Identifying as a Humanist means being conscious of your actions in preserving the values of Humanism, which basically entail logic, compassion and ethics based on reason.
Living an environmentally conscious life means critically thinking through everything you do and say, which includes how behaviour, habits and decisions affect our environment and planet as a whole.
Measuring a person’s carbon footprint includes a number of factors: the choices we make, from the food we eat, to the products we use and industries we support, to the distances we travel – all of these play into the amount of greenhouse gases we add into the atmosphere. These greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide, all aid in the warming of the atmosphere, and contribute to the effects of climate change.
Since coming out as a Humanist, over 10 years ago, I have learnt to rethink and relearn the most ethical way to live. Fortunately (or unfortunately for Humanists) Humanism is not a religion but a philosophy, and therefore we can only learn by research, from each other, or from experiences. This is what has inspired me to write about what it means to become environmentally friendly in Ghana.
Being a Ghanaian Humanist from a third world country in Africa can be even more challenging, given that being environmentally conscious cannot always be fully achieved due to economic, cultural and social factors. I will attempt to tackle some of the best practices for going green in Ghana, and their challenges, achievements and tips.
Recycling In Ghana is pretty difficult to do. This is because there is no culture of waste separation and nationwide government initiatives to recycle waste. Waste disposal is actually a very worrying issue in Ghana especially in the cities like the capital city of Accra where every year, there are issues of flooding during the rainy season in major parts of the city due to trash especially plastic being thrown into open gutters and other water bodies which often leads to fatalities. Even though there have been efforts by concerned citizens, very little is done to curb the situation. I remember in the early 90’s as a child, there were men called ‘Koliba’ in local parlance which means “collectors” who went house to house to purchase used bottles and containers and resell to market women. Over the last 10 years however, several recycling plants and companies have sprung up and are doing well to address the issue. Companies such as Zoomlion, Nelplast, Coliba Ghana and Electro Recycling Ghana are using various equipment and ideas to deal with the issue of recycling waste in Ghana. There are also several NGOs that organize clean up exercises from time to time to help remove rubbish in our streets and beaches, advocate for recycling culture and educate the general public on the importance of environmental awareness . As president of a Humanist group back in 2016, I coordinated Humanist volunteering members to support the HIPSTERS OF NATURE environmental group in a Beach Clean-up exercise on the Accra Central Beach area, near the Independence square and coordinated members for the “2nd annual Float Your boat race event” organized by environment 360 and won. I also commend companies such as Trashy bags for driving the sustainable fashion revolution in Ghana for a number of years now. Nowadays, Sustainable fashion has become trendy with thrift shops and celebrities like Sister Deborah endorsing such brands. Buz stop boys undertaking voluntary desilting of choked drains and gutters in cities and towns. I usually reuse plastic containers and bags and I have been inspired by businesses such as the former Afia beach hotel which practices sustainable culture. Other people I know use plastic jars and car tyres which they transform into potted plants.
Using bio-degradables has been part of our culture (pre-colonization) and passed on from generation to generation until technology was introduced and western education informed us of some hazardous practices using natural items. Most of our cooking utensils today are made of aluminium but some appliances like our traditional ‘blender’ such as the asanka and apotoyiwa and stone slabs are still used in many homes especially in the rural areas. Earthenware pots are also used for cooking and serving dishes, clay ovens for baking and grilling, calabashes for drinks and plantain leaves for wrapping food like waakye to go or as we say in Ghana, take-away. This helps to avoid using single – use plastic wrappers. Mortars and pestles are used for pounding fufu or grinding ingredients. At the market, tote bags and cane baskets can be used for shopping.
For hygiene, lime is used for the armpits in place of deodorants. Shea butter for hair and body lotion is good and there are many companies now producing them in various forms. I commend Maya natural products for being one of the few that uses mostly raw shea butter and stores them in coconut shells which are biodegradable.
For brushing our teeth, the plant based chewing sponge also known as taakotsa or saawi and sticks are used.
Access to drinking water means buying purified water. For decades, tap water in Ghana has been advised to be unsafe so the best way is to boil and sieve/filter it or purchase mineral water. Mineral water comes in plastic sachets or bottles so what I prefer to use are recyclable plastic water gallons or jars with water dispensers and I commend Voltic for being one of the first and few I know of for bringing this initiative. In recent times, some bottling companies such as Guiness Ghana Ltd., producers of Malta Guinness are also following suit by producing recyclable bottles for their drinks. For many other products on the market, I do well to check for the recycle symbol or how the producers contribute to zero carbon emissions before purchasing.
For a long time, Africa has become a dumping ground for unwanted or discarded vehicles and electronics and Ghana is no exception. In this developing country, the concept of electric vehicles is just about beginning to be introduced onto the market and for public use with the introduction of the first batch of EV buses for public transport arriving sometime in November of 2024 and a few individuals importing personal EV vehicles.
Since people in the middle class are mostly unable to afford these cars, the best way is to use smaller fuel-efficient sedans which consume less fuel, using bicycles or taking walks.
Energy-efficient measures can be put in place and become habitual such as turning off lights when not in use and using air conditions only when needed. Ghana is situated on the equator so fortunately there is year round sunlight that supports solar generation for electricity but Unfortunately, due to the tropical heat, it would require constantly keeping cool which means using electricity for fans however, one may try to reduce electricity use by building using architectural planning that favors the natural cooling of the house such as atriums, using white paint that mostly deflects the heat from the sun, solar powered fans and using hand woven fans made of raffia or straw. Use LED lighting or optimize heating and cooling systems to lower utility bills. Planting trees for shade and aesthetics is one way of increasing the oxygen in the area and providing nutrients to the soil.
Reduce food waste by sharing with the needy, using recipes for leftover food and giving what’s left to our pets and guard dogs as most homes in Ghana do.
According to Science magazine, switching to a vegetarian or vegan diet can reduce your carbon footprint by 73 percent and is one of the best ways to fight climate change. Raising farm animals for consumption is one of the lead producers of greenhouse gas emissions—30 percent of the Earth’s land is currently used for livestock, and factories emit exorbitant amounts of greenhouse gasses through energy use and transportation. Livestock farms also produce detrimental amounts of nitrous oxide and methane (the average cow or sheep produces an estimated 250-500 liters of methane per day), which over time can be far more lethal to the environment than carbon dioxide. By switching to a plant-based diet, or even cutting back on the amount of meat you eat each week, can help lower your own personal environmental impact.
In a developing country like Ghana, culturally, meat has been a staple part of our diet and going vegan or vegetarian is a matter of privilege and in some cases, luxury so since many of us cannot afford to literally go entirely green, we can cut down on our meat intake for health purposes as well or eat more seafood. Most of our meat is gotten from farm animals on farms where many practice free-range farming and do not subject the animals to torturous conditions as compared to other parts of the western world. It’s also important to consider where your food comes from. The food you purchase in grocery stores can travel hundreds if not thousands of miles before it reaches your home. Again, Ghana is vastly rural and much of our 32 million population depend on food directly from our farms and transportation to the cities can be just a couple hours.
We can also conserve water by using rain gutters and storage tanks. Other steps we can take is purchasing jewellery from sustainable resources, buying legitimate gold and diamonds rather than from illegal mining or ‘galamsey’ where these illegal miners have destroyed most of our water bodies and poisoned the water with mercury and cyanide and using the gold or other minerals from the legal mines means supporting the Ghanaian economy. Print less and share soft copies. Use biodegradable items for example for wrapping gifts and event management like I did at my wedding.
Continuous research and ‘Sankofa’, the Ghanaian philosophy of learning from our past goes a long way not only to be proud of our history and identity but also to help preserve our environment and make it conducive to nature and the animals that thrive in it. As humanists, we can continue to support the environment by supporting environmental advocacy programs, events, activities and sustainable businesses and voting for political parties who care about the effects of climate change and the importance of Staying Green.
Disclaimer:
The author does not seek to advertise and is not being paid to advertise any of the companies and brands mentioned. These opinions are solely that of the author.
Sources:
Image copyright: seemychow (Landtours Ghana)
Image copyright: https://tyitelle.wordpress.com/2019/11/03/food-the-asanka-ghana-grinding-pot/
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Roslyn Mould was Secretary and Chair of the International Humanist and Ethical Youth Organization (IHEYO) now Young Humanists International’s African Working Group from 2014 to 2019 and a Board Member for Humanists International from 2019 to 2023. She was a member of the Humanist Association of Ghana since it was founded in 2012 and held several positions, including President of the group from 2015 to 2019. She is the Coordinator for the West African Humanist Network, an Advisory Board member of the FoRB Leadership Network (UK), a Board member for LGBT+ Rights Ghana, and President of Accra Atheists. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Linguistics and Modern Languages. She is currently the First African Vice President of Humanists International.
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