Adison Granger

According to Drawdown, educating women and girls about family planning is ranked 7th in results by 2050 and will reduce 51.48 gigatons of CO2. 225 million women in lower-income countries say they want the ability to choose whether and when to become pregnant but lack the necessary access to contraception. And this isn't just a problem in lower-income countries. 45% of pregnancies in the United States are unintended. Right now it is projected that by 2050 our total world population will be 9.7 billion. If this happens, the resulting emissions reductions could be 102.96 gigatons. Not only will this solution help reduce climate change and control overpopulation, it will also make living situations safer for girls around the world. According to the United Nations Population Fund, complications from pregnancy and childbirth are the leading cause of death for girls between ages 15 to 19. If women in developing regions have better access to modern methods of contraception, 76,000 maternal deaths would be prevented every year.

If people were educated about the difference between use by, sell by, and best by dates there would be a lot less food waste. According to Drawdown Eco Challenge's article about reduced food waste, people in high income economies such as the United States throw out 35% of their food. If we were to cut down on our food waste, we could reduce CO2 emissions by 70.53 gigatons. Use by date suggests consuming the product before the listed date for best possible quality. Sell by date suggests that you purchase the product before the printed date, but that does not mean it has spoiled. Best by date suggests that the printed date is the last day to use the product while it is still in good quality. In the article "Denmark Might Be Winning The Global Race To Prevent Food Waste" by NPR, we see a great example of a country which is actively trying to cut down on food waste. In their supermarket chain, Dansk Supermarked, they sell foods that are near expiration at a reduced price. For example, they will sell expired bread for 60% less than the usual retail price. Shopping in that section used to suggest poverty, but now many people are seeing purchasing food products in this section as something great. Since people are more open to this, many supermarkets in Denmark now order in less food than they did before since people are more open to buying food that has surpassed its use by, sell by, or best by date. Not only is being conscious about the different types of dates on food products good for the environment, it is also a great way for businesses and people to save money.

Cocoa and coffee are the easiest ones for me to cut out. Even though they are things that I enjoy, they are not essential to my diet and I can easily drop them without problem. Cutting out palm is going to be difficult. After doing a Google search, I found out that most bread, chips, margarine, soap, ice cream, pizza, and instant noodles contain palm oil. However, it seems that a lot of them are unhealthy foods. So cutting out palm oil from my diet will not only be better for the environment, but also better for my overall health.

I think people in North America eat more meat than any other country because the meat industry (as well as the dairy industry) here is huge. It is everywhere we look. Our schools, grocery stores, restaurants, advertisements, etc. I also find it fascinating that people in North America continue to support these industries despite all of the evidence of how poorly animals are treated and how much eating meat contributes to climate change.