ECOSiZE Me

Whole Foods Making A Whole World of Difference

Have you heard about this? Whole Foods is taking charge and leading the way in greener packaging. Starting with their nutritional supplements and personal care products, Whole Foods store-brand items will be packaged in 100% post-consumer recycled content bottles. They are also requiring new suppliers to meet the greener packaging guidelines before the items will be sold in Whole Food stores.

More information can be found here at the Whole Foods' blog: http://blog.wholefoodsmarket.com/2010/09/leading-the-green-packaging-charge/

Terracycle Back2School Giveaway

There are lots of easy ways to get your green on this back-to-school season.

Reuse what's leftover from last school year first. Check out resale shops and yard sales. Do a clothing and school supply swap with friends, neighbors and relatives. Refurbish used backpacks and personalize them with patches and fabric markers for a creative, unique style. Look for and purchase recycled content school supplies. Look for and purchase upcycled school supplies (such as those supplied by Terracycle for our giveaway). Plan on and pack waste-free lunches. Avoid overpackaged products.

What are you going to do to get your green on? Leave a comment below telling us how you and your kids are going green this back to school season for a chance to win a Terracycle back2school kit that includes the following: 

An Honest Kids Messenger Bag 
A Capri Sun Lunch Box
3 - 2-pocket folders
2 - Capri Sun pencil cases

(*disclaimer: the picture shows a pack of paper pens. These are no longer avaiable and are not included in the giveaway pack).

One winner will be chosen at random on Wed. August 25th

Driving While Under the Influence--of Trash

This article from Aol Autos, Your Next Car Is Full of Trash, describes how car manufacturers are reducing their carbon footprint and closing the loop, using both pre and post consumer recycled materials in car parts. Materials that would otherwise end up in landfills are being made into shrouds, fascias, brackets, acoustic backing and seat fabric. When you get behind the steering wheel of your next vehicle, you may just be driving while under the influence...of TRASH.

The full article from Aol Autos/Translogic can be found here: http://bit.ly/car-full-of-trash.

Lend, Borrow and Get in the Thingloop

Reduce, reuse, recycle...then lend and borrow and get into the Thingloop. Thingloop is a new social tool that's all about saving money, saving the planet and reducing our carbon footprint through the lending and borrowing items with friends instead of buying new.

The uniqueness of Thingloop is that it takes it a step beyond the everyday lending of items between friends and neighbors. For example, we own scaffolding...2 sections, 2 platforms, 5x7 with casters. This is not a topic our everyday conversations and not something that most of our friends would even know. However, by us listing it on our Thingloop profile as an item we are willing to lend, now all our friends and groups know that it's available should they have a need for such.

It's really very simple and fun as well. Go to Thingloop. Join. Invte friends to join, create groups. List stuff that you're willing to share. The bonus is that Thingloop keeps track of who has your stuff, so you don't need to. It also tracks the monetary value of the items your willing to share so you get a sense of the potential savings with lending and borrowing instead of buying new. Now, if Thingloop would just track the resources saved by lending/borrowing items...we would really begin to understand the extent of our lifestyles on the planet.

In a society of overconsumption, Thingloop is a refreshing tool to help curb our purchases and our impact on the planet. Thingloop provides us with access to the things we need by promoting lending and borrowing, and it creates the opportunity for reducing our carbon footprint, reducing waste and conserving precious natural resources.

Honest Kids: It's no joke there's money to be saved

Honest Kids are celebrating their partnership with Terracycle by offering a coupon for $0.75 off a carton of Honest Kids organic drink pouches.

In 2007, Honest Kids and Terracycle joined together to create the first Drink Pouch Brigades, helping to make a positive impact on the environment by reducing waste throughout our communities and teaching kids about sustainability. With your help nearly 40 million drink pouches have been saved from landfills and over $775,000 have been donated to charities across the country.

The fun part? Look what happens to them, honestly!  

What Can You Do...Poster Soon Available

We are very excited to announce that our poster "What Can You Do?" will be available for sale on our site very soon in a full color 12x18 size. You'll definitely want one of these for your school, home or office.

Follow up to Fabric Snack bags: Earth Day Gifts

Scrap Happy TIme's etsy shop is now live. Her things are truly some of my favorites and supporting local artisans is one of the best ways to be "green". Take a look at the shop and see the for yourself.

Fabric Snack Bags: Earth Day Gifts

The Green School committee at my children's elementary school has been in "existence" for the last three years. Each year, we've recognized Earth Day by giving the students and staff a "green gift". The intent of these gifts is always to promote the concepts of reduce, reuse and recycle.

Earth Day 2008, we distributed nearly 400 reusable plastic water bottles (#2 HDPE plastic, made in the USA). In 2009, it was nearly 450 reusable fabric bags. The focus of 2010 was to further encourage waste reduction while promoting the concept of reuse. This was successfully accomplished by distributing 500 (hand-made) fabric snack bags.

Yes...hand-made, fabric snack bags. Our initial plan was to purchase the bags from a supplier. We found suppliers that offered a wonderful and generous discount on the quantity needed. But with such a large student population, we still could not fund the plus $1500 it would have cost.

Luckily, one of our green school committee members knows her way around a sewing machine and serger quite well. It was somewhat of a group effort, I will admit. There were a few parents cutting out fabric, a couple of us sewing on velcro and our master seamstress (and her sister) turning out the final product...all 500+ of them.

We've given our students the "tool" they need to eliminate disposable plastic baggies and begin packing a waste-free lunch. It's now their choice to use them. It's hard to imagine that someone would not use them...they were made in a variety of colors and fabric patterns. Extremely adorable!

The best part of this project? Watching the students on Thursday April 22, walk out of school happily holding their new Earth Day gifts..hand-made fabric snack bags.

Our green school committee is made up of about 8 dedicated individuals. Each one takes on a project and does such an amazing job. The stewardship they feel for our environment is inspiring. Today however, special kudos goes to JR for truly believing in what this committe can accomplish and being the driving force behind the snack-bag project in particular.

Here's a picture, if you'd like to see just what these fabulous little things are all about. Contact us for additional information about purchasing these for yourself.

 

My (Not-So) Eco-Friendly Purse

 
World, meet my new purse:  

(Actually, mine is solid black but for picture clarity, I uploaded a lighter color bag).

Made by Maggie Bags, it is fabricated from rejected pre-consumer (automobile) seat belt webbing. Hip, eco-friendly, unique and stylish all in one.

It keeps perfectly good material out of the landfill so it falls inline with my "closing-the-loop" eco-resolution (buying more recycled stuff). The bag is also a sharp addition to the "what am I made of" section of our school programs in which we showcase unique recycled-content items.

Love, love this bag! Except (and I truly wish there wasn't an "except")...

It is made in China. Let's assume that the seat belt webbing originated in the U.S. and was shipped to China for manufacturing and back again. The greenhouse gas emissions generated from transportation more than likely offset the value of recycling the material. In other words...a bigger than desired carbon footprint. We can all learn much more about the environmental impact of our decisons at use-less-stuff.

Still love, love this bag. Just wish it was made here in the U.S.A.

Green Gifting Part 1 - Ideas and a Sale!

From the Kids Konserve 2009 Holiday Gift Guide:

Put meaning in the greening this holiday season. Want to make this a truly eco-friendly holiday for your family and friends? The Kids Konserve gift guide features this season's best non-toxic and sustainable gifts.

Thinking about what to give the hostess of a party? Your child's teacher? A hairdresser? Neighbor? Whether you are the green guru of the house or you are struggling to find a gift for one, these are selections you can be proud to give:

1. Set of food grade leak-proof stainless steel containers.

2. Reusable party pack for the classroom. Take the trash out of the bash. 

3. Nesting Trio leak-proof containers. All the right sizes and easy to store.

4. Cotton napkins. Save a tree and use these at your family dinners.

5. Food kozies. A reusable wrap for just the right snacks. 

6. Waste-free lunch kit. Give a kid a kit.

7. Reusable Bottles. No liners and non-toxic.

8. Minis. Food grade stainless steel.

9. Drawstring bags. Great gift wrap. Great for on-the-go snacks or anytime bag.

10. Snack paks. Perfect for light lunches and on-the-go snacks.

11. Green cleaning. Greenwood Naturals. Biodegradable and non-toxic.

12. Insulated thermos. Going beyond the sandwich. Endless options.

WHO DOESN'T LOVE A SALE? Use the code "holidays" through December 31, 2009 and enjoy 15% off your order at Kids Konserve. Great ideas + great price = a green holiday.