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What do you keep but never use?

I wrote before about things that are too nice to use. At the time, I searched for research on this idea and came up dry. But a recent study has started to fill the gap. Kowalski and Yoon (2022) looked at how the reasons that people are attached to different products impact whether those products … Continue reading

The complexity of skateboarding

I found a recent article by O’Connor, Evers, Glenney, and Willings (2022) that proposed placing skateboarding as a grey activity. This is proposed as different from leisure activities that take place in green spaces and are often seen as promoting sustainability. Grey activities, on the other hand, exist in the space in between. They require … Continue reading

Do you know how to make your diet more sustainable?

I’ve looked into research on food sustainability and to say it’s complex is an understatement. Local good but meat bad; what if it’s local meat? Fruits and veggies good; what if they’re grown with lots of fertilizer and pesticides? What about farming practices and transportation distances and water use? I have a good background to … Continue reading

Reducing plastic is going to take more than recycling but that’s the extent of most corporate commitments

I think many people have been left with the feeling that not only is recycling enough but it’s also the responsibility of the end user to do the recycling. But corporations have a huge responsibility to reduce plastic waste in all areas of the supply chain. And a large number of companies globally indicate that … Continue reading

Sustainability applies to everything including kidney dialysis

For a project in university I once looked at all the things in health care that used oil based products, it’s a lot. I talked in that project about how important it is to prioritize where we use oil as we will inevitably have to phase out its use. Nobody wants to stop important health … Continue reading

Rewilding and Food Sustainability

Rewilding is a conservation approach that focuses on restoring natural processes. It involves less human management compared to many approaches to managing landscapes including both natural and agricultural areas. Keystone species, those that impact many other species, are fundamental to the success of rewilding, as is the return of wild versions of both plants and … Continue reading

Is winter mountain biking the way of the future?

In the winter I cross country ski and I skate. For the rest of the year I bike and I paddle. But the weather is changing with climate change. And those changes are making it harder to keep doing my activities. Last winter the weather flipped between -30°C and freezing rain. This made it extremely … Continue reading

One bike ride does make a difference

After turning to public transit for a few years because of injury, I’m back to commuting to work on my bike. I really enjoy commuting on my bike, even when it means starting the day in the dark and cold. Riding contributes to my mental and physical health and I figure it should help reduce … Continue reading

Communicating the reality of climate change without triggering hopelessness

This was a key theme in my doctoral research. Based on research that existed at the time, messages about climate change that portrayed the devastation occurring elsewhere didn’t really trigger a response. It was both too far away and too overwhelming. As a result, I focused my research on picturing (my participants took photos) climate … Continue reading

What will happen to the boreal forest in climate change?

I spent the weekend paddling in the middle of the boreal forest. It was a great mix of good stress navigating rough water and realizing that I had forgotten matches and had to light my stove with a flint and steel and relaxation with sunset paddles and listening to the loons. It also got me … Continue reading

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