Sarah Werthan Buttenwieser
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Tip of the Day: Get your co-workers to recycle aluminum cans
If your workplace isn't exactly excited by your eco-friendly attitude, start small.
Continue reading Tip of the Day: Get your co-workers to recycle aluminum cans
Tip of the day: Daylighting your house can save money, bring in the sun
Want to light your house without flipping a switch?
Continue reading Tip of the day: Daylighting your house can save money, bring in the sun
Light eases depression?
For many, those winter blues are a serious concern, as most of the symptoms -- lethargy, overeating, melancholy and oversleeping, for instance -- are similar to those commonly associated with depression .
Some believe this problem -- more formally called Seasonal Affect Disorder -- is caused by lack of high quality bright light. While getting from a gloomy climate to a brighter one -- beach or ski slope -- could be curative, not everyone can afford to do so.
Some suggest a special, high quality light (not simply a plant light but one created specifically for lifting the blues). And this should also be taken into consideration when constructing a new home. A builder I know who specializes in energy efficient housing says that SAD is one reason siting houses to the south for maximum light makes good sense (beyond simple energy efficiency).
An alternative medicine organization called PeaceHealth adds a simple piece of advice (that certainly keeps my spirits intact during the long winter): spend time outdoors. Yes, you have to bundle up, and getting out is harder because of the cold, but the benefits of fresh air just can't be underestimated.
A little rain barrel tutorial
Rain barrels have been around for centuries -- which, when you think about it, totally makes sense. During the wet months, store something that becomes precious during the dry months.I have to admit, I hadn't -- until relatively recently -- given the idea much thought. In fact, the only reason I was interested in them at all is because I knew they were green. And green is good. However, I wasn't entirely sure what people were supposed to do with them.
But now I get it. Rain barrels harvest water, and thus put less strain on the municipal water system. It's common sense -- not rocket science.
Have you heard of Nature's Classroom?
With fourteen sites in New England and a few associate sites elsewhere (like Alabama for example) Nature's Classroom is a well respected environmental education program that shows students some new ways to learn. Participatory, hands-on, in the field and outdoors learning occurs over the five day course. Students stay overnight, Monday to Friday, so they have activities day and night, share meals, and generally enjoy the camp-like adventures that can aid in a group's bonding.Academics are brought into the field -- a math class might construct a geodesic dome or find their way through the woods with a map and compass. A social studies class might play Native American games or design and build a miniature community. Humanities classes might compose woodland music or enhance their senses with a blindfolded walk in the woods.
Over half a million students can attest that Nature's Classroom provides a memorable week of school!
Oil hits record high Monday
According to an AP story (via AOL Money), oil reached $93 a barrel today before sliding back down.Factoring into the sky-high price: news that Petroleos Mexicanos or Pemex planned to shut down as much as 600,000 barrels of crude production per day. Add to that political tensions in the Mideast, throw in a weak U.S. dollar, heap some uncertain weather (like Hurricane Noel, for instance), and you've got a pretty unstable situation, analysts say.
This rise in oil futures -- which have gained $8 barrel (or about 9 percent) -- were spurred by the U.S. Department of Energy's report of a sharp drop in the country's crude stocks. According to the article, "Analysts note the price of oil is closing in on the inflation-adjusted highs hit in early 1980. Depending on the adjustment, a then $38 barrel of oil would be worth $96 to $101 or more today."
Pumpkin steaks: Going beyond the Jack O'Lantern
We all know that pumpkins can become pumpkin butter, pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, or perhaps pumpkin soup, but what else? I'm not a big pumpkin chef, myself. Still, this recipe for pumpkin steaks caught my eye, especially as pumpkins are pretty much omnipresent during this week leading up to Halloween. My 9 year-old saw the recipe, too, and he wants to give it a go.
Before ever getting to pumpkin steaks, we do, of course, have Jack O'Lanterns to carve. And we will cook our pumpkin seeds in the oven for Halloween evening nourishment. How do you make tasty seeds? Just drizzle a little olive oil and some salt and bake at 400 degrees until brown. Or use Tamari instead of salt.
As the author of this link suggests, the recipe for pumpkin steaks is a natural for Thanksgiving -- which is right around the corner.
As a side note (not to digress too much), a great picture book about cooking with pumpkins is Pumpkin Soup, by Helen Cooper, is a good seasonal choice.
Bicycling gear for wet weather
Depending on how committed/able you are to be a bicycle commuter, rain will -- almost inevitably -- fall on you. Of course, in this instance, one of the most pressing questions will be: what to wear?
Rather than reinvent the wheel, here are a few general tips:
-Wear bright colors.
-Make sure to cover up. Cover your ears (try a headband), neck (try a neck gator), and use layers for legs and feet. Cover your hands with gloves.
-Waterproofing yourself is also key. Suggestions for this: rain jacket or poncho, waterproof pants.
Jennifer, a Seattle bike commuter, offers this great advice for necessary biking gear. She also suggests wearing glasses to shield against bugs, dirt and rain, and gives advice on shoes, pedals, tires and panniers.
Nuclear power: Sustainable? Solution?
Obviously you can find information that supports either side of an argument.
But the idea that nuclear power is clean, green, safe or sustainable doesn't quite sit right with me.
Granted, we've got it. It's a developed technology, and that's compelling. We've also decreased the risks.
Still, uranium isn't a renewable source. We may have about 30-60 years' worth left. Plus, nuclear power isn't risk free. The stakes, if something does go wrong, are very high -- witness the worry about the off-line nuclear power plant near California wildfires this week. Threats to security also includes the potential for nuclear power to be catapulted into weaponry of the sort no one should possess -- again, witness the fear stirred by imagining it in the "wrong" hands (i.e. Iran). And of course most basic is this: we don't know how to dispose of nuclear waste.
So, is nuclear power a greener solution? Not really.
Fort Collins Colorado really recycles
My random question of the morning is: how many municipalities recycle on the streets?My query was prompted by new bins on Main Street in my town for bottles and cans -- about which I say, hooray. But thus far I haven't successfully found an good answer via Google search.
What I did discover is if you are into recycling, you'd be very fortunate to live in Fort Collins, Colorado.
When foliage isn't so brilliant
All you need for great fall foliage is to go to New England, right? Turns out, the answer is yes -- and no. The near-drought conditions we've had this year have rendered the colors less brilliant, and the time frame for leaf peeping a little on the late side in parts of New England -- though still, it is New England, so there's some glorious color to be had.Global warming does have an impact upon New England's signature autumnal style. This isn't the first dryer than "usual" fall in recent years and it's also becoming a pattern that fall isn't quite as crisp as it once was. Fall is shorter. The colors are tending to come later. We are not guaranteed the brilliance we have traditionally relied upon. Experts say there are many pockets of brilliance, depending upon rainfall -- so these days, knowing where to look is key.
It's amazing how much seemingly small shifts in global temperature can affect changes on the earth. And in the trees.
Top 10 coolest schools
Sierra Club has created a very COOL top 10 list, of the greenest -- and thus coolest -- schools across the country.Criteria included green buildings, solar panels, CFL bulbs, student activism, dining services' offerings, recycling efforts and more. In the top 10 there's Oberlin College -- with its very cool LEED certified buildings and first ever green commencement last year among other innovations; Warren Wilson College -- with its farm and ethos of sustainability; and Tufts University -- putting solar panels on its newest residence hall. It's inspiring to read about what different campuses are doing.
Students at nearly 600 schools have signed onto the Campus Climate Challenge. Undergrads are definitely leading the way toward a greener future.
The list includes big schools and small schools. Send it on to your favorite high school junior or senior with some encouragement to think of green as a possible school color.
Los Angeles Times wonders about Southern California wildfires
Posing a series of almost rhetorical questions, the Los Angeles Times published an editorial that has made its way to many other papers in California and across the country.There are questions that have to do with the nuts and bolts of disaster: why did some opt to stay at home rather than evacuate? Why do firefighters take such risks on behalf of perfect strangers? But there are also the questions that probably nag residents and onlookers alike: are we venturing too close to wilderness when we choose to site houses in glorious -- and previously unspoiled -- spots?
As the editorial points out, trying to live with this uneasy balance between where we settle and the wilderness, between the potential of natural disasters and the pleasures of daily life is not new to Southern California. But the particulars of that area really do raise larger issues. How do we -- collectively -- decide whether there are places we must leave as is, as nature dictated, simply because not leaving them alone threatens our coming too close to the elements? No individual blame, no individual judgment to that query; rather, it's the type of soul searching that disasters like these compel us to do.
Crafty idea: Make your tote
One thing I'm not is crafty. I do like a canvas or cloth tote though, for my grocery shopping, carting my son's lunch bag and sweet snugly panda bear (who goes by the name Stillwater) to preschool, and pretty much all else. We're getting pretty good about saying no to paper and plastic giveaways (not perfect, but pretty darn good).If I were to get a little crafty, could I make my own totes?
Apparently it's easy. Go here for instructions on making canvas bags, and here to make cloth. Kind of like paper or plastic -- only different!
Tips for a Green Thanksgiving
10 Tips for Making Your Home More Energy Efficient
Green Gift Ideas: Beauty Gift Sets
