Yesterday, the Pope dedicated his message to the United Nations World Environment Day, discussing what’s wrong with a culture of consumerism as well as the need for creation care. With recent stats showing that nearly a third of food produce for consumption is wasted or thrown out, the Pope said that things must change:

This culture of waste has made us insensitive even to the waste and disposal of food, which is even more despicable when all over the world, unfortunately, many individuals and families are suffering from hunger and malnutrition … Once our grandparents were very careful not to throw away any leftover food. Consumerism has led us to become used to an excess and daily waste of food, to which, at times we are no longer able to give a just value. Throwing away food is like stealing from the table of the poor and the hungry.

In addition to challenging the Church to reevaluate consumption in light of world hunger, the Pope also said that believers must take God’s call to care for His creation seriously. “Are we truly cultivating and caring for creation? Or are we exploiting and neglecting it? Cultivating and caring for creation is God’s indication given to each one of us not only at the beginning of history. It means nurturing the world with responsibility and transforming it into a garden, a habitable place for everyone” … Discuss

Inspired by the growing “micro-home” movement, Christopher and Malissa Tack constructed this 140-square-foot house on top of a flatbed trailer almost entirely from natural wood. With no construction experience, the couple says they used resources they found online to build an eco-friendly, easily portable home for about $20,000. You can check out this gallery to see up-close pictures of the surprisingly roomy interior … Discuss

As part of a new initiative to create clothes that are more environmentally and economically sustainable, the State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development have teamed with Nike and NASA to ask innovators to help them revolutionize the garment industry. And some of they’re goals seem pretty ambitious—they to want create fabrics that can “self-heal.” The overall mission of “LAUNCH System Challenge 2013” though seems a bit more grounded. By seeking out new innovations and technologies, they hope to “transform the system of fabrics to one that advances equitable global economic growth, drives human prosperity and replenishes the planet's resources.” Along with trying to think of ways to make clothes more durable and more recyclable, one of the projects goals is to also create “innovative business models that are sustainable and equitable” for workers around the world … Discuss