In your opinion, how are we affecting our planet?

I can’t think of many ways we favorably affect our planet. We’ve elevated mass consumption to the point that chickens spend their entire lives inside cages for peak egg production and factory farms contribute in many ways to pollution. We’re polluting the water and air, using up resources at an irresponsible rate, and destroying the promise of a healthy world for future generations.

What solutions would you offer to stem the multiple problems we face vis a vis the destruction of our planet home?

I’d offer an incentive to households to encourage active participation in a recycling program. In addition to a recycling benefit I’d charge a fee for weekly garbage exceeding the amount appropriate to the number of people in the household. On a larger scale I’d push up deadlines for improved emissions standards and lobby for accountability in meeting clean water standards.

Do you think it’s already too late and we could just do exactly as we’re doing now and things would turn out the very same?

If we maintain our “it’ll all work itself out” attitude we’ll only hasten making the environment inhabitable. Yes, we missed the deadline for fully reversing the damage we’ve done to our planet but there’s nothing we can do about that now. Our environmental efforts now are about prolonging the time we have here.

Do you participate in things like “Arbor Day” (a U.S. Holiday dedicated to planting new trees) or Earth Day or Earth Month?

Yes, but not in a big splashy way. They’re days that remind me to refocus my environmental efforts.

Is any of it important in the ‘Big Picture’?

I’d argue whether the earth’s environment eventually becomes uninhabitable is the very definition of Big Picture.

What can you personally do to participate in the “Clean Earth” movement?

I recycle everything I can, combine my outings to decrease gas use, buy things that use less packaging, stay mindful of water usage in our home, and buy foods that are primarily in their natural form or have a simple list of ingredients.

Sparks from a Combustible Mind hosts Share Your World.