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6.  Vintage Jewelry

Reduce the demand for newly-mined precious metals and gemstones by choosing vintage jewelry from antique dealers and pawnshops instead of newly-made baubles from a jeweler. Some vintage jewelry, particularly at lower price points, are made from a mix of metals that may contain lead. Pewter is a tin alloy that is often made with lead. Test jewelry for lead and keep items secured away from small children.

5. Live African Violet

Violets, rather than roses, are the flower traditionally associated with St. Valentine. While the african violet is from a different botanical family than the violet of St. Valentine’s story, it is a hardy and beautiful houseplant. Live plants, in general, are a better choice than cut roses. (continue reading…)

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Starting in the 1990s with computerization, digital storage, and the Internet, the paperless office was touted as real possibility. The idea seemed to be overrated when paper use actually went up, not down, with electronic records. Many business fail to automate today, even though the technology is available, because they believe the technology will be hugely expensive and that employees will resist adoption. Using less paper can save any organization’s big bucks, no matter what its size, but the transition to a paperless office requires an open mind and a fresh look at how automation allows us to do more with less. (continue reading…)

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We’ve all seen the displays in department stores and under Christmas trees – beautifully-wrapped gifts in colorful wrapping paper, with crisply-folded, neatly-taped corners topped off with perfectly-tied bows and ribbons. For those of us who are all thumbs and are gift-wrapping-challenged, some stores even offer free gift-wrapping services. But think of how all this extra paper, tags and bows affect the environment. On the Web site, PlanetGreen.com, Sara Novak reports that an extra 25 percent more trash is created “during the holidays due to excess wrapping paper, packaging and general waste” (1). You can still wrap your gifts beautifully and help save the environment with some planning. (continue reading…)

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The holidays are creeping up quickly! That means family, friends, food and festivities, with the trees trimmed, stockings hung and bright lights strung. But to have a beautifully-decorated home, you don’t need to break the bank or buy ornaments that create waste. With some simple, creative ideas, you can make charming eco-friendly holiday decorations to add sparkle to the season!

Buying decorations from the store definitely has an environmental impact. Think of the fuel you burn driving to the store, the energy and materials required to manufacture and ship the decorations from factories to stores, plus the packaging waste that comes with the decorations, (like boxes, Styrofoam and plastic wrap). Some decorations are made with potentially-toxic plastics, metals or paints. And when these decorations break or wear out, they’re thrown in landfills, where they can last for hundreds of years (4, 5).

So how can you still enjoy beautiful holiday decorations while keeping the planet in mind? (continue reading…)

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This is a hard time of year to maintain a commitment to treading lightly on the earth. Advertisements encourage you to buy, buy, buy, and once you do buy you’ve got to wrap, wrap, wrap. The thought of all that packaging and wrapping paper is enough to make any environmentalist cringe. There are ways to decrease your effect on the environment as you engage in the season of giving. Here’s some tips for putting the green back in Christmas:

1. Make the wrapping part of the present. You can buy colorful reusable shopping bags from many stores, and no one ever seems to have enough of these. Use them to wrap presents; roll the top down and tie with some nice ribbons and bows. You can also buy fabric in colorful holiday colors which the gift recipient can later use. If you have kids, they can use tempera paint to paint and stamp cereal boxes to use as gift boxes. (continue reading…)

©iStockphoto.com - LilliDay

More and people are going green in their lives as well as in their business. Rising energy prices are certainly one reason. Sustainably built houses and business mean lower costs and many other benefits. Health is another major reason. Our health and well being is strongly affected by the environment we live in. Plus, going green gives a personal feeling of doing good, adopting green principles and practices in our work and personal life. Certainly, taking on the responsibility to help improve the places where you live and work goes toward curing any eco-anxiety.

Help your Kids

Many people change a behavior like smoking because their kids want them to. This can be a good reason to green your workplace. Most kids intuitively understand that we need to take care of the planet and everything on it. Many learn about protecting the environment in school, and others just somehow know that we need to take care of the earth. Our kids will be living in whatever we leave. Society generally focuses on the here and now. If we consider our family and descendants many generations into the future, we may make different decisions about our environment and daily choices. The more we can solve our environmental problems, the better shape we will leave the planet in for our children and their children. (continue reading…)

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You may think there is not much you can do about greening your car except for buying a hybrid but you would be wrong. There is so much you can do to make your car better for the environment. Read below for ways to green your car.

1. Tires

Make sure your tires have the right amount of pressure in them. If not you could be wasting $840 per year and 250 lbs of carbon dioxide, according to Alan Green of Raising Baby Green. You can fill your tires at the gas station and if you have a slow leak you can patch them. If all else fails replacing them will save you money and the environment, which will be worth it. (continue reading…)