April 18th, 2012
This post is part of a series counting up to Earth Day on April 22. Check back for the rest of the 22 tips!
I’m not talking in botanical terms when I say to explore Roots & Shoots, though it could involve getting your hands a little dirty.
I just had the big pleasure of talking with Jane Goodall during a question-and-answer call with other bloggers about the upcoming “Chimpanzee” movie (much more on that later), and one of the things she really wants you to do (in addition to seeing “Chimpanzee” during its first week, April 20-26) is explore to the program Roots & Shoots.
It’s the Jane Goodall Institute’s international environmental and humanitarian program for young people of all ages. The program has a mission: to foster respect and compassion for all living things, to promote understanding of all cultures and beliefs, and to inspire each individual to take action to make the world a better place for people, animals and the environment.
For parents, Roots & Shoots offers a way to bond with children over fun and safe community service projects.
For educators, Roots & Shoots offers creative freedom in the use of service learning to enhance the curriculum and meet educational goals.
For college students, Roots & Shoots offers the opportunity to design and implement projects to go with studies and interests.
For the environment, Roots & Shoots helps ensure a new generation of young people will grow up with a deeper understanding of the global impact of their everyday actions.
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April 17th, 2012
This post is part of a series counting up to Earth Day on April 22. Check back for the rest of the 22 tips!
Bananas are the most popular fruit in the world! I can see why too. They’re great in smoothies or just as a snack. And have you had a good banana pudding lately? Yum.
When you buy your bananas, look for the green sticker with the frog that reads “Rainforest Alliance Certified.” The certification, given to around 15 percent of all bananas in international trade, means that the fruit you’re eating was grown and harvested responsibly. Also look for Rainforest Alliance certification on other tropical fruits like mangoes and pineapples.
The Rainforest Alliance works with growers to combat problems that have been associated with the banana industry – deforestation, pollution of coral reefs and watersheds, and use of toxic agrochemicals.
Working with the Rainforest Alliance, certified growers practice methods that are more healthy for the rainforest and its inhabitants, and for workers and people who live around banana plantations.
Does your grocery store sell Rainforest Alliance Certified bananas?
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April 10th, 2012
This post is part of a series counting up to Earth Day on April 22. Check back for the rest of the 22 tips!
Spread green habits for Earth Day. The idea is that when you do something nice for someone, they’ll hopefully adopt a new habit like taking their own bags or recycling. Here are some some ideas for you.
Buy a few reusable bags at the register at your favorite store and ask the cashier to give them to the person in line behind you. If you’re shy, just do this when no one is waiting behind you, and they’ll have no idea who to thank. Still too shy? Then, organize a sewing party to make reusable bags to donate at shelters or food banks.
Another idea: Give away a recycling bin! Ask your non-recycling neighbor or friend if he or she would like to try out recycling. If you get a “yes,” explain how to sort the recycling for your city, and even offer to take it to the recycling center if needed.
Finally, when you’re doing your spring cleaning, don’t forget about the puppies and kitties! Instead of throwing away old blankets or towels, donate them to your local animal shelter or animal hospital. They’re very helpful in that environment, plus you’re allowing the shelters save funds.
Have you ever performed a random act of green to help someone else?
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April 10th, 2012
This post is part of a series counting up to Earth Day on April 22. Check back for the rest of the 22 tips!
Have you thought about the differences between your beliefs and how you act? More specifically, have you considered whether you act to protect the planet as much as you think you should?
A survey by Yale and George Mason universities released a couple of years ago shows that while most of us like the idea of conservation, only a few of us actually practice it in our everyday lives.
The nationally representative survey of 1,001 American adults found that while 88 percent of Americans said it’s important to recycle at home, only 51 percent often or always do.
Plus, 81 percent indicated that the use of reusable shopping bags is important, but only 33 percent often or always use them. And 76 percent noted it’s important to buy locally grown food, yet just 26 percent often or always do it.
For Earth Day, think about some eco-friendly things you’ve been wanting to do, and make them happen.
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April 2nd, 2012
This post is part of a series counting up to Earth Day on April 22. Check back for the rest of the 22 tips!
Did you realize that those extremely pesky packing peanuts are actually a plastic? Uh-huh. Peanuts belong to the Styrofoam family. They’re actually a funny, mostly air type of Styrofoam called expanded polystyrene, or EPS.
As with all things, it’s better to reuse. However, I get that you may not want an abundant mass of peanuts, or other foam packaging like bricks. Good news: You can unload your peanuts without feeling guilty. Just mail the foam back for recycling, or look for a drop-off location near you.
The Alliance of Foam Packaging provides you with the low-down on EPS drop-off locations or mailing instructions if a site isn’t near you, plus a 24-hour peanut recycling hotline: 800-828-2214! And, as Diana mentioned in comments, you can also drop your peanuts off at your nearest UPS Store.
(image via flickr)
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April 1st, 2012
This post is part of a series counting up to Earth Day on April 22. Check back for the rest of the 22 tips!
While you’ll frequently find that yogurt and sour cream containers are marked #5 for recycling, not all recycling centers accept this plastic. Don’t toss em though. Instead, make an Earth Day pledge to keep those containers out of the landfill.
Polypropylene, or PP, is the plastic that’s behind that odd number 5, but all those dairy containers are indeed recyclable.
Fortunately, more recycling centers are starting to take on #5 plastics, but until yours does, you have another option. Preserve’s Gimme 5 Program makes it easy for you to keep your yogurt containers out of the landfill.
In fact, you can drop off any #5 plastic, like medicine bottles and Brita filters, at Preserve Gimme 5 locations in participating Whole Foods Market stores and co-op markets. And, yes, there’s a free app for that: Gimme 5 – #5 Plastic Recycling.
Stop tossing #5, and you can also get rewards with the new Gimme 5 Recyclebank!
(image via flickr)
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March 31st, 2012
Some people might think, oh, what good will it do to save one hour of electricity? But that’s not the point of Earth Hour.
Go dark at 8:30pm your time tonight (March 31) to show your support for protecting the planet.
Istanbul Turkey Akaretler Earth Hour 2011 (via flickr Mehmet Bayrak)
Nelson Mandela has tweeted his support for Earth Hour, so won’t you join him?
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February 11th, 2012
What kind of hippy freak would encourage you not to buy Girl Scout cookies in order to help save rain forests?
Well, me. But it’s a very reasonable thing. I don’t have a brain tumor, and I have nothing against the Girl Scouts. In fact, the Girl Scouts are dealing with an internal uprising consisting of some of their very own young members. Some Girl Scouts aren’t loving the fact that their iconic cookies contain palm oil.
You may remember my post from last March, Should You Ban Girl Scout Cookies?
I love a Tagalong as much as the next non-peanut allergic person, but I do think that the Girl Scouts need to do some soul searching about their use of palm oil in their famed and addictive cookies.
What’s so bad about using palm oil anyway?
Everyone’s doing it! And that’s the problem.
Rain forests are being destroyed at an alarming rate to produce palm oil. Endangered animals like tigers, orangutans and pygmy elephants need that habitat to survive. Plus, palm oil has more saturated fat than alternatives like canola.
During my brief stint in the Brownies, I kept wondering when we’d make cookies. Maybe that’s why I dropped out. I guess it’s acceptable that Girl Scouts don’t bake their own cookies, but they should feel comfortable selling those cookies that are allegedly baked under their authority.
It may seem unfair that the Girl Scouts are being demonized for their use of palm oil in cookies. Many, many products contain palm oil, but you can help change that.
Speak with your dollars. Look at ingredients and choose products that don’t contain palm oil. It’s an easy choice when you take a minute to think about it.
Do you buy Girl Scout cookies?
(image from flickr punctuated)
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January 12th, 2012
Ugh, if you ever needed an excuse to buy organic orange juice, here it is!
Yep. Coke has found an “unapproved fungicide” in its orange juice, and the orange juice of its competitors. So, there’s an approved fungicide for orange juice? I guess so.
The problem came from Brazilian growers who sprayed their trees with the “unapproved fungicide.”
I don’t drink OJ often, but I was craving some recently. I don’t like buying large containers of OJ since it ends up being wasted. Just yesterday, I saw a small container of Simply Orange, and decided to put in it my cart. But guess what? Simply Orange has juice from Brazil. I don’t know if this is the juice that’s contaminated, but I’ve learned my lesson anyway.
I’m annoyed that the FDA and Coke aren’t yet naming the affected or suspect orange juice brands. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that shipments of orange juice will be stopped at ports for testing. Coke makes Simply Orange and Minute Maid.
Simply Orange is going back to the store, and I’m never buying conventional orange juice again. I don’t need any fungicides, approved or not. The EPA says that we shouldn’t worry over fungicides at such low levels, but I think that’s ridiculous.
Oranges aren’t even on the dirty dozen list, so these fungicide findings are making me wonder whether any conventionally grown fruits are safe.
Please call Coke to demand better quality control: 1-800-GET-COKE (438-2653). I doubt that the problem is isolated to Coke, but they’re one of the largest makers of orange juice, so it’s a good place to start. Again, I don’t buy OJ often, but now I’m looking for a safe option for the few times I do purchase it.
Do you have a favorite organic orange juice brand?
UPDATE 1/12/12: I just called Minute Maid/Coke. I wouldn’t tell you to do something I wouldn’t do myself!
The person I talked with, Tommy, was very friendly and had plenty of information about this issue. He explained that Coke quickly notified regulators about the problem when they discovered it. They were the whistle blowers.
I pointed out that it took a few weeks between them blowing that whistle and the news story coming out. He pointed out that with Simply Orange sometimes all the oranges used do come from the U.S., but it’s not always possible. He also said that the low levels of fungicides detected were deemed safe, so there’s no recall. There was no offer of refund.
I pointed out that I’d like to see an organic option from the company. He said that was great feedback to give to their executives and he got my ZIP code.
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