Author: Caroline Gibbons

Imagine an indigo night sky filled with stars, streaked with glowing northern lights. Now switch to another scene of a surfer riding a too-perfect wave in front of snow-covered mountains. For me, this is what came to characterize Chris Burkard’s photography, and it’s what has kept me checking back for new photographs following each of Chris’s adventures. As a self-described adventure photographer, Chris travels all over the world and is lucky enough to, in his words, capture the beauty of “some of the world’s last wild places” along with talented athletes, like surfers. Chris started his career as a surf…

Populations are rising, cities are becoming more crowded, and this means that we are producing more and more waste. Whether it’s pesticide runoff from a recent rain, or plastic blown by the wind, this pollution often ends up in our waterways. Starting from rivers or canals, a great deal of the waste we produce eventually ends up in the ocean. One example of the first step waste takes on its journey through our waterways is in the Gowanus Canal in New York City. If you have ever been to New York, you’ll be able to recall just how much of…

FACT: Fifteen species of sharks are endangered and 11 are critically endangered. FACT: As many as 73 million sharks are killed for the shark fin trade every year. Ever since the release of Jaws, there’s a general attitude that sharks are violent, dangerous creatures keen to attack anything that comes their way. Thankfully, the perception of sharks has been changing in recent years. This is mainly due to increasing awareness about the true nature of sharks and the important role they play in marine ecosystems. Even with shifting perceptions, shark populations are still declining and their fate depends on how…

This is what most posts I see on Instagram look like: Pretty pictures and clever captions are what make up almost my entire Instagram feed. Social media platforms, like Instagram, allow us to keep up with friends and family and raise awareness for global issues ranging from plastic pollution in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch to the protests at the North Dakota Access Pipeline to the worldwide refugee crisis. In addition, Instagram is a perfect platform for artists to share what they create. However, all of these benefits don’t come without a cost. When scrolling through social media feeds, we’re…

Worldwide, tourism accounts for over 9.8% of the global GDP. One in 11 people are employed within the tourism sector. Clearly it plays a crucial part in many local and international economies. Even though tourism is a major part of the economy and allows people to experience different cultures and places, it can often be seen as detrimental to both the local environment and culture. In the eyes of many environmental conservationists, tourism is thought of as negative in regard to the environment. According to the United Nations Environment Programme, tourists on cruises in the Caribbean can often produce up…

In January 2016, I decided to stop eating meat. It wasn’t a New Year’s resolution because it wasn’t the same as deciding to eat less sugar or exercise more. This decision felt like a natural change for me. I was becoming tired of ignoring the guilt I felt each time I ate meat. At the same time, I was learning more about the livestock industry’s impact on the environment which brought the issue further to my attention. I’m here to tell you that there’s more to deciding to eat less meat than just loving animals. I used to think that…

Feeling like you have to save the world can put a lot of weight on your shoulders. These days, people are keenly aware of the problems our world faces, and many of us feel the need to dedicate much of our time and energy on finding solutions to these problems. Of course, this is no easy task. It requires a lot of intense thought and hard work which can be overwhelming. Whether you fall into this “save-the-world” category, feel generally overwhelmed in your life or work, or place a lot of pressure on yourself to “succeed,” taking time to step…