green living

World Wildlife Fund (WWF) "Time for a Change" for Earth Day

PHowe — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 08:01:58 -0400

As we approach this year’s Earth Day (April 22), the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) is once again encouraging people of all ages to make a pledge for change in the fight to save endangered species, protect endangered habitats and address global threats such as deforestation, overfishing and climate change.

WWF is asking people worldwide to make and share their personal commitment to help save the planet. The interactive “Time for Change” website....

continue reading at - http://www.gatheringhome.com/

Criminalizing Small Farms, With HR 875

PHowe — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 16:52:57 -0400

Proposed legislation, HR 875, is a major threat to sustainable farming and the local food movement. Supported by the deep pockets and political influence of Monsanto, this legislation places small farms throughout the country under federal jurisdiction and would give the federal government the authority to appoint
designated ~ Sadministrators~T (lobbyist, consultants, private contractors, etc.) and empower them with the authority to enforce severe penalties for non-compliance.

The wording of this bill is so broad and vague, non-compliance could very well include anything from the use of home-made farm equipment....

continue reading at- http://www.gatheringhome.com/

Is Your Favorite Actor Green?

jchatraw — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 06:00:00 -0500

Much for the same reason I turn off the radio when Chowder Head from Boston calls in to a sports talk show to weigh with his take on why the Red Sox are winning, I tune out most actors and pop stars when they start talking about anything other than their art or craft. Fine, you starred as half man, half human in a $150 billion summer blockbuster, but I seriously could care less who you think would make a great president.

However, I will pause to listen when they use their star power to promote a worthy cause, whether it actually means something to them or not. In Elizabeth Rogers and Thomas M. Kostigen's The Green Book: The everyday guide to saving the planet one simple step at a time is a great collection of interviews and stories from celebrities who are going green and living to tell about it. Stars such as Ellen DeGeneres, Robert Redford, Will Ferrell, Jennifer Aniston, Faith Hill, Tim McGraw, Martha Stewart, Tyra Banks, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Tiki Barber, Owen Wilson, and Justin Timberlake all weigh in on the subject of green living. It's full of practical tips and fun insights into the stars' lives.

Here's a glimpse into Cameron Diaz's green upbringing:

“My grandmother raised her own livestock in her backyard, her own vegetables in her backyard. And it was just here in the Valley next to Glendale, next to where the California Pizza Kitchen is right now. It was a different era and a different mentality. She raised her first four children there.

“I watched my grandmother reuse tinfoil and plastic bags. And when she was finished with a loaf of bread, she kept that plastic bag and she would use it for something else. She would make soap out of the fat drippings off of the meet she cooked. Nothing went to waste. Everything was reused and recycled. So I had that as an example.

“I don’t think that example exists for the generation right now. My grandmother lived a true sustainable existence. Everything she took from the land, she put back. Everything that she put back, she would take out again. It was a continuous cycle. And I witnessed that, and I was influenced a lot by that. My mother was influenced by that, and she passed it on to me. We need to be the examples now.”

Would You Like Some Solar Fries with That?

jchatraw — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 06:00:00 -0500

I'll never forget the night we went to the store to buy our first microwave oven. In my innocence, I wondered why we would ever need two ovens. Then my dad explained to me the wonders of the microwave, how we could just put food in it and -- presto! -- it would come out piping hot. It wasn't until I went to college that I truly appreciated this amazing invention, although at the time it was lost on a mind that pondered why we didn't just start cooking earlier if it took so long.

Now my mind is making the adjustment again, moving from a faster mentality to a slower one with the solar oven. In Scott Kellogg and Stacy Pettigrew's book Toolbox for Sustainable City Living, you learn how to not only bake with a solar oven but also how to build one. Now, no one has ever accused me of being a handyman (and probably never will, except for my two-year-old who thinks I can fix anything), but the oven seems simple enough to make. Yes, I believe even I could do it.

Here's what they say about solar ovens:

"Solar ovens cook food over the course of a day. Although it may take several hours to bake a potato, slow cooking's conversion of starches to sugars makes up for the wait. Food cooked in this way is especially tasty. Solar ovens produce deliciously cooked food with no energy inputs other than the sun and are great for tasks from cooking vegetables and tofus to toasting nuts. In their most basic form, solar ovens are boxes covered by glazing that heat up when set in the sun. Their designs can be highly elaborate or plain and simple. Solar ovens can be constructed out of wood or even layers of cardboard.

"The sheet of glazing that covers a solar oven allows sun rays in, but doesn't let heat back out. This trapped high heat sometimes nears 200 degrees and will crack regular glass. Tempered glass must be used for glazing. Store-bought tempered glass is the heat-resistant glass dors found on some ovens. Another cheap option is to use baking bags--plastic bags designed to roast turkey. These can be cut open and stretched across a solar oven. For the same reason that regular glass can't be used for glazing, only oven-safe cookware can be used inside of a solar oven."

What Does a Lifetime of Eggs Look Like?

jchatraw — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 18:22:15 -0400

Upon the birth of my daughter, I began contemplating just how many diapers were being carted to the landfill each week from our house alone. Then I began quickly running the numbers in my head … times two years, carry the one … I was shocked! If only I could get a visual of what that many diapers piled up would look like …

While I love books, sometimes a picture is worth way more than a thousand words when determining the enormity of the footprint average Americans are making on the planet. Enter National Geographic and its “Human Footprint” DVD hosted by newscaster Elizabeth Vargas.

Instead of letting your head swell with numbers that are difficult to put into visual comparison, National Geographic does the work for you. Want to know how much crude oil it takes for disposable diapers? Want to see what a giant omelet looks like comprised of all the eggs an American eats during his or her lifetime? Want to know how many gallons of milk the average American consumes? This video will show you.

As opposed to the preachy, condemning tone that many videos present these ideas, Vargas and National Geographic display the visuals in a fun way that are sobering unto themselves. It will definitely make you think.

Halloween -- Only Happier -- Eco ideas!

PHowe — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 00:01:20 -0400

Little has been done to tackle the documented problem of forced child labor on many of the farms that supply cocoa to the major chocolate manufacturers. Consider helping to spread the word by passing out the enlightening ...

continue reading at- http://www.gatheringhome.com/2008/10/halloween-only.html

Green Fun For Kids

PHowe — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 23:59:07 -0400

The Scrap Kins are a group of creatures that live in a recycling center and build their world out of the things people throw away. The Scrap Kins mission is to foster eco-awareness, promote recycling and encourage kids to use their imagination...

continue reading at- http://www.gatheringhome.com/2008/10/green-fun-for-k.html

Live Like Ed?

jchatraw — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 01:56:36 -0400

I can think of a hundred more enticing titles than "Living with Ed" for a TV show, but the concept is still a good one: Watch Ed Begley Jr. and his lovely wife Rachelle go green. It's a take off on his book by the same name "Live Like Ed! A Guide to the Eco-Friendly Life" and is as informative as it is entertaining.

I'm a sucker for reality shows but really don't like the fact that it's always about trying to connive behind everyone else's back to move ahead in the game. But a reality show where we learn what it's like to be more green? Sign me up with soy ink on post-consumer recycled paper.

Here's a tidbit from Ed that goes beyond the recycled tips:

Recycle Your Fiber

Everyone knows they should recycle their paper & plastic, but recycling your clothes and other fiber materials can also save energy. Shirts, jackets, hats, and even carpets made from recycled materials are now available.

Simple Prosperity

jchatraw — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 01:21:55 -0400

I used to think hard work was a necessary evil. In my first job out of college, I worked 12-14 hour days and often felt lazy. I could be doing more, I thought. Then I realized I hadn't had an original thought pop into my head in weeks--and the staff I was working with could handle me "slacking off" to 8-hour days.

What I discovered beside happiness and a rediscovered social life was that working harder doesn't necessarily mean working longer. In fact, sometimes working harder is fruitless. But long hours is an epidemic in our society. I can't believe I started having conversations with my peers about retirement when we were in our mid-20s!

David Wann's new book Simple Prosperity: Finding Real Wealth in a Sustainable Lifestyle is a thought provoking work, challenging the reader to examine what sustainable living truly looks like and how to get there. His chapter on "Time Affluence" challenged me to plot and scheme--not to mention support possible legislation--to work less, not more. The four-hour work week isn't feasible for most, but working less than 40 is something I aspire to do one day. Here's what Wann has to say on this topic:

[John de Graaf] is also national coordinator of the organization Take Back Your Time, and has thoroughly documented the American syndrome of overworking. (He has many suggestions for what to do about it, too. See www.Timeday.org.) De Graaf notes that 57 percent of employed adults say they don’t always leave work on time, and less than one out of five are “very satisfied” with their current work/life balance. “More than half of Americans say they’d be willing to trade a day off a week for a day’s pay a week,” says de Graaf.

A full third of U.S. adult employees don’t use all of their vacation days—574 million vacation days were left on the table in 2006! Why? Because overwork has become “normal” in America. We can’t afford to lose our jobs because house payments are huge, the standard of living is inflated, and health-care benefits are linked with work. Although employers are convinced that longer hours mean more productivity, countless studies link longer work with carelessness and injuries. “Job stress and burnout costs the U.S. economy more than $300 billion a year,” estimates de Graaf.

John de Gaaf has become politically active on the work-time issue, meeting with politicians such as Barack Obama to find political support for legislation that has his organization advocates. This proposed legislation would amend the Fair Labor Standards Act to grant three weeks of time off for anyone who’s worked at a job for a year. … [De Graaf says], “In France, for example, it’s not just the red wine that leads to lower health risks of heart disease, but the long, leisurely meals that create healthy bonds of friendship.”

Green from the Ground Up

jchatraw — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 03:35:08 -0400

While recently shopping for a house, I was shocked at how often developers throw around the word "green" as if it's as simple to do as saying replacing tile over laminate. What I really discovered was that developers were using the word "green" because it's a buzzword in our culture, not because it truly meant anything. It was just another marketing ploy. Double-paned windows are good, but as Yoda would say, "A green house it does not make."

A friend of mine recently finished the most gorgeous green home I've ever seen. He and his builder attempted to create the highest-rated LEED home in the state. While the final inspection has yet to reveal if they reached their goal, I received a crash course in understanding what green building is truly all about.

If you're interested in this topic, David Johnston and Scott Gibson's book Green from the Ground Up is a must read. It's written for builders, but buyers need to read it so they don't get the wool pulled over their eyes by slick developers who do just barely enough to call something green when in reality they're jacking the price up and selling you short. Here's an excerpt from the book explaining what green building really is:

At its most basic, green building is a tripod of three interrelated goals:

Energy efficiency, the cornerstone of any green building project. A well-designed and green-built home consumes as little energy as possible and uses renewable sources of energy whenever possible. Lower energy use not only saves homeowners money but also has broader societal benefits, including fewer disruptions in energy supplies, better air quality, and reduced global climate change.

Conservation of natural resources. Conventional building needlessly consumes large quantities of wood, water, metal, and fossil fuels. There are great varieties of effective building strategies that conserve natural resources and provide other benefits, such as lower costs. Strategies include the use of durable products to reduce waste and specify recycled-content products that reuse natural resources.

Indoor air quality. Poor indoor air quality is often caused by mold and mildew that are the result of leaks or poorly designed and maintained heating and cooling systems. Another common source of indoor air pollution is the off-gassing of chemicals found in many building materials. Some are known carcinogens.