Welcome to the Go Green on Gather Contest, at Living a Sustainable Life

I'm buying a bike and not driving to work anymore. Simple.

"CITIZENS WITHOUT CARS"

1) Hitch hiking is out.
2) Car pooling is in.
3) Not all communities are bike riding friendly, unfortunately.
Bike riding is a great eco friendly style of transportation. In my pre drivers licensed day I could ride for miles to friends, shopping, parks, work, or hop on a public transportation bus. I was never afraid of my destinations or getting back to home during my non-car adventures.

Many years later and living in a different community that prohibits bike riding and public transportation. (There are no bike routes or public transportation.) What other choices are there to transport oneself except by car? Our public officials and communities force us into cars.

A change is needed;
It is our public officials and citizens themselves that have not looked forward to DEMAND alternative transportation.

It is up the citizens to pressure city officials to look ahead and provide public transportation alternatives.
1) Public officials need to acknowledge a change is needed in transporting its citizens.
(If we build it, citizens will use it.)
2) Get a public transportation plan of action in place.

Simply widening roads is not a solution; it only allows developers to build high density neighborhoods in communities. (thus giving a false need of more, & more roads.)

A smart Community and smart Community officials have a moral obligation to provide public transport systems; greenways (for walkers), sidewalks, bike routes, bus or trolley etc., transportation. Citizens without cars or choose not to have cars, should never feel handicapped to venture outside their home.

Weigh out the cost of widening roads versus public transport system.
If the public officials can not stand up to the developers to provide such a simple transport solution then go to the private developers.

"CITIZENS WITHOUT CAR"
DO NOT BUY A HOME in a community if it does not offer sidewalks, greenways, public transportation.

Green at the Workplace: My workplace is the construction site. I have determined that all the projects I manage must meet or exceed the Green Development Standard of the Florida Green Building Coalition. We design efficiently, we minimize waste, we decrease energy usage, we choose building materials with lowest practical impact, we landscape with native plants and we educate and inspire our residents. Everyone who moves in gets a pack of high efficiency nine year light bulbs, and a bottle of vegetable based dish soap as their welcome gifts. I know that green sensitivity is slowly working it's way to the grassroots crews on the job. When I walk on to a jobsite, the guys call out to me to show off their newly acquired green skills. The plumber with the biggest gas guzzly truck told me that now he eats his lunch under a tree, instead of sitting in the truck with the engine running and the AC blasting. Together, we are respecting and saving our planet, one mind at a time.

we run a grease car! that is a car that runs on used free , veggie oil, we get from resturants who sometimes, need to pay to dispose of their old fryer oil.



We - on the family farm, are about to make bio-diesel so all the machinery can run green as biodiesel doesnt require any modifications and can run in any diesel car, truck, tractor etc...we bought a kit for about 900, just begining to put it together.

starting with a diesel is required. If you want to run plain WVO (waste vegetable oil) then you'd have to gather, and filter it. Your vehicle must have a separate fuel tank, for the oil, and a heater in line, as well as another filter just before the fuel enters the engine...the whole conversion can be done from a kit, or a local mechanic for around $1000.00. payback will differ but it works out to roughly .50 per gallon

wonderful idea....having owned a health food store for 30 years we've been involved with the food aspect a healtheir life style by of eating organically whenever possible and working with dozens of care groups for animal protection and welfare...I'll be watching this topic with great interest..thanks

I am currently a graduate student in greater Los Angeles and I currently do not own a motor vehicle and rely solely on public transportation and bicycle to get around.
In the next year I resolve to do the following to live a more sustainable life.
• I will start shopping at the local farmer's market so that my produce does not come from industrial farms (petrochemicals) transported by large trucks (petroleum fuels).
• I will find a Community Supported Agricultural group so that I can buy not only vegetables by meat and milk from a local producer.
• I will compost as much as possible (I am living in an apartment and must be careful about neighbors and management).
• Find or start a community garden so that I can start growing my own produce that I can share with my neighbors.

What happened to the Trains in this Country?

When I lived in Europe, we could take a train anywhere, anytime. It was a great way to travel, simple, fast and inexpensive. If the trains didn't go where you wanted, you could connect with a bus or subway.

We used to have good passenger trains here too, what happened to them? There used to be a train station in every town, allowing people to travel to every other town in America, but most of them are gone.

A few weeks ago my son took a train from Lansing, MI to Chicago, to Denver. It took more than a day each way, and the trains were more than 5 hours late both ways!

There used to be a Snow Train that went to Traverse City, MI from Detroit, stopping in Flint or Lansing. Now there are no trains north of Lansing!

I rode a train from London, Ont. to Flint, MI in the 60's but now it is not possible to ride into Canada or through it to New York, Etc.

We could cut a lot of long distance highway driving by opening up the trains again. It would make the trip safer and easier, saving not only money but gas and oil and wear and tear on our cars.

How are we to to get our National Train System back?

I agree with Skip Bleecker. Trains are the way to go! With so many unused rail lines in existence, and a whole lot of others currently being used by freight carriers, we have an almost ready-made network of rail lines that go through many, MANY cities, town, hamlets, etc., across America. If the railroads would be willing to cooperate and allow passenger trains back on their lines, we would all benefit from this great form of transportation. There would be more jobs created--people could again have careers in this field--the revenues would allow for better technology in the construction of trains; this would make train travel more efficient (as in Europe and Asia), by having the ability to travel on high-speed trains. The airline industry would probably suffer, but I for one would be ever so happy to have a less intimidating (and scary!) alternative to long-haul travel. I hate the dependency on air travel if I want to get anywhere fast. To say nothing about the incredible expense that motoring signifies when one is trying to avoid flying by driving to those far-away places. People: check out NARP (www.narp.com), a non-profit association that promotes train travel.

How about shuttle service to Wal Mart? You know, instead of fifty cars a minute, just have one bus?

Going green for a lifetime, not just Earth Day, requires a new way of thinking about how we live every day and trying to make both small and big changes to our lives. My New Year's resolution was to become more "green," and in many ways, it's been easier than I thought. Some small things multiplied by thousands of people can make a real difference. Yet we also need to become more active participants in our government to make change happen as well.

Finally I would just like to note that the new "Vanity Fair" magazine has just put out its 2nd annual "Green Issue," which contains lots of helpful information and spotlights environmental crises around the globe.

I make notebooks out of all the used paper I can gather and re use the blank side for my everyday notes! Love trees and I would love to plant them everywhere.

I'm trying to get back into biking everywhere. I bought a car for the first time in years last summer and have used it almost daily since. I think I will give up my car at least for that week.

How about not shopping at Walmart? A shuttle is a great idea, but a greater idea (if longer-term in its implementation now) is small sustainable towns with walkable shopping areas downtown. Walmart pretty much intentionally killed that, and ships all their cheap crap in from China, which is horrid for the planet too.

how about not shopping? That's a really tough one, but I think one of the worst things about the US is how much stuff we buy that we don't need. (I should talk, I just drove my car to Target and bought a baby gate to contain my dogs and a bag of half-off easter candy!)

peace
Pam

We are going to:

-Recycle plastic bags and use paper from now on
-Keep plug in bath tub and any water collected from leaky faucet gets used for pets and plants and flushes.
-Clean out things we dont need and have yard sale/donate
-buy less
-make list of errands and run all at once in order of closest to fartherest to save gas
-waste less
-shut off lights
-use clothes line in summer to save electric
-use more environmentally safe products
-shut off water while brushing teeth to save water
-do clothing echange with friends on clothing for kids
-tye dye whites when dingy to keep using
And more!
Blessings,
Kelli J Wright

I would like to see our city of Oak Park, Michigan become a center of regional
Metro transportation in order to cut down on the highway traffic that permeates
our area. We are trying to promote the use of bicycles, car-pooling, and 4-way stops at intersections in order to slow down traffic and make our city more pedestrian-friendly. Our state is experimenting with a regional train between Detroit and Ann Arbor that will be up and running sometime later this year without the use of any federal dollars. It is our hope that citizens will make use of this
system in order to showcase the absolute need for cutting down on the use
of cars and petro-fuels.

Tye dying whites is a fabulous idea...great involvement possibilities for children as well...

I am growing my own produce for the first time this year. I moved into the country and my roommate buys up land that he conserves and restores and I am hoping to get more involved with him on that!

I like the idea of NOT shopping at Wallmart!!! Not shopping at all from Apr 17 till
Apr 22. Many people have already joined in this pledge. On Apr 14 there will be
local meetings across the country for effective action on Global Warming. Join this
at move on.org. Go to channel 9415 or 9410 on satellite TV, to learn how to protest
the global takeover of the world by corporate giants, this is also on cable TV and
can be reached on the internet at Free Speech.Org. To bring an end to the illegal
war in Iraq, why NAFTA has been instrumental in the surge of illegal immigration,
how we have been denied many truth by the corporate dominated news media.
How our Constitutional Rights are being destroyed by demagoguery promoting
fear. Join the ACLU, Veterans against the war, The world can't wait.org and
many other organizations. How the Bush Administration has suppresed edited
falsified a concensus of scientists on Global Warming. Join FreeSpeech.Org

I have always led a green life.

• I have been recycling my entire adult life. I recycle EVERYTHING. My spouse used to think I was nuts about this.
• I recycle all my old current magazines to medical & dental offices or give to friends.
  
• I have been composting all my garbage for over 10 years.
• I installed a shut-off valve in my shower so I can turn the water off when I don't need it while I'm showering
• I have low-flow toilets.
• I have never used my dishwasher
• I have never used my clothes dryer, I hang my laundry up on a line to dry.
• I collect rainwater whenever possible (I live in SoCali though, it rarely rains here).
• Ten years ago I got rid of my grass lawn and replaced it with xeriscaping.
• When I water my plants I wait until the heat of the day has passed, usually watering around dusk so the water doesn't evaporate.
• I have a worm farm for fertilizing the herbs and plants I grow. And where I also toss food garbage to feed them.
• I have been shopping at local Farmer's Markets since their inception (over 20 years now here)
• I never leave lights on when I'm not in the room.
• I unplug my cell phone charger when its' not being used.
• I try to shut my puter off every night (this one is real hard for me).
• I've changed my driving habits so I drive less and get better mileage.
• I'm an excellent time manager & I plan my errands ahead of time to eliminate wasting gas and my time
• I grow much of the herbs & some fruit & veggies we eat
• I too dye things when dingy - if you're not into tye dying, black covers all sins.
• I always share/trade/give-away things like clothes, shoes, and books when I'm done with them.
• I teach classes in which we make instruments out of used and recycled objects.

I am currently saving for and planning a green remodel of my home whcih I hope to begin sometime within the next 1-2 years. It will have a gray water recyling system, passive hot water heating pipes under the floors, solar roof panels (or those cool solar roofing tiles) with a connection for my electric car (which I still have yet to get), I will be planting fruit trees and other veggies & herbs we can eat.

I went green a long time ago.

Earth!where i have found my foods,water,air and fun in plenty .No one can destroy you .Thanks for this much gift to us !

We went organic 3 years ago, organic gardeing, compaoting,cleaning products, shampoo's,skin care ect. We love the change & like that we're helpin the planet.

I started putting more plants in the front of my house. I increase my plants. Everything green plants. My fortune trees were also planted in front which used to be in a large pot.

This is a great contest! Thanks.

My next door neighbor and I will be starting a compost barrel to share. We live in an environmentally aware community where water is a sacred commodity. Showers are brief, bathwater is salvaged for hand-watering of plants. Unconsumed drinking water from pet dishes and drinking glasses is poured into a coffee can all day and also used for irrigation. When only offered plastic bags at the grocer, we store them up for recycling or use them in a variety of crafts. I sew fabric shopping bags (most of them sewn from used/worn clothing) that will wear for years and can be washed. Our neighborhoods are "take a walk" friendly, making it much easier to make light-load shopping trips on foot rather than starting up the car. It is now legal to drive golf carts on our community streets (with restrictions and certain criteria, of course). We're beginning to see more and more of them around town. What would I wish for the future? That all NEW residential construction be powered by a natural source: sun, water, wind ~ no fossil fuels. That all new residential construction include an encouraging, easy-to-use composting system that starts in the kitchen. And that industry that persists in spewing damaging waste into our air, soil and seas be forced into converting their operational methods to environmentally-friendly processing. Hitting industry with huge fines solves nothing. (And who's benefitting from all of those mega-millions of fines?) And finally, that the oil burning, internal combustion engine be eliminated or radically modified to be a healthy product for 6 billion people to use on our planet.

Do ya'll understand that you are suppose to be posting articles to win this....?

it is easy to keep our place clean. just to start this revolution from ourselves. what is the need to tell other about this. other will follow you soon

I just started my own blogg www.nontoxicvision.com in order to spread the word on living a sustainable lifestyle.

I grew up in Austria were recycling, composting and sharing was part of everyday life. I was always amazed when I moved here that sustainable living is so behind (I am sure I drove my boyfriend crazy when I walked around with my old cell phone trying to find a recycle center).

In my blogg I talk about anything that makes our lives "greener". From building a "green" house, what state already embraces green tourism, what magazines and books to read (anybody read 'cradle to cradle'? - it's great, and it is printed NOT on paper) to fashion and lifestyle in general.

I just started it so there not too much info on it yet.

So check out www.nontoxicvision.com and spread the word.

Note to all: We appreciate the comments but to be eligible for the contest, please write an article describing a sustainability issue and how you plan to address this with your green resolution.

Check the full guidelines for details and help.

I'm a Green Witch lol... most of what I do day to day is geared towards these goals and has been for most of my 36 years. I think the greatest thing we can do Other than walking our talk is encouraging others to do so. Thank you for doing just that.

..
U

Great idea, don't have the time to write an article at this moment, let someone else win this contest. We're signed up for windmill electric and will try to get a heat pump and if the insurance isn't too high, am considering getting a motor bike to go to work this summer.

For me it all boils down to this: "Waste nothing !" We are a nation that has become so comfortable with waste that we tend to act like it is our duty to waste things. Waste breeds laziness and laziness breeds waste.

I am buying only organic food for my resolution. Organic food has fewer toxins to destroy the ecosystem. There will be less air polution, land poison, and water poison.

One of the most important ways to help our Earth is by increasing awareness and motivating people to take actions. This contest is so beautiful as it works at doing just this, triggering our thought processes as to how we can always do more and why it's so important to our planet and each individual relying on our planet. I'm proud that there are so many people thinking of ways they can do their individual part and that's what we need, but we also need more than that. There are so many more people who are not in this contest and are not going to be reading these ideas and many that simply may not be proactive. Think about it, if you are being conservative by using only a dab of your face cream in the morning, but then your friend comes along and uses half the container in less than 5 seconds, then all of your efforts are wasted. All I'm saying is we not only need to think up these ideas and act on them, but we also need to spread the word and encourage our ideas to others. Of course, let's teach our children all the little things to make life a little better. The sum of little things we do together can far outweigh huge efforts made by any individual. We need programs and groups in our schools and our communities. This can be so fun and so good for children (and for adults too). Let's do this together as a team, starting with the simple idea of shutting off the light when you leave the room and don't forget the TV. We can stop waste by recycling and we can donate or even sell old clothes and books. I think everyone could benefit from filling their homes with greenery and why not start a small vegatable garden outside. Buying organic foods can be expensive but growing them not only gives you an amazing feeling of accomplishment, but it's also dirt cheap and the healthiest way to go. I have read all these ideas in everyone's comments and there's so many more ideas too, that's what this contest is all about, right? We are thinking up new ideas, pondering up old ones, figuring out for ourselves the best way to live. I'm just so happy that this contest is triggering people of think of all these positive ways to help our environment and I sure hope we can continue to work as a growing team for the greater good of our home here on Earth.

Title:
Transportation Web site (e.g.; maybe a possible name for it can be www.bidaride.com)

Idea:
An alternative method of transportation for America/Think Ebay meets Craigslist where people can pay for/schedule rides in advance with APPROVED transportation companies that are selected as the sole contractors for this.

Origination:
On Christmas day of 2006, I had an unexpected gran mal seizure. I was told to see a neurologist for testing. When I went to my neurologist, he told me NO driving for 6 months. (It's an automatic protocol the doctors follow here in Colorado, to lessen possibility of a second occurrence of having a seizure while driving) Well...needless to say this was hard to hear, especially at 35-years-old being of what formerly was known to me as having a sound mind and body!!

Here's where the "go green" proposal came to thought. Because I was told I couldn't drive, I immediately sold my car, so I wouldn't have the "temptation". And I also, gave myself a pat on the back, because I was giving up the one thing that makes most Americans independently mobile. (at least according to current social standards) I realized my way of thinking had to change immediately, and I began with listing my benefits of this situation: save gas, save time, save money, no more insurance payments, and a few extra bucks of income from the sale of my car...so I was off to a good start.

To my great fortune, I made my living from home working as a contracted PR person for a Web site, so I didn't have to worry about getting to work daily. BUT...I still had to get to places like the bank, the grocery store, Dr. appt's etc.

The area I live in is very rural and we have limited public transportation, so it makes getting from point-to-point a little more challenging. So I resorted to calling an occasional taxi, walking over 2 miles to the nearest bus stop and using SpecialTransit when they have openings available in their schedule. Still, I needed more options that were: cheaper, more available when needed, and reliable.

My thoughts on this were; Why can't we create a Web site similar to Priceline.com, where people can log-on and bid? If we can do it for air transportation, hotels, etc…We should be able to do it for local ground transportation also. Of course the details would need to be thought out on things such as: locations, bonded/insured drivers and transportation companies that were contracted, carpools, limos, taxis, shuttles, etc.

That is the first aspect of the idea. BUT, additional services such as corporate companies, who are forward-thinking, can offer a paid ride through this Web site for their employees to get to/from work. (as part of the benefits package) So not only do individuals have access to this site when they want to: go to a bar (think small college towns here), go to the bank, go shopping, etc. But large corporations have access to this as well. This way, the "go green" initiative can be developed on two levels: small and big.

In reading some of the posts, it seems that the #1 consensus is a need for transportation in America...Trains are a great idea, but I'd like to see something that is Web accessible as well, so anyone can get a ride...anytime/anywhere.

Too idealistic? Perhaps. Many "crinks" to be thought out as this is a very "rough draft" proposal. I have additional developments as far as execution goes, but I wanted to list the general idea for this contest.

Thanks for creating this contest for us to submit proposals Gather!!! :)

become a hermit, go live in a cave.

Bike riding to work is a great idea. I try to ride my bike or walk my dog as I do simple errands, like quick trips to the library. You will feel better, and you will save money while you help the planet!

I recycle a lot--clothes and outmoded toys, appliances and other things go to Goodwill or other organizations, paper, plastic and glass to the recycling bin at the curb. I have adopted two dogs through a rescue and plan on getting the dog waste composter. Also, in the past, I bought biodegradable kitty litter and plan on doing that again. Last year, I had my front area xeriscaped and in the back, two bushes died and they will be replaced by ornamental grasses. I've begun to buy gifts in people's names that will help the earth, such as buying seedlings and a hive of bees through the Heifer Project. This Mother's Day I plan on buying trees to be planted in Mexico to help rebuild the forest for the monarchs to latch onto in their journey, thus helping to increase the oxygen for the planet and the insect's habitat as well. I plan on doing more of this kind of giving in the future. The recipients have really liked this, and they don't have to deal with unwanted Christmas gifts! I only run the dishwasher, washer and dryer once a week. In my area, clotheslines are not permitted and I use the dishwasher to sterilize my dishes. Also, I have started to acquire used things like cordial glasses so that I won't add to the amount of new things. I also will buy used furniture, clothes and other things at a charitable store.

This is so cool! So many Earth loving people ^_^ If you love Earth than you will (probably) love my poem reffering to Earth please visit this site and rate my poem http://www.poetry.com/voteforme/poemvote1.asp?PID=11889670 Thanx GOOD LUCK TO ALL!!! ^_^

I am celebrating by getting every child I know a "Save some for me" shirt at AnotherSucker.com

I am using candles at home and totally bagging plastic bags except for picking up dog poop. Are there non-plastic, organic poop bags?

These are all wonderful ... But I think people should be writing ARTICLES about the steps they are taking to promote a sustainable life... and posting them to the group... not just on this thread, yes?

** GO-GREEN CONTEST ENTRY**

My hope to completely purge petrol-based fuels from my life and the lives of my family by 2010!

My family and I will live in a yurt constructed of recycled plastics and reclaimed wood.

Our yurt will be heated by solar-collectors that store the heat in an underground heat exchanger.

Hot water will be circulated through in-floor heat-tubing set in structural-insulated-panels that sit directly on the earth with no foundation.

The water will be evenly pumped through the yurt-floor by pumps that run on electricity collected by solar-electric panels during the day and draw solar-power stored in long-life batteries at night. These batteries will never discharged below 60% of their capacity, which when combined with a special pulse-charging circutry will allow the battery life to exceed 50 years.

I intend to supplement my electrical needs with a small windmill and power generated by an antique, low-rpm Lister-Petter diesel engine which will be run on pure vegetable oil.

Most of the oil will be reclaimed fry-oil from restaurants. Other oils will be pressed from the algae that I grow on the CO2 that is emitted from the diesel engine.

An antique Lister-Petter engine has a life-expectancy of over 100 years @ 100% duty-cycle when run 24/7/365 and it consumes 1/3pint vegetable oil to produce 8kw of electricity @ 220V per hour on that fuel. These engines run almost silently.

The cooling-system fluid of the diesel will be directed into the heat-exchanger and the exhaust heat will be recaptured and added to the heat-exchanger storage tank as well.
The exhaust gasses will be filtered through a labyrinth of tubes filled with micro-algae that will absorb ALL of the CO2 produced by the engine.

The algae will be harvested and squeezed in a press to produce algae-oil that will be added to the bio-fuel tank and blended with the waste-veggie-oil.

The press-cakes left over from the oil extraction will be dried and either mulched into animal feed, or burned for emergency-fuel in the winter in the event that the solar-collectors and reclaimed engine heat are not able to keep up on extended cold-spells.

The sewer-system will be divided into a black-water/grey-water system. The black-water [toilet sewage] will divert to a methane-ingester whereas the grey-water [sink, shower and clothes-washing] will be diverted to grey-water tanks and pumped onto the lawn [natural prarie-grasses of course!] and garden. Also a small amount of grey-water will be used to flush the toilet into the methane-ingester.

The sink-disposal drain will be diverted to a compost-tank so that the organic matter can be filtered out and added to the compost pile and the water then directed back into the grey-water system...


My vehicles will run on a combination of electricity that I produce at home and store in batteries for short trips, or home-brewed bio-diesel for long trips. (My current vehicle runs on pure bio-diesel [B100], so the diesel-over-electric conversion is close at hand!

My vehicles are all reclaimed discarded vehicles that would otherwise go to junk yards or car crushers, I usually keep a few non-running parts cars that are the same model as what I'm curently driving and harvest parts from them to make repairs on my driven vehicle.

When I finally consume a vehicle, then I drain the fluids and recycle it and the dismantled parts-cars that kept it running. I also drain and recycle all fluids when I receive a parts-car to avoid leaks and groundwater contamination.

Most Americans get rid of their vehicle for a newer "more fashionable" one every few years when only about 25% of it's life-cycle has been consumed.

I tend to drive vehicles way past 300,000 miles with little trouble, providing I DO NOT use petroleum as fuel or lubrication!

Petrol is a dirty, abrasive fuel and drastically reduces the life-expectancy of metal parts compared to bio-fuels and plant-based synthetic lubricants.

As to the rest of my life, I haven't that much more to change, I already live in harmony with nature, grow plants with ease, and eat what is produced locally and sustainability-minded. I shop retail for new item rarely, and re-use most everything in life until it is completely consumed.

My most treasured possessions are things that have been handed down to me by my father, his father, and even his father before that... This is where I find true "worth" in what little treasure I have laid up for myself in this life...

Go Green Contest Entry - Periods of Sustainability:
Here's something to think about: Forty years of "Aunt Flow" (aka menstruation) equates out to between 16,000 and 24,000 tampons/pads used by the average American woman and there are approximately 85,000,000 women of menstruating age in this country at any given time.
Those numbers may not seem as staggering as knowing if all the pads used in the U.S. in a single year were lined up end to end (not a pretty sight, but hang with me) they would reach the sun and back 32 times.
We didn't know this when we first considered going into the feminine hygiene business.
We were a mom, a sister, and a grandma who just wanted to help people help young girls move into having periods more gracefully. Each of us remembered how awkward and embarrassing that whole life transition was and discovered that things haven't changed much in 20+ years. So we decided to develop a "Starter's Kit" with everything a girl would need to help her understand the process and feel confident.
But then we saw the numbers and we realized that a company working in this area would be contributing to a whole lot of waste in landfills. It was especially troubling for us because we learned of the chlorine bleaching processes involved to make most brands of pads, tampons, and liners look so clean and white.
All in all, we were disgusted.
We didn't want to be part of that industry and we didn't want to introduce products that we felt weren't safe to our young girls.
So we began investigating alternative sources.
We learned that there are two ways to go: reusable or biodegradable disposable.
While we fully agree that reusable feminine hygiene products are far better for the environment, we are realists about the likelihood of teens choosing them. So we chose to investigate the biodegradable route and found that most of the other developed countries have strict guidelines around products in this industry that prohibit chlorine bleaching and require the use of organic cottons and recyclable packaging.
It took us three years to find companies who are using sustainable materials plus fair wage and labor practices. 5 countries and 6 states later, we are pleased to launch our Starter's Kit this month and everything in it is organic, sustainable, or recyclable all the way down to the soy inks we use for printing.
That's the journey that has brought us to "what we're resolving to do this Earth Day."
You see, we're capitalists now and that is a tough thing to resolve with sustainability. So we asked ourselves, "What's a company with a conscience to do?"
The answer: we revisited the "tithe" and added our own little twist.
Two weeks ago we made our first dollar. From that dollar forward, we are setting aside 10% of our gross and putting that money into activities, projects, events that are good for the planet.
Our first opportunity came recently when a service-provider of ours lost his mother unexpectedly. Even though we are simply "business acquaintances," we felt his pain and wanted to express our sympathy. So we found out what park he likes to take his son to play at and we navigated the system to learn how we could plant a tree there in honor of his mom.
This year for Earth Day we are planting a tree with our families and his.
See us at www.fanciepants.com

I don't wish to enter the contest, I just wanted to share. I joined the Arbor Day Foundation and will receive and plant 10 trees for Earth Day. I'm so excited!

I also recycle all that I can and use canvas bags for ALL of my shopping.

Publish your contest entry as an article.

Your contest entry must be an article to be eligible. Read the contest guidelines for help.

I am trying to recycle the advertisements (junk mail). I am trying to find out where to donate an old CRT 15 in monitor, cell phones and batteries. I am going to recycle my car oil. I am already waking up early in the morning to beat traffic so that I don't have to speed to work.

Go Green - They eyes find it refreshing and the soul is at peace, looking green all over that nature offers. It is sad to see a mountain naked of trees and green grass. The heat of the sun burns like flame. Everyone is looking for a tree to find some cool air. Along the high way the fume of heat is like a wave of hot air. It is hell here on earth to feel the heat of the noonday sun.
We seek for reform in law to prohibit the use of fossil fuels and many don't to save the earth. The consequence of this has no immediate remedy.
To think of a solution is a long range plan. The trees will take years to grow. So many vacant and idle lands. Drought had dried them up. Water has become an expensive commodity. Vegetation is difficult. A farmer resolve to plant vegetables that you can harvest in 30 days.
To find an intelligent solution is expensive. I am looking for a solar energy to cut off my electrical connection from the local utility supplier.
I have put up a deep well in my yard. I am too old to pump the well by hand. It seems expensive to hire some help.
I planted as much trees. A mango tree, Ilang Ilang tree, Rubber tree and two fortune trees.
Grass and plants can also create more oxygen in the air.
Creating smoke is also contributing to more heat.
Ozone layer needs some healing. I hope scientist can find a solution and the whole of humanity will do their part to create a kind of chemical that will restore the ozone layer.
Go Green - Wear green shirt, green shoes, green pillows and everything green in and out. Paint the wall green.