The Green Pages

Nike

2011-10-29T17:27:00.001-07:00

You are the game changers. As you leave conference

Reform the story. Not niche at vanguard of default not philanthropy. Opportunity for innovation. Not planting trees and taking pictures of polar bears

Change materials. Change design

About growth new markets new market streams bathe future is here just not distributed equally.

Listen signals. Let go. Be nimble.

Think like innovator. Obsess about innovation.

Rigor an chaos. Focus and creativity.

Green exchange.

Reach to innovators look in shadows.

Do one thing gloriously. Take something to scale. Scale as definition of impact. Lots of little things well or one enormously.

Collaborator. New coalitions on large scale.

You are the change the world is waiting for.

Hometown News - Renewable Energy

2011-10-29T16:37:00.000-07:00

Because my daughter is set to take a field trip to the National Renewable Energy Lab in Golden Colorado (http://www.nrel.gov/) and because we took a family field trip to the Atmospheric Research Center last year, I wanted to report of this bold move by Boulder City to take on the Energy industry

In Colorado, a Power Struggle With the Power Company

By KIRK JOHNSON

BOULDER, Colo. — Many Americans these days, from the huddled masses of Occupy Wall Street to the coifed confines of the presidential campaign, are talking about the future of capitalism.

Here, that debate is focused on electricity, specifically whether this city should, in Tuesday’s election, sever its relationship with a corporate utility and move toward a home-ruled, municipally owned one that would be environmentally greener and locally accountable.

Kristin Johnson, a 57-year-old lawyer, summed up her planned vote to oust the company, Xcel Energy, in seven succinct words.

“They don’t have our interest at heart,” she said.

Xcel, a Minneapolis-based company that supplies electricity across eight states, including most of Colorado, is fighting back hard, arguing that a divorce would be devastatingly expensive for Boulder residents through higher electricity rates and start-up costs. And if talk of home-rule is really about having more renewable, carbon-reduced energy generation, well then, the company has said in advertisements and letters to residents, a big corporation with deep pockets can help get there cheaper and faster than any city, however well intentioned.

“I can’t find the numbers for how Boulder is going to do it better,” said Bob Bellemare, an Xcel consultant.

Proponents of ballot issues 2C and 2B, which includes a $1.9 million tax increase in the first year to pay for planning and analysis, say that the utility industry desperately fears a public awakening, and that a John Brown-like raid on a monopoly in one place could galvanize electricity consumers all across the nation to push for change.

Leaders of the effort concede that huge challenges await if the city goes forward, and that Xcel is not the worst provider to have. Partly prodded by a Colorado law requiring 30 percent renewable energy by 2020 — one of the most aggressive standards in the nation — the company has become a big producer of wind electricity. It has also spent more than $40 million here in Boulder building a pilot project called Smart Grid, with sophisticated metering that can help customers reduce electricity use.

Not enough, some say.

“Boulder can do better,” said Shaun McGrath, a former mayor and a leader of the ballot drive.

“We were making some headway with our carbon reductions,” Mr. McGrath said, referring to the relationship with Xcel, which is still, like most utilities, dependent on coal for much of its output. “But really what we kept bumping into was this ceiling of where our electricity was coming from.”

The backdrop, both sides say, is the city itself, a mountain-fringed college town about 45 minutes from Denver that is consistently one of the most liberal and idealistic corners of Colorado politics. President Obama carried Boulder County with 72 percent of the vote in 2008.

In the electricity fight, left-leaning politics have been aligned with hard science, supporters say, creating a unique platform for thinking creatively about electricity and democracy.

Climate and weather research, in particular, has a huge presence in the city, at federal institutions like the National Center for Atmospheric Research and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration along with the tech-heavy University of Colorado that sprawls through the center of town. More than two-thirds of the population over age 25 has a bachelor’s degree or higher, according to census figures — compared with just over 36 percent for Colorado as a whole.

A passionate outdoor youth and fitness culture — a weekend run or ride on a Boulder bike path can feel like a border crossing to Spandex nation — completes the demographic circle from which the anti-Xcel forces have drawn support. A youth-centered group called New Era Colorado has been phone-banking for the electricity measures for weeks.

“It’s probably going to get passed because it is such a Boulder thing,” said Jane Imber, 55.

Ms. Imber, a freelance copy writer, said that she planned to vote no, even though she believes strongly in clean energy. “I think we have a better chance of changing Xcel from the inside than the outside,” she said.

Some supporters of the separation, though, say that local history — notably a long-simmering conflict over a coal-fired power plant in the city, called Valmont, which Xcel plans to retire by 2017 — has poisoned the well. Valmont has been the site of numerous protests over the years.

“There’s a special distrust of Xcel,” said Kate Clark, 27, a graduate student in environmental studies at the University of Colorado and a ferocious opponent of coal. Ms. Clark, who said she had also visited the Occupy Denver protest site several times in recent weeks, has volunteered at New Era Colorado.

The two ballot measures would not immediately initiate a break with Xcel or the creation of a new provider. The soonest that could happen, both sides say, given the many technical and legal issues — and the question of compensation to Xcel for the assets and customers it would lose — is probably 2017.

And Xcel officials have said there would be other bumps.

Because of the intense environmental ethos here, for example, Xcel customers in Boulder have been disproportionate enrollees in the company’s existing solar energy and conservation programs. The city’s 48,000 Xcel customers account for only 3.4 percent of the statewide ratepayer base, but 15 percent of the solar participants.

What that means is that solar installation rebates, Xcel officials said, totaling more than $38 million to Boulder customers since 2006, have been disproportionally borne by other customers around the state — a subsidy pipeline that could dry up with separation, though that decision would require regulators to weigh in.

And how green is green, anyway? Under Colorado law, shareholder-owned companies like Xcel are covered by the 30 percent renewable energy mandate by 2020. Municipally owned utilities of the size that Boulder would require would have to get to only 10 percent by then.

Jack Begg contributed research.

CSR Transparency

2011-10-29T16:33:00.000-07:00

Kate Heiny. Target
Maggie Cohen Merck

Kate. Undergrad Tulane - religion and enviro studies. Master enviro science. Worked in Consultting cleaning up messes.
Quit and managed Gelato company and worked for environment health news online.
Business School. Found company that should be doing and would probably would be doing soon. Corporate Finance.
Maggie. Merck 15 years. Northwestern in Journalism and African Studies. Internship at Merck. Public relations with health programs in subsaharan Africa. Worked in Chicago in consulting field for Accenture/Anderson. Returned to Merck. Live in NJ Speech writer for CEO. Latin America division. Access to medicine, how produce disclosure safety, physician disclosure on payments.
GRI - global reporting initiative frist in 2004. Publish reports. Communication department not the right place. Pressured to always tell the happy story. Moved out of Communication division into public policy division. Can report in more of an independent fashion.

Religion, Journalist and History

Ben. History and spanish lit.
Seattle non profit helping people getting jobs in environment.
Plastic recycling business. Liked private sector and didn't have skills.
Got MBA and UW.
Environmental Affairs at Starbucks. Global Responsibility Function.

Openness Communication Accountability

What does transparency mean?

Kate.
Based in midwest. Culture of not talking to others about what you're doing. Not shouting off rooftops about what doing. Over the past 3-5 years. Mostly passed 3. Shift in communications style. Target in early stages of recognizing need to talk about what doing.
Recycling out the back of our stores. Giving back 5% of revenue. Also trying to figure out how to talk about things already been doing.

Maggie.
Disclose information stakeholders need to know. What information do they need to know to prescribe. What do patient need to know to take products. Stakeholders. Employees. Concerns are because don't know how do something or why. Been a lot of fear that disclosure lead to litigation, take a lot of people hours. Put in place filters. Have great General Council.

Ben.
Complex long term issues. How to synthesize, not just create a message but simplify good direction, bad direction. No simple answers to problems. Being clear. Sharing progress on how doing goals. Open to hearing other points of view. Building trust between employees and customers.

MAggie.
Report is a communciation tool. Different stakeholders want to know different information. Do an annual report for technical people. Interested in data. WAter use. Job seekers. High level story about MErck to make sure Merck has safety measures in place.

Kate.
Reports a tool. A complicated proxy. Shiny people and good stories or not meeting goals. As growing more stakeholders reading and demanding more information that company not willing to share.
Other tools.
Survey's respond to. Conversations with NGOs, govt, different stakeholders.
Trust. Stakeholders ask a lot of questions. Don't always know why, but they are looking for information to help them trust.

Top two audience for report
Kate: investors and new team members
M: Socially responsive investors, and
B: Partners and employees and customers

What are stakeholders asking for?
K: Activists: sourcing, how dealing with a specific issues
Guests/customers: why doing things in the store or why not. Why not recycling plastic bags?
Whoever reading report, they are looking for more transparency
M: Activist: run the gamut of environment, political contributions, percentage of membership fees pay to trade organizations,
Socially interested investors: transparency and licensing
Customers: environmental information
Hospital: Kaiser Mayo - also asking environmental info
Walmart: consumer products side. - supply chain

Use transparency to be competitive sometimes hinders:
K. Ultimate transparency would limit competitiveness. Why need? What are you going to do with that information.
M: Most rational stakeholders understand that there are trade secrets. Highly proprietary. Marketing plans competitive. Ones that push have an agenda and their agenda is not always in the interest of the business. Somethings legally cannot be released. Can not be 100% transparent.

Filters:
M: I don't think companies can choose on their own. Should we be putting climate change in there for a risk. Climate change is not a material business risk for pharmaceutical risk. Access to water is. So putting in 10K not important. Does Merck care about the environment, what are they doing to reduce emissions? We talk about it in our CR report, quarterly have a statement on website under policy.
Plot issue that are a concern to company and stakeholders and report on issues that are show high importance to company and high importance to stakeholders - plot issues
K. What are company issues, what is relevant to our stakeholders. What will we share out with you. Working to reach common solutions. Materiality would be good way to map compatibility of organizations. As a stakeholders that wants to work with us, if their concerns are similar to us, than fruitful for further discussion and partnership.

Global Reporting Initiative: What content should be in a report?
K: Have not used GRI in the past. This past year used, but did not have it audited. Took first step. Early on in journey. Don't feel it is an answer
M: Used since 2004. 78 Indicators on all different parts of business can report to A Level to C Level. Don't have to report if can make a case not material or propriety. Good, covers basics. Some industries have created sector specific supplement. Not pharma.
Access to medicine. Use as another measure.
Measure progress in achieving Millennium Goals.
B: Framework. Map online on how Starbuck's report links to GRI.

How technology affecting transparency?
M: Tough for highly regulated industry. Pharma industry is hesitant to use blogs, discussions because fearful of patients reporting adverse reactions. Often finding third parties with inaccurate, incomplete information on their webpages, pose question on how to respond, if should respond.
Realtime annual reports. Timberline
K: Good for information sharing. Also a lot of opportunity for swirl. Questions and challenges that is not what the company does not need to be focused on.
Dell and Intel good models.
Trend for reporting is not a static annual report. Trend is information at fingertips. Scan product on store shelf.
B: Starbucks. Leverage social media platforms to create rigorous discussion. Starbuck's are giving back information on all aspects, why not recycling cups, why not this flavor, this store not run well, helps you see what the customers are passionate about.

Q/A
Third Party Assurance Auditing

K: Building trust. Value to stakeholders to feel reading is accurate. Target has not done yet, plan to do in future.
M: Not currently used. However important learn a lot internally. Data collection. Recent merger with Sherring Plough complicated systems.
Very expensive. Have to make a case for that.
B: So much mistrust we decided to have data audited. Painful but it makes you better.

B:Proactive reporting opportunity for building trust. Can be a competitive advantage. Stronger policy ties.

Have to respond to noisy stakeholder even if a minority.

K:Value of transparency. 2008 Shareholder that wanted to take back real-estate business. Had public process to inform and educate shareholders. Here to tell you why were are not supporting this idea. Found out that sharing what doing as a business, garners a lot more support.

Green Team - Employee Engagement

2011-10-29T15:25:00.000-07:00

Julia Love. Adobe.
7th months at Adobe.
100% non-profit previously 15 years.
Full spectrum of software services, create and deliver. Mission change the world through digital services.
1. employee commitment -
2. environmental sustainability - exceed certification standards
3. product innovation - reduces use of paper worldwide
4. community involvement - empowering employees to invest their time and be agents of change
Voluntarily green team.
Don't have trash cans. 98% solid waste diverted. LEED certified. Company does a great job. Still voluntarily led team, because that is what they want. Sustainability Council reports to CSR and upper management. Chair of voluntary green team also on board.

Annie Lescroart - Ebay
Cohen. World of Good. Artisan groups to sale to first world customers.
Communications and stakeholders.
Ebay.inc changed a lot 60000 employees nationwide include PayPal. GSI commerce, power lots of big brands' sites. StubHub. RedLazer. 14 acquisitions in past few years. Global Citizenship Portfolio - started by employee. Organically happening in business in 2007 formalize structure and how manage. Green TEam 2000 employees, 24 country, led by volunteer team leaders and centrally managed in San Jose. Steering committee for sustainability. Green team environmentally focused. Functional business head.

Laurel Moffat
Southwest
Journalism master's. Engaging employees and putting them first. Southwest receives more resumes than can hire, harder to get in than it is to Harvard.
President Emeritus Colleen Berret. Writing guidelin Coleen's bible. Always capitalize employee, love = luv. Engaging employees and green and CSR efforts.
Empowerment. Employees first, then customers. What words resonate, culture, servant's heart, warrior spirit. Quirky, but that's Southwest. Think from the heart to go above and beyond.

9/11 - aircraft grounded. Employees were scared. Never had a layoff in history. During that 3 day timeline. Employees writing to office, what can we do? Employees started sending checks to corporate office, want to find a way to go on. Created website, payroll deduction to give money to the airline.
Green Team small cross functionally, 30 meet monthly. Green ambassadors at each airport and reservation centers, report up through their department contacts. Executive supported by CEO. How can we improve our system to improve fuel burn? Triple bottom line report. Executives writing about onboard recycling, fuel reduction.

Laurel.
Innovative. Looking to get CEO involved. Navigation performance, better geolocation, more direct flying, save on fuel. Onsite ambassadors good ideas - coming from employees.
Bring new electric ground support equipment to move bags around

Annie.
Ebay. Create infrastructure where ideas could bubble up. Look out of green team, what other channels can we piggy back onto? Annual event, innovation forum. Science fair, employees can pitch ideas. Tents constructed in parking lot. Product innovation. Employees encouraged to walk around and give gold coins to choose which ones are the best. Green Bounty. Financial incentive for a team that came up with a green idea. Company wide. First year, won the whole bounty and green bounty, reusable box. Durable box. Chain letter box. Second year: Electronics recycling program.

Julia.
Sustainability Council formally reports to upper management. Green Team representative way for voice to be heard at highest level.
Listserve for those passionate about sustainability.
Most everything is taken care of at work. Green Team is a lot about taking the practices we have at work and brining them home.
Close entire company for two weeks. Once in winter and once in summer. Green Team sends reminder, unplug computers, shut binds...etc.

Julia.
Call to action to create change.
Benefits business, employees morale employee productivity. Act as intermediary.
Sent out a squishy ball to remind everyone to back up computer. Everyone upset by the squishy balls, people were upset, non-sustainable. Green Team got busy, stepped in to help employees feel heard.

Measure impact of employees engagement.
Laurel.
Any charitable request. Southwest.org. Evaluated and see if can fulfill.
Decide best to put decision in local employees hands. Local groups and local giving boards meet and approve or deny requests.
Tickets for time. Database, employees log on and record volunteer hours, once more than 40 hours, give round trip ticket to their non-profit.
one Report 3Ps. Co-mingled recycle onboard, navigation performance,
Track employees hours giving. 6500 volunteer hours and saved 140,000.

Annie.
Struggle on metrics of employee engagement.
# on lists. # coming to events.
Use employee surveys, net promoter score.

Julia. Tools for engagement.
Internal blogs.
Listserve
Headquarter, very active group in CA, Seattle - how get same energy on the ground in other sites.
Green and SCR ambassadors internally and externally. Created a fair to celebrate all the people who are doing things to make company more green.

Formally incentivizing engagement?

Lauren. Rewards and recognition. Building platform, a point system, turn volunteer hours for confirmed ticket for you and your family, exchange for gift cards.
Annie. Mostly through contest and financial rewards. Try to get into employees goals for the year.

Biggest Challenge
Lauren. So many locations. Making sure employees have voice. Green Tuesday, ways to be green at home and at work.
Annie. Get people to think intentional and feel responsible for sustainability. Building relationships with the many people in the organization to harvest their ideas.

Feeding The World

2011-10-29T12:40:00.000-07:00

Jason Clay.

Finding the optimal solution, not the perfect. A combination of all options. Science, genetics, land use.

Bill Evan.

Grew up on family farm in Dakotas. Works Pioneer Seed (Dupont)
Dupont is science based business. 16th year firefighter volunteer. Church board.
1. Science at forefront
2. Collaboration - Dependent on others in community to pull off. Private and Public partnerships
3. Infrastructure in developing world. Roads, bridges - don't deal with food waste problems that other countries do. Goals nation of Brazil 1. Replicate US Land Grant program. 2. Develop world class transportation system.

Chris Lambe - Mosaic Company Concentrated Phosphate and Pot Ash - Potassium. Vitamins for plants. Minneapolis. Young Company 8 bil. Balanced 2005
NPK - Zinc and Boron and Sulfur. Higher nutritional content.
500 university partnerships.
5Rs. Right fertilizer for right fertilizer, right crop, right time, right rate.
Timing may be the most crucial component. Must feed plant when it is hungry or won't eat. If lay down and not "hungry" rain wash away.
Recycle reuse 90% water.
2 million trees.
Mission. Help grow the food the world needs.
If we do good, we can do even better as a business. Virtuous Cycle.
Lots of small farmers around the world.
3-5 times improved yield in small holders yields.
We don not believe the solution is local, organic, conventional
No silver bullet

Dennis Tracey - Smithfield - Leading pork producer and processor - 12 billion. Largest pork processor in the world. 500 Hog farms in US. Small and medium size farmers create balance.
Chief Sustainability Officer - Governmentt affairs, talk with media and a lot of people who don't like us. Been there 10 years.
Focus of sustainability project: Environmental, animal care, employee, food safety.
Sustainable Intensification
Export 28% of what make. People want American food. inexpensive, high quality.
Most people in growing countries want their own food supply. Concentrated forming. Intensive use of fertilizers and genetics.
Nature article. National Science Study.
Do better while what we have and not expand the agriculture footprint.
Farm of the future. Better nutrition. Better disease production. Capturing Methane. Useful for any size farmer.
New definition of Agriculture. Old farmers in the midwest. New - organic farmer to large retailers for large grocery stores. How make and distribute around the globe.

Jennifer Burlinger Moderator.
Where are we now and where do we need to go. How much is sustainable.

Jason Clay. Not sustainable now. We are going to have to shrink footprint, not just maintain. Genetics, only two will double production given current trends: sugar beets and cotton. Neither major food crops.
Every certification program focus on defining best producer and get them a market niche. Recognize what they are already doing. Most certification want to
Must work with the bottom 20% producers, because they have greatest negative impact.
Voluntary certification. Can understand 5 or 6 main criteria and encourage the bottom producers to change.
Xprize - incentive space tour. Use world to solve tech industry.
Two things that would make great million prizers.
1. Container that holds a container of dry goods, transportable, collapsable, $50. Loosing 1/3 in developing countries because of infrastructure.
2. Device to determine if food is safe to eat. Is meat okay to eat. 4-10 kg of soil for every kg of food.
Must think differently about problems.

Bill. Was Sec of Ag in S. Dakota.
Space that is hungry for ideas to tackle on policy side. Always remember that farmers are price takers. When we approach problems from policy realm, easy to go to top down but crazy to believe the producer is gong to be able to pass on the cost of those idea. Incentives have worked well in changing agriculture behavior. How do we incentivize.
Farmers are optimists or wouldn't plant each year.
Looking at Ag policy and how to strike balance in US diff components. Ag inherently impo for daily living. Myriad of subsidies tried over the years with unintended consequences.
Risk management tool: multiple years of bad weather
Conservation:

Jason. Price of food going down as percentage of income. Finite nature of resources would seem like prices should go up. Future indicates will go out. Jeremy Grantham newsletter. Must bring externalities into price. Deforestration related to Ag more damage than all types of transportation.
Soil carbon best indicator of your impact, bar none. Increasing pro ducting.
Don't need government to do this. But we need structure to allow this to happen.
Carbon onsets: at onset of production comes through supply chain.
Not by solving one problems, solutions that touch on five or six rings.

Dennis. Corn.
70% what feed our animals is corn. Other % soy or wheat. Policy related to food. Policy that make raising food more expensive. Need a ramp up period. Need policies that can move food at lower cost. Decision made within our county, ethanol in gasoline. Subsidized. Last 5 years $250 bushel ->$7. Food versus fuel. China's price $10. Who make sure the corn we eat is grown for the people who eat it.

Ethanol policy: Incentivized corn growth. It has different costs. Causes more corn to be planted. Needed rational discussion. Ethanol tax credit. Protective tariff prohibits importation. Due to expire at end of the year. Not anti-ethanol. Price of meat increasing, going to rise and put pressure on prices.

Nature Article: More strategic about productive lands that we have.

Jason. Need to take discussion out of states. 5/6 countries that purchase surplus to feed the rest of the world's needs. Local crops, globally about 14 crops provide 80 of calories - not nutrition, just calories. Focus on regional areas that need more nutrition, then focus on plants that naturally grow there and use genetics to select best of these crops.
How to torture corn to grow corn in other places ins tread of focusing of cassaba and sorghum.

Chris. Key to working with small holders is partnerships.
Folks in the WEst coming to small rural farmer and saying this is what is going to work for you. Has to be things they want. Guatemala project. Area worst possible conditions for Ag. Ag, environ, drug runners, bandits. Each hectare can .8 metric ton, need 1.5 to live. Malnutrition and dying. Kids 6-8 years, walking miles and miles to pick fruit.
Went in and discussed with farmers that wanted. Want to use traditional sacred seeds. Prefer black corn's taste. Seed out of the questions. Knowledge of Ag was limited. Didn't know how to grow in rows, didn't use cover crops. Simple precision agriculture a string to mark rows, bamboo with sharpie to measure depths, bottle cap lid fill with fertilizer to dump in with seed. Don't till the ground to help with weed control. Increased production 5 times. Must buy fertilizer. Distribution system going but couldn't' afford. Created credit program, pay back at harvest. Crop insurance. Still 3 times income.
Africa.
Few places could increase, AG is one of area. How get things there, logistics. No deep water ports. Mules and carry on backs. Cost us twice as much to get to Agriculture. Must learn to build infrastructure and get agronomists on the ground. Need training to know what to do.

Questions:
Water use. Hypoxia. Watershed. Runoff.
Chris. Water food mix impo. Agriculture is a major cause but maybe not as big, 90 vs 50%. We know what to do. Best farming practices. Where we grow. Don't always grow in best locations. 60-70% Nitrogen coming from Illinois. Farm prices too low, so they grow right up to water zone without buffers. Often apply right before rainstorms or in wet field.

Reducing hostility of debate important for discussion

Bill.
Water as a crop. How incentivize farmers to look as water as something they produce on their land.

Question: Darden. How do young entrepreneurs get into AG seems you either go local or go to the dark side?
Jason. Lack of technology. Up to date cell phone application to help figure our weather.
Dennis. Dark side has to speak. Young people FFA. We want to work for you, CEO stopped one of theses student, that's a great thought, but you don't want to work for us, you want to work for a cool company, you don't want to work for Ag.
Question: Corn and soybean. Right crops. Just one or two crops. What risk placing so much on one or two crops.
Must make changes or population migration. Not just change doing forward, but going backward. Adaptation going on. West of Missouri not good, aquifer drying up, may need to move to sorghum.

Consumer awareness role on sustainable ag ?
Bill. Lack of Agriculture literacy.
Best forums: Farmers becoming more literate in social media space.
US Farmers and Ranchers Alliance - effort of ag to talk to people traditionally had difficulty talking with.

Food production not problem. Price of food is.
Policy question: Reality of what changes could be made?
American's can be trusted to do the right thing after all other options have been tried. Churchill?
The different amounts of people involved in the development of ag policy has been compared to the Bar scene in Star Wars - all these different aliens.
Sometimes make better decision when have less money to spend.
Globally will be driven by Brazil, Russian, India, China.

Design Thinking with IDEO and Aspen Institute

2011-10-28T17:14:00.000-07:00

Fred. IDEO.
Nancy. Aspen.

Fellowship program. Mid-career high potential employees in for profit business where social, environmental and financial come together. What would be the dream team to build this team. Would want IDEO. First Movers.

Felt what IDEO is doing in design world example of what need in their fellowship business. "What great companies do differently" HBR.

How look at building professional capacity to work at intersection of three prongs.

Fred is leading partner at IDEO. Systems at Scale. Design Consultancy. We have problem, can you help us fix it. What is problem, let's build practice to
Government. Large scales. Education. Poverty. Do it by creating interesting connections. Applying design in places never applied before.

Peru K-12 will turn over to govt when done.
Rockefeller, focusing on faster and more innovative ways of figuring out how to make more efficient.

Design thinking. The shopping cart video. 12 years old. At simplest thinking really carefully about the things we do. Traits of great designers, critical. Human centering. Focusing on people and understanding people deeply. Understanding how to get the things you do into market. How get things into place. Treating everything as if a design problem.

Why critical in sustainability leadership.
Social impact. Take great ideas and get to market. When trying to get ideas through private organization is much harder. How move a great idea through big organization. Becomes more critical that design is good.

Fellowship. Selective process. Must be elected. Nomination process. Aspen.org/first movers. Track record of innovation with exciting ideas of where to head. Fellows are not necessarily developing a product or service. They are working on innovations that are going to change their companies.

Often when we think of design, think of shopping carts or products that we hold on to or an experience. But First Mover looks at creativity in all aspects of the business model, employee engagement, operations, education, leadership.

First Movers does not want people from CSR part of business, but those who are driving change from within the main business and pushing ideas through. Challenging and design innovation can help in these situations.

To help people be better innovators. Tools use to help them develop.

1. Mapping the Ecosystem. How change happens in organizations. When we work with clients, ask how great ideas get to market. Tell us what happens in their organization. Get official channel of ideas. Rarely the real story. Then ask, what are the real ways? Lots of ways people work around the system. Never happens in meetings, people have been shopping idea around, or have already gone to the boss. What are emotional things that you can use to your benefit. How use to have impact want to have.

Walmart. Corporate Myth. If you do something to cut prices its a good idea. In saying, "It all relates back to what Sam Walton wanted," people can push crazy ideas through. Uses basic design principal of empathy.

What is the change process in the organization your are in official and unofficial channels.

IDEO. Skunkworks.

Listening important.
Critical to think of design in how ideas are churned and baked.

2. Reframing problems.
Make sure solving correct problem. Challenging yourself, is this the right.
Imbedded in questions are assumptions almost always. Reality the world is shifting and your assumptions may not be true, may be very biased. The number one thing that stops innovation, "we've tried that before." Reality is that before is not now. Doesn't mean did it well. Doesn't mean won't work now. Must challenge assumptions.

Designers most important tool is placing the right constraints on their problems. If no constraints, no problem. Must solve with constraints in place. Wallow in the constraints. It's worthwhile time.

3. Piloting and prototyping in the context of social.
30 ways can pilot quickly.
Conversations are pilots. Go sit, "what about this idea?" Getting emotional response. Even basic everyday conversation can be used to pilot and prototyping. Make sure you are learning from conversations. Calling a "proposal" a "pilot" takes pressure off.

4. Make sure to slow yourself down at times.

How apply design to culture that isn't design based.
Government. Even thought not thought of as innovator, there are reasons they got into the job, had benevolent missions that they were after. Try to reconnect back to their original mission. Going in and saying they want to do the same things we want to do, but in a different way. Must tailor to the culture.

How convince successful business to think about design thinking? Fix what not broken?
Reality is everything is broken right now. Not difficult to convince that they must change or become irrelevant. Learn up about places that have failed because there is a lot to learn, what not to do.

Appreciative Inquiry. Scholarship from Case Western. What is it that we do at our best and how can we do more of it? Strength based analysis lets you managed great change.
Walmart after Katrina. CEO said we did so well at this aid work, how can we apply this to our business model.

Suggestions for business student from traditional background that wants to learn more about Design Thinking.
Human centered design tool kit. IDEO. Download.
Change By Design. Tom Kelly
The Ten Faces of Innovation
Handbook on Development Leadership. Chapter on First Mover Development. Sage Publication.

5. Story Telling. Being intentional about how powerful story telling can be. When working in Government, you would think data, metrics, would be important, than one good story can have more impact than all the Data.

IDEO. Tough to get a job.
What people really work well at IDEO?
Skills of designers that are critical.
Hopeful and optimistic. If putting something new in the world, have to believe it will succeed.
Constantly afraid. With Prime Minister, why is he asking me? Other thing we look for is bravery. To do the things you want to do, go to do things way outside of what you are doing. Must embody if want to be change maker.
Empathy. Care about people. Harold and Maud. "You are so good with people", "They are all my species."

Biomimicry Infused Business - 126

2011-10-28T16:01:00.000-07:00

Nicole Isle - Moderator - Brightworks Sustainability Consulting Firm
Lynelle Cameron - Director of Sustainability at Autodesk, Cleantech, Hewlet Packard, Non-Profit Himalayas, Telemark skiing, Berkeley MBA, Advisory Board Net Impact
Thomas Knittel - Design principal at NY HOK - Global Architecture Firm - 25 design excellence awards

Nicole Biomimicry 3.8: New Logo of Biomimicry Guild (Mizzoula, MO)
Growth Industry for Future, London Review, Harvard
Based off nature. Long history of what works regarding what is sustainable on this planet.
"Conscious emulation of life's genius." Deep design patterns of how nature has solved the same problems we have in our human interactions.
After 3.8 million years of research and development, failures are fossils, and what surrounds us is the secret to survival.
Nature as MENTOR.
Biomimicry as model for new design. WhalePower. Humpback whales ridges on fins used in wind power turbines. 32% less drag and 20% production increase.
CALERA. How coral reefs form to create cement. Uses calcium carbonate and sequesters CO2 instead of polluting.
Columbia Forest Products. New glue without formaldehyde. Looked at Blue mussel off of oregon coast. Mimic protein structure. How can muscles attach to rocks so well in wet area. Glue is used in plywood and performs better than traditional, especially in wet areas.

Sunlight.Water. Gravity.
Adam Nieman/science photography library - area of earth related to area of water - marble on a small globe
Dynamic non-equilibrium

Life creates conditions conducive to life.
Rules of Life - 29 principles.
Biomimicry 3.8 - Org that is driving evolution of Biomimicry. For profit and non-profit. Ask Nature is a tool to use.

Lynelle.
Director of Sustainability, Autodesk
CAD. Focused now on building 3-D model. Build into design, hard unless have experts in the field. How make it easier to build intelligence into the tool set so don't all have to be experts in sustainability. Where less material needed, what kind of material to use. Build decision making into design process. All member os design team can come together and see how their work interacts in the design period.

3D models let designers find out early on what happens if you change the design shape or orientation. Long before get to material. Impact of solar radiation on building, to optimize climate control.

Same technology can be used to redesign existed building. Take photograph and stitch together and create 3D model. Then look at from carbon footprint, energy use, etc.

Manufacture. Eco materials advisor. Partnering with GrantaDesign, one of largest material design databases. Which material are flagged red cost, water, materials. Software helps you decide which is the best material to use, what alternatives available.

Biomimicry 3.8. For-profit and non-profit consulting in one organism. How would nature create this organization that is trying to do many functions.

Biomimicry. Bullet chain Japan, big sound issue as enter tunnel. King Fisher can dive from high altitudes into water without making a splash.

Community of Biologist.
Technology company with 10 million legal users of software.
We deal with CAD monkey trying to do better with design, can't have biologist at design table in every organization.
Ask Nature trying to bridge gap between designers/engineers and biologist. Popular with students and academics, going after professionals.

The best tools to make sure can make best decisions. Must also educate students on what mean by biomimicry and sustainability. Not a lot of teachers to teach. Series of 5 minute videos that teach basic principles of what mean by sustainability. Free Range Studios has helped them create these videos.

Thomas.
Blue butterfly's wings no pigment. It's the way the light goes through the wings. Now working on that in fabric design.
HOK Biomicry in practice. Not bread and butter. Hate or love it. "In the end our society will be designed not only by what we create, but by what we refuse to destroy." John C Sawhill
New City in India. Integrating with triple bottom line. Innovation in depth and range of triple bottom life.
Environmental (ecosystem, water, atmosphere, material, energy, food)
Economic (commerce, value)
Social (community, culture, health education governance, transport, shelter)
Use all these principals and make sure have these built into the company. Function,
Challenge cities to match the sample level of ecosystem to the natural setting.

Monsoon season. Natural System, leafs absorb water during rainy system. Our systems don't traditionally do that.
Bioreport. Rather than reinvent in each biome. Eastern Temperature Boradleaf Forest. Set up so there is a series of lenses to look at when building in that area. Tend to create terrible conditions in erosion when we build. Beavers create upstream barriers. So create in our design a series of leaky barriers. .

Sao Paulo. Five structural layers of Rainforest. Epiphysted (plant) throughout rainforst. Will hold up to a gallon of water. Design building with structures that collect water and redistributes. Structure, brazil tree nut, hard shell used to mimic in creating exoskeleton for building. Bones of certain birds help in design of building structure.

Self-organize. Study social insects.

Project Haiti. Designing new children's orphanage in Haiti. Screening system, creates boundary layer(radiant) but admits ventilation. thomas.knittel@hok.com Project Haiti www.usgbc.org/haiti

Q/A

Biomimcry seems to need in depth biological knowledge. What is the case for making this investment in business?
Lynelle. Innovation.
Not necessarily a big investment. Take from cubical world into natural world. Interface carpet, looked at forest floor and created carpet. Their highest performing carpet sales.

Thomas.
Who we learn to exchange new ideas is going to be game changer in future. Deal with what technology has given us, highly specialized experts, not big picture. When engaged in biomimcry decision there is a lot of enthusiasm and interesting for the employees.

Biomicry not an easy sale. Easy to sell LEED. Biomimicry above menu of prescriptive options. Beyond alacarte choices to getting a "green building". Opens to extreme innovation and creativity. Can learn from the actual site. Ecological performance measure.

Lynelle.Biologist at the Design Table. Training program to help bridge the gap between biology and design.
Thomas. Biologist some with lots of interesting information, but we don't always know what to do with it.
Nicole. Biologist need to understand the challenge of what trying to solve for the project. Budget, schedule, basic parameters, but what are the big issues going to have to tackle whether use biomimicry or not. That's when you use Nature.Org and hire a biologist for design solutions.

Flood delta. How it builds soil. Cleans water. Filtration. Circulation. Create nutrients. Looks to see how can integrate into design.
Use Life's Principals - off of Biomimicry 3.8. Benchmark for success. Product to market, how can it create conditions conducive to life. Integrity through self-renewal. How build relationships, how adaptable.

Lynelle. We need to have large industries thinking about nature's way or else we won't be around. (We'll be fossils). We need to radically change the way we do business.

Thomas. Deal with contradictions all the time. More sophisticated with manipulating materials, the seemingly more successfully we are as a human race, but more damage we are doing in the process. We are producing so many carcinogens around us every day. For every ton of concrete also create a ton of CO2, but concrete will last a very long time. Want buildings that are fully compostable. Beetle all made o same material, but parts are hard and part are soft.

Biomimicry is coming from all kinds of people observing nature.

Ray Anderson founder Interface Modular carpet.
then looked into glue. Tape each little corner together and will act like a large floor carpet. No need for harsh glues.

Cradle to cradle. Closed loop cycles.

Biomimicry in Social Context? Swarm intelligence. Cooperation in termites and bees. Swarm intelligence how to related in socialize context.
Military studies ants.
Bees. Whole greater that sum of parts.
Resource partitioning. Many organism going after same resource. Not any one that outbeats the other, different times of day, seasonality, etc. Through cooperation, rich system that thrives.

The Future of Philanthropy

2011-10-28T14:42:00.000-07:00

Paul Shoemaker - SVP Seattle, Nestle, failed start-up, Microsoft.
Started working in non-profit through board work.
Have to make more money than spend. Philanthropies are businesses with social goal. Extension of what learned in business school.

Judy Belk - non-MBA success story. Professional journey. Didn't know you could make a living by giving away other peoples' money. Didn't connect dots until a lot later about transformative power of philanthropy. Poster child of what gutsy philanthropy can do, grew up in WaDC, mother got mad, wanted her to have better education, Jewish community pooled resources for test case to take on Alexandria city and implementation of Brown decision. Gift kept going. First generation to go to college. Went to college on philanthropic gift. Fellowships have help funded career path. Philanthropy has been impactful on her life. Didn't know anyone, no role models in private sector, didn't know majority of career would be in private sector.

First job with government. City government in Silicon Valley. Wrote white paper on what corps doing the best on PPP.Target philanthropy position. Five years later, Levi Straus Philanthropy Global Corporate Sustainability. Left because terrific at multi-tasking, but couldn't figure out how to be on a soccer field and in Singapore at the same time. Joined Rockefeller nine years ago. Fee based. Help others with their strategies on giving around the world.

Michael Schreiber. Lake of planning can do for you. Dare by college professor, study Africa n studies. Went to Africa started in small business consulting. In Zimbabwe and went to Business School. Helped create the original Net Impact organization. Deloitte. United Way. Retool a 100 year organization. 4 bil in annual giving each year. Started GBC Health. Created at behest of UN. How private sector could be involved in fight against HIV. Richard Holbrock became CEO of this organization. Evolved into Malaria, TB, diabetes and . Large Multinational Corporation and how can be tied to global health issues in a meaningful way. Put yourself in interesting places with interesting people, you will end up doing interesting things.

Jacob Harold - moderator. The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. March 2003, hotel in suburbs of Houston. Civil Disobedience with Green Peace. Expose ourselves to diverse experiences. Grassroots organization GreenPeace. Keys to power, went to BScool. Worked for Packard foundation in India, Bridgespan, Hewlett stronger infrastructure - help foundations learn from each other.

Paul. Thoughts about the future. Collective giving.
Head. Monitor Institue "The Future of Philanthropy". 2-3 years ago study about future.
1 Mass Collaboration: Wikipedia. Online and offline. Collective Impact. Stanford "holistic approach to system change". Donors choose - KIVA.
2More philanthropy online.
3 Aggregated giving. Acumen. New Schools. Aggregating giving versus silos.
4 Competition and prize giving. Cars that run 100 miles on one gallon, etc.
5. Mission Impact in Portfolios
Gut Side:
Lots of problems worldwide. Do we have the money? Do we have the ideas? Not about money. Not about know-how. Just aren't putting the pieces together. Human and social capital is the chasm. Are there people out there that are driven enough to get close enough that hurts and will stick with it to see a solution? Social capital. So much of philanthropy happens in silos and needs to connect more.

Judy.
3 Big Issues happening in philanthropy and opportunities.
Global. CEO Melissa Burhman - trends in philanthropy. Meeting with NGOs throughout CHina. Interest in philanthropy worldwide is growing. REcognition of borderless issues. Environment, human and rights, health, women and children issues. Need global lens to solve. Global literacy, cultural competence.
Technology. See human suffering more . Has called folks to action. Technology amazing tool used by NGO world to connect, can do better in Philanthropy.
People on the move. Growing diaspora giving who want to give back to home countries.
Donor tool kit expanding. Being driven by entrepreneurs and business community. Giving while living and perpetuity. Problems are so big now, want to attack now versus saving for the future generations benefit (foundation).
Blurring of lines between public and private. Is it values driven? Is it impacting socials issues.
Inclusion and diversion and equity within the philanthropic giving. Billions going into philanthropic vehicles, but we don't see the money flowing into the community. Who's money is this?
Impact of women. Philanthropic dollars will be falling into the hands of women. Women moving millions is a great initiative. Pushing women to write those big checks. Black Women's Advisor Group. D5 - more donors to give to communities of color and women and girls.

Michael
Corporate - aggregate of giving. Funding streams in the future may come from India and China, which will change the face of philanthropic giving.
Government part of solution. With health in particular, social change will rest with the government. Private philanthropy can not compete with public sector, the government is key to delivery.
Increasing cross function attack on issues. Thinking outside the box of traditional philanthropic giving.
Without philanthropic commitment to buy pharmaceuticals, then would't be made. Giving companies several billion dollars to put drug development in pipeline, has affected health, may not be seen as philanthropy, but drugs would not be developed without gift.
Pros and cons to technology.
Push for strategic alignment. Healthy living and Nike - address diabetes and obesity, also involves people needing more athletic equipment. If aligns with core strategy then easy sale, if not, hard sale.
Most of large issues can not be influenced by individual donors. Unlike Kiva where a 100 dollars can be seen directly helping entrepreneur's lives.

Judy.
Corporations and areas of giving question. Biased in working in corporate giving. If woking for right corporation have a lot of tools in kit, have dollars and employees around the world. You have a CEO. You have marketing, legal and communication resources. Corporate giving will have all of that.
Risk. Philanthropic sector is risk adverse in general. What's worse that could happen? Not sure, but there is a lot of fear around risk. Not really understanding the players and not wanting to look bad. Advocacy is an important tool. Giving books vs looking at solving literacy problems.

Michael.
Advocacy is one of the best ways for public sector to be influential. Eg. Needle exchange, controversial topic, but proven health wise as being hugely beneficial. Could not get government to pick up project but most were CEOs from corporations not involved in health took it on. Led to policy change. Celebrity use.

CEO and motivation. Many CEOs will want to give from the bottom of their heart, but if not woven into mission and strategy not long-lasting. Must make sense to the people who care about your company. Must be able to explain it to all the stakeholders.

Paul. Metrics. Non-profit. Measure wrong things, e.g. administration and overhead. Because no single measure grab what can grab. No net profit single number. There are things, outcomes, outputs and impacts, to look at. Indicators and dashboards to measure trends, in the non-profit world need to be better and figuring out indicators.

Jacob. Risk is calculable. Uncertainty - no risk. Don't know if will succeed ahead of time. Hewlett foundation gives an annual award, "Who made the worse grand and learned from it." Learn a lot from failure. Okay to make new mistakes. Just not repeat the same mistakes.

Judy. Professional opportunities. Key skill sets must have: graduate degree, global lens/literacy (personal travel, fellowship), project management (comfortable working in teams), strong consulting skills (comfortable in a variety of situations). A lot of different philanthropic organization we hire from: large private foundations, community foundations, corporate foundations, women foundations, public charities, Liberty Hill, Tides in San Francisco, LGBT - Horizon's Pride, Gild. Lots of advising firms, Arabella and RPA, TCC, TPI, Bridgespan and FSG.

Paul. Skills transfer between corporate and nonprofit. Empathy, customer service, listening, lots of business ideas underneath notion. Almost see non-profit as a customer of the foundation.

Michael. Think about what role you want in the nonprofit industry. Be focused and understand what you want. Crazy to say you just want to work in the private sector, yet a lot of people say that about non-profit field. A lot of CSR departments are being absorbed into general business strategy, not separate departments.

Sally Jewell

2011-10-28T09:58:00.001-07:00

Keynote. What we need to be successful is to make sustainability good for business. Doing good for the planet must become one and the same as doing good for business. As MBA students you can be the ones that help others understand how sustainability is good for the bottom line.

Coop.

REI employees are not the roadblock with becoming more sustainable. They have many great ideas. Working up supply chain is difficult. How does REI listen to 10,000 employees? Should use social networking better, eg employee wiki.

Supply chain. REI has led the way in developing an index. Patagonia. Levi. Gap. Walmart. Target. H&M. Apparel coalition now interested. The impact on the environment of products. As consumers become aware of environmental impact, their shopping patterns may change leading to a transformation.

Keynote

2011-10-27T18:10:00.001-07:00

The best way to change the world is overcoming cynicism.

We need to return to a common morality. Historically, the world's great nations have fallen when morals declined. We need to choose to value principals and not be afraid and fanatic about religion, but find a common morality. Learn to listen to the instincts of humanity and be curious of how the world works.

When you want to get somewhere fast, go alone. When you want to go far, go together. African proverb

Dinner

2011-10-27T18:02:00.001-07:00

I haven't had a burger in months. As we walked past Burgerville on the way to the hotel my taste buds began to salivate. What joy when a brief Internet search revealed Burgerville's sustainability mission. Local grass fed meat. Take a look at their receipt. Wish all restaurants printed receipts like this.

Next food destination? I must find out where the pedestrian with her pink Voodoo Donuts' box has been.

Registered

2011-10-27T16:13:00.001-07:00

Waiting for the keynote address. Look how beautiful Portland is. Also look at 8. "Bars not your scene."

Arrived

2011-10-27T14:31:00.001-07:00

Love the dual flush toilets. Pull up for liquid waste. Push down for solid waste. Clever water saving device.

On the light rail to downtown from the airport. $2.40 beats any taxi cab fare.

Net Impact Conference - Live Blogging

2011-10-26T16:40:00.000-07:00

Like a kid in a candy store, I pour over the Net Impact Conference program wishing I could be in many places at once. As a first year Duke MBA student struggling to find purpose in business school, I embark on a cross country trip to the Pacific Northwest. I journey to Portland to participate in the world's largest event for students and professionals wanting to use their business skills to create social and environmental good. The Pointer Sisters lyrics sum up my feelings "I'm so excited, and I just can't hide it."

Net Impact Conference from Net Impact on Vimeo.

Check back for live blogging of events as they unfold.

Live from Portland! It's the Net Impact Conference 2011.

Malawi to roll out "fertilizer trees" project

2011-10-22T07:43:00.000-07:00

*Fertilizer trees should increase productivity of maize crops in Malawi

Deogratias Mmana
23 March 2007
Source: SciDev.Net

[BLANTYRE] Malawi will this year implement a 'fertilizer trees' project to reduce the amount of fertilizer needed by smallholder farmers.
Fertilizer trees are varieties of shrubs that capture nitrogen from the air and transfer it to the soil, a process known as nitrogen fixing. This restores nutrients and increases crop productivity — with potential to double or triple harvests.
The trees can be interplanted with crops for 1-3 years before being cut and left to decompose, providing fuel and more fertilizer.
Policymakers and agricultural scientists drew up plans for implementing the programme at a conference last month (13-16 February).
The project will target 200,000 farmers, representing ten per cent of the agricultural sector, and will start in August, according to Festus Akinnifesi, Malawi's senior tree scientist and country representative of the South African Development Community (SADC) and World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF).
Akinnifesi says the farmers will receive free tree seeds, an information kit and training on the system and associated crop husbandry.

According to Jeffrey Sachs, director of the UN Millennium Project, fertilizer trees are among the most promising means for achieving the Millennium Development Goal of halving global hunger by 2015.
There are four fertilizer tree systems, all of which are based on improved fallowing ― allowing soil to recover nutrients. Malawi will adopt all four systems depending on the type of land.
The first system is sequential planting of nitrogen-fixing trees such as Sesbania sesban and Tephrosia vogelli with maize, shortening the amount of time land needs to lie fallow. In the second, Gliricidia sepium is planted along with maize and coppiced ― heavily pruned ― during maize growth to prevent competition.
The third involves planting nitrogen-fixing trees a few weeks after maize to reduce competition between the plants. In the fourth, leaves of trees are used as fertilizer for vegetable crop production in the wetlands and maize production in the uplands.

More than 300,000 farmers are currently using fertilizer trees in five SADC countries — Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

*
*
Related SciDev.Net articles: Think small for water management, say scientists 'Waste membrane' could help crops conserve water 'Gene deleting' tool could lead to safer GM crops Related links: World Agroforestry Centre South African Development Community Photo Credit: FAO

HELP the campaign for GMO labeling on food products

2011-08-20T15:04:00.000-07:00

World Food Day: October 16, 2011

Help the campaign reach 1 million!

We need as many people as possible in the streets on October 16 with a goal of enlisting 1,000,000 people into the campaign for mandatory labels on genetically engineered foods. Join us by getting involved in a local Millions Against Monsanto World Food Day event.

Healthy Apps

2011-01-10T08:56:00.000-08:00

iFit: 50 Coolest Fitness and Health Apps for the iPhone

For many individuals and staying in shape and getting healthy can be a bit of a challenge. The iPhone can help make it a little easier, however, with a wide range of apps that can help you track and stay informed about your health. From nutrition facts that let you know just how many calories are in that Big Mac to instructional fitness videos, there are numerous ways you can turn your iPhone into more than just a phone and let it help you keep yourself in tip top shape. Here are a few great applications that can let you integrate your iPhone into you or your patient’s health and fitness program.

Tracking

Keep yourself motivated and on track with these fitness programs that monitor your progress to a happier, healthier you.

iPhit Fitness Tracking: This program allows users to combine their Nike + iPod sensor kit with their iPhone to keep track of their walking or running progress.
MyNetDiary: Get access to this Web-based diet and exercise program right through your iPhone. You’ll be able to quickly jot down what you had for dinner or how long you worked out, even when you’re on the go.
Gyminee: Sign up for this fitness tracking site and use the iPhone-optimized version to keep track of your workouts and your daily nutrition.
iPhodometer: This Nike + alternative allows users to keep track of how many calories they are burning as they walk or run.
WeightDate: This application makes it easy to see how your weight is changing over time, whether it’s going up or down. The program also provides an average to let you see how you’re moving towards your goal over the long term.
Limeade: Limeade aims to help users get healthy by giving them an assessment and helping them to develop personalized fitness goals. Best of all, the site has a version optimized just for use with the iPhone.
SparkPeople: Create diet plans that concentrate on nutrition and focus on fitness training through SparkPeople on your iPhone.
FitReach: This program allows you to view your gym training for the day, track your diet and manage your weight goals, all from the iPhone interface.

A Sustainable New Year - The Best Green Apps Part 4 Travel

2011-01-09T08:43:00.000-08:00

Travel/outdoors

30. Drinking Water -- 99 cents

Ditch bottled water while visiting Rome with Drinking Water, which maps out the position of more than 200 drinkable fountains.

31. Geocaching Toolkit -- Free

Geocaching, the green outdoors game of hiding and seeking treasures, has caught on throughout the world. Geocaching Toolkit guides players between locations with clues involving puzzles, calculations and projecting a new waypoint using distances and bearings. Sometimes the calculations are easy, but this toolkit can help when calculations become tedious.

32. iLocate -- 99 cents

iLocate is a comprehensive searchable database of national and local parks, beaches, theme parks and amusement parks throughout the U.S. You'll find contact directions and details on each park.

33. Lonely Planet Travel Guides -- Prices begin at 99 cents

Lonely Planet Travel Guides are the guide of choice for many frugal and green travelers. Various apps provide paperless guides for both U.S. and international destinations. Some of the guides are buggy and need work, but Lonely Planet is working on updated versions. Tip: Read the reviews before buying.

34. Peterson Field Guide to Backyard Birds -- $2.99

The final word in bird guides comes to iPhone in a bigger and better format. The Peterson Field Guide to Backyard Birds allows you to view bird images, listen to recorded bird songs and calls, run a filtered search by species for your geographic area, and more. All information is taken from the latest edition of the best-selling Peterson Field Guide to Birds of North America.
Read more »

A Sustainable New Year - The Best Green Apps Part 3 Dining Out

2011-01-08T08:35:00.000-08:00

In honor of 2011, here are 50 eco-friendly apps, all found in the iTunes app store to help you be more green as you shop, travel, transport, eat and much more.

Dining out/Dining in

26. FoodMenus -- 99 cents

FoodMenus is a searchable, location-based database of over 100,000 menus from restaurants across the U.S. that helps you make smart eating choices before you hit a restaurant or order take-out. You also can save your favorite menus for offline use and share them with friends.

27. Green Sushi Selector -- 99 cents

Green Sushi Selector allows you to research whether the sushi fish you're about to buy comes from threatened species or has been caught or farmed in ways harmful to the environment. Fish are listed both by their Japanese and common-market names. Additional features include health alerts for mercury and PCBs, as well as dietary recommendations.

28. Seafood Watch -- Free

It's remarkable how little we know and are told about the seafood we eat. Seafood Watch, from the Monterey Bay Aquarium, is a searchable guide to the quality and origination point of seafood at grocery stores and restaurants.

29. VegOut -- $2.99

Vegetarian offerings in many restaurants are often limited and boring. VegOut makes life a bit easier with the world's largest international listing of vegan, vegetarian and vegetarian-friendly restaurants. Search listings by your exact location or a customized location when on the road.

Thanks to Coupon Sherpa for assembling this list.

A Sustainable New Year - The Best Green Apps Part 2

2011-01-07T08:26:00.000-08:00

THE BEST SUSTAINABLE APPS

In honor of 2011, here are 50 eco-friendly apps, all found in the iTunes app store to help you be more gree as you shop, travel, transport, eat and much more.

Transportation

14. CarCare -- $4.99

CarCare automatically calculates your gas mileage at the pump and reminds you when it's time to change the oil, rotate tires, get a wax or any other service you desire.

15. Carticipate -- Free

Hook up to a social network of folks who want to share rides. Just plug in your destination and Carticipate finds others in your social network headed in the same direction. You can hitch a ride or share your own vehicle.

16. GasBag -- Basic version Free; Pro version 99 cents

GasBag relies on a community of hundreds of thousands of users submitting prices across the U.S.,U.K. and Australia, with price updates delivered to your phone in real-time. You also can track your car's mileage and record details of gas purchases.

17. Green Gas Saver -- Free

Green Gas Saver tells you when you're accelerating or taking a turn too fast, which can hinder your gas mileage. The idea behind the app is to keep the ball in the center of the screen. When you accelerate too quickly, the diameter of the ball increases and an alarm will sound, indicating you're accelerating too quickly. Green Gas also keeps a running score so you can see how well you're driving in real time. A few weeks with this app and driving efficiently will become ingrained.
Read more »

A Sustainable New Year - The Best Green Apps Part 1 Shopping

2011-01-06T08:19:00.000-08:00

In honor of 2011, here are 50 eco-friendly apps, all found in the iTunes app store to help you be more gree as you shop, travel, transport, eat and much more.

Shop:

1. Animal-Free -- Free

Animal-Free is a pocket reference guide for many common and hidden animal ingredients. Whether you're vegan,vegetarian, part-time veg or simply trying to shop veg-friendly, this app by Symbiotic Software will help you make conscientious shopping decisions. New vegans will appreciate the list of commonly misunderstood or unfamiliar vegan ingredients that will help expand your dietary horizons.

2. CouponSherpa -- Free

Ditch the pounds of coupon pages cluttering your refrigerator and wallet. This mountain-climbing superhero provides hundreds of in-store mobile coupons to streamline your savings. CouponSherpa gives you access to the hottest deals on clothing, shoes, restaurants, electronics, travel, jewelry, sporting goods, books and more.

3. CraigsMobileList -- 99 cents

Is there anything greener than CraigsList? Yep, CraigsMobileList allows you to search, browse, post and respond to ads on your iPhone. You also can track items you need, are donating or selling. Version 2.0 is a complete overhaul of the original, including a groundbreaking housing-search interface.

Read more »

A Sustainable New Year - Sustainable Tech

2011-01-05T08:13:00.000-08:00

Getting Over Our Two-Year Itch

By DAVID POGUE

Published: December 31, 2010

Every year, we buy zillions of music players, digital cameras and cellphones — and then, a couple of years later, send them to the nearest trash bin. “New every two” isn’t just Verizon’s offer to sell you a new, discounted phone every 24 months; it also describes the average person’s consumption habits for cameras, phones and other gadgets.

Enlarge This Image

Unfortunately, no matter how well intentioned the consumer, it’s hard to fulfill that pledge to recycle, at least when it comes to electronic gadgetry. The phrase “sustainable electronics manufacturing” is almost an oxymoron, like “humble actor.”

That’s because the electronics industry itself is built upon frequent renewal. The iPhone, iPod or iPad you buy today will be obsolete within a year. Every pocket camera model on sale today will no longer be sold six months from now. And Android phones — forget it. They seem to come out every Friday afternoon.

A Sustainable New Year - Sustainable Food

2011-01-04T08:07:00.000-08:00

A Diet for an Invaded Planet: Invasive Species

Heads of State

By JAMES GORMAN

Published: December 31, 2010

There’s a new shift in the politics of food, not quite a movement yet, more of an eco-culinary frisson. But it may have staying power; the signs and portents are there. Vegans, freegans, locavores — meet the invasivores.

Enlarge This Image

Reuters

Tasty Menace: The lionfish, a destructive and prolific native of the Red Sea and the Indo-Pacific, invaded the Caribbean in the 1990s. Females can produce perhaps two million eggs a year.

Some divers in the Florida Keysrecently held a lionfish derby, the idea being to kill and eat lionfish, an invasive species. Local chefs cooperated by promoting the lionfish as a tasty entree. The idea drew editorial support from Andrew Revkinin a post on The Times’s Dot Earth blog in which he also mentioned an attempt by some fisheries biologists to rename the invading Asian carp “Kentucky tuna” to make it more appealing to diners. And the Utne Reader recently ran an article about Chicago chefs turning their attention to the same invasive fish.

The rumblings go further back, of course, as rumblings always do. The idea of eating kudzu and the recipes for it have been around for decades. More recently, at the beginning of 2009, a San Francisco blogger on matters ecological, animal and political, Rachel Kesel, posted a nicely turned argument for the “invasive species diet.”

A Sustainable New Year - Sustainable Food

2011-01-03T07:54:00.000-08:00

Chop, Fry, Boil: Eating for One, or 6 Billion

MARK BITTMAN

Published: December 31, 2010

“Revolutionary” diet books flood the market this time of year, promising a life changed permanently and for the better — yes, in just 10 to 30 days! — but, as everyone knows, the key to eating better begins with a diet of real food.

The problem is, real food is cooked by real people — you! — and real people are cooking less than ever before.We know why people don’t cook, or at least we think we do: they’re busy; they find “convenience” and restaurant foods more accessible than foods they cook themselves; they (incorrectly) believe that ready-to-eat foods are less expensive than those they cook themselves; they live in so-called food deserts and lack access to real food; and they were never taught to cook by their parents, making the trend self-perpetuating.

A Sustainable New Year - Sustainable Money

2011-01-02T07:43:00.000-08:00

Heads of State

SUSTAINABLE MONEY

Why a Budget Is Like a Diet — Ineffective

By TARA SIEGEL BERNARD

Published: December 31, 2010

What would you do if your wallet became harder to open as your spending approached or exceeded your budget? Would you think twice about where your money was going?

A product designer at M.I.T. who created a working prototype for such a wallet seems to think so, and he may be on to something. Part of the reason so many people spend too much, or fail to stick to self-imposed budgets, is because parting with our money has become an abstraction in our increasingly cashless society. Credit cards provide immediate gratification, but no immediate consequences. Plucking actual dollars from your pile of cash, research suggests, is more painful, and leads you to spend less.

To A Healthy New Year!

2011-01-01T08:56:00.000-08:00

4 Top Health Care Phone Apps for Your Android

As a nurse, I feel good health should be part of everyone's New Year's resolution and plan to create a greener world. There are several reasons for this, which I some point I should detail in a blog post. But as you begin the New Year, consider these apps to help you become healthier.

Calorie Counter

The first app is a very cool calorie counter that goes far beyond any mobile calorie counter that I’ve ever seen. On the Android Market, it is simply called Calorie Counter. The application lets you look up just about any food imaginable in order to learn the calorie and nutritional content. Obviously, having such convenient access to nutritional information will help you make much better informed food choices, and of course it will greatly improve your eating habits.

This app has every method of searching you could think of, including areas for general food, popular and supermarket brands, restaurant chains and even the ability to scan the barcode on food packages and instantly get information on its nutritional content. The application goes even further than just serving as a reference. You can keep a calorie log in the form of a “food diary,” you can keep track of how and when you exercise, and of course it helps you to track your weight over time so that you can monitor your progress.

A Sustainable New Year - Sustainable Love

2011-01-01T07:43:00.000-08:00

It’s the day after New Year’s— broken your resolutions yet? No guilt necessary. After all, it’s hard enough to make it through a day, never mind a year, of good intentions. The problem is often with the resolutions themselves: Stay financially upright. Be loving to your spouse. Eat better. Recycle. Easy to say, but hard to do. So here, a guide on making those resolutions stick — and keeping the guilt at bay.

The Happy Marriage Is the ‘Me’ Marriage

By TARA PARKER-POPE
Published: December 31, 2010

A lasting marriage does not always signal a happy marriage. Plenty of miserable couples have stayed together for children, religion or other practical reasons.
Enlarge This Image
Heads of State
The Week in Review’s guide to a healthier, happier 2011.
Tara Parker-Pope on Love
Tara Siegel Bernard on Money
Mark Bittman on Food
James Gorman on Invasivores
David Pogue on Tech
Graphic
Overlap = Happy?
Related
Well Blog: The Sustainable Marriage Quiz (December 31, 2010)
But for many couples, it’s just not enough to stay together. They want a relationship that is meaningful and satisfying. In short, they want a sustainable marriage.
“The things that make a marriage last have more to do with communication skills, mental health, social support, stress — those are the things that allow it to last or not,” says Arthur Aron, a psychology professor who directs theInterpersonal Relationships Laboratory at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. “But those things don’t necessarily make it meaningful or enjoyable or sustaining to the individual.”
The notion that the best marriages are those that bring satisfaction to the individual may seem counterintuitive. After all, isn’t marriage supposed to be about putting the relationship first?
Not anymore. For centuries, marriage was viewed as an economic and social institution, and the emotional and intellectual needs of the spouses were secondary to the survival of the marriage itself. But in modern relationships, people are looking for a partnership, and they want partners who make their lives more interesting.
Caryl Rusbult, a researcher at Vrije University in Amsterdam who died last January, called it the “Michelangelo effect,” referring to the manner in which close partners “sculpt” each other in ways that help each of them attain valued goals.
Dr. Aron and Gary W. Lewandowski Jr., a professor at Monmouth University in New Jersey, have studied how individuals use a relationship to accumulate knowledge and experiences, a process called “self-expansion.” Research shows that the more self-expansion people experience from their partner, the more committed and satisfied they are in the relationship.
To measure this, Dr. Lewandowski developed a series of questions for couples: How much has being with your partner resulted in your learning new things? How much has knowing your partner made you a better person? (Take the full quiz measuring self-expansion.)
While the notion of self-expansion may sound inherently self-serving, it can lead to stronger, more sustainable relationships, Dr. Lewandowski says.
“If you’re seeking self-growth and obtain it from your partner, then that puts your partner in a pretty important position,” he explains. “And being able to help your partner’s self-expansion would be pretty pleasing to yourself.”
The concept explains why people are delighted when dates treat them to new experiences, like a weekend away. But self-expansion isn’t just about exotic experiences. Individuals experience personal growth through their partners in big and small ways. It happens when they introduce new friends, or casually talk about a new restaurant or a fascinating story in the news.
The effect of self-expansion is particularly pronounced when people first fall in love. Inresearch at the University of California at Santa Cruz, 325 undergraduate students were given questionnaires five times over 10 weeks. They were asked, “Who are you today?” and given three minutes to describe themselves. They were also asked about recent experiences, including whether they had fallen in love.
After students reported falling in love, they used more varied words in their self-descriptions. The new relationships had literally broadened the way they looked at themselves.
“You go from being a stranger to including this person in the self, so you suddenly have all of these social roles and identities you didn’t have before,” explains Dr. Aron, who co-authored the research. “When people fall in love that happens rapidly, and it’s very exhilarating.”
Over time, the personal gains from lasting relationships are often subtle. Having a partner who is funny or creative adds something new to someone who isn’t. A partner who is an active community volunteer creates new social opportunities for a spouse who spends long hours at work.
Additional research suggests that spouses eventually adopt the traits of the other — and become slower to distinguish differences between them, or slower to remember which skills belong to which spouse.
In experiments by Dr. Aron, participants rated themselves and their partners on a variety of traits, like “ambitious” or “artistic.” A week later, the subjects returned to the lab and were shown the list of traits and asked to indicate which ones described them.
People responded the quickest to traits that were true of both them and their partner. When the trait described only one person, the answer came more slowly. The delay was measured in milliseconds, but nonetheless suggested that when individuals were particularly close to someone, their brains were slower to distinguish between their traits and those of their spouses.
“It’s easy to answer those questions if you’re both the same,” Dr. Lewandowski explains. “But if it’s just true of you and not of me, then I have to sort it out. It happens very quickly, but I have to ask myself, ‘Is that me or is that you?’ ”
It’s not that these couples lost themselves in the marriage; instead, they grew in it. Activities, traits and behaviors that had not been part of their identity before the relationship were now an essential part of how they experienced life.
All of this can be highly predictive for a couple’s long-term happiness. One scale designed by Dr. Aron and colleagues depicts seven pairs of circles. The first set is side by side. With each new set, the circles begin to overlap until they are nearly on top of one another. Couples choose the set of circles that best represents their relationship. In a 2009 report in the journal Psychological Science, people bored in their marriages were more likely to choose the more separate circles. Partners involved in novel and interesting experiences together were more likely to pick one of the overlapping circles and less likely to report boredom. “People have a fundamental motivation to improve the self and add to who they are as a person,” Dr. Lewandowski says. “If your partner is helping you become a better person, you become happier and more satisfied in the relationship.”

A version of this article appeared in print on January 2, 2011, on page WK4 of the New York edition.

101 Way to Conserve Water in College - Part 6: Spreading the Word

2010-12-29T12:40:00.000-08:00

Spreading the Word

Get others involved, too.

Send a letter to the newspaper: Write a letter to the editor asking everyone on campus to be more conscientious about water usage.
Host a contest: Pit dorms against each other to see who can save the most water one month. Get residential life involved to amp up prizes and evaluate water bills.
Hang up flyers around campus: Share water conservation tip by hanging flyers in dorms and academic buildings.
Make a YouTube video: Make a funny YouTube video showing places around campus where water is wasted, and hope it goes viral.
Start a club: Participate in events around the city and sponsor water conservation awareness days and events on campus.
Explain the importance of water conservation: Droughts, pollution and water shortages are all important reasons to conserve water.
Write letters to the president or dean: Explain that going green is actually good business for your campus, as it saves money proves that you’re an Earth-friendly school.
Make t-shirts: Sell t-shirts to spread the message across campus.
Get professors involved: Ask professors to pitch in by reporting leaks and reusing coffee mugs.
Join national campaigns: Sign up with the EPA’s WaterSense campaign to find out about events and literature you can share on campus.

Miscellaneous

From car washes to washing your pets, here are more ways for college students and workers to save water.

Use a commercial car wash: Their design is more efficient, and they use recycled water.
Wash your pets outside: If your lawn needs watering, wash your dog on the lawn to reuse the water.
Keep a bucket on your patio to catch rain water: Use it to water plants when it’s try, or flush your toilet.
Don’t contaminate water supplies: Don’t pour anything into water supplies, like chemicals or drugs into toilets.

101 Way to Conserve Water in College - Part 5: Personal Awareness

2010-12-28T12:36:00.000-08:00

Personal Awareness

Report leaks around campus and challenge yourself to be better about water usage.

Report open hydrants: Call maintenance if you see an opened hydrant that’s gushing water.
Turn water faucets off tightly: After washing your hands or working in a lab, turn the faucets off tightly, and wait a few seconds to see if there are any drips.
Report leaks: Even if it’s not in your dorm, report leaky faucets, toilets, etc. Don’t expect someone else to do it.
Finish your water instead of dumping it out: Or at least make a point to dump the end of your water bottle into a thirsty looking plant, not the pavement or trash.
Get a conservation buddy: Work with your roommate to keep each other accountable.
Write down all the ways you see people wasting water: Then check to see if you’re practicing the same dirty habits yourself.
Turn off the water while washing your hands: You don’t need the water running while you lather up.

Thanks to Online Classes for this content.

101 Way to Conserve Water in College - Part 4: Gardening, Plants and Patio

2010-12-27T12:33:00.000-08:00

Personal Gardening, Plants and Patio

If you have a garden on your balcony or a bigger plot outside your apartment, be more conscientious about water usage with these tips.

Use "leftover" water to water plants: Any leftover water you have in a drinking glass or other container should be used to water plants, not thrown out.
Clear off dirt and other messes with a broom, instead of hosing it down.It’ll get things just as clean and save water to boot.
Plant during spring and fall: Considered "less water stress times," spring and fall bring more rain and moisture naturally, so you won’t have to water young plants as often.
Water in the morning or evening: There’s less chance of evaporation due to cooler temperatures and lower wind speed at this time.
Use the right fertilizer: Put slow-release, water-insoluble fertilizer on plants only when necessary. Many fertilizers make plants more thirsty.
Learn how to compost: It’s a life skill you can use to save water.

101 Way to Conserve Water in College - Part 3: Campus Wide

2010-12-26T12:30:00.000-08:00

Campus-Wide Conservation

Here are some ideas your whole school can use to conserve water on campus.

Start campus gardens: Sustainable for many reasons, community gardens also save water and reduce pollution in the form of runoff.
Use recycled water to water grass: It’s already a common practice on many college campuses.
Put out mulch: Packing mulch around trees and landscaping keeps water in.
Connect irrigation systems to weather systems: This prevents watering plants when it’s raining.
Install shower times with red lights: Make it easier for students to take shorter showers.
Get gyms and recreation facilities in on the conservation: Install low-flow shower heads and other water conservation systems there too.
Insulate water pipes: When it’s cold out, insulated pipes mean you won’t have to run the water as long to get a hot shower.
Ask for aerators in faucets: Propose that your school changes the faucets so that they have aerators, which restrict water flow.
Winterize outdoor water faucets: Prevent leaks and breaks from freezing by appropriately protecting outdoor water faucets.
Re-route grey water: Maintenance can re-route water from your dorm to water the lawn and plants.
Cut out water fountains: These waste water and electricity, so encourage students to carry around their own reusable bottles instead.
Install shower timers with red lights: Make it easier for students to take shorter showers.
Use recycled water for fountains, too: It’ll still look pretty with recycled water.

101 Way to Conserve Water in College - Part 2: In the Kitchen

2010-12-23T12:26:00.000-08:00

A lot of businesses, households and campuses have recently adopted water conservation plans to save money and protect the environment, but we still have a lot of work ahead of us. Those of us in the developed world use inordinate amounts of water for personal use, and most of it isn’t used efficiently. With each extra utensil used or toilet flushed, water is wasted, and you can imagine how much water that adds up to on a college campus. Here are 101 ways to conserve water in college, whether you’re a student, college president or professor.

Dining Hall and Kitchen

Whether you’re making your food choices in the dining hall or in your own apartment kitchen, be smart about water with these tips.

Use one glass per day to drink from: If you’re just drinking water, use the same glass all day to reduce the need for washing.
Run the dishwasher when it’s full: If you run out of spoons, wash those by hand before running the dishwasher if it isn’t full.
Use the garbage disposal sparingly: Running it wastes water each time.
Water plants with dropped ice cubes: Putting them in pet water dishes is a good idea, too.
Use a pitcher of water to cool it in the refrigerator: Now you won’t have to let the faucet run to cool the water, or even use ice.
Fill up the sink when you wash dishes: A good alternative to just letting the water run.
Fill up one plate only: Use as few plates and utensils as possible to cut down on dish washing later. Do you really need a separate plate for your mashed potatoes?
Turn off the automatic ice maker: Don’t let it run continuously, and always turn it off when you go out of town.
Make soup with water leftover from steaming veggies: You’ve already pre-flavored it!
Bring your own reusable glasses and bottles: Don’t use disposable cups, and minimize dish washing loads for the dining hall staff. Instead, bring your own thermos or cup to fill up on water or fountain drinks.
Stop pre-rinsing: Most newer dishwashers are strong enough to pull off little crumbs, so a shake into the garbage can is all the pre-cleaning you really need to do.
Clean veggies in a pan of water: Much better than letting the water run.
Consider water footprint: You’ve heard of carbon footprint, but did you know that foods have a water footprint scale, too? Lettuce and cabbage have a water footprint of 15-24 gallons, while beef’s is up to 2500-5000 gallons.
Don’t thaw frozen foods with running water: Put it in the refrigerator over night instead.

Thanks to Online Classes for this content.

101 Way to Conserve Water in College - Part 1: In the Dorm

2010-12-22T12:22:00.000-08:00

In the Dorms

From laundry to showering, here are ways you and your roommates can save water every day.

Take a home water audit: Print out this audit so that you and your roommate can evaluate your current water usage, and then trim it down.
Turn water off when brushing your teeth: And while shaving or even washing your face. Turn it on when it’s time to rinse.
Check for leaks: Report them to maintenance ASAP to avoid mildew and mold, and of course, water waste.
Take shorter showers: Americans use 1.2 trillions of gallons of water taking showers each year. Spend shower time cleaning yourself, not just standing there zoning out.
Only wash clothes when you have a full load: This shouldn’t be too hard for students who wait until the last minute to do laundry. Just make sure you have a full load, or else you’re wasting water and energy on a half load.
Put rocks in your toilet: Placing pebbles in your tank restricts the amount of water that fills the bowl back up, using less water per flush.
Test your toilet for leaks: Put a drop of food coloring into the tank. If the color bleeds into the toilet bowl without flushing, there’s a leak you need to report.

Yeah! It's pomegranate season!

2010-12-21T11:28:00.000-08:00

Did you know it is pomegranate season? Most people are so far removed from the seasonality of their food they don't realize such things. But nothing hearkens the holiday season in the Southwest like the ripening of blood red pomegranates.

12 Green Days of Christmas: Day 12 Clothing

2010-12-19T10:00:00.000-08:00

There are getting to be more and more companies who specialize in eco friendly clothing. I am amazed at what I found just through my searching on the internet today versus what I found 3 or 4 years ago! I listed some clothes that are from different companies. Check out their websites! They all have some great products!

Element EcoWear

This company seems to specialize in bamboo threads of clothing and other organic materials. They say their clothing is soft and durable and fits your everyday style. They are part of One Percent for the Planet, giving back to one of the 5 Conservation Organizations. I liked this Men's polo. It comes in three colors here.

Zoe and Zac
Oh my! I love, love, love shoes! And I am in LOVE with the new eco friendly line, Zoe and Zac. Found at Payless, this shoe line has organic cotton uppers and recycled rubber outsoles. Super cute styles at super affordable prices all while helping save our planet. What more can you love?!

howies

Can I be in love with clothes and shoes? This UK line of clothes has a great history and they have an awesome selection of clothing. I am in love with this dress, called the Meg Dress (this dress must be meant for me because that's my name!). its made from organic cotton and is super stylish.

12 Green Days of Christmas: Day 11 Jewelry

2010-12-18T10:00:00.000-08:00

There are a wide range of earth friendly jewelry out there. I found three different types here Of course, there is always the homemade kind too- but here is for some fun internet shopping!

Brilliant Earth
Did you know that in most mines, in order to get one gold band, it take over 20 ton of ore? Gold mining is one of the most destructive types of mining. At Brilliant Earth, they use mining techniques that reduce the impact on the environment. They also sell conflict free diamonds. Check them out!

Paloma Pottery

At Paloma Potter they have necklaces made out of recycled materials. Their jewelry is one of kind.

Solstice Glass
Unique glass hand blown jewelry. Beautiful little pieces of artwork.

12 Green Days of Christmas: Day 10 Holiday

2010-12-17T13:52:00.000-08:00

With all the hustle and bustle of the season, it might seem like "one more thing to do" when considering how to be green. Here are a few simple and easy things you can do this holiday to be a little more eco-friendly.

1. LED Lights
Target, Costco and many other stores now sell LED Christmas lights. These lights will save energy and look the same as the other version of lights.

2. Recycle your Christmas Tree
Every year 10 million Christmas trees end up in the landfill. Think of how many wood chips, paper, boxes, etc could come if those were all recycled! Many cities offer programs for recycling your tree. It's as easy as calling (800) CLEANUP or just visiting www.earth911.org to find the tree-recycling program near you.

3. Recycle your old cellphone
Many people may be getting a new phone or gadget this year. So what to do with your old phones? Over 130 million cell phones are thrown out each year! Can you imagine the 65,000 tons of wastes that creates in our landfills? And all of the hazardous chemicals that are then leached into the environment? Instead of throwing them out, the Sierra Club has a program where you can drop off your phone at any Staples and they'll recycle it for you!

4. Make your own wrapping paper
Did you know that most wrapping paper is not recycable? So instead of using store bought paper, become creative and use the comic section of the newspaper, old maps or have your kids make some pictures and use that to wrap your gift. Or use brown paper and have your kids stamp it to make it look more festive.

5. Reuse the Bubble packaging

Family Fun magazine has some great ideas for the family and decorating. One was to use bubble packaging and cut it out into the shape of a tree. Ahere numbers to each day and let the kids pop away each day!

12 Green Days of Christmas - Day 9: Gifts of Education

2010-12-16T06:52:00.000-08:00

Tonight we drove past Toys 'R Us. The parking lot was filled to the brim. I have been in Toys R Us before, although I avoid it like the plague. Most of the items are plastic junk shipped from overseas to be played with for a few months (maximum), then broken or disregarded. To me the plastic junk is a waste of money, natural resources and our children's brains.

What gifts are not a waste of money, resources and brainpower? For many, this conundrum is never resolved, but rather a few days before Christmas a gift card is purchased placing the burden of junk buying on the recipient instead. Today on this the ninth day of our Green Christmas series I give you some ideas for meaningful gifts that come without finger splicing plastic wrap, which don't require 15 AA batteries and which will last all year, if not for a lifetime...gifts of education.

For the younger crowd:

Online Story Telling Service:
One More Story

What child doesn't like a story read to them? Each night at our household there is a debate as to how many books we can realistically read. I LOVE One More Story because professional story tellers read the books for you. The bookshelf has grown over the years and now includes several pages of wonderfully illustrated books. For those learning to read, subtitles can be activated and the words turn red while being read. I sometimes find myself just as engrossed in the stories as my children.

One Year Subscription...$44.00
Six Month Subscription...$27.00
Three Month Subscription...$15.00

Read more »

12 Green Days of Christmas - Day 8 The Green Kitchen

2010-12-15T08:55:00.000-08:00

CSA Community Supported Agriculture Membership:

Numerous food clubs abound, where you can send a box of fruit to a loved one each month throughout the year. Its a great idea, but even better is a CSA membership. Send a box of locally grown, organic produce to your loved one each week during the growing season.

Our CSA here in Colorado, the Grant Family Farm, is fantabulous, we have the option us weekly flowers, eggs, whole grain bread, fruits, veggies, milk and grass-fed meat.

You can find a CSA in your area by searching on Local Harvest. Its wise to research your CSA because as CSA member you are buying a share of the farm, if the harvest is good, your weekly produce box will be overflowing, if the harvest is poor, your weekly box will reflect this as well.

What I love about my produce boxes: the taste of fresh carrots, the beautiful color of orange beets and surprise veggies that I must learn how to serve and cook.

Read more »

12 Green Days of Christmas - Day 7: Charity

2010-12-14T08:05:00.000-08:00

As the holiday season approaches each year, I look around our home and feel that we already have too much stuff. Each year I try to par down the gift giving, telling co-workers and family members that we really do not anything more. None-the-less everyone wants to give gifts, it's a meaningful part of the season. So how do you give gifts without creating more junk...donate a gift to a charity.

This year we are giving sending part of our Christmas funds to three worthy organizations:

RISING STAR - INDIA

My sister-in-law is currently volunteering a year of her life to serve as principal of this school for the children of lepers in India. Lepers are seen as the lowest caste in Indian society and. as such, lack access to almost all resources. Their children, often free of the disease, must suffer by default. Rising Star is trying to change that, educating about 180 students.

Recently my sister-in-law wrote my daughter a blog post on how life in India is different than here in America:

"My eleven-year-old niece, Amelia, is studying a unit on India in school. And she's wondering what tidbits of information I might have for her class. Well, dear Amelia, let me begin with a list of some of the ways life here is different than in Denver.

Our kids...

have never seen snow or been sledding or skiing.
have never been to the mall.
have never been to the grocery store (food is sold on the sidewalk, in little booths, and in kiosks).
have never seen a strawberry.
have never slept in a bed.
have never seen toilet paper.
have never worn a jacket.
have never used a seat belt.
have never owned a swimming suit or been swimming.
have never eaten pizza.
have never blown out birthday candles.
have never used a knife, fork, or spoon.
have never been to the dentist's office.
have never seen broccoli or lettuce.
have never been in a car.

See the pictures from her blog post and you'll choose to donate some of your Christmas funds too!

12 Green Days of Christmas - Day 6: The Green Garden

2010-12-13T06:58:00.000-08:00

Midwinter may not seem like the ideal time to be giving gardening gifts, but a true green thumb has green things growing all year round, from that window seal herb garden to to the poinsettia around the Christmas tree. Here are a few ideas for the perennial garden this Christmas.

GREEN MAGIC FERTILIZER

Absolutely the best fertilizer I have ever used. Safe and extremely effective, what's even better is that GREEN MAGIC adds back to the plants and soils the minerals and trace elements needed to create not only delicious food, but healthy food. Never again will hydroponic tomatoes tempt you, once you've tasted the difference - grow your own delicious flavorful fruit and veggies with GREEN MAGIC. I must also admit that GREEN MAGIC can also be credited with resuscitating several of my slightly....okay, severely neglected indoor plants. And for the eco-conscious, the compact size and concentrated form (one bottle makes 16 gallons) saves a whole lotta plastic!

12 Green Days of Christmas: Day 5 Kid Toys

2010-12-12T12:00:00.000-08:00

Here are some great Green Kid Toys items...

1. Haba Soft Toy
Made from organic cotton materials, this Haba Soft doll is part of the new line of toys by Haba, the Pure Nature series. All toys are hygenic and stictly controlled in their production.

Read more »

12 Green Days of Christmas: Day 4 Eco Friendly Games

2010-12-11T15:00:00.000-08:00

Here some earth friendly games that are not only made out of environmently friendly materials, but they teach you something about the planet as well.

1. Earthoplogy. A "green" planet friendly twist on the classic game of monopoly. The game is packaged in earth friendly plastic and teaches you how to make the earth a little "greener".

2. Recylorama. A game to be downloaded for the PC, it teaches you about recycling. Good reviews for it!

3. Lorax Garden. A game for the Ipod/Itouch/Ipad, its a twist off of Dr. Suess's book, "The Lorax". It follows in line to what the last few lines of the book warn, “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not." The player has to go along and grow and replant trees and flowers to help the enviornment.

Read more »

12 Green Days of Christmas: Day 3 Makeup

2010-12-10T15:00:00.001-08:00

There are a few things to note with "Green" makeup. A natural makeup line is not the same as an organic makeup line. Organic makeup goes through meticulous inspections and production. Every step is monitored to ensure that it meets the highest standard. Most natural makeups maintain that their products are free from unsafe chemicals and ingredients. The great thing about today is that there are so many new products and companies who are striving to make organic and natural products. I've listed a few of the ones that have caught my eye!

1. E.L.F. Cosmetics Minerals
This line of makeup is 100% mineral-based with no parabens, no preservatives and no chemical dyes. They have amazing pricing on their makeups as well!

12 Green Days of Christmas - Day 2

2010-12-09T08:22:00.000-08:00

Day 2 Books and such...

While flying home for the Thanksgiving holiday, I took advantage of the free television playing on the seat back in front of me. It was Friday night and Brian Williams was interviewing the Prince of Wales. Charles, the quiet heir to throne, was surprisingly green minded. He walked Brian around an absolutely beautiful organic garden and revealed a desire to help stem the chemical assault on nature. He's written a new book (an adult and child version) and has a short documentary, all entitled Harmony. Listen to him while he can still talk, once he becomes King he has to be impartial, by law.

Read more »

The 12 Green Days of Christmas

2010-12-08T12:43:00.000-08:00

For the Green Bean on your Christmas list (which I hope is everyone on your Christmas list), we present the 12 Green Days of Christmas, each day selecting of few green products to help your find the perfect gift.

Today: the Green Lunchbag:

Lunchskins sandwich bags. EASY to use and durable. Just throw them in the dishwasher each night. Then the peanut butter and jelly don't turn into a penicillin pocket. Love them. they come in several colors and can be purchased at several outfitters, including the Container Store.

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lunchskins® Sandwich Bag

Simply brilliant. Our fantastic and reusable lunchskins® Sandwich Bag replaces the multitudes of plastic bags used to pack lunches. Each lined sack is made from quick-drying, lightweight cotton fabric. The flap is secured with hook and loop fasteners - it can be labeled with any permanent marker. Reuse the bags over and over again to contain everything from your PB&J to your tuna salad!

Made from certified food-safe fabric
Top rack dishwasher-safe

Office Plants

2010-12-08T10:49:00.000-08:00

My husband and I both moved into new office spaces recently. He has an office, I have a cubicle. Three gray walls hug me each day, a computer screen send its radiant waves into my face, flourescent lights pelt me from above. Even though I work in the medical profession, I've never felt so unhealthy.

On my Christmas wish list are two items to green my workspace:

Plants

and

A Salt Lamp

First, plants: From a NT Times article on hardly houseplants, I have narrowed the selection to these stalwarts:

WAX PLANT (HOYA CARNOSA VARIEGATA) Can sprawl some 15 feet along a bamboo pole, from one window to another. The wax plant takes its style cues from “Desperately Seeking Susan”: the new vines are hot pink; the flowers, patently fake. The secret to raising it to adulthood, is “to back off the water” in the winter, imitating the plant’s natural dry period.

RABBIT’S FOOT FERN (DAVALLIA FEJEENSIS) A hanging basket made of wooden slats provides a comfy home for this fuzzy native of the Pacific Islands. Encouraged to “creep around the bottom of the basket it can make a kind of fern ball.” In the summer, the fern swings from the branch of a peach tree in the courtyard.

BIRD’S NEST FERN (ASPLENIUM NIDUS)A shade-loving plant, whose form resembles “a badminton shuttlecock” turned “upside-down.” The new growth from the central rosette is chartreuse, the older fronds, which may be a foot wide, are dark and shiny.

New Studies Show Environment Linked to Chronic Diseases

2010-11-01T13:24:00.000-07:00

For years the debate has been whether or not the chemicals from the environment adversely affect our health. Many groups have tried to get the government to recognize that there is a link and to start to do things that will help "prevent" chronic diseases such as cancer and diabetes and not just "intervene". Although there is still a genetic link and other factors that go into an individual's risk in getting a disease, there is even more evidence now proving a strong link with the environment.

In May 2010, the governments Cancer Panel stated that there was a "significant" risk between the chemicals found in pesticides and the development of cancer. This significant risk has now sky rocketed to a 70 to 90 percent link to chemical and cancer according to a new study found in the well known Science journal. It stated,

"Although the risks of developing chronic diseases are attributed to both genetic and environmental factors, 70 to 90% of disease risks are probably due to differences in environments." Stephen Rappaport and Martyn Smith, "Environment and Disease Risks, Science, Vol. 330, No. 6003, pages 460-461.

This is a huge finding and should alter the way we look at foods and the pesticides we place on them.

101 Way to Be A Greener Eater

2010-10-26T13:15:00.000-07:00

A great website, Master's In Health Care, came out with a list of 101 ways to go "green". They recommend some simple things we can do on a day to day basis to help not only ourselves but the environment. Here are some of their ideas:

Cut out pre-packaged snacks.
Stop using plastic water bottles.
Keep your fridge clean and efficient
Use water to cook twice.
Save take out containers and use them twice.
Buy wild caught fish.

For more information and a more ideas, visit their blog at www.mastersinhealthcare.com/blog/2010/101-ways-to-be-a-greener-eater/.

Grass Fed Beef

2010-10-13T20:02:00.000-07:00

What's the beef with grass feed beef? Here's a few things to know that may help prove to you, why grass fed beef is better.

Grass feed beef is usually lower in fat than grain feed beef. It has more good monounsaturated oils and stearic acid which can help lead to decreased cholesterol levels

Omega 3 oils are higher in grass fed beef and they are comparable to the levels found in fish. Omega 3's have been shown to help decrease cancers and they help prevent and treat hypertension, coronary artery disease, and arthritis.

Grass feed beef has larger amounts of Vitamin E and beta carotene.

Grass fed animals also have one of the highest amounts of CLA (conjugated lineolic acid) which have been shown to both reduce the incidence of cancer and suppress the growth of existing cancers. There have been other studies that have shown CLA to decrease body fat, increase lean muscle mass and lower incidence of diabetes. CLA levels are 30-40% higher in grass finished beef.

Grass fed animals also help the environment by helping reduce land erosion and improving soil condition. Grass feeding animals is good the animals as well. No crowded conditions and less stress for the animals which in turn produces better meat.

How to be Sustainable?

2010-10-08T20:02:00.000-07:00

We often hear about being "sustainable" and "sustainable agriculture". I've often wondered, "What can I do to help be sustainable?" I've wanted to know where and what I can do, on top of going through the political route and voting for those who support sustainable living. Tonight, I just happened upon this really neat site that helps you find places that are "sustainable" where you can buy groceries, meat, bakery items, etc. It's called the Sustainable Table and you put in your zip code and it will then list for you all the different shops and growers around your area who are sustainable.

So start small and support local sustainable agriculture.

Egg Recall

2010-09-29T17:39:00.000-07:00

The egg recall that happened several weeks ago, brings new light to the fact that it is important to be educated as to what and who controls our food sources. The fact that million of eggs had to be recalled due to a Salmonella breakout signifies that there needs to be stricter guidelines on our production of food. Currently, in regards to chickens and eggs, the goal of the farms is to produce the largest quantity for the lowest cost. Animal and food safety take a back seat in order for the production to reach it's maximum. On most chicken farms, the chickens are put in pins, with no windows and jammed together with hundreds of chickens in a small space. The large amount of chickens makes it difficult for owners to track the health of the chickens, the death of their chickens, the manuer from their chickens and such forth. These conditions affect the health of the animals and therefore begin the spreading of disease.

Organic farms and local sustainable farms, have a decreased risk of disease for their chickens. Organic farms promote the health of their animals because that is what they are designed to do first...not produce a exorbatant amount of eggs.

So if we can learn and move forward from anything from our recent recalls, it is to support our local farms and organic farming- and we'll probably have better luck avoiding the massive recall and outbreaks of the dangerous strains of Salmonella.

OP Pesiticides and Child Leukemia Linked

2010-09-17T10:48:00.000-07:00

I had the opportunity to work as a pediactric oncology nurse for 4 years, so this article struck home for me. I have copied a snipit from a article from The Organic Center. Yet another reason to watch what we feed out children.

OP Pesticides Linked to Leukaemia in Children
In yet another important study involving mothers, children and organophosphate (OP) insecticides in Washington State, researchers have reported elevated risk of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALA) in children between three and seven years of age among mothers and children that are more heavily exposed to OPs.
The study documented a connection between OP metabolites in the urine of children and their mothers and ALA risk, but did not find any linkages between household insecticide use and ALA risk, suggesting that the study's findings were likely driven by dietary exposures to OP insecticides.
Source: Karen Millet, "Common Household Pesticides Linked to Childhood Cancer Cases," Georgetown Medical Center Press Release, July 28, 2009.

New Research About The Effects of Pesticides on Children

2010-08-24T12:48:00.000-07:00

New research has come out about how the effect of pesticides can harmfully affect the neurological development of children. It has been believed that by age 2 children have developed the same amount of PON1 as an adult. PON1 is an enzyme that helps break down the exposure to Organophosphate Insecticides (OP). However, this new science has shown that by age 2 children have four times lower the amount than the average seven year old and adult. So there is an additional 5 years that children are at a very high increased risk for neurological damage. By eating an organic diet, it greatly decreases the exposure to the OP insecticides.

Here is the link to the new research:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2790521/

Nylons - Hair - and Boon-B-Ques

2010-05-07T19:37:00.001-07:00

Who knew? But apparently hair is very good at soaking up oil. That's why some charities are collecting hair to make boons to help with the oil spill in the Gulf Coast. I heard one representative on NPR say the oil soaked water washes through the hair boon, which filters out the oil more effectively than many synthetic product.

Donate your discarded locks (or your pet's) and save the Gulf Coast from yet another tragedy.

Check it out at: http://matteroftrust.org/

Gardens That Hang On Walls

2010-05-07T11:38:00.001-07:00

Check out these beautiful walls!

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/misc/pixel.gif

RE-Use

2010-05-04T08:35:00.001-07:00

This morning my kindergartener had a dry diaper! Whoopee! We were very excited. He said, "Since my diaper is dry we can recycle it and use it again tonight!" (Earth Day lessons making their way to the home front.) He continued, "We should make a box where we put things that we've used but we can use again. When you do that its called recycling and it helps the Earth be strong and beautiful when we recycle."

It's true, everything you ever needed to know, you learned in Kindergarten.

Those Damned Superweeds

2010-05-04T08:31:00.001-07:00

Check out this NY Times Article....
Farmers killed all the good microbes in the ground with their chemical fertilzers, stripped the ground of nutrients, polluted water systems all to escape the weeds, but as anyone remotely educated in the principles of Ecology knows...nature is the Queen Bee of adaptation and has a stronger will to survive than we often give her credit for.

Revenge of the weeds! "Pigweed can grow three inches a day and reach seven feet or more, choking out crops; it is so sturdy that it can damage harvesting equipment"

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/04/business/energy-environment/04weed.html

Celebrate Earth Day

2010-04-22T08:06:00.000-07:00

How are you celebrating Earth Day? We'd like to know....

Today my daughter wore her recycled paper t-shirt to school.

My littlest informed us that we must all wear either green or yellow.

The elementary school is having an Earth Day Rock Sale. The fourth grade class is raising funds for a field trip and has set up a semi-precious gem and rock store. Earlier this week the entire school walked through the store and made their wish list. My kids were extra helpful with chores this week, as they worked to earn enough dinero to purchase their favorites: an arrowhead, shark teeth, earrings and an onyx lion topped their wish lists.

I watched two movies this week that could be your Earth Day dinner and a movie flick:

No Impact Man
The Whole Truth About Milk: Raw vs Pasteurized

No Impact Man
Follow the Manhattan-based Beavan family as they abandon their high consumption 5th Avenue lifestyle and try to live a year while making no net environmental impact.

An interesting concept, if not arbitrary in implementation. The Beavens methods and view on environmental impact could be easily debated, but the idea to consume less and live more locally, in the end produces some great effects, that the Beaven family is hopeful to carry on indefinitely.

My one great beef, is that the goal, I believe, is not to have NO impact on the environment, but rather live in harmony. Just breathing we have an impact on the life around us.

The Whole Truth About Milk

Mark McAfee is the owner of this Organic Pastures who happens to be one of the top advocates of Raw Milk. David Gethoff is an internationally recognized Doctor of Naturalpathy who is also an expert on the relationship of natural foods and health.

Milk and milk products have been the food staple of mankind since the beginning of recorded history. they are truly the one food source that has allowed us to become civilzed and to develop societies as we know them today. But now, in 2007 milk has a bad name. Is it the milk itself or is it the way that it is being processed and delivered in this corporate farming world we now live in?? Are the problems we see a result of pasteurizing and homogenizing, which are relatively new developments in the history of milk?

This movie is an educational peak inside a healthy, happy dairy. My children even enjoyed parts, learning about how kefir, cheese, milk and butter really come to be. At times the movie is a bit shakey (I got stomach sick and had to close my eyes). But it makes a great case for Raw Milk.

Round-Up Ready Is NOT So Ready

2010-04-14T08:14:00.000-07:00

The New York Times recently posted an article reviewing a study on the environmental impact of Genetically Modified crops. As many of use have suspected and promoted for years, Genetically Modified Crops aren't proving to be God's gift to the environment. Weeds are becoming resistant and so now even more toxic chemicals than RoundUp are being used to kill weeds and scare off bugs.

I once used round-up. I didn't have an edger and weeds were crawling out the edges of my lawn and invading the side walk, as only plants can do in the warm, humid, South. I decided to best them with the world's most powerful blast, RoundUp! I sprayed along the edges and waited.

Within a day the weeds shriveled and died away, but so did everything else, This left an eerie, almost fluorescent ring around my lawn. It was bizarre enough that my neighbors came asking what I did. The alien ring lasted for weeks and weeks, and became a far worse eye sore than the weeds had been. However, it taught me the power of RoundUp to KILL. Never again have I dared touch the chemical.

I shiver to think that so much of our crop land is sprayed with RoundUp, and now even that chemical killer is not assassinating because we have inadvertently spawned nature to genetically modify it own version of plants. When will we learn that in the MAN vs NATURE game, man will never win? Man needs to work with nature and not against, if he is to survive.

How to reduce your mail clutter*

2010-04-07T18:20:00.000-07:00

Visit www.optoutprescreen.com or call (888)567-8688

Opt out of received pre-approved credit card offers! Hallelujah!

Get off mailing and telemarketin lists by contacting the Direct Marketing Association

Put your name on the National Do Not Call Registry (effective for 5 years)

When you make purchases online make sure to opt out of having your name shared with like minded companies, and forget filling out the warranty cards which are more often a way of creating mailing list that keeping you updated on recalls.

Want someone to do it for you? Contact Tonic Mail Stopper a non-profit that will stop your unwanted mail and plant trees on your behalf for $20 a year.

Why use power strips?

2010-03-06T15:53:00.000-08:00

Home appliances and personal electronic devices pull electricity when in use, as we all would expect. Most also pull electricity when not in use, either while they wait poised on "standby," or because they have a clock or LED light, or because their plug is poorly designed. (Only today did I learn the term "wall wart" as applied to the black transformer boxes appended to our phones, laptops, etc., which draw power simply when plugged into an outlet, even if not plugged into their affiliated gadget.) The amount of "phantom" power drawn in an average U.S. home is expensive per home and truly impressive nationally. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, around 75 percent of the energy used by our home appliances is drawn while we think they are "off." Typical offenders include microwaves, stereo equipment, televisions, chargers for cell phones or iPods and co., and all the computer equipment.

Why buy green power?

2010-03-04T16:12:00.000-08:00

Why buy green power?
Because electricity generation is the largest industrial polluter in the country. Did you know that more than 50% of retail customers in the US have an option of buying a green-power product from their utility company? Find out if you have the option at www.epa.gov/greenpower.

What Is Green Power?

Green power is renewable energy—power from the sun, wind, plants, and moving water. Green power is a sustainable way to meet our energy needs and protect the environment and public health.

Types of Green Power...
Wind energy converts the power available in moving air into electricity. Wind power does not produce emissions, generate solid waste, or use water.
Bioenergy is energy from trees and plants. This includes crops grown specifically for energy production and organic wastes (such as wood residues from paper mills and methane from landfills). Using bioenergy to generate electricity reduces global warming emissions if new plants are grown to replace those that are harvested.
Geothermal energy uses heat from inside the earth to make clean power.
Solar power captures the heat and light of the sun to generate electricity. Solar energy does not produce emissions, generate solid waste, or use water.
Hydroelectric power captures the energy in falling water. It does not produce emissions or solid waste, but can have a relatively low or high impact on the environment, depending on the site-specific factors such as maintenance of water flow and water quality, fish impacts, and other land use issues.

Find out more at: UCS' s Clean Energy site.

Why drive a hybrid or electric car

2010-03-03T09:34:00.000-08:00

The most fuel-efficient midsize hybrid get a combined mileage of 46 miles a gallon; a typical midsize car gets 25 miles a gallon. By not using as much gas, you're saving 4.5 barrels of oil a year, a cash savings of $560.

There is a great documentary about electric cars - "Who killed the electric car?" Rent it and watch it.

Then check out my husband's dream car, the Tesla 2010 Roadster. I've contacted the company to see if they'd let us test one, and blog about our experience here. Keep your fingers crossed for postiive future Tesla updates.

Why change the temperature on your thermostat?

2010-03-02T12:21:00.000-08:00

Buying a programmable thermostat to change the temperature when you are there versus when you are not, will save about $130 a year! Check out exactly how much you can save with this Energy Star calculator tool.

Programmable Thermostat Setpoint Times & Temperatures
Setting	Time	Setpoint Temperature (Heat)	Setpoint Temperature (Cool)
Wake	6:00 a.m.	≤ 70° F	≥ 78° F
Day	8:00 a.m.	Setback at least 8° F	Setup at least 7° F
Evening	6:00 p.m.	≤ 70° F	≥ 78° F
Sleep	10:00 p.m.	Setback at least 8° F	Setup at least 4° F

Why wash laundry on a cooler setting?

2010-03-02T12:16:00.001-08:00

About 90 percent of the energy used to wash clothes goes to heating the water. Assuming you already wash half your laundry in cold, moving the other half from hot to warm can save a substantial amount of energy.

Washing laundry in hot water is unnecessary as advance in clothes washers and laundry detergents have made it possible to get white and colored clothes perfectly clean in cold water. Except when washing particularly tough stains, such as oil, even load of laundry done in hot water wastes energy.

Why switch five lightbulbs to compact fluorescent lightbulbs?

2010-03-02T12:16:00.000-08:00

A 25-watt Compact Fluorescent Lightbulb (CFL) provides the same amount of light as a 75-watt incandescent. CFLs use a third of the energy to last 10 times longer. Switching five bulbs could save about $400 over the CFLs lifetime.

Calculate Your Nutrient Needs - New Online Tool!

2010-02-26T12:10:00.000-08:00

I just found a wonderful resource an online tool that helps you calculate your daily nutritional needs. Based on your gender, age, ht, wt, activity level it helps calculate your Daily Recommended Intake needs for macronutrients (e.g. fat, protein, fiber), vitamins and minerals. It also calculates your BMI and daily calorie intake need.

Check it out here!

Thanks to the National Academy of Science's Institute of Medicine for creating such a great tool. Tell me about your results? Were you surprised by anything?

Why compost a fifth of your garbage?

2010-02-26T08:26:00.000-08:00

Putting less trash on the curb reduces the amount of fuel required to haul it away. Plus,composting provides a way not only of reducing the amount of waste that needs to be disposed of, but also of converting it into a product that is useful for gardening, landscaping, or house plants.

http://www.epa.gov/osw/conserve/rrr/composting/

Re-Usable Bags - Product Guide

2010-02-25T15:10:00.000-08:00

I was at the doctor's office the other day and met a mother and her son. The son was happily snacking some nuts and dried fruit from a great re-usable bag. The mother told me she had tried many, many different bags/containers and these were by far her favorite and the easiest to use (she puts them in a mesh bag and tosses them into the washing machine to clean).

http://www.reusablebags.com/store/reusies™-sandwich-p-1669.html

Why Recycle Newspapers and Magazines

2010-02-25T14:51:00.000-08:00

Americans throw away more paper than any other kind of trash. Recycling the pounds of magazines and newspapers the average household accrues in a year not only saves trees but also reduces contributions to air pollution by 95%.

Saves 581 pounds of COs per person per year which if everyone in the US recycled their paper for one year, it would be equal to having 5.551,566 cars taken off the road for one year!

Eating Your Veggies: Not As Good For You?

2010-02-22T14:48:00.000-08:00

Eating Your Veggies: Not As Good For You?

Just what I've been researching. The declining nutrient value of our food, related to the declining health of our soil. Now, sound research to back it up! Hooray!

Why Recycle?

2010-02-22T10:50:00.000-08:00

Recycling aluminum and steel cans directs valuable metal into new products, saving 95 percent of the energy required to manufacture aluminum from scratch and 74 percent of the energy needed to make steel.

One hundred percent of a recycled aluminum can ends up as another aluminum can in as little as 60 days
An aluminum can has no limit to the number of times it can be recycled
Aluminum is the most recyclable of all materials: it is four times more valuable than other recycled consumer materials
Throwing away a single aluminum can is like pouring out six ounces of gasoline

See: The Aluminum Association

Why?

2010-02-22T10:46:00.000-08:00

I'm starting a why? series of blogs. Why should we change our habits? I find it easier to change if I know the consequences, particularly the beneficial consequences of my actions. So stay tuned as I discover why I (and maybe you) should change...

Dangers of Sugar

2010-02-15T10:59:00.001-08:00

Organic Trace Minerals

2010-01-28T11:40:00.000-08:00

Trace minerals are proving to be an invaluable source of nutrition and health for humans and animals. The problem is our modern farming techniques have long ago stripped the soils of these minute miracles that our body needs but can not produce. Therefore we NEED to get the mighty minerals from another source, a natural source, so our body will recognize these minute mineral health workers. NEW Life Organic Minerals offers one of the only organic trace mineral supplements on the market.

Check them out at www.newlifeminerals.com!

Noble Steps Towards Carbon Neutrality

2010-01-28T10:01:00.000-08:00

GreenPlanet would like to thank Mr. Vincenzo Desroches and InkPal for the following guestblog:

Carbon footprints express the amount of energy we use daily

Footprints left in the sand disappear in time, but carbon footprints accumulate in daily life; there’s no natural force like the ocean to wipe away our car emissions, or energy wastefulness, unless we take responsible steps and be that force. Our individual carbon footprints are as unique as our own footprints, but unlike our footprints we can increase the amount of our carbon footprints by our energy consumption patterns. The fact that we create these carbon footprints is not a crime against nature, or self-created manifestations we should be ashamed of; creating carbon footprints is normal and is for the most part unavoidable.
Carbon footprints are an expression of the amount of energy we consume, as we travel though linear time. We all have heard what carbon footprints can do to the environment and our health, but even those warnings don’t seem to faze people who believe the world is a disconnected reality with no purpose or meaning. There’s no easy way to change people’s beliefs, unless they want to change, but what we can do is develop a life style based on carbon neutrality and that lifestyle will set an example, so others can relate and connect to that thinking process. If we can freeze the amount of our individual carbon emissions, we can impact collective carbon emissions. If our goal at this point in time is to not increase, but stabilize our individual emissions, we are taking the first noble step towards carbon neutrality.

So what is carbon neutrality?
Carbon neutrality is based on the assumption that we all have a right to emit a certain amount of Co2 into the atmosphere according to the accepted beliefs about the need to use energy in any form. That right can be considered a carbon allowance, but that right still impacts the environment in some way. In order to appreciate that right, and create carbon neutrality, we need to offset the amount of carbon we are physically adding to our environment by establishing a green mentality and lifestyle.
Recycling is a natural green act and another noble step. Our body recycles itself naturally, so we do have an innate ability to express recycling in our daily activities. It’s not just our garbage that is recycle worthy, our essential necessities like cell phones, iPods, computers, and ink cartridges, as well as any product that can be reused in some form, is a prime candidate for recycling . Recycling is only limited by our own creativity, and each item we recycle adds points to our carbon neutrality. Buying products and services that donate part of their profits to help reduce Co2 emissions is an excellent way and another step to neutralizing our carbon footprints.

Planting trees or helping to sustain forest management, are noble steps and fantastic ways to neutralize our carbon footprints. Trees are exceptional Co2 transformers; they convert Co2 into oxygen. If we really want to make an impact on our carbon footprints, we should use wind power for electricity or invest in algae farms, as well as solar power, hydrogen generators, wind kites that produce electricity, ocean power projects and biological pest control.

When we look around us and see an almost endless amount of noble steps, we realize the answer to stabilizing and actually reducing our carbon footprints is within us. Suddenly we begin to wake up and become aware and feel, as well as see, the beauty of carbon neutrality.

We thank partners like greenplanet.org for their appreciation towards these concerns and the effort they have put forth in supporting our beloved environment. InkPal.com home for your printers ink, is dedicated to providing support to our environment mentally, as well as physically and appreciates all those who share their vision.

Scammed

2009-12-30T06:54:00.000-08:00

Dear Green Pages and Green Planet friends --

Recently Green Planet (www.greenplanet.org) has been the victim of several scams. Similar sounding organizations have copied our front webpage and claimed it as their own. They are then posting job positions on various web sites, like craigslist and idealist, for jobs with a Green NGO. Applicants submit their private information as part of the application process and receive a letter of confirmation and job offer. They are then told to reply if they choose to accept the offer, but are given the phone number and contact information of our legitimate NGO. After contacting us they learn that they have been the victim of a scam.

We have also received strange calls regarding items for sale, e.g. a boat. The purchaser was led to a phoney website with our copied (stolen) front page and then contacted us, where upon they have discovered that we have no clue what they are talking about.

I write this blog hoping you will read it BEFORE you submit your valuable information to these creeps. However, if we are too late, I ask you to help us put and end to this scam by sending us (info@greenplanet.org) any information you have regarding these false posting. A direct link to the post would be fantastic and a copy of any interactions you have had with the organization (including email addresses).

Organizations to be weary about: www.greenplanet2020.org and www.greenplanets.org

Time to think temperature...*

2009-12-15T06:59:00.000-08:00

Today I saw the first snow flakes fly. My fingers are stiff and cold while typing and I am contemplating turning on the heat. But what is the recommended, eco-friendly, heat setting? I did some web surfing and these are my findings...

day temperature: 68F
night and unoccupied temp: 60F (or as low as 55F when unoccupied)

Adjusting your thermostat can bring substantial savings. Lowering your thermostat from 72 degrees to 68 degrees can decrease your heating costs by up to 15%!

The information below is from Madison Gas and Electric :

Fiction: It costs as much or more to heat a home back up after a setback. (Or to cool the house after a summer setup.)

Fact: The longer your house remains at the lower temperature, the more heat you save.

Fiction: The house will warm up faster the higher the thermostat is raised.

Fact: The thermostat isn't like the gas pedal on a car. It's either calling for heat or not, so setting the thermostat too high may cause you to overshoot the desired temperature.

Fiction: The kids will kick off the covers and get cold.

Fact: Children older than about two weeks can regulate their body temperature just like adults, so they don't need any different temperature than adults. If they kick off the covers, try dressing them in two sets of pajamas with feet or using a sleeping bag.

Green Seed Innovations

2009-11-13T13:12:00.001-08:00

We're looking for your ideas...How have you started living greener this year?

Green Planet Blog

2009-11-05T06:38:00.000-08:00

The Green Pages blog is now embedded within the Green Planet website. Working together we hope to foster environmental responsibility. Check us out at www.greenplanet.org!

A single tree...*

2009-10-05T05:26:00.000-07:00

...absorbs almost 50 lbs of carbon dioxide and also absorbs sulfur dioxide ( produced by coal-burning power plants), nitrous oxides (produced by vehicular exhaust), particulate pollutants (produced from burning fuel especially diesel)
...produces enough oxygen to sustain two adults
...reduces noise pollution
...reduces asphalt temperature by 36 degrees F
...reduces storm water runoff and erosion
...increases property value
...reduces interior temperature of parked cars by 47 degrees F

According to the US Forest Service homes with trees use 20-25% less energy than those without. Plant evergreens on the north side to block cool northern winds and deciduous trees to the south, east and west to offer summer shade and winter sun.

Go Harvard!

2009-09-25T16:59:00.000-07:00

As someone who has spent time playing frisbee with kids on Harvard yard's lawn and as someone who is also the daughter of a soil scientist and organic fertilizer salesman - all I can say is "Go Harvard!":

From the New York Times:

THERE is an underground revolution spreading across Harvard University this fall. It’s occurring under the soil and involves fungi, bacteria, microbes and roots, which are now fed with compost and compost tea rather than pesticides and synthetic nitrogen.

The results have so astounded university administrators that what started as a one-acre pilot project in Harvard Yard has spread organic practices through 25 acres on the campus.

Organic is the way to go...even the elite universities are catching the drift. Here's Harvards tips to those of us trying to green up our own lawn care practices:

Organic growing techniques are so simple that any homeowner can get the hang of them. But to do so, it’s necessary to learn some basic facts about the structure and biology of your particular soil. In an organic approach, one bag of chemicals does not fit all. And timing is key.
The first step, Mr. Fleisher said, is to take a core sample of your soil, and send some of it to a good testing laboratory, such as the one at the University of Massachusetts, or one recommended by your state university. A textural analysis will indicate the percentage of clay, silt and sand in your soil, and how well it drains. A complete nutrient analysis will tell you what elements and micronutrients the soil contains. Such tests cost from $13 to $75, and results are returned within a few weeks.
The next step is to do a simple percolation test. Use a shovel or a post-hole digger to make a hole 12 inches deep.

“Make one-inch markings on a stick and put that in the hole,” Mr. Clyne said.
Then fill the hole with water and let it drain for 30 minutes. “Then, fill up the hole again, and see how fast it drains,” he said.

One inch an hour is adequate for a home lawn.

Without good drainage, water and air cannot be properly absorbed by plant roots.
Also, “compaction wreaks havoc on your fungal communities,” Mr. Clyne said. And fungi are key to soil health.

There’s a give-and-take between fungi and plants, as the fungi consume carbohydrates exuded by plant roots and give back water, phosphorus and other minerals. Bacteria also consume carbohydrates. And they in turn are eaten by protozoa and other creatures that convert the bacteria’s protein into nitrogen, which feeds the plants.

Adding compost to soil gets that biological community cooking.

“Once you get that nutrient cycling system going,” Mr. Fleisher said, “it can produce 150 pounds of nitrogen an acre. With that kind of available nitrogen, why would you fertilize?”

The Importance of Sleep

2009-09-24T12:36:00.000-07:00

So here is another sport where my health background creeps into the Green Pages. But I am a huge advocated of SLEEP. Perhaps because I have spent more than my fair share of nights without it. But pay attention as flu season approaches:

In a recent study for The Archives of Internal Medicine, scientists followed 153 men and women for two weeks, keeping track of their quality and duration of sleep. Then, during a five-day period, they quarantined the subjects and exposed them to cold viruses. Those who slept an average of fewer than seven hours a night, it turned out, were three times as likely to get sick as those who averaged at least eight hours.

(source)

Ecology and Pigs

2009-09-22T09:01:00.000-07:00

If I could trace my zeal for sustainable living to one thing, it would stem from my studies of ecology and the interrelatedness of all things living. The idea that we are all (animal, plant and mineral) dependent on each other. I had a Jewish friend once say to me, "Nothing testifies of a God more to me than the complex and co-dependent relationship between man and his environment."

Part, if not most, of our problems with the deteriorating state of the environment come from a total obliviousness to this relationship.

Point in case: No one stopped Eygyptian officials when they decided the best way to combat swine flu was to decimate the country's pig population. A year later, that oversight is haunting those officials as the streets fill up with trash because their country's organic waste disposal system (the pigs) is now dead.

See this The New York Times article for more details, Belatedly, Egypt Spots Flaws in Wiping Out Pigs

Religion and the Environment

2009-09-22T08:45:00.000-07:00

Religion and the Environment

As the whole world awakens to the needs of the environment,

what tools of healing and nurture can religious traditions offer?

The website Patheos has an interesting series running on religion and the environment. They have solicited responses to the question above from individuals representing a variety of different faith. Their answers are presented in the public square section of their website (until 9/29). Check it out!

E-Waste*

2009-09-21T05:54:00.000-07:00

What happens to all those outdated cellphones and prehistoric computers we trade for the latest, newest, faster, better model?

Worldwide 20-50 million tons is sent to the dump

In the USA 65,000 tons ends up in the landfill

Much, if not most, of our outdated electronics are sent to less developed nations where they are refurbished (under varying degrees of scrutiny) and re-used - Shipping it abroad has proved, in many cases, cheaper than properly recycling it here.

Why recycle our e-waste properly?
Because these electronic gadgets often contain toxic substances. While e-waste accounts for only 2% of landfill waste it creates 70% of the toxic waste:

TV and computer circuit boards = lead, mercury and cadmium

cellphones = mercury, arsenic

cables = brominated flame retardants

batteries = toxic heavy metals: e.g. nickel, cadmium, lithium, lead

More than 90% of electronic material can be recycled. Most of the recycled parts are reused in electronics because they are already the right grade for electronic devices. Other components are valuable metals:

cellphone chargers: copper

circuit boards: gold, silver, palladium

Where do I recycle?
The EPA website has information about where to recycle or donate electronics and batteries, check it out at: http://www.epa.gov/waste/conserve/materials/ecycling/donate.htm

Earth 911 is a great site that allows you to search for recycling centers (of all kids) by your zipcode: http://earth911.com/electronics/

Facts and figures above from :The United National Environmental Programme, Earth 911 and Ready, Set, Green by Hill and O'Neil

Clean Water*

2009-09-14T10:03:00.000-07:00

The NY Times has been running an interesting series on clean water. This weekend I thought their gadget which allows you to check the water polluters in your area by zip code was very neat. Check it out:

check the water pollutants in your area

Cleaning the Air with Plants*

2009-09-14T09:46:00.000-07:00

How do astronauts keep their air clean of hazardous gasses? The answer is simple: Plants.

How can we keep the air in our homes free from hazardous gasses? The answer is simple: Plants.

Household plants can absorb gases from the air and store and render them harmless in the soil. Plant leaves release water vapor helping to humidify the air. And, plants emit phytochemicals that defend against mold spores and bacteria.

So GO GREEN, literally!

East to grow houseplants:

English Ivy (Hedera helix)
Spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum)
Golden pothos or Devil's ivy (Scindapsus aures or Epipremnum aureum)
Peace lily (Spathiphyllum 'Mauna Loa')
Chinese evergreen (Aglaonema modestum)
Bamboo palm or reed palm (Chamaedorea sefritzii)
Snake plant or mother-in-law's tongue (Sansevieria trifasciata 'Laurentii')
Heartleaf philodendron (Philodendron oxycardium, syn. Philodendron cordatum)
Selloum philodendron (Philodendron bipinnatifidum, syn. Philodendron selloum)
Elephant ear philodendron (Philodendron domesticum)
Red-edged dracaena (Dracaena marginata)
Cornstalk dracaena (Dracaena fragans 'Massangeana')
Janet Craig dracaena (Dracaena deremensis 'Janet Craig')
Warneck dracaena (Dracaena deremensis 'Warneckii')
Weeping Fig (Ficus benjamina)
Gerbera Daisy or Barberton daisy (Gerbera jamesonii)
Pot Mum or Florist's Chrysanthemum (Chrysantheium morifolium)
Rubber Plant (Ficus elastica)

List from Huffington Post article siting NASA research.

Each absorbs different pollutants, so mix them up!

Consumption Strategies

2009-09-08T10:49:00.000-07:00

I heard story on NPR a while back that has really changed the way I think. If I remember correctly, they were talking about the European vs. American way of thinking about economic issues. Americans will buy the most for the least amount, versus spending a little more on quality instead of quantity, a more European approach. A caller told the following story, which happened to him in Japan (I know Japan is not in Europe):

He was at work and took a break, walking to the vending machines. He wanted a Coke and saw that there were two sizes: a large can that cost the equivalent of a US $1.00 and a smaller can that cost the equivalent (roughly) of $1.25. He put in his money and purchased the larger can. His co-worker, a Japanese man, came in and put his money in and purchased the smaller can. "Why did you buy that one he asked? It's 25 cents more and you get less." The co-worker replied, "I wasn't that thirsty."

I've thought a lot about this story, because I would have bought the larger can too. And wouldn't most of us? But I've been calculating the fall out from that same scenario multiplied day in and day out and multiplied in scope...waste and overconsumption galore! Doesn't it in some part account for our overstuffed garages, overfilled garbage cans and perhaps our bulging stomachs?

Does money and making a deal overule our sense of fulfillment, quality, aesthetics, sustainabilty? Somehow we must turn into consumers with more lofty values that govern our buying decisions.

I'm trying. The other day I went to the store to buy a new large tupperware-ish container. I found the container I needed, but looking at the sticker, balked at the price. I suppose, it's been a while since I've bought plastic storage containers, but the price seemed outrageous. I put the item back on the shelf and looked around for a cheaper solution.

Then I saw a box of eight different sized containers (including the one I needed) for only a few dollars more. I took the large box off the shelf. "Might as well, right?" the deal grabber in me said. "But wait," I stopped myself, "I hate having to dig through a pile of lids and containers in my storage cabinet. I have plenty of small containers, I only need the large one." I put the box back on the shelf and took back my one container. I paid the hefty price, but with pride now, knowing that I had overcome my money grubbing tendancy and made a more intelligent choice.

Ecological and Carbon Footprints

2009-09-08T09:44:00.000-07:00

I know...I know...Anyone who has even a little interest in the environment has already calculated their footprint. But when was the last time you did so? Have you measured your progress? Shrunk a shoe size? Give it a whirl once again:

Ecological Footprint (how your lifestyle affects the Earth and its ability to regenerate new resources): www.ecofoot.org

Carbon Footprint ( a measure of how much carbon dioxide you use):

www.safeclimate.net

And just a reminder: The average person's Ecological footprint is 2.2 global hectares, while there are only 1.8 global hectares of biologically productive area per person available on the planet. (source: Global Footprint Network) What does this overshoot mean?

depleted groundwater

collapsing fisheries

carbon dioxide accumulation in the atmosphere

deforestation

Dry Cleaning

2009-09-05T15:24:00.000-07:00

I've noticed several new businesse in my area labelling themselves as Green or Organic Dry Cleaners. What does that mean exactly? Well, I investigated and as suspected organic in this instance doesn't necessarily mean healthy. Experts agress, however, that the following two methods of dry cleaning are safe and better than traditional toxin spewing processes.

Wet cleaning, which cleans fabrics using carefully controlled amounts of water, special non-toxic biodegradable detergents and computer-operated equipment.
Carbon dioxide cleaning, a technique that uses high pressure to convert CO2 gas to a liquid that can then act as a carrier for biodegradable soaps. When the wash is done, releasing the pressure turns the CO2 back into a gas, and clothes dry instantly.

The EPA compiled a list (in 2003) of cleaners using wet and/or CO2 cleaning methods. It is available at www.epa.gov/dfe/pubs/garment/gcrg/cleanguide.pdf.

Green Cleaning

2009-09-05T15:13:00.000-07:00

Wondering how to green your cleaning regime? Throw a party!

http://www.womenandenvironment.org/greenclean/

"Did you know that many household cleaners contain toxic chemicals linked to asthma and reproductive harm? But you can wipe out unsafe chemicals by mixing your own cleaning products!

A green cleaning party is a fun event where you and your friends learn how to make non-toxic cleaners from common ingredients like vinegar, baking soda and essential oils."

How Green Are Your Cosmetics?

2009-09-05T14:36:00.000-07:00

Want to see how green your cosmetic bag is?
Check out these websites for useful information...

Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database: cosmeticsdatabase.com
Campaign for Safe Cosmetics: www.safecosmetics.org
Teens for Safe cosemtics: www.teensforsafecosmetics.org

Then share with us your favorite green products!

When to buy organic

2009-09-05T13:30:00.000-07:00

Always (highest pesticide residue)

apples
bell and hot peppers
carrots
celery
cherries
grapes (imported)
greenbeans
nectarines
peaches
pears
potatoes
red raspberries
spinach strawberries

Buy when you can:

apricots
blueberries
cantaloupe
grapes (domestic)
honeydew melons
oranges
collard green
cucumber
kale
lettuce
mushroom
sweet pototoe
turnip greens
winter squash

Okay to buy conventional:

asparagus
avocados
apple juice
bananas
broccoli
cauliflower
cabbage
sweet corn
kiwi
mangoes
orange juice
onions
papayas
pineapples
plums
sweet peas
tangerines
watermelon

Thank You

2009-09-03T16:11:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to figure out the best way to thank the Facebook users who have so generously created birthday wishes that include raising funds for GreenPlanet. In the end I think spotlighting them on our blog here is the best and easiest (for me) way to manage it.

So today I'd like to thank:

Erick Alberto Guzman Alcantara
Josh Falco
Nikola Jocić
Elisabete Crespo

Thank you for helping us create a more sustainable world.

Water Neutral

2009-05-07T15:13:00.000-07:00

So the new phrase in the sustainable living world is "water neutral". This phrase was first used in 2002 at the World Summit on Sustainable Development. The world is starting to not only recognize what they eat, where they shop, what they discard but now it is coming to realize how much water one consumes. Each day we all waste water and if we can become more aware of what and where we are wasting water, then we can be "water neutral". You can check out this site to help calculate how much water you are using and where you can cut back. You might be surprised at how much you are wasting and how much you can save. Sometimes the first step is just recognizing and becoming aware of a situation. So good luck to you as you become more "water neutral"!