By Suzanne York.   Amazingly, but perhaps not surprisingly, climate change has been barely mentioned in the U.S. presidential elections. This, despite the fact that 2016 is likely to be the hottest year on record. Fortunately, the leaders of other countries seem to have a better handle on it. A landmark international climate agreement was
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By Suzanne York. It’s official, more or less – we have entered the Anthropocene epoch, a time when humanity’s impact on the planet is so transformational that it’s pushed the world into a new geological period. “New Age of Man” An international working group, after seven years of deliberation, voted unanimously (with one abstention) at
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By Suzanne York. Child marriage is a difficult issue that is complicated by culture and religion, and especially by poverty.  Now it seems that climate change is another complicating factor. It might be surprising to find out that extreme weather could be increasing the rate of child marriage and other detrimental impacts on children. But
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org. It’s still a month until summer begins, and the drought in the western U.S. continues to be headline news.  Just wait until August. A couple of news items from the past week perfectly highlight the scope of the drought that is impacting the western U.S., and the role of human hubris
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org In the U.S., almost all the weather news seems to be fixated on the snow storms back East.  Yet despite the cold and snow, more records for heat have been broken than for cold.  The winter of 2014-15 has been so warm across much of the West that more than 20
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org. The world is headed towards a “danger zone,” as it is passing a number of planetary boundaries that could destabilize the earth, according to yet another study by an international group of scientists. While your average citizen is probably not even aware of the concept of planetary boundaries, it should be a
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org Family planning efforts are mainly directed at women, which makes sense.  Yet too often men are disregarded, and they should be part of most discussions on family planning. Involving both men and women will not only help families, but the environment too. One overlooked topic when it comes to women, men
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org The theme of this past weekend’s Bioneers Summit Conference was “revolution from the heart of nature,” but more than that, it was also that land and life are sacred. If you aren’t familiar with Bioneers, it is an annual conference that just celebrated its 25th year. Attendees are referred to as
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org Hopefully you’ve heard about this weekend’s People’s Climate March in New York City.  It is being billed as the biggest climate rally in the U.S., taking place before UN Secretary Ban Ki-moon’s climate summit. While there will be many organizations and diverse views being touted during the march, there is one
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By Suzanne York, www.howmany.org In 2013, the amount of carbon dioxide in Earth’s atmosphere passed 400 parts per million (ppm) for the first time in modern human history. And now, in 2014, carbon levels have remained above 400 ppm for three months in a row.  This makes the past three months the first period of
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