News Picks:
Five kids who are changing the world: Read about five inspiring kids who are making the world a better place. Whether it’s growing organic crops and donating them to soup kitchens, or knitting home-made hats to fight hunger, these kids make us feel better about the world we live in.
How to turn an old iPod into cash: Every time you turn around, Apple is releasing a new generation of the iPod — making them smaller, more fun colors, touch screen…. (Does anyone remember the iPod with the original scroll wheel and four individual buttons?) It’s enough to give you whiplash! This article uncovers a few ways you can get cash for even the most archaic of gadgets, so you can get rid of that iPod mini collecting dust in your desk drawer. As a bonus, you can get 10 PG points for recycling your electronics.
Can we green our Planes next? Have those monthly business trips or annual family vacations put an annoyingly significant dent in your carbon footprint? Hopefully, soon this will be less of an issue. Many airlines are testing plant-based biofuels in an effort to reduce greenhouse emissions.
Multi-Media Pick:
Farmers market frenzy: Happy national farmers market week! People everywhere are becoming more interested in farmers markets, PG is lucky enough to have one right outside of our office in Boston on Tuesdays and Fridays this summer. You can find one near you here. Get 5 points on Practically Green for buying local produce. Check out this video featuring organic farmer Rebecca Schwen, as she discusses the growing interest in farmers markets.
New and cool pick:
Photo Credit:http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/cookware-tools/product-review-skruba-vegetable-scrubbing-gloves-120867
Lots of us are getting our hands dirty in the garden the summer, and even more are eating wonderful food from farm stands and local co-ops. How about growing veggies in Alaska? Today we heard from our friend Debbie Clarke Moderow, a musher, mom, and gardener who lives eight miles south of Denali National Park. Debbie has run the famous 1,100-mile Iditarod race across Alaska twice; she and her husband and their two kids have thirty-seven sled dogs who are “the center of our household.”
Debbie and her lead-dog Dakar, at eight months, out for a fun run in April
We’re refreshed just thinking about being there!
“I loved the quiz at Practically Green. It encouraged me! Alaskans are behind, you know. Yes, we have some LEED National Park Service buildings, but for most of us, recycling might mean leaving stuff off that would get shipped to Seattle. So that sets you back, you stop doing it. Alaskans face recyclng challenges, due to low volumes and long distances. We are trying hard however! We have changed our habits over the years. We use cloth napkins. And when I took the quiz I thought, I’m not doing that badly! I liked it, and I wouldn’t like it as much if it made me feel guilty.”
Debbie's birthday present: a greenhouse!
“This is a really unlikely place to have a greenhouse. The summers are so short. But the days are so long and the temps so cool, nothing bolts! Right now my greenhouse is a jungle! I don’t have anything that isn’t organic in the greenhouse. I love going out there, cutting some chard and eating it. It makes me really happy.”
Debbie is working on a memoir as part of her work toward an MFA in Creative Writing at the Rainier writing workshop. Here’s a preview, reflections on gardening near the Arctic Circle:
Like many details in our Denali Park home, my greenhouse bears no resemblance to those of my Connecticut childhood. My mother was a horticultural wizard, and although we never had a greenhouse, I often tagged along when she went to visit others’. Those wondrous glass caverns were set on manicured lawns, beneath towering oak and maple trees. A visit inside revealed rows of orchids and lilies, begonias and geraniums, destined for blue ribbons in the upcoming garden shows.
No, my greenhouse would not turn heads in Fairfield County yet I know Mom is smiling down at my little treasure. Hand-built by my husband and son for my 54th birthday, my greenhouse is tiny – 8’ x 10’ if you stretch the measuring tape. It has a Dutch door to keep out the arctic hares, one window, and a ceiling fan that comes on (a few times a week) when the temperature rises above 75 degrees. It sits fifty yards from our sled-dog team, and as I run to it in the mornings before feeding the dogs, they serenade me with an exuberant “it’s-a-new-day” howl.
The dogs’ home – our home – is located just 200 miles south of the Arctic Circle, in a landscape fiercely bound to winter. Summer is short here – some say you might miss it if you travel out of state for a weekend. Still, the hours of daylight are long, offering the possibility of horticultural miracles. My greenhouse holds the warmth of the midnight sun, and yet stays cool enough for leafy crops to thrive for long weeks at a time. Stir fried greens with eggs and goat cheese for breakfast, basil pesto, butter leaf salads with pea pods and radishes–these are a few of the delights we are enjoying this season. Aware of the recent heat wave in the “lower-48,” last week I walked into my little warm haven, closed my eyes, inhaled and tried to recall summers when this would have felt cold.
Young greens by Debbie
It’s mid-July, and there’s a new chill in the air. The long hours of daylight have peaked, and now a construction heater sits alongside my peas and rainbow chard, set to turn on when the night temperatures drop below forty. I know harvest will take place in the next four to six weeks, but with the trusty heater, my crops just might make it to September 1. There are other things to harvest between now and then. The blueberries along the dog trail are ripening, and they’ll be followed by plentiful low-bush cranberries. By mid-August we’ll be running the dogs daily, then coming in for lunch salads and the traditional blueberry pie. Finally we’ll busily gather what’s left in the greenhouse and preserve what we can for brightening the dark winter nights. I’ll sadly close her up, but not before detailing the drawings for the little addition we’ll add in the spring. Maybe I’ll try some of those geraniums next summer.
Debbie is a Princeton graduate who found her way to Alaska after college and never looked back. She works for Innisbrook, the ubiquitous school fundraising gift-wrap outfit: “Innisbrook is striving to be the greenest it can be….they’ve introduced paperless online ordering, taken tubes out of the inside of the rolls, all of our giftwrap rolls are printed on partially recycled paper, etc., but let’s face it, my friends who are really green wrap their presents in cloth!”
Have a terrific Red, White, Blue, and Green long weekend, everybody! Here are a few snippets for a great holiday. First, of course, we hope you’ll head to PracticallyGreen and answer a few quick questions for suggestions of things you can do to make your life healthier and safer for you and your family — this weekend and anytime.
In a BBQ frenzy? Dive into Self magazine’s special burger section for mouthwatering recipes from beans, turkey, and spices. How about Rosemary-Sage Burgers With Apple Slaw and Chive “Mayo” or Portobello-Black Bean Burgers With Corn Salsa? YUM! http://www.self.com/about/burgers
Annie Leonard at a shoot for her new movie
Got sunburn? Stay indoors and watch The Story of Stuff, Gasland, Food, Inc. and get ready for Annie Leonard’s new movie, The Story of Cosmetics, releasing at the end of the month.
Kids bouncing off the walls? Plan a trip to your local library! Massachusetts libraries have a “Go Green at Your Library” summer reading program, featuring a special program for teens: tnk grEn (Think Green) .
Going on a trip? Ask if your hotel offers eco-friendly amenities, such as opting out of daily housekeeping service – for a $5/day credit! Read about two Phoenix hotels who’ve jumped aboard the burgeoning movement of green travel hosts.
Annika and Kerry
Beach reading: Eco-awesome designers Annika Sanders and Kerry Seager run London’s Junky Stylish fashion label. They make wedding dresses from men’s white button-downs and set up an O.R. in NYC last week to transform unwanted maternity wear, tuxes, kimonos, and pinstripes into high-fashion garb. Isn’t it somehow patriotic to remember our British cousins on Independence Day? In the July 5 New Yorker magazine. Or pick up the book, Junky Styling: Wardrobe Surgery.
Can we talk? I’m an optimist, but between us, it wouldn’t take much to make me go into hiding some days. Just say the words “BP oil spill” or “record hurricane season forecast,” and I can feel the blood drain from my head. Talk about a problem that won’t go away.
What to do?
At Practically Green we’re about solutions—green actions that people can take easily, on their own budget and schedule, to make their lives greener and more healthy. Simple tasks, like switching to all-natural toothpaste or rinsing a Zip-loc bag. More complicated tasks, like getting an energy audit or upgrading windows.
It seems there’s not much I can do, personally, to plug that horrific oil spill, or to persuade the Senate to outlaw incandescent lightbulbs (or to regulate the AC in the frigid Post Offices of this country, grrr), but at least I can buy local and organic whenever possible, and I can open the window at home instead of automatically turning on the AC. Sigh.
Last night I had a dream that the CEO of BP called a press conference and announced a change. For once he looked strong and heroic, full of conviction:
“We’re doing everything we can to plug the spill. And we’ve had an epiphany. Today, we’re changing our company. From this day forward, BP is all about renewables and green power: wind, solar, geothermal, algae, LED, smart-grid, recycling, repurposing, and all of the brilliant solutions that deserve big funding and unprecedented muscle NOW. We’re taking measurable steps to dial down our traditional business. We vow to push our brethren oil companies to do the same, starting today. Exxon Mobil and Shell have already come on board. And we won’t rest until the world is free of dependence on fossil fuels and a new green economy has been established, globally.”
As I said, this was a dream.
Later today, I saw a powerful little piece of relevant persuasion that I don’t want you to miss. It’s by Umbra Fisk, the acerbic, stylish wit who writes Grist’s advice column. Please read the excerpt below. For Umbra’s full Q & A, please visit Grist.
And for hundreds (yes, hundreds; I know, because I’m editing them) of things you can do to be more eco-aware in your life, for your health and your family’s well-being, please visit us at www.PracticallyGreen.com. Answer a few easy questions and you’ll be on your way to a custom to-do list of positive actions you can take.
Umbra Fisk of Grist
Ask Umbra on Turning Oil-Spill Depression into Transformation
A lot of us are feeling depressed and disheartened by what is happening right now in the Gulf. It is terrible beyond words. It’s so bad I don’t even like using the word beyond anymore.
Being overwhelmed by a big crisis may cause us to think that our personal actions are meaningless. But this is where we’re wrong…. The “little things” we all do are not futile. In fact, little things add up fast. Especially if you do them, and then talk to your friends and family so that they start doing them too. That’s the magic of the multiplier effect…. Step it up a notch. Be infectious! Here’s how:
Talk to all of your friends, family, co-workers, Facebook pals, Twitter followers, that weird lady on the bus, etc. about consumption, not only of fossil fuels, but of what we eat, buy, turn on, wear, use, or throw out. Get them to ask themselves: “Is this thing I’m consuming necessary?”
If the answer is no, here are 11 simple steps they can all take. These actions don’t cost much, if anything, and they may make you and your circle happier and healthier while you’re helping the planet. Of course, there’s always more we can do. But the list is a good conversation piece and starting point. Pass it along. May it reach everyone, even the people who eat Styrofoam.
(There’s a lot more information online.)
Easy things anyone can do to fight oil spill anger/apathy (in random order):
1) Take one less airline flight per year
2) Keep your car tires properly inflated, engine tuned and take 100 excess lbs. out of your car
3) Leave your car at home one day a week (use mass transit, bike, or innovative ride-sharing programs like Weeels)
4) Carpool two days a week or telecommute one day a week
5) Go meatless on Monday’s and switch from red meat to poultry two days a week
6) Support your local Farmer’s Market or Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)
7) Use recycled paper products (office paper, toilet paper, paper towels)
Reduce the number of catalogues you receive by more than half
9) Turn off unused lights, use the hibernate mode on your computer, unplug things when you’re not using them
10) Wash your clothes in cold water 75 percent of the time and hang clothes out to dry in summer
11) Share more — including this list, and talk to people in your life — at work, weddings, in elevators or better yet on the stairs — about other simple ideas to add to the list.
Anyone who’s visited Napa Valley is likely to give you bossy suggestions of when to go and what to do there. This famously heavenly verdant squiggle of farmland north of San Francisco inspires loyalty. Napa is home to world-class wines, restaurants, yoga, farms, artists, and sublime ambiance. Green is not merely an option here: green is a way of life.
My personal Napa must-dos include 1) as many meals as possible at Ubuntu, where local organic veggies rule (click here for the “current crop” list), and where the wine list is over 70% sustainably produced — and which has a spanking-new Michelin Star (congratulations!); 2) yoga classes in-between delectables (there’s a sweet studio on the second floor of the restaurant); and, 3) a visit to the Oxbow School, where the chefs are aligned with the Slow Food movement and inspired by nearby guru Alice Waters. “No Bug Juice Served Here,” they like to say at Oxbow.
Does this look like typical school-lunch fare?
Practically Green’s friend Jeff Deasy wrote this report on Napa for his blog at AmericanFeast.com, and we’re reprinting an excerpt here with his permission.
Farm-to-table dining has been a growing trend for some time and there is no sign it will slow anytime soon. The movement to serve fresh, local, sustainably harvested food is offering truly distinctive dining experiences and helping raise awareness of the delicious alternative to heavily processed foods shipped from factories.
One meal at a good farm-to-table restaurant should convince anyone that foods are at their most flavorful and nutritious when served at their freshest. Eating seasonal foods produced without chemicals, whether grown at home or in a community garden, or purchased from a trusted local farmer, makes for better health and a cleaner environment.
The Bounty of California’s Napa Valley
The Napa Valley in California is one of America’s most rare and precious agricultural preserves. Home to the founders of America’s fine wine industry, its towns and villages also present a bounty of crops for an authentic farm-to-table dining experience regularly enjoyed by visitors and locals alike. The very word Napa stands for ‘Land of Plenty’, the original meaning given to the region by its first inhabitants, the Wappo Indians.
Many Napa Valley restaurant chefs cultivate their own orchards, vineyards and gardens teeming with rows of basil, eggplant, squash, pomegranates, figs, tomatoes and of course grapes. The freshness makes a huge taste difference, as is regularly noted by restaurant patrons and those culinary institutions dishing up annual accolades. Even those who do not have gardens of their own largely rely on the bounty of area farms and local farmers markets.
Click for the Napa Valley Destination Council’s recommendations for Agri-Eco Tourist destinations.
Here’s a list of Napa Valley restaurants with edible gardens of particular note:
• Ad Hoc
• Long Meadow Ranch, Winery & Farmstead
• Ubuntu.
For more information about America’s legendary wine, food, and wellness destination, go to: The Legendary Napa Valley
To follow American Feast on Facebook go to: American Feast on Facebook
To follow American Feast’s Founder on Twitter go to: Jeff Deasy on Twitter
Jeff Deasy Sprinkles his Famous Salsa
News Picks:
Google Maps Adds “Bike There” Feature: Now you can find the most direct route for a bike trek while avoiding hills and excessive traffic (we think it makes being green convenient!).
Road Test: Best All-Natural Toothpastes: Hoping to avoid the chemicals, additives, detergents and sweeteners in conventional toothpaste? Fortunately, there are healthy (and flavorful) options.
Save Money with Healthy Coupons: Sites that offer coupons for the natural and organic food you (probably) already buy.
Multimedia Link:
We already liked Annie and her Story of Stuff, but in this interview Steven Colbert does a great job of playfully challenging her and cracking a few jokes which makes us love her message even more.
| The Colbert Report | Mon – Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| Annie Leonard | ||||
|
||||
New and Cool Pick:
Waterpebble Water-Saving Device: This cute device measures how much water you use while you shower then challenges you to shorten your bathing time the next time you step into the tub.
(Those of us who are known klutzes may not want to purchase one of these cool devices, but we will buy them for our coordinated friends!)
Photo credit: http://gizmodo.com/5487584/waterpebble-encourages-shorter-water+saving-showers
This week, I took public transportation several times when I would normally drive and was feeling very virtuous. But yesterday I blew all that green goodness by stepping onto one of the biggest carbon contributors out there–an airplane. For a cross-country flight. And I’m not alone–there were 809MM passengers on airplanes in 2008.
Why does flying have such a big environmental impact? Planes emit carbon dioxide & nitrous oxide, very potent greenhouse gasses. According to Greenskies.org, a single flight across the Atlantic would produce the same amount of carbon per person as their home does in a year. In addition, the CO2 and water vapors emitted at high altitude also has a bigger environmental impact–experts suggest anywhere from 2-2.7X the impact at ground level.
Yes, reducing your flights is the biggest way to reduce that impact, but that is often not practical. Are there other ways to green your flying? Pattie Prairie, the CEO of Brighter Planet, had some good tips in a post this week that included packing lightly, fly non-stop, picking the greenest airline you can (JetBlue is the best of the major carriers), and flying during the day. I hit two for four on my trip–going non-stop with a small carry on. But my airline was mediocre and the flight was at night. Now what?
Brighter Planet also sells carbon offsets and their mantra is to conserve what you can and offset the rest. My flight offset is $28 and that money goes to projects like the Greensburg Windfarm. Carbon offsets have gotten some mixed reviews recently, but that’s not entirely surprising given how new the market is. If you want to make sure you are purchasing a high quality offset, here is a ranking of providers.
I have to be honest and say I’m not 100% there yet on offsets. I like that the calculations give me a number that I should “contribute” to offset something ungreen and make it easy. But I wish I had a better sense for where the money is going and more transparency about “middle man” costs. So I’ve purchased them here and there, but am by no means a regular.
What about you? Do you purchase offsets? Who do you buy from? What do you think?
News Picks:
5 Surprising Things You Can Recycle: You know about bottles and cans, but this article has some other good recycling ideas for less obvious items like phone books, hangars, and tin foil.
Tried and True Eco-paints: NY Times writer tests 10 environmentally friendly indoor paints and shares his favorites.
4 Secrets About Fast Food: Men’s Health editor-in-chief reveals list of shocking ingredients in common fast food items, including chicken nuggets, filet-o-fish, and a Frosty.
Multimedia Link:
Note from Susan: The first time I visited the Healthy Child Healthy World site, it scared the bejeezes out of me. I had no idea that so many things we did every day were negatively impacting the health of our child. It definitely was a wake-up call. This beautifully produced video “A Wake-Up Story” summarizes the key issues, but also encourages parents to take action—in their own homes and in their communities. Hope you enjoy it!
New and Cool Pick:
The first Green Map iPhone App helps users find green things in their communities.
It’s February and in Boston that means two activities are on many parent’s list: skating and skiing. Personally, I’m torn on skiing and not just because my knees are awful. First, the pros. You are enjoying the outdoors and nature, having fun, using your own energy for at least part of the effort, they have daycare & ski school, and who doesn’t love apres ski! And many skiiers are pretty green people. After all, global warming really ruins the skiing.
But then you consider how they actually operate ski slopes. Cut down trees or bulldoze runs, throw up high energy using lifts, serve pretty bad food in styrofoam, and when nature doesn’t cooperate, make a lot of snow. Not so green.
Fortunately, the Ski Area Citizen’s Coalition has a site for those of us who want to TRY to be as green as possible while skiing. My only complaint is that it doesn’t have Vermont, New Hampshire or Maine, but if you are out West or headed out West, you are in luck.
Every year, they rank ski areas on a series of environmental factors to produce a scorecard (kind of like what Practically Green is going to do for you…). The grades are based on four criteria: Habitat Protection, Protecting Watersheds, Addressing Global Climate Change, and Environmental Practices and Polices, which then form a overall grade. Their work is endorsed by major conservation organizations and they publicize a Top 10 Best and Top 10 Worst list.
The winner for greenest ski area? Squaw Valley, California. The least green? Breckenridge, Colorado. You can also search for the place you choose to ski on the site specifically.
So no, I readily admit downhill skiing isn’t the greenest way to enjoy the outdoors (this is where all you hikers and cross-country skiiers get to remind me how virtuous you are relatively speaking). But you can still support green living by voting with your lift ticket or encouraging your local mountain to lift their grade–their eco-grade that is.
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jurvetson/ / CC BY 2.0
Back to top