May I begin by echoing Gracia’s sentiment in saying how glad I am to be a part of this blog and this group of green-minded folk.
By no means do I consider myself the greenest of the greens. I still have a petrol burning car, though it's small, efficient and I try to drive it as infrequently as I can, and I fill it with petrol with the lowest emissions from the company which is investing in solar power rather than the one turning its nose up at its environmental responsibilities (I'm all for being a conscientious consumer).
I can’t afford to convert my hot water heater to solar or install solar panels to generate my own electricity, however I do use as little hot water as possible and I keep the thermostat turned down. I also turn every appliance off at the wall and turn lights off when I don’t need them and I have changed over to using 100% green energy.
All in all, I know there is a lot more that I can do, but until I can afford the big things there are a lot more of the little things I can concentrate on.
The more I read, the more I realise that every action and choice has environmental implications (be they possitive or negative) and that if everybody tried to reduce their own impact and live sustainably, then great big positive things could happen. Who knows, we may even save the planet. As David Attenborough so eloquently said (in a documentary featuring blue whales) "It's not just the future of the whale that lies in our hands, it's the survival of the natural world in all parts of the living planet. We can now destroy or we can cherish. The choice is ours." (Planet Earth, series two, Ocean Deep.)
Here are a few green tips I’ve been embracing lately (taken from my most recent zine How to... (be a little more green).
21 comments:
Beautiful entry, beautiful blog, beautiful participants....
Thank you for sharing. Thank you for participating. Thank you for helping make our world a bit cleaner :)
thank you louise for the tip about turning off appliances at the source! i had no idea!
I do what I can, but I know like you said, I can always do more. Thank you for the tips!
way to go louise. i love the illustrations, beauties as usual.
with drawings as cute as those, how can you NOT want to try those tips???
Hi Louise,
I agree with Lisa s, such wonderful drawings and tips! Thank you!
thank you louise. love your drawings! great tips too. our clothesline has been hung and is ready to go! xo
lovely post. i drive everyone crazy unpluggin our appliances (and those at work) but it is the little bits that add up. and i feel a clothes line in my future! such great pics! thanks for the inspiration louise!
Thank you for the link re. 'little things' we can do to help the environment. Love your cute illustrations for the zine, it's so informative and easily digestible for any age group!
I get a tickle of eco happiness everytime I see snippets from your zine.
It's true they are the little things. But one day they'll become normal thanks to gals like you reminding and enlightening folks. And when that happens the bigger things will become the new little things and change will gather pace. Yay to your 1st post.
YOu have a zine?! Fabulous! Great illustrations.
oooh! I love those drawings!!
Great post :)
great drawings!!
you know, about a month and a half ago..I was chatting [actually ranting] with a friend and riding my high horse round the room saying 'if they can make energy efficient light-bulbs..why don't they just ban the old ones!!?'...imagine my suprise when last week it was announced that the old globe bulb has to be phased out in the UK in the next two years!! huzzah! {they must have heard me ;))}....
...I am converted to the jute shopping bags too, I'll get a-workin' on the rest! :)
I've recently moved to South Africa from Australia, one nice surprise for us was the widespread use of reusable grocery bags. If you want a plastic bag from the supermarket here you must pay for it.
encouraging words and work.
every little bit helps and it's so important to help each other to remember that.
you see, here i am visiting your site(s) so that i too may be encouraged.
Love your tips and drawings lj...i walk everywhere (i dont actually have my lisence here) and all modern homes in israel use solar heating. I reuse plastic bags and turn off the electricity when not in use...but as you say, there are soooo many more little things to concentrate on..and i will :)
Great tips and drawings!
Power bars are a great way to turn off a bunch of electronics with one switch. I just read somewhere that a microwave's clock uses more electricity over a year than the microwave itself!
Lovely group you've got here. I look forward to reading more.
ps... on the sidebar, it should be Slowly She Turned. :)
hi louise,
thank you for sharing these wonderful drawings and tips... it is great to have these reminders of small things that we can do every day that we often don't even think about... yet once the awareness is there, it becomes a habit and every little thing adds up...
I'd like to add riding a bike as a transportation alternative. I haven't owned a car in years, and I'm still thrilled at all the work I can get done with my bicycle!
Also, has anyone heard about mercury content in fluorescent bulbs?
thanks for the tips! i'm embarrassed to say i just bought my first fluorescent bulb recently. but from now on that's all i'm buying. a local hardware store here has recently opened up a "green" aisle. it's great. makes things easier. if only all the aisles everywhere were green!
I've heard of the mercury content of those compact florescent bulbs as well. I'm not sure I'm comfortable introducing that into my household. So ultimately it becomes what's worse: using more energy or exposing my family to mercury should one break and having to go thru extra hoops to dispose of them when they finally do burn out? Hm.
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