December 6, 2007 by Julie.

Recently, one of our hosts asked if we might leave a list of simple things to do in life that are beneficial to the environment - so I wrote this out, and Mark thought I should go ahead and put it here in case other moms might find it useful. I hope some may find it so.
(And, thank you, Donna, for the impetus!)

You will already be doing a lot of these, I am sure, but I will just list them anyway:

EASY THINGS THAT MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE:
CONSERVE:

WATER
1.turn off faucets while brushing teeth, washing dishes, etc.
2.Take fewer or shorter showers when you can.
3.”Flush down only when brown,” lol.
4.If you do water lawn, only do so after sunset.
5. Never run water over paved surfaces if you can help it.
6. Eat less meat.
7. If your toilet is old and you are going to replace is, buy dual flush toilet! they’re cool!
8. replace regular showerheads with low-flow showerheads

ELECTRICITY
1.turn off lights when not in use.
2.Unplug appliances when not is use (anything that goes on with a remote will pull energy even in the off position)
3. replace incandescent bulbs with CFL’s (compact flourescents) or, better yet, with LED’s! (by the way, if you are interested, there are a couple of sites where you can buy LED Xmas lights for no more than the old, energy sucking kind…let me know)
4. girls: Air dry hair sometimes or always
5. Air-dry clothes whenever possibile
6. Point-specific heating (You do this already!)
7. Consider reading a book instead of turning on the TV

ENERGY:
1. Drive less
2. Ride bikes more often
3. Use things more than once - ie: jars, rubberbands, etc
4. Thrift stores!! and Repair/alter clothes
5. Consider paying a little extra to your electric company if they offer paying into renewable energy credits - we have been assured that this $ does indeed go into the production of new solar panels, windmills, etc.
6. Eat local and buy from your local small businesses. Avoid big chains whenever possible. Studies show that what you buy in the big box stores gets shipped all over the world, is not regulated in materials or labor, and causes $ to go out of the community never to return
7. Buy fruits/veggies in season
8. Consider buying a hybrid or otherwise very fuel efficient vehicle
9. If you don’t have the best insulation, use heavy draperies. You can open them during the day for some light and to let the sun in to warm the rooms, then close when the sun goes down to trap heat in and keep cold air out.

PAPER:
1. Go to Greendimes.com and let them help you cut your junk mail while planting trees at the same time…
2. Try online subscriptions to magazines (* i kind of avoid this option bc there are a few magazines that i really treasure arriving at my house and i read them cover to cover, like YES and the SUN)
3. Use chicobags! for your groceries, and for all shopping excursions…
4. Use cloth napkins, and handtowels at home.
5. Carry handkerchiefs and/or bandanas for away…
FOR YOUR HEALTH:
1. Avoid using plastic, particularly in conjunction with food, more particularly with liquids and most particularly when there is change in temp or flexing of materials. PYREX is best for storage. KLEAN KANTEEN for stainless steel water bottles.
2. Eat organic whenever possible, and/or local pesticide free (farmers will be honest with you if they use chemicals or not)
3. Avoid fish. Here are 2 weblinks: www.fish online.org/information/MCSPocket_Good_Fish_Guide.pdf or www.nrdc.org/health/effects/mercury/walletcard.pdf
4. ORGANIC PRODUCE!!! http://www.grinningplanet.com/2006/update-2005-05-24/pesticides-in-food.htm
5. Buy milk that is produced without the use of bovine growth hormone (Organic is better, local dairy is best)
6. Buy eggs that are free range. (same with meat, if you have to eat meat)
7. Avoid parabens in any product that comes in contact with your skin - remember, your skin EATS, so don’t put anything on there that you wouldn’t put in your mouth!
8. Use cleaning supplies like your grandmother used (ie: vinegar, Borax, Baking Soda)
9. Don’t forget to stretch, take walks, get outside…

KEYS TO MAKING NO TRASH:
1. Carry cloth bandana
2. Carry nonbreakable glassware for storage (www.pyrexware.com)
3. chicobags!!! ( www.chicobag.com)
4. carry some kind of utensil (we like togoware)
5. pocket notebook
6. Don’t be afraid to tell whoever you’re about to order from that you are doing an experiment, and trying not to make any trash…
7. Buy fresh food instead of packaged whenever possible
8. Lush offers soaps that have no packaging, and you can find many others at local health food shops
9. Preserve is a company that will take back your toothbrush/razor, etc. and turn it into…something else…

DON’T BE SILENT
1. Write opinions to your newspaper
2. Write and call your legislators and let them know how you feel about how they’re voting
3. Here are some websites to help with that, to, who’s been voting on what: Union of Concerned Scientists, Environmental Working Group, World Wildlife Fund, Defenders of Wildlife, www.saveourenvironment.org, www.care2.org, www.avaaz.org
4. Talk to your extended family, too, and friends. There are cool things to do sometimes through the Sierra Club that might be fun at the same time.
5. Write to any companies that have things you don’t like (ie: too much packaging, some nasty chemical you don’t want to be exposed to, etc.)
6. write us a note and say hi whenever you want to… and ask us any questions you may have…we will answer them if we can

Well, that is maybe more than what you were hoping for?
and maybe not even a complete list…

GREAT BOOKS:
Cradle to Cradle by William McDonough
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver
The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan
The Secret Life of Stuff (by ?)

Posted in Issues, Julie | 5 Comments »

December 6, 2007 by Julie.

First i have to say a huge thank you to Ben’s Dad for putting us up for a whopping 9 days in Arizona over Thanksgiving. We were so overdue for actual downtime that we sucked up the comforts of home like we were moving in. And secondly, I have to thank him for setting up our entire Arizona interview schedule. It was amazing, we were able to focus on all the other things…

We got to visit a really cool school called Starshine Academy which is going out of its way to be sustainable - they even have a garden and a compost out back! Mark gave his final two Inconvenient Truth presentations there and we had a lot of fun fielding questions after. One of the teachers, Lesley, has already informed us of the changes being made since YERT arrived, and several of the students have emailed us to say that they are accepting challenges: one is walking to school this week, one is changing the household’s lightbulbs to CFLs. Go, Kids!

Next we visited Debra Bills and Jeff Humphrey at the Dept of Fish and Wildlife who told us a bit about some of Arizona’s endangered species and how we are ALL fighting for the water…We learned that most California Condors are killed from eating carrion that has been shot with lead. I didn’t even know that they still made lead bullets - but the fact is that they do, and they are cheap, and it seems hunters don’t think much bout the face that they are filling their target full of lead (even though in some cases their kids will be eating it - Shot doesn’t stay in one place). Copper bullets are a bit more expensive but really.

Then came APS Solar - That’s Arizona Public Service to you and me, and they are doing all they can to capitalize on that great ball of fire in the sky that shines so frequently there. Dan Lonetti showed us around the man facility where all the different kinds of solar panels are being tried and tested, and Steven Gottfried took us down to the Saguaro Plant to see the Solar Troughs! (These are particularly cool as they do not need any of the expensive materials required for solar panels - they are designed with mirrors to focus the sun onto a clear tube filled with a gel that heats up mightily and, well, makes a lot of energy. Steven also introduced us to Flat Stanley (if you don’t know who this is, find a gradeschooler…) and we took our opportunity to interview him as well…he seemed a little 2-dimensional…

I opted to stay home one day while the boys went and interviewed Anthony Floyd (Scottsdale Green building Program Manager). I can’t tell you much about that interview so we’ll all have to stay tuned for the video on that one. I did accompany the boys to AKA Green however, a local home improvement store run by Michael Dalrymple. michael told us that they even had a super-sensitive human come walk around to detect any possible chemical off-gassing that may be coming from the store. It’s how they discovered that the “100% Natural Soy” Carpet Glue Remover contained some kind of chorylmethylflourocarbonsomething (please don’t quote me on that). Talk about new green jobs.

Did I mention that Thanksgiving was wonderful? And that we got to go trail riding in the Arizona desert too? Bliss. My horse was named Stomp and he was a treat. I was sore for days afterward and I couldn’t have cared less…and i slept right in the middle of the day sometimes after yet another delicious leftover turkey sandwich.

On our way out of AZ, we stopped at the super eco house of a guy named Jack Ehrhardt, a green builder and contractor who is doing his darndest to make sure that houses going up are going up smart. Jack also consults for the Hualapai tribe and drove us to the west side of the South Rim of the Grand Canyon to see some of the solar the Native Americans have powering the airport and tourist center up there. We liked what we saw, and what a great way to end our Arizona leg, gazing down into that amazing wonderfully GIANT crevasse and being reminded of just how small we are…and simultaneously stunned and dismayed by the idea that we have been able to make such an impact on our own living system in such a short time.

Arizona may have a whole lot of people using not alot of water but they got one thing right: using the endless desert sun as the valuable resource that it is. Now let’s see if we can’t get some more wind power in Kansas…

Posted in Travelog, Julie | 1 Comment »