Archive for the 'Conservation' Category

I came across an interesting blog…No Impact Man. It’s one man’s radical attempt to decrease his family’s “impact” on the earth over the course of a year. It’s inspiring and CRAZY. It’s been in the news lately, so you may have already heard about it…but I know that many of you will enjoy tracking his progress this year as they live mindfully.

I came across a wonderful website today. The Miniature Earth explores what the earth would “look” like if it was reduced to 100 people, but the proportions remained the same. It’s so easy to forget that we, as Americans, are not the only people on this earth. It’s easy to forget that we are wealthy beyond measure when compared to others across the world.

Along the same lines, Peter Menzel has created 3 books that have been life-changing for me. Material World, Hungry Planet, and Women of the Material World. He compares famililes from around the globe and give us a glimpse into their everyday lives. Here are a few of the families that are featured. These books were pivotal in my journey towards a more simple and sustainable lifestyle…I just could not go on doing the same wasteful things, knowing that the rest of the world has so much less.

Neither! Because…

1. Both use up valuable natural resources for a single-use, disposable product
2. Both have negative impacts on wildlife and pollute our environment
3. Both create significant toxic by-products during their lifecycles
4. Neither is effectively recycled

If you’ve ever tried to decide which one was better for the environment, look no further. Read this great info from Reusable Bags and switch to cloth today. Someday in the near future, you might just save a lot of money by doing so. Ireland, and many other countries are already implementing taxes on plastic bags…and the U.S. isn’t far behind.

I know that a lot of people will argue that they use the plastic bags at home for various purposes (I do this as well right now). Even though it’s better than throwing them straight in the trash, it’s still better to just avoid them altogether. Honestly, what did people do before we had those annoying bags? I’m going to begin phasing mine out and not get any more.

I have blogged about my cloth bags in the past…and this is your friendly reminder to start using cloth today!

When we first moved into our new apartment, I wasn’t exactly sure how I was going to set up my “recycling center”. It took me a few days, but I found a solution that works great. This slick little drawer system fits perfectly in my hall closet (no, it doesn’t sit in the middle of my kitchen as shown in the photo). It can comfortably hold about a month’s worth of recycling. I have a separate basket for newspaper/office paper.

I didn’t realize how wonderful curbside recycling really was…until now! When we lived in the house, I had 2 huge bins in the basement that I could throw stuff into. Every 2 weeks I would set it out, and poof! The recycling fairies would come and take it away. Now, I have to carry these drawers down 3 flights of stairs to my car and drive it to the metro recycling center (about 5 minutes away) where I hand sort it and throw it into the appropriate containers. It’s too bad I don’t have one of these nice reverse vending machines in my neighborhood. However, it does give me a great opportunity to talk to Bella about recycling while we’re driving there.

If you’re reading this and you aren’t a recycler…give some thought to the following:

1. Recycling conserves our valuable natural resources.
2. Recycling saves energy.
3. Recycling saves clean air and clean water.
4. Recycling saves landfill space.
5. Recycling can save money and create jobs.

• Americans throw away 44 million newspapers everyday. That i’s the same as dumping 500,000 trees into landfills each week
• Paper products make up the largest part (approximately 40 percent) of our trash.
• Paper products use up at least 35 percent of the world’s annual commercial wood harvest.
• People in the U.S. throw away enough aluminum every three months to rebuild our entire commercial air fleet.
• Americans throw away enough glass bottles and jars every two weeks to fill the 1.350-foot towers of the former World Trade Center.

Recycling is much more than just tin cans and newspapers. Recycling just means “to use again” or “to adapt to a new form or function”. We live in a disposable-obsessed culture…and we tend to think we can only use things one time. There are many things around the house that can be re-used. I recycle my tin foil. I recycle plastic bags (check out this cool contraption). I recycle the envelopes/packaging that people send me. I recycle jars in my kitchen and use them for food storage. I wear recycled clothing.

Whenever you recycle, you are not just saving that item from being thrown away. You are saving all the resources involved in making a brand new item from scratch. For example, recycling aluminum saves 95% of the energy used to make the material from scratch. That means you can make 20 cans out of recycled material with the same amount of energy it takes to make one can out of new material.

One of the greatest things ever invented is a recycling network called Freecycle. Freecycle’s mission is to keep stuff out of the landfills. See if your town has one…you’ll love it.

You may be overwhelmed and not know where to start with recycling. Call your local recycling center and find out if they provide curbside recycling in your area. Most will provide free bins. Then, start with just one item. Then move to other items. Cereal boxes, cans, plastic bottles, glass containers…there are so many things that you can keep out of your trash by recycling. Start today…every little bit helps.

Find this information and more fun facts about recycling here.

No, not your shoe size. Your ecological footprint. I’ve taken the footprint quiz before…but Jessica’s blog reminded me how much I love to try to lower my score. Right now, my footprint is at 5 acres. In comparison, the average footprint in the U.S. is 24 acres. Worldwide, there are enough resources for each person to have 4.5 acres.

So that puts me .5 over my “allotted” acres and now I must REDUCE so I can stop using up more than my share of the resources! Here are some other changes that I would like to make:

• Eat a completely vegan diet. I have eaten a vegetarian diet for a little over 2 years now, but have gone back and forth between vegan and vegetarian. For those of you that don’t know, a vegan is someone who eats no animal products at all (no milk, eggs, butter, etc.)
• Walk more. This is a little harder in the wintry cold and ice…especially because our neighborhood is very hilly! I will implement this more in the summer. It’s so easy because we are within walking distance to everything.
• I have always wanted to use public transportation more. However, Des Moines has a really poor system. I have contacted the metro transit authority with route questions, etc. and I want to try it soon! I am definitely not used to riding the bus, so it will be an experience. It takes more time and planning, but I love the idea of it. Much more relaxing than driving myself. There is a possibility that we will park the bus this winter and become a one-car family again, so the bus may be a necessity!
• Focus on buying only package-free foods and less processed foods. Right now our only “processed foods” are chips, bread, almond milk, and cereal. I’m not counting condiments. I would like to start making my own bread again, make my own almond milk more consistently, my own granola, and my own chips. Does anyone know of any good tortilla chip recipes!?
• Reduce, Reuse, Recycle… I am learning more about this everyday. I am actively reducing my belongings and I am reducing the amount coming in (The Compact). I am re-using plastic bags, jars, clothes, I use cloth everything in our household, and I recycle everything that is allowed.
• I would like to be even more conscious of my energy and water consumption.

There will always be something to “work on” when you’re living green…but that’s what makes life fun!

Photo credit: Flickr/pingnews.com

This is a common sight in our living room. We’ve started to air dry our clothes. This handy dandy drying rack holds smaller items, jeans, Bella’s clothes, etc. and we hang shirts on hangers and hang them on the shower rod. You could also use a retractable line like this. Or one of these beauties. By hanging our clothes to dry, I am accomplishing several things:

• Our clothes last longer when they aren’t dried in a dryer. Less shrinking, fading, etc. Dryers break down elastics, distort the shape of clothing, and they eat socks! Because the clothes last longer, you don’t need to buy them as often…thus saving money and time.
• Less energy consumption…the dryer is one of the worst.
• Saving money … $1.00 a load.
• Eliminating static cling
• Cutting down on ironing
• It causes me to realize how many clothes we actually own and makes me want to downsize our wardrobe even more. It’s a more purposeful experience…as I take each item, one by one, and straighten it, hang it, dry it, and take it off.

Stop using your dryer today!

It’s so fun to go grocery shopping when you have pretty bags to bring your food home in! My counter was brimming with color today…I just couldn’t help but take a photo. If you’ve never made the switch to cloth grocery bags…you’re missing out. But don’t stop at groceries! Bring them to every store!

My most recent find was cloth produce bags. Instead of using all of those flimsy plastic bags in the produce aisle, you can use these great organic bags.

My favorite places to get bags:
Reusable Bags
Ecobags

I prefer the bags with long handles. I think they are easier to carry…you can put them over your shoulder, or tie the handles in a knot and carry them like a traditional plastic bag. These bags stretch and can hold an amazing amount of food. They won’t break. Of course, you don’t have to get fancy string bags. Cloth tote bags from the thrift store work perfectly fine too! There are so many bags with company logos, event logos, etc. on them…you can snatch them up at any Goodwill.

Go cloth!

Back by popular demand…a “re-print” of “Choose Cloth” (newly updated):

Over the last couple of years, we have slowly been getting rid of everything that is disposable in our house. In a society that is obsessed with disposable everything…sometimes I feel like an odd ball. But hey, what’s new? The progression has been as follows:

PAPER TOWELS: These were the first thing to go. They were expensive and I was addicted to them. I just bought a few more cloth towels and I grab them for everything. We have darker towels for staining spills.

PAPER NAPKINS: We didn’t use these a lot to begin with, but I switched to all cloth napkins after I found the cutest little red ones with stars. Adorable. Now I have several sets and I *love* using them at every meal.

DISPOSABLE DIAPERS: We cloth diapered Bella from day one. It’s one of the most enjoyable things about being a mama so far. They are so adorable, healthy, and easy to use. Love them.

FEMININE PRODUCTS: After I had Bella, I started to use what many affectionately call “mama cloth”. Basically, reusable feminine hygeine products. I have a GREAT set of reusable hemp pads. After I get my period back I will switch to using The Keeper or The Diva Cup. And for those of you that are saying “ooooh gross!”. Get over it…have you ever researched what is in a tampon? Sick.

TOILET PAPER: Our latest switch has been from paper to cloth toilet paper. This was definitely not a hard thing because we are already using cloth wipes on Bella (the cloth wipes we have are so soft and wonderful…most are made of flannel and velour or sherpa…2-ply). Before I decided to do this, I was intimidated because I didn’t quite understand the logistics of it all. So, in order to help some of you “get it”…I will explain further and offer a pictoral description of the setup.

Basically, we have dry and wet wipes. Dry for pee, wet for poop. The wet wipes are in a wipes warmer on the back of the toilet. I put them in there every day with a solution of water, apricot oil, Dr. Bronner’s soap, tea tree oil, and lavender oil. It’s a lovely smell…much more fun than plain ‘ol scratchy toilet paper! The dry wipes are just next to that on the toilet. I will eventually get a cute wire basket for the dry wipes. After you are done using the wipe, you just throw it in the wet bag hanging next to the toilet. Update since this photo was taken: The wipes are now in a basket in a drawer next to the toilet. Easy as pie. Here it is:

I know some of you have just vowed never to use the bathroom at my house ever again. But never fear, I will keep ONE roll of regular TP for my less “natural” guests. We do have one last box of tissues right now, but will just use the cloth wipes for that as well. And please don’t worry about the sanitary issues…everything is washed in super hot water with soap, baking soda, and the occasional vinegar rinse.

GROCERY BAGS: I bring my own bags to the grocery store. I LOVE my string bags from Reusable Bags. Ecobags is good too. Many grocery stores will give you a small credit for bringing your own.

All in all, switching our house to completely cloth has been a GREAT experience…one that is environmentally sound, and also financially sound. We save SO much money by not buying disposable stuff.

I still have a few more changes to make. I would like to get sets of cutlery and plates to take to events where I know there will be disposable dinnerware. I don’t do take out a lot, but if my restaurants were more eco-friendly, I would also get the stainless stell food carrier so they could just put it in there instead of the disposable boxes. The first time I heard about this, I was so excited. It was when I was visiting the Ecopolitan in Minneapolis. They asked me if I had brought in my own take out containers or did I need to purchase one from them. I did have to purchase one, but it was a recycled, compostable container. I love that place!

I also need to better at bringing my own travel mug to coffee shops. I have probably filled a landfill with all of the to-go cups I’ve drank from and tossed in the garbage 5 minutes later…so wasteful!

Re-evaulate your choices today…and choose cloth/re-usable!

If you would like to read another blog about this topic, check out my friend Sarah. She is a swell gal. She has her own business, Wallypop, and makes great stuff. Here it is.