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Roberta Fernandez of Planet Partnership, an organization that works to mobilize communities to take action in reducing carbon footprints, spoke about methods both big and small to reduce our own impact on the environment.She began by saying that while natural variations in weather patterns have always been a part of the Earth’s history, most scientific research supports the theory that the extreme weather we’ve seen in recent years is a result of human negligence.

She supported this by citing some shocking statistics — for example, that two-thirds of China’s glaciers may be melted by 2060, that the Alps could be ice-free by 2050, and that Greenland lost 220 cubic kilometers of ice in 2005, the equivalent of billions of gallons of water.

These and other issues, she said, will be the most devastating for developing countries, which do not have the economic capacity to survive issues like the loss of potable water supply or the flooding of coastal homes.

Fernandez emphasized the importance of environmental consciousness in the business world.

“Eighty percent of graduating college students say that working for an environmentally responsible company is important to them,” she said. It’s not only employees who seek out green companies, Fernandez says, but also vendors and consumers.

“Lead by example,” Fernandez urged. “Look at Wal-Mart. They’ve published vendor guidelines that give suppliers 12 months to comply with their environmental standards, or they say ‘okay, you’re off our vendor list.’ But don’t think that just because your business isn’t as big as Wal-Mart means that the steps you take aren’t making a positive impact. “

Fernandez said that reducing the effects of climate change and preventing future damage “begins with the realization that it starts with me, not that guy over there … take a look at your consumption and reduce it in every way that you can.”

(Bonus track: download Fernandez’s “The Little Book of ‘Convenient’ Things You Can Do To Stop Global Warming” in .pdf here.)

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Editor’s note:  CL intern and USF journalism student Franki Weddington files from the USF Going Green Expo:

My first seminar of the day is “Biodiesel and Biofuels,” presented by Michael Lokey of Lokey Trucks. If you’re surprised to hear that a lecture on environmentally-friendly fuels is being presented by someone who sells gas-guzzling trucks and SUVs, join the club.

While most of the audience of about 40 people seem to be at least somewhat familiar with the concept of homemade biodiesel, I don’t even know how a diesel engine works, much less how to create fuel for it.

Fortunately for me, Lokey begins the discussion by briefly explaining the difference between traditional gasoline-powered internal combustion engines and diesel engines, which use compression and don’t require a spark plug. He says that a diesel engine is “basically just like a bicycle.” Sure it is.

Instead of using diesel fuel, Lokey says, a more environmentally friendly option is using vegetable oil or biodiesel to run your car. (A Dodge truck biofuel converter is shown at right.) Among their advantages is that they clean and lubricate your engine, can be stored safely for more than a year and reduce carbon emissions. Also, it keeps otherwise wasted veggie oil out of our sewer systems, which Lokey says currently costs the city of Tampa $300,000 annually.

Lokey explains that engines that run on straight vegetable oil (or “svo’s” as they’re called in the industry) will never become a viable option for mainstream consumption but will remain popular in the realm the environmentallyaware individual.

This is because unaltered veggie oil solidifies if not kept at the proper temperature, which is difficult in most environments and often requires two engines to be feasible. The factory engine houses the majority of the oil, which can be used once the engine is running and has heated it to a usable temperature, and another that uses the car’s coolant (which, apparently, is actually quite warm) to heat the oil while the car is turned off.

For most people, Lokey says, biodiesel, which is basically just veggie oil that has been chemically or physically altered to remain at a usable viscosity, is a more practical option.

While this may seem like an arduous task, Lokey says that “if you can check the pH balance in your pool and wash a load of laundry successfully, you’re probably overqualified” for making your own biodiesel, because essentially the only requirement is adding chemicals that stabilize the veggie oil.

Toward the end of the seminar, someone finally asks the question that we’ve all undoubtedly been thinking: “Don’t you own a truck dealership? Are your trucks all run on biodiesel?”

Lokey looks as though he’s gotten this question more than once. “For a small sum tacked on to each monthly car payment, we can convert the trucks to run on biodiesel. That’s with approved credit, of course.”

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Organizers on three continents are planning green events on April 1 as part of a “Fossil Fools Day” awareness campaign aimed at outing all the ways that fossil fuels are intertwined in our lives. From Rising Tide North America:

Anywhere you live, fossil fools are going to be engaging in destruction, poisoning of communities, and other filthy, climate changing business. Most of us live (sometimes ignorantly) in the shadow of toxic, combustion or extraction activities. Even if you don’t live near these points of destruction, unless your living off the grid, your utility company gets most of its energy from fossil fuels…and that’s despite any photos of wind turbines or solar panels on their website, or “green” options they are more then happy to charge you extra for on your bill.

If you’re not sure who they are, the first step to taking action on the fossil fools in your community is finding them!

From its list of Fossil Foolery you are encouraged to engage in:

1. Stop the pumps

As the main public face of the oil industry not to mention the fact that they are everywhere, gas stations are a great place to highlight the connection between car culture, climate change, and environmental justice. Aside from being one of the largest sources of greenhouse gases, there is not an oil company on this planet that has not been party to human rights atrocities. Whether it is Shell killing environmental activists in Nigeria or ChevronToxico dumping toxic waste on indigenous lands in the Amazon there are plenty of examples to make the connection between the destruction of the Earth and these companies’ assaults on human rights.

Consider such tactics as blockading the entrance to a gas station, locking down to gas pumps, or having a die-in in front of the gas station. It is quite easy to gain access to the roof for a banner drop with the use of a extension ladder. It should also be noted that all gas stations have safety shut off buttons that will shut off gas pumps in case of an emergency, which are generally located on the outside of the station. If a global climate meltdown isn’t an emergency, we don’t know what is!

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4. Kick corporate research off your (or anybody’s) campus

Universities, in collaboration with corporations, are developing new technologies using fossil fuel extraction and burning. Many schools in coal states have research facilities dedicated to the perpetuation of this dirty fuel, while schools in oil states like Texas focus on petroleum. Chances are that any major university will be involved in some aspect of perpetuating our addiction to fossil fuels. Capitalizing on the need for alternative energy sources many universities are raking in big bucks setting up agrofuels research centers. Not only will agrofuels not create meaningful reductions in greenhouse gases, they create a host of new environmental and social problems. BP’s $500 million facility proposed for UC Berkeley is already meeting strong resistance. Do some research, get creative, and kick the fossil fools in the butt and then off your campus.

No word on whether any of the organized events are slated for Tampa Bay. More info about the planetwide Fossil Fools Day at this site.

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