Today we had a seminar about energy conservation because in Uganda we will have to effectively use electricity and water. I'll be "showering" with cold water I've collected with buckets. Walking a 4km round trip for water, only to find out mid-shampoo that I did not collect enough, is not something I want to experience, so I decided to pay attention.
It is the same story, told over and over in elementary and secondary schools across the country; reduce, reuse, recycle. Each student listens carefully to their one hour assembly and vows to make a change, only to return to their old ways of energy usage. Until today I did not understand why in British Columbia, home of clean energy, we needed to conserve energy, after all I wasn't impacting the environment was I? So during a seminar at T'Souke Reserve I asked Andrew, the project manager and elder, what the importance of energy conservation was. Apparently, our energy needs are expected to increase by 60% in the next 20 years. Just look at your text messaging and computer playing friends and family members and you can see why; we are addicted to electricity! So how will we meet this energy demand? By building more Hydro Dams which can destroy habitats and wildlife and by buying electricity produced by the Alberta Oil Sands. With increased need for energy the Harper Government is seeking to implement the Enbridge Oil Pipeline. We can blame the Harper Government but are they really to blame for wanting the pipeline? After all, as Canadians we demand more and more energy and the government is trying to fill that need. As Canadians we need to show the government that the environment is more important to us than a pipeline, and we can do that by conserving energy.
I've recently learned that several schools in Kamloops are following my blog, I would like to challenge classes to change their habits and save energy. I know that if I hear something, I forget, but if I participate I remember forever. For each class that comments on this post and writes about what their class has done differently in their lives and schools to conserve 10% of their regular energy use, I promise to bring you back a gift from Uganda and speak to your class.
In a small village in Uganda the children recieved a soccer ball...that quickly deflated...not to be disappointed, they tied plastic bags together and formed their own soccer ball. That new ball is sustainable, fixable and made of recycled items. Do you think you can match that creativity?
There are several things youth, adults and elders can do to conserve energy and save our communties. I have pledged, along with the other Ugandan interns to start a compost bucket in our kitchen that will be distributed outside in the flower bed, to give up my car and buy a bus pass and unplug appliances that are not in use (computers, microwaves, phone chargers). Using cloth bags for grocery shopping, travel mugs for drinks, cold water in the washing machine and air drying clothes are all great ideas. I have a secret for you, but I'm sure you won't tell anyone will you? The interns and I watched Jersey Shore last night. I know, I'm not proud of it, but it was our day off. I think that stopping watching that show on our computers and limiting our internet usage will also be a good energy conserver, because when really think about it, how many hours of watching fist pumping do you need in a day?
Check out these links on the pipeline!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aO4s4P7eFk4
and this link is for all the youth, because you are going to lead the next 7 generations into sustainable living!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9dBrlDXVsk
And as always,
Hi to moosmas, davey baby, donald, brittany, kelli and to the teachers and students following!
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