Happy Earth Day: What Top Five Things Do You Do For The Planet?

Thanks sussabmax. I finally got a couple of reusable canvas bags to bring to the grocery store with me, and I can't believe it took me so long. Also got a mug to take with me to Starbucks and similar places. Let's see how good I am at carrying it with me and washing it in between uses.

Elisa Camahort
BlogHer and Worker Bees
elisa@blogher.org/elisa@workerbees.biz

Covering the pet food recall has me thinking hard about what I consume and why. I have a very hard time not eating meat (and related products) - I did it for a period of years post-college but didn't do it right. I'm thinking hard about my options again and am inspired by people like you who are committed to that choice.

That said, here's my bit for the meme:

1. I hate excessive shopping bags and often tell cashiers I don't want one (if I've got a tote bag with me) or don't need as big a bag as they've pulled out to give me. I ignore what I believe are the sighs of the cashiers at Whole Foods when I ask for paper, and ask for it anyway. I know it's a bit more work for them to bag in paper than to just chuck the stuff in the plastic that's right there, so I volunteer to do it myself. (It's tough to stand on your feet all day and deal with people - I don't blame them - but it's a perk of shopping there that the paper is so readily available.)

2. Recycle a bit obsessively...bring home yogurt cups and soda bottles and the like if I'm in a place where there are no bins.

3. Use dry cleaning services sparingly (I think last year it was a coat and a comforter.) If it needs to be dry cleaned I generally don't buy it. I think these services are dangerous for the employees and for the air and water. This is likewise why I stopped going to the place where I got my nails done. The air was horrible and the working conditions not good. I only go occasionally for pedicures (I'm still uncomfortable with someone waiting on me to that degree, but I can get over it!!!!) but where I go is very open, well-ventilated and much more comfortable for the staff.

4. I do not use paper cups or plates at home or anywhere if I can help it. (Bring my own coffee cup to meetings, workshops, etc. Odd how people will give you looks even for that, but many places still use Styrofoam and I don't like to.)

5. I drive a small car (a Beetle, a Honda before that) and get viscerally upset when I see huge tanks disguised as personal vehicles (Hummers, Navigators and the like) towering over me in traffic. DC/MD/VA is a very car-dependent region, and they are the scourge of the roads, in my opinion.

I would probably get about a C- for my "green" skills. It's my Earth Day resolution to do better.

Laurie White writes at lauriewrites. ( http://lauriewrites.typepad.com )

I too have converted to using my own mug - I carry a sealable coffee mug almost everywhere I go. And I don't use the produce plastic bags (drives the cashiers nuts when I walk up with six loose potatoes, ha) and I (try to remember to) bring my own carry bags to the grocery store.

Other things around our home:

- I have banished using paper towel and use a series of rags to clean things up. It's taking a while for my husband to catch on to this one though!
- I'm going to make a concerted effort to buy as much as I can locally. Now that spring is here and the markets are open there's no excuse.
- I buy biodegradeable poop bags for my dog. :)
- I've switched to Method cleaning products which all claim to be environmentally friendly. Or I just use plain baking soda instead of abrasives.
- and this summer we're planting a garden for veggies!

ThreeSeven ( http://www.threeseven.ca )... not just a number anymore

Actually, I tend to forget Earth Day despite it once having been my job to remember it when I worked with environmental engineers. (This says nothing about my feelings about the Earth. I also forget impending major holidays like Christmas, that is I only remember them because I have people reminding me at home.)

I forget Earth Day specifically but pay attention to programs on Earth and our ecological problems regularly. One such program is Planet Earth ( http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/planet-earth/... ) on the Discovery Channel. I started watching it in March. It's a series of documentaries narrated by Sigourney Weaver. Today the DC ran the series sequentially. If you don't get to see the series, you may enjoy a visit to the website: http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/planet-earth/...

Oprah ( http://www.oprah.com/tows/pastshows/200703/tows_pa... ) went ga-ga over the series, and I have to admit, it's pretty cool. I'm catching some of the episodes I missed today. It certainly makes you aware of how much you don't know about the planet and what we're losing.

"Love is liquid. Brew and be drunkards!" ~~Nordette ( http://jerseygoddess.blogspot.com/2007/04/april-is... ) And here's a link to the blog ( http://jerseygoddess.blogspot.com/ ).

I should start doing that!

And you remind me of something else I refuse to do...which is put my fruits and veggies in those silly plastic bags. Aren't you going to wash your fruits and veggies when you get home anyway?

I also finally bought one of those Whole Foods reusable grocery bags, so I can alleviate my guilt over all those bags (although till now I've been using said bags to load up my recyclables for the recyclable bin.)

Elisa Camahort
BlogHer and Worker Bees
elisa@blogher.org/elisa@workerbees.biz

1. Bought a high mileage car, a Honda Civic 40 MPG highway.
2. Recycle what I can in SoCal, but their program is mostly for returnable bottles unlike Minneapolis that had source point separation for paper, plastic and glass.
3. Buy organic and am evolving back to my veggie ways.
4. Support all women's sites that promote Eco-ways.
5. Promote Sustainable Standards that take the X, Y, Z problem away that Hippycrite addresses. When Z is held accountable by standards, then the X and Y work, works.

Actually, that's what my blog is all about - the little things, or the big things, or all the confusion that surrounds trying to live a greener, and healthier, lifestyle. There's so much conflicting information, and "if you don't do X then there's no use in doing Y" but then "Y is wonderful if that's all you can do" and then "here's Big Company ABC doing Z and so what does my little X or Y really mean". It's all very very frustrating. So I started a blog to document my conflicting feelings and steps, and information I find, and such similar things.

Today, in honor of Earth Day, my daughter and I spent the day out in the yard of our new (rent) house, trying to clean things up. We're too late where we are to start planting what we want to plant, but we'll get a second chance in the late summer (long growing season). It was a matter of cleaning up the yards to figure out what we have, where the sun goes, etc. If nothing else, it helped recenter and reconnect us to nature, instead of video games and housework.

Hope everyone had as wonderful a day...
Hippycrite ( http://hippycrite.wordpress.com )

Had to drop by and add this, Elisa. I just heard about the Karl Rove/Sheryl Crow confrontation ( http://jerseygoddess.blogspot.com/2007/04/whats-th... ) over global warming at The White House Correspondents Dinner. Most headlines push the Sheryl Crow aspect, I suppose, because most people won't immediately recognize Laurie David as the producer of "An Inconvenient Truth."

It's an intriguing coincidence that the two advocates confronted the White House adviser on the eve of Earth Day. Laurie David's a true idealist. She said to The Washington Post that she honestly thought she could change Karl Rove's mind about global warming. Seems to me that if he saw the documentary and wasn't moved, a few minutes discussion at dinner wouldn't do it either. But she gave it the good-old college try.

For me personally, I'll be checking into earth-friendly light bulbs ( http://www.environmentaldefense.org/page.cfm?tagid... ). Save the earth and save some money ( http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/108/open_light... ). I'm feeling that as a single mom.

"Love is liquid. Brew and be drunkards!" ~~Nordette ( http://jerseygoddess.blogspot.com/2007/04/april-is... ) And here's a link to the blog ( http://jerseygoddess.blogspot.com/ ).

I would score myself as a C+ environmentalist. Kind of ironic as several family members work in renewable energy research. I present:

The Top Five Things I Do For The Earth

1. Compost kitchen scraps, garden trimmings and the remains from the paper shredder.

2. Read the newspaper online.

3. Line dry laundry whenever the weather permits.

4. Reuse paper grocery bags until they fall apart. One bag normally lasts about 3 months. Yes, they are always in the car taking up space.. but I can't forget them. I'm starting to make attractive totes to carry every time I shop.

5. Use a programmable thermostat, and do whatever I can to weatherproof the house.

Debra
A Stitch In Time ( http://astitchintime.blogspot.com )
Deb's Daily Distractions ( http://debsdistractions.blogspot.com )

I love this post! I hate the idea that you have to pick something to do. It's better to make 10 attempts to do something good for the environment that fall short of perfect that to do one thing perfectly, but ignore everything else. Here are the five things I am already doing:

1. Moving toward a vegan lifestyle.
2. Recycle as much as possible.
3. Use compact fluorescent lights in my home.
4. Take public transportation to work and walk as many places as possible.
5. Bring reusable bags with me to the farmer’s market and store.

Next, I need to think about the 5 things I would like to add to the list. Well, I do more than the 5 things above, like drive around my 13 year old car instead of rushing out to buy a new one before I need it, but I know there are still more things I could add relatively easily. That's what I need to think about.