With the holidays drawing near we start making lists and checking them twice to see what we need. The internet seems to be the hottest place to find all your Christmas gear, but before you got shopping on the internet, why not take a walk around your neighborhood stores and locally owned businesses. Supporting and giving back to your community is the best way to help the economy and your community.
In this article from Sew Green, Gift for Good, Hayley mentions all the ways you can give back. Below are little snippets from the article.
- Donations – I put this first, because the absolute best gift you can give is to your community. It is also a huge relief for people who might stress over finding the perfect gift, plus they can give one gift donation as a family gift* and feel good about themselves in the process.
- Memberships – Museums, zoos, botanical gardens, aquariums, public radio, etc. These are donations with benefits.
- Gifts with a purpose – Many organizations have great online shops with merchandise that supports the cause.
- Museum Shops – Not only will you be supporting art in your community, but you can find great gifts by local artists, fair trade goods, collectable books, and eclectic knick knacks.
- Locally owned businesses - By shopping at local businesses, you not only support the store, but the community benefits.
- Gifts of service – Print up a coupon or certificate and you might change someone’s life, or at least give them a much needed break.
- Buying Handmade – You directly support the artist who loves doing what they do and you show, with your dollars, how important art and crafts are to you.
- DIY – With so much commercialization and cheap production, a hand knitted hat carries that much more meaning.
To read the complete article – click here.
Yesterday in the Chicago Sun Times I read an article ‘Obama unveils “Smart Energy” plan for green energy, jobs. Fact Sheet” by Lynn Sweet.
photo courtesy of Doug Mills/The New York Times
Below is from the White House -
The Obama Administration is investing $3.4 billion through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, to help fund the largest single energy grid modernization in U.S. history. One-hundred private companies, utilities, manufacturers, cities and other partners will receive grant awards tomorrow ranging from about $400,000 to $200 million to help build a nationwide smart energy grid that will cut costs for consumers, make the grid stronger and more reliable, and increase accessibility to clean, low-cost renewable energy sources for American homes and businesses. An analysis by the Electric Power Research Institute estimates that implementation of smart grid technologies could reduce electricity use by more than 4 percent by 2030, saving $20.4 billion for businesses and consumers across the country.
The awards are part of the Administration’s over $100 billion investment through the Recovery Act in innovation, technology and laying a new foundation to keep America competitive in the 21st century. They are not only expected to create tens of thousands of jobs during these challenging economic times, but help build a lasting infrastructure that will be the foundation of the growing American renewable energy industry. Because of this investment in a smart energy grid, the U.S. will be better able to harness the abundance of sunlight in the West and wind in the Midwest to power communities across the country – including many that do not have the capacity to generate these low-cost energy sources on their own. The awards will also fund more widespread installation of smart meters in homes and businesses, empowering consumers to carefully monitor and control their own energy use and creating new high-tech manufacturing opportunities for American companies. And before a single dollar is disbursed, the program has already helped bring private sector capital from the sidelines, with the winning applicants securing $4.7 billion in private investment to match their awards, multiplying the overall economic impact.
Together, these awards represent the largest group of Recovery Act awards ever made in a single day and the largest batch of Recovery Act clean energy grant awards made to-date.
Click here to read the rest of the fact sheet. This is exciting to read about, changes they are a coming!
Filed under energy by Deanna
Energy experts advise homeowners to cure simple air leaks inside their homes before investing in costly new heating systems or other energy efficiency projects. In most cases its the homes inefficient windows that keep your energy bill climbing for the sky.
If your home was built anywhere between 1900 and 1940, you may have dozens of oval holes on the side or your double-hung windows that allow heated air to escape.
But there is something you can do about it, Anderson Pulley Seal came up with a seal that easily attaches to the window to cover the holes where the air is escaping while still allowing the rope to freely go up and down.
An important source of air leakage in older homes is the pulley openings in your double-hung window frames. (you can easily feel the draft with your hand on a cold day). The Anderson Pulley Seal permanently stops this draft without affecting the operation of the window. They are easy to install using the adhesive foam gasket and screws provided.
But take precautions when drilling into older windows, since older homes with double-hung windows are prone to have leaded paint.
Filed under energy by Deanna
October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Ecofabulous has a list of the Greenest Pink Ribbon Purchases online.
Use your pink ribbon buying power to choose the greenest pink ribbons, ensuring that your dollars still make a contribution to the cure, while supporting companies that are taking matters into their own hands and eliminating any chance of known carcinogens. We’ve rounded up our top ecofabulous picks for making the greenest pink ribbon purchases – stock up now for the holidays!
Buy any of these great gifts in this list and a percentage of your purchase price will be dontated to the Breast Cancer Fund.
If you have run out of ideas for kids costumes this halloween, check out these costumes in a box. Yesterday I found this great article in the Statesman Journal newspaper, in the Life section, about Costumes in a Box.
Trying to be green this Halloween requires that I try to reuse and recycle and with these box costumes I think it would be fairly easy to do. With just a box, some paint and some clothing match ups you can be on your way to making a great costume. And as a bonus its on the cheap too!
Costume Ideas:
- The Tin Man
- Lego Block
- Sponge Bob Square Pants
- iPod
Click here for the complete article and instructions. And if your looking for an adult verion of any of these you would just need a bigger box, ask your local furniture or appliance store for boxes.
The common consensus, that I can find, is that it takes Styrofoam 50 years to decompose. 50 Years! Yeah that’s too long for something you use once and toss into the garbage. I was thinking about Styrofoam the other day when my husband and I were out to eat and the little diner only had Styrofoam cups for water. He looked at me and said ‘only get one, we can share a cup’.
So why is Styrofoam so bad? Here are a few facts that you may not know about Styrofoam from greenliving.lovetoknow.com:
~Non-Biodegradable – Styrofoam appears to last forever, as it is resistant to photolysis or the breaking down of materials by protons originating from a light source. This fact, combined with the fact that Styrofoam is lightweight and floats, means that over time a great deal of Styrofoam has accumulated along coasts and waterways around the world. It is now considered the main component of marine debris.
~Not-Usually Recycled – Many municipal recycling programs do not recycle Styrofoam because it is virtually weightless which makes it worthless as scrap. The same lightweight property of the material makes collecting it difficult, because even light winds can send it blowing great distances.
~HFCs – Styrofoam is manufactured by using HFCs, or hydrofluorocarbons, which have negative impacts on the ozone layer and global warming. HFCs are less detrimental to the ozone than CFCs, which they replaced in the manufacturing of Styrofoam, but it is thought that the impact of HFCs on global warming is much more serious.
~Flame Retardants – The brominated flame retardants that are used on Styrofoam are also causing concern, and some research suggests that these chemicals might have negative environmental and health effects.
What can you do? Are their alternatives out there? Check out Ecovative Design for greensulate, which is insulation that helps you reduce the amount of energy used to build your home, and ecocradle, which is to replace Styrofoam in packaging.
Its become more apparent to me lately that we as a society throw a lot into the trash that can be recycled and isn’t, that cannot be recycled or that takes many many years to decompose. None of these are good options. Before you consume, please think about what you are throwing into the trash.
I have always thought cloth napkins were better than paper always but now I am finding out that it depends on the situation. In our house we don’t use paper napkins or paper towels, just cloth napkins. And in most cases this is the best option but there are times when paper napkins are better than cloth.
At treehugger.com they have an article, Are Paper Napkins More Environmentally Friendly?, which takes you through the Napkin Analysis:
I begin by weighing some napkins. My paper napkins weigh only 4 grams each, while my cotton napkins weigh 28 grams, and linen napkins weigh 35 grams. Of course the exact weight will vary but the relative weights will be roughly the same. I am again turning to James Norman, a life cycle analysis expert and the Director of Research at Planet Metrics for some of the data that I need.
- Making Napkins
- Washing Napkins
- Drying Napkins
- How do they compare?
- Napkins in the Restaurant
- Napkins in the home
At the end they help you know whats best for each scenario and throughout the article they stated the amount of greenhouse gases and water each scenario uses. Click here for the complete article and make your decision on whether to use paper or cloth.
Charmone shoes came about when a vegan friend mentioned that all vegan shoes were either ugly or poorly made and often times both. Which got them thinking about how to make vegan shoes and still be kind to the environment.
So the question is asked “How can you use synthetic materials and still call it eco-friendly?” Their answer “Well, believe it or not, the process of creating microfiber is less polluting to the environment than the process of tanning, factory farming and processing leather. In addition, the materials are free from harmful PVCs, using instead a light polyurethane coating which is gentler on the environment. We also incorporate sustainable practices throughout the production process, from using last boards made from 70% pre-consumer waste to using recycled materials in our boxes, business cards and other printed materials.”
Another great attribute that Charmone wants you to know about their company is that their shoes are made sweatshop free in Italy and Brazil, ensuring you enjoy quality craftsmanship without contributing to harsh working conditions.
Now these shoes are not at all on the cheap side but they are very pretty and have styles that you wont find anywhere else.
Instead of filling up landfills with once-used plastics and fabrics, get creative, and come up with your own unique look with reused and recycled materials. You’ll save money, as well as reduce impact on the planet. Besides what better way to stand out in the crowd than to make your own Halloween costume. You will for sure be unique.
Click here to see thedailygreen.com‘s 19 frightfully fun homemade costumes made from recycled materials. Below are a couple of examples.
Cupcake and Cotton candy made from old tights, and laundry basket.
Crocodille costume made from butcher paper and cardboard.
All these costumes are made with items you have around your house. Butcher paper, old tights, cardboard, garbage cans, old umbrellas, and plain old trash.
Be creative and think about what you can use and enjoy your eco-friendly Halloween!
Are you tired of the same old boring carved pumpkins that you see on every door step? Well here are some new ideas and fun ways you can display your pumpkins.
Better Homes and Gardens has a great display of ways you can decorate, paint or carve your pumpkin for a new look.
Martha Stewart has some great Jack-o’-Lanter ideas.
Sunset has some great no carve pumpkin arrangements.
Another couple sites that have some great pumpkin decorating ideas is Country Living, Good Housekeeping and Hallmark Magazine.
Filed under Holidays, Tips by Deanna
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