Angelina Jolie Watch

Blog Action Day is an annual day set aside for blogger’s to talk about one issue. This year we focus on the environment.

Though Brad appears to be the environmentalist in the family I think it’s a topic Angelina would approve of because of environmental refugees.

Experts predicts that their will be 50 million environmental refugees by 2010. Environmental refugees are peoples displaced by “rising sea levels, desertification, dried up aquifers, weather-induced flooding and other serious environmental changes.”

To put it simply, changes in the environment cause millions people to flee their homes each year. Environmental refugees are most prevalent in Sub-Sahara Africa but also pose a major problem throughout Asia and India. The United States and Europe are seeing increased pressure to provide havens for environmental refugees from North and South America.

Here are some interesting facts about these unique refugees:

• Environmental refugees are not recognized by any international convention.
• The United Nations University says that the international community should define, recognize and extend support to this new category of refugee.
• The UN says that by 2050 their will be 150 million environmental refugees due to erosion, coastal flooding and agricultural disruption.
• Hurricane Katrina forced a million people from New Orleans and cities along the Mississippi and Louisiana coast to move inland. Record-high temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico’s helped make Hurricane Katrina one of the most destructive storms in the history of the United States.

You don’t have to change your entire life to make an environmental difference. Small things make a huge difference. For example:

Make sure you have a large to extra large load of laundry before you wash. When buying your next car at least consider a hybrid or one that runs on alternative fuel. Reuse paper-print on the back and front. Turn off your TV for an hour. Lots of things are common sense. Do what you can to make a change.

To learn more about environmental refugees you can refer to the following sources:

Environmental Refugees at About.com

Environmentalrefugee.com

Blog Action Day, environment, angelina jolie, environmental refugees, refugees, un univerity