EnviroTip 8: Ride Your Bike

More and more cities are becoming bicycle friendly, creating off-road paved bike trails and some on-road lanes.  The official "Bike to Work Day" is every May, but consider biking to work more than that, particularly if you live close by.  And not only to work, but other simple errands.  It doesn't take any gas (good for the environment, good for your pocketbook), and it is healthier for you.

  

Read more about Bike to Work Day, click here.

EnviroTip 7: Cleaning Products

The truth is, most cleaning products are chemical-ridden.  These are not the things one wants in their water system or in the earth.  Why would you want them in your home?  You are not just what you eat - you are what you breath and touch, too.  There are a few companies whose products are Earth friendly, but I want to highlight just two.  The first is, of course Seventh Generation.  They make everything from all-purpose cleaners to carpet cleaners to laundry detergent, their newest product being detergent in a cardboard recyclable or compostable bottle.

They are the highest graded household cleaning product in The Better World Shopping Guide, and contrary to popular belief, they actually do clean.  Visit this website to see a list of their ingredients.

Another product that is also quite effective and easy to find is Biokleen.  Selling similar products, they offer not only ingredients lists, but also an explanation of the problems and solutions related to household cleaning products in general.  You can read more about them here.

So the next time you go shopping for cleaning products, check out something that will do its job without harming the rest of your environment.

Book Review: "Climate Capitalism: Capitalism in the Age of Climate Change"

L. Hunter Lovins and Boyd Cohen have hit the nail on the head for the progressive outlook our economy needs.  Their research not only on climate change but also on better business is refreshing and encouraging.  Although every entrepreneur and business-minded individual should read it, it isn't written for only those folks.  The language is accessible and the philosophies are sound, in fact necessary for every consumer to grasp.  Every dollar we, as consumers, spend is a vote, and it is only fair that we understand where our hard-earned cash is ending up.  Be an informed spender.  This book is an excellent place to start.

EnviroTip 6: Reusable Bags

This isn't a new concept.  Reusable bags can be bought at almost any local grocery store.  But even for non-grocery items, it's a good idea to enter a store prepared to come out plastic bagless.

So before your new items can even make it into the plastic ones at the store, just tell the clerk, "That's okay, I don't need a bag."

If you don't have a bag with you, there may be a couple other options.  1: Can you carry your items yourself?  If so, do so.  2: Can you bus all your items in a cart out to your car, stack them in the trunk or backseat, and then carry them inside when you get home?  It is a little more of a hassle, but it also saves dozens of plastic.  The earth will thank you.

EnviroTip 5: Go for a Walk

Excuse me?  Really?

Yes, really.

According to Taiga Company, an organization dedicated to helping companies become more sustainable in their economic practices, "paying attention to the natural world not only makes you feel better, it makes you behave better" (Urlaub).  The more you are in the natural world, the more likely you are to appreciate it and, in turn, take better care of it.  All the little things we can do can be hard to keep up with.  But if you are constantly reminded of how important it is because you see it every day, then you will be far more encouraged to maintain what sometimes feels like tedious and even meaningless pursuits.  Let nature remind you that they are not, that what you do matters.  Most cities have area parks or walks along the water.  Take a stroll and remember again why it matters so much.

(Article found here)

Rep. Michele Bachmann: Perpetuating Miseducation

The presidential race has already begun, and Representative Michele Bachmann (R. Minn) has already declared herself as a contender.  She also promises to target organizations like the Environmental Protection Agency and all restrictions on oil and "soften" pollution and greenhouse gas regulations.  Somehow (probably in the same way tobacco industries have done it in the past), there is a small group of people who have convinced vulnerable Americans and perhaps even believe that the EPA and other environmentalist groups are acting only on some political basis.  They are making rules and regulations and limitations simply to attack Republicans and big oil companies and the rich folks (who are often the ones emitting the most carbon).  Yes, it's a political move.

Except, probably not.  Bachmann, who claims to love the environment and clean air and water, would really love it if the EPA was actually bad for the economy.  She appears, however, to have the ability to only see what is right in front of her.  Overwhelming reports show that, although initially some jobs will be lost, the new regulations under Obama's EPA will actually create jobs.  That is, 1.5 million in the next five years.  (In fact, far more jobs have been created under the Obama administration than under Bush.  So if we really want to talk about it, let's talk about it.)  If Bachmann really wants to keep the environment clean, then she needs to act like it.  How is attacking clean-air regulations keeping the air clean?  Climate Change is not a myth that Democrats created to form some sort of movement in efforts to take over the country.  It is fact.  And all people, regardless of political affiliation, will suffer the consequences of the government's reaction to it.

Tourists and avid outdoors folk alike love to take pictures and appreciate the beauty of the natural world.  Few people, it seems, are willing to go beyond the surface and do more than simple tasks, like recycling paper and plastic bottles and turning off the lights (which are all great things), to keep the environment around long enough for their children and grand-children and great-grand-children to enjoy it.  It is because of those children that I believe Bachmann is the wrong candidate to run a country in dire need of an environmental revolution.

From http://thehill.com:
"Bachmann targets EPA ahead of 2012 launch"

From http://mediamatters.org and U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics:

Unemployment/Employment Numbers Biannually

Unemployment Rate Biannually

EnviroTip 4: Composting Straight from Brasil

I recently got an email from a good friend of mine who has lived in Brasil for quite a while.  Unfortunately, there are cities all over the world, including in the United States, who still do not understand the impact a single person can have on the environment.  It isn't just about the world of nature far, far away, of course.  We're talking the nature that it is in your very own yard.  Bec has been quite frustrated with the lack of attention to this in her town, and she is starting a small movement of her own.  Besides separating cardboard from garbage for recycling (another post to come), she has begun very basic composting and through her encouragement has transformed her whole house and has talked with both neighbors and her students (she teaches English as a second language) about getting on board.

So, COMPOSTING.  It is very simple, really, and you don't even have to have a garden, although a compost garden is not as complicated as it sounds.

Basic Instructions: Separate all foods except for meats into a bucket (keep the lid on it and put it in a cupboard to keep away the smell and fruit flies), and when it gets full bury it about 8-10 inches in the ground.  Mix it with surrounding soil to allow for quicker and more efficient breakdown.  Don't bury it all in one place - rotate burying spots throughout the season.

Bec has even gone as far as burying pet droppings.  These can actually provide some nutrients to a garden, but again, don't bury a lot in one place.  It should be 6-10 inches below the ground and mixed in with the surrounding soil.  If your yard is close to a stream or a water source, bury the pet waste somewhere far, far away - 100 yards would be best - so that it doesn't get into the water.

So follow dear Bec's example and be a catalyst!

Bec herself on a hike through the New Zealand rainforest

EnviroTip 3: The Titanium Spork

I mentioned it in the longer essay of my first post, and it is kind of the inspiration to this whole project, but I thought I'd get a little more specific about the idea of the titanium spork.  I literally carry it with me wherever I go.  This is very simple.  It cost me less than $10 at REI, it is very easy to clean, it is light, and it doesn't take up too much room.  For the same price, one could buy 500 plastic sporks which are not reusable (well, they are, but no one does reuse them), more difficult to clean because grease clings to plastic, and when thrown will add to the garbage crisis.  I don't carry my spork so that I am always ready to eat.  I carry my spork so that I am always ready to not use plastic utensils.

Al Gore: "Climate of Denial"

 Rolling Stone featured an essay written by Al Gore assessing not only the debate surrounding global warming, but also what we can do about it.  His call for action, encouraging hope, is one of the things I like best about Mr. Gore.  (Artist: Matt Mahurin)

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/climate-of-denial-20110622?page=1

EnviroTip 2: Shopping Guide

The Better World Shopping Guide is a pocket sized book (also a website AND an iPhone app) that grades different companies based on five very basic standards.  The more conscious the company is of these five standards, the higher the grade.  For those concerned about how they spend their money (every dollar is a vote), this little guide can be of great use.  And it's only ten dollars!

The Standards

The Rubric

 Sample Ratings

 

For more information, check out the website at betterworldshopper.org.

EnviroTip 1: Google Maps

Google is becoming more and more environmentally friendly.  If you use http://maps.google.com/, you will find that they not only give you directions for driving a car, but also for public transit, walking, or riding your bike.  The buttons are located right above the text box where you type in the two addresses.  Even if you don't think your town is bike friendly, take a minute to check out the possibilities.  You may be surprised!  So on those warm and sunny days (and maybe the other days, too), ride your bike or walk to work instead of driving.  If you live in a bus-friendly area, get a book or take up people-watching as a hobby and help the world use less gas.  It's not only good for the environment, but it is also good for you.  And that's the truth.

Why I Carry a Spork

            My spork theory came about a while ago, but it was not until I could see its impact on someone else that I realized its potential.  My friend Jenna and I started our exploration of the city before I moved to Anchorage, while I was still living in the small village of Koyuk in the Bering Strait region of Alaska.  Jenna lived there for nineteen years previous to moving to the city, and I was renting her yurt located at the edge of town, what felt like the edge of the world.  I would travel to Anchorage about three or four times in a year for doctor visits and shopping and vacation.  We read the newspaper together and would find all the restaurant reviews, pick one, and try out a place we had never been.

            I remember one quick visit in particular.  I was in town for about two days at the end of the summer, and I had some last-minute errands to run.  Jenna was happy to oblige, and in the middle of the day we went to a place I had never been to before.  As we sat down to eat, she noticed that I did not get a lid or a straw for my cup of water.  Curious, she inquired on my decision and if it was that I just don’t like straws.

            “No,” I said.  “I’m kind of indifferent.  But straws and lids are made of plastic.”  I explained my practice of not using plastic unless it was unavoidable.

            She considered what I said, knowing that I did not judge her for drinking her soda out of a straw poked through a little hole in a lid.  “That’s a good point,” she said.

            “It’s the same reason I carry a spork with me everywhere,” I said back.  People I work with know my policy at meals, particularly at dessert socials.  The school where I worked at the time would doll out scoops of ice cream and cake on paper and Styrofoam plates and bowls with plastic forks and spoons, and all of that trash, though light and easy to carry on a plane into the village, stays in the soil of Koyuk literally forever.  I grumble and pull out my own bowl and spoon, feeling no guilt in holding up the line as I ask the people in the kitchen to please put my food on a washable dish.  People roll their eyes, and it makes me wonder if they look forward to having children in a world where swimming in the ocean is dangerous, not because of sharks or stingrays or jellyfish or undertow, but because it is so grimed with oil and waste.

            I never say it, though.  I just smile and use my spork and glass bowl and take the two minutes to wash it.  In the wrong crowd I understand that my habits seem excessive and loud, even though I say nothing about why I would rather eat with my fingers than with a plastic fork unless I am asked about it.  If I am asked, people are often receptive.

            After that meal, Jenna admitted to me that she has been more and more conscious of her use of plastic.  Somehow, though I give her full credit for her efforts, I think that my spork theory may actually be making a small bit of difference.

            It gets bigger, though, my spork theory.  My roommate will go to clean up a spill with a wad of paper towel, and my hands fly up in a panic.  “I have towels!” I say.  “I have real towels that can clean that.”  They struggle with my Leave No Trace and sometimes barbaric habits, but I feel it is a training process.  My great hope is that soon everyone will learn to live without tissue and limit even toilet paper to one roll a month or less.

            On the surface, it seems as though I carry a spork because I want to always be prepared to eat at any given time.  “Oh, you have food?  Handy, I have a spork!”  But this is not the case.  I carry a spork for several reasons.  The first is, of course, I refuse to use plastic ware.  Let us take a moment to consider the giant heap of trash that takes up a mass that has been measured as twice the size of the state of Texas, or the way that plastic on plates can actually break down and get into your food for a little added touch of nutrition, or how plastic was brilliantly designed to last forever.  It has no breakdown time period.  It gets smaller, more minute, less visible, but it does not actually go away.  I carry a spork so that I can avoid adding just one more fork and/or spoon to the pile.  Soup or salad, I am totally prepared.

            For the most part, no one cares that I have my own titanium dishware.  If they do notice, folks will laugh and reminisce on their elementary public school lunch days.  “Oh my god, is that spork?  I love sporks!”  I reply, “You should get one!”  And I mean it.  Those who do ask, however, get to hear my short spiel on the little things that we can do for the earth in vain hopes that they, too, will begin paying attention to their small habits or notice how the world is being made of non-biodegradable materials.  My spork is a statement to the world.  It is something that I can do.  I cannot remove the acid from the ocean or build an electric car.  I can, however, eat with something that can be washed and saved rather than with something that has a one-time use limit.

            But the spork is not just about everyone else.  The spork is mostly, narcissistically speaking, about me.  It is a constant reminder every time I open my bag.  If I say I care about the earth, I need to behave like I care about the earth.  If I can carry a spork, I can also walk or ride my bike to work and carry a water bottle and use a handkerchief instead of tissue.  I can even pick up trash that I see on the ground or visit the recycling center or shop at Value Village because there are way too many clothes in the world. There are about a thousand little things that I can do for the planet.  And if I mean it, if I am serious about the spork, then I will do it.

            At first it surprised me that Jenna, a long-time camper and yurt dweller, was not more aware of things like the use of plastic.  I realize, however, that the root of the problem that sparked the necessity of my spork theory is, like many things, the lack of education.  In time, with a little persistence and perhaps a little publication, my spork theory will reach beyond the minds of my friends and acquaintances and show even the most environmentally unfriendly folks that the little things we do actually matter.