Uncategorized – Page 4 – Furman Greenbelt Sustainable Living Community

The EU’s New Corporate Sustainability Regulations

Bendor / April 26, 2023

The article I chose is a look into new regulations being set by the EU for sustainability in business. The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) is looking at requiring around 50,000 companies in the EU and 10000 companies outside of the EU to increase their data reporting when it comes to sustainability. When selecting companies outside the EU that have to follow these new rules, they are looking at companies that have listed securities (stocks or bonds) on the European market, companies with an annual revenue of €150 million, or companies with more than 250 EU based employees. The foreign companies included in this are about 31% American, 13% Canadian, and 11% British. While the EU hasn’t officially outlined the standards that these companies will be held to (that will be published in June) there was a draft released in November and a EU representative said that she doesn’t expect the rules to be much different than those in the draft. They may even be “trimmed back” to make it easier for companies to complete the reporting. The draft included 82 annual disclosure requirements, involving different metratices and explanations. Some of these standards are still being developed however, as some will need to be industry specific. These companies will have to report different types of data, but will also need a third party audit of their data to ensure accuracy. All of this is to say that the EU is essentially making greenhouse gas reporting and ESG reporting an enforceable requirement. Both of these have largely been used as marketing or PR exercises, but now it is a necessity to do business in the EU. I find this interesting for two reasons. First is how it can relate to my life and secondly how it can change our perception of living in the Greenbelt. I am to go into some sort of corporate sustainability, potentially ESG reporting so this change towards making it a legal requirement is encouraging that the companies will be striving to actually improve their ESG scores. While these requirements are only in the EU, oftentimes the EU sets the “de facto global standard” as they have for chemicals and data privacy. Secondly, I think this change affects Furman. Furman does environmental reports every few years, but it is somewhat inconsistent in terms of quality of data and it is not annual. If we are able to set aside more resources at Furman for data monitoring and reporting, it would be a huge step towards our carbon neutrality goals. According to Young, the best way to solve collective action problems is to either change the rules, norms or values of a system. I believe that because the values of our society are changing towards being sustainability minded, now governments are following with changing the rules of a system. The three categories of economic actors are households, firms and governments (Zsolani), and sometimes in the US it can feel like the firms are driving all of the decision making and the government can’t or won’t do anything to make steps towards addressing the climate crisis, so this move from the EU is an encouraging and important step.

Holger, D. (2023, April 5). WSJ News Exclusive | at least 10,000 foreign companies to be hit by EU Sustainability Rules. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved April 25, 2023, from https://www.wsj.com/articles/at-least-10-000-foreign-companies-to-be-hit-by-eu-sustainability-rules-307a1406

Young, O. R. (2016). Solving Collective Action Problems. In On environmental governance: Sustainability, efficiency, and equity. essay, Routledge.

Zsolnai, L.. (2018). Economic Actors and the Ultimate Goal of the Economy. 10.1007/978-3-319-94529-3_11.

Sculpture

Bendor / April 25, 2023

For my art piece created for Greenbelt, I made a shadowbox. In the box, the background consists of three elements. The top is blue, representing the natural world. I wanted to leave this part up to interpretation a bit, so people can either see the sky or the ocean. The green line is a piece of wood I carved that is the pattern of global temperature change over the last 150 years. The bottom is layers of trash separated by rolled up dollar bills. This is meant to look like sediment layers, and also shows what is propping up climate change. Our culture of profit seeking and disposable products is destroying our environment. The center focal point is a dead tree I carved on a sand bed. This represents the ecological impacts of climate change, and the sand shows water issues, especially in the American west. This piece has a lot of personal interest and experience that I drew from to make it. For example, the tree looks like a tree that is atop a mountain I hike with my friends when I am back in Colorado. I really enjoyed making this project and taking the time to visualize the concepts I’ve heard so much about in classes.

Saving the Florida Manatee

frisst4 / April 25, 2023

Manatee Painting, acrylic on canvas

The Florida Manatee has been classified as threatened since 2017, when it got downlisted from endangered on the Endangered Species Act. Since this downlisting, thousands of manatees have died. Over a thousand manatees died in 2021 and almost five thousand manatees died in 2022. A large reason for manatee mortality is boat collisions. Manatees often die from getting badly scraped by propellers or by getting hit by the hull of fast-moving boats. Furthermore, water pollution caused seagrass to die in some warm water areas in which manatees gather during the winter, such as Indian River Lagoon. This caused many manatees to starve to death. In 2021 the water pollution worsened to the extent that conservationists dumped over 200,000 pounds of lettuce into the water to feed wild manatees during the winter. Without proper governmental protections, manatee numbers are in risk of declining once again. In this painting, the water around the manatees is devoid of life –– and seagrass. This is meant to symbolize the trouble for manatees if action is not taken soon. Without cleaning up pollution and stopping seagrass from dying, manatees and other marine life could have severe population declines. I hope that manatees can get listed as endangered once again to increase their governmental protections and that the Florida governor will sign bills to clean up the waterways to promote seagrass growth. While strengthening laws to help manatees will take lots of work and collaboration between governments, citizens, and conservationists, it is necessary to save this gentle giant.

Anderson, Curt Anderson. “Lettuce Is on the Menu Again to Help Starving Manatees in Florida.” WFSU News, WFSU, 18 Nov. 2022, https://news.wfsu.org/state-news/2022-11-18/lettuce-is-on-the-menu-again-to-help-starving-manatees-in-florida.

Jones, Robert C. “No Longer Endangered, Manatees Now Face Another Crisis.” University of Miami News and Events, University of Miami, 14 Jan. 2023, https://news.miami.edu/stories/2022/02/no-longer-endangered,-manatees-now-face-another-crisis.html.

Forget Me Not

Xenia Weislämle / April 23, 2023

This species of forget me not flower (Myosotis rehsteineri), native to the lake and river shores of southern Germany, is highly endangered. Urban development in shore areas of essential habitat areas such as the Bodensee is leading to immense habitat decline which leaves no space for the species to exist. Additionally, increased nutrient entry into coastal habitats is leading to detrimental eutrophication. Changed flooding and drought patterns due to climate change make the survival of the species even more difficult. In the painting, the flower is growing and reaching toward the light – calling for our attention to not forget about the seemingly inconspicuous species of our planet, like this forget me not flower. It is also supposed to remind us how every species deserves to be appreciated in its beauty and to respect its innate right to be protected and preserved. We can all play part in respecting that right either by spreading a little appreciation for all the overlooked species or in directly protecting especially vulnerable habitats like shores and coasts through political activism in development projects or with our own awareness when someday building houses ourselves.

An End to Forests’ Beauty

Tyler / April 21, 2023

While basking under sunlit skies, bright, smattered spots of blue

—Amidst the verdant canopies of vibrant, emerald green—

All sway and dance before my eyes, competitors in hue

As if the fervent, flowing breeze inspires brighter sheen.

And further still, as wind and warmth collide in harmony I find

A rhythm in the birdsong, in the rustling of the leaves,

While shifting songs of sun and shade reply, their melody inclined

To lead in lilting life a soul in dissonance to peace.

Yet even as my eyes fall shut, such artistry shall vanish,

A roar, a cut, a crash, a blinding light shall beauty banish,

The canvas torn and symphony cut short.

This poetry centers on the issue of deforestation, and the damage it can cause to natural habitats. In the work, I endeavor to describe the peace, beauty, and tranquility than can be experienced in nature, only to be pulled out by the jarring reality of this world being destroyed through deforestation, in particular the logging industry. According to worldwildlife.org, illegal logging practices comprise somewhere between 8-10% of production, and even make up between 40-50% of logging in some of the most valued and significant forests around the globe. While there are many timber methods that are sustainable, this is not the entirety of the industry—many of these harmful practices encroach on natural territory further and further still, lessening resources and asking too much too quickly of the earth. While such statistics cannot fit into this poetry with the same sort of flow, it endeavors to impress upon readers the impact that these practices have on a more personal level. I make no argument that the wood industry needs to be halted in its entirety, however I do believe that more work needs to be done to prevent illegal practices that destroy natural forests containing wonders and beauty as I have endeavored to describe.

Sustainable Healthcare: New Betio Hospital

Austin / April 20, 2023April 20, 2023

Sustainable design is the co-existence of manmade buildings and the natural world. Sustainable design has recently made its way into the field of healthcare. The nation of Kiribati, a collection of 32 islands with a total population of 110,000, is located halfway between Australia and Hawaii. The New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade hired a team of health planners and architects to plan to renovate the healthcare system and facilities across Kiribati. In 2018, the designers began working on a new hospital in Betio on an island called South Tarawa in Kiribati.

The team in charge of the project utilized sustainable design when planning out and constructing the hospital. Because the islands of Kiribati are so remote, have no natural source of fresh water, and the sea level is expected to rise 5.5 inches in the next 30 years, the team implemented a few different strategies to combat these environmental issues. Firstly, to combat the rising sea level, the team significantly rose the ground plane of the building. Secondly, the team used ventilation and solar power to lessen energy consumption. They also used sustainable building materials and set up a system to harvest rainwater for flushing and irrigation. Finally, they did some landscaping work to increase the surrounding biodiversity and to help passively cool the hospital interior.

The previous design choices helped to address environmental sustainability, but the team went further to address social, economic, and some other general amenities. In a healthcare context, social sustainability is the of the institution to increase the health and overall well-being of the population. They implemented a few design initiatives to improve the general level of care for the patients. Firstly, they created a large open courtyard in the center of the hospital to make the building less institutionalized. Additionally, the team focused on the most vital hospital departments first as well as decentralizing the hospital into various small sites around the island.

In terms of economic sustainability, the designers sought to design the healthcare system in a way to combat poverty which is contributing factor to bad health outcomes in society. They utilized local workers to construct the hospital to increase the skill of local laborers and support local employment. Further, they used renewable energy throughout construction and minimized waste products which reduced the total operational cost. Finally, increased the capacity of clinical workers with improved services.

An analysis showed that, although sustainable practices are usually perceived to be more expensive, the construction of New Betio Hospital was more cost-effective than if unsustainable practices were used.

As someone who has worked in four different hospitals and under three unique healthcare systems, I was very impressed with the design of New Betio Hospital. For me, two standout features were the variety and creativity of sustainable energy consumption as well as the large open courtyard area where people could meet and talk outside of their rooms. Hopefully, New Betio Hospital can serve as an example of sustainable healthcare in action and other hospitals can adopt some of their successes.

Citations:

https://www.ache.org/blog/2021/designing-for-healthcare-sustainability-a-framework

https://www.worldatlas.com/maps/kiribati

The Wide Use of Palm Oil and Its Negative Affects

harmpa7 / March 31, 2023March 31, 2023

After our class about greenwashing, I was very intrigued in learning how damaging certain foods and products are to the Earth. One of my main focuses was the use of palm oil. 50% of packaged items in supermarkets contain palm oil. It is in all different types of goods from pizza dough, chocolate, ice cream, lipstick, detergent, soap, and even biodiesel to name a few. Palm oil is used in all these goods because it has a long shelf life, stable at high temperatures, semi-solid at room temperature, odorless, and colorless. This means that it helps all different types of food keep the quality of it to where the producers want the food to be at. For example, the semi-solid at room temperature characteristic allows spreads to stay spreadable. Also, palm oil can be produced in large quantities, over small areas of land, year-round. If the world was to switch to alternate vegetable oils, farmers would need 4-10 times more land.

Though palm oil is very beneficial in markets and there is a high demand for it, it has been a driving force in deforestation in at risk areas. These vulnerable areas include the rainforests of Latin America, West Africa, and Southeast Asia. Palm tree farms destroy biodiverse forests in which already endangered species live. Some endangered species include the Orangutan, Pygmy elephant, and Sumatran rhino. These farms don’t only affect the biodiversity of animals but also the atmosphere. The conversion of carbon rich peat soils on top of forest loss creates millions of tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. These greenhouse gases cause climate change which affects the whole world.

So, what is the world doing to limit the damage caused by palm oil? One of the main sustainably actions was the creation of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) in 2004. This organization recognizes that there is a large problem in the palm oil sector, but also that not all palm oil production contributes to deforestation. They set standards for growers to best practice sustainable producing and sourcing. Large organizations aren’t the only ones that can help reduce the production of non-sustainable palm oil production. Individually, we can make our own initiatives. First, we can limit our overall consumption of palm oil products. Then, if we do need to buy goods with palm oil, we can make sure that it is RSPO certified. As consumers we can identify RSPO certified by the RSPO logo on the packaging.Something we don’t want to do is boycott all palm oil products. Because there are millions of smallholder farmers who depend on the production of palm oil to live, boycotting would severely impact these farmers.

To confess, while writing this I have been snacking on some veggie crisps. Even though they are vegan, organic, and cruelty free, they still contain palm oil which is negatively impacting the environment. With all, it is extremely difficult to avoid all palm oil foods and products, but the best we can do is recognize the problem and attempt to limit our consumption and only consume palm oil that is RSPO certified.

https://www.wwf.org.uk/updates/8-things-know-about-palm-oil

https://www.worldwildlife.org/pages/which-everyday-products-contain-palm-oil

https://eos.com/blog/palm-oil-deforestation/

Sustainable Transportation in Japan

Payton / March 7, 2023

Japan is a country that has been known for its high-tech and efficient transportation system. However, this transportation system is not only elite in accessibility and efficiency; it has also set a great example to the world about how to implement sustainability into the field of transportation. In fact, this transportation system heavily influences the fact that Japan’s per-capita greenhouse gas emissions are less than half of the United States’. The country has been able to promote this sustainable transportation through a combination of technology, government support, and citizen participation. The United States and many other countries around the world should seek to model their own transportation systems after this innovative Japanese one, in order to create a healthier and safer environment. In addition, these changes may also bring more efficiency and accessibility to the United States public transportation system.

The Japanese transportation system has greatly succeeded in the field of sustainability, much thanks to the innovation of leading companies in the industry. One key difference between Japanese transportation systems and others around the world is that those in Japan are mostly run my private companies. This has created easier, more accessible public transportation for all, as these companies work closely with the Japanese government to both fund new innovations and integrate separate rail systems. Japanese rail systems have also been built in a way that allows seamless modification to improve areas such as efficiency or sustainability; those in other nations such as the United States have not been built in such a way, leading to frequent issues and delays. One railway company that specifically seeks to improve the sustainability and functionality of Japanese railways is called JR East. JR East research ways to use renewable energy sources and create power storage systems to reduce wasted energy. They have also been striving to create an even faster than the famous Shinkansen train, which runs at almost 300 miles per hour. In addition to the railway system, Japan has also encouraged other sustainable forms of transportation such as biking. Only 10% of all transportation in Japan involves the use of motor vehicles, vastly reducing the CO2 emissions in the country.

One rail business in Japan that has set an example in sustainable practices is Tokyu Railways. In 2019, they became the first Japanese rail business to become a part of RE100, a global initiative bringing together thousands of companies striving become more sustainable. Only three years later, the company achieved its goal of powering all of its train lines with solar, geothermal, and hydropower energy. The average trip on a Tokyu train emits about 180 grams of CO2, 1000 grams less than an equivalent trip in a motorized vehicle. Over the course of an entire year, these reductions add up to saving nearly 800,000 tons of CO2 entering the atmosphere.

Japan has set the pace on sustainable transportation, specifically in the railway industry. However, this is only the beginning of the transition to renewable transportation practices, both in Japan and abroad. Several other rail companies in Japan, such as Tobu Railway and JR East, have followed the example of Tokyu Railways and have begun to reduce CO2 emissions. Further action and innovation is needed by other countries such as the United States in order to create a better future by reducing CO2 emissions by one of the biggest culprits, public transportation.

References:

https://www.triplepundit.com/story/2017/what-japan-can-teach-america-about-sustainable-transportation/19861

https://coordinates.ce.gatech.edu/japan-sustainable-development/sustainable-transportation-japan

https://www.railway-technology.com/features/tokyu-railways-goes-full-steam-ahead-on-its-sustainability-journey/

Putting America on Rice Husks

mcbrco1 / February 15, 2023

It is often easy, when considering the automotive industry, for environmental activists and sustainably minded individuals to see electrification as the end-all-be-all for cars. While EVs certainly present viable and substantial benefits over traditional internal combustion engine vehicles, the true mark of success for sustainable personal transport will be more complex than eliminating one power source for another. Cars have become complex, technological appliances that mobilize our daily lives. That much is evident from manufacturers’ pursuit of constant updates to safety features, luxury equipment, and autonomous driving capabilities. In all of these advancements however, certain inputs to the production of automobiles remain constant. The resources spent in their construction, fluids that ensure proper operation, wiring that manages the ever-increasing number of computers, and of course fuel, whether from a power station or a gas pump, are unchanged in a modern car’s production, operation, and maintenance. Each aforementioned input presents rich opportunities for a targeted sustainability effort. One sector often overlooked is tires. Tire manufacturers Goodyear and Michelin are making marked progress in testing and bringing largely renewable and environmentally friendly tires to market. Before examining these new, sustainable alternatives to your vehicle’s traditional rubber, what harm do current tire practices pose to the environment?

One major problem with conventional tire construction is the waste they produce over the course of their roadgoing lifecycle. ECO Green Equipment is a company dedicated to developing effective and sustainable machinery in the world of tire processing. Their article Environmental Impacts of Waste Tire Disposal details the current problems with the way we handle expired tires. Natural rubber has been deemed scarce and increasingly difficult to produce as rubber trees require meticulous care before their resources can be harvested. Alternatively, synthetic rubber has been used in the contemporary production of tires. However, the synthetic material comes at roughly the cost of one barrel of oil for each tire produced. Once expired, these tires are ideally recycled or retreaded. This is rarely the path taken by used tires. More often than not, these non-decomposable tires are added to tire heaps in junkyards or landfills. This leads to the release of toxic chemicals into local ecosystems and the environment. If improperly disposed of, tires have the potential to completely eliminate essential soil bacteria, killing plants and animal species in addition to increasing carbon footprint and spurring climate change. Political debate surrounding the management of whole-tire disposal has arisen due to the mass of tires that have simply been left to rot and harbor malignant environmental hazards. Perhaps more devious is the continuous waste that tires produce from their regular operation. Tire particles (pieces of synthetic material that separate from the tire while in operation) present a real danger when considering their introduction of microplastics into the environment. World Economic Forum cites a 2017 Oregon State University study that accounted for nearly 1.5 million metric tons of tire particles entering the U.S. environment every year in their article Tire particle pollution may be harming freshwater and estuary ecosystems. The same study attributed anywhere from 5-10% of ocean plastic pollution to tire particles. These micro and nano plastics pose an immense danger to the wellbeing of marine life. OSU found that many organisms possessed stunted growth, developmental problems, unnatural behavior, and even outright likelihood of death. Solutions in this field include roadside rain gardens, technology for cars dedicated to catching particles, developing tires with a longer road life, and increased use and funding of public transit and infrastructure.

One solution identified by tire manufacturers is the ability to build tires using more sustainable materials with the hope of controlling some of the aforementioned chemical and material runoff. I was first made aware of this effort by Andrew Beckford’s MotorTrend article Goodyear’s New Tire is Made From Soybean Oil, Rice Husks, and Pine Resin. Composed of 17 novel ingredients, the tire mentioned in the article is reportedly constructed from 90% sustainably sourced materials. What is even more impressive however is that this very tire compound has been approved by internal and regulatory scrutiny for road use. Mass production is proving to need refinement, but a 70% sustainably sourced tire is already available for inquiry on Goodyear’s website with a 100% sustainably sourced tire in development for 2030. Michelin has also taken on the challenge of sustainable material tires with 46% and 53% sustainably sourced race tires already occupying the wheel wells of the new 718 Porsche Cayman GT4 ePerformance electric race car.

As a whole, the sustainable tire movement is one that can be backed by environmental and automotive enthusiasts alike. In testing, there has been very little detriments to the new methods of construction, with specific, environmentally friendly materials chosen for their performance benefits. Undoubtedly it will take some convincing for legacy auto manufacturers, race teams, and individuals to jump ship from radials to rice husks but, thanks to Goodyear and Michelin the future is looking bright for a more sustainable tire industry.

Sources

Global Temperature Scarf

Kara / January 26, 2023January 26, 2023

Artist Statement

Many people have seen temperature blankets pop up on our social media feed, but if you have not, temperature blankets (or other fiber art projects) are fiber records of the temperature over a set period of time. These striking projects are created by associating set temperature ranges with associated fiber colors to create unique temperature records. Typically, a row is added to the project each day after selecting the color that corresponds with the day’s temperature.

The potential to document global warming in such a visually impactful way has always captivated my imagination; naturally I jumped on the chance to make global warming tangible (and wearable) while living in the greenbelt. This scarf documents annual global average temperatures from 1880 through 2016, with 1880 beginning in blue and 2016 ending with the hottest temperature in red. Each color indicates how many ℃ the average global temperature that year was above or below the average global temperature during the entire 1880-2016 period. Check out the key to help you interpret the color scheme. Hope this inspires you to whip up your own hard-to-miss global warming conversation starter!

Works Cited

“Global Temperature Time Series.” DataHub, 2018, https://datahub.io/core/global-temp#readme.

Justus, Kara. Global Temperature Scarf. Accessed 26 Jan. 2023.

Justus, Kara. Global Temperature Scarf Key. Accessed 26 Jan. 2023.