Nine years ago, Catrina Davies, a Cambridge graduate, was living in a houseshare in Bristol.Constant worrying about paying the rent was making her ill with stress and she longed to get back to the Cornwall’s Penwith peninsula (半岛) where she grew up.Priced out of the housing market, she took the final decision to go to live in a shabby, stand-alone shed which her father once used as his office.

“It was full of mice and spiders and there was no electricity, toilet, heating or shower,” Catrina remembers.She survived the first year without electricity and still only uses ten pounds-worth a month.

Over the years, Catrina has upgraded her modest shed with second-hand windows and doors and had a wood burner installed.Her oven is a camping stove outdoors and she does without a fridge by keeping easily spoiled food outside in a Tupperware box.She buys milk from a local farm to make yogurt and grows fresh herbs, salad and vegetables.

Having such an outdoor lifestyle, she’s painfully aware of climate change.“I’ve noticed fewer songbirds and owls.Winters are warmer and weather patterns seem to be changed.The fishermen say there are fewer mackerel (鲭鱼) too.”

“Plastic pollution in the sea fills me with extreme sadness and anger,” she continues.“And the Amazon rainforest is being burned to the ground because of our desire for an endless supply of cheap burgers and cheap leather.Our ecology and housing crises are both symptoms of human greed.”

“To save the planet, we all need to fundamentally change the way we live.Although giving up meat, lots of cheap goods, driving and flying may seem like a sacrifice, it could actually make us all a lot happier in the long run.Many studies show that materialistic tendencies are linked to decreased life satisfaction.When I first moved here, it was only meant to be a stopgap.Six years later, I can’t imagine living any other way.”

Let’s say you’re in the far future and you’re looking for evidence of previous civilizations. Where would you look? The first place would be in the rocks. Rocks keep time. Recently, the discovery of rocks made from plastic debris (碎片) in Brazil’s volcanic Trindade Island is sparking alarm. Melted plastic has become twisted with rocks on the island, which researchers say is evidence of humans growing influence over the Earth’s geological cycles.

Plastic rocks have been previously found in various parts of the world. Researchers documented plastiglomerates-rock, sand and other debris fused together by melted plastic-in Hawaii in 2014, for instance. Another human-made and plastic-based rock is pyroplastics. Described in 2019 from the shores of Cornwall in southwest Britain, pyroplastics form from burned plastic waste. In laboratory experiments with white or colored plastic pieces, if burned, the plastic melts and forms a gray or black mass. resembling at first glance a rocky pebble. According to geophysicist Douglas Jerolmack, “all around the world where there’s trash being openly burned in mass quantities, you can imagine there are even larger melted plastic deposits” where plastiglomerate could form.

Plastic pollution making its way into the formation of rocks suggests humans are having an effect on what was previously considered a natural occurrence, said Santos, who along with others is continuing research into plastic pollution on Trindade Island. “This is new and terrifying at the same time, because pollution has reached geology, ”Santos told Reuters. The finding of plastic rocks also suggests, some experts say, that a new geological epoch has begun: The Anthropocene epoch. Regardless of whether this represents a new epoch, Santos said, “the pollution, the garbage in the sea and the plastic dumped incorrectly in the oceans are becoming geological material preserved in the Earth’s geological records.”

The researchers are yet unsure of the environmental impacts of plastic rocks. Burned plastic can contain high concentrations of potentially toxic elements, like lead and chromium, derived from the pigments used to dye the plastic material. Buried in the ground, plastic has the potential to survive millions of years and even enter the geological record.

Every April 22 people come together to take action that will protect the environment. One theme of Earth Day is “Invest (投资) In Our Planet”. So how is investment in eco-innovation helping to deliver a more sustainable future?

When it comes to the environment, it can be argued that the technology industry is both the problem and the solution. Tech is responsible for between 3.5% and 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions (排放物). And the EU believes the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector is responsible for10% of all electricity consumption. On the other hand, we all want a sustainable future for the planet. Yet we also want the convenience and fun of modern living. Obviously, only eco-innovation can deliver the solutions.

Eco-innovation is the key to doing more with less. All over the world, and across many different industries, innovators are working to reduce the human footprint while improving productivity. Innovative farming is a good example.

Until recently, most agricultural improvements focused on the development of machines. Now digital tools are causing a new wave of efficiency. Innovative farming companies look to increase farm efficiency and reduce input waste through farming techniques. And they are using real-time devices located in the field or in equipment. The data collected by these devices help farmers make better decisions about where to provide effort and resources while reducing the environmental footprint.

As people’s awareness of environmental protection continues to increase, the tech industry needs to keep working on the inventions like those described above. These breakthroughs will help us all to do more with less. Also, tech companies are facing calls to keep their own houses in order. Lawmakers and consumers want them to use fewer materials in the production process and rethink their approach to recycling and waste. The good news is that governments and eco-innovative companies have already carried out a major clean-up mission.