Our Planet Earth
Our journey to care for our planet earth!
Featured Articles
What is the largest living organism in the world?
Are fungi alive? Yes, fungi are living organisms and belong to their own kingdom, separate from plants and animals. They absorb nutrients and play a critical role in decomposition. Fungi are not plants or animals since they consist of mycelium, which is made of hyphae, and they have cell walls made of chitin. They grow and live by secreting digestive enzymes to break down materials, such as dead trees or soil nutrients. A single fungus colony of Armillaria solidipes (Armillaria ostoynae) in the Oregon Blue Mountains is reported to be the largest living organism on earth and can span four square miles and be thousands of years old
See Full Article· 5 min readWhat Will We Do When...
A Gallup poll shows that Americans are especially concerned about global warming and climate change in their lives. We also hear from the Environmental Voter concerns about our future.
See Full Article· 5 min readFreshwater
Is freshwater important for people and Mother Earth? Yes, freshwater is critical for our survival in drinking, sanitation, food production, industry, and energy development. All life depends on drinking freshwater that is safe for our health and well-being. Our human bodies are about 60% water, and it is the universal solvent in most solutions. Nonetheless, freshwater is being impacted and reduced in availability today more than most people realize. Please look at the quote from Benjamin Franklin at the end of this article.
See Full Article· 5 min readRecent Articles
Climate Migrants
The International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) said, “Climate refugees also referred to as climate change refugees and climate migrants are individuals who have been displaced from their homes due to natural disasters and climate change. This includes floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, desertification, droughts, rising sea levels, and more. These events not only affect the safety of individuals, but can also cause food, water, and other long-term resource shortages that push people from their homes”. They also said, the term “climate migrant” is more accurate than climate change refugee because, much like internally displaced persons, climate migrants are not recognized as refugees under international refugee law. This means they do not have the same protections and rights when seeking asylum as people who have fled their home country to escape persecution based on religion, race, nationality, or political opinion.
See Full Article· 5 min readTen Eco-Commandments for Earth Citizens
For nearly three years, this column in The Message has consistently given good reasons to be less consumer- driven and more eco-friendly. It has promoted “Laudato Si’” to all people and to all religions in the world, as requested by Pope Francis - including through his “Ten Commandments for Climate Change” (See What can we do section).
See Full Article· 4 min readThe Sun
Rhett Herman, Ph.D., physics professor at Radford University in Virginia (Scientific American, 10/26/1998, How fast is the Earth moving) says, the Earth revolves around the sun in 365 days at a speed of nearly 67,000 mph, and rotates on its axis, at the equator at 1,000 mph. In addition, the sun is a yellow star made of hydrogen and helium, 93 million miles from earth, and its volume would need 1.3 million earths to fill it (National Aeronautics and Space Administration).
See Full Article· 5 min readEarth Day and the Catholic Church
Gaylord Nelson, who founded Earth Day, saw, in the 1960’s, a deteriorating environment and Anti-Vietnam War protests. Both gave him the idea for a “teach-in” about environmental issues on April 22, 1970, the first Earth Day. It’s estimated that 20 million people participated in this event, according to “The History of Earth Day, Adirondack Council.” The first two websites under “What can we do!” give ideas for Earth Day on April 22, 2023.
See Full Article· 5 min readRighting Wrongs Through Legislation
Historically, we’ve learned much about righting wrongs to promote environmental protection. Two notable authors are Aldo Leopold (“A Sand County Almanac”) and Rachel Carson (“Silent Spring”). Both were helpful in passing legislation like:
See Full Article· 4 min readRethink, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Restore
There are simple and economic ways to live an environmentally sensitive and thoughtful lifestyle. For instance, we could rethink, reduce, reuse, recycle and restore. Applying these five R’s will reduce our carbon footprint, promote healthy environments, increase soil fertility, and improve Earth’s air, water, and land.
See Full Article· 4 min read