Conservation Projects
Public Education
My wife and I serve on the board of the non-profit organization Population Balance. Among various projects we've assisted on is a North American billboard campaign, urging viewers to choose smaller families for the benefit of both future generations of humans and the environment.
presentations
My wife and I have both worked with various NGOs, including Amigos de Sian Ka'an in Mexico, to educate on the environment. We've given many presentations at schools, national parks and online on various methods of reducing consumption and pollution.
A lifetime project we have is to invest ample money while we're young, and cash it out when we're older (50s) to buy a pristine tropical island.
Under the unfortunate realization that if we don't buy it, someone else will, we plan to clear a tiny patch of land to build an off-the-grid luxury house, and then sell it for significantly more than we bought it for, with legal stipulations that further land clearing and development shall never be allowed.
LAND-GRAB
A lifetime project we have is to invest ample money while we're young, and cash it out when we're older (50s) to buy a pristine tropical island.
Under the unfortunate realization that if we don't buy it, someone else will, we plan to clear a tiny patch of land to build an off-the-grid luxury house, and then sell it for significantly more than we bought it for, with legal stipulations that further land clearing and development shall never be allowed.
Now with hopefully millions of dollars in hand, we plan to buy as large a plot of unspoiled, biodiverse land as possible to maintain and then donate to a conservation organization or local indigenous tribe for eternal conservation.
This method of conservation might be called the individual philanthropy model, and is based on the work of Doug and Kris Tompkins.
'Hot Spot' Birth Control Promotion
I'd argue that every inch of earth is worth saving. But I can't protect it all. If I'm going to protect an area, I'm privy to areas of higher biodiversity. More species, to me, is justification for more protection.
Biodiversity 'hot spots' are areas of high levels of biodiversity. Some of these hot spots are shrunk continuously by local growing populations who need more space for their homes, towns and farms - such as the Ecuadorian Amazon or the Papua New Guinea Highlands.
I'd like to help locals achieve a sustainable birth rate - less than two children per woman - to stabilize a population and ensure that the future ecosystem of a community is not jeopardized.
This project would entail researching why local women have more than two children, and presenting the benefits of less or no children. Funding would be needed for incoming birth control devices alongside community-wide promotion and partnership with local health clinics.
As long as a population grows, the environment suffers.