Don't Throw That Away!! Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Throw-away society. Each Canadian throws away approximately half a kilogram of packaging daily. In fact, half of our cities' solid waste by volume and one-third by weight is made up of paackaging.

What can you do about this?

Shop carefully and avoid buying products that are over packaged.

Buy in bulk where possible and use reusable containers when buying bulk. Avoid single serving items that are over-packaged.

Contact companies you purchase from and encourage less packaging or produce environmentally friendly packaging.

Talk to your friends, family, colleagues about reducing excess packaging.

Reuse packing materials for shipping parcels, wrapping gifts, moving, etc.

Bring your own bag when you shop.

Make it from scratch, such as pasta sauces, breads, etc. These are made from real ingredients that are NOT packaged, therefore there's no waste. Well maybe there's some organic waste but that's the helpful type of waste which can easily be recycled and reused into healthy rich soil.

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Getting Married? Go Green with a Low Carbon Wedding Plan!

Tying the knot but looking to host an eco-friendly wedding? This article will help new-to-be brides plan a low-carbon wedding or carbon neutral, when possible. There are many strategies and tips to get you started with planning a low carbon or carbon neutral wedding day, including:

 1. Skip the limo for something more individual and less polluting. How about an electric car, rickshaw or even a white horse, North Indian style?
2. Use local flowers - you could even plant a special crop when you get engaged to use at the wedding. Organic is the way to go!
3. Email your invites to save on paper - or use your social networking site of choice. For guests who haven't ventured onto the internet, you can use 100% post recycled invitations.
4. Consider wearing a second-hand, inherited or hired dress.
5. Have the wedding outdoors and in summer to minimize the need for heating or air conditioning. (June is particularly auspicious, according to the Romans)
6. Ask any friends who beat you to the alter if you could borrow their wedding paraphernalia. Buying less new stuff saves emissions.
7. Buy carbon offsets for your travelling wedding guests.
8. Rather than new gold wedding bands, try recycled gold bands instead.
9. Take an adventure at your local U-brew and make your own beer and wine for the big day. If that's not your thing though, there are plenty of options for organic or local wines as well.
10. Eco-friendly wedding music. As traditional music equipment draws lots of power and is heavy to lug from venue to venue, ask friends and family members who are musically inclined to play for your guests. Or if you don't have any musical talent at your fingertips, try a band that is unplugged and uses just the instruments for a true romantic sound.
11. Eco-friendly photography. Ask photographers what types of green products they offer. Do they offer enviro-friendly wedding albums, prints using vegetable-based dyes, etc.
12. Green gift ideas. Send an e-card with a note of an environmental or wildlife donation. This will mean a lot to the tree-hugging couple.
13. Sit down dinners are less wasteful than buffet dinners, so make sure you plan to use real cutlery and plates rather than disposable which is easily on Mother Earth!

With all of the items on the bride and grooms to-do list, this is a great starting place for green friendly wedding tips.

Environmental Lingo Explored

Over the past few weeks, I've been hosting a game at FDR called Scrambled Eco Words where players jumble up the letters of environmentally friendly words and phrases for another player to solve. Each week a winner is randomly drawn to win a $5 gift card.

With all this green lingo being shared, I thought it would be good to break them down and explain what they mean! Here are the first 20 explained:

RENEWABLE ENERGY is energy which comes from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat, which are renewable (naturally replenished).

ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY (also eco-friendly, nature friendly, and green) are synonyms used to refer to goods and services, laws, guidelines and policies considered to inflict minimal or no harm on the environment.

RECYCLING is processing used materials (waste) into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution (from incineration) and water pollution (from landfilling) by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse gas emissions as compared to virgin production.

REUSE is to use an item more than once. This includes conventional reuse where the item is used again for the same function, and new-life reuse where it is used for a new function.

COMPOST is plant matter that has been decomposed and recycled as a fertilizer and soil amendment. Compost is a key ingredient in organic farming. At its most essential, the process of composting requires simply piling up waste outdoors and waiting a year or more.

SUSTAINABILITY is the capacity to endure. In ecology, the word describes how biological systems remain diverse and productive over time. Long-lived and healthy wetlands and forests are examples of sustainable biological systems.

BIODEGRADABLE is a type of waste, typically originating from plant or animal sources, which may be degraded by other living organisms. Waste that cannot be broken down by other living organisms are called non-biodegradable.

DUMPSTER DIVING is the practice of sifting through commercial or residential trash to find items that have been discarded by their owners, but which may be useful to the dumpster diver.

RAIN BARREL is a water tank which is used to collect and store rain water runoff, typically from rooftops via rain gutters. Rain barrels are devices for collecting and maintaining harvested rain.

CLIMATE CHANGE is a long-term change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods of time that range from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in the average weather conditions or a change in the distribution of weather events with respect to an average, for example, greater or fewer extreme weather events. Climate change may be limited to a specific region, or may occur across the whole Earth.

EFFICIENT ENERGY USE, sometimes simply called energy efficiency, is the goal to expend less energy in the performance of tasks.

BIODIESEL refers to a vegetable oil- or animal fat-based diesel fuel consisting of long-chain alkyl (methyl, propyl or ethyl) esters. Biodiesel is typically made by chemically reacting lipids (e.g., vegetable oil, animal fat (tallow) with an alcohol. Biodiesel is meant to be used in standard diesel engines and is thus distinct from the vegetable and waste oils used to fuel converted diesel engines. Biodiesel can be used alone, or blended with petrodiesel. Biodiesel can also be used as a low carbon alternative to heating oil.

CARBON FOOTPRINT is "the total set of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused by an organization, event, product or person". Greenhouse gases can be emitted through transport, land clearance, and the production and consumption of food, fuels, manufactured goods, materials, wood, roads, buildings, and services.

SOLAR PANEL (photovoltaic module or photovoltaic panel) is a packaged interconnected assembly of solar cells, also known as photovoltaic cells. The solar panel can be used as a component of a larger photovoltaic system to generate and supply electricity in commercial and residential applications.

VERMICOMPOSTING is the product of composting utilizing various species of worms, usually red wigglers, white worms, and earthworms to create a heterogeneous mixture of decomposing vegetable or food waste, bedding materials, and vermicast. Vermicast, also known as worm castings, worm humus or worm manure, is the end-product of the breakdown of organic matter by species of earthworm.

UPCYCLING is the process of converting waste materials or useless products into new materials or products of better quality or a higher environmental value.

CONSERVATION is an ethic of resource use, allocation, and protection. Its primary focus is upon maintaining the health of the natural world: its, fisheries, habitats, and biological diversity.

CARBON RATIONING or Personal carbon trading is a general term referring to a number of proposed emissions trading schemes under which emissions credits are allocated to adult individuals on a (broadly) equal per capita basis, within national carbon budgets. Individuals then surrender these credits when buying fuel or electricity.

POLLUTION PREVENTION (P2) describes activities that reduce the amount of pollution generated by a process, whether it is consumer consumption, driving, or industrial production.

ZERO WASTE is a philosophy that encourages the redesign of resource life cycles so that all products are reused. Any trash sent to landfills is minimal. The process recommended is one similar to the way that resources are reused in nature.



As we progress through the game, I'll share the words/phrases and what they mean. This is a great way to learn about different environmental terms plus keep your mind sharp deciphering the anagrams! And of course, you can WIN too!

Experience WWOOF-ing, Experience Organic

Go WWOOF-ing. ...living, learning, sharing organic lifestyles

Willing Workers on Organic Farms, or Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms, has been around since the 1970's. It's a great way to travel, work and learn about organic farms in a hands-on way.

More about WWOOF:

WWOOF is a world wide network of organizations.  WWOOF was founded in 1971 in the UK.  From there WWOOF spread to Australia, New Zealand, then Canada in 1985, and now exists in 100 countries (and growing) around the world.  WWOOF links volunteers with organic growers, and helps people share more sustainable ways of living.

WWOOF is an exchange - In return for volunteer help, WWOOF hosts offer food, accommodation and opportunities to learn about organic lifestyles.

Learn more about WWOOF-ing in Canada at: http://www.wwoof.ca

Learn more about WWOOF-ing in the United States at: http://www.wwoofusa.org/

Learn more about Worldwide WWOOF-ing at: http://www.wwoof.org

Free Battery and Light Bulb Recycling in Canada

Several companies are offering recycling programs for free to return CFL lightbulbs plus alkaline batteries to prevent dumping in landfill sites. Throwing CFL's and batteries in the trash is harmful to the environment. It's great that companies are being socially responsible and offering free solutions that help save our planet!

IKEA Canada is a great example! They offer FREE recycling services for expired compact flourescent lightbulbs (CFL's) and FREE recycling of expired batteries. IKEA ensures that these harmful products are disposed of in a responsible manner.

HOME DEPOT Canada is another environmentally responsible company offering a National Recycling Initiative program of CFL lightbulbs.

RONA Canada offers CFL bulb recycling at select locations. Check with your local store for more info.

TORONTO HYDRO has a CFL Recyling Drop Off Program, with 2 dropoff locations

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Daily Living Green Tips

Each and every day, I add a daily tip for Living Green at FDR where I moderate. Not only can a person or entity save money by implementing these Green Living Tips, but they can also help SAVE the Planet!

These tips may help you identify ways to live more environmentally friendly, reduce garbage, learn how to reuse items that cannot be recycled through your municipal service and more.

There'll be tips to help you reduce, reuse, recycle and alter your habits, helping to save money and the environment in and around the home, your business, at school and while vacationing.

The Green Tip-Of-The-Day will include facts about the environment, tips for sustainable living and great ways to reduce your eco-footprint. Plus these tips will be the basis for the "T" Day Trivia games for 2011, where you can win a $5 gift card each and every week or help out foodbanks every other week!

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