Green Actions You Can Take At Home

The David Suzuki Foundation website has a ton of useful information about: Solving Global Warming, Protecting Human Health, Conserving Our Oceans, Protecting Our Health, and Building A Sustainable Economy.  Dr. Suzuki is a Canadian scientist, professor, broadcaster, writer, and is one of the people referred to in the 11th Hour movie. Here is the general site for the David Suzuki Foundation:

http://www.davidsuzuki.org/

The section of the site called “What You Can Do”, is divided up into the following parts:
At Home, At Work, Go Carbon Neutral, Take Action, Join Climate News email list, Take the Nature Challenge.  Here is the part about what you can do at home.

http://www.davidsuzuki.org/Climate_Change/What_You_Can_Do/


WHAT YOU CAN DO: AT HOME

Simple changes in our everyday lives can help slow climate change. For an excellent overview of actions you can take to reduce your carbon footprint, please download our brochure, 10 ways you can stop global warming, reduce energy consumption and make a difference (PDF). Together, we can make a difference.

What you can do:

• Reduce your home heating and electricity use. A more energy-efficient home will lower your utility bills and reduce the emissions that cause climate change. Find out how you can increase energy efficiency in your home through the EnerGuide for Houses program.
  
  
• Choose energy-efficient appliances. New refrigerators, for example, use 40 per cent less energy than models made just 10 years ago. Find out more
  
  
• Check the Canadian government's Auto Smart ratings for the next car you intend to buy to make sure it's fuel efficient and low polluting. A typical SUV uses almost twice the fuel - and releases nearly twice the emissions - of a modern station wagon, although both seat the same number of passengers. Visit the Canadian Annual Office of Energy Efficiency EnerGuide Awards to find the most fuel-efficient vehicles.
  
  
• Walk, bike, carpool or take transit to get to one of your regular destinations each week.
  
  
• Learn about the impacts of air travel and consider vacationing close to home.
  
  
• If you are moving, choose a home within a 30-minute bike, walk or transit ride from your daily destinations. A convenient place to live reduces the amount you drive, which means you'll lower your greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants.
   
• Take care of your trash. Composting all organic waste - and recycling paper, cardboard, cans and bottles - will help reduce the greenhouse gas emissions associated with landfills.
  
  
• Eat wisely. Choose foods that are local, organic and low on the food chain whenever possible. Make the most of seasonal foods.
  
  
• Learn about how to plan a green, low-carbon wedding.
  
  
• Take the David Suzuki Foundation's Nature Challenge to learn more about other ways you can help protect the environment.
  
  
• Go Carbon neutral!
  

Did you know?

•  Standard light bulbs give off 90 per cent of their energy as heat. New compact fluorescent “spiral” bulbs are 75 per cent more efficient and fit in standard sockets.
  

• If you combined all the “heat leaks” in an average Canadian home, you would have a hole the size of a basketball! Proper weather stripping and caulking of doors and windows can reduce heating bills by 25 per cent.
  

•  A typical car produces three times its weight in carbon dioxide emissions - a major greenhouse gas. Light cars produce fewer emissions and cost less. Annual fuel costs average $648 for a new Volkswagen Jetta and $2,067 for a Ford Expedition 4x4.
  

• Refrigerators are an energy-hogging home appliance. Replacing a 10-year-old refrigerator with a new EnergyStar-approved model would save enough energy to light your home for more than three months.
  

Encourage your local government to move towards energy efficient communities. Encourage your city to expand transit and other alternatives, make city operations more energy efficient and encourage compact development instead of sprawl. Tips on contacting political representatives.

Re: Green Actions You Can Take At Home

Yes, these are fine for baby steps in saving the world, and yet without the giant steps necessary  - the two vital steps in greening to save our world - nothing will change.

These are, of course, stemming human overpopulation and greening our food.

As even hosts on news stations note, why don't these so-called eco and green leaders, like Gore, like Suzuki, and others who profess to love our planet and want life to continue with some quality for all - why don't they take the two steps that actually will save it?

Ponder that as you - if you do actually care = take the big two steps that will save our lives-
Go Vegan and Go Child-Free and/or adopt.

Distilling this all down to why we have chosen to destroy our planet and to continue to do so at unprecedentedly terrorizing rates - to blame are our inborn appetites plus our unwillingness to stop continuous over-consumption despite the facts.

While baby steps are better than  none, only going all the way, and FAST, will help anything at all.

How to cure this and save the world?

Address our appetites, our greed, and our spirituality.

If your own spirituality doesn't include all beings on Earth, all places, all things, and if it merely pays lip service to compassion, then think again.

Compassion and logic will save the world.

Those lead us to the reality:  that each of us needs to examine his or her own soul and decide to do what is necessary to save what we profess to love.

Go Vegan. Go Child-Free - these are the ways , combined, to save our world.

To Green  IS to Vegan IS to be Child-Free and/or adopt.

To Eco  IS to Vegan IS to be Child-Free and/or adopt.

Re: Green Actions You Can Take At Home

I think there are many different ways to become green.  So I cannot agree that there are only two ways to do it – by becoming a vegan and by not having children, save by adopting.

I have two teenagers, so the option is a bit late, and one I would not have taken at the time anyway.  My husband and sons would never become vegetarian, let alone vegan.

However, I do get all my electricity from a green energy source:  Bull Frog Power. We buy local and or organic. I have switched over most of the products we use to organic or natural.  We use the subway to go to work and doctor/dentist/etc. appointments. We can walk to the grocery store and corner store and shopping and to our sons' doctor (dentist & eye doctor are one and two subway stops away).

We have energy efficient appliances, compact fluorescent bulbs, turn off lights and other devices when not in use. We use reusable bags rather than plastic.

I get all my books from the library. I haven't bought any clothes or clothes related item for myself the whole year.  I got a membership for the David Suzuki Foundation for my birthday this year and other “green” related items.

I am also on a Green Committee at work and believe I have been of some assistance there in getting the organization to save paper, electricity and other resources. I have almost completed switching over all of my investments to socially responsible ones.

Now the worst shame in North America are President Bush and Prime Minister Harper and the way they are running away from the Kyoto agreement.  However, the capital markets and pressure from individual and institutional investors are already forcing companies who do not want to go green to go green or go greener.

I think many cities, provinces or states, individuals, organizations, businesses are already making or continuing to make changes. It is too bad Bush and Harper have their heads either in the oil fields or under the tar sands but so it goes. We all better do a better job of electing the next heads of state in Canada and the United States.

Things You Can Do to Evolve The World

It's not about Saving The World.  It's about evolving.  Us (you and me and everyone else here) evolving.  The planets gonna be here for awhile - she might be in a lot worse shape, but the point is that we have to evolve.  Now.

Every step in the right direction helps.  Baby steps are massive for some people.  But taking one baby step (ie switching to flourescent bulbs) - and feeling great about the quality of light and the reduced energy bill - is actually massive because of the snowball effect.  The point is to take a step. 

I disagree with my old friend's opinion about being child free - and she knows this - but I do agree that we have to begin thinking about the big picture and taking the steps that matter most, now. 

And here's where I'd like to respond to Inukshuk's point about Bush.  Yes, vote for the next guy.  But to rest your hopes for change with a nationally elected leader is not a big solution.  Being a local leader is (which it sounds like you are, Inukshuk :~)

Be a leader, or support a local leader you believe in, and get things done in your neighborhood.  Take your baby steps first, if you haven't already.  Stop eating beef by discovering the amazing feeling and health benefits you get by going vegan.  Create a personal vision and embark on your path, if you haven't already.  Create a community vision and inspire people to do something simple and meaningful, like start an organic veggie garden. 

One thing we lack around the world, in my opinion, is local leadership.  Screw national presidents - yes, they're important and have some capacity to change things - but your neighborhood is where it's at. 

Be the change! 

Begin evolving the world by evolving your own world.  Your home.  And your Community. 

For me, that's the biggest step and the greatest contribution that anyone can make. 

Re: Green Actions You Can Take At Home

GREEN TIPS FOR THE KITCHEN

Here are some things you can do in your kitchen, to stop global warming.  These suggestions are from the British Channel 4 website:  http://www.channel4.com/science/microsites/E/environment/help_1.html .

Tips for being green in the kitchen

Quick tips

Don't overfill the kettle
If you're making tea for one, only use that amount of water. If you're making tea for two, use that amount and so on. Overfilling the kettle wastes needless energy.

Don't waste food
This might seem like an obvious point, but a survey by Braun found that YUBBIES (Young Urban Bin Baggers) waste £865m of food every year by letting it go stale or out of date. One in six people wastes more than 10% of their average £42 weekly groceries shopping. Salad and fresh vegetables are the most likely items to be thrown away.

Eat your leftovers
The Braun survey also showed that people in the UK no longer keep leftover food for another meal, preferring to bin it or feed it to the dog instead.

Let food cool down before refrigerating it
This saves energy. Also, only keep the fridge door open for as long as you need to.

Make your own lunch
Not only will this save you a lot of money, but also you'll use less packaging than a sandwich shop.

Only wash full loads in the washing machine
Only ever wash full loads of clothes instead of half loads to save water and energy.

Replace ordinary light bulbs with energy efficient ones
They might cost more initially, but they last much longer and are significantly better for the environment.

Recycle
As well as buying recycled products, get in touch with your local authority to find out about recycling schemes in your area. Pretty soon you'll be required to sort your rubbish anyway, so why not start now?

Re-use items
Bottles, carrier bags and refillable containers don't have to be thrown away - they can all be reused. Many supermarkets now offer 'bags for life'.

Think twice before you put something in the bin
Can it be reused or recycled?

Turn the lights off when you leave a room
This is one of the easiest things anyone can do - and the difference it can make to the amount of energy we consume is considerable.

Use refill packs
Most washing powders, liquids, fabric softeners and dishwasher products have refill packs rather than buying the large plastic bottle over and over again.

More tips

Buy less processed foods
Processed foods are often over-packaged, so try buying more fresh items.

Buy locally produced food where possible
Locally-produced foods don't have to be transported, making them a considerably more environmentally-friendly option by far.

Buy products with less packaging
Less packaging usually means less waste - although how environmentally friendly a product is also depends on how the product was packaged and transported originally.

Don't pour oil, fats and harmful chemicals down the sink or toilet
Inside drains lead to a septic tank or sewer system, where water will be treated. But some chemicals and substances won't be broken down and will still end up back in the sea or rivers. Inside drains and toilets should not be used to dispose of hazardous waste or chemicals - go to your local dump where they will be disposed of properly.

Dispose of your fridge properly
Many old fridges contain chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), which contribute to the hole in the ozone layer. If you need to dispose on an old fridge, contact your local authority.

Grow fresh food in your garden
Like locally-produced foods and products, there is no transport involved here, so you can't get much greener.

Repair damaged goods
Half of electrical goods that go to the dump only need minor repairs - and it will probably cost you less than buying a replacement.

Reuse plastic and glass bottles and jars or take them to a recycling bank
Containers like bottles and jars don't always have to be thrown away or recycled - you can reuse them, too.

Separate your rubbish
Recycling is going to become a bigger part of all of our lives, so why not start separating your rubbish for recycling now? Contact your local authority to find out when your nearest recycling point is - there might even be a local collection service available.

Shop environmentally
Books like The Good Shopping Guide list the most eco-friendly products and brands to buy.

Use and buy energy efficient appliances
Products like fridges and washing machines have energy labels on. Categories 'A' and 'B' are the most energy efficient and use less water. Anything rated below rating 'D' is being phased out and should be avoided - it will cost you more and will use more electricity.

Use low temperatures on your washing machine
This saves water and energy.