By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org The government of Ecuador, after failing to convince wealthy, industrialized countries to pay to leave oil in the ground, has now reversed course and approved drilling in Yasuní National Park, located in the Amazon rainforest. The revolutionary plan was originally hailed in 2007 as a potential model for a more sustainable/less
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org Perhaps more than almost anyone else, girls all over the world deserve a day of recognition.  This October 11th is International Day of the Girl, a special day intended to highlight an issue of global importance.  Girls, who are all too often ignored or devalued, could use some international support. The purpose
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org Poverty drives people to do some drastic things, and bearing a child for money is one of them. Commercial surrogacy is defined as when a woman is financially compensated beyond expenses associated with the pregnancy for carrying the child of another couple. India is home to a large number of surrogate mothers,
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org “We are going to create something that will explode beautifully into the world,” stated Osprey Orielle Lake, organizer of the first International Women’s Earth and Climate Initiative Summit.  She echoed the heartfelt sentiments of 100 women environmental leaders who gathered for the conference in late September and came from more than
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org Today is celebrated as World Contraception Day.  Perhaps there are not actually a billion reasons to celebrate it, but there is a case to be made that a billion dollars would go a long way in meeting the need for contraceptives for women and families all over the world. Banks or
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org A recent op-ed in the New York Times titled Overpopulation is not the Problem takes an “interesting” position on the topic of population growth and the environment. The author, Erle C. Ellis, a geography professor and biologist by training, wrote, “The conditions that sustain humanity are not natural and never have
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org If you want to have an impact on reducing carbon emissions and the effects of climate change, look no further than your kitchen. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), every year the world wastes a third of all food for human consumption – nearly 1.3 billion tons – equal
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org Slowly but surely, economists and other experts are beginning to see the light on the need to rethink society’s obsession with growth, be it population or economic. Dean Baker, an economist with the Center for Economic & Policy Research, took the New York Times to task for celebrating fertility rates in
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org In this summer of drought in many places around the world, concern about water is growing.  Coping with water scarcity is a main topic at World Water Week, which is currently winding down in Stockholm, Sweden.  This is an annual gathering of leaders, experts, and perhaps a few activists to discuss
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org Women’s health and reproductive rights go hand in hand with a sustainable environment. When women’s needs are met, they are able to better manage resources, confront the effects of climate change and handle climate mitigation and adaptation, and overall support sustainable communities. Biodiversity loss affects access to education and gender equality
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