The New Year has started and with it come new resolutions, challenges, intentions. Adapting new manners can be exciting and exhausting at the same time. To keep them implemented in the long-term, it’s helpful to set reachable goals and one’s that do not cause a lot of overcoming.
Friends of the Earth has created an overview for you to help you adapt more sustainable practices and live a more environmentally friendly life.
#1 – Buy local
Buying fruits and vegetables locally does not only support Maltese farmers, but is also beneficial for the environment since long transportation lines are skipped and CO2 emissions reduced.
On our Malta Farm Map you can find your closest local farmer for fruits and veggies, but also for honey and eggs.
We are currently working on this Map to give you an even better overview in the future.
See our current Farm Map here.
#2 – Eat seasonal
Eating seasonal has impacts on both, health and environment. Since local fruits and vegetables are harvested throughout the seasons, they are packed with intense flavour and more vitamins. Also, short travelling distances mean that the carbon footprint is at a minimal. In addition to that, buying local produce supports our farmers and preserves the rural landscape.
The Agro Katina Report is the product of Friends of the Earth Malta’s research into the local vegetable and fruit supply chain and the agricultural sector in Malta. Friends of the Earth Malta strongly believes in shorter supply chains, as these have a positive impact on local farmers, strengthen local economies and small business, and bring the public closer to their food sources.
Download the report here to find out more.
The Agro Katina pocket guide is a handy, colourful shopping guide that fits in your pocket or purse, containing information about when local fruits & vegetables are in season in Malta. On the back you can find all the information in a poster format, so you can hang it up in your kitchen or office.
Find the pocket guide here.
#3 – Join Meatless Monday
You may have heard the statement that going meat-free helps save the world from climate change. But do you really know why? Some people even go further to say that it is possibly the greenest thing you can do. But how can the simple process of switching our diet have such a global impact? Here’s an explanation to it:
There are two major ways that animal agriculture impacts on climate change. Firstly, massive deforestation takes place to make way for pasture land and arable land needed to grow feed-crops. Secondly, the raising of animals produces greenhouse gasses. Apart from CO2 emissions, animal agriculture also produces other harmful greenhouse gasses like methane, which is 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide.
If there were any doubt by climate sceptics that have long tried to dismiss the importance of changing one’s diet, the special report just issued by the UN Intergovernmental panel on Climate Change (IPCC) describes plant-based diets as a major opportunity for mitigating and adapting to climate change. This panel is made from international scientists. The report actually includes a policy recommendation to reduce meat consumption.
We can all make a start by cutting out meat and eating delicious plant-based food for one day each week- join the growing global Meatless Monday movement!
Click here for our cooking guide and more information:
#4 – Get informed
Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body. —Richard Steele
Start a new book, get informed about the challenges of climate change or simply read about inspirational lifestyles.
Visit our Friends of the Earth Community Library to find fiction and non-fiction books, cookbooks, guides, books about plants and animals, as well as helpful advice for organic gardening and permaculture.
Click here for more information and start browsing the library: