What You Need to Know about Water
March 14, 2011 by Julie Urlaub
Filed under •-Headline, Green Living
In Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s “Rime of the Ancient Mariner”, the author describes a man lost at sea surrounded by water, none of which he is able to drink. This text illustrates one on the major challenges facing the world today. The ability to effectively manage our water resources is essential for personal and global sustainability.
While water is not a new issue, rapidly increasing eco awareness may be expanding individual participation in management options. Clean, fresh water is no longer just an issue for developing countries. It has become more and more of a global issue. Water is linked to every facet of life on our planet and directly interacts with a myriad of other sustainability concepts. Governments, businesses, and individuals around the world are recognizing the relationships of water to their own sustainability.
Providing abundant clean water is going to take efforts from all angles, and individual water cycle management is a big part. How can you conserve water?
- Wash Hands Efficiently: Turn off the water while you soap your hands, and rinse briefly.
- Brush Teeth Wisely: Turn off the water while you brush your teeth and save 4 gallons a minute. That’s 200 gallons a week for a family of four.
- Use Less Water for Dishes: Scrape your dishes clean to reduce rinsing. Run the dishwasher only when it’s full.
- Take Hall Full Baths: Try bathing in a tub that’s only half full to save water and the energy used to heat it.
- Shorten Your Showers: Shorter showers save both energy and water—keeping your shower under 5 minutes can save up to 1,000 gallons a month.
- Stop Leaks: turn off water faucets tightly so they don’t drip and repair leaks.
- Wash Clothes Wisely: Make sure your clothes are truly dirty before putting them into the hamper. Wash clothes only when you have a full load, and use cold water whenever possible.
- Water Wisely: Water the lawn only every 3 to 5 days in the summer and avoid watering driveways, sidewalks, and gutters.
Managing the water leaving your home is just as important as managing the water that comes into it. In choosing to live a green lifestyle, there are tools and resources available to help you become more informed and to implement sustainability concepts that meet your defined requirements.
Eco Curious? Make the Shift to Green
March 2, 2011 by Julie Urlaub
Filed under •-Headline, Earth, Green Living
With America’s eco awareness growing by the day, individuals are looking to go green. Some have a vague sense of what to do for the environment while others may be well informed and fully living the green life. But what about those individuals recently enthused with eco awareness yet cynical about the benefits of living a sustainable lifestyle?
One of the hurdles to living green is overcoming preconceived ideas or limiting perceptions. For instance, one idea is that a green product is inferior until proven otherwise. Or, that living life with eco awareness defaults that person to a stereotype. Also, that changing habits, purchasing choices, and green living is hard, expensive, or requires too much commitment. Lastly, the sustainable efforts of one person couldn’t possibly have a positive impact on the environment.
Granted, beliefs and attitudes don’t change overnight but one approach is to become aware of the limiting internal dialogue you are having on the subject. You do have the power and the control to change your thoughts and your approach to environmental and sustainability concepts by looking at them differently.
It helps to define the value of green living on a personal level. What about it is attractive? What does your curiosity spark? Naturally, action follows thought. By making simple changes in perception to include eco awareness, small eco steps become larger eco steps. Sustainable change can be easily integrated into daily living when it is realistic, achievable and beneficial.
Increasing eco awareness drives commitment to discovering ways to be more environmentally responsible in our lives. Some are curious about a sustainability concept as recycling or energy efficiency. While others are looking for a more comprehensive solution such as a personal sustainability plan. We’re all in this together and together, we can all make the shift to green.
How to Follow Your Eco Passion
February 17, 2011 by Julie Urlaub
Filed under •-Headline, Green Living
The web is full of information on going green, green living and advice on personal sustainability. For many, this mountain of information can be confusing and at times a little overwhelming. A common question is: “Where do I begin?” A good first step is to unite your personal eco passions in a way that works specifically to your lifestyle.
Personal sustainability is a continuous improvement process that challenges an individual to constantly expand personal eco awareness. This may seem obvious but it is so true. There isn’t any one single defined path to green living: there isn’t a beginning and there isn’t an end. Personal sustainability is your journey of discovery.
The post, Exploring the Value in Personal Sustainability, explores drivers, challenges, and big opportunities around green living while offering suggestions on how to get started:
• Follow the path that is most inspiring to you.
• Research, develop and grow your eco awareness on these topics, then shift to alternative choices and behavior changes.
• Don’t try to take it all on at once, remember small changes add up.
• Consistency over volume: daily and regular practices have the most impact.
• Reward your successes.
• Momentum brings visibility to previously inaccessible ideas and behaviors.
• From your green living successes will bring inspiration.
By capitalizing on the power of inspiration and focusing on personal value drivers in the pursuit of green living, anyone can follow their eco passion in a way that works for them.
Are You a Green Beacon of Light?
February 12, 2011 by Julie Urlaub
Filed under •-Headline, Green Living, Reflection
During the Revolutionary War, a rag-tag army of colonists stood against the largest and most powerful army and navy in the world. The small band worked out a plan to mark the movement of troops from one place to another by placing a lit candle in a hurricane globe in different places within the windows of homes and businesses that were located along the main roads. A lit candle signified an open road.
Today, escalating conversations on topics such as climate change, carbon legislation, energy independence, and growing consumer eco awareness generate innovative forward eco movement for some but simultaneously create confusion and skepticism for others. A path to clarity is to lead by example.
Promoting sustainable business and a sustainable lifestyle can take all forms and shapes. One approach is to replace current habits and processes with those incorporating sustainable ones. For a business, that may be a sustainability plan. For an individual, that may be a personal sustainability plan.
Each of us has a role to play. What is it that you specifically care about? Is it the natural beauty in your neighborhood? The campsite you visit each year? Spotting wildlife? Maybe it’s that first breath of fresh air as you step outside to go to work each day.
Connect with that, and take eco action to support that. Explore the habits and areas of your life that you can take eco action to support the environment that you love. Your actions are a green beacon of light to others calling them forth to find the value, the eco actions for them to support the environment that they love.
The 7 Day Green Power Pledge
January 29, 2011 by Julie Urlaub
Filed under •-Feature, Green Living
It’s no secret that going green is all the rage these days. In fact, being eco-friendly is more popular and well accepted now than ever before in history. The thing is, ecoawareness is gaining momentum, but not everybody knows exactly how to take the concept of going green and break it down into their day to day habits.
To help you do just that, following are ways to go green each day of the week. In fact, Take the Green Power Pledge! Start off by taking eco action in each area of personal sustainability that are of most interest to you and build from there. Each week can be a new platform to launch new eco actions. Have fun with it and know that every eco action you take adds up and makes a difference.
Monday’s Pledge: Go Paperless
When it comes to paper, producing paper from virgin fiber is both energy and water intensive. It releases significant amounts of greenhouse gases into our atmosphere. By choosing to use less paper and paper with recycled content you are making the choice to save wood, water and energy, and cut pollution and solid waste. The costs savings add up and the environmental impact goes down. Need ideas? Check out 19 Tips to go Paperless at Home.
Tuesday’s Pledge: Go Green at Work
Keep in mind, every job is a green job: it’s all in how you do it. One approach is to increase your participation in the sustainability programs offered within your organization. This offers a broader perspective of potential green projects and areas of improvement. Another approach is to green your physical environment. If you work at home, check out Green your Home Office 101 for ideas or 10 Ways to Green Your Cubicle. Both offer ideas to embrace sustainability concepts in your work environment.
Wednesday’s Pledge: Water Wednesday
Clean, fresh water is no longer just an issue for developing countries. It has become more and more a global issue. Water is linked to every facet of life on our planet and directly interacts with a myriad of other sustainability concepts. Learn water wise habits to Reduce your Water Footprint.
Thursday’s Pledge: Adventure
Explore different modes of transportation. The benefits of alternative transportation include conserving energy, preserving resources, reduced commuter traffic, cost savings (gas and parking), and reduced carbon emissions. Fun ideas include: carpool, bus, train, cycling or telecommuting/ coworking options for work environments.
Friday’s Pledge: Slay Energy Vampires with energy efficiency practices:
The U.S. Department of Energy tells us that not only do appliances continue to draw electricity while the products are turned off, but in the average home nearly 75% of all electricity used to power electronics is consumed by products that are switched off. Explore energy efficiency eco actions to use less energy.
Saturday’s Pledge: Manage Waste / Recycling:
When you avoid making garbage in the first place, you eliminate the disposing of waste or recycling it later. It’s the first component of the sustainability concept of the three R’s: reduce, reuse, recycle. Clues to how to reduce waste can be found by visiting what’s in your garbage.
Sunday’s Pledge: Sparkle with Green Cleaning:
Conventional cleaning supplies contain ingredients that are toxic or hazardous. By replacing them with eco-friendly products, you’re providing improved indoor air quality, as well as reducing the 5 billion pounds of chemicals consumed by cleaning industry each year. Get started using non toxic products and breathe easier.
