How to Celebrate Earth Day?

This Thursday marks the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, a day marked to celebrate and embrace the planet we live on as a living and breathing entity. Here in the United States, the day falls on April 22 each year and has been an important teaching day to talk about the environment sine it was first proposed in 1969.

Even people who are not traditionally known as “Green” tend to do something better for the planet on Earth day but that leads me to the question in my post title…how should we celebrate?

Since I am a proudly self-proclaimed Greenie I already do a whole bunch of the things that are suggested as ways to show some eco love -- work from home most of the time, eat far less meat (almost none in fact!), use CFLs, wash in cold water, reduce/reuse/recycle, buy second hand or from local shops as often as is practical, unplug items not in use, do as much shopping on one day as possible to avoid multiple gas emission days, walk whenever possible, etc -- so what should an eco-attuned gal such as myself do to celebrate this momentous day?

Some of you may be having a similar problem right now considering my readers over here are certainly savvy environmental lovers who don’t just hug trees, they plant them too! But this leaves all of us with the difficult task of trying to determine the best way to do even more in honor of the planet; and it is just 3 days away, yikes!

I am stumped! If anyone has suggestions I am all ears! PLEASE give me some recommendations for ways to celebrate on Thursday and I will be forever grateful!

It Is Showing Up Everywhere

Last night I went to my first event in about five years at the TD Banknorth Garden here in Boston. The Bruins were playing Atlanta and we were invited to go because my Aunt had inadvertently purchased two extra tickets. On the way in we were running a little behind so we managed to get to our seats in just enough time to watch the B’s take the ice.

The game was fantastic, although I am not much of a fan of the sport because the penalties are a mystery to me (I do not even really know what icing is sorry to say!) and other than the puck ending up in the goal of the opposing team I am blissfully unaware of much else going on. When that puck entered the other net four times last night though I definitely cheered.

The Bruins, who are currently in first place, won the game 4-2 and we hung around for a few extra minutes after the end to ensure the largest of the crowd dissipated before we made our way out. As soon as we came out of our exit from the stands I spied something excellent placed all around the outer rim of each level of the Garden:


Cool! These bins are for bottles and say on the side “A Greener Garden”; the word Garden is in the standard yellow lettering on the outside of the venue. These would be hard to miss while walking around due to their fun shape and on the front is a slot just big enough for a bottle to slide through. There would be no way to confuse this with a trash can.

They are sponsored by the owners of the Garden & Bruins, Delaware North Company a hospitality management firm. I have searched all over the internet for what company actually produces these fun bottle shaped recycle bins but to no avail. Well whoever you are bottle shaped recycle bin creator I am giving both you and the Garden a Three Leaf Rating for your innovation in design and installation, encouraging even the largest crowd of crazed hockey fans (or basketball, concert goers) to do the environmentally responsible thing. Outstanding!

Raising My Hand In Class

A couple days ago I interviewed Ingrid McEntire and she left me a comment which I received this morning that got me thinking about our opportunities and how we will pursue making changes in our environments. She said:

Hope that everybody, especially the Children, make now a better world through recycling....In school their should be a class "Creative Recyling". Green Leaf should contact the new President to inspire this.Great job Creations By Ingrid

Creative recycling classes. Genius!

Parents should be responsible to provide their children with the initial desire to make green choices, to open their eyes to the state of the planet and what we can do to help fix it but it is important to remember that children are far more easily influenced by what they watch their parents do they what they hear them say.

What are we teaching the youth of the nation about getting greener and where are they learning the lessons? I fully agree with Ingrid that this type of subject matter should be taught in schools (Attention all art teachers!) but if it is not, are positive lessons being taught at home instead? Do we follow through on our own statements -- practice what we preach?

With the advent of the Green Collar industry taking a major foothold, are we preparing our children with abilities that will ensure they can garner these positions or are we instead telling them that “green is good” while we throw away the plastic water bottle we just drank someone else’s tap water out of?

I make every effort to live as green a lifestyle as possible but I do admit, there are things about my living habits that are less eco-friendly than I would prefer them to be. Generally speaking, the reasons for this are financially motivated as our family is in a moderately precarious monetary position just like so many others across the world. It comes down to weighing what our own personal tradeoffs are:

Can we pay our bills, buy groceries, contribute to charity, cook a meal for family or friends - yes.

Is there a little extra left over so we can get on the somewhat higher cost wind power option from the electric company, buy locally grown and organic foods, send larger donations as we usually do every year at the holidays, share fabulous bottles of organic wine at dinner - not so much.

I do not have children so I am only responsible for myself, that is, in my own home. If I choose to drink out of a plastic water bottle while I open the refrigerator door for ten minutes then throw that bottle in the trash when it is gone there is no one to call me out on my actions; I am not spreading a message of disposable waste to an impressionable younger person so Ingrid’s comment really got me thinking about even the most basic message of recycling -- bins in schools.

There are a lot of questions here that I sadly have no answers for at this time but in an effort to open my own eyes to what our youth are learning about eco-friendly practice I am setting out on a mission. Over the course of the next few weeks my goal is to visit the principal of each school in my home town and ask just two questions:

Do you provide recycle bins for students to drop in all potentially recyclable items (paper, plastic, metal, etc.)?

If no, why not?

We are a smaller town so the tour should be quick and efficient (saving as many emissions as possible people!), something I can likely complete in one day. In my town there are seven grammar schools (K-5), one junior high school (6-8) and one high school (all public). I do not know what can of worms I will be opening by approaching this issue, perhaps I will find out that none of the schools have this available resource and begin a lobby in my town to ensure installation of such bins (as well as proper removal by the town DPW). Perhaps I will discover that all of the public schools here already participate in recycling and laugh that I am so behind the curve since these bins have been in place for years. Either way I am looking to educate myself as to how educated the students here are in the ways of green.

Anyone want to join me in your own hometown and report back on your findings? Do you have kids and want to share your own story? I would love to hear how some of today’s parents are encouraging green behaviors in their own homes and share those stories. In the meantime, wish me luck on my new adventure, I will let all of you know how it goes.

Wine Is Just Recycled Grapes

Last night it was my pleasure to be invited to the first meeting of the newly formed Bennetts Brook Green Group. Melissa has decided to get off her duff and get mucho involved in spreading the word about all things environment so with the help of her neighbor Julie, some suggestions from the cool gals at EnviroMom and a passionate desire to buck the perception that suburban moms do not care about the planet, the group met at her place last night.

There were twelve of us in total and a mix of not only gender but age as well! Her neighbor directly across the street is definitely over fifty and proudly admitted to having been doing this type of stuff for years (most notably saving all his coffee grounds to utilize for his acid loving garden plants). If possible the three guys who showed up were possibly even more vocal than us gals. Yippie!

The forum was open, more a share and chat style, but still maintained a loose organization of topics, themes and issues that Melissa and Julie shared responsibility in putting out there. If I did not know better there is no way I would have known this was their first meeting. It all flowed seamlessly.

Most of the food and drink were organic options (from the beer to the wine to the coffee to the crackers) and since she was not sure how many people would show up Melissa also purchased plastic cups, which she made a point to mention would all be washed and reused or recycled. After some quick introductions and a little snack it was time to get down to business.

The night began with an introduction to how and why the group formed, an impromptu discussion of local organizations and potentially forming a neighborhood share style program where sharing of tools or even grocery shopping will become forefront instead of everyone driving all over to do these things individually or purchase items used only once when a neighbor might have it to lend.

Later in the evening we shared our confessions of what we all do that we wish we did not (I of course admitted to smoking and was surprised that some attendees would not have thought of this as environmentally harmful). Everything was shared from driving large gas gulping SUVs (due to the size of her family of six and not finding an alternate reliable option as of yet), to tossing paper to (shock!) not recycling at all. The good news is that clearly we all want to change those ways or we would not have been in attendance.

The confession portion of the evening was the perfect segue into what each of us are currently doing to, as Melissa put it, “get off the fence” and get involved by doing. Melissa has signed up with 41pounds.org and will let us know how it works as soon as her kit arrives. Other attendees have begun sending credit card offers back in the enclosed prepaid envelope (I also know someone who does this and it greatly reduced the number of offers he received), using Mrs. Meyers cleaning products and composting.

When I first asked Melissa to allow me to interview her for Green Leaf Reviewer she was nervous that as a “suburban mom” she would be flamed for trying to say she was environmental. Well to be perfectly honest, if anything, it made me more excited to interview her and last night was the culmination of proving that no matter where a person chooses to live they can still be interested in helping the planet; no matter what a person drives they might just be doing 1000 things to offset that impact. The first step, just like Julie and Melissa showed us last night, is to stop talking about it and simply make the change in our own lives because how does that saying go again? Oh yeah…

Even the longest journey begins with the first step.

Eco Holidays

Since I was raised in the United States in an Irish Catholic household these are the holidays I personally celebrate. I would love to hear about any and all traditions or holidays that readers embrace and how this year might be the one where an environmental twist can be placed on those celebrations!

Halloween

For the past couple weeks we have been saying that for Halloween this year we will wear our most tattered clothing and go as out of work bankers. When I was a kid, that same costume was called a Hobo when a clown face was added. It is difficult to imagine myself fitting into my old Halloween costume this year so I am on the prowl to scour my closet and come up with alternate solutions by utilizing items I already have or can acquire very inexpensively.

This trend seems to be catching on as I was reading some comments on my personal blog from Julie. She said:

“So, I pulled out my sewing machine the other night. It's been a while. But it was fun, and I was pretty proud of my "freehand" upcycled creation. The four of us are going to a costume party for Halloween, and since the boys are going to be Batman and Robin, DH & I are going as The Joker & Catwoman. So, I converted a goodwill shirt into a shiny (literally) new green vest for the clown-faced villain in my life. Basic, but like I said, I'm happy with it. :) Still, I need to make a headpiece/mask/ears & tail for my costume, and convert a yellow t-shirt into a cape for Robin...”

Fantastic!

Then there was the year that my sister in law spray painted cardboard boxes and glued on cups to turn my nephews into Legos.

When a child goes out trick or treating the signal for where to stop for treats is a porch light left on so how can we simultaneously conserve energy? Perhaps install a CFL bulb prior to that evening. Or there is always the option of placing this little baby out on the stoop: A solar powered lantern. Charge it that day in bright sunlight and it will hold a thirty hour charge. The candy will run out before the lantern light does!

Thanksgiving

Countless gallons of fossil fuel are burned on the biggest travel day of the year. Gallons of water are down the drain. Electric usage soars while the oven runs for six continuous hours, the television stays on for the football games while everyone naps on the couch and extra lights are turned on all over the house.

So what can we do about it while we still enjoy a hearty meal and laughs with our respective relations?

For starters those hosting this festive occasion can purchase just what is needed of locally grown and organic food. Less fossil fuel is burned because the items have less distance to travel and with no added chemicals it will be a healthier meal all around.

Family and friends who are headed out in their cars to take advantage of this healthier feast can definitely improve their emissions by completing a few small steps prior to the date of travel. Have tires checked and inflated to proper pressure, make sure oil and filter changes as well as tune ups are all up to date. A properly working vehicle is key!

It might seem difficult to reduce a carbon footprint while flying but we can -- pack a travel mug in our carry on bag to fill up with a beverage of choice once past security, attempt to carry on only reducing the weight of baggage on the flight (basically do not over pack), park in an out-lot and take the shuttle to the terminal (less time cruising for a perfect parking spot, carpool instead) and plant a tree (or ten) upon returning home to help offset some of the carbon utilized while on the plane.

For those with a dishwasher that like to rinse dishes, fill a dishpan or the sink halfway with warm water and soak the dishes rather than spending time running them under a faucet. This will cut down on wasted gallons of water and improve the efficiency of the dishwasher. For those without a dishwasher just add soap to the warm water and let the dishes soak. Wash them all at once and rinse them all at once.

About a half hour after the meal is over most everyone stretched out on the sofa (bed, floor, chair) will be passed out but the television will still be running for the duration of that nap. Why not set the sleep timer to turn off after an hour? Encourage guests to be mindful of leaving lights on throughout the house, turn them off when leaving a room.

There is nothing quite like taking an entire day to give thanks and show gratitude for the wealth of things we have in our lives and one of them is the environment. For a complete list of some great tips check out this site.

Christmas

In decades past this was the time of Yule logs burning and smells of cinnamon mixed with winter pine. A time when kids were on break from school so they could have snowball fights, go sledding and build snowmen. A time of frosty noses and family, friends and fun, peace and joy. More recently this holiday has turned into a race to the mall where countless items are purchased for individuals we barely know perpetuating a cycle of disposable consumerism. Acknowledging each other and the fuzzy feelings we have with a special little something is perfectly wonderful but maybe it is time to think outside the box stores to do something that will bring an even greater sense of warmth to everyone involved and give back to humanity at the same time.

Shop local. Instead of driving miles away to a mall or other big box retailer, explore the cities or towns we live in to bring our dollars back into our own communities. This will help boost local economies, keep people employed and build relationships in the places we all live.

Buy handmade items from independent artisans. When we absolutely have to shop online, consider purchasing something more unique from an artist who put their heart and soul into creating that item. Independent artisans are to the internet what local retailers are to a town. The service is always more personalized and generally the products are of a higher quality. I suggest starting the search on Etsy where each shop is independently owned and the items are as unique as the shop names.

Consider donating to a charity in someone else’s name. With amazing success this is something my Mom instituted last year in an effort to rid her home of stuff. We jumped on the train and it was amazingly successful throughout our family. There is something out there that everyone believes in whether it is environmental or humanitarian in nature. There are many on the receiving end of the donation who benefit so the giver and recipient both feel great about doing something special for someone else.

Create a personalized gift. One year for a holiday I purchased a simple plastic box frame, some tiny accoutrements (a plastic phone, a shoe, etc), glued them to the face of the frame, printed a photo of my sister and I and put it inside. She still has that gift to this day. Using our imaginations we can create all kinds of heartfelt gifts that will be cherished for years.

Simply spend time with someone. The holidays can be a difficult time of year for many people. When we embrace what the spirit of the holiday season is all about we will find that sharing a cup of tea over great conversation on a Sunday afternoon is a far greater gift than anything purchased.

Putting My Mission Where My Mouth Is

Last night was this month’s meeting for my town’s Sustainable group that I discovered two days ago and we braved the dipping temperatures to take in what this committee is all about. None of us were disappointed and came out even more jazzed to do more! There were eleven of us in attendance at the meeting plus two guest speakers and other absent members were referenced as the night went on so it was clear this is a decent sized group with a common goal in mind.

That goal includes efforts such as Local First -- an initiative to promote the environmental and community building aspects of shopping for products and services in our own towns first, 150 Households -- an effort to encourage 150 residents to sign up for the New England Wind Fund which will allow for the town to garner one 2kW photovoltaic panel and The Energy Smackdown -- a contest including 3 town teams with ten families per town pledging to reduce energy consumption over a one year span. My brain was swimming in a sea of beautiful, algae free, carbon low, green water by the end of the meeting just thinking about the ability to get involved with some of these efforts as well as those proposed for the coming year’s focus.

At the end of the evening the Webmaster and I chatted about this blog and the fact that the committee website is receiving a major overhaul in the very near future. He asked if I would allow an RSS feed from here on the main website and also if I would be interested in doing some content rich article writing on pertinent local information. Um, hello of course I am interested! Yippie! It made me feel great to know that I can use my own area of talent to provide back to this amazing group.

As we drove back to my Mom’s to drop her off we all discussed some of the ways we are already making differences but also some of the things we do that, according to what we discussed during the evening, are not very sustainable and what the trade offs are for each choice we make. In the end all of us are committed to make a concerted effort in helping to protect the planet and that is what truly matters. It will be fun to get out there and become even more involved with our local community to further enhance those commitments.

Sharing Is Caring

I am a member of Focus the Nation, a non-profit organization that is committed to fight for clean, renewable energy resources. This morning their news letter arrived in my inbox detailing some of the upcoming events and where they would be held. All the way at the bottom was a link to 41pounds.org which was described as a service that will stop all unwanted junk mail for five years. Having never heard of this particular organization before, I went to the website and read each page, looking to gain a broader perspective on what and how they do it. For $41.00 (US) they will contact and stop all unwanted mail for five full years -- catalogs, credit card offers, fliers -- anything with a name and address on it and $15.00 of that donation goes directly to an organization in the drop down menu. It sounded pretty good (especially since FTN was in the list), but while reading through the list it occurred to me that many of the organizations on it were local to southern California.

I love SoCal but presently live in Massachusetts so my wheels began to turn and I realized that the only organizations I currently belong to as a member are all national. This made me stop to think -- where are my local organizations and how can I find them? I thought about the saying:

Think Globally. Act Locally.

Now that is not to say that acting globally does not help because I do truly care what happens to the rest of the world but starting at home will give me more pride in actually being able to watch that effort come to fruition.

So where can I research local organizations? How do I join them? What makes them reputable?

I had a lot of questions and only the internet to guide the origins of my search. So I opened up Google and typed in “Environmental Org my hometown and state”. To my surprise and delight my own town website came up with links to three committees and the Sustainability Action Plan. The Town Selectmen voted eight years ago to join with the Cities for Climate Protection Campaign that would require a plan be put into action.

Eight years ago! I felt like I had a lot of catching up to do! My town issued part one of their Sustainability Plan just two years ago and a committee was formed so the first thing I did was register for an account to their website so I could learn more about upcoming events and town meetings. I learned that the next will be held tomorrow night at 7:30 PM and emailed the moderator of the meeting to see if it was open to the public. Finally, while waiting to hear back I called my Mom, who also lives here, and asked if she too would be interested to attend if we were allowed and she said sure!

There were two additional committees listed and I fully intend to research both in the same manner in order to get more involved right here in my own town. I will continue to donate to and support larger organizations such as We, 1Sky and Focus the Nation but to begin an effort right here in my own town makes me feel more connected to the air my own community breathes every day.

What are you doing to support local organizations? Tell me about your experiences!