Our program featured Bethlehem Morning Star Rotarian Rick Morrissey who represented the newly formed District 7430 Environmental Sustainability Team. The mission of the Team is to develop greater awareness of environmental issues, and to educate and inspire Rotarians, Rotaractors, Interactors and others to effect positive change in themselves and their communities about the environment. The Team supports District Clubs by providing awareness of environmental sustainability solutions to restore ecosystems and contribute to a healthy environment.
Four areas for potential projects have been identified including environmental cleanup, pollinator projects, tree planting, and healthy waterways. Environmental issues are vitally important in part because of the rapid increase in world population. It took thousands of years to reach the 1 billion mark. We have increased that number by 8 times in just 122 years. Rick believes that our 1.2 million Rotarians can lead the way into a future without a “throw away” mentality. He spoke of our personal responsibility to change our habits. We should use more paper and less plastic. We should use more cloth and less paper. Many stores are eliminating single use plastic bags. Young people are being exposed to these ideas at early ages before they develop wasteful habits that are so difficult to change. Working with the District Team has Rick feeling excited and hopeful about the environment for the first time in many years.