Hi Jen,
Your post is one of the most comprehensive Conference reviews I've read. Congratulations! I also attended the conference & the Water/Food/Agriculture Sessions.
Your topic of consumption is a great one to discuss & water/food/agriculture fit right into the mix.
Here's a recent writeup I did on Water: http://tinyurl.com/c9ejrq
Also, during the Food/Agriculture Panel, I mentioned the following facts:
1. UN Climate Change Report states that animal agriculture causes more greenhouse gases than transportation http://tinyurl.com/ymotue
2. UK Hospitals are reducing meat to cut carbon http://tinyurl.com/cr9svd
3. Bon Appétit is reducing meat and cheese in their operations (my interview with Bon Appétit's CEO is here: http://tinyurl.com/cxnby4 )
I then asked how these facts/trends may be affecting their company policies, operations & supply chains. It inspired some good dialogue such as locally grown vegetables.
Bill Clinton's conference speech noted the UK was ahead of their climate emissions goals. I wonder if the UK Hospital meat reduction had something to do with this.
I think this topic should be a part of US Climate Policy. Imagine if hospitals & businesses worked with the gov't on implementing low carbon food (& water) programs & farmers were provided assistance & a seat at the table to work on these issues & solutions. If a reader knows someone in the Obama Admin. who can take a look at these options, please share this with them.
I look forward to reading your future posts!
About Earth Day
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost
