Green Living

[Rozax]

I just thought I'd start a thread so we can share our green-living techniques.

To start off, my husband has been using a Preserve toothbrush. The handle is made from 100% recycled material, and is 100% recyclable. The bristles are not made from recycled material. To recycle, the case in which your Preserve toothbrush is packaged doubles as an envelope. Pop the used brush into the case, make sure your mail courier understands that this isn't a joke, and the company pays the postage. They then melt down the plastic and make a new toothbrush.

While showering, I turn the water off while lathering or soaping up. This started when I was younger, and I hated how the bubbles would be rinsed off before I was fully covered. Six-year-old Rozax wanted her fill of bubbles, durn it!

I gave up shaving my legs two years ago, so that's been a green-saver in a couple ways.

I'm getting better about remembering my reusable grocery bags. My local grocery store has a collection bin for plastic bags, so I have somewhere to go with the bane of my negligence. What I'd really like is an alternative to those thin plastic bags in the produce section.

Avoiding plastic is difficult, but I do my part by using Pyrex dishes in place of plastic tupperware, and I purchase glass-bottled milk, which offers a deposit on bottles when you return them. It's environmentally responsible, and it tastes a lot better.

I also use biodegradable cleaning products. Kiss My Face is my preferred shower brand, and we use Method for hand soap and laundry.

[moogie]

What I'd really like is an alternative to those thin plastic bags in the produce section.

For most fruits/veggies I don't use any bags, I just place them loose in the cart and in my regular bags. Some produce obviously you can't do that with (green beans, brussel sprouts, grapes) for those items I have a few small/thin cloth bags that I use. The last few times I bought sheets, they came in cloth packaging rather than plastic. They are just the right size and weight to use for produce. You can always make your own as well.

Angie

[Rozax]

I just found a store that has those! I'll see if I can find the material in a linen store and make my own, though.

[EgoMagickian]

I often don't use bags for produce either... when I do, luckily my co-op has started offering compostable bags... there are also these:

https://www.google.com/search?q=reusabl ... GXiAK559Ub

[Rozax]

Entertaining and relevant to the thread:

Alt text: "The high I feel when I actually remember to bring my reusable bags to the store--and take them inside rather than leaving them in the parked car--can last for days."

[pueppi]

I have a friend who made her own rain barrel system. But, if you aren't that crafty, you can purchase them in plenty of places. Amazon is one (link to rain barrels).

I am in an apartment, so, I haven't figured out the best way to do this here yet.

[katamay]

Riot for Austerity is a great group for people who want to take their green living to the next level. The goal for participants is to cut their emissions down to 90% of the average American. It's a tough goal, but that's what makes it worthwhile!

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/90PercentReduction/

The big savers are the obvious things. Living in a 1-bedroom apartment with my husband rather than a resource-sucking house, walking whenever possible, line-drying our clothes and washing in cold, cooking meals prepared from whole foods at home, purchasing local produce, waiting for later to have children, the usual suspects. Not owning a television means we don't see many advertisements, which makes it much easier for us to avoid buying new things. And the fact that we do not give Christmas presents cuts down on a huge amount of waste this time of year!

Kat

[Rozax]

*snip*
Not owning a television means we don't see many advertisements, which makes it much easier for us to avoid buying new things.

This!!! And if you've never gone without, you would be amazed by how much better you feel about yourself without all those awful commercials telling you how you're supposed to look, weigh, and dress. On the rare instances when I do see a television (typically an event with friends at their place), I giggle at tampon/maxi pad commercials since I use the DivaCup.

*snip*
Living in a 1-bedroom apartment with my husband rather than a resource-sucking house...

Right now, my husband and I live in an apartment more out of necessity than by choice, but it would be ludricous for us to buy a house before having children. However, I'd love to stick with apartments for environmental reasons, as well as having a close community. Along with the latter reason, I would need to find a decent community, and I would like the building to be environmentally friendly. This includes good insulation for temperature/thermostat control, as well as sound dampening so that I can't hear my neighbors' late-night parties, and they can't hear my squalling children when they come along.

[CapeTownBodyWorker]

Great subject

I make a point of using as little product as possible in my treatments. For example, as well as massage, I do a system called Allergy Antidotes, and with this, I encourage people to do self-acupressure instead of buying product to help themselves heal. It is not a popular idea, but I am passionate about it, and if I can help just a few people change their minds about using an excess of products, that will be my bit well done.

PS - Just because no product is used doesn´t mean results are not fantastic - often better than the environmentally-unfriendly product-based treatments.

[CapeTownBodyWorker]

Entertaining and relevant to the thread:

Alt text: "The high I feel when I actually remember to bring my reusable bags to the store--and take them inside rather than leaving them in the parked car--can last for days."

Love it

[nicmor]

I have bee trying to go green the past year since i had realized that the environment is really taking its toll and we can really feel the climate change. I an very happy to see that the government is really doing its efforts to avoid using plastic since now a lot of the cities have a "no plastic" policy in any stores and those who will be caught using plastic will have a corresponding sanction. I myself have been doing my own part by recycling plastic bottles and making sure that i only use biodegradable materials as much as possible. I save electricity by making sure that i turn off unecessary electricity and that I prefer to use the bike or walk instead of using my car when i go out, i think in our small little ways we can help mak a change and we shoudl start now.

[Rozax]

I recently purchased CleanWell hand sanitizer for my home. I prefer it to running my hands under water how-many times per day, when I really don't need to. My skin gets too dry.