This Week I Will Use Freecycle

I’m still reading

Cradle to Cradle which is about rethinking how we manufacture, accumulate and toss away stuff. I’m on the problems and looking forward to the solutions, but so far it’s very interesting. And this reading has encouraged me to make learning about and using Freecycle my next endeavor.

Not only does Freecycle have a cool name, it sounds like a great idea. It’s basically a swapping-stuff-for-free network. You sign up online and trade stuff in person. Like Craig’s List, but without money. I’ve briefly checked out the website and put some things aside that I will give away. (I have display easels leftover from the Bat Mitzvah) My plan is to figure out how to sign up, list my items and see what happens next. I will also look for something I need, to avoid buying it new. Maybe books, maybe a small kiln.

There should be a Freecycle in your area. I’m going to try to trade as close as possible to where I live. It seems counterproductive to drive much to save a book from the landfill.

Why Bother?

Why not just buy new and throw the old stuff out?

because there is an environmental cost of manufacturing any new item,

because there is a monetary and social advantage to trading with neighbors,

because holding on to things longer encourages the manufacture of lasting products

and because whatever we reuse doesn’t go to landfills.

Here’s the Freecycle Link:

http://www.freecycle.org/

“Tikkun Olam” means, in its most basic form, repairing the world. It is an ancient term from long before we worried about carbon emissions or mercury in our fish. It promotes the idea that we are the stewards of our planet and we that must be constant and vigilant in our responsibility. And not only must we take care of the Earth and seas and creatures, but we have to fix what is broken. And this is our job for as long as we are on this planet.

This Week I Will Pick Out One Book to Read on Sustainable Living

Many of us will be traveling or entertaining this week, so it’s probably a bad time to try changing major habits. However, with most everyone off for Thanksgiving, it’s a great time to read a book. I’m going to use this opportunity to get some more in depth information on environmental issues, seek out a new viewpoint and get some fresh inspiration. For this week, I’ve chosen to read Cradle to Cradle – Remaking the Way We Make Things by William McDonough and Michael Braungart. I picked this book because it keeps coming up in other contexts focusing on sustainability. Cradle to Cradle seems like it will offer a new, practical mindset that runs contrary to the current “throw it away” one. Written by an architect and a chemist, I’m looking forward to reading about their alternatives to built in obsolescence and toxic manufacturing processes. Interestingly, even the physical book itself is made of a new material that is “waterproof, extremely durable…(and) can be broken down and circulated infinitely in industrial cycles–made or remade as ‘paper’ or other products.”

A couple of months ago, I read No Impact Man by Colin Beavan which was informative, extremely entertaining and well written. It’s the autobiographical account of how Colin, his wife and toddler lived with almost no environmental impact for a year. In Manhattan. I definitely recommend this for light reading on serious subjects.

If you’re not up to reading this week, just pick something out that seems interesting to you. Order it, download it or purchase it and save it for a better time.

If you’re not up to reading at all, try a video. There are some really great environmental documentaries on all kinds of subjects. There is a No Impact Man video that compliments the book, and it’s also very entertaining. I’m going to try to make time for An Inconvenient Truth. Yup, it’s supposed to be boring, but it’s supposed to be really good, too.

And if a documentary feels like too much, try one of The Story of Stuff Project’s You Tube videos. Or all of them. They’re cartoon-style shorts, loaded with information.

http://www.storyofstuff.org/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqZMTY4V7Ts

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GorqroigqM

My goal for the week is to broaden my knowledge of environmental issues and/or deepen my understanding of specific issues. This week I’m going to read a book. If you join me, please let me know what you’ve chosen.

Have a very happy Thanksgiving!

~Rhonda

Sources for Environmental Books and Reading

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_environmental_books

http://www.pitt.edu/~super1/Science/googlebooksenvironmentissues.htm

http://www.grinningplanet.com/6001/environmental-books.htm

http://www.enviroliteracy.org/

http://www.sierraclub.org/education/websites.asp

“Tikkun Olam” means, in its most basic form, repairing the world. It is an ancient term from long before we worried about carbon emissions or mercury in our fish. It promotes the idea that we are the stewards of our planet and we that must be constant and vigilant in our responsibility. And not only must we take care of the Earth and seas and creatures, but we have to fix what is broken. And this is our job for as long as we are on this planet.

No Junk Mail Update

This is a lot easier than I expected. I was able to do most of what I needed online. Websites like http://www.stopjunkmail.org/ have forms to print out and send. I have a small pile of outgoing mail waiting to be sent and I’ll continue to contact businesses to stop catalogs individually. Then I just have to wait 3-6 months and see if my junk mail goes away.

Also, I’m still driving less. My son and my dog are so excited about biking I actually drove way less this week.

This Week I Will Stop My Junk Mail

Last week's junk mail.

I’ve stopped my junk mail once or twice before, but it always seems to creep back. Lately it’s been shocking how much there is. I feel like every time I order something online, that company sends me a snail mail catalog. Whenever I sign the kids up for a class or get an estimate for a house repair I’m soon inundated with related junk mail. In any one week (see photo) I get huge catalogs I never ordered, dozens of applications and subscription notices and a small mountain of flyers, ads and coupons. We do most of our bills online. Almost no one writes anymore. So most of our full mailbox goes straight into the blue waste bin. Except that first we have to sort through the pile to make sure there’s nothing important and shred all those credit card applications. Junk mail is a waste of resources – and a big waste of time.

This week I will follow the links below and take steps to reduce my junk mail. I’ll let you know how it goes and I’ll update future blogs when I can tell how well the steps have worked. The junk mail photo shown is my actual junk for a week. I hope it gets better!

Why Bother?

Junk Mail Hurts the Environment

·       It takes more than 100 million trees to produce the total volume of America’s yearly junk mail.

• Creating and shipping junk mail produces more greenhouse gas emissions than 9 million cars.
• About 28 billion gallons of water are wasted to produce and recycle junk mail each year.
• The pulp and paper industry is the third-largest industrial greenhouse gas emitter (after the chemical and steel industries).
• Junk mail inks have high concentrations of heavy metals.

Junk Mail Really Is a Waste

·         Every year American households receive a total of 104.7 billion pieces of junk mail, which requires 6.5 million tons of paper.

·         Junk mail in the U.S. accounts for about 30% of all the mail delivered in the world.

·         Approximately 44% of junk mail goes to landfills unopened.

Junk Mail Costs Us Money

• $320 million of local taxes are used to dispose of junk mail each year.
• Transporting junk mail costs $550 million a year.

Helpful Links

http://www.donotmail.org/section.php?id=3

More information on the problems with junk mail

http://www.stopjunkmail.org/

Download a PDF with instructions for stopping junk mail

http://www.ecocycle.org/junkmail/index.cfm

Instructions for stopping junk mail

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/18530707/ns/today-money

More information on stopping junk mail and identity theft

http://www.41pounds.org

Service that does it for you

https://www.optoutprescreen.com

Opt out of credit card offers

http://www.fightidentitytheft.com/junkmail_labels.html

Helpful mailing labels

Tikkun olam means, in its most basic form, repairing the world. It is an ancient term from long before we worried about carbon emissions or mercury in our fish. It promotes the idea that we are the stewards of our planet and we that must be constant and vigilant in our responsibility. And not only must we take care of the earth and seas and creatures, but we have to fix what is broken. And this is our job for as long as we are on this planet.

This Week I Will Drive Less -- Wednesday Update

Day 5

Okay, I’m finally on track. I got my sneakers on and my bike out yesterday and moved under my own power until 2:45. Then I had to take Adam to class in Livermore and rather than do the round trip twice, I stayed close by and did a tight loop of errands. Much better.

This Week I Will Drive Less -- Monday Update

Day 3

Well, this really is harder than I thought. Saturday I planned to get up nice and early and walk to Peet’s with whoever was up. But no one wanted to walk with me. And Scott was taking the car anyway, because he had errands to run after coffee. Okay, well that’s sort of carpooling, right? At least I would take my reusable coffee cup and not make trash. At Peet’s they passed my cute insulated cup along for my latte and made my latte in a paper cup. Then they offered to pour it in my cup for me. Hmmm. Okay, there were still things I could do. I would go home and get my bike ready for next week. I keep it in pretty good shape, so I just needed to dig it out, find my basket for carrying stuff and pump the tires. I finally got to my bike this morning, couldn’t find the basket and my pump wasn’t working. I put the bike back in the garage and got to work.

What I did do was walk to school today, which I usually do, and passed on all errands until I was going out for school pick up. Not much, but  boy am I aware of every mile I drive! I’ll try again tomorrow and aim to get out on my bike.

This Week I Will Drive Less

One Change. For One Week.

Week 2 

What to start with?

The idea is to try a small change for a week and see how it goes. I’d like to start with something important. I’d like to start with something big. But that’s not the idea. I need to start with something manageable. Small and manageable. So, how about global warming? This is actually a good beginning because while the problems are huge, this week’s change is very simple. Drive less. This week I will use my car less. I will get out and enjoy the crisp fall weather more.

Why drive less?

“Motor vehicles are responsible for almost a quarter of annual US emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), the primary global-warming gas. The US transportation sector emits more CO2 than all but three other countries' emissions from all sources combined.” 
-Union of Concerned Scientists

 

How will I make a difference?

When I was younger there was a summer I decided not to use my car within about a 30 mile radius. At the time, I lived in San Francisco, at the top of Twin Peaks so this was pretty ambitious. I was also in pretty good shape back then – and great shape by the end of that summer. Now as a middle-aged mom I’m trying to figure out how to use my car less and it seems so much harder than that summer years ago. I already walk my son to school and my daughter walks with friends. Well, mostly – there’s definitely room for improvement. Like, we probably won’t melt if we walk in the rain. And maybe we could leave the car home for after-school pick ups when we’re going straight home. So, my plan for this week is to be more conscious of when I really need my car, to walk or bike when I can and to follow the other suggestions listed below.

Excerpts from:

"How to Maximize Your Vehicle’s Fuel Economy"

How you drive and take care of your vehicle affects its fuel economy and emissions levels. Here are simple tips to reduce the environmental impact of your vehicle today.

Drive less. 
Driving as little as possible is the best way to reduce the environmental impact of your transportation needs. Link errands, carpool, walk, bike, or use mass transit whenever possible.

Drive moderately.
High-speed driving and jack-rabbit starts increase both fuel use and emissions.

Check your tires.
Properly inflated and aligned tires saves fuel by reducing drag. Also, for your next set of tires, consider getting low rolling resistance (LRR) tires. LRR tires reduce rolling resistance by 10 percent and can improve gas mileage by one to two percent.

Be weight-conscious.
Don’t carry around items you don’t need. For every 100 pounds of weight in your vehicle, fuel economy decreases by one to two percent. Also, put items in your trunk instead of on a roof rack to reduce drag.

Don't let your vehicle idle for more than a minute.
Letting your engine idle for more than a minute burns more fuel than turning off the engine and restarting it.

Limit air conditioning, which consumes fuel.
At lower speeds, open the windows. At higher speeds, use your fan as open windows create drag.


For the full article, go to:
http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_vehicles/what_you_can_do/how-to-maximize-your.html

Other Useful Links:

General information on global warming:

http://www.ucsusa.org/global_warming/science_and_impacts/science/latest-climate-science.html

Union of Concerned Scientists

http://www.ucsusa.org/

NRDC

http://www.nrdc.org/default_t.asp

National Center for Bicycling & Walking

http://www.bikewalk.org/

EPA green vehicle guide

http://www.epa.gov/greenvehicles/

Tikkun olam means, in its most basic form, repairing the world. It is an ancient term from long before we worried about carbon emissions or mercury in our fish. It promotes the idea that we are the stewards of our planet and we that must be constant and vigilant in our responsibility. And not only must we take care of the earth and seas and creatures, but we have to fix what is broken. And this is our job for as long as we are on this planet.