OLLI Talks: The Blue Plate: Shrinking Carbon, One Meal at a Time (Hybrid)

What is the climate impact of the foods we eat? Between a quarter and a third of human-caused greenhouse gas emissions today come from growing, shipping, processing, retailing, and cooking food, and then dealing with the leftovers. Fascinatingly, the overwhelming majority of these emissions come from microbes in the Earth’s ecosystems. However, there are straightforward opportunities throughout agriculture and society to significantly reduce those emissions, while making food healthier for both humans and the planet. Join CSU scientist Mark Easter as he describes the carbon footprint of the foods we eat, how scientists calculate carbon footprints, and how we can all create low-carbon meals, working from his award-winning book The Blue Plate: A Food Lover’s Guide to Climate Chaos. Bring a printed copy of one of your favorite recipes to class, as we will draw recipes from a hat, estimate their carbon footprint on the spot, and explore ways to reduce it together.

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Mark Easter is the author of the award-winning book The Blue Plate: A Food Lover's Guide to Climate Chaos, published by Patagonia Books in 2024. In it, he explores the question “Can we eat our way out of the climate crisis?”.

Notes

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