GREEN EVENT IN LA!

Go Green Expo  held it’s premiere event in New York City in April of 2008.  There were over 250 exhibits, more than 50 speakers, and plenty of eco-film fun.  Go Green Expo was the brainchild of Bradford Rand, who developed the idea after viewing the controversial film
“An Inconvenient Truth.” He asked himself the simple question: ”How can we make a difference?” This question was shared with his “green” team and Go Green Expo was born. Rand has been a producer of over 700 trade shows and job fairs over the last 14 years and knew he could step up to the challenge.

A one of a kind event from it’s inception and the ground up, Go Green Expo changes not only the public’s view of environmental issues, but also how events like these are developed and produced. Consumers have the opportunity to have hands on experience of the eco-friendly alternatives to current everyday products.  They are able to interact with hundreds of companies that are there to showcase what they are doing to reduce their carbon footprint.

Two of the speakers at this event are Ed Begley Jr, well know actor and environmental advocate, who serves on the boards of many environmental awareness organizations and Mariel Hemingway, who will discussing “How to Green Yourself” through living a healthy life style. What more could you ask for?

One of the truly wondeful parts of this experience is that even the event itself is environmentally friendly.  Biodegradable trash bags, eco-friendly printing, table coverings, recycled signs, and compostable sponsor banners are a few of the nods to zero carbon footprinting. All of the event waste will be separated and sorted to make sure the least amount of trash winds up in landfills. Even the staff will be traveling in eco-friendly style!

Don’t miss the opportunity to educate yourself and your family!
The Los Angeles Convention Center
Saturday, January 24th • 10am - 6pm
Sunday, January 25th • 10am - 5pm

Quote of the Day!

Throughout my adult life, I’ve always been conscious about the environment and what we should do to reduce our impact on the earth. One of my motivations was the belief that you may not be able to change the world, but you can at least change your footprints on this earth.

~ Jules Dervaes, November 2004~ The Path to Freedom

Eco-friendly Gifts — Easier than you think!

Just by putting a little more effort into your holiday shopping this season, you will be free and eco-clear! Why not try to give earth-friendly or handmade gifts? Your local farmer’s market is full of talented artisans that depend on their wares to get them through the holiday season, do something good for the economy, and spend locally! I recently purchased a beautiful piece from the local Farmers Market near my home that I am planning on giving away to a dear friend. The price was reasonable and the quality was unmatched. Plus, I am doing my little part to help my community.

Alternatively, if you have time, make up recipe jars, photo-calendars, or coupon books for good deeds. Another eco-friendly idea is giving a “cultural experience” gift. Think about a family membership to the local zoo, museum, or botanical gardens.

Lastly, when you do shop for gifts, take your own bags to cut down on plastic waste. Oh, and those make excellent gifts too!

Healthy Holiday Cookies!

Parties are a huge part of the holiday season but they can also create a lot of unnecessary waste. Try hosting a cookie swap where each guest brings a dozen of their own recipe for each guest. You’ll waste less because products can be purchased in bulk and made all in one day with the same utensils using the same hot oven!

When hosting, use Grandma’s china! When else is a good reason? May as well use it and show it off!Moreover, just think of all those paper plates that won’t be in the landfill!

Here are some holiday cookie recipes that are both delicious and nutricious! Courtesy of Good Housekeeping.

Almond Macaroon Fingers

Lemon Meringue Drops

Whole Wheat Sugar Cookies

Remember that the holidays don’t have to mean putting the pause on your healthy eating habits.  It just means trying new healthier versions of your standard recipes and sharing with friends and family - you might be surprised by their reaction! 

As always, Live Green!

‘Tis the Season…

With the economy in chaos, it is hard to start thinking about buying anything for holidays, let alone trying to make it “greener”. However, it isn’t as hard as you might think and you could find yourself in the black in January rather than in the red! There is a way to green up just about every part of the holiday season and in most cases, you will save money too! This year, try some if not all, of the following ideas and you’ll be on your way to a more eco-friendly season!

 

Holiday cards

Once considered tacky, e-cards are gaining in popularity and are much more accepted these days. Make them more special by uploading family photos and writing a personal message. Of course, grandma will still want one mailed to her so choose wisely; there are many recycled cards out there! Re-use your old gift cards by cutting them up and making festive tags out of them!

Candles

The ambience of a candle is perfect for the holidays and now you can buy soy Hanukkah candles which burn cleaner and are not petroleum based.

Trees – Live or Artificial

If you put up a tree for the holidays, it is still better to use a live tree rather than an artificial one. Artificial trees cannot be recycled after their life span and only end up in the landfill. Cut fir trees are a popular choice and bring the scent of the out-of-doors inside for the season but make sure to have it mulched after the holiday. Your best choice, if you have the room, is to buy a potted tree and plant it in your yard after Christmas so you can enjoy it year round!

Decorations

Stick to all natural decorations for your tree. String popcorn and cranberries for festive garland that your whole family will enjoy making and the birds will love later (just remember to de-string it first). You can also make folded paper stars or snowflakes out of recycled paper. Go for wreaths and boughs made from cut evergreens. They can be found at just about any tree lot and can be recycled after the season.

Lights

If you like to decorate with lights make sure that you have them on a timer. You can save even more electricity and money by using lower wattage bulbs. If you need to replace your light strings, look for LED lights, they will cost a little more in the beginning but will last up to ten years and use even less electricity.

Wrapping paper

Most commercial gift-wrap is non-recyclable however, you do have alternatives! You can look for post-consumer recycled gift-wrap, use newspaper or comics, fabric, or hemp wrap. Gift bags are a respectable choice as they can be re-used season to season but they too will eventually end up in a landfill. Use ribbon over each year or find nice natural alternatives to decorating the package such as pinecones, evergreens, holly, and twine. Avoid using berries and mistletoe as they can be poisonous to children and can fall off a package easily.

Most importantly this holiday season, being around friends and family is the point. Don’t skimp on the meaningful things that tradition has passed down, just be a little more eco-conscience this year, and have a wonderful holiday season!

Go Green on Turkey Day!

Thanksgiving Day is one of those rare times throughout the year where you have a chance to catch up with your family and share what you’ve been up to all year ‘round. With all the cleaning and preparing you have to do in order to accommodate your guests, you might think “greening” your Thanksgiving dinner would be too difficult to even think about.

The truth is, like all your other choices throughout the year, it is very easy to make small changes that can make this day a nod towards the environment. Another benefit is that you will set an example to others on how easy it can be to enjoy an eco-friendly holiday season.

Here are some easy tips to green your Turkey Day:

1. Green your shopping - shop locally!
   Thanksgiving is a great opportunity to shop for your staple and perishable items at your local Farmers’ Market. Many of the recipes in a traditional Thanksgiving dinner rely on fresh whole foods that are in-season. You can find almost everything you need as far as veggies are concerned (carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes, yams) as well as fresh cheeses and breads to complete your dinner table!
2. Eco-Clean the house!
   Whether you are the one toiling around the house the day before or you have a little bit of help, be sure to use non-toxic cleaners. These eco-safe cleaners are so much healthier than their alternatives and can make your house shine just as well! Either way, using non-toxic cleaners can make your house sparkle without chemicals. Want windows that sparkle? Here’s a recipe you can use!
3. Encourage car pooling!
   Fewer emissions and more parking spots will be the benefit in making this suggestion to your guests. It might take a little planning, such as distributing the names, phone numbers or email addresses of guests who live near one another, but it is well worth it.
4. Serve “Green” Liquids!
   Be sure to serve up organic wine or champagne with real cork, not plastic stoppers or twist off tops. Cork is renewable and no tree is touched to make cork. You can also serve organic vodka, gin, cider, wine or beer; buy local if possible. Instead of bottled water, serve crisp, clean water by using a faucet filter or a pitcher such as a Brita. A Brita “filter uses an ion resin exchange to reduce lead, copper, mercury, cadmium, zinc, and other impurities from drinking water.” Flavor it up by adding squeezed lemons, limes, or oranges.
5. Recycle all you can!
   Donate leftovers or use the greens in your compost. Be sure any aluminum cans go into the recycling bin and that any paper plates are biodegradable so they can be “re-used” as well!

There are so many more ways to go green on this day – let us know your ideas!

Green Beauty: Sunscreen Safety

After hearing distressing reports on the news and internet about dangerous chemicals in sunscreen, I decided to do a little sunscreen research myself.  Here’s what I learned:

UVA rays penetrate deep into the skin leading to tanning, wrinkling, leathering, sagging and other effects. UVB rays do not penetrate as deeply and are the main cause of sunburn and tissue damage. UVC rays, yes they do exist, are currently blocked completely by the ozone, but as the ozone layer thins that could change.

Chemical sunscreens work by absorbing the radiation before it reaches the skin. A chemical only blocks UVA or UVB, not both. The most common are:

• Benzophenones (dixoybenzone, oxybenzone)
• PABA and PABA esters (ethyl dihydroxy propyl PAB, glyceryl PABA, p-aminobenzoic acid, or padimate-O 
• Cinnamates (cinoxate, ethylhexyl p-methoxycinnamate, octocrylene, octyl methoxycinnamate)
• Salicylates (ethylhexyl salicylate, homosalate, octyl salicylate)
• Digalloyl trioleate
• Menthyl anthranilate
• Avobenzone [butyl-methyoxydibenzoylmethane; Parsol 1789]

These chemicals may cause minor skin rashes, irritations and allergic photosensitivities. Also, it has been shown that oxybenzone (and the radiation it absorbed) can seep into the skin, and therefore should not be used on children or pregnant or nursing women. One study performed in Switzerland1 concluded that these substances may be hormone-disrupting but recommended more studies to determine long-term effects.

At the other end of the spectrum, physical sunscreens actually reflect or scatter the radiation. They block both UVA and UVB rays. Titanium Dioxide and Zinc Oxide are the naturally occurring minerals that provide a physical barrier. Though it is possible for someone to have sensitivity or allergy to natural ingredients, those cases are rare.

So while the jury is still out on the safety of sunscreens, one thing is true: the only three ingredients approved by the FDA for protecting skin from UVA damage are avobenzone, titanium dioxide and zinc oxide.

TIPS for selecting and applying sunscreen:
     • If you’re the “better safe than sorry” type, stick to the FDA-approved ingredients.
     • Make sure the label says UVA/UVB or Broad Spectrum protection
     • Use a minimum SPF 15 (SPF only applies to the UVB rays)

Here are a few brands that offer physical sunscreens which are also free of chemical fragrance, dyes and   contain fewer toxic ingredients than conventional products:

     • Kiss My Face www.kissmyface.com
     • Burts Bees www.burtsbees.com
     • Aubrey Organics www.aubrey-organics.com
     • California Baby www.californiababy.com

Another option is to wear protective clothing. At www.spfstore.com you can find affordable T-shirts, polo shirts, swimwear and other gear.

Now, what are you doing sitting there? Smooth on some sunscreen, grab your hat and shades and go enjoy summer!

1 You can read part of the study, “In vitro and in vivo estrogenicity of UV screens,” by M. Schlumpf M, B. Cotton, M. Conscience, V. Haller, Steinmann B, and W. Lichtensteiger here.

Eco-Chic Wedding Invitations

In today’s changing world, it is important that you do everything you can to make sure you are being respectful towards the environment. When your goal is to live in a socially conscious way, planning your wedding is the perfect “green” opportunity. This will probably be the first big “purchase” that you and your fiancé will make in your new lives together, why not make it in an ethical way?

Now, the first step is announcing your big day! Wedding announcements or invitations can set the perfect tone for your environmentally friendly wedding. There are many options today for 100% recycled, partially recycled or completely tree free papers from wedding invitation suppliers. A perfect source for earth friendly invitations is Earthly Affair. Not only do they offer 100% recycled alternatives to traditional paper invitations, but they also take into consideration their environmental impact in other ways, such as earth friendly printing methods, an eco equipped studio, and carbon free shipping.

A fun project for your guests after the wedding is to provide them with “plantable wedding invitations”. They are an interesting and unique way to literally green your wedding and Botanical Paperworks is doing them the right way. Garden Greetings™ paper has actual seeds embedded into it and when you plant the paper in a pot of soil, the seeds will grow into beautiful wildflowers! How eco-chic is that? 

Now, if you really want to throw caution to the wind, many couples are fore-going the paper invitations all together and moving towards the virtual world. Couples are opting to send a simple email invitation to visit their online Wedding site. A creative and informative wedding website can easily give details and links to important wedding locations, schedules, maps, etc. In addition, if the couple is able to create their own site or find a designer they like, they can definitely express their own unique flair and theme on a wedding website. This non-traditional method might be a little controversial, but times they are a’ changing, and this route is an easy way to save a lot of time, money and help the planet.

In the end, you have many alternatives in your choice of invitations that can be original, unique and eco-friendly – this is something that will require a little more effort on your part, but if taking care of our planet is important, then you will want to make this effort to be socially responsible.

A few other companies that are doing it the right way:
Bella Figura
Naturally Ever After
Oblation Papers + Press

Green Your Cleaning

When most people think of going green, they expect the transition to be an expensive one. Luckily, a common sense approach to eco-friendly cleaning products doesn’t have to be difficult or costly. Here are several tips to green your cleaning that can be easily incorporated into your household cleaning routine.

Simple and inexpensive items, such as soap, water, vinegar, lemon juice, baking soda, and Borax can take care of the usual cleaning needs of most households. Washing everything that comes in contact with raw meat or eggs with soapy, hot water is the most reliable way of killing Salmonella and E coli. Additionally, white vinegar can kill bacteria, viruses, and mold.

If you want to get rid of soap scum and some stains, instead of grabbing for the Comet or Ajax, make a paste of baking soda and water. If you want a commercially prepared product, try Bon Ami (calcium carbonate); it’s safer than similar products in that it doesn’t contain any chlorine bleach. Sprinkling baking soda in a sink and scrubbing with a damp sponge or rag will work in the same way as Comet or Ajax.

You can also green your cleaning by using the all purpose 20 Mule Team Borax. This product has been around for ages and is still popular. It contains no phosphates or chlorine, and it’s safe for septic tanks. It’s a great laundry booster, stain remover, and clothes deodorizer. Speaking of removing odors, its deodorizing abilities work wherever you need it – in the refrigerator, trash can, and bathroom. It’s also good in removing carpet stains and odors, but make sure you test on a small patch of carpet first to see if your carpet’s dye is colorfast. You can use the Mule Team for cleaning bathroom surfaces, just as you would with baking soda and water. Just sprinkle some on a damp sponge or rag and scrub. If you don’t want to deal with a powder, Ecover makes a plant based cleansing cream that is gentle on the earth. For toilet bowls, just a quarter cup of Mule Team Borax, soaking for at least 30 minutes, will do.

Green your window cleaning by making up your own mixture and placing into a spray bottle. If you want a lemony fragrance, put one tablespoon lemon juice with water inside your spray bottle. If you don’t mind the smell of vinegar, you can use 1/4 cup white vinegar in your spray bottle. In addition to a do-it-yourself window cleaner, a couple reputable eco companies make glass cleaners: Seventh Generation or Ecos.

The average laundry products you find in the store contain petroleum and phthalates, which have been suspected of causing cancer and harm to human’s reproductive system. It’s best to choose products that are fragrance free and not petroleum based; they should be plant based - such as corn oil, coconut oil, or palm kernel oil. If you have a stubborn stain, an eco friendly way of getting rid of it is water mixed with lemon juice, hydrogen peroxide, or white vinegar. Non-chlorine bleach, such as Ecover and Seventh Generation are made with safer ingredients, such as hydrogen peroxide. For fabric softeners, a natural way is adding 1/4 cup baking soda or white vinegar to the wash cycle.

As you can see, green your cleaning takes common sense and getting back to the cleaning basics. Much of the going green movement is all about simplicity, and these common household products will have your house looking and smelling clean.

Eco-Friendly Toys

The organic movement mainly focused on food and some recycled products. There were some eco-friendly toys offered, but they were little known and not mass produced. After the recall of dozens of toys made in China due to safety concerns, however, more parents looked to going green with their children’s toys. Eco-toys are generally made from organic cotton, wood, recycled milk jugs and other plastics, felt, soybeans, kapok (tropical trees’ silky fibers), vegetable dyes, and other all natural materials. These materials aren’t harmful to the earth or to children. This is particularly important since babies and young children often put toys in their mouths.
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Many eco-friendly toys don’t have batteries, featuring solar power racers and robots. Sprig Toys feature good old fashioned toys that are kid powered. There are no batteries needed for kids to have fun, so that means less batteries in the landfills. Additionally, kids are more active - physically, creatively, and mentally - with these toys.

PlanToys have been an eco-friendly toy company since 1981. They started by making wooden toys with “replenishable rubber wood.” The wood doesn’t have any chemicals in it, and the colors are water based. They also use a non-formaldehyde glue. Some companies have a policy of replenishing the earth, such as Blue Orange. They plant two trees for every tree that’s cut down to make their games.

ImagiPlay offers environmentally educational toys called “Toys with Integrity.” They’re made from eco-friendly materials, featuring plantain grown rubberwood, which is a splinter free hardwood. Under the Nile sells organic toys and children’s clothing. They use cotton that is 100% handpicked and organic. Their dyes are vegetable based and have no metal, and their buttons and zippers are made of wood or shells. Purchasing Under the Nile products also helps fight poverty in rural Egypt by offering fair wages to the workers involved in the production of the toys and clothing.

Big name toy companies, such as Toys R Us and FAO Schwarz are also going green. Toys R Us is using packaging for its eco-friendly toys, made from at least 70% recycled paperboard stock. Additionally, some of their gift cards are made with recycled plastic or biodegradable products, such as corn. FAO Schwarz has a line of green toys made from recycled plastic milk jugs.

The eco-friendly toy category also includes toys that educate children about the importance of the earth and going green. Idbids offers educational toys that let children know they can help the earth “one iddy biddy step at a time.” Toys and packaging are made with organic, recycled, and other “green” materials. Idbids revolves around a kit that includes a nine inch plush toy, storybook, field guide, and cinch sack – all of which are organic or recycled materials. The plush toys are Scout (cloud), Lola (flower), or Waverly (water drop).

Eco-friendly toys are usually more expensive because the materials are harder to process and/or recycle than what it takes to make toys with synthetic materials. While they’re more expensive, however, the purchase of eco-friendly toys isn’t akin to buying organic food. A toy will last longer than organic food, which is gone in a meal or two. Paying an extra $10 or $20 for green toys is worth it to parents for organic, non-toxic, and gentle on the environment toys for their children.

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