The best way to find Green Products is to visit Green Meetup.
Green Meetup is the meeting place for Green consumers, companies and entrepreneurs. Here you can buy or sell Green products or services, find Green news and events, build relationships that can help Green our world, and much, much more. Log on today and take a look….
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Sometimes, in order to live a “less is more” lifestyle, you have to invest in some new products (counter intuitive I know). The product that everyone should have is a few “reusable bags.” I know, many of us have an assortment of reusable bags that never make it to the grocery store with us…which is why the “tiny, foldable, but super durable” bag is such a great invention. I keep one in my purse at all times and use it for everything from carrying my lunch back from the store, to quick shopping at CVS to weekly grocery runs.
Reusable Bags.
Disturbing Fact: Each year, an estimated 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags are consumed worldwide (ie. over one million per minute). According to the EPA, over 380 billion plastic bags, sacks and wraps are consumed in the U.S. alone each year.
10 Steps to Greener’s easy solution:
Tiny, snazzy, fashionable reusable bag. Keep it in your purse/pocket and always tell the checkout cashier, with a smile, “No bag needed! Thanks!”
Products I love:
For a large assortment of different colors/style bags, check out Reusable Bags or the famous Chico Bag.
Greener Workday idea: Suggest your company include in the “new employee” package. Encourge a “disposable plastic bag free” workplace (Office assistant going to make a Staple’s run? Make sure he has a few bags on him before he heads out…!)
Not as small and foldable, but for an awesome assortment of stylish eco-friendly bags check out Bring It In A Bag or Green Concept Online.
Greener Workday Idea: Put your company’s logo on one and use it as a marketing gimmic! Pass bags out to employees and clients. Show the world that your company is both green and hip and make sure to include a website address on the bag!
I agree. If enough people start making small changes…it will add up. The fact that large companies are starting to use “green” as an advertising gimmick (or not a gimmick, depending on your opinion) shows that “eco-friendly” is finally going “mainstream.” That’s exciting. The fact that I can buy arnica at a CVS is also exciting. The world is (slowly) changing…hope it changes fast enough though.
Today – people are constantly trying to go greem. I started by doing what I could aford at the time. I found Shaklee the number one green company in the US. I currently use their products for the last two years and find them cost effective. Plus they are very safe for the enbironment. You need to read the lables in the stores Too many mfg are on the band wagaon – but they are not turly chemcial free. Chnage the light bulbs. Recylce more. Stop buying water bottles and get a BPA bottle and filter for the house – save the money on cases of water bottles. There is a mass larger than texas in the ocean from these bottle. Remember one step at a time. will get you greener every day. I have changed my lawn service to a chemical free comapny. I do a little every dat.
You have to think about the whole system and not about piecemeal events. Quite a number of years ago the Union of Concerned Scientists put out something like “A consumers guide to the environment” i’m sure this isn’t quite right. Their 3 biggest pieces of advice: Live in a smaller house, drive less and eat less meat. Because they are the biggest things we all do that contribute to the greatest energy use. And in the case of agriculture – overuse of fertilizers, pesticides and water – in addition to the energy. (2/3 of grain is grown for livestock – and this has been in parts of the popular press since the 60′s not just since the Omnivore’s Dilemma came out). So start with this stuff because it all gets harder once you start your family.
In terms of plastic abuse – don’t buy bottled water. There is way too much embedded energy there. Now, as for stirrers for your coffee – with all of those in a hurry – doesn’t your coffee just stir itself as you leave Starbucks and hurry to your office? I make my tea and coffee at the office most of the time.
And in your office – make sure as you replace things use Energy Star certified appliances, light bulbs, etc.
Concentrate on the biggest things, the biggest energy wasters and products that have the dirtiest production processes – which is admittedly hard for the average consumer to know. So if Jessica can succeed in everybody just slightly reducing the demand for new plastic throwaway junk and not replacing it accidentally with something worse – that would be a contribution.
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