Why?! Why?! I ask! Why do fast food/take-out food places miss recycling? From actually having recycling bins in the restaurants to separate paper/glass/organic to using containers which don't go in the bins at all -- I don't get - how they don't "get" - common-sense-recycling. Should I name the companies?...
Continue reading "Why?! Fast food/take-out misses the recycling bin..." »
Spring has officially sprung in Vancouver. Like any rite of passage, there are a some telling rituals marking this seasonal turn.
1. The cherry trees are a blaze of colour against blue skies, soon to become Nature’s original confetti.
2. The inveterate Birkenstock wearers have removed their winter socks from beneath their sandals, letting their toes wiggle in the sun.
3. The cityscape has sprung into social life, opening up restaurant patios, dusting off heat lamps and pulling down bright awnings.
Many communities in Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) have finally begun to adopt the green composting bin initiative which has been great for decreasing the amount of food waste which has needlessly been shipped off to the landfill sites.
As wonderful and easy as the program is, I have to tell you. I have beef with it.
Hug your planet.
Earth Day is fast approaching. As a parent, who enjoys "teachable moments" I am trying to come up with some activities/ideas for Earth Day. And why not? My kids are part of the tree-huggin', polar-bear-lovin', we've-got-to-do-somethin' generation. They have grown up with recycling programs and water conservation. At school, they create art projects using re-purposed materials. At home, they turn off lights when they leave a room so they don't use up energy. Saving the Earth isn't part of what they do...it's is part of who they are! I wonder, do they really need more "teachable Earth moments"?!...
I have fond memories of stacks of birthday prezzies wrapped with colourful paper, eaten store-bought cake (the icing - most likely contained red dye) and brought home loot bags filled with items manufactured in China).
Geez...so many good times. So when I receive an e-mail invitation for a paper-less birthday party - well I feel a little jipped. Here's why...
Continue reading "Eco-birthday parties: The Good and the Bad" »
I never really gave toilet paper much thought until I was 8 years old and sitting on the toilet in my grandparents’ house in Britain. Which actually means I was in the john, or the loo, or something to that effect. In any case, it was not a place I wanted to be.
In general, turning off lights is a precursor to fooling around. "hey honey, wanna turn off the lights?"(insert nudge nudge wink wink HERE). Now, put this on your calendar; Saturday March 28th, 2009 - 8:30pm - turn off lights. Now, before you tell your spouse/hurry the kids to bed/get new batteries/whatever...know that turning off lights on this date is a precursor to climate change (and fooling around - if you so desire). It's Earth Hour 2009.
Dear fellow mothers (and mother-lovers),
In recognition of International Women's Day (Sun. Mar. 8) - let us all - for a moment - get off our environmental-mother-loving-high-and-mighty-friggin'-pedestals. Let us stop the green guilt we lay on each other.
Continue reading "International Women's Day and Eco-Guilt" »
The What: Capitol Climate Action
The Where: Capitol Power Plant facility - Washington, D.C
The When:March 2, 2009
The Why: It's about the climate crisis....
