GreenMONNCS

At the height of the lockdown, I found this really awesome group of people from all over the world who share ideas and experiences on how individuals and communities can live more sustainably using the resources at their disposal. From the simple DIYs of making your own oat milk to the more complicated business of building houses from shipping containers and eating only what you grow and rear, the group has been a steady source of what I now call “ DIS ” AKA Daily Inspiration in Sustainability! ;) Well in the last week or so, the eternal debate on what is a myth and what is hard fact truth in the race towards sustainability sprung up. One person made a list of over (15) things that they termed ‘myths’ which a large number of the population world over believes as truth.   As can be expected when challenging what is perceived as common knowledge, one of the ‘myths” blew up! It got so huge that it broke off into a stand-alone conversation with arguments and counter-arguments. Care to ha

As the month of October rolls in every year, there is usually a slight but manageable rise in the price of onions in Nigeria. As dramatic as the year 2020 has been, no one was prepared for the extra topping in drama with the astronomical rise in the price of the cooking staple. Trust the ever-adaptable Nigerian spirit to find the fun in the challenging situation and some reactions are truly a national treasure that had to be shared: NO MORE ART WITH ONIONS! PUULEASE! Onions are definitely a designer item! Good things happen to good people, ALWAYS! I am not cheap so address me properly! Onions is a vegetable crop cultivated in Northern Nigeria, primarily in Bauchi, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Kebbi, Plateau and Sokoto states. Highly perishable in its ordinary state, it must be consumed speedily or properly preserved to prolong its shelf life. Sellers across the country have attributed the over 300% increase in prices to 3 major factors: 1.    Lockdown procedures implemented since February t

A few weeks ago I stumbled on a video about a Thai entrepreneur who had figured out a great way to turn rice straw into recyclable and bio-degradable plates. And boy was I wow-ed (if that is a real word)! For those who do not know, rice straw is the vegetative part of the rice plant that is left behind after the rice grain has been harvested. For some farmers, this by-product of rice production is viewed as waste which should be burnt on the field but for others, especially those who operate mixed farming systems with livestock; it is a major source of forage/feed additive for the livestock and ever nourishing nutrients for the soil, when ploughed under. Rice straw on the field The short video clip summarises the innovative process from cutting up the straw to boiling for several hours to a couple of other processes and voila! A beautiful and very sustainable version of the "paper plate" or "take away" or "take out plate" is born.  This got me thinking lik

The year 2020 has sure been an eventful one; definitely one for the annals of history. For 216 countries and territories of the world, the star and main feature for the year has been the public health emergency created by COVID-19. What is this disease? And why is it so powerful, with such far-reaching effects that it pressed the pause and reset buttons on the entire world? Here are the essentials: ü    The coronavirus disease-2019 popularly referred to as COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by the coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), which emerged in the city of Wuhan China in December of 2019 and presents itself as a severe acute respiratory syndrome in human beings. ü    Although there are still speculations as to the primary and intermediate origins of the virus and its mode of transfer to humans, one thing is certain, the virus is rapidly transmitted from person-to-person through direct contact with the droplets produced from coughing, sneezing and even talking. ü    The symptoms rang

Every day for the past week, Nigerians in various parts of the nation and the diaspora- young, old, rich, poor, learned and unlearned have risen up with one voice. That one peaceful voice of the masses is calling for the end to a system which ordinarily implemented to serve and protect the lives of all, both citizen and foreigner alike have for many years been a terror, a menace, a killer of hopes and dreams, a jailer of freedom. Nigerians walking the streets, home and abroad. The average Nigerian lives with an underlying dread for any encounter or interaction with the men and women of its security forces. Young men and women are harassed daily for their choice of hairstyle, dress, electronic device and automobile; victims of crimes or injustices are further victimized by the people who are tasked to uphold truth and justice and innocent people are carted away in wanton raids, imprisoned and even executed for not having enough money to "bail" themselves. Yet, no one gets puni

And it's a beautiful daaaay!  Taan taan taan (strumming an electric guitar like a rock star) It is another 5th day in the month of June in yet another year. For those who may not know, today is the day that individuals, communities, governments, organizations and even celebrities from over 143 countries of the world come together to raise awareness for a specific environmental issue to commemorate World Environment Day.  The focus for this year’s Eco Day AKA Environment Day is themed “Beat Air Pollution” and the global festivities are being hosted by China. It is estimated that about 7 million people die prematurely every year around the world; of this number, a whopping 4 million of these occur in the Asia-Pacific. The choice of China as this year’s host can be traced to its growing green energy sector; in fact, China owns 50% of the electric vehicles and 99% of the electric buses in the world. The head of UN Environment, Joyce Msuya, describes China as having “demonstra

Looking at the Sustainable Development Goals and how expanded they have become, they may appear overwhelming and really challenging to plug into. However, one Non-Governmental initiative in Lagos, Nigeria has found a way to contribute to the achievement of not just one but two SDGs. The African Clean-Up Initiative (ACI) has been able to draw an intersection between providing education and building sustainable cities and communities, through its back2school campaign titled ‘RecyclePay’, that allows parents and children of Morit International School Ajegunle to pay their school fees with plastic bottles from the environment that have been sorted and cleaned. For those who do not know, Ajegunle is one of the most popular ghettos in Nigeria. Notoriously known for impossibly high levels of poverty, crime and filth, adoption of the Recycle Pay Education Project by the school authorities not only helps ease the burden of paying term fees but also encourages guardians who normally would pre