Today is Earth Day 2008. It's a gorgeous day outside. I've opened the windows to let the light and fresh air in. Not only is it beautiful out, it's also a day to reflect on what more we can do to keep our planet healthy and make it even better.
Eat locally. Be it from a local farmer or your own garden. Seek out farmers markets and locally grown food in your co-op/grocery/major supermarket, find restaurants in your area who support local agriculture. This not only keeps money within your own community it also reduces the cost of food due to transportation costs and reduces emissions. If you garden plant just a little more for the winter. Canning is "in." Plant an extra row of produce for your neighbors or seek out a food shelf that will take produce and give to the needy. These are hard times for a lot of people and the number of food shelf visits is increasing tremendously.
Admission that there's more we can all do. It costs too much, you say? At least replace items as they need to be. Something I've wrestled with is getting rid of all of our regular light bulbs for compact fluorescent lights (CLFs), but that's expensive. Instead I've opted to replace our burned out standard incandescent bulbs with the CLFs. Using up our non-organic pantry items and buy organic the next time. It's a process, but little by little it can be done without wasting what you already have on hand.
Reduce/Reuse/Recycle/Rethink. Reduce your consumption. Do you really need it? Can you reuse an item? Repurpose it? Could someone else? If it can't be reused can you recycle it? Currently T-Daddy and I are having work done in our home which produced construction waste, which just made me cringe. I was sick at the thought of throwing away a whole lot of drywall. It really wasn't the money, it was the waste. Trashing it wasn't the answer. T-Daddy did a little research and found that we could bring our waste to a local site to be recycled into new drywall. Yes it did cost a bit more than just dumping it but it felt better in our souls. The next idea is to rethink your purchases and how you buy them. Does your grocer have bulk items? Our local grocer and co-ops have an extensive selection of bulk items. Now, the key is to bring your own reused container and not take a new bag/container! Weigh your container before going to the store and that should come off the total weight. Bring your own bag (I'm sure you've heard this one before!) to take your purchases home. If you don't have a supply of canvas/etc bags at least bring back the plastic or paper bags you've gotten from previous trips. Don't forget, once those items are shot they too can be recycled.
Turn it off and unplug it (if you can). Vampire electronic items still suck power while off and add to your electric bill. There are power strips out there that actually cut power off to these products when turned off. It's worth taking a look (Smart Strip and WattStopper)
Eat locally. Be it from a local farmer or your own garden. Seek out farmers markets and locally grown food in your co-op/grocery/major supermarket, find restaurants in your area who support local agriculture. This not only keeps money within your own community it also reduces the cost of food due to transportation costs and reduces emissions. If you garden plant just a little more for the winter. Canning is "in." Plant an extra row of produce for your neighbors or seek out a food shelf that will take produce and give to the needy. These are hard times for a lot of people and the number of food shelf visits is increasing tremendously.
Admission that there's more we can all do. It costs too much, you say? At least replace items as they need to be. Something I've wrestled with is getting rid of all of our regular light bulbs for compact fluorescent lights (CLFs), but that's expensive. Instead I've opted to replace our burned out standard incandescent bulbs with the CLFs. Using up our non-organic pantry items and buy organic the next time. It's a process, but little by little it can be done without wasting what you already have on hand.
Reduce/Reuse/Recycle/Rethink. Reduce your consumption. Do you really need it? Can you reuse an item? Repurpose it? Could someone else? If it can't be reused can you recycle it? Currently T-Daddy and I are having work done in our home which produced construction waste, which just made me cringe. I was sick at the thought of throwing away a whole lot of drywall. It really wasn't the money, it was the waste. Trashing it wasn't the answer. T-Daddy did a little research and found that we could bring our waste to a local site to be recycled into new drywall. Yes it did cost a bit more than just dumping it but it felt better in our souls. The next idea is to rethink your purchases and how you buy them. Does your grocer have bulk items? Our local grocer and co-ops have an extensive selection of bulk items. Now, the key is to bring your own reused container and not take a new bag/container! Weigh your container before going to the store and that should come off the total weight. Bring your own bag (I'm sure you've heard this one before!) to take your purchases home. If you don't have a supply of canvas/etc bags at least bring back the plastic or paper bags you've gotten from previous trips. Don't forget, once those items are shot they too can be recycled.
Turn it off and unplug it (if you can). Vampire electronic items still suck power while off and add to your electric bill. There are power strips out there that actually cut power off to these products when turned off. It's worth taking a look (Smart Strip and WattStopper)
Hoof it! You don't need your gas guzzling car for everything. Consider just 1 day not using your car for starters. Take a walk. Grab your bike. I'm currently in the market for a bike seat for CiBaby so we can go farther than our stroller (her patience is only so great) will take us without having to get into the car.
I'd love to hear ideas from everyone else. I'm always looking for ways to improve and live cleaner lives.
*Note: My Leader of the Hutch friend posted a great article worth reading, which lead me to another great one with awesome sites and statistics.
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