Giving Up Tuna

The world's overall population of large "food" fish has dwindled tremendously over the past 50 years.

As just one example (per the website of the ICCAT, the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna), the seafood-loving country of Spain's trolling catch of albacore tuna has dropped from approximately 25,000 tons in 1950 to approximately 5,000 tons in 2008, a decrease of 80%! And that's just one, rather small country in a world of fish-hungry human beings.

But chickens certainly aren't endangered (although there may be questions about "factory farming" of them). And canned chicken tastes much like canned tuna.

So why not eat canned chicken instead of tuna? It may not be as high in omega-3 fatty acids, but it also lacks the mercury often found in large ocean fishes.

In short, it seems to me that if the price of canned chicken is acceptable to you, you can be eco-affluent by choosing to eat chicken rather than tuna. It seems to be a fairly painless way to be eco-conscious.

Becoming Generalists

In the urban and suburban sectors of modern societies worldwide, most people have become specialists of some sort.

We go to our places of employment and focus on a fairly narrow range of tasks. We usually don't make or repair our own possessions, hunt or grow our own food, or produce our own electricity.

But maybe we should.

In his novel Time Enough for Love, the late science fiction writer and former naval officer Robert Heinlein wrote that a human being should be able to "change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly." He added that specialization "is for insects."

In a future world without the benefit of cheap, abundant fossil fuels, we may all benefit from the possession of a wide range of practical skills. Indeed, such skills may become necessary for our individual survival.

So perhaps instead of looking down on those members of society who provide (in exchange for money) our food, shelter, protection and other necessities, we should learn to do what they have done for us, even if we can't do it as well as they have. It may come in handy.