A battle is underway in California’s San Francisco Bay area and it’s the latest front in the nationwide effort to ban the plastic bag.
The bag’s got some powerful allies in the plastic industry who have been suing Bay Area residents to stop these bans.
Check out this 2 minute video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSD21zp89zM - and learn how you can take action to say no to the plastic bag industry.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
It's Earth Day! It's Earth Day!
Maybe there are some people out there who believe that Christmas is a better holiday than Earth Day. Heck, there are probably people out there who don't consider Earth Day a holiday at all, considering we still have to work and everything, but those attitudes don't diminish the importance and awesomeness of Earth Day for a single second.
I won't bore you with a recap of what ED is and why it exists (you can read about it farther down on this page if you haven't already), but I will say that I hope everyone is taking a least a few minutes of their busy, work-filled day to do one green thing for their community and/or the planet. It can be as small as picking up a few pieces of trash on your way home or deciding to skip the chicken breast and eat vegetarian this evening...just do SOMETHING. This is one day that everyone who cares about the future of the Earth needs to band together and show their solidarity against the degradation of our planet, and if we all do one little thing, it can add up to great change. Seriously, if we all take the time to pick up and recycle one or two bottles today, that's hundreds (if not thousands) of bottles that will never reach a landfill...and that's simply if the readers of this blog make an effort. Think about the effect we could have if we encourage our friends and family to do the same! Our humble, initial efforts could end up with a far greater result than we had expected.
So, let's make this effort's growth exponential. If all my readers make sure that at least two other people know that today is Earth Day and encourage those other people to do the same, today's message could go viral Susan Boyle-style. What are you waiting for?!!? GO PASS SPREAD THE WORD, YBG-STYLE!
I won't bore you with a recap of what ED is and why it exists (you can read about it farther down on this page if you haven't already), but I will say that I hope everyone is taking a least a few minutes of their busy, work-filled day to do one green thing for their community and/or the planet. It can be as small as picking up a few pieces of trash on your way home or deciding to skip the chicken breast and eat vegetarian this evening...just do SOMETHING. This is one day that everyone who cares about the future of the Earth needs to band together and show their solidarity against the degradation of our planet, and if we all do one little thing, it can add up to great change. Seriously, if we all take the time to pick up and recycle one or two bottles today, that's hundreds (if not thousands) of bottles that will never reach a landfill...and that's simply if the readers of this blog make an effort. Think about the effect we could have if we encourage our friends and family to do the same! Our humble, initial efforts could end up with a far greater result than we had expected.
So, let's make this effort's growth exponential. If all my readers make sure that at least two other people know that today is Earth Day and encourage those other people to do the same, today's message could go viral Susan Boyle-style. What are you waiting for?!!? GO PASS SPREAD THE WORD, YBG-STYLE!
Monday, April 20, 2009
Inexpensive and Easy Earth Day Activities
I know, I know...you're beyond excited for Earth Day, but you have no idea what to do? Don't worry, YBG (via ecomii) has plenty of things you can do that are cheap, easy, and fun.
For $10
- Make a $10 donation (or more!) to Replanting the Rainforests, an organization collecting donations to help restore and permanently rebuild some of the 80% of the world’s native forests that have been destroyed.
- Offset your carbon footprint. Carbonfund.org allows you to see how much your carbon footprint is for your home, car, travel, or event and allows you to offset it. Or just select the Gift option to choose your offset in $10 increments (it’s tax deductible!).
- Go see Disneynature’s first film: Earth, adapted from the Emmy Award Winning Planet Earth, which follows three animal families and their journey. During opening week Disney will plant a tree for each ticket purchased (this is one thing I am DEFINITELY doing. So excited!).
For Free
- Volunteer at a local environmental or pro-green organization. Make a once a month commitment.
- Start a green habit. Buy reusable bags, get biodegradable poop bags for your pooch, start timing your showers, carpool, walk, take the bus, whatever you’ve been meaning to do, use Earth Day as a green New Years Eve.
- Plant something. Nothing feels greener than planting a tree or a garden.
- Get outside! Take a walk in the park or a hike in the woods and say thanks to Mother Nature up close.
Also, if you want to find events in your area, go to http://www.epa.gov/ and navigate to the interactive map.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
7 Days till Earth Day: A History Lesson
Earth Day, which was founded by U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson as an environmental teach-in in 1970, is celebrated in many countries each year on April 22.
In September 1969 at a conference in Seattle, Washington, U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin announced that in spring 1970 there would be a nationwide grassroots demonstration on the environment. This occurred during a time of great concern about overpopulation and when there was a strong movement towards "Zero Population Growth."
Nelson viewed the stabilization of the nation's population as an important aspect of environmentalism and later said:
"The bigger the population gets, the more serious the problems become ... We have to address the population issue. The United Kingdom, with the U.S. supporting it, took the position in Cairo in 1994 that every country was responsible for stabilizing its own population. It can be done. But in this country, it's phony to say 'I'm for the environment but not for limiting immigration.'"
Senator Nelson first proposed the nationwide environmental protest to thrust the environment onto the national agenda.” "It was a gamble," he recalls, "but it worked."
Five months before the first April 22 Earth Day, on Sunday, November 30, 1969, The New York Times carried a lengthy article by Gladwin Hill reporting on the rising hysteria of "global cooling":
"Rising concern about the environmental crisis is sweeping the nation's campuses with an intensity that may be on its way to eclipsing student discontent over the war in Vietnam...a national day of observance of environmental problems...is being planned for next spring...when a nationwide environmental 'teach-in'...coordinated from the office of Senator Gaylord Nelson is planned...." Senator Nelson also hired Denis Hayes as the coordinator.
April 22, 1970, Earth Day marks the beginning of the modern environmental movement. Approximately 20 million Americans participated, with a goal of a healthy, sustainable environment.
Denis Hayes, the national coordinator, and his old staff organized massive coast-to-coast rallies. Thousands of colleges and universities organized protests against the deterioration of the environment. Groups that had been fighting against oil spills, polluting factories and power plants, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides, freeways, the loss of wilderness, and the extinction of wildlife suddenly realized they shared common values.
Mobilizing 200 million people in 141 countries and lifting the status of environmental issues onto the world stage, Earth Day on April 22 in 1990 gave a huge boost to recycling efforts worldwide and helped pave the way for the 1992 United Nations Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro.
As the millennium approached, Hayes agreed to spearhead another campaign, this time focused on global warming and a push for clean energy. The April 22 Earth Day in 2000 combined the big-picture feistiness of the first Earth Day with the international grassroots activism of Earth Day 1990. For 2000, Earth Day had the Internet to help link activists around the world. By the time April 22 came around, 5,000 environmental groups around the world were on board, reaching out to hundreds of millions of people in a record 184 countries. Events varied: A talking drum chain traveled from village to village in Gabon, Africa, for example, while hundreds of thousands of people gathered on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., USA.
Earth Day 2000 sent the message loud and clear that citizens the world 'round wanted quick and decisive action on clean energy. Earth Day 2007 was one of the largest Earth Days to date, with an estimated billion people participating in the activities in thousands of places like Kiev, Ukraine; Caracas, Venezuela; Tuvalu; Manila, Philippines; Togo; Madrid, Spain; London; and New York.
Source: Earth Day Network
In September 1969 at a conference in Seattle, Washington, U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin announced that in spring 1970 there would be a nationwide grassroots demonstration on the environment. This occurred during a time of great concern about overpopulation and when there was a strong movement towards "Zero Population Growth."
Nelson viewed the stabilization of the nation's population as an important aspect of environmentalism and later said:
"The bigger the population gets, the more serious the problems become ... We have to address the population issue. The United Kingdom, with the U.S. supporting it, took the position in Cairo in 1994 that every country was responsible for stabilizing its own population. It can be done. But in this country, it's phony to say 'I'm for the environment but not for limiting immigration.'"
Senator Nelson first proposed the nationwide environmental protest to thrust the environment onto the national agenda.” "It was a gamble," he recalls, "but it worked."
Five months before the first April 22 Earth Day, on Sunday, November 30, 1969, The New York Times carried a lengthy article by Gladwin Hill reporting on the rising hysteria of "global cooling":
"Rising concern about the environmental crisis is sweeping the nation's campuses with an intensity that may be on its way to eclipsing student discontent over the war in Vietnam...a national day of observance of environmental problems...is being planned for next spring...when a nationwide environmental 'teach-in'...coordinated from the office of Senator Gaylord Nelson is planned...." Senator Nelson also hired Denis Hayes as the coordinator.
April 22, 1970, Earth Day marks the beginning of the modern environmental movement. Approximately 20 million Americans participated, with a goal of a healthy, sustainable environment.
Denis Hayes, the national coordinator, and his old staff organized massive coast-to-coast rallies. Thousands of colleges and universities organized protests against the deterioration of the environment. Groups that had been fighting against oil spills, polluting factories and power plants, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides, freeways, the loss of wilderness, and the extinction of wildlife suddenly realized they shared common values.
Mobilizing 200 million people in 141 countries and lifting the status of environmental issues onto the world stage, Earth Day on April 22 in 1990 gave a huge boost to recycling efforts worldwide and helped pave the way for the 1992 United Nations Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro.
As the millennium approached, Hayes agreed to spearhead another campaign, this time focused on global warming and a push for clean energy. The April 22 Earth Day in 2000 combined the big-picture feistiness of the first Earth Day with the international grassroots activism of Earth Day 1990. For 2000, Earth Day had the Internet to help link activists around the world. By the time April 22 came around, 5,000 environmental groups around the world were on board, reaching out to hundreds of millions of people in a record 184 countries. Events varied: A talking drum chain traveled from village to village in Gabon, Africa, for example, while hundreds of thousands of people gathered on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., USA.
Earth Day 2000 sent the message loud and clear that citizens the world 'round wanted quick and decisive action on clean energy. Earth Day 2007 was one of the largest Earth Days to date, with an estimated billion people participating in the activities in thousands of places like Kiev, Ukraine; Caracas, Venezuela; Tuvalu; Manila, Philippines; Togo; Madrid, Spain; London; and New York.
Source: Earth Day Network
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Get (Online) Coupon Crazy
Looking for an eco-friendly way to save money on all those things you just can't live without? Quit wasting paper on coupons that can be redeemed online. According to Simmons Market Research Bureau, currently more than 40 million people nationwide are printing online coupons. While coupons are a great way for YBGers to save money, paper coupons equate to a staggering amount of wasted paper. Instead of printing and clipping, go green by visiting free online coupon code and deal site Coupon Craze (www.couponcraze.com) before you shop.
If you need more convincing, check out Coupon Craze’s top 5 reasons why you should stop clipping and start clicking instead:
BE A SAVVY SHOPPER: If each of the 40 million people printing online coupons replaced one paper coupon with an online coupon code, 80,000 reams of paper would be saved!
SAVE TREES: 500,000 trees must be cut down to produce each week's Sunday newspapers, including the massive coupon section. Why? When only 0.5 percent of coupons inserted in Sunday newspapers were redeemed in 2008
BE GREEN: The average household throws away 13,000 pieces of paper each year, most of which is junk mail consisting of printed coupons and promotions. Reducing paper use reduces greenhouse gases and using 40 million pieces of paper translates into 3,000 acres of pine forest absorbing carbon for a year
CONSERVE WATER: Who knew? It takes more than 1½ cups of water to make one sheet of paper – meaning that the 40 million people who have printed coupons have wasted 3.75 million gallons of water.
STOP WASTING: The United States alone, which has less than 5% of the world's population, consumes 30% of the world's paper. As if that were bad: Approximately 1 billion trees worth of paper is thrown away every year in the U.S
So, visit Coupon Craze to find online deals and coupon codes that can easily replace those paper-wasting printed coupons. You can also shop the newly launched Coupon Craze Green category to find deals and codes for eco-friendly products.
PS - Yes, this is a press release from my friend Bailey at SHIFT Communications. How cool is it that I'm getting pitched by PR firms (even if it is by my friends)?
If you need more convincing, check out Coupon Craze’s top 5 reasons why you should stop clipping and start clicking instead:
BE A SAVVY SHOPPER: If each of the 40 million people printing online coupons replaced one paper coupon with an online coupon code, 80,000 reams of paper would be saved!
SAVE TREES: 500,000 trees must be cut down to produce each week's Sunday newspapers, including the massive coupon section. Why? When only 0.5 percent of coupons inserted in Sunday newspapers were redeemed in 2008
BE GREEN: The average household throws away 13,000 pieces of paper each year, most of which is junk mail consisting of printed coupons and promotions. Reducing paper use reduces greenhouse gases and using 40 million pieces of paper translates into 3,000 acres of pine forest absorbing carbon for a year
CONSERVE WATER: Who knew? It takes more than 1½ cups of water to make one sheet of paper – meaning that the 40 million people who have printed coupons have wasted 3.75 million gallons of water.
STOP WASTING: The United States alone, which has less than 5% of the world's population, consumes 30% of the world's paper. As if that were bad: Approximately 1 billion trees worth of paper is thrown away every year in the U.S
So, visit Coupon Craze to find online deals and coupon codes that can easily replace those paper-wasting printed coupons. You can also shop the newly launched Coupon Craze Green category to find deals and codes for eco-friendly products.
PS - Yes, this is a press release from my friend Bailey at SHIFT Communications. How cool is it that I'm getting pitched by PR firms (even if it is by my friends)?
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Eco-Fashion for Cheap
Ideal Bite beat me to this post...I had started writing it and everything, and then, what do I see in my inbox this morning, but the following (and being all about efficiency, why rewrite what's already been written, right? Thanks, IB!)...
Check out these under-$50 fashion-forward finds from stores you already know, like Target. So cheap, you can make like a thug (but not dress like one).
Check it out:
H&M - in addition to its plan of upping its organic cotton use by 50% over last year (note: it doesn't label most of its organic apparel as such), on Earth Day H&M will debut a line made partially from recycled plastic bottles (many pieces under $50)
Loomstate for Target - full line of limited-run men's and women's casual-cool clothes (jeans, dresses, even swimwear) from Loomstate; available starting Sunday, ending mid-May ($45 and under).
Zoe&Zac - Payless's new line of casual footwear, bags, and jewelry made with materials like hemp, organic cotton, and water-based glues; designed with help from eco-model Summer Rayne Oakes, available now. For every pair you buy between now and May 4, Payless will donate $1 to plant trees ($30 and under).
Urban Outfitters Urban Renewal - bid on hand-picked vintage clothing, many from big-name designers; available now with new stuff every week (starting at $10; note that items may get bid up beyond $50).
Check out these under-$50 fashion-forward finds from stores you already know, like Target. So cheap, you can make like a thug (but not dress like one).
Check it out:
H&M - in addition to its plan of upping its organic cotton use by 50% over last year (note: it doesn't label most of its organic apparel as such), on Earth Day H&M will debut a line made partially from recycled plastic bottles (many pieces under $50)
Loomstate for Target - full line of limited-run men's and women's casual-cool clothes (jeans, dresses, even swimwear) from Loomstate; available starting Sunday, ending mid-May ($45 and under).
Zoe&Zac - Payless's new line of casual footwear, bags, and jewelry made with materials like hemp, organic cotton, and water-based glues; designed with help from eco-model Summer Rayne Oakes, available now. For every pair you buy between now and May 4, Payless will donate $1 to plant trees ($30 and under).
Urban Outfitters Urban Renewal - bid on hand-picked vintage clothing, many from big-name designers; available now with new stuff every week (starting at $10; note that items may get bid up beyond $50).
Monday, April 6, 2009
San Francisco wins!
Yet again, I'm proud to be a San Franciscan. Why? Well, because the US News and World Report had the following to say about a study that came out last week (as well as a few other recent studies):
In news that surprised absolutely no one San Francisco was declared America's Least Wasteful City in a study sponsored by reusable water bottle maker Nalgene. Indeed, five of the top 10 cities on the list are on the West Coast, mirroring trends in nearly every city-ranking green study that's come out recently. Witness:
- America's Most Walkable City: San Fransicso, joined in the top 10 by Seattle, Long Beach, Calif., Portland, Ore.
- America's 50 Greenest Cities: Portland, Ore., joined by #2 San Francisco, #4 Oakland, Calif. #5 Eugene, Ore., #7 Berkeley, Calif., and #8 Seattle.
- SustainLane's Greenest Cities: mirrors the list above, except Seattle is moved up to third place, Oakland is ninth, and Eugene and Berkeley are knocked out of the top 10.
- America's Greenest Economic Cities puts Sacramento, Calif, in first place, followed by all of the usual suspects.
- America's Top 10 Energy Star Cities put Los Angeles , and San Francisco in first and second place, respectively.
You get the idea. (Find the full list of least wasteful cities here.)
Southern cities consistently rank towards the bottom of these lists, due to lack of public transportation, inadequate recycling, and energy usage, among other factors. What do you think: could Houston, Orlando or Birmingham, Ala. ever be as green as San Francisco? Or are these cities just too fundamentally different?
Friday, April 3, 2009
Dishwashing by Hand or Machine
In honor of the new apartment I will be moving into at the end of the month (that has a dishwasher!!!), I want to educate my readers about energy and water-use involved with hand-washing dishes versus washing your dishes in the dishwasher. A scientific study done at The University of Bonn in German thoroughly explored the age-old question of hand vs machine, and those inquisitive Germans discovered the following: the dishwasher uses only half the energy, one-sixth of the water, and less soap than washing by hand. The study also rated the level of cleanliness achieved by both methods, and again the washing machine won. Don't you just LOVE when the lazy method is also the better method? I do! I do! So, next time you have a dinner party and your guests try to wash the remainder of the dishes in the sink after the washer is full, tell them to DROP THE SPONGE. You can load the rest of those dishes into the machine in the morning. Sometime even the best intentions aren't the eco-friendly ones.Last note - be sure to use eco-friendly soap and always wait till the d'washer is full before running it. Have a great weekend!
Thursday, April 2, 2009
A Sale!
Just FYI...my fave online eco-fashion store is having a sale, and I wanted to pass it on to everyone. Let me know if you want me to forward you the email that can get you free shipping :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
