the goode life

A nightly/daily ritual

 

10 Eco-friendly New Year Resolutions

Happy New Year Everyone!  Here's a list I've complied of 10 things to help us start the new year off with a bang.  Most of these things many of us are doing already but if not consider this just a gentle reminder:

1.    I resolve to kick the plastic water bottle habit:  Plastic water bottles are bad for the environment, no question.  Last year we Americans consumed over 50 billion of them.  This is a serious habit we need to kick and quickly.  Bring your own refillable stainless steel bottle filled with water from home whenever you go out.  If the water from your tap isn’t to your liking then add a filtration system or get one of those pitchers that sit on the counter.  Trust me; bottled water that you have purchased isn’t that much better than water from your tap.

2.      I resolve to bring my own bags with me to the grocery store:  This is a no brainer.  Most of us by now should have already adopted this habit.  Try to take it one step further by bringing your own bags whenever you go shopping for anything in general, not just food.

3.      I resolve to walk, bike or use public transportation whenever possible:  This is one that I will admit took me a while to get used to, as I love the privacy of being in my car alone; but after reading today’s headlines showing the cost of gas rising even higher, I’ll be riding the bus a whole lot more this year!

4.     I resolve to make small changes at home:  Small changes at home can have a huge impact overall if everybody did them.  Start by unplugging appliances when not in use like the toaster, coffee maker or microwave.  Also, connect your computer and peripherals to a power strip; that way at the end of the day you can disconnect them with just a flick of the switch (It’s best to turn your computer off instead of leaving it in hibernate or stand-by mode.).  Wash your clothes in cold or the very least warm water and finally change out your light bulbs to CFLs.

5.      I resolve to start composting:  This is a hard one, I know.  I falter with this one myself but I do keep trying to stick with it.

6.      I resolve to use less paper:  This one is easy and I have been having great success with it!  First I buy recycled content paper for everything (home and office); next I use both sides of the paper. Meaning, if one side is still clean, then I put that in my printer or fax, and I only print out materials or emails if I absolutely must have a hard copy of the item.

7.     I resolve to volunteer for something this year:  Even if it’s just for one day, give your time to a beach or park clean-up team in your neighborhood.  If you really want to make big difference then put in some time at your community garden where you can learn to be a steward for the earth and really utilize resolution #5!  If your neighborhood doesn’t have a community garden then start one.  I’m starting to see these pop up all over the place, especially in cities!

8.     I resolve to use eco-friendly cleaning products at all times and to avoid chlorine:  There are so many good and effective green products on the market now, that there is almost no excuse for this one.  You can even do a lot with just baking soda, white vinegar, and water!  Here is an article I wrote a while back on why chlorine is to be avoided.

9.      I resolve to pay attention to where my food comes from:  I’m tempted to preach “buy local”, but realistically I know that is not always possible.  But you can make sure that your food (and even clothing) is produced in an ethical and sustainable way.  I believe if most people knew what really went on in factory farms they’d become vegans overnight!  So pay attention to labels such as the USDA Organic, and Fair Trade.

10. I resolve to lead by example:  As Ghandi once said, "be the change you wish to see in the world."

Technorati Tags: eco-friendly new year resolutions

Great Tips on Having a Green Thanksgiving

I've been out of town for over a week and like always I have much to report, but like always I haven't found the time to do so!  In particular I have mucho to report on like the LA Auto Show I attended last week courtesy of GM, but in the meantime while I unpack from my travels and catch up on my mail here's my last article on Bellaonline.com

Thanksgiving is quickly approaching and I’m sure most of you have already begun your dinner preparations, not to mention, you have finished all your grocery shopping for the meal.  Well if you are anything like me, you still don’t know what you are going to bring to the family dinner, never mind having already bought the ingredients for said imaginary dish!

If there is still time in your already overbooked schedule perhaps you can squeeze in a few ideas on how to have a Happy Green Thanksgiving.

I think the biggest headache giver on Thanksgiving Day is not the preparation of the meal but getting to your destination. If at all possible try to carpool with those family members you actually like, or enjoy a leisurely train ride by yourself. I’ve just recently rediscovered the train and it is a very eco-friendly way to travel. And if you think hitting the road at the crack of dawn in your eco-friendly car rental to beat the traffic on Thanksgiving Day will get you to your dinner sooner, forget it! EVERYONE has that same idea and will be on the freeway with you.  I speak from experience!! In fact quit reading this article and leave now, because freeways/expressways/highways are insane on holidays :)!

If you’re the one lucky enough to be hosting dinner and not needing to travel, try to avoid as many paper products, especially the very festive, but very bad crepe paper products. Use cloth for table coverings and napkins unless you are using a recycled content paper that will be disposed in the recycle bin after the guests have left. Also natural decorations, such as gourds and pumpkins, fallen leaves, cornucopias, and bowls of fruit create a nicer ambience.

The meal always consists of the main staples, the turkey (of course), stuffing, cranberry sauce, candied yams (or at my family dinner sweet potatoes), and a vegetable side dish. This meal gets added to according to family traditions, cultural foods, and regional tastes (It was my friends in the South who introduced me to the fried turkey!). One thing we can all have in common is the use of locally grown and organic ingredients.  As I write this column now, I have just received an email from a friend and reader regarding the tainted ginger that was found in Northern CA groceries stores. This ginger is believed to have come from China and is tainted with a pesticide that is used by the Chinese farmers to kill red spiders. I vow my next article is going to be on the importance of buying organic whenever possible!

Visit your local farmer’s market, grocery stores that give you a variety of conventional and organic products, and don’t forget to raid the fruit trees of friends and neighbors. I just a scored a bag full of apples from my client’s apple tree! Don’t forget to bring re-useable bags and containers for taking home leftovers. Having biodegradable/compostable dishes and cutlery on hand is goode for those who don’t want to wash dishes or for those who forgot to bring a re-useable container for taking home leftovers. And speaking of compostable don’t forget to scrape the scraps of the meal preparations and the meal itself into one. The worms like Thanksgiving too.

My last tip is don’t forget to say Thanks to all those who mean so much to us. Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Technorati Tags Thanksgiving organic family food

Don't Drink and Drive

This Friday I'm not posting my usual cocktail post, instead I give you another video from our favorite videographer Sorin, with message of don't drink and drive.  This is especially true now that the holiday season is upon us:
Death Doesn't Knock At The Door... - Click here for this week’s top video clips

You want to live The Goode Life, not locked up in jail doing Life!

Technorati Tags video Sorin Mihailovici

Co-op America

Co-op America sent me this list I want to share with you, and please pass it along to to others as knowledge is power!  This is a great list to bookmark in case you forget you can recycle that old cell phone because you've just upgraded to the latest one, plus loads of other stuff I wouldn't normally think about to recycle.  Thanks Co-op for putting this list together!

1.  Appliances: Goodwill accepts working appliances, www.goodwill.org, or you can contact the Steel Recycling Institute to recycle them. 800/YES-1-CAN, www.recycle-steel.org.

2.  Batteries: Rechargeables and single-use: Battery Solutions, 734/467-9110, www.batteryrecycling.com.

3.  Cardboard boxes: Contact local nonprofits and women's shelters to see if they can use them. Or, offer them up at your local Freecycle.org listserv or on Craigslist.org. If your workplace collects at least 100 boxes or more each month, UsedCardboardBoxes.com accepts them for resale.

4. CDs/DVDs/Game Disks: Send scratched music or computer CDs, DVDs, and PlayStation or Nintendo video game disks to AuralTech for refinishing, and they'll work like new: 888/454-3223, www.auraltech.com.

5.  Clothes: Wearable clothes can go to your local Goodwill outlet or shelter. Donate wearable women's business clothing to Dress for Success, which gives them to low-income women as they search for jobs, 212/532-1922, www.dressforsuccess.org. Offer unwearable clothes and towels to local animal boarding and shelter facilities, which often use them as pet bedding. Consider holding a clothes swap at your office, school, faith congregation or community center. Swap clothes with friends and colleagues, save money on a new fall wardrobe and back-to-school clothes  – then donate the rest.

6.  Compact fluorescent bulbs:   Take them to your local IKEA store for recycling:  www.ikea.com. 

7.  Compostable bio-plastics: You probably won't be able to compost these in your home compost bin or pile. Find a municipal composter to take them to at www.findacomposter.com.

8.  Computers and electronics: Find the most responsible recyclers, local and national, at www.ban.org/pledge/Locations.html

9.  Exercise videos: Swap them with others at www.videofitness.com.

10.   Eyeglasses: Your local Lion's Club or eye care chain may collect these. Lenses are reground and given to people in need.

11.  Foam Packing peanuts: Your local pack-and-ship store will likely accept these for reuse. Or, call the Plastic Loose Fill Producers Council to find a drop-off site: 800/828-2214. For places to drop off foam blocks for recycling, contact the Alliance of Foam Packaging Recyclers, 410/451-8340, www.epspackaging.org/info.html 

12. Ink/toner cartridges: Recycleplace.com pays $1/each. 

13. Miscellaneous: Get your unwanted items into the hands of people who can use them. Offer them up on your local Freecycle.org or Craigslist.org listserv, or try giving them away at Throwplace.com or giving or selling them at iReuse.com.  iReuse.com will also help you find a recycler, if possible, when your items have reached the end of their useful lifecycle. 

14. Oil: Find Used Motor Oil Hotlines for each state: 202/682-8000, www.recycleoil.org.

15.  Phones: Donate cell phones: Collective Good will refurbish your phone and sell it to someone in a developing country: 770/856-9021, www.collectivegood.com. Call to Protect reprograms cell phones to dial 911 and gives them to domestic violence victims: www.donateaphone.com. Recycle single-line phones: Reclamere, 814/386-2927, www.reclamere.com.

16.  Sports equipment: Resell or trade it at your local Play It Again Sports outlet, 800/476-9249, www.playitagainsports.com.

17.   “Technotrash”: Easily recycle all of your CDs, jewel cases, DVDs, audio and video tapes, cell phones, pagers, rechargeable and single-use batteries, PDAs, and ink/toner cartridges with GreenDisk's Technotrash program. For $30, GreenDisk will send you a cardboard box in which you can ship them up to 70 pounds of any of the above. Your fee covers the box as well as shipping and recycling fees. 800/305-GREENDISK, www.greendisk.com.

18.  Tennis shoes: Nike's Reuse-a-Shoe program turns old shoes into playground and athletic flooring. www.nikereuseashoe.com. One World Running will send still-wearable shoes to athletes in need in Africa, Latin America, and Haiti. www.oneworldrunning.com.

19.  Toothbrushes and razors:  Buy a recycled plastic toothbrush or razor from Recycline, and the company will take it back to be recycled again into plastic lumber.  Recycline products are made from used Stonyfield Farms' yogurt cups.  888/354-7296, www.recycline.com.

20. Tyvek envelopes: Quantities less than 25: Send to Shirley Cimburke, Tyvek Recycling Specialist, 5401 Jefferson Davis Hwy., Spot 197, Room 231, Richmond, VA 23234. Quantities larger than 25, call 866/33-TYVEK.

21.  Stuff you just can't recycle:  When practical, send such items back to the manufacturer and tell them they need to manufacture products that close the waste loop responsibly.

Technorati Tags Co-op America recycle

Sorin M: How to Open a Wine Bottle Without a Corkscrew

Aspiring TV producer Sorin Mihailovici writes to us from Canada to share his latest video.  He has a great little video on How to Open a Wine Bottle Without a Corkscrew.  This idea really piqued my curiosity as I have often been caught without one.  Imagine how surprised I was to find all I needed were a few simple items from my toolbox.  Being a carpenter I can't believe I never thought of this before:

Open A Bottle Of Wine Without Corkscrew - Watch the best video clips here

Goode job Sorin!

Technorati Tags Sorin Mihailovici video

Co-op America

So much money, so little time!  What's a trust fund princess to do?  Invest of course, but invest it right!Daddy made his money, you so freely spend, the hard way, he actually had to work for it!  But you princess have piles and piles of cash just given to you, yet you have no clue on what to do with it!  While daddy was probably really into deforestation and oil, you're going to prove to him that you're a business maverick and have a mind of your own (plus rebel against that snobby mother of yours), by investing in the next big thing - Climate Change and Clean Energy!  After you pick up daddy from the floor show him this great article by Co-op America.  It's titled Seven Ways Your Invest Can Fight Climate Change!  These great tips will show daddy you are no air-headed heiress.  Who says money doesn't grow on trees!

Technorati Tags Co-op America investments Climate Change

Carbon Offsets

Spending time in bed recovering gave me the chance to catch up on my reading and watch a lot of TV, something I usually never get the chance to do. I watched former Vice-President Al Gore’s appearance before a congressional committee. He answered questions from the committee and presented his 10 point plan to help combat global warming. Of course following this, all the news channels began their debates on Vice-President Gore’s testimony and global warming in general. One show really struck a bad chord with me, but let me recap a small bit to catch you up:

Questions were raised during the committee on Gore’s own energy use and the size of his home in Tennessee. The former Vice-President responded that he pays extra to use wind-generated electricity. This does not mean that he has a windmill on his property, what it does mean is he pays other companies, which have invested in renewable energy, a fee depending on one’s own carbon emissions, whether it is from a home or vehicle. They call this offsetting carbon emissions. You may have heard the term carbon neutral or climate neutral. Carbon offsets allow businesses or individuals the opportunity to reduce their CO2 by paying someone somewhere else to reduce CO2 emissions through renewable energy efforts, improving energy efficiency, and restoring forests.

Many people do this, me included. But here’s the part that got me. Many political pundits got the message misconstrued. I couldn’t believe it was implied whether intentionally or not that you can continue to live wastefully in regards to energy use as long as you pay for carbon offsets! That’s not the case. Reduction of your Carbon footprint is first and foremost. This message is starting to get lost, and because of such, people like Al Gore and other environmentally concerned individuals get accused of not “walking the talk”, “is pushing his own political agenda”, “do as I say and not as I do”, and here’s the best one I’ve read, “has started a quasi-religious movement”.

Now I know he has a home that would be hard pressed to get a LEED certification due to its size and use of energy (more than the average American home) and he flies to all of his speaking engagements in a private airplane, not that I see anything wrong with this but it did make me wonder could his detractors be right?  But in his defense he lives in an exclusive community that will not allow the use of solar panels! Yeah, I find that stupid too! Editor note: This is suppose to change come April 1.

Whether you believe that climate change is as serious as some say or not, know this we must focus our time and money on energy research to reduce greenhouse gases. Whether it be through carbon caps or even taxes, who knows, we can’t even all agree on the fact that global warming exists – and I would be the first to admit that sometimes the opponents to global warming make some very compelling arguments. But I think we all can agree on the fact that no one can possibly make an argument that it’s okay for us to continue to pollute the atmosphere in the manner that we do. To learn more about carbon offsetting or purchase carbon offsets please visit Native Energy

*Native Energy is the only carbon offset program that worked with Al Gore on the award winning documentary An Inconvenient Truth.

Technorati Tags carbon+offsets Al Gore Native Energy An Inconvenient Truth renewable energy greenhouse gases global warming

Saving Green by Going Green

I'm back!

It's a been a while since I've posted here, not including last week's Carnival of the Green.  I would like to thank Treehugger for listing us as one of last week's favorite blogs of the week!  That was very nice!

I hope to be back to my usual opinionated postings, I'm no longer taking the pain pills from my surgery.  I swear, I was on some heavy medication.  I feared after this surgery I was going to need a liver transplant!  Surgery is not fun (no kidding)!  Especially for those of us who have never been hospitalized or broken a bone or have never had any medical problems what so ever.  I was really frightened, but I'm glad the worst is behind me and my main focus is on getting back to work, responding to over 200 emails (goode grief) and catching up on all my blogs that think I might have abandoned them.

If there is one thing I would like to bring to your attention immediately it's a fun program I'm working on here in San Francisco called Saving Green by Going Green.  This program helps San Francisco businesses and the surrounding counties and cities lower their carbon footprint, by becoming a certified green business!  It's an easy and fun mentoring program.  If you live in the Bay Area and would like to be involved please visit the above website, especially if you are a local business who wants to be certified green, here's your chance cause it doesn't get any easier than this!

Technorati Tags Saving Green by Going Green San Francisco Bay Area

These Come From Trees

Over at Green Girls Global (on 2.27.07) there is great post by my fellow blogger Henriette called These Come Free Trees.  It's a campaign and blog about letting people know that everyday things they use come from trees and while making the consumer immediately aware of the fact will hopefully result in using less. Here's the link to the campaign.  Below are a some facts I copied from the site:

• Testing shows a "These Come From Trees" sticker on a paper towel dispenser reduces paper towel consumption by ~15%
• A typical fast food restaurant with two bathrooms can use up to 2000 pounds of paper towels a year
• The average coffee shop uses 1000 pounds of paper towels a year
• A single tree produces around 100 pounds of paper
• A single "These Come From Trees" sticker can save around a tree's worth of paper, every year
• Roughly 50,000 fast food restaurants in the US
• 200,00 gas stations in the US
• 14,000 McDonalds' in the US
• There are 10,000 Starbucks in the US

Help spread the word!

Technorati Tags These Come From Trees stickers Green Girls Global paper trees