This week Awesome Stories brings you environmental leadership.

Costa Rica Aims For a Home Run

Costa Rica continues to be an environmental leader in the Carribean and much of the world. They passed a ban on the razing of mature forests in 1996. Then Costa Rica set aside 25% of their lands as nature preserves, parks, and refuges in 1998. Their economy is mostly supported by agriculture and tourism thanks to their natural resources and progressive policies. Costa Rica has also evolved its environmental policy from conservation to sustainable development. Recently, they met a huge energy milestone to run the country on renewables with 100 percent of their power demand supplied by renewable energy for 75 straight days in 2015 and 76 days in 2016. And they are part of The Wellbeing Economies Alliance of countries who include democracy, sustainability, and inclusive prosperity as essential to wellbeing. Their new president, Carlos Alvarado Quesada, set the huge target of being the first country in the world to be fossil fuel free by 2021. He also created a national ban on single-use plastics. May other countries be inspired to follow Costa Rica’s bold environmental policies. And they abolished their army in December 1948, shifting the country toward peace. Go, Costa Rica!

Water for Climate Change

Could water be the missing link for solving climate change? A growing number of experts believe water retention may be the answer to control climate change. Michal Kravcik, a Slovakian water engineer, has been gathering data and practical experience for decades. His data shows how urban development and modern agriculture have dramatically increased water runoff, which in turn has led to soil erosion, rising seas, and rising temperatures. Urban hot spots from soil sealing and loss of forests have altered weather, creating vast areas with no cloud formation, resulting in loss of rain. Rain and humidity are vital to cooling the planet. The simple solution he is suggesting is for everyone to store water through various water retention techniques like rainwater gardens, tree planting, and retention landscaping. Rajendra Singh, the “Water Gandhi” from Rajasthan, India, has been promoting tree planting in India for 30 years. His efforts have transformed a number of villages from deserts to fertile areas with trees, plants, and flowing rivers. In turn, the weather patterns shift, rain returns and help cool the temperature. While emissions and fossil fuels no doubt impact the climate, these researchers have demonstrated that a simple plan of water retention could reverse the impacts of rising temperatures and climate change.

May we become water guardians, helping to restore balance and harmony to our planet.