A round-up of this week’s environmental, green and ecofriendly news and updates.
What a wonderful program! Prison is tough, especially in max-security facilities. But a program in California is helping to rehabilitate both dogs and humans, from the inside out.
Many of the prisoners have spent much of their lives in jail. Most are violent offenders. Yet so many dogs in Pawsitive Change — a program that pairs long-term inmates with rescued dogs — seem at ease when they arrive at the prison. The majority of the dogs are from high-kill shelters in Kern County. Some dogs have come from the Yulin Dog Meat Festival, or from slaughterhouses in South Korea. Many have been abused, and were close to being killed.
The program requires inmates to train the rescue dogs for the Canine Good Citizen Certification, a rigorous test at the end of 14 weeks of hard work. Then, all the dogs will be adopted – many of them by inmates.
Jason, for instance, has already adopted his dog, Smokey. When he gets out of prison in a week, after a 13-year stint, Smokey will be waiting for him. Another prisoner, James, gets out in a year-and-a-half, after 25 years at Corcoran. His dog will be waiting for him.
The founder of the program says “What they’ve shown us is remarkable. They’ve really taken some of our most difficult dogs and absolutely transformed them. In the process, they transform themselves.”
And what’s even more amazing is what is happening to the inmates and their families. Many of them post videos of their dog training work on Instagram – and sometimes, estranged family members see that they are saving lives and re-think their opinions of the inmates. “We’ve reunited families that haven’t spoken to each other in decades” said the founder.
He added “What everyone in the program will tell you is it’s the best time they’ve ever done,” Skow says. “It’s the most hope they’ve had in their lives. It’s the most light they’ve had in their lives. It’s the most they’ve ever laughed.”
Throwaway dogs, used to cages, are rehabilitating throwaway humans who are used to being kept in a cage. I think it’s wonderful! You can see the Instagram pics here.
Are you worried about pesticide residue on the fresh produce you buy?
Although fruits and vegetables are a vital part of a healthy diet, the pesticides left behind on conventionally-grown produce can affect health in many ways.
Luckily, there are ways to reduce your exposure. I’ve already written about washing fruit and vegetables in baking soda and water. But there’s more! Here’s the latest, newly-released list of the items which carry the most pesticide residue. It’s good to know – and what the solution is. Find out which are safest fruits and veggies, here.
Now that you know which are the fruit and vegetables with the most – and least – pesticide residues, it’s good to consider buying some foods organic.
But remember – the term “organic” is not necessarily as good as you may think. Depending upon the labelling laws in your country, some food is allowed to be labelled if only SOME of the ingredients are. They make no warranty for what else is in there.
So for the items that are important to you, choose “certified organic” or “100% organic” if you can get them,. They’re generally more expensive because that certification is tough to get, but you’ll know you’re getting better products. And that’s my Recommendation of the Week. Most online shopping sites will let you search by “certified organic” or “100% organic” which is very useful – you can see the wide range of goods on Amazon that qualify here.
Teens (teenagers) can be difficult – but they also have a difficult time themselves, learning to adjust to all the changes they’re going through, peer pressure and more.
As a result, they have some specific nutritional needs. Find out what they need most from their food, here.
Global Green News:
I’ve always been a huge admirer of the British Monarchy. Of course there’s a royal wedding on May 19, so I was delighted to see that the flowers for the occasion will be “local, seasonal and sustainable”. Many plants will be taken directly from the gardens and parkland of the Crown Estate and Windsor Great Park. Beech, birch and hornbeam, as well as white garden roses, peonies and foxgloves will be used. The Royal Parks will contribute bee-friendly flowers from their wildflower meadows.
A State of Emergency was declared on the Indonesian island of Borneo this week after an oil spill killed several people when it ignited. The leak was caused by a burst undersea pipe. It coated large swaths of the coast in thick black sludge, killing marine life including protected dugongs and dolphins. The State-owned oil company denied the leak for 4 days.
The UK’s frozen-food-specialist-supermarket called Iceland is the first to remove palm oil from all its own-brand foods, in a bid to halt the ongoing destruction of tropical rainforests in south-east Asia. Palm oil is cheap so it is widely used in bread, pastry, biscuits, cereal and chocolate as well as soap and detergent.
High-end UK supermarket chain Waitrose will stop using disposable coffee cups in its shops by this autumn, as part of efforts to reduce plastic and packaging waste and stop millions going into landfill. This will save more than 52 million cups a year across the UK. Coffee cups can’t normally be recycled because they combine cardboard with plastic.
What do you think? Let me know in the comments below.
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I love what they have been doing in prisons for a while with the dogs. It’s been quite productive on all counts. I try to avoid products made with palm oil but it is in almost everything. There are some places that let you bring your own cup to fill. I like that best. Oil companies get away with murder, quite literally. I don’t know that there is any stopping them. I’m hoping to catch up soon here. Way too many distractions. Hope you are well.
Aha, you already knew about prisons and dogs, that’s great! It was news to me and I found it most interesting.
It is astonishing how many things contain palm oil – of course it’s cheap so manufacturers love it. Sigh. All is good here thanks Marlene, and thanks for chatting!