Eco News

From the January 2008 Conscious Choice magazine - 

In the living library, everyone is an open book.  Founded in Europe by Ronni Abergel, a Danish anti-violence activist, the Living Library stages events around the world and has just been introduced in the US.  "What we really need to do is give each person a chance to be seen and heard as an individual," explains Abergel.  And a library is the perfect, neutral place to start the dialogue.  "Readers" check out "books" by sitting down and talking to individuals whose lifestyles fall prey to preconceived notions-everyone from Buddhists to homeless people to police officers to vegans.

For Chicagoans, get over $8000 in local green savings with the 2008-2009 MeGoGreen Savings Guide for only $20.  It is Chicagoland's path to living green.

To-Go Ware for those people who want to get food to go without all the waste of styrofoam containers and plastic utensils.  They produce stainless steel food carriers, cotton carrier bags, ceramic cups, and a utensil set made of bamboo along with a 100% recycled plastic holder.  

The EcoUsable bottle is a BPA-free, non-leaching stainless steel water bottle that filters your water as you drink it.  They claim to remove 99.99% of pollutants as you drink.  

Boskke Sky Planters are low-maintenance, air-purifying plants that hang down from the ceiling and are self-watering, provided that you refill them once or twice per month.  They conserve water and floor space and are especially nice for people with little living space and/or people with pets.

From the January/February Body + Soul magazine - 

Instead of tossing all of those holiday cards, mail them to St. Jude's Ranch for Children.  The nonprofit uses donated greeting cards to create new card sets, and the proceeds help abused children.              

Eco News

From the December 2008 Body + Soul magazine -  

Three cities are elevating recycling to the next level - San Francisco, Minneapolis and Toronto all accept leftover food and yard clippings and turn them into compost.  

Two reusable bags that are not only collapsable for easy carrying, but they are also made from recycled materials.  CarryEco from TokyoBay and Trek Light tote.  The CarryEco is made from recycled plastic and the Trek Light tote is made from leftover hammock materials.  

Next time you need to ship something, instead of using styrofoam peanuts or any other environmentally-unfriendly packing material, consider these natural alternatives - 

edible peanuts in the shell, air-popped popcorn, tattered t-shirts or any worn-out fabric, and any hard candy in wrappers.  

University of Washington scientists tested six top-selling laundry products and air fresheners and determined that each product contained one or more chemicals that government agencies deemed toxic or hazardous (such as acetone, limonene, acetaldehyde, and 1,4-dioxane).  The study, which did not disclose the names of the products, also found that the chemicals were not listed on the labels. For a list of independently screened nontoxic household goods search for "cleaning products" at Co-op America's National Green Pages.        

Green web sites to check out

Funding Factory: Acting as a facilitator for schools and non-profits, encouraging them to collect empty printer cartridges and old mobile phones from parents and local businesses to raise funds from recycling.  

In ten years, more than 112,000 schools and non-profits are registered collection centers that have raised more than $20 million dollars.

Green For All: A national organization dedicated to building an inclusive green economy strong enough to lift people out of poverty.

One Greener: a company that works with small to large companies, municipalities, and schools to develop citizenship and sustainability efforts around training and staff innovation. 

Green Biz: A great source for green business news.

Book Mooch: Give books away and get books you want.

Center for the New American Dream: they have found creative ways to get people to think about their buying habits.

Mr. Ellie Pooh: This paper is made from 100% recycled materials and manufactured using renewable energy.  The Sri-Lankan paper is toxin-free and uses only basic bonding agents along with water soluble dyes for coloring purposes.  It also offers the ideal pH for photography preservation.   

            

What exactly is green IT?

People use the term green IT so often now, it is assumed that there is a definition for it.  And the definition is widely known and accepted.  But is this really the case?  Green IT to one person could mean consolidating their servers, while green IT to someone else could mean recycling old computers and other IT equipment.  Certainly, the definition of green IT should include both of these, but also so much more.  Green IT is also known as green computing.  Green computing is the study and practice of using computing resources efficiently and accounting for the triple bottom line.  It begins with the manufacturing of environmentally-responsible IT products like computers, servers, and printers.  It continues by implementing these products in conjunction with a policy that promotes energy-efficiency and the maximum use of these resources.  The loop closes with the proper recycling and disposal of all electronic waste generated.

Buying energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly IT equipment is now easier than ever before.  The Green Electronics Council has recently joined forces with EcoLogo, a well-known North American certification program managed by TerraChoice Environmental Marketing.  The Green Electronics Council manages EPEAT or the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool, which is an online tool that informs organizations of the environmental criteria of electronic products.  EcoLogo currently certifies thousands of products in dozens of categories.  This partnership will make it easier to certify and promote electronics that are energy-efficient, easily recyclable, and free of toxic chemicals.  In addition, the EPA’s Energy Star program rates electronics based on their energy-efficiency.  Greenpeace even puts out an annual report card on electronics manufacturers called .  It ranks companies based upon their policies concerning toxic chemicals, recycling, and climate change. 

There are several organizations you can join, as well, if you want to be among like-minded green company.  The Think Green Alliance is an organization that seeks to build a community of businesses and organizations that are like-minded in their commitment to providing environmentally-friendly and sustainable services, products, and goods.  The Green Grid is a global consortium dedicated to advancing energy-efficiency in data centers and business computing ecosystems. 

To ensure the entire life cycle of your electronics are taken into account, there are two major guidelines, both European, to keep in mind.  The RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances) directive ensures that newly manufactured electronics contain acceptable levels of lead, cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyl (PBB) and polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) flame retardants.  The WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) directive seeks to reduce the disposal of electronic waste through reuse, recycling, and recovery.  In order to ensure that your electronic waste is indeed getting properly recycled, be sure to look for environmentally-responsible recyclers who follow standards set forth by the Basel Action Network as part of its Computer TakeBack Campaign’s Electronics Recycler’s Pledge of True Stewardship.

Green IT is an important component for any organization trying to put their environmentally-friendly foot forward.  This is the year to move ahead with power management software, consolidating servers, and making those data centers more energy-efficient.  When companies move forward with those and other green initiatives, 2009 should prove to be a great year for green IT. 

Now that you got that new gadget for Christmas...

So Santa got you what you wanted this Christmas.  He got you the latest notebook, or the newest and most energy-efficient refrigerator. Before you kick those old electronics and/or appliances to the curb, check out these resources first.  

HP Consumer Buyback and Planet Partners Recycling Program

Best Buy Greener Together

Earth911

EPA's eCycling Program

Ebay's EZtradein.com

Gcycle

Remember, we only have one Earth.  Each decision we make can impact the planet in a positive way if we only stop to think before we throw away.  

Eco News

From the Nov./Dec. 2008 E: The Environmental Magazine - 

Save money on gas and reduce carbon emissions by carpooling. Some web sites with free resources to check out: 

Carpool CREW: Matches people based on many criteria.

DivideTheRide: People can organize carpool calendars with people they know.

eRideShare: Connects commuters traveling in the same direction.

If you are a Facebook addict, and many are, check out their Carpool application.

Real Christmas trees are actually better for the environment: Artificial trees are likely to be from China and contain both lead and PVC, and can even cause an allergic reaction.  Real pine trees are crops. When farmers cut down a tree, they plant a new one.  And if you can find a local tree farm that does not use chemical pesticides, so much the better.  After Christmas, recycle your tree or even plant it in a barrel for next year. 

From the November 2008 Body + Soul magazine -  

In 7,100 US communities, residents can no longer afford to ignore their eco-footprint.  The waste-reduction program known as Pay-As-You-Throw has helped to eliminate from 4.6 to 8.3 million tons of solid waste each year.  PAYT programs lead to reductions in greenhouse gas emissions as well-up to 3.8 million metric tons of carbon equivalents annually-as a result of lower overall processing costs.  To find out more, visit the EPA's web site.  

Ways to reduce your solid waste: Recycle, Compost, Buy Used or Barter for things you need.

Something stinky lurking in those air fresheners: For the estimated 75% of American households using air fresheners, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) found that 12 out of 14 common air fresheners (including those marked "all natural" or "unscented") contained hormone-disrupting chemicals.  

For a more natural breath of fresh air, try opening your windows.  Or try an essential-oil spray you can make yourself by combining 30-40 drops of up to 3 different oils with 1 cup of water in a spray bottle and shake well before use.  

Stationery you can feel good writing home about:

Crane & Co. uses textile waste for its 100% cotton stationery and note cards. 

Smock uses sustainable bamboo paper printed with vegetable, low-VOC inks for its letterpress stationery.

Great Elephant Poo Poo Paper Company uses elephant dung to create stationery sets and notebooks.

A company can begin to green their operations today with no capital investment

This is an article I wrote for the website (www.emqus.com) where I work.  I really liked it, and I wanted to put it in my blog too.  It is amazingly simple to start greening a company.  And little steps that can be taken now with no cost whatsoever can turn into bigger steps that cost money in the beginning, but pay for themselves and then start saving the company money in the long-term.  

There are a lot of ways a company can go green.  Most of them require an initial investment.  A company could buy newer, more energy-efficient IT infrastructure, invest in CFL or LED lighting, invest in power management software or consolidate servers to ensure that they are running at their maximum capacity.  

All of these things net a positive return on the initial investment, but they do require an initial outlay of cash.  If an organization that wants to go green simply cannot find any money in the budget to begin the process, here are some things that they can do today to help the environment and their bottom-line at no cost.  

1) Turn computers off at the end of the day.  Leaving PCs on all night wastes energy, costs organizations millions in electricity costs and contributes to carbon emissions.

2) The last person to leave any room, be it the server room, the conference room or their office, should be responsible for turning off the lights.  Using less electricity means emitting less carbon, but it also means a smaller electric bill.

3) Think before printing anything.  Can it simply be saved in a folder? Made into a PDF?  Paper comes from trees, and the fewer trees we have, the less carbon dioxide they are scrubbing from the atmosphere.

4) Reuse paper from printers, copiers and fax machines.  Often, documents print incorrectly or a document is put in the copier upside down.  Reuse that paper.  Simply put it back.  In addition, if a hard copy of a document is necessary, but it is for internal use only, why not print it on remnant paper?  Turn that unwanted document over and print on the other side.

5) Recycle.  This does take a little effort, but really, how hard is it to have a few bins around the office where people can put paper, plastic, aluminum, batteries and even printer cartridges?  If an organization makes it standard procedure to recycle, then it will just become second-nature for people to do it. 

6) Encourage people to bring in unwanted coffee mugs, dishware and cutlery for the office kitchen instead of buying one-use paper, plastic and styrofoam products.  

These are just a few of the ways that companies can go green at no cost.  This is not an exhaustive list.  The possibilities are endless. Get employees excited about being green.  Have a brainstorming session and ask everyone for their input.  Each organization has an opportunity to make an investment in the future with no money down.