OneClimate

Ever feel like you are the only one around you who seems to care about planet? OneClimate.net is a social networking sight like MySpace where you can meet like-minded people who are concerned about the planet, too. On OneClimate, you can ask questions or write about things you're doing to combat global warming. You can post videos and pictures too. You can even form your own group and make contact with others like yourself. You can join on your own or as a group or classroom. This is a great opportunity to be inspired by the countless others who are taking a stand against climate change.

You are what you eat...

We all know that cows can really stink. But cow manure is not only lethal for your nose, it ís also lethal for the environment. Cows and other livestock produce a greenhouse gas called methane. Methane is 21 times more powerful a greenhouse gas than CO2, and is responsible for almost half of the global warming impacting the planet today. Animal agriculture produces 100 million tons of methane a year, that’s double the rate during pre-industrial times.

Did you know?

—Americans eat 10 times more animal protein than necessary for a complete nutritional diet.
—Meat—based diets require 10 times the land area to feed a person in comparison to a plant—based diet. Most of the 15 million hectares of tropical rainforest lost each year is used for raising cattle and growing animal feed. Cutting down and burning the rainforest not only spews more than a billion tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, it permanently destroys essential habitat for biodiversity.
—Some good news: While carbon dioxide takes 100 years to cycle out of the atmosphere, methane takes only 8. That means that actions we take now to lower methane levels will quickly result in a cooler planet.

What you can do:

Eat a plant—based diet. If you replace 1 beef meal a week with a plant—based meal you will save more than 40,000 gallons of water, 70 tons of grain, save 300 pounds of greenhouse gases from being emitted each year! And if you can encourage your family to do the same...just imagine the difference you can make!

dreaming of a green Christmas....

The Sierra Club has a lot of great tips for making your holidays a little greener. Here are a few I thought I'd share:

BUY ENERGY-SAVING "LED" HOLIDAY LIGHTS
Now you can decorate your house with LED lights that use 90 percent less energy than conventional holiday lights, and can save your family up to $50 on your energy bills during the holiday season! LED lights are available at many major retailers, including Target, CostCo, and Ace Hardware.


GET A PESTICIDE-FREE TREE
Demand is on the rise for Christmas trees that are not covered in chemicals; some growers use 40 different pesticides, as well as chemical colorants. The good news is that there are now a number of tree-farms that sell pesticide-free trees, so ask your local Christmas tree seller, or search for an organic tree farm near you.


DO A "COOL HOME" TOUR WITH OUR ENERGY-SAVING CHECKLIST
Take a pledge this New Years' to reduce your home energy use by buying energy-efficient light bulbs. Installing only 6 compact fluorescent light bulbs will save the average American family $60 per year. You can also use our handy "Cool Homes" checklist to see what easy things you can do in your home to save energy. If there's a fire in your fireplace this Christmas, turn down that thermostat! Lowering the temperature even five degrees can take 10% off your energy bill.


ADD ORGANIC & LOCAL FOODS TO YOUR HOLIDAY FEAST
Support local family farmers who grow sustainable meat and produce. Not only does it taste better, you'll be doing your part for the planet too. Looking for an organic turkey or ham for Christmas dinner? Find out where to get local green products in your neighborhood.

2007 Green Gift Guide

Treehugger has released their 2007 Green Gift Guide. They have a special section for kids with some great items that are both eco-friendly as well as some that help strengthen kid's relationship with nature. They list over 180 gifts categorized in three shades of green.

Green your energy

Did you know that you can sign up for clean Green Energy for your home? Most utility companies offer the choice of green energy at the same or comparable cost as traditional energy from polluting sources like coal–fired plants. We signed up for Green Power through our utility company and had no interruption in our service. As an added bonus, some states do not charge sales tax on the delivery portion of your bill. So you might even save money!

Visit green-e.org to find out what services are available in your area.

The chemical conversation continues...

I wanted to follow up the last post about toxic chemicals with the startling results of a new study done to test for toxic chemicals in our bodies. The study tested 35 average Americans from seven states. Each participant was tested for contamination by twenty toxic chemicals from three chemical families: phthalates (THA-lates), bisphenol A, and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). Visit Is It In Us? for more results and information on what you can do.

Here is a NPR interview with Judy Robinson, who works for the Environmental Health Fund, and conducted the study, and Heather Loukmas who was a participant in the study.

The real dirt on cleaning products

Everyone hates cleaning…and who can blame us? Not only is it tedious, it is also dangerous for your health and the planet. Most household cleaners are made from petroleum and a variety of toxic chemicals. This may seem like a good excuse for get out of doing your chores, but the toxicity of household cleaning products can irritate your eyes, skin, and lungs and even your central nervous system whether you are the one doing the cleaning or not. And whats more, once these toxins wash down the drain, they contaminate streams and ground water.

Did you know?

–Because of household cleaners and pesticides, the air inside the typical home is 2–5 times—and in extreme cases 100 times—more polluted than the air outside.

–Household chemicals are largely responsible for the more than 7 million accidental poisonings that occur each year, with more than 75% involving children.

-More than 150 chemicals that are found in the home are connected to allergies, birth defects, cancer and psychological disorders.

–If every household replaced one bottle of petroleum–based dishwashing liquid with a vegetable–based product, we would save 82,000 barrels of oil a year–enough to drive a car over 86 million miles!
So here's what you can do:

Concoct your own cleaning products.

You can make your own cleaning products out of a few basic household items. This would make a great gift if you made your own labels with the recipe on the side, especially for Mother’s or Father’s Day.

Step 1: Collect empty spray bottles and glass jars with lids.
Step 2: Get a measuring cup and measuring spoons
Step 3: Follow these easy recipes!

Glass Cleaner
1/4 cup vinegar or 1 Tbsp lemon juice
2+ cups water

Fill a clean spray bottle with water and either white vinegar or lemon juice. After spraying on glass, wipe with a rag or old newspaper.

Furniture Polish
1/2 cup white vinegar
1 teaspoon olive oil

Mix in a jar and apply with a clean rag to dust and polish. Reduce the olive oil if wood looks too oily.

(You can also swap the vinegar for lemon juice, mixing equal parts lemon juice and olive oil.)

All Purpose Cleaner:
1 cup white vinegar
1 cup water

Mix in a sprayer bottle.

Mold Cleanser:
1 part hydrogen peroxide
2 parts water

Mix in a spray bottle. Spray on surface and leave to dry for one hour. Rinse the area off.

On the Spot cleaning formulas:

These recipes for homemade cleaners are best used right away. Some of these fun recipes fizz like science fair volcanoes!

Drains:
Pour 1/2 cup of baking soda down drain, followed by 1 cup of vinegar. When the fizzing stops pour down a kettleful of boiling water.

Tub Scrub:
1/2 cup of baking soda
a little bit of water and lemon juice

Toilet Bowl
Baking soda
White vinegar

To clean and deodorize, sprinkle toilet bowl with baking soda, add white vinegar and scrub with a toilet brush.

Wood Floors
1/4 cup white vinegar
1 gallon warm water

Carpet & Upholstery
Rub a little shaving cream on stains and wipe with sponge