Fresh Greens
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The Recycling Bin: Halloween Edition
Continue reading… 0 CommentsSome tips and tricks (and treats!) to make your Halloween greener, from across the blogosphere:
--Does your halloween candy contain genetically modified sugar? You may never know.
--Haven't bought your trick-or-treat candy yet? Here are some organic options.
--Use real pumpkins and gourds, rather than plastic ones, to decorate for your Halloween party.
--If you're still scrounging for a costume, don't head to the store. Use what you have around the house. Or, if you want to be ironic, go as one of these 8 costumes that will irritate environmentalists.
--You could send your friends one of these rather sobering energy-themed Halloween e-cards if you want, but they may not get you into the spirit of the evening.
--It's too late to sign up for reverse trick-or-treating for Global Exchange, but if you're lucky, some kids will come to your door with fair-trade chocolate for you.
--When you leave for your Halloween party, keep vampire power away by unplugging unused devices.
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Kill Vampire Power on Halloween
Continue reading… 0 CommentsHalloween isn't until tomorrow, but Best Buy has declared today Vampire Day. Not the vampires you ward off with garlic and by driving a stake through their heart, of course—but vampire power, which is the energy consumed by plugged-in appliances while they're not in use.
According to Best Buy, "This insidious phenomenon is responsible for wasting an estimated $4 billion in the U.S. annually, and the Department of Energy notes that this figure could rise by 20 percent by 2010. Forty percent of all electricity used to power electronics and appliances in the average American home is consumed while they are turned off and the government has estimated that 'vampire power' consumes enough energy to equal to the output of 17 power plants."
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2 in 5 Brits Go Green to Save Money, Not the Planet
Continue reading… 1 CommentTwo in 5 Brits are telling their friends they're going green to save the planet but are actually acting greener to save money, according to a recent survey by Legal & General, a British financial services company.
Among the interesting findings:
While 27% of women said they were taking green measures solely to be environmentally friendly, which is higher than the number of men at 17%, it would appear that more women are actually guilty of misleading their friends about their motives. Over two in five, 45%, women are taking green measures in order to appear environmentally friendly when secretly they are doing it to save money, compared to just 36% of men.
I haven't yet found a similar study done with Americans, but it appears that many our friends across the pond are fooling their neighbors and friends with a greener-than-thou charade. Three of the biggest ways respondents went green included turning off the heat at home, recycling and reusing plastic bags, and cutting down on prepackaged meals. As for the deception, it doesn't really matter one way or the other for environmentalists, since the end effect is the same—less energy and resources used, more money in consumers' pockets. So, keep lying about the real reason you turned the thermostat down, ladies and gents. It's OK. Just know that we're on to you.
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Autumn Chill Brings Food Mile Faux Pas
Continue reading… 2 CommentsI bought some asparagus yesterday and then regretted it. Not because I don't like asparagus—it's great sautéed in garlic and olive oil—but because being the city-dweller that I am, I hadn't realized that asparagus is a spring crop. This means that the asparagus I ate traveled hundreds of miles to get from warmer climes to my local grocery store.
I found out my food mile faux pas when I checked out the Daily Green's "Food Mile Secrets Revealed," where I learned that in colder months, someone who wants to eat locally should avoid these five worst offenders: blueberries, grapes, peaches, asparagus, and canned fruits and vegetables (which come from all over the world). Daily Green also has a slideshow of what's in season at the farmer's market—go for pomegranates, pears, brussels sprouts, carrots, squash, and eggplant—complete with recipes. Next time, I'll reach for the sweet potatoes.
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8 Halloween Costumes That Will Scare Environmentalists
Continue reading… 20 CommentsYour green friends are carefully planning their Halloween costumes (made out of recycled materials, of course), and they'll be showing up to the costume party as Mother Nature, T. Boone Pickens, and Al Gore, while all you can do is roll your eyes. As they plan a green Halloween, you'll want to spoil their eco-minded celebration in the most passive-aggressive way possible. Try these costume suggestions:
- Safari Hunter—Tell environmentalists, "I have a blatant disregard for the well-being of wildlife," with a sexy safari costume, complete with a shotgun and victims. To enhance this costume, take some red paint and apply it to a few stuffed animals to sling over your shoulder or string around your belt. When you talk to people at the costume party, be sure to share your views about how the Bush administration is being a little too generous with the amount of creatures added to the endangered species list.
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Financial Crisis Hits Public Transit
Continue reading… 0 CommentsIf you rely on public transportation in Chicago, Atlanta, San Francisco, Los Angeles, or Washington, it may be time to consider a bike. The public-transit authorities of these cities have just found out that money they have borrowed from financial agencies will have to be paid back in a hurry. Says the Washington Post:
AIG had guaranteed deals between transit agencies and banks under which the banks made upfront payments that the agencies agreed to repay over time. But AIG's financial problems have invalidated the company's guarantees, putting the deals in technical default and allowing the banks to ask for all their money at once.
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Love the Environment? Break Up With Your Long-Distance Boyfriend, Says Slate
Continue reading… 8 CommentsBeing green can be such a drag. For the sake of our planet, all sorts of fun things can become an ethical no-no—that delicious, juicy steak, the fun-to-drive-but-fuel-inefficient car, the imported champagne. That's why I read with interest Barron YoungSmith's article on Slate arguing the case against long-distance relationships. Making greenies feel guilty about the occasional burger, well, that's nothing life-changing. But now we're laying the guilt on thick about love? The Grinch was green, too.
YoungSmith's argument is practical. Cross-country flights for bicoastal relationships and long car trips to meet a boyfriend or girlfriend contribute to climate change. In his example of an imaginary couple split between San Francisco and Washington, D.C., he states that the couple's impact is "six times worse for the environment than that of the average gas-guzzling American—and up to 10 times worse than that of the average San Franciscan. (Indeed, for her, breaking up would be about 10 times better for the environment than going vegetarian.)" Daters should aim to be "locasexual," the second new green word I've heard coined this week.
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Get Your Chopsticks Ready for Sustainable Sushi
Continue reading… 7 CommentsYour mouth may water at the thought of California rolls, spicy tuna, and crispy eel, but the ecofriendliness of ingredients on the menu of your favorite sushi varies widely. Three conservation organizations are helping consumers make better sushi choices with new sustainable sushi guidelines, which were released today. The Blue Ocean Institute, Environmental Defense Fund, and Monterey Bay Aquarium have developed color-coded guides that classify the sustainability and health risks of common sushi menu items, both in English and Japanese. The guides can be printed out or downloaded to mobile phones.
Green sushi lovers may be disappointed to see a few of their favorite ingredients on the "do not buy" list. Love the taste of octopus, bluefin tuna, freshwater eel, or farmed salmon? You're out of luck. Choices on the red list, according to a joint press release from the organizations, are "overfished, farmed with aquaculture methods that pollute the ocean, or caught using methods that destroy ocean habitats or kill large amounts of other sea life." Look instead to the wild Alaskan salmon and pollock, crab, squid, and farmed bass.
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'Carborexics': Crash Diet for the Planet
Continue reading… 3 CommentsA carbon footprint can be way harder to shrink than a waistline, but apparently obsessive dieters come in all shades. The New York Times coined a new green word last weekend (joining "locavore" and "flexitarian" on the list) with its article describing "carborexics." The term describes people so obsessed with shrinking their carbon footprint that they go to extremes, like hoarding trash or, in the case of Sharon Astyk, making their children sleep huddled in the same bed to conserve heat. Anita Lavine washed and reused the same plastic bag every day for a year, even when it contained soiled diapers.
To some mental health professionals, the compulsion to live green in the extreme can suggest a kind of disorder.
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Is This the Most Conflicted Prius Owner in America?
Continue reading… 26 CommentsThis Prius, adorned with a "Drill, Baby, Drill" bumper sticker was spotted in downtown Washington, D.C., on Saturday. Bend your mind around that irony, won't you?
(Courtesy of Leandro Oliva) -
The Recycling Bin: Oil at $70 a Barrel
Continue reading… 1 CommentThe price of oil, like our stock market, is plunging. For the first time in a year, we have $70-a-barrel oil, and gas stations around the country have responded by lowering prices. This is good for pocketbooks but bad for environmentalists—if gas is cheap, what happens to all the time and energy spent developing eco-friendly alternatives? Here's what the blogosphere says:
Keith Johnson of the Wall Street Journal wonders which is worse for clean energy proponents—the financial crisis or the plunging price of oil? Says Johnson, "When oil prices collapsed in the 1990s, renewable energy in the U.S. basically fell off a cliff. Nobody is predicting a return to $10 oil, but with $60 oil considered the 'new cheap,' could it happen again?"
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Obama's Electric Motorcade
Continue reading… 0 CommentsAs other bloggers have noted, neither Barack Obama nor John McCain said anything new about climate change or environmental issues in last night's debate. But EcoGeek has pointed out another interesting political tidbit that has gone under the radar since August: If elected, Obama plans to convert the entire presidential auto fleet into plug-in hybrids. Doing his part to popularize the plug-in, Obama could replace the traditional black presidential Cadillac limo with a Chevy Volt or, if he wanted something a little jazzier, a Tesla Roadster. The automakers sure could use his support, as they're in the midst of a slew of layoffs because of the financial crisis, which has made its mark across all aspects of green industry.
EcoGeek's Hank Green likens it to Carter's placement of solar panels on the White House and calls it "a vote of confidence in environmental policy from the most powerful figure in America." However, Carter's solar panels didn't have much of an effect on the industry, since funding for solar technology was halved during his tenure. If Obama is elected, we'll see how his electric motorcade fares.
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Sex Sells: Green Pinup-Girl Calendars
Continue reading… 0 CommentsPosters and public service announcements and "Inconvenient Truths" can attract only so much attention to green causes. That's why, when they wanted attention, a few green organizations have brought in something guaranteed to get our undivided focus: pretty girls in skimpy clothes.
The leader in this movement was the Philadelphia Eagles. The pro football team printed its annual cheerleader calendar on recycled paper, with the girls wearing only eco-friendly clothing and accessories, as part of the team's Go Green initiative in August. I'm sure you're eagerly awaiting a link to the photos; a slide show is here. No word on which specific Eagles green initiatives receive the proceeds from the calendar.
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Obama's Economic Plan Calls for Green Jobs
Continue reading… 8 CommentsIn his speech yesterday detailing his economic proposal for the country, Barack Obama stated that green jobs should be created for economic stimulus. The full transcript of his speech is here.
Some excerpts:
"We'll create 5 million new, high-wage jobs by investing in the renewable sources of energy that will eliminate the oil we currently import from the Middle East in 10 years, and we'll create 2 million jobs by rebuilding our crumbling roads, schools, and bridges."
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Make Any Job a Green Job—and Ace Your Interview
Continue reading… 0 CommentsGreen jobs—a prevalent buzzword on this year's campaign trail—are a growing sector of careers, ranging from forest ranger to corporate social responsibility consultant. Check out our guide to finding a great green job here. But you don't have to be an architect, engineer, or scientist to use your green knowledge in a job interview. According to Megan Cohen of Planet Green, your environmental smarts can impress potential employers in any sector.
Many companies are going green, and they're certainly competitive about it. They're also looking for candidates who can save them money—a feat that goes hand in hand with being green. Cohen recommends that you discuss the ways you're green and how they relate to your leadership skills. "Your future boss wants to know that you can be proactive and take initiative," she says. "Showcasing how you've stepped up to the plate in greening your lifestyle is a great way to highlight those qualities." You could also study up about green developments in your field and discuss them with a future employer. It will show them you're forward-thinking.
For more on green jobs, check out our guide:
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10 Ways to Go Green and Save Cash—No Excuses
Continue reading… 13 CommentsEveryone is feeling the squeeze right now, with our investments being decimated and our 401(k)'s withering away. Consumers across the country are looking for ways to cut back. Luckily, some of the best ways to save money are also simple steps toward living a little greener. And, as we recently learned, simple steps can have a big impact. So, try these green tips to save some needed cash—no excuses.
• Bike to work. Or bike to public transit.
Excuses: "But bikes are expensive! And I have to look nice for work."Why Your Excuses Are Lame: Often, you can buy a bike for the price of a tank of gas on Craigslist. It won't be titanium frame, but it will get you around. It's easy to bring a change of clothes and change at work, especially if your office has a locker room. If not, you can bike to public transit if it's available in your area, and walk the remainder. Another way you'll save money: By walking and biking more, you can cancel your gym membership.
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Keep These 5 Things Out of Your Recycling
Continue reading… 2 CommentsReduce, reuse, recycle: You know the drill. But when you set that bin out on the curb each week, are you sure that everything you put in it is going to good use? If you recycle incorrectly, all your best-intentioned plastic bottles may end up in a landfill. Lori Bongiorno of Yahoo Green breaks down the five items that should never end up in a recycling bin:
- Pizza boxes. The oil from pizza can contaminate cardboard boxes, making it impossible to process them into clean paper.
- Napkins and paper towels. It's not the paper goods themselves that present a problem, but the fact that they're typically used to wipe up food, cleaning products, and other "hazardous waste."
- Sticky notes. Their size, color, and the adhesive strip make them a better bet for the trash bin.
- Plastic caps. Curbside programs won't recycle them, but Aveda collects them and turns them into packaging for new products.
- Wet paper. Paper fibers that have been exposed to water are shorter and therefore less valuable to paper mills, making it unprofitable to collect and recycle.
The materials that recycling centers accept vary widely from region to region, so always check your recycling company’s website for details. There are some general guides, such as this one, that may help. Always check the number on the bottom of the plastic bottle or container before you throw it into a bin—companies are very specific about what they will and will not accept. And if you have some really unusual items that you’d like to recycle, check out How Can I Recycle This? The site offers recycling tips for anything from karate belts to television wires. And don’t forget that recycling can earn you some cash.
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Little Actions Make a Big Difference, Study Says
Continue reading… 0 CommentsA common argument against going green (prevalent also in the comments section of this blog) is that the little steps we take to improve the environment—eating less meat, biking to work, and cutting out plastic bags and bottles—don't do any good, because corporations will continue to pollute, negating our efforts.
Nice try, but McKinsey & Co. has just debunked it. In a study on consumers and carbon emissions, McKinsey researchers found that 37 percent of emissions were under direct consumer control and caused by things like cars (which made up 17 percent of all emissions) and residential heating and appliances. Things that fall under indirect consumer control, like shipping miles for food and other goods, or landfill emissions, constituted 28 percent of carbon emissions. Finally, 35 percent came from industry, agricultural emissions, and other sources beyond our control. This means that two thirds of all emissions are directly or indirectly within our grasp.
It's a morale booster for any uncertain environmentalists, that's for sure. It's also good news for our uncertain economic times, as many of the little steps to go green also help you save money. So, recycle, bike to work, make your home energy-smart, eat less meat, try to buy local foods, use reusable bags—the list goes on, and each item on it counts.
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Bailout Gives Tax Credits to Bike Commuters, Electric Cars, Renewable Energy
Continue reading… 8 CommentsThree new measures that will aid green consumers passed through Congress as part of the massive bailout bill last week. Here’s the rundown:
- The Bicycle Commuter Act was added on to last week’s bailout bill and will provide a $20 tax credit per month to employers of bike commuters. The credit is intended to go toward adding provisions for bike commuters, like racks and locker rooms, for those who decide to go car free. However, many are decrying the act because it is part of an assortment of pork added to the bailout that some find frivolous--other items of which include tax credits for NASCAR track owners, film companies, and manufacturers of wool clothing.
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Who Won the Environmental Section of Last Night's Debate—Palin or Biden?
Continue reading… 1 CommentAs the pundits continue to analyze last night's performances on both sides, let's turn a critical eye to the section of the debates that dealt with the environment. A transcript of the segment follows. (You can read the full transcript on CNN.) In the comments, tell me: Who do you think won this part of the debate?
IFILL: Governor, I'm happy to talk to you in this next section about energy issues. Let's talk about climate change. What is true and what is false about what we have heard, read, discussed, debated about the causes of climate change?
