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Photo Friday – Mutant Sunflowers

September 3, 2010 in Environment by Wendy Gabriel | 1 comment

by Wendy Gabriel

We have two garden beds in our backyard, Caleigh and Cadence designed one and the other is full of organic vegetables for us to eat. The girls decided to plant sunflowers, watermellon and cucumbers in their garden… the giant mutant sunflowers refused to allow the watermellon and cucumbers to grow and finally after growing to an enormous height, they decided to bloom. Can’t wait to roast the gigantic seeds!

Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadow. It’s what sunflowers do. ~Helen Keller

 

Some of my favorite photos and photo blogs:
Twilight Earth’s Photo Sunday
Mother Nature Sunday Gallery: Beaming Flowers from Love Earth Always
Photo Terri
True to Words’ Friday Photography
Twin Cities Photo Blog

Green Tip – Pack a Zero Waste Lunch

September 1, 2010 in Environment, WDAY Green Tip by Wendy Gabriel | 1 comment

by Wendy Gabriel

GREEN TIP: Pack a zero waste lunch. You’ll save money and help the environment. The best way to reduce garbage is not to create it in the first place.

We’ve talked before about using reusable products, Green Tip – Think Reusable NOT Disposable, let’s take it a step further and make our packed lunches both nutritious and environmentally friendly.

A zero waste lunch means that you have no packaging to throw away when you’re done – nothing other than apple cores, banana and orange peels, peach or cherry pits. The best way to reduce garbage is to not create it.

Source: Environmental Forum of Marin

Tips for a zero waste lunch:

  • Use a REUSABLE carrier (cloth bag, lunchbox). DON’T use  throw-away bags.
  • Use REUSABLE containers (preferably ceramic or glass). DON’T use plastic wrap, foil or styrofoam.
  • Use a stainless steel bottle for drinks. DON’T use single-use cartons or cans.
  • Use a CLOTH NAPKIN to wash and re-use. DON’T use paper napkins.
  • Use SILVERWARE to wash and re-use. DON’T use plastic forks and spoons.
  • Only pack the amount of food you’ll eat.

Source: Global Stewards

 Lunch Waste Facts

  • FOOD WASTE: A 2004 University of Arizona study reported that Americans throw away almost 50 percent of all the food we produce for domestic sale and consumption. In round numbers that’s $43 billion annually on wasted food.
  • FOOD WASTE: Researchers at the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) concluded in a 2009 study that each year a quarter of U.S. water consumption and over 300 million barrels of oil (four percent of U.S. oil consumption) go into producing and distributing food that ultimately ends up in landfills. 
  • ALUMINUM FOIL: More than 20 million Hershey’s kisses are wrapped with 133 square miles of foil every day.
  • ALUMINUM AND TIN CANS: In the time it takes you to read this sentence, more than 50,000 12-oz. aluminum cans were made.
  • FOOD WASTE: Food debris in a landfill decomposes only 25% in the first 15 years (try composting!).
  • JUICE BOXES: Most inorganic trash retains its weight, volume, and form for at least four decades.
  • PAPER BAGS AND NAPKINS: It is estimated that 17 trees are cut down for every ton of non-recycled paper.
  • PLASTIC BOTTLES, FORKS, WRAP: U.S. citizens discard 2-1/2 million plastic bottles EVERY HOUR.
  • STYROFOAM: U.S. citizens throw away 25 billion styrofoam cups EVERY YEAR.

Source: Scientific America and Global Stewards

We must shift our way of thinking, from what is the most “convenient” way to do something to how can we do something more sustainably. If we don’t, we are leaving a mess for our children and their children to clean up. Let’s leave our world better than we found it!

My Green Side’s web pick of the week:

My Zero Waste
My Zero Waste is dedicated to making the world a cleaner place. The overall purpose of the site is to help households reduce the amount of rubbish sent to the landfill. We show on a daily basis HOW we are reducing our own landfill waste by highlighting the pitfalls and sharing their mistakes and successes.

Read wonderful articles like How To Reduce Food Waste and find out about the third annual National Zero Waste Week, September 6th – 12th 2010.

Editor’s Note: Each Wednesday My Green Side brings Simple Tips for Green Living to The Christopher Gabriel Program. We also highlight a favorite green site each week. You can stream the segment at approximately 1020am (CDT) every Wednesday at WDAY.com.

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Green Tip – Back-to-School Shopping

August 4, 2010 in Environment, WDAY Green Tip by Wendy Gabriel | No comments

by Wendy Gabriel

GREEN TIP: When back-to-school shopping, avoid buying school supplies containing polyvinyl chloride (PVC or vinyl) or other toxic plastics.

According to the Center for Health, Environment & Justice(CHEJ), PVC plastic is one of the most hazardous consumer products ever created. PVC is dangerous to human health and the environment throughout its entire life cycle, at the factory, in our homes, and in the trash. Our bodies are contaminated with poisonous chemicals released during the PVC lifecycle, such as mercury, dioxins, and phthalates, which may pose irreversible life-long health threats. When produced or burned, PVC plastic releases dioxins, a group of the most potent synthetic chemicals ever tested, which can cause cancer and harm the immune and reproductive systems.

Children are at risk from even small exposures to these toxic chemicals. That’s why it’s important to purchase PVC-free school supplies.

CHEJ recently released this years  Back-to-School Guide to PVC-Free School Supplies to empower all of us to make smarter, healthier shopping choices for a toxic-free future. The guide lists the most common back-to-school supplies made out of PVC plastic and suggests safer PVC-free alternatives.

You can also download the wallet-sized version of the guide here: http://bit.ly/ds4bs1

WHAT TO AVOID:

  • Products that are labeled with the words “vinyl” on the packaging.
  • The number “3” inside the universal recycling symbol.
  • The letters “V” or “PVC” underneath the universal recycling symbol.
  • Other toxic plastics to avoid: polycarbonate (PC), polystyrene (PS) and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) plastics.
  • If there isn’t any labeling indicating what the product is made of, call the manufacturer’s question/comment line (usually a toll-free 800 number) listed on the package to find out.

For additional information:
CHEJ’s report, PVC: The Poison Plastic.
Beth Terry’s informative summary on the evils of PVC, New Guide to PVC-Free School Supplies.
CNN’s series of investigative reports by Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Toxic America.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

Rather than recycling or tossing PVC items, like old vinyl curtains and floor tiles, in the trash, Mike Schade, CHEJ’s PVC campaign coordinator, recommends disposing of them in hazardous waste landfill sites. Call your sanitation department or state environmental agency to see where you might dispose of hazardous material.

CHEJ also suggests returning PVC products and packaging to retailers and manufacturers. “We recommend consumers contact manufacturers and let them know that PVC is an unacceptably toxic material and that it should not be used in production,” says Anne Rabe with CHEJ. “As consumers, they can also send that message by not purchasing products packaged or made from PVC.” Look for the number 3 in the recycling symbol or the letter “V.”

This is becoming an easier task already. Rabe points out that there are a number of PVC alternatives already on the market. For example, Ikea now sells non-PVC shower curtains exclusively.

Some manufacturers have already heard the calls for a halt to PVC use in production. CHEJ has successfully worked with Victoria’s Secret and Microsoft to eliminate PVC from their packaging and is currently in talks with Target, Sears and Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart has already committed to eliminating PVC in its private-label-product packaging in two years.

Source: CHEJ’s report, PVC: The Poison Plastic

My Green Side’s web pick of the week:

The Center for Health, Environment & Justice (CHEJ)
CHEJ’s overarching goal has consistently been to prevent harm—particularly among vulnerable populations such as children. If a safer process, material or product exists it should be used. They believe that everyone, regardless of income, race, religion, or occupation, has a right to live, work, learn, play and pray in a healthy community.

Editor’s Note: Each Wednesday My Green Side brings Simple Tips for Green Living to The Christopher Gabriel Program. We also highlight a favorite green site each week. You can stream the segment at approximately 1020am (CDT) every Wednesday at WDAY.com.

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Energy-Wise Landscape Design (Review)

July 29, 2010 in Book Review, Environment by Wendy Gabriel | 1 comment

by Wendy Gabriel

Image my surprise (and delight) when Sue Reed, author and landscape architect, contacted me about her new book, Energy-Wise Landscape Design: A New Approach for your Home and Garden. My approach in landscape design has always been to work with what I had, don’t add toxic chemicals and do add native plants whenever and wherever I could. After reading Energy-Wise Landscape Design, I was taken to a whole new level and have a new appreciation for how important our landscape design can be.

This book should be required reading for anyone who has a hand in planning a landscape design: homeowners, builders, city planners and so on.

Some of my favorites:

Chapter 8: Reducing (or Eliminating) Lawn
This chapter describes the evolution of the North American lawn and how we can replace some lawn with other things or design a lawn-free landscape. I sincerely wish that we could all shift the way we view a “perfect” lawn.

In the ultimate irony, to keep grass free of weeds, we blithely spread bags full of chemicals that harm the health of ourselves and our children, our pets and our friends, not to mention a whole world of wild creatures we never see or consider.

Chapter 9: Using Water Efficiently
This chapter explains how to design our landscapes so they need and consume less water including a section on collecting rainwater.

There is so much information packed into this book along with amazing photos and detailed drawings. Sue gives us an education in landscape design while opening our eyes to the possibilities of our individual landscapes. Her voice is full of common sense and charm. I highly recommend this book. 

And, not only is the book fabulous, Sue’s publisher New Society Publishers has been Deep Green for over 30 years. They have produced the book on recycled paper made with 100% post consumer waste, processed chlorine free and old growth free. It’s a book you can feel good about buying for all the right reasons.

It’s time for us to imagine a new kind of landscape, one in which beauty is not just a social convention or a glossy magazine image, but also an expression of our social values. Now in the 21st century, we can design, build and care for our landscapes so that in addition to looking attractive they will also work for our own good and the good of the larger world.

For more information visit Energy-Wise Landscape Design.

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Green Tip – Buying Paper Products

July 21, 2010 in Environment, WDAY Green Tip by Wendy Gabriel | 3 comments

by Wendy Gabriel

GREEN TIP: Make smart shopping decisions when buying paper products, look for high recycled content and clean manufacturing processes or, even better, buy reusable products in place of the paper products.

Each day we have the opportunity to make smarter shopping decisions. Buying the right paper products is especially important because forests are being destroyed to make toilet paper, facial tissues, paper towels and other disposable paper products. And, during the chlorine bleaching process, harmful dioxins are formed causing serious health implications.

If every household in the United States replaced just one box of virgin fiber facial tissues (175 sheets) with 100% recycled ones, we could save 163,000 trees. SEE THE LIST

If every household in the United States replaced just one roll of virgin fiber toilet paper (500 sheets) with 100% recycled ones, we could save 423,900 trees. SEE THE LIST

If every household in the United States replaced just one roll of virgin fiber paper towels (70 sheets) with 100% recycled ones, we could save 544,000 trees. SEE THE LIST

If every household in the United States replaced just one package of virgin fiber napkins (250 count) with 100% recycled ones, we could save 1 million trees. SEE THE LIST

Three Things You Can Do

1. Buy paper products with recycled content — especially post-consumer fibers.

Look for products that have a high recycled content, including high post-consumer content. Post-consumer fibers are recovered from paper that was previously used by consumers and would otherwise have been dumped into a landfill or an incinerator.

2. Buy paper products made with clean, safe processes.

Paper products are bleached to make them whiter and brighter, but chlorine used in many bleaching processes contributes to the formation of harmful chemicals that wind up in our air and water and are highly toxic to people and fish.

According to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), chlorinated dioxins form as an unintended byproduct of waste incineration and a variety of industrial processes, including smelting, chlorine paper bleaching and pesticide manufacturing. Burning household waste and even forest fires can also produce dioxins. Sometimes described as the most toxic contaminant ever found, dioxin has been linked to multiple outbreaks of disease and cancer triggered by high-level exposures at least as far back as 1949.

Look for products labeled totally chlorine-free (TCF) or processed chlorine-free (PCF). In some cases, elemental chlorine-free (ECF) may be acceptable.

3. Tell tissue manufacturers to stop using virgin wood for throwaway products.

If a brand you buy for your home doesn’t have any recycled content, contact the manufacturer (click here to send a message to paper giant Kimberly-Clark). Tell the company to use more recycled fibers, to avoid sourcing from ecologically valuable forests such as those in the Cumberland Plateau and Canadian boreal, and to ensure any virgin fibers used are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. Saving forests also helps reduce global warming pollution.

Source: Natural Resources Defense Council

Local retail providing green paper product options:

My Green Side’s web pick of the week:

Center for Health, Environment & Justice (CHEJ): BE SAFE Precautionary Campaign
The precautionary approach looks at how we can prevent harm from environmental hazards. It is a “better safe than sorry” practice motivated by caution and prevention. Why ask “what level of harm is acceptable?” when we can prevent pollution and environmental destruction before it happens. The Center for Health, Environment & Justice’s BE SAFE campaign is a nationwide initiative to build support for the precautionary approach.

Editor’s Note: Each Wednesday My Green Side brings Simple Tips for Green Living to The Christopher Gabriel Program. We also highlight a favorite green site each week. You can stream the segment at approximately 1020am (CDT) every Wednesday at WDAY.com.

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10 Simple Tips for Green Living

July 14, 2010 in Environment, WDAY Green Tip by Wendy Gabriel | 6 comments

by Wendy Gabriel

GREEN TIP: If you’re new to green living, there are a few simple tips you can incorporate right away to begin living sustainably.

10 Simple Tips for Green Living

1.  Reduce, reduce, reduce. Here are a few simple ways to reduce your impact and conserve our resources:

  • Turn off the tap water when brushing your teeth.
  • Take shorter showers.
  • Use cold water to wash clothes whenever possible.
  • Run your clothes washer and dishwasher only when they are full.
  • Drink filtered tap water instead of bottled water.
  • Regularly replace the filter on your Heating, Ventilating and Air-Conditioning (HVAC) system. Check furnace or heat pump filters once a month for blockages and replace them regularly. A dirty air filter can increase your energy costs and lead to early equipment failure.
  • Install a programmable thermostat in your home (and then actually program it).
  • Walk or bike instead of driving.
  • Turn off the lights when leaving a room.
  • Reuse envelopes and backsides of paper, print double-sided and purchase high recycled content paper.

2.  Buy local, organic produce. Food travels an average of 1,200 miles before it reaches your plate, so buy locally produced items to save energy and prevent emissions from going into the air.

3.  Recycle. By recycling materials such as aluminum cans, newspapers, and glass jars, you can save energy and landfill space, conserve natural resources, and also prevent pollution. Earth911.com is a wonderful resource for learning about recycling.

4.  Unplug electronics when they’re not in use. Many appliances continue to draw electricity when they’re turned off, releasing unnecessary pollutants into the air, and costing you unnecessary dollars.

5.  Use non-toxic laundry detergents to avoid harmful exposure to chemical detergents and water pollution.

6.  Properly dispose of hazardous waste. Electronics, compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFLs), certain batteries and other household hazardous wastes contain toxic materials so they should not be sent to landfills where they can pollute the surrounding land and water. A single computer monitor may contain 4 pounds of lead as well as other toxic heavy metals. For the City of Fargo, check out their site for information regarding hazardous waste.

7.  Buy recycled. Look for the words “post consumer” or “recycled” when shopping. There are over 4,500 recycled-content products available including paper towels, printer paper, note pads, packing boxes, sleeping bags, laundry detergent bottles, glass containers, nails, carpeting, trash cans, and trash bags. The amount of post consumer content can vary from a small percentage to 100 percent, so look for labels that indicate the highest percentage. (Source: US EPA)

8.  Compost. Compost your food scraps and yard clippings. This will keep them out of the landfill and provide you with mulch, soil amendment and potting soil.

9.  Buy reusable products. For example, washable utensils, tableware, cloth napkins, and dishcloths can be used many times.

10. Buy used products. Check out your local resale or consignment shops. Locally check out the Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch Thrift Store, Once Upon A Child and so on.

My Green Side’s web pick of the week:

 Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)
The NRDC’s mission is to safeguard the Earth: its people, its plants and animals and the natural systems on which all life depends.

For more tips on how to reduce energy consumption visit NRDC.org.

Editor’s Note: Each Wednesday My Green Side brings Simple Tips for Green Living to The Christopher Gabriel Program. We also highlight a favorite green site each week. You can stream the segment at approximately 1020am (CDT) every Wednesday at WDAY.com.

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Green Tip – Eco Cleaning Your Cars Interior

July 7, 2010 in Environment, WDAY Green Tip by Wendy Gabriel | 2 comments

by Wendy Gabriel

GREEN TIP: Detail the interior of your car yourself. You’ll save money and have a clean interior using safe, non-toxic and earth friendly products to protect your investment, your health and the environment.

The environment inside your car can impact your immediate and long-term health, as well as the world around us. Just as we have learned that the indoor air in our homes is polluted with off-gassing materials and the VOCs (volatile organic compounds) found in cleaning supplies, so is the air in our car interiors. This is important because the average American spends 400 hours or more a year here while commuting and running daily errands.

After a detailing at the local dealer, a car interior can be filled with chemical irritants from the carpet and upholstery cleaner, polishes, protectants, and perfumes used in the process. The promise of regaining that new car smell indicates the presence of these toxic chemicals. There are other ways to maintain the interior of your car and be health conscious. And staying on top of minor daily and weekly maintenance eliminates the need for the heavy cleaning artillery later.

Source: GreenCar.com

With some help from Diane MacEachern, author of Big Green Purse: Use Your Spending Power to Create a Cleaner, Greener World, here is a list of green options for maintaining your car’s interior:

  • Clean your windows. Make your own window cleaner. The commercial cleaning products are loaded with toxic chemicals.

Recipe:  Mix 1/2 cup white vinegar with two cups water in a spray bottle. Add a few drops of pulp-free lemon juice for fragrance (optional). Apply directly on a lint-free cotton cloth so the cleaner doesn’t spray all over the car. Once you wipe the windows clean, buff them with a micro-fiber cloth for extra shine.

  • Take trash with you. Whenever you leave the car, take your trash with you avoiding the need to have an air freshener to mask any nasty smells from something that should’ve been taken out of the car.
  • Open the windows for a few minutes while you’re driving to let fresh air circulate through the car.
  • Use hot soapy water to wipe down interior doors, handles and vinyl seats.
  • Rinse off floor mats. To clean really dirty mats, lay them on your driveway and pour white vinegar in them. Let sit. Rinse out vinegar and swipe clean. Avoid letting vinegar go into your grass, it will kill it. I poured my vinegar into the cracks in my driveway to eliminate the weeds that were growing there.
  • At a car wash, don’t let them spray the interior with air freshener when they finish vacuuming. If they’ve done their job properly, the car should smell just fine without it.
  • Use a whisk broom or hand-held vacuum to remove dirt and dust from the floors and seat cushions.
  • Keep a cloth napkin within reach so you can wipe up spills when they occur.
  • Dust surfaces with a damp cloth once a week to keep grime from building up.
  • For spots on the steering wheel or console, sprinkle a little baking soda on a wet towel and gently rub. Wipe with a clean damp cloth.

Source: Big Green Purse

Ingredients to avoid in car care products from Eco Touch:

1. Synthetic fragrances/scents – used to mask the smell of the chemicals used in the product. Manufacturers typically opt for the synthetic version of a chemical because it is far less expensive than their natural counterpart. Essential oils are a much better alternative than synthetics.

2. Synthetic dyes/colorants – change the appearance of a formula so it is more pleasing for the consumer. The majority of dyes derive from coal tars or petroleum. Coal tar contains various toxins and carcinogens.

3. Teflons, Fluropolymers- used by car care manufacturers as a gloss/protective agent for car surfaces. Traditionally found in quick detailers, car waxes and car wash products. During the production of teflons and fluropolymers, a hazardous chemical known as perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) is used. PFOA is a toxicant and carcinogen in animals. In people, it has been linked to birth defects, increased cancer rates and changes to the immune system.

4. Kerosene- a synthetic distillate which is used as a grease cutter. Kerosene can damage lung tissues and dissolve the fatty tissue that surrounds nerve cells. Found in all purpose cleaners and degreasers. [1]

5. Methanol – a solvent derived from wood and petroleum. It is acutely toxic and can cause blindness. Found in window cleaners and windshield wash.

6. Sodium Hydroxide (lye, caustic soda, white caustic, soda lye) – extremely strong caustic substance that damages skin, eyes and mucous membranes. Blindness is reported in animals exposed to as little as 2% dilution for just one minute.

7. Ammonia – a corrosive substance which causes burning of the eyes, nose, throat and respiratory tract and can result in blindness, lung damage or death. Boosts the nitrogen levels in soil and water which adversely affect marine and animal life.

8. Phosphates – phosphorus occurs naturally in rock formations in the earth’s crust, usually as phosphate. They are of high nutritive value to plants and animals at normal levels in the environment. However, phosphates are also used as detergent builders in some car care products, which causes aquatic plant life to flourish, thus decreasing oxygen levels for other organisms. Found in car wash soaps.

9. Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)- Polyvinyl Chloride is recognized by the recycling symbol #3. PVC is highly toxic because during its production, it is mixed with softening chemicals known as plasticizers, the most common variety being phthalates. Exposure to PVC and plasticizers have been linked to an increased risk of the following: hormonal imbalance, reproductive problems, allergies in children, brain cancer and tumors. PVC is used in packaging for several major car care manufacturers. The sensible alternative would be to switch to #1 PET or #2 HDPE.

[1] – Healthy-Communications.com

My Green Side’s web pick of the week:

GreenerCars.org  
This is the official site for the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy’s (ACEEE) Green Book. It is a unique consumer resource providing Green Scores rating the environmental friendliness of every vehicle on market. The site also includes green driving tips, news and resources.

Greenercars.org is part of the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE).

ACEEE is a Washington, D.C.-based independent, non-profit research group dedicated to advancing energy efficiency as a means of protecting the environment and strengthening the economy. Read more about the organization at its site.

Editor’s Note: Each Wednesday My Green Side brings Simple Tips for Green Living to The Christopher Gabriel Program. We also highlight a favorite green site each week. You can stream the segment at approximately 1020am (CDT) every Wednesday at WDAY.com.

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Green Tip – Avoid Toxic Food Packaging

June 30, 2010 in Environment, WDAY Green Tip by Wendy Gabriel | 6 comments

by Wendy Gabriel

GREEN TIP: Avoid food packaging that has been known or suspected to contain toxic chemicals that can leach into food. Eat whole foods, make your own meals (out of whole foods) and avoid industrial processed foods.

In 2009, Jane Muncke, a researcher with Emhart Glass, conducted a study of 50 legal food packaging substances that are known endocrine disruptors. She concluded that “food contact materials are a major source of food contaminants,” that many toxic chemicals and suspected endocrine disruptors can leach from food packaging, and that many chemicals that can leach from food packaging remain unidentified and unstudied.

Incidentally, food and beverage packaging is also a major source of waste, accounting for 55% of global packaging waste.

Source: The Daily Green

We’ve already discussed why to avoid foods that come in cans:

Now let’s talk a little about why we should be avoiding industrial processed foods.

One example. Kellogg recalled as many as 28 million boxes of cereal because a chemical is suspected to be leaching from the food packaging into the cereal. The company issued the recall last Friday on its Corn Pops, Honey Smacks, Fruit Loops and Apple Jacks breakfast cereals. The Food and Drug Administration states the reason for the recall as “uncharacteristic off-flavor and smell coming from the liner in the package.” Other sources call it a wax-like substance, and parents are being warned that it may cause diarrhea or vomiting, particularly in sensitive children (the recalled cereals – Apple Jacks, Corn Pops, Froot Loops and Honey Smacks – are sugary staples of the Kellogg line, marketed with cartoon characters primarily at children).

Source: The Daily Green

The recent Kellogg cereal recall points up another problem with industrial packaged foods. Not only do most non-organic cereals contain genetically modified ingredients, the cereals are made by an extrusion process that renders the grains unfit to eat and the cereals usually have unhealthy amounts of sugars, sodium and so on.

How do you avoid toxic chemicals at breakfast?

Make your own. Granola, old fashioned porridge, oatmeal, bacon (from organic, pastured pork) and eggs (from organic, free-range chickens), pancakes, organic plain yogurt with organic fruit, muffins… the list is endless.

Always remember, preparing food and eating it should be a pleasurable experience not a bothersome chore. We need to shift the way we think of food. It’s amazing to prepare a delicious, healthy meal and have the people you love savor every bite. It’s extremely unsatisfying to microwave some processed food and serve in during the nightly news.

“It’s better to pay the grocer than the doctor” was the saying that my Italian grandmother would frequently use to remind us of the love and attention to detail that went into her cooking  ~John Forti

Janet Flammang, a political scientist, writes in her book The Taste for Civilization: Food, Politics, and Civil Society “Significant social and political costs have resulted from fast food and convenience foods, grazing and snacking instead of sitting down for leisurely meals, watching television during mealtimes instead of conversing”—40 percent of Americans watch television during meals—”viewing food as fuel rather than sustenance, discarding family recipes and foodways, and denying that eating has social and political dimensions.” The cultural contradictions of capitalism—its tendency to undermine the stabilizing social forms it depends on—are on vivid display at the modern American dinner table.

In a challenge to second-wave feminists who urged women to get out of the kitchen, Flammang suggests that by denigrating “foodwork”—everything involved in putting meals on the family table—we have unthinkingly wrecked one of the nurseries of democracy: the family meal. It is at “the temporary democracy of the table” that children learn the art of conversation and acquire the habits of civility—sharing, listening, taking turns, navigating differences, arguing without offending—and it is these habits that are lost when we eat alone and on the run. “Civility is not needed when one is by oneself.”

Source: The Food Movement Rising by Michael Pollan

My Green Sides’ web pick of the week:

Simply Recipes
A site full of wonderful recipes (all tested by the site’s founder, Elise Bauer, or her family/friends), tips and tricks, and some great cookbook reviews.

Editor’s Note: Each Wednesday My Green Side brings Simple Tips for Green Living to The Christopher Gabriel Program. We also highlight a favorite green site each week. You can stream the segment at approximately 1020am (CDT) every Wednesday at WDAY.com.

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Green Tip – Staying Cool

June 23, 2010 in Environment, WDAY Green Tip by Wendy Gabriel | 5 comments

by Wendy Gabriel

GREEN TIP: Now that summer is officially here, there are many ways to stay cool while saving money and the planet at the same time.

Energy is expensive. It takes a toll on our bank accounts and on our environment. Here are some fabulous tips from Chris Baskin at Lighter Footstep to help get you started:

Small Steps

This set of ideas costs nothing to implement. Most are just a matter of thoughtful energy habits. Since none of these involve capital improvements, they’re renter-friendly.

 • Set your thermostat to 78. Go higher, if the humidity is low enough and you feel comfortable. Turning a thermostat down to cool a room quicker doesn’t work, by the way — it makes the A/C run longer, not colder.

• Wear short-sleeved, loose clothing.You dress lightly to go out on a summer day. Do the same indoors. Absorbent, wickable cotton (organic, of course) is the hot weather classic.

• Drink lots of water. This is good practice, anyway. Cold drinks drop your body’s core temperature and cool you down quickly.

• Draw your drapes. Keeping your blinds, shades and curtains closed helps keeps heat from getting inside in the first place.

• Turn off unnecessary heat-producing devices. Incandescent light bulbs are a big heat generator. Shut down electronic gear when you’re not using it.

• Wash and dry clothes when the day is cool. Do laundry early in the day and late at night. Don’t forget clotheslines: they generate no heat in the house.

• Skip your dishwasher’s dry cycle. Rack your dishes and let them air dry instead.

• Run your air conditioner fan on low. This is particularly helpful in areas with high summer humidity. The low air volume helps your A/C dehumidify.

• Keep heat-producers away from your thermostat. Don’t allow a closely located TV or water heater to convince your thermostat that it’s hotter than it really is.

• Check your refrigerator settings. The fridge takes heat out of your food and transfers it to your kitchen, so be sure you’re running efficiently. The refrigerator is best set between 37 and 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Put the freezer around five degrees. 

Small Projects

These are all relatively inexpensive things you can do to keep your cooling costs and summertime energy use down. Most will pay off in savings from season to season. 

• Install ceiling fans.Fans move heat away from your body and provide evaporative cooling as you sweat. It’s also a good idea to have a few portable fans you can move around the house.

• Replace your air conditioning filters. Clean filters in window units. You should do this every month, so keep a stock of filters on hand.

• Buy a dehumidifier. ENERGY STAR says a 40-pint unit will save up to $20 USD a year and last up to a decade. Moderating your home’s humidity — in addition to making you feel cooler — will reduce musty smells and the growth of harmful molds.

• Shade your air conditioner. If your A/C is in full sun, it’s working harder than it needs to. Don’t obstruct the air flow.

• Have your air conditioner serviced.Coolant levels should be checked every year. A professional also will clean and lubricate the system. Without annual service, your air conditioner will lose about five percent efficiency each year — more if the coolant is low. Use Puron or some other non-CFC coolant, rather than environmentally harmful freon.

• Check your weather stripping. Caulk leaky window frames, while you’re at it. This also will suppress drafts in the winter. If you have a window-mounted air conditioner, be sure the accordion seal is tight. Add rubber gaskets to wall and light switches to make sure the wall is sealed.

• Insulate interior hot water pipes. No point heating your room air and the water. If it’s indoors, wrap your electric hot water heater with an approved insulator. Gas heaters should be insulated by professionals.

Big Steps

Here are some big-ticket items appropriate for homeowners committed to long-term energy savings. The more you do, the more you save!

• Upgrade your attic insulation. Most experts recommend 10-17 inches of R38. You have a lot of options in this area, so it pays to consult with a professional.

• Improve attic ventilation. It can get up to 140 degrees in your attic during the summer. Adding an electric fan or wind turbines will move some of this unwanted heat away from your living space.

• Replace older windows with new, energy-efficient units. The U.S. Department of Energy says this is the best bet for improving year-round home energy efficiency. Modern units feature advanced coatings to keep cooling and heat where you want it. If you’re on a tight budget, consider interior or exterior storm windows to beef-up your current installation.

• Upgrade older air conditioners. Another expensive item, but cooling can account for half of your summer energy bill. You’re looking for a unit with a Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ration (SEER) of 13 or more. The best deals are obviously found off-season, but this is one investment which will immediately return savings.

Source: Chris Baskind, Lighter Footstep

Do you have any other energy saving tips? Leave your sage advice in the comment section!

My Green Side’s web pick of the week:

Saving Naturally
At Saving Naturally they believe that living in a healthy and natural way is really, truly possible – for every family, on every budget. You’ll find daily posts with deals on bulk groceries, coupons relevant to a whole foods diet, frugal living tips, and all other manner of bargains that fit with your natural and organic lifestyle.

Editor’s Note: Each Wednesday My Green Side brings Simple Tips for Green Living to The Christopher Gabriel Program. We also highlight a favorite green site each week. You can stream the segment at approximately 1020am (CDT) every Wednesday at WDAY.com.

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Green Tip – Organic Gardening

June 16, 2010 in Environment, WDAY Green Tip by Wendy Gabriel | 2 comments

by Wendy Gabriel

GREEN TIP: Grow an organic garden in your back yard, on your deck or in a window sill. When you grow your own produce you know where your food has come from and how it was handled. It doesn’t get any more local than that.

To be healthy, plants need to be well-fed. Healthy plants have good resistance to pests. They get their food from the soil. Healthy soil makes for healthy plants. Source: Journey to Forever

It probably goes without saying that I’m not an advocate of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides and the like. These quick fixes destroy the soil and are not healthy for the plants or for our bodies.

Although synthetic fertilizers provide precise amounts of specific nutrients, they lack micronutrients and soil-building microorganisms, and because they release nutrients all at once, they promote a flush of growth that is weak and susceptible to disease. Also, the excess nutrients leach away, polluting nearby waterways. The opposite is true of compost. It provides a slow, sustained release of nutrients that plants use as needed. Source: National Gardening Association

Improve Soil Fertility with Compost

We abuse the land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect. 
~Aldo Leopold, author of the environmental classic, Sand County Almanac

Tips for growing an organic kitchen garden:

Find the Right Spot. Like real estate, a successful organic garden is all about the right location. Find a spot in your yard with full sun (at least 6 hours), well-drained soil, and one that’s within easy reach of the house.

Beef Up the Soil. Add organic matter such as grass clippings, leaves, compost, manure, hay and straw each fall. In spring, apply a 1/2- to 1-inch-thick layer of finished compost on beds before planting.

Raise it Up. Create raised beds (8 to 10 inches high, 3 feet wide) by mounding the soil and flattening the top. Soil in raised beds warms up and dries out faster in spring and is easier to work. You can reform the beds each spring or make the beds permanent by framing them with rot-resistant wood or stone.

Grow What You Like. Although it may seem obvious, grow crops you and your family love to eat. While bush beans, lettuces and tomatoes are some of the easiest vegetables to grow, if your family doesn’t enjoy them, why grow them?

Select the Right Varieties. Grow varieties of vegetables and fruits adapted to your area. Check with local garden centers and fellow gardeners to find the best varieties to grow.

Start With Transplants. For the beginning gardener, purchase as many vegetables as possible as transplants from the garden center. Seeds are necessary for root crops, such as carrots and radishes, but transplants of most other vegetables are more likely to be a success.

Design Properly. Design your garden with a mix of flowers, vegetables, fruits and herbs. A mixed planting is less likely to get completely destroyed by insect, animal or disease attacks.

Plant Correctly. Follow package directions and plant at the proper spacing and depth. Thin seeded crops to the proper distance. Crowded plants become easily stressed and don’t produce well.

Mulch. Maintain constant soil moisture and keep weeds at bay by mulching. Mulch cool-season crops such as strawberries, broccoli and lettuce with a 2- to 3-inch-thick layer of hay, straw or grass clippings.

Check for Insects. Inspect plants every few days for any insect activity. Handpick destructive insects and drop them in a can of soapy water.

Source: National Gardening Association

If you don’t have the space for a backyard garden try growing herbs in a pot. In fact, even if you do have a backyard garden, a container herb garden on your deck is a wonderful addition.

Here’s how to create an herb container garden:

Materials List

  • Large container (see below)
  • Organic potting soil/compost
  • Herb plants of your choice
  • Water

Choose containers.Select a container with drainage holes, the larger the better. An 18-inch diameter faux terra cotta or half whiskey barrel provides enough space to grow a variety of herb plants. If you don’t have a large container, select a number of smaller pots and plant a single herb in each one.

Choose soil. Fill the container with organic potting soil and organic compost. If you’re using a very large container, fill the bottom with a layer of empty soda cans. The cans will take up volume so you’ll need less soil to fill the pot.

Choose herbs.Select herbs that you commonly use in cooking, but don’t forget to try a few new ones. It’s easiest to purchase herb plants from a garden or home center rather than starting with herb seeds, and plants will give you instant results. You can usually find basil, cilantro, thyme, oregano, sage, rosemary, and parsley at garden centers. Some unusual herbs to try include lemongrass, lovage, and French tarragon.

Plant your herb garden. Moisten the soil thoroughly. Arrange the plants so that those that grow tall, such as basil and lemongrass, are in the center and cascading varieties of herbs, such as thyme and oregano, are along the edge. Plant them close together: 10 herb plants will fit in a half whiskey barrel.

Water. Water frequently to keep soil evenly moist, but not sopping wet.

Harvest regularly. Once the plants show new growth, you can begin harvesting. Snip off whole stems rather than individual leaves to encourage bushy, new growth. Never take more than one third of a single plant at a time. By following this pattern your plants should supply you with seasonings through the entire growing season.

Source: National Gardening Association

The environmental costs of using recommended pesticides in the United States are estimated to be $9 billion a year; included are 67 million birds killed each year from the recommended use of pesticides.  ~Organic Trade Association, an excellent source of information about the organic industry, FAQ’s, and current events

My Green Side’s web pick of the week:

National Gardening Association
The National Gardening Association (NGA) has been working to renew and sustain the essential connection between people, plants, and the environment. Their vision is to make available free educational plant-based materials, grants, and resources that speak to young minds, educators, youth and community organizations, and the general gardening public in five core areas; education, health and wellness, environmental stewardship, community development, and home gardening.

Editor’s Note: Each Wednesday My Green Side brings Simple Tips for Green Living to The Christopher Gabriel Program. We also highlight a favorite green site each week. You can stream the segment at approximately 1020am (CDT) every Wednesday at WDAY.com.

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