Small acts can add up. Tell us how you’re conserving resources & you could win BIG!

Cloth napkins!! It's not hard to just add them to the rest of the laundry I do each day, and so much more enjoyable to use than flimsy paper. Save lots of trees and dab your mouth with soft cotton? Perfect.

99% of our laundry gets washed in cold water to help save energy!

I love what you've done with Swag it Forward....a great concept to donate or exchange what attendees don't want! Love it and thanks for all you are doing at BlogHer! This is my first conference and I'm excited!

We have a power strip for the Wii, the TV and DVD player. We just switch the whole thing off when we're headed out, or going to bed...keeps those vampires from sucking our power while we're not using them.

~Margaret

Just Margaret ( http://maurhoffbarney.blogspot.com )

I charge my phone during the day and unplug it as soon as its done!

Tips are always helpful reminders to be more green in our household. We've come a long way but have a lot further to go.

hey Cathi...I work with Tide and noticed your question so thought I'd pass this link along...it is already available! http://www.tide.com/en-US/product/tide-free-coldwa...

I try to wash everyday things in cold water, but I was always taught to wash sheets, towels, etc in hot water. I'm going to try the new Tide and wash EVERYTHING in cold water and try to make a difference ! : )

I only use the cold/cold cycle on my laundry. Liquid detergent such as Tide Cold Water works so much better than powder soap.

Those laundry tags on your clothes have been carefully developed. Pay attention. Most clothes do get cleaner in warm water.
http://housekeeping.about.com/od/laundry/a/laundry...

Elisa - by being vegan and childless you are actually doing some of the best things for the planet you can. It takes enough water to float a destroyer to raise one head of cattle for beef, according to John Robbins - 2500 to 6000 gallons per pound of beef:
http://www.earthsave.org/environment/water.htm

Everyone knows children are resource-intensive. My decision not to have children was driven first by concern over population growth.

I don't eat meat, I don't have kids, I drive a tiny car and work at home when I am able. I use rags instead of Swiffer cloths and wash them (in hot water). I compost. Reuseable bags. I get my water in bulk at a place that has good filtration and am famous for my stainless to go cup that travels everywhere with me. I try to buy local, in season produce. In general, I try to think about my actions and their consequences, but sometimes I still do silly things like flying across the country to hang out with my friends at BlogHer ;-)

OK, this isn't a conservation tip, but I was just reading the description of what's going on in the Living Room at the P&G House at BlogHer. I think it's a first to have live animals at the conference, and I'm excited to meet them.

Elisa Camahort Page
BlogHer
elisa@blogher.com
My BlogHer profile truly shows you everything I do online...Check it out!!

I never thought of that. BUt with a 45 minute commute (on a good day) I bet I could charge up my phone that way too.

Thanks!

Elisa Camahort Page
BlogHer
elisa@blogher.com
My BlogHer profile truly shows you everything I do online...Check it out!!

I've always only washed clothes marked to wash in cold water in cld water. The rest I do in warm. Because I think it washes better, or things will be mroe clean. Why do I think that way? And why then do I not give a second thought to washing those cold water clothes in cold water?

It's really illogical, and I should just start washing all my clothes in cold water.

Elisa Camahort Page
BlogHer
elisa@blogher.com
My BlogHer profile truly shows you everything I do online...Check it out!!

I love the idea of recruiting the kiddos - I will implement that starting this weekend!

I've washed in cold for years. We don't use our car charger except in emergencies (it actually shortens the life of mobile phone batteries). We recycle every scrap of paperboard and junk mail we can (and there is LOTS of it!).

And we never, ever, buy plastic water bottles.

Fweetieb Blog: http://justfweetieb.blogspot.com

We're on a solar kick this summer. Small things, like line drying and solar battery chargers save energy and also raise your own awareness about energy usage, and we're looking at installing panels as a big move towards sustainability.

Deb Rox

3 Smart Girlz ( http://www.3smartgirlz.com/ ) consulting

Blog ( http://www.debontherocks.com/ ) like a freaking butterfly, sting like a Tweet. ( http://www.twitter.com/debontherocks )

Two years ago we made a commitment as a family to recycle as much as we could. We set up a system that's easy for everyone to use and one of my daughter's responsibilities around the house is to take the recycling out. We've cut our garbage in half and I'm confident it's because the whole family is involved.

Natanya
Fete & Feast ( http://www.feteandfeast.com )

I use only cold water to wash clothes. I wait until I have enough for a full load before I wash.
I also turn down our water heater & adjust our thermostat when we're out of town for several days.
In the spring & fall I turn the AC off & open the windows.
We keep the lights out in our rooms unless we are in them & the TV stays off unless we are watching it.

Rebecca

http://www.beginningfresh.blogspot.com 

Swag It Forward is a fabulous idea! I'd love to use Tide Coldwater however we use Tide Free HE. Will Tide Coldwater ever be available in an unscented version?

We do all these things. A cheap, easy way to conserve energy is to buy an insulating pad for your water heater if you have a tank water heater. They're like $15, and anyone can put one on their tank. Couple that with turning down your water heater a few notches, and you've saved money and energy for next to nothing.

When my mom taught me to do my own laundry in high school she said to always use cold water. And I always listen to my mom.

We do these tips too! And we have put our 5 yo daughter in charge of making our house green. (She loves the job, and is so proud of herself.) She makes sure we turn off lights when we leave a room, and not waste too much water. She even trained Daddy to turn off the water while brushing his teeth! ;)

I do the majority of these from cold water washing to drinking filtered water and more. My fun tip? Line drying outside is actually really sorta fun - and smells great when you're done!

Michelle

http://honestandtruly.blogspot.com ( http://honestandtruly.blogspot.com/ )

http://honestandtrulyreviews.blogspot.com

@hone ( http://www.twitter.com/honestandtruly )

We already wash with cold water and have a PUR water filter on our faucet. We are pretty good at unplugging things too, but it hadn't occurred to me to unplug my phone after a few hours of charging. Thanks for the tip! We love doing our part to make a better world for our son!

And, I LOVE LOVE LOVE the idea of the swag exchange. I'm going to suggest a similar idea to other conferences I attend. What a great way to cut down on things being thrown away.

Alissa A. Enders

www.havestrollerwilltravel.com ( http://www.havestrollerwilltravel.com )

Last year was my first year at BlogHer and I loved the Swag Exchange/Recycling idea. I think it's wonderful that there are so many sponsors offering products and other swag to attendees, but I felt guilty about receiving things I knew I'd never use. Knowing that someone was collecting the items to give to people who could or would use them made the conference more enjoyable (less wastefulness!)

Just call me B!

I saw it on Oprah, and I thought I'd give it a try.

We unplug the "unnecessary" things. Blender. Coffee pot. Extra lamps. Phone chargers.

They still drain power even if they are plugged in but turned off.

We save energy...and a LOT of $$ on our power bill!

I always turn off the dry cycle on my dishwasher, and I hang most of my clothes damp to finish drying them. I also recycle everything that I can:)

We charge our cell phoes on our car ride home so we don't have to use the energy at home.

We do use a Pur water filter. It is a money saver when it comes to choosing between having it or buying bottles. Good tips that you shared here.

we forgo using the dryer and dry our clothes on a clothesline. That's my tip to save energy.

The tip that I like and will implement is to cold water wash using Tide. I had no idea that it saved that much energy.

I've been using Tide Cold Water for several months now because I've always washed most of our clothes in cold water to save energy and because I don't have to worry about shrinking them in the wash.

The Swag it Forward station is an excellent idea! If I can't use something and don't want to bring it home, I'll happy drop it off there for someone else to benefit from it!