The Story of Stuff & Sustainable Holiday Gift Ideas

Watch this great video with Annie Leonard — it’s an arresting account of the details and repercussions of product Extraction, Production, Distribution, Consumption, and Disposal. Spread the word, it’s really interesting!

The Story of Stuff

With that in mind, and with the holiday shopping season upon us, it may be better (and easier) to consider buying your loved ones services instead of products – after all, services don’t run out! Here is a range of ideas for

Sustainable Holiday Gifts:

Tickets to movies, musicals, plays, or concerts

Local Artwork

Tours, excursions, hikes

Classes or lessons (cooking, dance, martial arts, yoga, music, art, etc.)

Bus, train, or metro passes

Website or Blog Hosting

Skype credit, calling cards

Gift certificates for:

Spa & Massage

Rock Climbing

Haircuts

A Nice Meal

–

You could also combine some of these things to make a pretty neat gift package; for instance, you could get your loved one in New Haven:

– a train ticket to New York City,

-a gift certificate to a nice New York French or Middle Eastern restaurant,

– and a ticket to see Wicked or any other show.

They’re sure to have a blast, and who doesn’t love free stuff?

 —————

Update: December 18th.

Here are some more ideas for green holiday gifts:

– Adopt an Acre, Rescue the Reef, or Adopt a Square Mile.

– Swim with the Sharks (and explore the rest of the site for other ideas, like CityZen Chef’s Table, Radio DJ Experience, Tasting & Tea for Two, and more)

 and definitely check out:

– Green Dimes: For only 15 dollars, cut your junk mail up to 90% and they plant 10 trees!

“Step 1: Sign Up
As soon as you join, our team does all the work to get your name off dozens of direct marketer’s mailing lists. This will take care of a big chunk of the junk!

Step 2: Hate Your Catalogs? Love Your Catalogs?
Just let us know! Log in anytime to your GreenDimes account and click on our easy-to-use Catalog Screener to enter the catalogs and other mailings that you want stopped.

Step 3: You Register. We Monitor.
Each month GreenDimes monitors the Direct Marketing Association’s mailing list to ensure that your name gets off and stays off their mailing lists. In order for us to do this, you will need to register your name with the DMA. They charge $1 per name, but registering will make a big difference in the amount of junk in your mailbox.”

… Happy Holidays! 🙂

The New Taboo: Bottled Water

You may have heard the buzz surrounding the use of bottled water, and it seems like what was once quite an ordinary artifact at most barbecues, conventions, parties, and any other get-togethers (not to mention regular, everyday usage) has become a veritable symbol of wastefulness – and for good reason.

Here are 10 interesting (and somewhat scary) facts about bottled water:

1. “An estimated 25 percent or more of bottled water is really just tap water in a bottle—sometimes further treated, sometimes not treated at all.” – Allaboutwater.org

2. Drinking bottled water is 1000 (one thousand!) times more expensive than drinking tap water.

3. “In an interesting study conducted by Showtime television, the hosts found that 75% of tested New York City residents actually preferred tap water over bottled water in a blind taste test.” – Allaboutwater.org

4. “Bottling and shipping water is the least efficient method of water delivery ever invented. The energy we waste using bottled water would be enough to power 190,000 homes. But refilling your water bottle from the tap requires no expenditure of energy, and zero waste of resources.” – PBS.org

5. “The Earth Policy Institute estimated that to make the plastic for the [water] bottles [consumed annually] burns up something like 1.5 million barrels of oil, enough to power 100,000 cars for a year.” – SeattlePI.com

6. “Nearly 90 percent of [water] bottles are not recycled.” SeattlePI.com

7. “Bottled water is actually much less regulated than tap water. There are a number of studies in which we find arsenic, disinfection byproducts and bacteria in bottled water.” – SeattlePI.com, quoting Gina Solomon

8. 30 million water bottles are thrown away every day, and each one of them takes 1000 years to biodegrade. – emagazine.com.

9. “In one case, bottled water labeled as “Alaska Premium Glacier Drinking Water: Pure Glacier Water from the Last Unpolluted Frontier” was actually drawn from Public Water System #111241 in Juneau.” – emagazine.com.

10. Buying one gallon’s worth of bottled water is three times more expensive than buying one gallon of gasoline. – emagazine.com

If all that wasn’t enough to convince you not to buy bottled water, consider this: “Instead of relying on a mostly preexisting infrastructure of underground pipes and plumbing, delivering bottled water—often from places as far-flung as France, Iceland or Maine—burns fossil fuels and results in the release of thousands of tons of harmful emissions. Since some bottled water is also shipped or stored cold, electricity is expended for refrigeration. Energy is likewise used in bottled water processing. In filtration, an estimated two gallons of water is wasted for every gallon purified.” – emagazine.com

 

Now, here are tips for alternatives to buying bottled water:

 

-Get a filter for your tap (unless your tap water is quite good in the first place). There are many ways to go about doing this, from getting a Brita-filter to go over your faucet spout to installing one right into the sink system.

– Nalgene bottles are great.

-Brita pitchers are also really great for those who can’t get the faucet filters (e.g. college students).

-For barbecues, parties, and other events, use pitchers or water dispensers that you can use over and over again. In conjunction with these, try to also provide reusable cups instead of disposable cups, and if you must use disposables, try to get recyclable disposables.

 

Unplug for Thanksgiving Break!

Hey guys, just a reminder to UNPLUG all of your electronics before going home for Thanksgiving! After all, why let all those appliances draw electricity when you’re not even going to be here?

Psst: this would be easier for you if you used surge protectors (see this post). Think about investing in some for your suite. Not only do they help save a bunch of energy, they make things like this much, much easier. Instead of unplugging bunches of different appliances, you only have to unplug two or three surge protectors!

Also, don’t forget to turn off your radiators. In the meanwhile, while we’re still here, have you turned those down yet? If you can, be sure to do so! After all, why waste energy overheating your suite just to get all sweaty when you get blasted by the heat coming in from the cold?

And speaking of Thanksgiving, why don’t you print out this list from About.com for your family? Everybody likes an Eco-Friendly Thanksgiving:

 

1. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

To make your Thanksgiving celebration as eco-friendly as possible, start with the three Rs of conservation: Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. Reduce the amount of waste you produce by buying only as much as you need and choosing products that come in packaging that can be recycled.

Carry reusable bags when you do your shopping, and use cloth napkins that can be washed and used again.

Recycle paper, and all plastic, glass and aluminum containers. If you don’t already have a compost bin, use your Thanksgiving fruit and vegetable trimmings to start one. The compost will enrich the soil in your garden next spring.

 

2. Buy and Eat Locally Grown Food

Buying only locally grown food is one good way to have an eco-friendly Thanksgiving. Locally grown food is good for your table, your health and the environment. Locally grown food tastes better than food that has to be grown and packaged for maximum shelf life, and it requires less fuel to reach store shelves. Locally grown food also contributes more to your local economy, supporting local farmers as well as local merchants.

 

3. Make Your Meal Organic

Using only organic food for your feast is another good eco-friendly Thanksgiving strategy. Organic fruits, vegetables and grains are grown without chemical pesticides and fertilizers; organic meat is produced without antibiotics and artificial hormones. The result is food that is better for your health and good for the environment. Organic farming also produces higher yields, increases soil fertility, prevents erosion, and is more cost-effective for farmers.

 

4. Celebrate at Home

Thanksgiving weekend is one of heaviest for highway travel in the United States. This year, why not reduce global warming and improve air quality by lowering your auto emissions at the same time that you lower your family’s stress level? Skip the stressful holiday travel and celebrate an eco-friendly Thanksgiving at home.

 

5. Travel Smart

If you must go over the river and through the woods, there are still ways to have an eco-friendly Thanksgiving. If you drive, use less fuel and lower your emissions by making sure your car is in good working order and your tires are properly inflated. If possible, carpool to reduce the number of cars on the road and lower the greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to air pollution and global warming. If you fly, consider purchasing carbon credits to offset your portion of the carbon dioxide emissions generated by your flight. A typical long-haul flight produces nearly four tons of carbon dioxide.

 

6. Invite the Neighbors

The original Thanksgiving was a neighborly affair. Having survived their first winter in America only through the generosity of the native people who lived nearby, the Pilgrims of Plymouth Rock celebrated a bountiful harvest with a three-day feast to give thanks to God and their Indian neighbors. Your neighbors probably haven’t saved your life, but chances are they have done things to make your life easier or more enjoyable. Inviting them to share your eco-friendly Thanksgiving is an opportunity to say thank you, and also to reduce auto emissions by keeping more people off the road or ensuring shorter trips.

 

7. Plant a Tree

Trees absorb carbon dioxide—a greenhouse gas that contributes to the greenhouse effect and global warming—and give off oxygen in return. Planting one tree may not seem to matter much in the face of global climate change, but small things do matter. In one year, the average tree absorbs roughly 26 pounds of carbon dioxide and returns enough oxygen to supply a family of four.

 

… and you can find the rest at 10 Tips for an Eco-Friendly Thanksgiving.

Also, check out these other links for a Greener Thanksgiving:

http://www.environmentaldefense.org/pressrelease.cfm?contentID=2470

http://www.grist.org/advice/possessions/2003/11/20/index.html

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/442725/eco_friendly_thanksgiving_ideas.html

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/423844/how_to_prepare_an_ecofriendly_thanksgiving.html

http://www.sierraclub.org/sustainable_consumption/articles/thanksgiving.asp

http://psychology.suite101.com/article.cfm/how_to_plan_a_green_thanksgiving

Green Weddings

Though the majority of you Yale Students won’t need to think about this anytime in the near future, at our last meeting, fellow RA Sara Smiley Smith brought up a really interesting subject: green weddings! There are a lot of ways to green a wedding:

– Use environmentally friendly invitations (and printed things in general)

– Use organic foods/catering, makeup products…

– Where appropriate, use as many recycled and recyclable products as you can (programs, thank-you cards, menus, flatware, etc.)

– Buy eco-friendly wedding rings (from recycled precious metals, etc.)

– Use a hybrid luxury car

– Ask your guests to buy you eco-friendly gifts (energy-star appliances, etc.)

– Get an eco-friendly wedding dress (yes, they exist!)

– …and many more! (See 10 Steps to a Green Wedding: http://sierraclub.typepad.com/greenlife/2007/03/10_steps_to_a_g.html )

Here is a slew of links you might find intriguing:

Green Wedding Services,

http://www.greenweddings.net/greenservices.html

Great Green Weddings,

http://www.greatgreenwedding.com/default.php

Environmental Wedding Favors,

http://www.favorideas.com/wedding-themes/unique-themes/green-or-environmental-wedding-favors/

Nice Day for a Green Wedding,

http://www.grist.org/advice/possessions/2003/05/08/

How Green Was My Wedding,

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/11/fashion/11green.html

Green Elegance Weddings,

http://www.greeneleganceweddings.com/

Global Giving, a resource for charitable and green gift registry,

http://www.globalgiving.com/howitworks.html

Perhaps, even though you yourselves probably won’t need these links anytime soon, you can bring up the idea of a green wedding in casual conversation if you know any couples that are planning to seal the deal…

PS: Don’t forget about a green honeymoon! (Ecotourism?…)

Desk-side Recycling

In efforts to encourage campus recycling and increase actual rates of recycling from 19% to 40%, the University has implemented a desk-side recycling program that puts two special bins at every office desk on campus which are emptied by custodians twice weekly. You may have seen these new trash and recycling bins, but may not know exactly how to use them, or even which one is which.

Large Bin:

Mixed Paper

Resist the temptation to put garbage (food wrappers, plastic waste, etc.) in the large bin – after all, in an office, there is bound to be more paper trash than any other kind, so it makes sense that paper should go in the larger bin.

Mixed Paper Includes: Newspaper, white paper, colored paper, glossy paper, magazines, catalogs, envelopes*, manila folders, notecards, books, sticky notes, paperboard (thin cardboard). Envelopes are OK with or without plastic windows. Staples in Mixed Paper are OK.

Mixed Paper does not include: Food service paper, wax paper, paper cups, carbon paper, thermal fax paper, copy paper wrappers, paper clips.

Small bin: Trash

Here’s a list of things NOT to throw away here. Recycle these in the appropriate manner!

Printer Cartridges
Technoscrap (batteries, small electronics, etc)
Cans and Bottles

Most of all, don’t throw away Mixed Paper! After all, the mixed paper bin is in the exact same place as the trash bin.

Waste Stream analyses suggest that 21% of our “trash” is actually recyclable mixed paper.

In fiscal year 2006, Yale generated 6186 tons of trash. According to CJ May of Yale Recycling, if we had recycled that 21% of mixed paper (equivalent to 1299 tons), we would have doubled our recycling rate from 19% to 38%, nearly reaching our target of 40%. If it is fully taken advantage of, the convenience of desk-side recycling is sure to help Yale’s campus reach the target recycling rate. Happy recycling!

Energy-Saving Tip #1: Power Strips

Even when they’re powered off, laptop and cell phone chargers, TVs, stereos, and other electronics continue to draw electricity from the grid if plugged in.

One great way to save energy would be to unplug your laptop and cell phone charger when you’re not using them. More effectively, you could plug your cell phone charger, laptop charger, printer, TV, stereo (and/or any other appliances you don’t need when you’re not in the room) into a surge protector. When you leave the room, simply flip that switch off (or better yet, unplug the power strip!), and save energy without the trouble of having to unplug a mass of cables and plugs!

At the very least, when you happen to go out of town for a few days, be sure to unplug your TV, stereo, desktop computer, and/or any other large appliances that won’t be used while you’re gone.

For more tips on how to live sustainably, visit http://www.yale.edu/sustainability/takeAction.htm .