Earth Day 2013

   April 22 is the 43^rd annual Earth Day.  According to earthday.org, more than one billion people take part in Earth Day – individuals, communities, organizations and governments from around the world.  This year, earthday.org is collecting and displaying images of people, animals and places directly affected by climate change as well as those helping to do something about it.

I hope you will participate too!  There are lots of easy and meaningful things you can do.  You can:

• It’s spring – plant a tree
• Sow some seeds for your garden
• Visit a local farm
• Change a conventional light bulb to an energy-saving compact fluorescent or LED one
• Pick up litter on the beach
• Take part in a trash pick-up
• Use a travel mug rather than a paper cup for your coffee-to-go
• Drink from a reusable water bottle rather than a plastic one
• Recycle newspapers, bottles and cans
• Start a compost bin in your backyard for kitchen waste
• Make a commitment to drive less and carpool or walk more
• Take public transportation
• Shorten your shower by one minute
• Shut down your computer for one hour
• Attend an Earth Day event in your area or volunteer
• Include your kids and grandkids and teach them about the importance of protecting our beautiful earth

End the day with an Earth Day Dinner Celebration with foods that are grown locally if possible and are gentler to the earth – organic vegetables and fruits, grass-fed, grass finished beef, free-range chicken or sustainably harvested fish and raise awareness about the origins of our food at the same time. You could host a potluck dinner with regional specialties, plan an earth dinner fundraiser for your favorite local organization, and have an earth day party for kids or a simple supper with your family or friends.  If the weather is warm, try an earth day picnic.  Use real cutlery, not plastic, real plates, not paper and cloth napkins.  Seed packets make great place cards.  For a more festive dinner, eat by candlelight and save energy;  wash the dishes with non-toxic detergent.

Check your local newspaper or go online for Earth Day events in your town.  Make Earth Day and Earth Dinner celebrations your new tradition.  Never forget that simple steps really do make a difference!

 

HEALTHY ORGANIC FLOWERS AND CHOCOLATES FOR VALENTINE’S DAY!

Image by blueathena7 Flickr.com

Before you send your sweetheart a romantic bouquet of flowers, think about sending organic flowers instead.  Most flowers are grown with highly toxic chemicals. Even the floral foam used in floral arrangements contains toxic elements; there is an appalling lack of toxicity regulation in the flower industry.  Colombia, the world’s second largest flower exporter after the Netherlands, douses the plants in pesticides to prevent diseases and blemishes.  During peak season, the workers (many of whom are single mothers and even children) work long hours with low wages and a steady exposure to herbicides, pesticides and fungicides.  Many suffer work related health issues as a result.  The soil and the ground water are contaminated and the soil is depleted of biology. Flowers grown in the US are partially regulated by the EPA, mostly concerning the safety issues for the growers.  The possible dangers, including allergic reactions, from chemical residues on flowers passed onto consumers however, are not addressed.

The market is growing for organic flowers – the more the demand, of course the more available they will become.  With each purchase, you know you are helping the life of a floral farm worker.  Visit organicbouquet.com, which according to the Sierra Club, is a carbon-neutral company that not only sells pesticide-free flowers but also gives their workers in underdeveloped countries zero-interest loans, healthcare, and education.  Another option, if possible, buy seasonal flowers from a farmer’s market, pick them from your garden or consider a potted plant.  Potted orchids are a lovely Valentine’s Day gift.

My favorite Valentine’s gift is chocolate and happily the health benefits of dark chocolate are becoming well-known.  Besides tasting delicious, dark chocolate, which is at least 65% cocoa, contains a large number of antioxidants, nearly 8 times the number found in strawberries. The flavonoids help relax blood pressure, have been shown to lower cholesterol by up to 10%, may protect arteries from damage and fend off heart disease.  Dark chocolate stimulates endorphin production, or the feel good hormones, and contains serotonin, which acts as an anti-depressant.  It may even help with tooth decay.   Like coffee, it contains caffeine, a natural stimulant.

This year, get your Valentines organic, fair trade chocolate… Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods carry lots of varieties, and I noticed CVS carries some too.  Dark chocolate still contains sugar and fat, so indulge moderately!  (Unfortunately, milk and white chocolate do not contain the same benefits.)  Yes, even Valentine’s Day can be green!

Image by sweet mustache Flickr.Com

Some information compiled from greenamerica.org and sierraclub.org

Green New Year’s Resolutions

2. New Year’s Resolutions (Photo credit: lism.)

The New Year is a time for starting fresh and making resolutions, some of which we keep and most of which we don’t.  This year go beyond the “lose weight, exercise more” typical resolutions and add some “green” ones.  Think back over the year to your newly acquired green habits and add to them.   For example, add one new item to your recycling that you have previously not recycled, like printer cartridges. (Staples recycles old printer cartridges and you can download mailing labels from HP to send back used ones.)  Recycle plastic bags at Whole Foods.  I keep a bag handy to store plastic bags and take them to Whole foods whenever I shop there.  Simple!  If you are not already bringing reusable bags to the grocery store, then start doing so.  If you are, add reusable produce bags, or bring reusable shopping bags on other errands as well.

Lower your carbon footprint one day a week by walking, biking or taking public transportation instead of driving.  Replace your light bulbs with energy-efficient CFL or LED lights.  One day a week eat vegetarian, a completely local dinner or even a raw meal. Try cutting out processed foods from your diet.  One day a week cut down on your appliance and technology usage or better yet, don’t use them at all.

Replace one of your conventional cleaning products with a non-toxic one.  Check out greenwithbetsy.com for simple recipes to make at home.  They work just as well and you will feel good knowing you are not breathing in toxins!

It only takes three weeks to make or break a habit, so start  your green resolutions now and they will soon become part of your daily routine. You may find you lose that weight and are exercising more simply by being more green!

Happy 2013!!!

Christmas Quote

“The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree:  the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other.” – Burton Hillis  

This quote is quite poignant especially in light of the horrific tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut where Christmas this year and for years to come will never be the same.  I hope that one day, somehow, they will be “a happy family all wrapped up in each other” once again.  My heart and prayers go out to the 26 families who lost their loved ones and the entire Newtown community.  

On a personal note, I feel so fortunate to have all three of my kids home for Christmas this year.  Our family is scattered from one coast to the other, so it is even more meaningful. 

Happy Holidays to all! 

Making Jam The Old Fashioned Way

Last weekend my friend and I spent a fabulous morning at a jam making class at the Green Briar Nature Center in Sandwich on Cape Cod.  This post isn’t exactly a green tip, but rather a description of class that is a true throwback to an era when life was slower and simpler, a time when you cooked with ingredients you or your neighbors grew, a time when people took the time to talk to one another without smart phones, without Facebook, without Twitter.

The Green Briar Nature Center is located in a charming old house near a pond and adjacent to the famous Briar Patch of the Thornton Burgess’s children’s stories.  There are nature trails, a spectacular wildflower garden and a natural history library.  The center also offers year round weekly jam making classes in an old-fashioned, turn-of-the-century (and I mean the 20^th century!) kitchen.   The recipes are the originals from the early 1900’s; we made cranberry hot pepper jam. The cranberries were local and came from the farm next to ours in East Sandwich.  The ingredients and jam making utensils were nicely laid out for each participant.

My friend is an expert jam maker, but even for a novice like me it was easy.  Friendly volunteers guided us through each step, making sure when the jam was ready to be jarred, we did it correctly.   Lined up one right after the other, we chopped and stirred, talked and learned about each other’s lives, and asked questions of the more experienced jam makers.  It reminded me of the old quilting bees when woman would gather and sew and chat.  In this jam making class, men participate too.

Making Jam at the Green Briar Nature Center

What a pleasant respite from the hustle, bustle of the holiday season and a special way to spend time with a friend.  What a lovely gift homemade jelly makes!  The center also has a gift shop with more homemade jams and jellies as well as other handcrafted items.    I can’t think of a greener holiday gift than a morning at an authentic jam making class!  Visit www.thorntonburgess.org for more information.

 

 

Green Your Holidays!

Don’t let your “green” habits fall by the wayside this holiday season.  Instead incorporate them into your usual holiday plans.  Here are some suggestions.

• 

  For your holiday feast, support local farmers who grow organic meat and produce – an organic heritage turkey is unbelievably moist and delicious. Incorporate vegetarian options as well.

• Buy a pesticide-free Christmas tree. Some growers use 40 different pesticides and colorants.  You can find no or low pesticide trees at some of the local tree farms and they always last longer when you cut them yourself.  There is controversy about which is more environmentally friendly, a fake or a real tree, and there are arguments for both, but you can’t beat the smell of a freshly cut tree.  After the holidays, recycle your tree. Many cities offer programs to turn trees into mulch or woodchips. (visit www.earth911.org for information)
• Lots of fresh greenery and berries make beautiful, natural decorations!
• Energy efficient “LED” lights use 90% less energy than conventional holiday lights and are also less expensive for you.  You can recycle your old incandescent ones at HolidayLEDs.com. You can find LED lights at Target, Costco and most major retailers.
• Mass produced wrapping paper is beautiful and convenient, but usually ends up being thrown away. Make your own holiday wrapping paper instead, which is greener, more personal and doesn’t have to be time-consuming.  Holiday dish towels, colorful scarves or bandanas, newspaper sections, old maps, or even plain brown paper tied with a colorful bow and some greenery cut from your backyard make great wrapping paper. If every family wrapped just three gifts this way, it would save enough paper to cover 45,000 football fields.
• Gifts to your favorite charity are much-needed in this economy and not only make you feel good, but obviously cut down on waste.
• Green experiences like restaurant gift certificates, cooking classes, theater or concert tickets, or memberships to sports clubs are meaningful, waste-free presents.

Feel good this holiday season knowing you are taking simple “green” steps that make a big difference!

Green Holiday Shopping

I love the way life moves in the right direction – it’s getting so much easier to find eco-friendly, responsibly sourced, sustainably made products that don’t impact the earth. Below is a list of green websites to help you with your holiday shopping (and beyond).

WorldofGood.com

WorldofGood.com is an eBay company for online shoppers and sellers, who have pledged to buy, sell and think green.  It features eco-friendly, sustainably made and resource-saving products available on eBay.com. According to the website description, WorldofGood.com is positive for people, environment, animals and causes.

Ethicalocean.com

Ethical Ocean, based in Toronto, is an online marketplace for ethical products and services from around the world.  Their tagline says it all – “own what’s good”

EcoMall.com

EcoMall is an online directory of companies and products as well as a green living magazine. Easy to navigate, it lists hundreds of green products and services.

“ A place to help save the earth” …

GreenPages.org

National Green Pages is a “directory of products and services for people and the planet”.  It works like a phone book and lists major eco-responsible companies like Patagonia and Seventh Generation.  It also features local stores.

LinksOrganic.com

LinksOrganic.com is a comprehensive international guide to finding organic or environmentally friendly businesses. Some have online stores while others are physical storefronts in your local community.

Where-clothes.com

I have to put a plug in for my daughter’s company, Where…. Earth Friendly Fashion.  She restructures vintage and recycled clothing into today’s styles.  Each piece is hand sewn, one of a kind and most incorporate beautiful antique lace!  Check it out!

There are many more websites featuring eco-responsible products and services, but this should get you started.  Remember to request minimal and plastic-free  packaging when ordering online!

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

A Winnie the Pooh Thanksgiving (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Piglet noticed that even though he had a

Very Small Heart, it could hold a rather
large amount of Gratitude.

 

~~ A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh ~~ 

 

Celebrate with a “Green” Thanksgiving!

As we give thanks this Thanksgiving, why not make it a “green” one?  Try the ideas below.

Image by Ilrena Flickr.com

• For your holiday dinner, support local farmers who grow organic produce. The average food travels 1500 miles from farm to plate, consuming large quantities of fossil fuels and generating major CO2 emissions. Local food by contrast is usually transported 100 – 200 miles, has fewer pesticides and can be picked when ripe.  It is obviously fresher and better.  Farm stands and supermarkets have an abundance of local winter squash, carrots, potatoes, greens, herbs, apples, and pumpkin. Don’t forget to bring your reusable shopping bags.

• Try a locally grown, free range organic turkey available at local farms and Whole Foods.  Fresh turkeys are unbelievably moist and delicious and not treated with antibiotics and growth hormones.  You won’t believe the difference.  For the vegetarians at your table, try a Tofurkey (available from Trader Joe’s).  It come with its own vegetarian gravy and is really good!  If possible, use organic cranberries for your cranberry sauce – cranberries are a heavily sprayed crop.

• Add freshly baked local artisan bread and rolls.

• Consider serving organic wine along with your meal. Organic wine is made from certified organically grown grapes, meaning grown without pesticides, herbicides and chemical fertilizers. Conventionally grown grapes are one of the most heavily sprayed crops, and the chemical residues can end up in the wine.  Organically grown grapes are better for the soil, the plant and the wine drinker.

• China, silver and cloth napkins are obviously better for the environment than paper plates and plastic utensils.  They look better too!  If you are expecting a big crowd and need to opt for disposable, get the biodegradable and compostable plates and utensils.

• After the big feast, don’t forget to recycle cans, cartons, plastics and bottles and compost leftover kitchen waste.

With your healthy and “green” holiday feast, you won’t feel so badly about overindulging!  Happy Thanksgiving!

 

 

Scary Halloween Candy!!!

I have to repost this image!   Vote yes on Prop 37 if you are in California – it’s not only important for California but for the rest of the country too!

Organic candy anyone?