Happy Earth Day everyone!
Maybe it's just that I'm paying attention, but it seems that more people (plus tv, news etc) are excited about Earth Day this year. I think it's finally become easier for people to get involved or find resources. Perhaps people who thought Earth Day was just about recycling have bought eco-friendly cleaners or made their home more efficient. It's good to see the movement become less stigmatized and taken more seriously as a lifestyle opportunity.
Nathan and I try to consider our impact and do what we can on a daily basis. (Yay Nathan for bus commuting--and working from home this summer!) I will resolve to be more conscious of water conservation. Now that it's warming up again I'll go back to 'army showers'--water on, off, on, off! Additionally, I will be more sure to unplug unused appliances and try to find someone interested in taking our many produce scraps for composting.
I think everyone should personally commit themselves to being more earth conscious at home, but the real opportunity to give back to the earth happens in our communities. Maybe we can all try to participate in a more outreaching way this year, like sending a letter or signing a petition to legislators, buying locally-grown food, working in/organizing a community garden, and so on. Ideas?
Are you guys excited about Earth Day? Are you making strides to go greener, or are you still figuring out what you can do? How do you think we can make our communities more sustainable? Any good green tips?
haha, so true. but we're trying!(way to go fambly for cleaning up Lake Red Rock trash--and to Mom for choosing hankies over tissues!)
5 comments:
I have been talking with Christopher about it, although we didn't get to do anything specifically for Earth Day because I had a meeting for most of it... We use canvas shopping bags, unplug small appliances, try to conserve water, use compact fluorescent light bulbs, turn off lights, a MOPS friend informed me that a new group is starting in the metro - so we're looking into joining that locally grown food co-op. I'm looking forward to doing clean up days and other community outreaches with Christopher as he grows older so that he can start to appreciate this planet and do his part to be green as well.
... and we recycle. :)
Right on Callie!
We love to buy local produce. I'm so looking forward to summer when it's easier to shop farmers markets.
G also gave me an TerraPass last year which pays to carbon offset flight miles (since they're some of the worst things for gas emissions).
This year I think we're going to concentrate on buying less and getting more into reusing/trading things (not wasting things like broken electronics, etc).
Oh, and Shelene- a friend of mine is on a waiting list for a food co-op. Those are awesome to participate in!
Sheena - i also belong to a Yahoo! Group called DesMoinesIAMetroReUseIt, a group for repurposing and swapping used items between users. There may be one for the twin cities area - Yahoo groups are great for that (and Craigslist of course)
The TerraPass sounds like a great idea.
And yay for farmers markets and local produce!!! I'm definitely looking forward to the co-op as well!
Nice! You guys hit a couple big issues I've had on my mind lately too. I can't find a link anymore, but I dl'd a really cool guide from Grist.org (great website for fact checking, eco news). It walks you through steps for greening all parts of a normal day. It may still be on the site somewhere, but if you want it I can email the pdfs.
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