Happy Labor Day weekend to you all from the green team here at 5 Minutes for Going Green! Here are some interesting reads for your long weekend:
-Geek Dad creates an incredible Styrobot, all from styrofoam he collected over the past several years. Check out the awesomeness.
-Last week, our own Crunchy Chicken had some exciting updates on the distribution of pads for her very important and very successful Goods 4 Girls organization. Go read about what happened in Sudan, Kenya, and Uganda.
-Another one of our rock stars, Mama Bird, pointed out the lack of environmental awareness among the American Dental Association.
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Written on
August 27, 2008 by
SusanC
Did you know that 1/4 of all of the pesticides used throughout the entire world are used in the production of cotton? Not soybeans. Not rice. Not any of the major food crops. Cotton. We can’t eat it and we can’t feed hungry people with it, yet we’re dousing our planet in chemicals to feed our bottomless addiction to clothing. Add to that the fact that most conventionally produced clothing is made using dyes and finishes that are loaded with chemicals. And to keep clothes cheap, many items are produced using child labor forces in deplorable sweatshop conditions. Whew! That means that the clothes on our backs that many of us (myself included!) take for granted, come at a high cost to both society and the environment.
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One of the best things about the movement toward natural and green living is the abundance of wonderful natural/green toys available nowadays. Most of the toys you see when you shop at big box stores will be plastic and while I believe plastic does have a place in our lives I am sure I am not the only parent to see the problem they present. Plastic toys are usually low quality, they break easy, and they can’t be recycled usually. Kids get bored playing with then because they really aren’t that stimulating and they capitalize on the latest hot trend or “character” that will be soon be forgotten or replaced.
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Believe in yourself and there will come a day when others will have no choice but to believe with you. -Cynthia Kersey
Do you remember as a child when there was no such thing as obstacles? I remember always asking my parents “why not?”. It was inconceivable to imagine that I could not Do or Be anything I wanted. Do you remember that feeling as a child? The sense you had that all things were possible? Take five minutes and have some fun with me because today we are going to do some dreaming!
In the last couple of years I have really come to appreciate the dreaming side of myself.
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One of the nicest things about the wide green Earth we live on is the plant life that kindly mops up carbon dioxide while it creates energy. If you haven’t got a green thumb, but have a love of leafy decor like I do, you can still get the leafy living greens into your home. Why do that? Well, I’m not kidding about plants improving indoor air quality. And what else are you going to do with the backwash from all your sippy cups?
Green planting 101: use organic potting soil and compost (leaf mold or compost tea) to enrich it.
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Written on
August 20, 2008 by
SusanC
I can vividly recall riding the school bus when I was a kid. I remember the ride as being very long, very boring, and very stinky. And while I was probably exaggerating the long and boring parts (my ride lasted about 15 minutes) I now know that I wasn’t imagining the stink…
A recent Yale University study found that children who ride a school bus are exposed to up to 15 times more particulate pollution than average. Researchers estimate that this increased exposure is due to the idling and queuing of school buses. In other words, as school buses line up and wait in front of the school, they fill up with harmful (and stinky) particulate pollution that will stay with the kids throughout their ride.
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I’ve found there are several aspects of my journey towards going green that require me to slow down my usual crazy, hectic pace, and, I admit, this isn’t always easy. When you decide to do things like prepare your meals from scratch, grow a garden, make your own yogurt or dry your clothes outside on a clothesline, you have to A) plan ahead and B) allow yourself the time to accomplish these things. This doesn’t always make for an easy transition in a world where time is money and we often over-schedule our lives.
When I first started drying our laundry (everything from cloth napkins to clothes, linens to cloth diapers) on a clothesline this summer, I was frustrated with how much time it took, specifically to hang everything up.
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In the spring the boys and I started organic gardening at Lincoln Park Farm in the Zoo’s The Edible Garden. Since then we have spent every Wednesday morning with our friends at the organic garden learning, farming, eating and weeding. Each task brings a new invaluable experience. The latest being the revelation that putting your hands in the dirt while gardening relieves depression!
Kord Staley, one of our farmer friends at the Edible Garden, shared this with me after seeing my big satisfied smile while I sat and picked weeds and it makes complete sense. Here I have been researching natural ways to cure my intermittent depression.
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Written on
August 8, 2008 by
SusanC
Let me make one thing perfectly clear. I am a LAZY green mama. That’s not to say that I don’t do my part to protect the planet. But when I do make an effort to go green, I need to know that it is not in vain. And I’m the last person on Earth who would want to make extra work for herself. So when I tell you that I have used cloth diapers for both of my daughters, I hope you’ll understand that this was not an undertaking that I accepted lightly. I looked at the facts, I talked to the experts, I tried it myself, and I concluded that cloth diapers were the best thing for both my children and the planet.
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Summer is upon us and as the temperatures rise, so does our need to stay cool. Is it possible to beat the heat without (gasp) air conditioning? As someone who has been living in an A/C-free house for most of her life, I can tell you that it’s not always easy or pleasant, but I have picked up many techniques along the way to keep myself and my family as cool and comfortable as possible. Going without air conditioning might take a little getting used to and some creativity, but with my tips below, you will soon be on the path to living a cooler, greener summer.
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