didn’t have time. Moving on, today i’m going to be talking about air pollution and its causes and consequences, then tomorrow we’ll be posting some solutions to the issue. 

Air pollution is created in many different ways. Many of you might think that it’s mainly created from us driving our cars, but the biggest contributor is actually to process to make all of the products we purchase on a daily bases. From the pollution created by all the factories to the transportation in between, it adds up to be a lot. Of course cars contribute a fair amount, but they are nowhere near as bad as some other things according to http://www.cleanerandgreener.org/resources/air-pollution.html . Farming is also top on the list, especially to farming of bovine which we've gone into detail about becoming vegetarian in a older post (which I'll link down below). Keep in mind that all the pesticides need to be included too because they do end up affecting the quality of our air. The last point I'll go over is the production of electricity. The main way our society produces electricity is by using fossil fuels, which causes a lot of air pollution to refine. According to research done http://www.science.smith.edu , United States electricity production is responsible for 62.6% of US sulfur dioxide emissions, 21.1% of US nitrous oxide emissions and 40% of US carbon emissions.

  

So now I'll go over some consequences of air pollution (which won't only be environnemental). So for starters sulfur dioxide and nitrous oxide are the cause for acid rain which leads to damaging lakes, forests and soil. These two gases are also very damaging to our health. They lead to urban smog which is responsible for a sickness like Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (which is common with heavy smokers). Lastly, there's carbon dioxide which is of course a greenhouse gas, which leads to climate change. There are countless posts on the blog explaining climate change, so gain I'll link one down below. 

So please make sure to read tomorrow's post which will go over some solutions :-) !

-Julia

Here's a link to the vegetarian post: http://1actaday.blogspot.ca/2017/01/eco-friendly-diet.html 

This is the link to a climate change post: http://1actaday.blogspot.ca/2017/03/climate-changecatching-up.html 

Carbon Tax

Just a note before you read this, I wrote this for my English class (like Stella) so please don’t copy it or anything. 

Julia Ortiz 

ELA 3-01

Mr. Northey

Monday, March-27-17

Carbon Tax

            Did you know that according to NASA, 2016 was the third year in a row to have high record-setting surface temperatures?  I’m sure that it’s no surprise to you all that climate change is a big problem for our generation and the ones to come. As the planet’s temperature increases so do the sea levels leading to natural disasters and eventually landmasses being submerged under water. How do we stop this from happening? Well, there is a long list of things we can do to stop global warming, but I’m mainly going to be focusing on adopting a worldwide carbon tax. 

Before I begin talking about how implementing a carbon tax could help fix the issue, I’m first quickly going to explain what it is. It’s simply a tax put on the amount of greenhouse gas emissions generated from burning fossil fuels, such as coal, oil and natural gas. A number of countries, including Canada, have carried out a carbon tax, but it really must be adopted faster and worldwide to make a difference. 

Now that I’ve briefly clarified what the tax is, I’m going to talk about what kind of differences it would make if the world started charging a hefty amount for fossil fuels. 

First, more people would start using other forms transportation because it would be much cheaper than buying gas. This would take a lot of cars off the road and would start lowering carbon emissions. Then, there would be an immense growth in demand for electric vehicles. Although they are very expensive now, companies would definitely lower the price because of the increased demand. Third, the world would make a shift to renewable energy, because again it would be much less expensive than using fossil fuels. According tolandartgenerator.org it would take 510,000 km2 of land to power the earth using solar energy. This might sound like a lot but it’s only 0.05% of the unpopulated area of the Saharan desert. All of this would create no need to mine, drill or dig up the earth’s soil anymore. 

This whole domino effect to finally reach the outcome of stabilizing our climate wouldn’t be the only great thing to happen. There would be no more oil spills affecting aquatic life, no more air pollution to affect our health and the P.H of our rain would neutralize. I could go on forever, but the main point is that nature is connected and doing one thing leads to many others.

To conclude, our society really must make an important shift to renewable energy by implementing a carbon tax to provide a future for not only the next generations but also for all the other living beings on our planet.

       

       

Bibliography

http://www.iflscience.com

http://www.fin.gov.bc.ca

http://rameznaam.com

https://www.nasa.gov

http://landartgenerator.org

Water

     Hey. This week's theme/challenge concerns water and water pollution. This is a significant topic because water is used in our everyday lives and is essential to our survival. After all, life did begin in the water itself. 

     Our top priority as a species is potable water. Did you know that only 2.5-2.75% of all water is fresh and 1.75-2% of that water is frozen within glaciers? Our life creating water is being harmed and abused by our species and we need to do something about this serious issue.

      Water pollution is not only throwing trash in the ocean but much more. Oil spills on surface waters are a huge danger as they harm us humans, animal species (marine life and land animals), and the environment. Another cause of water pollution is fossil fuels. As an example, the exploitation of tar sands can be so harmful. There is a lot of waste that is dumped into clean water surfaces. They may also interfere with sources such as underground aquifer systems that supply a lot of our drinking water. This interference is mostly occurring because tar sands or petroleum can be found underground as well. 
      Farming can be as harmful to our waters as well. Many farmers use pesticides, chemicals and fertilisers on their crops that later on get washed by the rain finally leading, to streams, rivers lakes and other water compounds. Although this may seem unlogical at first, air pollution can lead to water pollution as well. Acid rain is one of the consequences of air pollution. Chemicals in the sky interfere with the water cycle and contaminate the rain, eventually polluting whole ecosystems and water sources.Toxic waste such as chemical and radioactive waste is often dumped into lakes, rivers and ocean contaminating them and creatures living by. Finally, plastics and garbage being thrown into oceans is a harmful type of water pollution as well. This trash kills so many innocent creatures daily, and wildlife.

     How can you help?
1. Educate yourself and others concerning this topic,
2.Supporting the idea of laws and boundaries to companies and industries that pollute waters.
3.Supporting the idea of fining such industries in cases of water pollution. 
4.Not creating as much trash, by looking into alternatives (ex: no more plastic bottles and bags)
5.Using less water generally to conserve as much as possible (shorter showers...)
6.Contacting authorities and taking a stand.
7. Signing petitions protecting these water sources and marine life.
8.Not supporting industries that pollute waters by not purchasing their products or services.

Thank you so much for caring and keep making the world a better place<3
Love Stella<3

Climate Change...Catching Up

Hi. I want to apologise for not posting in the last couple of days.I had the idea of catching up on last weeks challenge concerning climate change. I decided I would post a speech I wrote for English class concerning climate change. I feel like it really captures the whole topic. Please do not use this or take it. It is written by me: Stella Eleftheriotis

You have probably fantasised about your future several times. Maybe you have thought about your first day of college, your career, the type of family you would like to have, and much more.  I am assuming that harsh and dangerous weather patterns such as flooding and extreme heat waves were never a part of your master plan. Today I will be talking to you about climate change. You may be thinking: Why should I care? Well, you should because climate change will affect our whole planet and all its creatures including every single one of us.

     Firstly, what is climate change? Technically it is a change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns when that change lasts for an extended period of time, but what is causing climate change in this case? This is when I introduce the greenhouse effect, sunlight is reflected off of the Earth or is absorbed by it, but what happens when there is a barrier not allowing that sunlight and heat to escape back to space? The answer is climate change. And the barriers are the greenhouse gases such as water vapor, methane and the most popular carbon dioxide. These greenhouse gases are produced by the burning of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas for the purpose of creating electricity. Of course, there are other ways of producing electricity, but humans would rather put the whole planet on the line to make some money. Sadly, this all boils down to the selfishness, greed and lack of empathy humans possess.

     The one thing that is worse than the reason why climate change is occurring are its consequences. Climate change is responsible for harsh conditions such as flooding, harmful weather patterns, the endangerment and extinction of animal species and far more. As Ice caps continuously melt at a rate of 13.3% per decade, sea levels rise, causing flooding, the destruction of ecosystems and loss of habitat for many creatures. Our planet will be entirely consumed by these waters in less than 20 years if we continue at this same rate. There are also many harmful consequences when exploiting the main cause of climate change. The exploitation and use of fossil fuels not only pollutes the air, but is also the main causes of water, soil and sound pollution. Our planet is in serious danger and if we do not solve this problem, our lives will be at stake as well.

     We have been aware of the issue of climate change and our being responsible for it for decades, and not enough is being done concerning the support of change and difference. For these reasons we need to act now. Many of us hold scientists accountable for solving these issues, and may believe that one little non-ecofriendly action won’t hurt that much, but if we all think this way, an accumulation of actions occur. Many small actions build up to one big one. This concept is not the issue, but it is how it is being used that is the issue. What if we used this in a positive manner? If everyone were to start performing small eco-friendly actions in there day to day lives, once again an accumulation would occur and this would result in one large positive difference. But what are these positive actions? There is a range of things one can do to reduce the effects of climate change and lower their carbon footprint. Of course, the ultimate solution would be to switch to renewable energy sources such as solar and wind powered energies, but that cannot be directly changed from home. By supporting the idea of a carbon tax (which is a fine for emitters of greenhouse gases), and contacting authorities such as the government you can make a huge difference. You can become a vegetarian or vegan, or take more eco-friendly transportation methods such as biking. Even by generally consuming less and only buying what you need you can make a bigger difference than you think.

     In the end, we have to look at the theme of environment VS economy. Which is more important? We only have one home that we know of, the beautiful planet Earth. Is our whole planet and existence really worth the money? Will money give us the oxygen we breathe, the crops we grow and all the elements essential to our survival as a species and as living creatures among many more? Money has no value compared to these necessities. It is literally dead trees, or is also known as paper. This is why we must act now, before we lose everything that is of true value for ourselves and generations to come.

By Stella Eleftheriotis

I hope you liked this. Thank you for caring and keep making the world a better place.

Solutions! 🌱

Hey everyone, it's Julia! Today I'll be talking about climate change. Wow! I know, an environmental blog talking about climate change, what a shocker! Well, it's a very important topic and a lot of old posts have to do with the subject, so what I'm going to be doing is listing the top posts that help prevent climate change the most. I'll post the link to each individual post so that you don't have to go scrolling forever. 

1. Adopting a different diet: http://1actaday.blogspot.ca/2017/01/eco-friendly-diet.html?m=1

2. Consuming less: http://1actaday.blogspot.ca/2017/03/less-is-more.html?m=1

3. Eco friendly traveling: http://1actaday.blogspot.ca/2017/01/eco-friendly-travelling.html?m=1

4. Using less electricity: 

http://1actaday.blogspot.ca/2016/11/electricity-use.html?m=1

5. Buying/making things with less packaging (2 different links)

http://1actaday.blogspot.ca/2017/03/do-it-yourself.html?m=1

http://1actaday.blogspot.ca/2017/03/use-less-packaging.html?m=1

6. Sign petitions: If you feel powerless in decisions the government takes that have an impact on environment, signing petitions can help. This is a link to a website that has a lot of different petitions concerning the environment and ones that have to do with other political issues. 

I hope you have a great week and tune in for Friday's post 😘❤️

Climate Change

     Hey everyone! Stella here. This week's challenge involves the concept/issue of climate change. Climate change is a very serious issue that must be acted on immediately. This is why it is the theme chosen for this week's challenge.

     Firstly, what is climate change? Climate change is the consequence of the greenhouse effect. Sunlight reaches our Earth nd bounces off it or gets absorbed by it. When a barrier such as greenhouse gases (Co2, Methane, Water Vapor), are released into the atmosphere, the heat produced by the sunlight is trapped and results in temperature change. 

     It is our fault as humans that these harmful gases are released into the air. Fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas, and oil are burned to produce electricity even though there are long-lasting and renewable sources available. This is al done because of money. It is so sad to see so much greed and selfishness that can be associated with one species...us humans. 

     We must all think of the long term consequences climate change would cause. Is it really worth the money? This brings us to the whole idea od Environment VS Economy. Which is more important? Will money provide clean air, water, and soil? Is it really the biggest priority. I happen to think that our one and only home is, therefore, we must act now. 

     Don't know how to make a difference? Julia will be posting solutions and ways you can make a difference tomorrow. Make sure to stay updated!!

     Thank you for caring and keep making the world a better place!!

     Love Stella<3

     

Pesticides 💀

     Hey.Today's post will consist of pesticides💀and their harmful effects on honeybees🐝.
     
     So, as you know, pesticides are super harmful to bees🐝, but why? Well, firstly they pretty much consist of toxic chemicals🌀 that are harmful to their health and the crops🌱 they are sprayed on. When pesticides are sprayed on plants/ crops they can get everywhere including the pollen✨, nectar and reproductive systems of plants which are all targets to honeybees. 

     Once the honeybees actually attain plants🌸 that have been contaminated with these harmful chemicals, they can not only hurt themselves, but the entire colony🐝. Usually, pesticides will individually affect the honeybee that gets into contact with ghe contaminated plant 🌱by messing with it's tracking, circulatory🤔 and memory systems making them forget their way back home🏡 to the hive, but in many cases, symptoms can be spread throughout the bees😕. When one bee returns to the hive carrying harmful chemicals🌫, all the other bees get impacted ad well as the queen👑. If you didn't know, honey🍯 is produced through the regurgitation of pollen over and over again as the honeybees take turns. Imagine how easily chemicals and pesticides🌀 can spread from that kind of contact and transmission! 

     Many studies have shown that a specific type of pesticide🌀is the main cause of colony collapses💀 They are called: Neonicotinoids. Sadly, this type of pesticide is used too often and can justify the occuring endangerement of the honeybee🐝. This is another readon why buying healthy, organic🌱 and local foods is the way to go. That way you are eating healthier 🍽and saving the bees. I mean is pesticides are harmful to honeybees, what makes them safe for humans😷? 

Thank you for caring and keep making the world a better place😘

Love Stella❤️

Bee fun facts!

Hi everyone, it's Julia again! So today I'll just be letting you in on some fun facts about bees 🐝: 

1. Bees have been around for 100 million years. Ancient Egypt was the first place where people started beekeeping. 

2.  There are three types of bees in a hive: the Queen 👸🏼, Worker and Drone. 

3. A colony contains on average 50,000 bees!! 

4. One colony pollinates 4,000m2 of fruit trees 🌳 and makes an average of 14kg of honey 🍯!!

5. Bees pollinate 80% of the United States' crops. 

6. Honey had many health benefits: it has antiseptic, antioxidant, and cleansing properties.

Thanks for reading, and I hope you decide to partake in some of this week's challenges! ❤️😘

What would happen if honeybees went extinct?

     Hey. Stella here!! So, I wanted to write a post concerning the consequences and effects that a honeybee extinction would cause. As you most likely know ( I mean I hope you do ), honeybees are in huge trouble. This is mostly because of...once again...drum roll, please.............US HUMANS!!. Yup, humans are at fault once again.

    Firstly, there are many pesticides that can alter a bees state of mind, making it confused and unable to return to the hive, eventually dying. Also...of course, climate change and finally loss of habitat.
     Now I would like to give you some information about the consequences of all this like I mentioned earlier.

     What would happen if honeybees went extinct? 

1. 70% of the crop species that 90% of people in the world consume would no longer be available.

     What this means is that we would most likely not die because of a honeybee extinction except we would have a very boring, non-nutritious variety of food.

2. A variety of plants will begin to die out.

     This is bad, not only for the plants that are dying ( this is really sad because our planet is beautiful and diverse), but also because it would mess up the whole food chain. What happens to the animals that eat those plants? and the animals that eat those animals? A great example is almonds. Almonds would pretty much not exist if honeybees were to go extinct. Almonds are used in many feeds for animals such as cows and chickens. Eventually, this would cause fewer cattle and less dairy, eggs and meat for the human population (although I believe we should all be at least vegetarians).

3. Around 200 billion dollars created due to farming and the bees would go out the window.

     Although I am not a huge fan of the whole idea of money and its value and the economy being the number one priority, this is an issue as well. I believe that changing our beliefs and values for money is something that can change slowly day by day, but if the bees go extinct, drastic changes would occur. Industries would not have time o adapt and change their systems and in the end that would affect people the most. We would have fewer jobs, less food and less money to support our families.

4. No more cotton

     Why is this bad? Cotton is used for 35% of all fibre use, therefore, without cotton, we would have less good quality clothing and fabrics meaning a decrease in our quality of life once again.

     That is all I wanted to say! I hope this has inspired you to care and take action concerning the honeybees' endangerment. For ideas on how to help, consult the previous post written by Julia.

    Thank you for caring and keep making the world a better place!

     Love Stella

Sources: bbc.com, AsapSCIENCE

Bees🐝

Hello everyone, it's Julia. Today's post will be all about bees 🐝! If you haven't heard yet, bees have recently made it on the endangered species list. This is really awful because they are the ones that pollinate all of the Earth's plants 🌱. If bees were to go extinct, the agriculture industry would crash which would mean we'd also die because we'd have no food! So how do we prevent this from happening? Well, I'll be giving 4 different ways to help raging from easy and inexpensive to a little harder and costly! 

1. Let your weeds grow! During spring time, many people spend hours in their front lawn pulling weeds, such as dandelions. Well, bees actually really enjoy feeding on these plants, so you can just relax inside and enjoy watching buzzing bees 🐝 go from dandelion to dandelion. 

2. Buy organic! Pesticides are useful for killing insects that feed on our crops, but they also hurt bees who are really there to help. Buying (certified) organic will mean that those harmful pesticides were not used. 

3. Plant bee friendly flowers 🌸! Unlike tip #1, this will need you to spend some time in the garden. Flowers such as thistles, sweet clovers, black eyed susans and sunflowers 🌻 are also great to plant for the bees 🐝 because they like to feed on them. 

4. Become an Urban Beekeeper! Urban beekeeping has become a new hobby that Stella and my school has actually started. It's basically adopting a hive and collecting its honey 🍯. We are both dying to get our own but it is a little expensive. If you're interested and live around Montreal, then here's a website that provides more info and sells the supplies. https://www.alveole.buzz/en/ 

5. This is an easy bonus challenge! Share this post to spread awareness 😝

Thank you so much for reading, and I hope you've all been having a nice spring break! 

Love ❤️ 

Julia 

Do It Yourself

Hello! It's Julia and for today I'll be talking about zero waste toiletries. 

When buying products such as shampoo, body wash and conditioner, they will often come in plastic bottles that we throw out after use which becomes very wasteful. Also a lot of body washes, hand soaps and toothpastes that are supposed to exfoliate the skin actually contain something called micro beads. These are tiny pieces of plastic that goes down the drain and ends up finding it's way to the ocean and pollute it 🌊. Products containing micro beads are now ban in the United States 🇺🇸, but in Canada 🇨🇦 it distribution will only be stopped by mid 2018😭😭 . So for now, just please try to avoid them. 

So these are some ways to reduce toiletry waste: 

1. Buy or make bar soap: this is perfect because it will have less packaging. If you make it, that will also mean that the soap will be more natural! Here's a recipe if you're interested: 

https://thethingswellmake.com/recipe/making-a-basic-beginner-soap-and-then-making-it-fun/#_a5y_p=5865261

2. Buy or make shampoo/conditioner bars: like the bar soap, shampoo/conditioner bars have zero packaging. I've used 2 from Lush before and they were really amazing! They outlast three bottles of shampoo/conditioner , so you'd also be saving money because they only cost about 9-12$. I also have a recipe for making them that Stella and I are dying to make. Here it is: 

Shampoo

http://www.humblebeeandme.com/shea-butter-citrus-shampoo-bar/

Conditioner 

https://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/ingredients/how-to-make-your-own-diy-conditioner-bar/

3. Buy in bulk: some bulk stores now sell body wash, shampoo and conditioner. Basically you would  just fill up a jar and reuse when done! 

Thx so much for reading!!! Once Stella and I get the chance to make some of the recipes, we'll definitely post pictures here and on our Instagram ( @_1actaday_). If you end making them we'd love ❤️ to know, comment or post a pic and tag us on Insta! 

Love, 

Julia 😘😘

Use Less Packaging

     Hey! Stella here. I hope you are having a beautiful day❤️. So as I mentioned in yesterday's post, Julia and I will give you some inspiration and tips throughout the week concerning the idea of using less. 
What I will write about is a way of using and wasting less packaging when purchasing and eating food🍞.
     I am aware that this was the theme/idea for the challenge a few weeks a go, but a reminder and some new tips will not hurt. You probably eat food 🍽if you are anything like any human on our planet, and that food probably comes with so much unecessary packaging which is bad for you and the environment🌎. By purchasing less packaged foods, you are reducing your carbon footprint🌀, eating healthier, capreating less waste and of course using less! 

     Here are some ways to use less packaging when purchasing foods:

Buy in bulk:
     This may seem quite obvious, but not many people actually do this enough. Try finding a local store near you where you can buy various foods🍚, nuts and dry fruits🍍 without any waste. This way you are choosing healthier😊 options and are most probably supporting less polluting companies.

Have a Checklist: 
     When grocery shopping, having a checklist 🗒of what you need to buy is always a good idea. Firslty you are being more organised which is always a bonus, and you are avoiding over consumption. Also, by having a grocery list, you can focus on buying organic🌱, healthy and less wasteful/packaged foods. 

Bring a Reusable Bag🛍:
     Using reusable bags for any situation or cause is the way to go. Firsly, plastic bags are made of plastic which is basically petrolium☠, and if you didn't know, the extraction of this ressource is very harmful for the planet🌎. Secondly, after using a plastic bag, it most probably gets trown away into the trash🗑 and ends up polluting our soil and waters while harming many animal species. Finally, it's way more convenient and can be mire beneficial since it lasts long and will probably last almost forever.

Avoid Plastic Bottles💦:
     I' e talked about this a million times...let's make it a million and one! Plastic bottles are costly💸, are made of petrolium, contain harmful chemicals🌫 that affect our health, and pollute out earth ans oceans🌊Purchase a reusable bottle. Trust me it's worth it.

That is all I have to remind you of when it comes to using less when buying food🍞

A few other tips: 
Try using less electricity💡 ( turn off the lights when you exit a room, unplug apliances that aren't being used...)
Be mindful when using your things ( try not to waste any materials, avoid throwing things away and explore alternatives such as recycling♻️ or reusing)

Also Julia will be writing a post about using less of your toiletries🛢 and making your own istead of buying overpriced ones that come with way too much packaging. 

Thank you for caring and keep making the world a better place❤️

Less is More

     Hey everyone! Stella here. So I will be filling in on the post Julia did yesterday just to elaborate a bit more and clear things up. So basically, the challenge for every day if this week is to use less of everything. What I mean by this is to be more conscience when making your decisions every day. 
     The thing is, us humans use more than we need. We over-consume. This is a serious issue especially since it is the number one cause of climate change🌊. And yes, I know you may be thinking that fossil fuels are the main cause...which is right, but think of it...why do we need so much electricity 💡in the first place? To produce all the products that are advertised, sold and bought by us humans. We need to change our way of thinking. I am aware that this is difficult because we are practically born into our world being told that we NEED this and that we NEED that, when really, all we need is food🍞, water 💧and a roof 🏡over our heads. This is why this week we are focusing on using less. 
   There are many benefits to using less actually. Firstly and most importantly, you are making an enormous difference concerning the environment 🌱and your carbon footprint 🌀, secondly you are saving money 💸, thirdly you are valuing your belongings much more, fourthly you are not participating in the support of child labor 👧🏻as much as before (this will be explained throughout the week), fifthly you are getting rid of uneeded clutter and making your life less stressful....I can go on forever, but I believe you got the idea. There are so many more reasons to use and buy less than the opposite. I mean will that seventh sweater 👚really make your life better? I don't think so. So think more critically and carefully. 
     Throughout the week Julia ans I will be inspiring you to take action (hopefully), and will be giving you tips and ideas to make this a bit more fun and interesting while also giving a lot of information concerning many topics. Some being: the food, clothing, and toiletries we purchase. 
     Anyway, that is all I wanted to say, and I hope you have a beautiful day❤️

Thank you for caring and keep making the world a better place 🌎

Using Less

Hey guys, it's Julia! So sorry that we haven't posted in forever, we were both just really busy with science fair. Anyways, this week's challenge is to produce less waste. Canadians generate 4 pounds of trash per day. The challenge is simply to just buy less packaged stuff. For example, buy things in bulk using reusable containers. Stella and I actually went to one of these types of stores last weekend. These are some adresses for bulk stores if you live in Montreal: 

https://m.yelp.ca/biz/fleur-sauvage-aliments-naturel-montréal 

http://www.bulkbarn.ca/en/Home

http://bio-terre.com/en/

Clothes and Minimalism👕

Hi everyone, it's Julia and today's post will be about minimalism and how it is beneficial for the environment 🌏. So it's no surprise that we are a consumer society, which is one of the contributors to climate change. Becoming a minimalist means to own less and buy less, one of which would be clothing. The production of clothing is actually the world's second greatest polluter. According to http://www.senseandsustainability.net/2016/03/02/the-fashion-industry-and-its-impact-on-the-environment-and-society/ ,cotton uses 2.6% of global water and 53% of the world's textile produces and discharges about 40% of all dyeing chemicals worldwide (most untreated). By becoming a minimalist, you'd be buying less clothing, which wouldn't be contributing to some of these nasty effects that the fashion industry has on our planet (not to mention the way bigger compagnies treat their workers in third world countries). 

So for next time, try and ask yourself if you "really need this new cotton sweater", and just try and stick with what you have. It is also important to remember that there are other alternatives, like going thrift shopping ! 

Anyways, this so much for reading and make sure to read Friday's post, where Stella will be talking about the steps of owning less. ❤️❤️

Minimalism

     Hey. I'm very sorry about not posting last week. It's just that last week I had exams and a bunch of studying to do as well as for Julia. Anyway, so I have a challenge for this week so don't panick.🤗 
     The main theme/idea is minimalism. Basically what this means is having the least amount of unecessary things in your home. We live in a worl filled with the idea that we NEED to buy that or we NEED this, when in reality, all we need is food, water, a shelter and clothes👚👕. This week's challenge is to eliminate that consumerist idea from our brains. 

     Your goal is to go through as much stuff as possible and get rid of all the things that you don't need or that don't make you happy. Also help someone else by donating your unwanted things to charity. 

     How is this related to the environment? Well, firstly, when buying anything really, so much packaging is involved. Most of this packaging🎀 is harmful to our environment and also is bad when being produced. Another thing, think of all the factories 🌫there are out there producing so many green house gases. By buying only what you need, you are reducing your carbon footprint and are not supporting the destructive idea of consumerism🛍 I mean look at all the things around you. Every single object has it's own factory somewhere that is polluting the air with carbon🌀

     Throughout the week, Julia and I will be guiding you one step at a time, tackling different parts of your home, so you can try out the minimalist lifestyle. Anyway that's it for today😘
Thank you for caring and keep making the world a better place❤️.

Love Stella❤️❤️

Food!

     Hey😊So I am so sorry for not posting yesterday. I will post today's planned post mixed with yesterday's post. I also have a little message that I will be giving in tomorrow's post. Anyway, this is what Julia and I ate today and yesterday.

Julia: 
Yesterday:

Breakfast: Avocado toast with salsa.

Lunch: Falafels with a spinach salad.

Dinner: Vegetarian spinach and feta pizza.🍕🍕

Today:

Breakfast: Vegan tofu scramble with sweet potato, spinach, caramelised onions and 🍞bread.
Recipe: http://apolloandluna.com/2016/01/04/vegan-tofu-scramble-paprika-potatoes/

Lunch: Falafel Buddha Bowl: quinoa base with cucumber, peeled carrot, edamame, some mint and a tahini balsamic vinaigrette.

Dinner: Eggplant🍆 Parmesan🧀 and a spinach salad

Stella:
Yesterday:

Breakfast: Avocado Toast with some olive oil, salt and pepper and a fruit smoothie.🍌🍓 

Lunch: Vegan Curry with rice🍚 and two pieces of bruschetta🍞

Dinner: A vegan couscous salad: couscous, flax seeds, split peas, beans, chickpeas🍑, parsley, red pepper🌶, artichoke, lime, olive oil, salt and pepper. (You can really put anything you want...It tastes amazing with a variety of ingredients)

Today:

Breakfast: A boiled egg🍳, with some fruit on the side🍍, and a glass of soy milk.

Lunch: Some leftover salad and some veggies with hummus. 

Snack: Cherry🍒 yoghurt with a mix of hemp seeds and granola (Super yummy)

Dinner: Vegan Spaghetti🍝 with a delicious pesto that you could make (recipe below) and a bean salad on the side.
Recipe: http://www.melskitchencafe.com/20-minute-tomato-pesto-pasta/

That's it!! I also would like to apologise about Rant Friday...I'm just super busy and don't have much time especially lately. Don't worry about next weeks challenge, though!!

Thank you for caring and keep making the world a better place!!🤗🤗

Love Stella💋