Sustainable living bleeds into every area of life. As complex as ecosystems and our relationship to nature is, the fact that our survival is completely dependent on functioning and healthy ecosystems gets overlooked in many ways.
This is very much true when it comes to sustainable eating. Agriculture is the largest cause of global environmental change today. It’s responsible for deforestation, desertification, and damage to coastal reefs and marine ecosystems and many say climate change. It accounts for 92% of humanity’s freshwater footprint across the planet, and has long been identified as a major culprit in drought. With that in mind, paying attention to what you eat is one of the most sustainable things you can do.
In today’s post we want to highlight a business called Barùkas. Ad Vitam is not affiliated with them but they are so amazing, they deserve to be featured, not only for their highly nutritious products but also for their environmental performance. Looking at the state of the world it has become clear that governments and nonprofits alone can’t solve our most challenging problems. Consumers and businesses alike have to roll up their sleeves to build a more inclusive and sustainable economy. There is a well-known and accepted business concept called the 3Ps of sustainability. The Ps refer to People, Planet and Profit. Barùkas is such a business.
What are Barùkas?
Barùkas are nuts. They come from a tree called Baruzeiro in the Cerrado, which is the tropical savanna ecoregion of Brazil and is the second largest biome and the most biodiverse savanna in the world. Unfortunately its native habitats and rich biodiversity are being destroyed faster than the neighboring Amazon rainforest. Millions of Baruziero trees are being burned down to open areas for soy production and unsustainable agriculture. Barùkas supports reforestation in the Cerrado. For every 5 pounds of Barùkas nuts sold, they are planting a tree in the wild. Further, reforesting sustains indigenous communities and allows them to make a living off the land. It’s a win-win for people and planet!
And did I mention, they are very yummy and super healthy, even considered a supernut with an outstanding nutritional profile such as high antioxidants, protein, fiber and micronutrients. I have a monthly subscriptions, which allows Barùkas to plant more trees when they can count on monthly consumption.
You can order them online or if you live near an Erewhon, you can get them there as well.
Take Away
So many solutions to the challenges we face already exist. You just need to know about them, incorporate and support them. I am truly optimistic about humanity’s future on this planet. The human being is infinitely creative and adaptive. Many people are doing fantastic work out there as the example of Barùkas so beautifully demonstrates.
“You never change things by fighting against the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the old model obsolete.”
Buckminster Fuller
I think we are well on our way.
