Ah, so some of you are patting yourselves for downloading an e-book instead of resisting the temptation to buy a dead-tree-paper hard copy!
Bravo! A green friend of mine downloaded a 100-page book, burnt it on a CD so he could read it at home, showed his wife a page, who said she wanted to read the book too. Since it wasn’t comfortable to have her breathing down his neck while he read, GreenMan helpfully printed the book for wife.
Ten days later, GreenMan threw the CD out. To dust it went, and to dust it did not turn. Mrs.GreenMan passed the printed book to several friends, and when the 25th friend threw out the dog-earred sheets, it turned to dust eventually, and a tree lapped up the nutrients from it.
Moral of the story: Being Green is not about using technology INSTEAD of paper, its about thrift, and common sense, and using less of EVERYTHING……except the brain of course.
Going green is a way of life – it is an attitude and has nothing to do with being cynical or turning into a miser. Other day some of us were talking about water scarcity over a cup of tea; everybody present was very concerned and wanted to know what is going to happen. We talked a great deal about their environment, eco-friendliness and what not. That is how we treat environment. Our concerns melt down to nothingness once we are out of these addas. Next morning while I had a bath, I was thinking how many of us used a bucket instead of the shower, how many used a mug for shaving and how many turned off the taps while brushing teeth? And we still talk about eco-friendliness! We never think before approaching that desk-top printer to take printouts at the slightest hint. All this when we are sitting over the tinder box of disasters! Going green is no longer a concern of a few scientists; it is for all of us to bring into practice ways of living in harmony with Mother Nature and worry abut her ill-health. If we don’t take action now, our existence would be a history sooner than we think. Only yesterday I read, in Germany they were covering glaciers with canvases to prevent their melting before time! What next? We must think, learn and most urgently, ACT NOW.