| You can make a difference
to the planet - right here and now This page will give you the most direct and practical tools to make your lifestyle sustainable |
You must be the change
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GO STRAIGHT TO THE ACTION Planet Earth and all her inhabitants are showing signs of severe stress from human numbers and ways of life. The task of halting and restoring the damage seems enormous. And yet,
what happens to the environment is the sum of all individual actions. You don't have to wait till the entire body politic
changes direction. You don't have to wait till the majority agrees with
you. Changing your lifestyle so you live in closer harmony with the present
and future health of the planet is not a snap thing. It will take
time.
Choose your priorities. Take things one at a time.
Every move in the right direction makes a difference. Show and tell others what you are doing
and multiply the effect of
what you do. Gradually the whole momentum will shift direction till one
day we will find ourselves once more as good citizens of the earth. |
If you support the goals of this page, please suggest it as a link to all the "green and simple" sites you visit. |
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Click for charity
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The Hungersite 1.1 cups food |
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Ecology
Fund 100 sq ft habitat 1. Register first [free] 2. Join the WPM group [Scroll down & click JOIN] 3. Start clicking the logo and watch your score pile up! |
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Rainforestsite 11 sq ft forest |
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Animal Rescue 0.6 bowls food |
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RedJellyFish [Register first] 0.5 bowls food for chimps + 26.5 sq ft forest |
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| ACTIONS |
BACKGROUND |
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Audit your lifestyle How huge is your Ecological Footprint? Are you overweight? Check your BMI Fat & Calorie Burn calculators How's your heart? Check your risk Check your Risk of Major Diseases Check life expectancy Will you reach 100? |
Most people in rich countries are using resources at an
unsustainable rate, and Americans have a bigger average impact on the planet than any other
nation. With only 5% of the world's population, we pump out 25% of the
greenhouse gases, an average of over 20 tons per person. That's a responsibility - and an opportunity too:
Americans who reduce their impact significantly can have a bigger than
average impact. Our overconsumption is also reducing the quality of our lives and killing us. |
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Checkout your home area
Pollution Report
Scorecard |
Find out if you are living near a toxic waste site, check your local air quality, pinpoint your local polluters. |
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Offset your pollution - Go Climate Neutral Calculate your carbon debt How many trees per year should you get planted? Plant trees National Arbor Day - order trees and plant them
Sponsor tree planting or |
We can offset the impact of carbon dioxide we cause to
be emitted, by planting trees or paying for trees to be planted or
protected. A typical growing tree can absorb a third of a tonne of CO2 per
year. A typical adult American would need to plant or get planted 80
or more trees a year. Trees have many other benefits: beauty, shade, improvement of local climate, increased water infiltration, lower soil erosion, protectiion of biodiversity. Here are 29 reasons to plant trees. One hectare (2.5 acres) of rainforest may contain 700 types of tree and 1500 of plants. A single tree in Peru housed 43 different species of ant. [Rainforest Facts] TIPS: Make sure you order trees native to your soils & climate. Make sure you plant at the right time & place. Plant at least one tree every year. Plant a tree in memory of anyone who dies. Plant fruit and nut trees for free food. |
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Green up your life Energy Energy Star site Green Power Network Find a renewable Energy Supplier Buy Green Power certificates Green-E - find certified renewable electricity (click the home or business symbol) |
Reducing our use of fossil
fuels is the major priority. One approach is to reduce our total
energy use (20 Things You Can Do to
Conserve Energy) through efficient products (see below) and good
practice. Another is to increase our use of renewable energies. Both efforts combined will improve our air quality, slow global warming, and reduce our dependence on Middle Eastern oil. TIP: Checkout subsidies available from your state, city or utility for energy-efficient products, and home-generated solar and wind power. |
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| Transport & Travel EPA Fuel-economy data by year Greener Cars - rates cars on environmental criteria Green Hotel cards Control wasteful pamperings Eco-tourism |
The average American drives about 8,500 miles per year, the typical car about 17,000 miles. While average fuel economy standards have been improving in most of the world, in the USA they fell from 26.2 mpg in 1987 to 24.4 mpg in 2001, largely due to the spread of SUVs. Choosing the most fuel-efficient vehicles in a class can save the owner at least $1,500 in fuel costs. You can also green your travels and eco-tour. Own a hotel? Get your guests to re-use towels and sheets. Calculate your potential savings at Project Planet. |  |
| Living -
appliances etc Energy Star Qualified Products Find your nearest supplier |
Energy Star certified products, in over 40 categories from dishwashers to air conditioning, use less energy and water, save money, and help protect the environment. Last year alone, Americans, with the help of Energy Star, saved $8 billion in utility bills and enough energy to power 20 million homes - and avoided greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those from 18 million cars. |  |
Reduce Shopping |
Liberate yourself from
your possessions We don't own our possessions - often they own us. We are "stuffocating" under an avalanche of products and models. We buy far more than we need, wasting resources and adding to pollution. Every year each American throws away 1670 lbs of garbage - ten times our average weight, which is also ballooning as we eat more and exercise less. We need to practice the "3Rs" - reduce, re-use and recycle. In that order. Reducing our consumption has the greatest impact. Re-using things, or giving them to others to re-use, is better than putting them in the recycling bin. Recycling must be done carefully. Finally, waste disposal must ensure that toxic products are properly disposed of. We can also try to ensure that the things we do buy are produced with least environmental damage over their lifecycle. By simplifying we can usually improve the quality of our lives physically and spiritually. Books: The Circle of Simplicity - Cecile Andrews Voluntary Simplicity - Duane Elgin |
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| Green grow
your garden Backyard Wildlife Habitat Nature-oriented gardening Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program Green Golfing |
The typical US yard size is about 13,000 sq ft. Yet
we manage this land badly, growing alien flowers and
water-hungry lawns, killing or excluding "pests" and "weeds" -
usually the native species of our area. The least we can do is make our
gardens hospitable to native plants and animals. The National Wildlife Federation runs an excellent advice and certification scheme. From the Natural Resources Conservation Service you can get support and up to 75 percent cost-share to create or improve wildlife habitat. |
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| Green your
cuisine What you eat affects your own body as well as the natural environment. We are poisoning ourselves as well as the planet, bloating our bodies and burdening ourselves and society with massive health problems.
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Eat lower on the food chain. One pound of grain
eaten by humans is one pound of grain. Meats require far more grain and
other inputs - 1 lb of feedlot beef requires 10lb of grain to produce. 1
lb of pork needs 5lb of grain, 1lb pound of chicken needs 2-3lb of
grain. Buy local. Foods are shipped across increasing distances as the world globalizes. Out-of-season flowers and vegetables are flown from the southern hemisphere to the northern. One study in Iowa found that typical supermarket produce travelled almost 1500 hundred miles - against only 56 miles for local produce on farmers' markets. Buying local reduces pollution, and stimulates employment in your area. Eat organic. Organic produce is grown or reared naturally without chemicals, hormones or antibiotics, with benefits for nutrition, soil health, animal welfare and wildlife diversity. Eat humanely. If you eat meat and dairy products, choose ones that have been reared organically, humanely, and in ways that allow animals' natural instincts to be satisfied. |
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| Building/Improving your home Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design: Find an environmentally qualified architect Energy Star Building Energy Star Home Improvement Building Green - Guides and suppliers Sustainable Building - professionals, materials, primer |
Building a home probably has a greater environmental impact than any other action of a person's life. It is an opportunity to change the rules by which you and future generations live. Some homes such as Earthships are almost self-sufficient in water and energy. Strawbale houses have extreme thermal efficiency. Green roofs provide insulation and room for nature. Even if you're just refurbishing, you can get subsidies to install low-flush toilets. You can "grow" solar power on your roof and make money exporting your surplus to utility companies. |  |
| Green up your workplace Audit your office and get tips for improvement Combat light pollution Energy Star Business Improvement |
Offices and factories create many forms of waste and pollution - and
there are many ways to change that. Turning off equipment at night,
using renewable energy, conserving water, recycling paper, other
supplies, and used equipment and furniture, using recycled products,
having a workplace transport plan. Frequently neglect of green workplace issues affects workers' health. Leaving office and car park lights on all night also adds to light pollution which is blotting out the night sky for a growing majority of humans. |
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| Sign up for
Environmental Action Alerts National Wildlife Federation National Resource Defense Council Sierra Club Planned Parenthood About.com's updated list from major non-profits Pages 1 - 2 - 3 |
Redress the balance: people before
money In a country where money and big business influences policy heavily, many environmental and social organizations have now made it easy for concerned individuals to send email and letters to their local representatives. Politicians do take note. TIP: Vary the wording - don't look like a robot spammer. |
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| Links The Energy Guy Comprehensive Energy Solutions Global Stewards - advice and action |
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 How to make this your home page |
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Internet Explorer Netscape With this page in your browser Click Settings, then Internet Properties Then, on the "General" tab, under Home Page, click "Use Current" |
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