Several weeks ago, Whole Foods, the organic supermarket chain many people have a love/hate relationship with, announced that by 2018 any of its products containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs) would be labeled. A Bloomberg Businessweek article called the move “clever marketing” and said: Transparency is something worth paying for these days. I find it amusing…Continue Reading…
A researcher looked into claims of health effects from exposure to a source of energy that has become controversial in recent years: Then in about 2009 things started ramping up and these people discovered if you started saying it was a health problem, a lot more people would sit up and pay attention. It’s essentially…Continue Reading…
Why do environmental debates almost always turn into polarizing slugfests? Well, such debates focus on problems identified as significant threats to the planet and human welfare. People fight over how big (or negligible) a certain threat is and what the solution should be. The fiercest battles are between people who have different values, which turns into…Continue Reading…
Have you heard about the big event National Geographic is hosting with TEDx this week, the one about restoring species? No, not endangered species–but ones that are already extinct, like the woolly mammoth. I have mixed feelings about the idea. In the abstract, I think it’s pretty cool. The prospect of regaining lost pieces of…Continue Reading…
Once upon a time, long before a recent wave of ideological zealotry drove the Republican party to cleanse itself of moderates, appeals for GOP comity were often couched in Ronald Reagan’s eleventh commandment: Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican In liberal and environmental circles, a similar dictate seems to now hold, with respect…Continue Reading…
In October, Dan Charles, NPR’s food and agriculture correspondent, wrote an excellent piece headlined: Top Five Myths of Genetically Modified Seeds, Busted There is one myth, however, that should have been included because of its widespread dissemination and emotive power. It is the one GMO myth that exploits real human tragedy and for that reason, I…Continue Reading…
As someone who tracks environmental discourse in real time, I find it valuable to step back on occasion and look at how public attitudes are shaped. For that, I depend on the work of scholars. One book from 2008 that I’ve only just read explores how several major contemporary environmental themes have been expressed culturally,…Continue Reading…
The cover story in the April issue of Discover is about the anti-GMO movement in Europe. I found it interesting but also narrowly centered on the opposition in Germany. For example, the piece neglects to discuss, much less mention, a widely publicized event last summer involving a UK government sponsored research lab. This featured UK scientists mounting…Continue Reading…
As a child of the suburbs, my first real contact with raw nature was in 5th grade, when a friend and I built a treehouse in the woods behind the apartment complex we lived in. (This was a two-year pit stop after my parent’s divorce.) No adults helped us. It was pretty awesome. I used…Continue Reading…
Since I’m always on the lookout for helpful advice on how to talk to my friends about GMOs, this tweet caught my eye: Via @foodmythbusters: 7 Things To Tell Your Friends About GMO’s bit.ly/XHYD8G — Danielle Nierenberg (@DaniNierenberg) March 7, 2013 In her bio at the Worldwatch Institute, Nierenberg is listed as “an expert on…Continue Reading…