Happy Earth Day!

I’m sorry I’m a day behind! I hope that this weekend you were all able to enjoy some good weather and celebrate Earth Day 2007.

I’m not much for New Year’s resolutions but every year on Earth Day I try and make a change in my life that (however small) that will lower my impact on the environment. I have along ways to go towards a green lifestyle. Though I recycle and reuse my grocery bags I still do many, many other things that could be improved upon.

So for this year’s effort I will try to buy more local produce. I love exotic fruits and other foods and while I don’t plan on cutting these out of my diet entirely, I plan to have more seasonal meals and to try to appreciate the variety in which local foods can be prepared. Another advantage to buying locally is that it is often a cheaper option and you can buy directly from farmers and green grocers.

Here are 20 EASY ideas on how to contribute. All it takes is a little imagination and dedication. If you decide to make a change today, please leave a comment! Thank you, Sarda

Reduce, Reuse and Recycle
-Use plastic containers instead of cling wrap and aluminum foil
-Take your own bags to the grocery store
-Recycle where facilities exist
-Hold a garage sale
-Shop in used bookstores

Home, Office & Garden
-Turn the light off when you leave a room
-Use energy saving lightbulbs
-Use half as much washing powder
-But eco-friendly washing products (eg. Ecover)
-Purchase bleach free, recycled kitchen roll or use washable tea towels
-Use cloth napkins
-Put a ‘No Junk Mail’ sticker on your post box
-Buy organic
-Buy less meat, more fruits and vegetables
-Buy local
-Start a compost heap
-Use both sides of paper
-Bike, walk, carpool or use public transport to get to work.
-Pass read magazines to friends or give them to the doctor’s office

Holidays
-Personalize Christmas by being crafty and making new cards from old ones