1 . Go Recycling

No one looking at the state of Earth in 2023 can be in any doubt that we are facing three serious environmental problems: climate problem, loss of biodiversity and pollution of air, soil and water.

To solve the problems, we increase the use of electric cars, encourage greener eating and reduce plastic use.     1     For instance, creating space for biofuel crops to give off fewer pollutants and greenhouse gases can, in fact, significantly increase the cutting down of trees.     2     And, what is perhaps lacking is an awareness of how interlinked these problems are.

    3     The root cause of global warming is CO₂, a waste gas. The seas are polluted by plastic and other waste products. We ignore forests, among other things, to grow more food, much of which goes to waste.

A shocking figure lies at the heart of our special report on our world—of the more than 100billion tons of things that humans use each year, hardly 10% is recycled.     4     The situation requires our speedy moving away from the way of thinking — “take, make, throw”—towards a more recyclable one, which means we should begin redesigning the products and when they reach the end of their useful lives, they can be recycled.

Solving the three problems calls for a huge transition with joint efforts.     5     They should take the lead by introducing laws in order to reward green practices, such as the limiting of waste. Industries can reduce, re-use and recycle wherever possible, and team themselves with suppliers and the like-minded to realize recyclable business models.

5 . The following charities advocate protecting our precious environment. It’s a starting place, but don’t stop here.

Rocky Mountain Institute

Rocky Mountain Institute has made notable achievements in its comparatively short history. In2017, it worked with India’s leadership and government to plan for 100% vehicle electrification(电气化) by 2030. They also provided research that resulted in new U. S. fuel-efficiency standards for trucks, which were expected to cut over one billion tons of CO₂ emissions. Its five-year plan to quicken low-carbon energy transition (转变) was published in early 2018.

Greenpeace Fund

Although Greenpeace solves many environmental problems such as deforestation (滥伐森林) and sustainable food, it has worked to address issues with oceans for decades: plastic pollution, offshore drilling, saving the Arctic, and more. Greenpeace has grown from a small group of activists protesting nuclear testing in 1971 to an international organization with offices in over fifty countries.

Center for Biological Diversity

Founded in 1989, the Center for Biological Diversity uses biological data and legal knowledge to obtain new protections for plants, animals, and their habitats. Its story began with some young students, an ancient tree in Mexico, and a spotted owl’s nest. Its first campaign saved both the tree and the owl. And they continue to grow by expanding territory, staff, and outreach (外展服务).

Sierra Club Foundation

The Sierra Club has been working to protect the environment and its people since 1892. It helped pass the Clean Air and Endangered Species Acts, enabled the creation of many national parks, and worked to move hundreds of coal plants towards clean energy. It also offers environmentally friendly wilderness outings to encourage people to get outdoors. People can take an international trip to study wildlife in Cuba.

6 . Two and a half months before the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season officially begins, and almost six months before it enters its peak (高峰), weathermen are already predicting (预测) that it could be particularly active.

Officially, hurricane season begins from June 1 and runs through November. One reason is that sea surface temperatures in the tropical (热带的) Atlantic are already at record highs.

Meanwhile, another significant potential factor in this year’s hurricane season is taking shape thousands of miles away in the Pacific. Over periods ranging from three to seven years, the waters of the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean warm and cool in turn as a result of a repeating climate pattern called the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO). El Niño makes Atlantic hurricanes less likely to form but La Niña does.

During the 2023 season, ENSO was in an El Niño period. However, by the time the 2024 season starts, it will have changed into a “neutral(中立)” period, but that by the peak months, it is likely to have changed fully into a La Niña.

“How quickly that change occurs can affect everything as well,” says DaSilva, a lead hurricane weatherman. “There’s a lag time. So, while we expect the change to occur in mid-summer, it may not be until late summer or fall where we really see those effects across the Atlantic basin.” As a result, he says, this year’s hurricane season could remain particularly active deep into November.

Of course, no report can predict when individual storms will come or the paths they will take, but DaSilva warns that those who live in areas likely to suffer hurricanes, especially around the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico, should prepare. “If a tropical storm system comes into this area, it could rapidly strengthen, potentially close to land,” he also warns. “And that’s why people need to be careful and have their hurricane plans ready. Because any system with these kinds of conditions can explode very quickly. That’s what we’re concerned about.”

7 . Zong Qinghou, a soft drinks giant from Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, died of an illness at the age of 79. There has been much mourning at his passing on Feb. 25, 2024 as he was well-known as the founder of a company, headquartered in his hometown in the late 1980s, which later developed into the Wahaha Group, a major soft drinks company.

He is known to the public for three things — his rags-to-riches rise, his long-term frugal (节俭的) lifestyle, and his devotion to promoting China’s national industries. Forbes ranked him, with a wealth of about $5.9 billion, No.53 among Chinese billionaires last year.

Yet besides, it is also worthwhile to think over the question about whether his success in business can be imitated today and what lessons policymakers can learn from his self-made business success as they try to enrich the soil for setting up business.

Before winning a contract (合同) to work as a salesperson of a small school-run factory selling writing materials, iced treats and soft drinks in Hangzhou in 1987, Zong worked as a traveling salesman for nearly a decade after working for 15 years on various posts in local farming communities with Grade-9 education.

His sharp business sense, which he owed to poverty instead of the genes (基因) of the Zhejiang business community, enabled him to recognize business opportunities at a time when the country had just carried out the change from a planned economy to a socialist market one.

The broad space he enjoyed as a sales representative of the factory enabled him to continuously sharpen his sales strategies and enlarge his network of business partners. That not only helped him gather the start-up funds he later used to contract the whole factory, but also influenced his later management style, which he summed up as always trying to make things simpler.

As he told the media, it is the spirit of adventure of his generation and their down-to-earth work style that deserve attention, not his lifestyle, which was a personal choice.

8 . Have you ever wondered why you want to do something, or what causes people to go through extraordinary pain or personal investment just to achieve a particular outcome?     1     Motivation.

Motivation is the reason for people’s actions, goals, and willingness to pursue the goals. Sometimes it seems difficult to find, but we all have that spark at our core. Here are some ways you can turn that spark back into a flame.

    2     If your motivation is fading, notice when this starts to happen and what events could have driven it. You’ll find that you’re more likely to feel bored when you’re in certain environments. As you become more aware of this, you can put yourself in situations where you’re more likely to thrive.

Keep a thankfulness journal.     3     When they’re aware of what they’re thankful for, it drives them in specific areas of their lives. Considering this, you may find value in keeping a thankfulness journal where you regularly list blessings.

Design an accomplishment book. Creative people may do well to design an accomplishment book with images of past work and accomplishments as a form of encouragement. It can be as informal or formal as you’d like. It might be a simple scrapbook you keep at your desk, or a professionally printed booklet that you keep by your bed.     4    

Get out of the house. If your life consists of going to work, coming home, watching Netflix, and going to sleep, you shouldn’t be surprised that you’re unmotivated.     5     Stretching yourself will expose you to new ideas, activities, and people, which will either strike up new motivation or rekindle things you have forgotten about.

9 . Restrictive uniforms could be preventing primary school pupils, especially girls, from being physically active, research suggests. In countries where most schools require students to wear uniforms, fewer young people reach the World Health Organization’s minimum recommendation of 60 minutes of physical activity a day across a whole week, according to a study by the University of Cambridge.

There was a greater difference between girls and boys of primary-school age in countries where uniforms were common. The finding was not copied among children of secondary-school age. This may be owing to the exercise younger children get throughout the day — for example, through running, climbing and active play at break and lunchtimes. The findings confirm earlier evidence that girls feel less comfortable participating in active play if they are wearing certain types of clothing such as skirts or dresses.

Dr. Mairead Ryan, a researcher at the institute of education and MRC unit at Cambridge, said, “ Schools often prefer to use uniforms for various reasons. We are not trying to suggest a blanket ban on them, but to present new evidence to support decision-making. School communities could consider design, and whether specific characteristics of a uniform might either encourage or restrict any opportunities for physical activity.”

A 2021 study in England found the design of girls’ PE uniforms prevented students from participating in certain activities. Other studies have suggested girls are much shyer about taking part in physical activity when wearing uniforms in which they do not feel comfortable. Dr. Esther van Sluijs, senior author and MRC investigator (调查员), said, “Girls might feel less confident about doing things like cartwheels and tumbles in the playground, or riding a bike on a windy day if they are wearing a skirt or dress. Social expectations tend to influence what they feel they can do in these clothes. Unfortunately, when it comes to promoting physical health, that’s a problem.”

The WHO recommends that young people get 60 minutes of at least moderate-intensity (中等强度) physical activity a day. The Cambridge study confirmed previous observations that most children and teenagers were not meeting this recommendation — especially girls, who have a gap of 7.6 percentage points with boys.

10 . The Forest Eye project aims to create the largest living forest feature in England by growing 5,000 alder, beech and maple trees into the shape of a child’s eye. The trees are being planted in Dalby Forest, North Yorkshire, with the help of local young people. The trees will form an eye 300 meters wide that will be visible from the sky in about six years, when they have grown.

The project hopes to focus on the importance of young people’s ideas for creating a health y natural environment. It was designed by a company called Sand in Your Eye and has been created by Forestry England, an organization that protects forests and woodlands.

Josephine Lavelle, director at Forestry England, says, “Having the gaze of a child growing in the heart of this beautiful and ever-changing forest is a powerful symbol of how we need to listen and respond to the needs and vision of future generations.”

The project also aims to highlight the important role that forests play in fighting climate change. As well as providing a home for wildlife, trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and create oxygen that humans need to breathe. When the trees have grown, they will provide a place for lots of wild animals, like bats, birds and small mammals to live. The Forest Eye will also create a space for people to explore and connect with nature.

Jamie Wardley, artistic director at Sand in Your Eye, has plenty of experience creating pieces of “land art”. These are huge drawings and sculptures made from grass, ice and sand, including a 60-meter portrait of Swedish climate-change campaigner Greta Thunberg on a school field in Yorkshire. He says, “The trees are my paint.” “Our work is about prompting people to think deeply and respond emotionally to some of the biggest issues facing us, including the climate crisis.” Wardley also plans to develop the Forest Eye into an even bigger project. “It is our ambition to create the whole face of a young girl at the same scale, measuring 2,000 meters across. Those trees that are planted in the Forest Eye are the very beginning of this,” he says.