10 Easy Ways to Save Water

Water is everywhere, but clean water is not. We must conserve water in order to: 1; prevent it from becoming polluted after it goes down the drain, and 2; to stop whole lakes from being drained in order to provide for the consumption of this precious resource.

Here are a few ways to save water:

1) Place a sealed plastic container in the tank at the back of your toilet. This will prevent the tank from filling up so high, which will mean that less water goes into the bowl every time. Of course, you could always install a low-flush function to your toilet instead.

2) Install a low-flow showerhead in your shower. This can save a lot of water, while still having the same amount of pressure as a regular showerhead.

3) Use aerators on all of your taps. These, too, maintain a good flow, so you'll feel like you are using a regular tap. All the bubbles in the water can significantly reduce your water usage.

4) Stop those leaky taps! See an old blog post of mine for details: http://hugatreetodayseriously.blogspot.com/2011/12/stop-those-leaky-taps.html.

5) While brushing your teeth and doing similar activities, make sure to leave the tap off!

6) When doing the laundry and dishes, only wash full loads.

7) Use the dishwasher instead of washing by hand. It actually saves water! (Relieved?)

8) Grow plants that are well-suited to your region. These plants are probably less finicky and will use less water. For those of you who live in Canada, you can get some truly fantastic information about which plants are native to your region at http://www.cwf-fcf.org/en/what-we-do/habitat/resources/native-plant-encyclopedia/. I'll talk more about gardening, however, as spring approaches.

9) Place a rain barrel outside your house to collect rainwater. This can be used to water houseplants and your garden. Snow can also be used to water house plants, but be sure that it is properly melted first-- you don't want to freeze your plants!

10) Lastly, when cleaning your driveway, sweep it instead of washing it with the garden hose.

Fun Fact!
Water is so essential to life that it has collected many names over the years, and, of course, it exists in many different languages. Here are some other names for water:

• H20
• Aqua/ Aqua Pura
• dihydrogen monoxide
• Adam's ale (Australian slang)
• eau (French)
• agua (Spanish)
• shui (Chinese)
• fisherman's daughter (Cockney slang)
• ten furlongs mile and a quarter (Cockney slang)

"Pass the ten furlongs mile and a quarter, please."
"Okay, but make sure to conserve it, otherwise we won't have any aqua pura left!"

Online Activism: A Catalyst for Change?

Are you searching for a way to help save the planet and incorporate it into your daily routine? Look no further! Today I am going to be writing about two of my favourite activism websites, The Rainforest Site and Care2.
Deforestation is a serious problem in the modern world. Ancient species are disappearing off the face of the Earth-- literally-- and the natural processes of our planet are being disturbed. Just thinking about it can be overwhelming, and you may not even believe that it is possible to stop deforestation right in it's tracks.
Take heart! Have you heard of The Rainforest Site (http://www.therainforestsite.com/)? It's a website devoted to saving the rainforest in many ways:

• First, it has a "daily click" opportunity, in which Internet users can click on a button once daily to help protect 11.4 square feet of rainforest. You see, for every click, their sponsers pay a certain amount of money to buy that land. Spiffy, isn't it?
• This website also has many petitions that you can sign, all of which are to be presented to important decision-makers. (You may have heard about Hug a Tree Today, Seriously on The Rainforest Site. I always post the urls to my blogs beside my name when I sign those petitions!) Just click on "Take Action!" at the right-hand sidebar to get to the lengthy list of petitions.
• Another way you can help is by shopping at The Rainforest Site for gifts and clothing (only if you need it, of course!). All sales contribute to helping the rainforests. For more information, see the store yourself at https://www.therainforestsite.com/store/trs/site?0 or see the left-hand sidebar on The Rainforest Site.

Care2, on the other hand, encompasses many different topics, including green living. Head on down to http://www.care2.org/ to set up an account, where you can set up a profile telling the world about your beliefs and initiatives. Then go and sign petitions, join groups, read articles, and more-- online! By participating on the website, you earn points which, over time, accumulate to let you "buy" things that help others and the environemnt. You don't have to pay with money; instead, you use your points to buy these things. You can look up my profile, by the way-- my username is "rabbit-cat".
Of course, The Rainforest Site and Care2 are only two of numerous organizations devoted to making a difference. And there are ways to make a difference in your own life, too. So keep an open mind always, and have a nice week!

Planning Your Summer Vacation?

Right around this time of year, people are starting (or already have started) to think about their long-awaited summer vacation. Although it is only February, there is research to do, reservations to make, and trips to plan. But how can you ensure that your trip is sustainable as well?

First of all, there are some awesome tours around the world that have a focus on low-footprint tourism, or eco-tourism. And when I say around the world, I mean it-- you can catch a tour in South, Central, and North America, as well as Africa, Asia, Australia and Oceana, Europe, and the Middle East. You can start your search at http://www.ecotourdirectory.com/ or http://ecotours.com/.

Don't want to travel with a large group? Okay-- but there are still ways to make your trip more eco-friendly. Here is another one of my handy-dandy lists of eco-friendly ideas!:

Consider taking a train instead of driving a car or flying when you have to go long distances over land.

                        

• Avoid flying! Flying airplanes has a devastating impact on the Earth. Most of the time (if not all of the time), make your holidays close to home. Even for the wealthy, travelling the world need not be a yearly activity-- as long as you have a few special experiences overseas in your lifetime, that should be enough, don't you think? There may well be some interesting cities right near your hometown-- and there are wonderful campgrounds to visit in many countries.
• If you happen to stay at a hotel, check out their environmental policies first. http://www.environmentallyfriendlyhotels.com/ shows you which hotels around the globe are committed to sustainability.
• While exploring an area of the city, again, don't bother with the car-- it's always a hassle to park those things anyway. You can cycle, bus, walk, or take the subway to get around.
• If a car is definitely going to be part of your travel experience, rent a hybrid or electric car.
• Search ahead of time for vegetarian restaurants in the city that you are travelling to. After all-- veggie meals have a smaller environmental impact. See http://www.happycow.net/ for a directory of vegetarian restaurants.
  
• Souvenirs? Do you really need them? Ask yourself how many of your old souvenirs are currently gathering dust in the back of a closet. Remember the old saying: "Take nothing but pictures, leave nothing but footprints." This applies to visiting cities, too! And remember that souvenirs that come from animals (including wildlife souvenirs) often are a product of cruelty.
• Pack any food that you'll bring along in reusable containers. Try to use what you already have on hand instead of buying new containers, but if you don't have enough, make sure to buy some metal ones, as opposed to plastic. If you don't think you have enough packing space, use some reusable sandwich bags (http://www.snacktaxi.com/).
• Treat the city or country that you are visiting as you would (or should!) treat your hometown. In other words: recycle, don't litter, don't trod on people's flowers, etc. Simple enough!
• Investigate ahead of time what sort of volunteer work you could do while on holiday. You may get some ideas from http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/eco-travel-volunteer-vacations-50022309. If there are no volunteer opportunities being offered, take matters into your own hands and organize a litter cleanup with your fellow travellers, plant a tree, give some of the locals organic vegetable seeds (especially in impoverished countries), and drop environmental organization flyers into mailboxes. Come up with your own ideas-- volunteerism can make you feel surprisingly inspired!

In summary: Green travel is possible, easy, and fun! So go for it. And come back next week for new tips!

Shopping Green

I don't really understand why people are so obsessed with shopping nowadays. After all, it's important to remember that the exhileration of buying something-- whether it be a new gadget, appliance, pastime, or "necessary" object-- wears off very quickly. Once you leave the store and get home, you fiddle around with your new toy for a while and then throw it off to the side.
Sound all too familiar? Take a look at some of my tips for shopping "green":

1. Only buy it if you NEED it. Before buying anything (well, apart from food and eco-friendly shampoo, I suppose), complete this process:
1. Write the name of the product down on a list, and go home.
2. Once you get home, ask yourself again if you really need it. How will it change your life? Will it cause more harm than good? What are the pros and cons, anyway? Can it cause health problems? After a few days, will it simply gather dust?
3. Research the environmental impact of what you wanted to buy. Is it still worth it?
4. Finally, wait as long as you can before going back to the store. Then decide: do you really want it after all?
2. Educate yourself on advertising tricks that the companies use to make you want to buy their products. For example, an effective ploy used by industry is to use the words, "essential", "natural", or "necessary" on the packaging. They use attractive symbols and colours to make you think that this product was meant for you. Apparently, the colour red makes you hungry (but seeing that I am a vegan, it doesn't work on me! Besides, the colour red is too strong for my eyes.). They also use tricks such as implying that:
• Everybody has one. Why don't you?
• You'll look cool, beautiful, etc. if you use this.
• You'll be behind the times if you don't have one.
3. When you do have to buy something, always go with the most environmentally-friendly option. For example, if you want to get some crayons for the kid you babysit, look out-- crayons are coated in toxins. Try to buy things that have labels like "organic", "no preservatives", "free of animal testing and by-products", etc. It is also just better for your health to avoid toxins and the like.
4. Shop from environmental stores. Although big chains like WalMart and Canadian Tire may sell the same product that you are looking for, it is better to buy from smaller businesses-- regardless of higher costs. That way, you are supporting that small store from going out of business, and that's important because they are an outlet for many environmentally-friendly products.
5. If there is something that you would like for yourself, wait until Christmastime or your birthday. I figure that if people are going to give me a present anyway, it might as well be something that I would buy with my own money if they didn't give it to me. ;)

Well, that's my rant for this week. See you later!

World Domination is Underway!

Although not exactly aliens invading the earth, television certainly is taking over our lives. It has managed to sneak into our living rooms, family rooms, and even bedrooms, and from there, the television is dominating our daily schedules, sucking more and more of our power into it's ever-increasing channels... and no one is safe from the television's influence, even if you don't watch it yourself.
Americans spend an estimated 9 years watching television in their lifetime. I was shocked to learn such a thing. Nine whole years wasted? Here is a list of things that you could do in that amount of time:

• Write 9 novels
• Do some serious environmental campaigns
• Travel the world
• Get a Ph.D. or two
• Help others
• Work at nine different animal shelters-- one per year
• Build a bunch of eco-friendly houses
• Read 450 books (if you read 50 books per year, that is)
• Become a marathon-runner
• Campaign and become the Prime Minister of Canada (sorry, Canadians only)
• Accomplish your dreams!

Personally, I don't watch television. I actually find it rather boring. As far as relaxing goes, I would be more likely to read a book or check my e-mail. Besides, watching the TV makes you much more likely to fall for all the advertisements and pop culture images (I'll talk more about advertisements and shopping habits next week!).
Please don't fall under the television's influence. Instead, occupy yourself with other activities like reading or learning an instrument. It'll leave you feeling more fulfilled when you do an activity that takes a bit of effort.
Oh, and what'll you do with all those TVs lying around your house? How about donate them? That way, less people will go out and buy brand-new television sets.
Let's take the world-- our worlds-- back from the ruthless clutches of TV.

Hey!
Ahoy!
(The television is a dangerous toy.)
Avast!
Shiver me timbers!
(TV is not for free-thinkers!)
Yo!
Heave-ho!
(Into the dump the TV goes!)

I know it's only Thursday, but I'll be pretty busy tomorrow, so I thought I'd post today instead.

Ultimate Green Living

Being eco-friendly from day-to-day is great, and it does help, but if you're like me, that isn't really enough. You want to live in a way that isn't just more sustainable; instead, you want to be absolutely sustainable. Although this is often mistaken for an extremist approach, think of it this way: "sustainable" means that we are only taking from the Earth that which the Earth can replenish. Being only a little more sustainable than we are now still puts us on the road to destroying the Earth's resources, thus hurting the animals and impoverished people first, but finally, ourselves.

Housing can often be a problem. In Canada, where I live, many people live in gargantuan houses complete with every appliance one could dream up-- not to mention at least two televisions and a couple computers to boot. Since land is relatively cheap here, people don't seem to even consider living small. However, there are so many options for a more environmentally-friendly housing option.

• You could live in a small house (besides, the bigger the house, the bigger the chance of clutter-- and bills!).
• You could live in a storage container (Umm... this is a joke, right? Right??? Nope. Go to this link for details: http://ca.shine.yahoo.com/living-small--lulu-s-shipping-container-home.html ).
• You could share a house with a few friends.
• You could live in an eco-friendly house (this could include living in a "green community", building an advantageously energy-saving house, etc.) See http://sicarius.typepad.com/althouse/ecofriendly_homes/ and http://www.ehow.com/how_2146008_build-ecofriendly-house.html for some ideas.
• You could live in an apartment building or condo.
• You could live in a cat basket (Okay, this one is a joke!).

Next week, I'll be posting about let's-just-say-something-that-makes-me-tick, so come back next Friday for more details!

There is a sufficiency in the world for man's need but not for man's greed.  ~Mohandas K. Gandhi

It's all in the Timing

The way you plan your day can have an immense impact on your personal footprint. How so? Well, when you do things at different times of day, different resources are needed.  Here are my suggestions for switching the order of events of your routine:

1) Shower in the evening, not morning. In the evening, you don't have to dry your hair, because you've got no where to go. This will mean that you use less electricity on the hair dryer. You'll also be more likely to have  cooler showers because you won't have to go out in the cold afterward! Once your hair is wet, tie long hair back into braids, and brush short hair every half-hour to keep it tidy and in place.

2) If your province/country has Time-of-Use rates and uses smart meters, electricity will cost more at certain periods (on-peaks), less during other times (off-peaks), and somewhere in the middle at other times of day (mid-peaks). Using the most amount of energy during off-peaks not only helps you save money, but it also helps the environment! This is due to the fact that during the on-peak, most people use a lot of electricity. This calls for more power-plants to supply for the demand. However, at off-peaks, these power plants will sit idle. To avoid this, we should try our best to save our most comsumerist practices for the off-peaks, so more power-plants don't have to be built. Regardless of whether there is or isn't a change in price depending on the time of day, it would still be beneficial to use less during on-peaks. Try to find out whether your area has Time-of-Use rates.

In my region, Ontario, the winter and summer Time-of-Use rates can be seen here: http://www.ontario-hydro.com/index.php?page=current_rates

3) Drive your car when it isn't rush hour! It takes more time to get where you need to go when the streets are packed, which uses up more gasoline (see my blog post "Don't idle!" for more info). And bicycle, walk, or take the bus whenever you can.

4) Sleep early; wake early. Be like a farmer. When the sun goes down, you should go to bed, too. This way, you won't have to use as much electricity to light your house, and you won't fall asleep watching TV! Of course, this only works if you remember to turn off the lights and TV before you go to bed.

I hope you see how easy it really is to live a much more sustainable lifestyle!

By the way, you can now sign up to receive my blog posts by e-mail every week. (See the sidebar; I won't be able to see your e-mail address and I promise it won't be more often than every Friday!)

See you next week!