Have you ever wondered what will happen when the world runs out of resources? I mean, there are so many people in this world and we continue to use more and more “stuff" that won’t come back once we use it all up. Maybe you’ve heard the term “sustainable design", or maybe you’ve heard people throw around the term, “green". Can “greenness" resuscitate the world?

Planet resuscitation begins with sustainable design with can be discussed in easy-to-understand terms. During the production of the means that basically allow our world to function, people manipulate resources. The resources are either renewable or non-renewable, meaning either they regenerate themselves, or they don’t. Non-renewable resources like oil do not regenerate, but renewable resources like timber are able to regenerate themselves…usually. In the design of the tools that keep the world running, preserving resources should be our goal, which means we need to design our tools in such a way that will sustain them.

One of the easiest ways to sustain resources in our own lives is the old “reduce, reuse, recycle" routine. Lessen your consumption of products made using non-renewable resources. Reuse things that you already have (for example, don’t go out and buy more bottled water-get a water-filter and keep refilling!). Recycle whenever possible in your home. Make recycling a family project and get kids and teens involved. Kids love to sort and keep any refunds you may get back, while teens look for any excuse to drive-even to the transfer station!

The concepts mentioned that you can use in your own home to promote greenness can also be used globally. If on a global level, countries spent more time reducing the amount of non-renewable resources they used, reusing what they already have, and recycling on a national level, the amount of resources available versus the amount of resources used would begin to fall into equilibrium. Equilibrium is key.

So, I guess the moral of this story is to use non-renewable resources in moderation. You can’t swoop in and save the world alone, but without designs aimed at sustaining resources on an individual level, we will never get to it on a national or global scale.