EUROPA - THINK GREEN

THINKING GREEN Even the smallest drop of water contains thousands of living beings. This is a small and strange world, not visible to a necked eye. In fact we are not aware that even the smallest organisms on Earth make our planet a place to live, ensuring with its existence the natural balance. Advances in science and technology improved development of civilization, but we have neglected nature. Our society has tremendous demand for energy, we have contaminated nature with industrial waste, noxious gases, pesticides, heavy metals and organic matter greatly reducing the diversity of plant and animal species. Changed environment affects the health of people, endangering the survival of our own species through climate change, "greenhouse effect", damage to the ozone layer of the Earth. Industry - the cornerstone of global prosperity, threatens the possibilities of further survival of humanity. Therefore, future development should be based on the sustainable development and management, which means that the use of natural resources should be tolerable, that they can restore and maintain in ecological balance. Economic development must be balanced with caring capacity of the planet so that future generations can live undisturbed. This means we have to accept the basic ecological principles, to create conditions for rational use of natural resources of the biosphere and improve coexistence between man and his natural environment. The interactions among organisms and their environment is analised by a scientific discipline - ecology. It provides an understanding of the organization of the natural environment through physical and biological processes. Knowledge of ecology is extensively applied in recent decades in solving global problems, according to the principle of "biomimicry": applying natural solutions in various fields of science, technology and economic activities where the goal is to create sustainable products and processes that "learn to listen the nature." The natural systems and organisms provide fantastic examples of successful communication, production and storage resources, and energy-efficient design. Many scientists believe that it is possible to bridge the gap between human and natural technology: produce fibers stronger than spider webs, or build green houses that store energy. Thinking green means to live life in a way that is friendly to the natural environmental and is sustainable for the earth. It means contributing towards maintaining the natural ecological balance in the environment, and preserving the planet and its natural systems and resources. In practice, going green means adopting five basic principles in your daily life: reduce pollution, conserve resources, conserve energy, reduce consumption and waste, and protect the earth’s ecological balance. Ivančica Ternjej