Blogging!

I miss blogging! It’s been a long few months. I’m not sure I’ll be able to pull off more regular posts, but I have my fingers crossed that Tearfund is going to help me out this year with another Carbon Fast for Lent series.

Since when I turn my back for five minutes, apparently the economy goes straight to hell: let’s talk coupons! I just I missed my grocery’s sale on the Apple and Melon non-petroleum based laundry detergent I’ve started using, which made me grouchy about paying full price even though this is pretty cheap. So I went on the Purex Natural Elements web site on a whim: of course they had a coupon. This got me thinking, doh!, I’ll bet most web sites for natural and/or organic products have coupons.(OK, I am remedial in all things domestic, I admit it!) Herewith, some coupons for items we like at my house. Three are printable coupons; the Kashi entree coupon is something they snail-mail to you. Happy savings!

COUPONS FOR YOU:
Ecover Products: $1.00 laundry or 75¢ cleaning product coupon
Kashi Whole Grain Frozen Entrees: Free entree!
Organic Valley Milk (also Soy Milk & Cheese): $1.00 coupon
Purex Natural Elements Laundry Detergent: 50¢ coupon

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Stumped for Xmas Gifts? Adopt a Wild Koala

How cute is this fella? I have a post in the works about some great “give back” Christmas gifts. But when I saw this story in a Reuters article, I had to post about it. The Koala Preservation Hospital of New South Wales, Australia, takes in injured and sick wild koalas, treats them, and then reintroduces them back into their native environment. This is the basis of the program name, Adopt a Wild Koala, since the goal is to return the little guys to the wild as quickly as practicable.

“Adoption” proceeds with the forms and photos typical of these kinds of programs, costs only about US$26, and helps to support the hospital’s ongoing in-patient — er, “in-bear” — programs.

Today’s mitzvah: Consider holiday gifts that give back.

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Bloggers Unite: World AIDS Day

December 1 is a Bloggers Unite Day, this one focusing on AIDS awareness.

I’m not the first person to note that AIDS has fallen off many people’s radar. Some of this is a result of encouraging news. People are living longer, drugs are now available to make this a disease people can live with, and an HIV+ diagnosis is just not the immediate death sentence it was in the 1980s, when several of my dear friends lost their battle in harrowing illnesses within months of being diagnosed. AIDS also affects minority communities disproportionately, at least at present, which can also distract attention from those whose friends and families do not include HIV+ individuals.

But AIDS is still a problem not only worldwide, but also in the United States. Since today is also Cyber Monday, the biggest online shopping day of the year, I thought I’d combine a pitch for the shopping portal iGive with our AIDS awareness post. I have an iGive badge in the right sidebar. Basically you can access almost any online merchant through the iGive portal. These merchants then rebate a small percentage of your purchase, to the nonprofit you designate. It takes a few minutes to set up an account, but after that it’s an easy peasey way to ensure your chosen nonprofit gets a kickback for a purchase you were going to make anyway.

I have my own iGive account set to rebate to the South Central Wisconsin AIDS Network, which serves Madison and vicinity. Given the bad economy, I’ve been trying to help local groups whenever I can, and this is a solid and hard-working organization.

iGive includes two nice features: it will track your donations in a form you can use at year-end if you itemize your tax deductions (the only shopping portal I know of that does this). And they also partner with LOTS of local and community nonprofits, so it’s very likely that your favorite community organization is already there.

If you want a quick portal that doesn’t require registration, Nonprofit Shipping Mall also includes many AIDS-related national and international charities.

Today’s mitzvah: Remember to use a rebate portal when you shop online. You’re making the purchase anyway, why not have the merchant rebate for you!

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Shop till you drop? Grab an extra gift card.

As breathless newscasters keep reminding me, today is “Black Friday,” the biggest shopping day of the year (and the day retailers allegedly turn their first profit of the year, ergo out of the red and into the “black”)

For me Christmas shopping just isn’t the same without Marshall Field’s. Yet we carry on.

I try not to post too many daily good deeds that cost money. But if one happens to be shopping up a storm today: consider picking up an extra $10 gift card at your favorite store. Mailed in a Christmas or holiday card it’s a thoughtful gift for a charity to on-pass to a client — or for one of the organization’s hard-working staff members. On the way to school I pass a Ronald McDonald House whose Wish List requests always include small items appropriate for birthday gifts; I try to send them gift cards a few times a year. Other ideas: a local homeless shelter, food pantry, or any organization that serves people in-person.

Happy shopping!

Today’s mitzvah: pick up an extra $10 gift card to send to a local charity.

Original post date: 11/23/07.

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Daily Mitzvah Daily Digest

Well, “daily” as in here’s what I’ve been reading today.

Just in time for back to-school, Environmental News Network has its picks for the year’s Greenest Notebook Computers, a companion piece to its earlier Greenest Deskstop Computers review. Nice choices in both articles, although the laptops were not cheap.

Ever since I did not buy the “adult tricycle” that was for sale outside an apartment building on our street — well call me Very Odd, but I’ve been kicking myself because I kinda want one of these quasi-retro contraptions for errands in the nabe (that basket would be great for groceries). It turns out they’re crazy expensive when purchased new — a drag, because I’ll bet the one I saw was affordable, as my street is a veritable bargain bonanza in August when many of our neighborhood ex-pats head home and need to unload their U.S.-purchased stuff. For those feeling flush with cash, Grist’s Ask Umbra column has a buying guide for the brand spanking new ones.

Riding one of these sporty speed machines requires sunscreen, natch. Mom Go Green has been more dedicated than I am about searching out a sunscreen that’s affordable, low on chemicals, and not an icky consistency. Read why she is less lazy than I am here.

And Consumerist has a great reminder post that in a bad economy the public library is your new best friend (with thanks for the link to Hop To It — who just had a birthday! Many happy-hoppy returns!)

OK, back to work. I hope Thursday is treating everyone well.

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No More Filmy Plastic Bags, Redux

I finally found reusable produce bags I like! This is actually what started my Etsy visits last week, but I wanted to wait for the bags I bought to arrive so I could road test them before writing. Definitely worth the wait. The bags are made from a slightly stretchy netting, they’re feather-light (no extra weight on the scale), and almost transparent when produce is inside (easy for checker or you to read PLU stickers on fruits and veggies). I got mine (pictured) from an Etsy shop called DaisyDots. The drawstring cord color coordinates with the stitching and she offers lots of colors. They were 3 for $6, which I thought was quite reasonable.

There are quite a few Etsy sellers who offer reusable produce bags — all with the nice added benefit of buying something handmade directly from the person who made it, instead of going all mass-produced. Plus, I haven’t seen bags this light commercially.

Today’s mitzvah: Consider buying handmade — and bug your grocery to offer alternatives to the roll of tear-off plastic produce bags.

Photograph © 2008 by DaisyDots.

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Yes, We Have No Bananas

I’ve been buying Fair Trade coffee for a few years now, an action made easier by local Fair Trade coffee roasters’ presence in all the grocery stores here in town. (Shameless plug: I especially like Cafe Fair’s Cordilleran blend; and Just Coffee’s Maya Superdark.)

But I also read a lot of blogs from the UK, where I noticed they’re really ahead of the U.S. in expanding Fair Trade with things like Fair Trade Coffee Breaks in churches and businesses, and even entire Fair Trade regions, like the Welsh Fair Trade Valley of Dyfi, pictured at right. I was thinking of this recently when Coop America sent an email about Fair Trade bananas. I’d never stopped to think about how bananas are grown, but it turns out the South American workers are paid just pennies, which keeps prices cheap for us in North America while still providing massive profits to the two multinational corporations that control most of the market.

Coop America has a letter (really more of a petition) they’re creating to send to the major national grocery chains encouraging them to stock Fair Trade bananas. When you sign they ask that you also note which chain(s) you patronize, so the letter will have more impact. They also provide suggestions for individuals on how to work with supermarket mangers in one’s own town.

Today’s mitzvah: Learn more about Fair Trade products. An easy place to start: Coop America’s “What is Fair Trade?” and “What You Can Do.”

Photo © Ecodyfi: A Fair Trade Valley.

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Plantable Notecards

I blogged a few months ago about Cargo Cosmetics Plant Love Lipstick line, which comes in a package imbued with wildflower seeds, so it can be planted instead of thrown away. Plantable paper has intrigued me ever since. Since I’m also currently on an Etsy kick, I thought I would share this neat find, from the Etsy shop Claudia’s Creations, which is a lovely handmade recycled paper shop. These papers also form the base for a very nice selection of “plantable” note cards like the one pictured here.

Lots of recycled and upcycled goodies on Etsy. Check it out!

Photograph: Mini Plantable Note Cards © 2008 by Claudia’s Creations. Used with permission.

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"Upcycled" Finds on Etsy

Our favorite person in North Carolina turned me on to Etsy, the handmade site, where she finds beautiful cards. I’ve also discovered it's a cool source for affordable eco-friendly items. Here’s one I especially liked: Etsy member RunOnTheSun has neat gift tags, made entirely from upcycled cereal boxes, toothpaste cartons, soda boxes, and, in her words, “basically anything that would otherwise be tossed in the trash!” She sells these cute tags in sets of 100 for just $3.50, with either white or light brown backs (e.g., toothpaste cartons would have white backs, cereal boxes would have light brown).

These are a nice way to focus on the “re-use” part of Reduce, Re-Use, Recycle — and support an independent craftsperson in the process.

Today’s mitzvah: Consider buying handmade the next time you need something for your home. Etsy has all sorts of neat finds, many using recycled or upcycled material.

Photo © 2008 by runonthesun. Used with permission.

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Weather Prep #2: Wind-Up Flashights, Radios

Power outages tend to drag on, which can be a drain on battery supplies. Here are some wind-up items I keep handy — they do double duty as environmentally friendly options and as good fallbacks in case one doesn’t have (or would prefer not to use) batteries. The Dynamo Illuminator small LED flashlight (right) has the easiest and sturdiest crank of the wind-up gadgets I’ve tried. It offers two brightness settings (one bulb or three bulbs) and holds a decent charge when not in use. I got mine at Walgreens for less than $10; affordable models are also available at Amazon by searching “wind-up flashlight” (consider using the Nonprofit Shopping Mall link, which also generates a free-to-you contribution to your favorite charity).

I’m a big fan of Éton/Grundig wind-up radios. The basic model (FR-200) has AM, FM, and shortwave bands; operates for almost an hour on less than a minute of cranking; and holds a charge for long periods of inactivity. Other models offer weather bands and TV audio instead of shortwave; some also include a cell phone charger port. (For cell phone charging also see my previous weather post.) You can find a nice selection at Amazon (which happily is accessible via Nonprofit Shopping Mall); or at the online NPR Shop, which benefits public radio. If you live in the UK: our friends at Ethical Superstore also sell most items on this page.

We have several little battery lanterns at home, but Freeplay’s pricier option gives long-lasting light completely by crank-power. I found this lantern’s crank mechanism the least user-friendly of the three, but if you live in an area vulnerable to severe weather and protracted power outages, it might be a wise choice. I got ours at REI (which also offers an annual rebate if one joins their co-op). Just generally, camping stores offer a variety of power-outage friendly goods.

Today’s mitzvah: Consider doing a supply audit to make sure your family is prepared for a weather emergency or protracted power outage.

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Sustainable "To-Go Ware" Instead of Plastic

A month ago I might have thought this was nutty. But after a week-long event where 2,000+ of us were fed three meals a day with disposable plastic plates and cutlery — and where I was wiping off my plastic fork and spoon and carrying them around in my bag all week because all the trash was really getting to me — heck, I carry a water bottle and I use a travel coffee mug, so “travel cutlery“ seems like the natural next step. If I end up spending a week grading AP exams at this event again next year, I’m putting this cool To-Go Ware CONSERVE Utensil Set in my survival kit.

Three things I especially like: The utensils are made of bamboo, which is a nice sustainable resource. The To-Go Ware company was founded by a then-college student who was alarmed by the growing disposable take-out culture around her and decided to do something about it — which BTW reminded me of last month’s post about the Eco-Clamshell, also the brainchild of a young female college student. And the little carrying bag is made by CONSERVE, an NGO in Delhi that employs otherwise unemployed women to collect discarded plastic bags and recycle them into into these utensil carriers. Neat idea, neat company, neat product.

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Photo © 2008 To-Go Ware®.

A Wind-Up Remote (and Other Stuff I Want)

I found a cool store, which sadly for me is based in the UK not here. Ethical Superstore has a bazillion things I want. At the top of the list: a “wind-up” universal remote control. No more batteries, just turn the crank and this powers itself. (I am mad for all things wind-up: so far I have a wind-up radio, wind-up flashlight, and wind-up camping lamp.) This really intriguing store also has solar chargers for almost everything. And something called EcoBalls (below), which one can allegedly throw in the laundry instead of laundry soap.

I am off to see if I can locate any of this stuff from a U.S. vendor — with an envious nod to our UK readers! If I could find a way to ditch the remote batteries, charge my laptop and cell phone with solar, and do laundry without laundry detergent — not bad for a Tuesday! I’ll post back later in the week if I have success.


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Random Pre-Vacation Updates

Success! In November I posted about Burger King’s refusal to increase its tomato pickers’ pay by a measly 1¢/bucket (Is Burger King Penny Foolish?). After months of activism, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers finally won a 1.5¢/bucket increase. (Can you believe that amounts to a 71% increase in their pay?) Thank you to everyone who sent a letter! The wage agreement was signed at the U.S. Capitol, with pictures here.

Random update #2: At the risk of sounding Twittery: I bought a new backpack! And it's almost 100% recycled — which I didn’t even realize at first. My old backpack (which I love) is disintegrating to the point where I’m nervous about carrying the laptop in it. I went to REI (I ♥ REI) and narrowed the choices down to two: one by North Face and an intriguing blue pack by Osprey, a company I’d never heard of. As I was trying to make up my mind and reading the little card, I saw that the Osprey React is made mostly of recycled PET — essentially plastic water/ soda bottles. I was impressed because the recycled bottle-made stuff I’ve seen in the past had a yicky feel. This might be just a tad shinier than other packs, but mostly it just looks like the usual waterproof fabric. I wouldn’t have guessed this was recycled if the card attached to he pack hadn’t mentioned it. The ReSource recycled series has several daypacks and courier bags here.

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Happy School Supplies from Recycled Newspaper

Were do all those recycled newspapers go? How about cool rainbow- and jungle-themed school supplied for kids (and adults, too!). Eco-Space has a neat post about the O’BON company, which recently expanded from its base in Malaysia and Australia into North America. Their signature product is a pencil made not from wood but from recycled newspaper. Wrapped 36 times and attached to the graphite with nontoxic glue, it’s stronger and more environmentally friendly than traditionally wood pencils. O’BON also has green pens and folders. You can check them out at www.stationery-obon.com.


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Kiss Plastic Bags Goodbye, Redux

May 22, 2008 update to original post: My Flip & Tumbles arrived today. The colors are very pretty, but a heads up that they get crazy wrinkled by being stuffed into the little sock-ball storage pouch. The photos are a tad deceptive in this regard — be aware that the bags pictured may have been ironed or never stored in the little pouch.The original May 19th post follows.

Can one ever have too many reusable bags? The Budget Ecoist (cool blog) has me intrigued by the Flip & Tumble bag (pictured at left and below; click for larger images). If I owned a car, I would be happy to use the green flat-bottomed Woodman’s bags (click here for neato photo) made from recycled soda bottles. Since I’m typically on foot or on the bus, my Baggus have been a good alternative (click here for their own groovy pix). They fold up flat into neat little fabric pouches, weigh nothing, and unfolded hold the same amount as a regular plastic grocery bag. Supermarket baggers didn’t initially love them, since the ripstop nylon (parachute material) can be slippery, but now that more people are bringing their own bags this is less an issue.

And yet . . . the Flip & Tumble 24-7 bag has some advantages, too. It’s made of the same ripstop nylon as thinner ripstop nylon than the Baggus, but it has a long handle, so it can go over the shoulder — this is really a matter of preference since the shoulder strap might also make these more difficult to carry in each hand. I also like that the Flip & Tumble’s pouch is attached to the bag itself, so it can’t be lost, although the wadded up sock ball (from whence the name) isn’t as neat and tidy as the flat-fold little Baggu pouch. The Flip & Tumble is also more expensive at $12 (to Baggu’s $8 on their own web site and at Amazon).

In the interest of, um, blog research, I may have to buy a Flip & Tumble for a side-by-side comparison. (St. Vinny’s will get the second-place bag, so I’m not just mindlessly consuming.) The bottom line, though: there are a lot of bag options that are much spiffier and environmentally friendly than paper or plastic.

Today’s mitzvah: Have you made the switch to reusable bags? (Heck, if I can do it, anyone can!) Check out the bag options in the Daily Mitzvah archives — as well as cool options at your own favorite grocery. The environment will thank you, and you may get 5¢ to 10¢ a bag back to boot.

(Photo credits: Flip & Tumble)

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One "FEED 100" Bag = 100 Lunches for Rwandan Schoolchildren

OK, I have to say it: I love this bag, and the idea behind it. A sustainable burlap pouch unzips to reveal a very soft white organic cotton tote (nice fabric), with some silk screened lettering that suggests CARE package labeling. But it’s also more than a tote: each purchase funds 100 lunches in the UN World Food Programme’s school lunch program in Rwanda.

The bags aren’t super cheap, and this is a Whole Foods-exclusive product (I try not to promote specific companies or stores on the blog, but sometimes the product makes me break my own rules). The cool thing, though: Whole Foods’ goal is to fund the UNWFP’s entire school lunch program in Rwanda for 2008, primarily through the sale of these bags. You can learn more about the program and see bag photos here. The bags are a bit pricey: $29.95 at my local store. But I thougt it was worth it to buy lunch for 100 kids. I’m also considering these as gifts for some upcoming birthdays: a nice combo of a cool tote bag and being able to tell the recipient they just bought lunch for 100 very sweet children. (Of course, I just blew the surprise for friends and family who have summer birthdays!)

Today’s mitzvah: Check out the cool bags. You can also always help the UN World Food Programme at no cost by playing our favorite vocabulary game over at Free Rice.

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Smile for Earth Day (Eve)

I thought of titling the post “Green Those Pearly Whites,” but even I have my limits! I was GoodSearching for toothbrushes with replaceable heads (re-use the handle, so only the head gets thrown away) when I stumbled upon an About.com post that opened up a whole new world of eco-friendly toothbrushes. (I’m a geek — I love this stuff.) Did you know you can buy a toothbrush made from recycled Stonyfield yogurt cups? Who knew? (I don’t typically like to plug specific brands, but this was too neat to keep to myself.)

I’m still looking for one with replacement heads, but this is pretty cool too. The company, Recycline, also offers replaceable razors with recycled handles. Thank goodness someone is making good use of all my yogurt containers!

Today’s mitzvah: Thousands of lbs. of toothbrushes wind up in landfills each year. Consider a recycled or recyclable toothbrush (check out Larry West’s About.com post for several options).

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Plant Love and Corn Bottles

I’ve faced the fact that I will never be No Impact Man (or even Low Impact Woman). I like to shop. But if one must buy things, I’ve been collecting links about consumer items that are not just recyclable but can literally be given back to the earth.

Cargo Cosmetic’s Plant Love lipstick line, which I haven’t tried, is either a great gimmick or an example of unusually responsible consuming. The lipstick comes in special cardboard packaging imbued with wildflower seeds. Instead of just throwing away the package, it can be moistened and planted, with wldflowers to follow. The lipstick tubes are also unusual: made with corn-based plastic they’re supposed to biodegrade completely within 80 days when exposed to sufficient heat and sun. (FYI, this won’t happen in a landfill — a reality check for all the biodegradable products, since landfills are airtight and stuff hangs around forever.) To complete the trifecta, Cargo donates $2 from every PlantLove lipstick purchase to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital. The lipstick is available at several Nonprofit Shopping Mall vendors, including Amazon and Sephora, both of which will donate approx. 2% of your purchase price to a nonprofit of your choice when you use this link.

On a recent trip to the co-op I stumbled upon a resuable personal water bottle that also uses this corn-based technology. EnviroProduct’s Corn Resin Bottle is a resuable water bottle with a small screw-in carbon filter, so one can use regular tap water for DIY bottled water. The bottle is recomended for up to 90 uses, after which it is also guaranteed to decompose in 80 days in “commercial compost,” which would mean not in the regular landfill-bound trash.

Since any reason to plug The Lost Albatross is a good thing, blogger Emily posted a comment during the Carbon Fast for Lent mentioning BioBags, which are cool corn-based trashbags, as an alternative to the usual plastic trashcan liners. (BioBag also offers corn-based bags for cat litter liners and for cleaning up doggie waste.)

Today’s mitzvah: If you’re going to buy something anyway, why not make it plantable or disappear-able?

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No More Filmy Plastic Produce Bags

July 12, 2008: See my update on another nice alternative to grocery store produce bags.
I was feeling very virtuous at Whole Foods yesterday, where I’d traveled by bus with my happy Baggu reusable bags. And then I grabbed some radishes and pulled a produce bag off the roll — ugh, not only bad plastic, but plastic I wouldn’t even re-use. Just as I was feeling very unhappy about this choice, I noticed a stand of these reusable mesh produce bags. If I’d comaprison shopped online, I would have found cheaper ones, and probably some from recycled material. But I was so happy not to walk out of the store with nasty filmy plastic, I snapped these up. I think they’ll also fold up so I can put one in each of my Baggu pouches.

Today’s mitzvah: How can you take an extra step and become even more eco-friendly?

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Carbon Fast for Lent: Ban the Bottle

The Fifth Thursday in Lent
Ban the bottle: consider buying a reusable water bottle. Or pick one up as a thoughtful gift for a disposable water bottle-toting friend.

Since I skipped some of the more prayer-based Carbon Fast activities in favor of more action-oriented items: I now have a few extra days to fill. For the next couple days we’ll be DIY carbon fasting as I create a few new activities on my own.

Last fall Carbon Conscious Consumer blogged about San Francisco’s efforts to ban single-serving plastic water bottles. It takes energy to make them, energy to recycle them — and their recycling rates are lower than one might think, since so much of this water is consumed away from home. There are so many choices in reusable water bottles, yet this was an area where I was very slow to change my ways. Even in a university community where everyone carries a backpack, most with water bottles attached — I was too lazy and unmotivated to get with the program. Anyone who knows me won’t be surprised to learn it took a consumer item to make me a convert. Is this SIGG aluminum bottle cute or what? The only drag is they do dent when you drop them. But overall I love this and I tote it everywhere.

Today’s mitzvah: Where do you use the most disposable plastic each day? Is there a fix that would shift this from a recyclable container to a reusable one?

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