Do you think you can make a difference during the daily coffee-making ritual? Well you certainly can. Next time you are boiling the jug, check how much water is in it and only boil the amount of water that you need to make the required number of tea or coffees.
What difference does this make? The amount of water in the kettle determines how long the kettle needs to be running to boil the water. So the more water you have in the jug, the longer it takes to boil the water, the more electricity is required and more resources are needed to supply the electricity to your house.
Make a difference, boil only the water that you require.
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Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Wrapping paper - reuse
Over the weekend I went to a friend's baby shower which was a lot of fun. Food, friends, a few silly party games and of course presents for the Mum-to-be! So, you may be thinking what aspect of a baby shower could she possibly relate to the environment or think of ways to reduce consumption, etc?
Perhaps it isn't the most obvious thing, but I asked whether I could have all the wrapping paper that was hurriedly being piled into garbage bags ready for dumping into the closest wheelie bin! Next question, perhaps logically, is what on earth am I planning on doing with a large pile of crumpled used wrapping paper. Well the bits that I can salvage I will re-use for other people's present, but my main motivation for asking is to cut the paper up either into shapes or cut out pictures from the paper and give it to my daughter (toddler) for either a collage type activity or just for her to do with as she pleases.
So perhaps you can think about your next event and see what things can either be re-used (that is incorporate some of your old things into the event rather than going out and buying purpose built products) or what things that would traditionally chucked out after the event could be re-used for any number of activities or purposes. I would love to hear some of the suggestions. Pin It
Perhaps it isn't the most obvious thing, but I asked whether I could have all the wrapping paper that was hurriedly being piled into garbage bags ready for dumping into the closest wheelie bin! Next question, perhaps logically, is what on earth am I planning on doing with a large pile of crumpled used wrapping paper. Well the bits that I can salvage I will re-use for other people's present, but my main motivation for asking is to cut the paper up either into shapes or cut out pictures from the paper and give it to my daughter (toddler) for either a collage type activity or just for her to do with as she pleases.
So perhaps you can think about your next event and see what things can either be re-used (that is incorporate some of your old things into the event rather than going out and buying purpose built products) or what things that would traditionally chucked out after the event could be re-used for any number of activities or purposes. I would love to hear some of the suggestions. Pin It
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Oil Spill in Gulf of Mexico
That's right. Apparently BP has been up to its old tricks and spilt a bucket load of oil into the ocean again (with more currently still pouring in). This time as a result of drilling efforts.
As of yesterday, BP is planning on lowering a containment dome over the well to limit the amount of oil being released into the ocean. In the article I heard, up to 85%. What about the other 15%? Shocker.
This situation is just screaming environmental devastation as a result of commercial greed and sloppiness. No matter how much greenwash companies do, few really care about the environment. Let's get real!
Hopefully, BP will prove me wrong and ensure their works reduce the impact on the ocean, the creatures that rely on the ocean's resources directly and the entire planet, where everything is connected. Pin It
As of yesterday, BP is planning on lowering a containment dome over the well to limit the amount of oil being released into the ocean. In the article I heard, up to 85%. What about the other 15%? Shocker.
This situation is just screaming environmental devastation as a result of commercial greed and sloppiness. No matter how much greenwash companies do, few really care about the environment. Let's get real!
Hopefully, BP will prove me wrong and ensure their works reduce the impact on the ocean, the creatures that rely on the ocean's resources directly and the entire planet, where everything is connected. Pin It
Worm Farm update
Well it is constructed and has a number of worms, babies and eggs, but is it working? I'm not sure. There has certainly been movement and the worms initial "soil" house is starting to move around and some of the scraps I have put into it have disappeared. But I don't seem to have any "juices" yet. I don't know how long this process takes, but I guess I am in it for the long haul!
Keep you posted. Pin It
Keep you posted. Pin It
Friday, May 7, 2010
Riding the black cockatoo
Wow, what a book. I am almost finished this amazing read in a very short period of time and I am truly enjoying the experience. The book is by John Danalis and is based on one of his family's stories. It is truly an incredible read and journey.
The story revolves around John's family having an indigenous person's skull on their mantlepiece and the family returning these remains to their traditional lands and the impact this process has on John and his family.
This book has enlightened me on a number of indigenous issues and made me once again recognise the impact that white settlement has had on both the land and the people who traditionally inhabited Australia. It also highlights the relationship that the original settlers had with the indigenous people as well how the broader population in the 21st century relate to both present and past generations of indigenous people.
I can wait to read the last few pages and start investigating some of the things that have really struck a chord with me. Highly recommended read! Pin It
The story revolves around John's family having an indigenous person's skull on their mantlepiece and the family returning these remains to their traditional lands and the impact this process has on John and his family.
This book has enlightened me on a number of indigenous issues and made me once again recognise the impact that white settlement has had on both the land and the people who traditionally inhabited Australia. It also highlights the relationship that the original settlers had with the indigenous people as well how the broader population in the 21st century relate to both present and past generations of indigenous people.
I can wait to read the last few pages and start investigating some of the things that have really struck a chord with me. Highly recommended read! Pin It
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Farm Day
Watching the telly tonight, Getaway was on. They had a piece on "FarmDay". This is apparently where city families (which we are) travel to farm to visit farms and country families. The idea is for city families to learn about farms and farming activities. Whilst the country family in the Getaway piece said that they get to see their lives through the eyes of people fresh to such experiences and remember the reasons why they are on the land.
The Farm day website (www.farmday.com.au) allows you to register your interest for the next farm day weekend (29 & 30 May 2010). The organisers of this service then coordinate the farmers and city families based on interests and children's age groups.
Let's see if we are successful in getting a farm. Keep you posted. Pin It
The Farm day website (www.farmday.com.au) allows you to register your interest for the next farm day weekend (29 & 30 May 2010). The organisers of this service then coordinate the farmers and city families based on interests and children's age groups.
Let's see if we are successful in getting a farm. Keep you posted. Pin It
Monday, May 3, 2010
Ecofund
No matter what size your car is, it is doing some damage to the environment. The burning of fuel (atmospheric pollution), the use of resources (oil, tyres, etc), use of roads which have a footprint on the earth leading to all sorts of direct and indirect impacts, etc. Often we don't think about these things, particularly the less obvious resources, but recently I thought that I should at least do something about the impact my car was having on the atmosphere.There are a number of companies that can now assist you to do this. Basically they offer to "offset" your emissions by planting trees which will "inhale" the emissions you put into the air when you drive around!
I previously had Greenfleet offset my car's emissions. At the time they were undertaking tree planting in Victoria. This is a good cause, even though I live in Queensland because there are a lot of areas within Victoria that need to be have tree re-planting done because of the significant amount of vegetation that has been cleared from these areas since white settlement. I was happy enough with the service Greenfleet provided, they gave me a sticker and a certificate telling me how many trees they were planting and that I was offsetting my car's emissions for the year. At the time it was a standard fee for your vehicle no matter what size your car was (for example, whether it was a little, economical, zippy car or whether it was a petrol guzzling V8 or large four-wheel drive).
Since I last signed up and paid my dues, there has been a boom in this market and there are a number of companies that will offset your emissions and some of them don't even offer to re-plant trees as your emission compensation process. There is also a significant rise in the price of these private purchase carbon offsets. This time round I decided I would "try-out" the new Ecofund. This is a Queensland government initiative (not sure whether it is going to remain as a government-owned organisation or not). I felt that it would provide me with some "solutions" closer to home. Ecofund offers a carbon offset service by increasing the amount of national park in the Queensland protected area estate. Presently I can't seem to find anything that calculates my offset directly (ie the amount of national park I have basically purchased for the small amount of money that I have contributed to this 'program') and I certainly haven't received any official acknowledgement of them receiving my funds (except for the electronic banking receipt). But I will stick it out at least a year and see if I feel better about using my little car around the suburbs and my assistance in increasing the amount of national park here in Queensland. Pin It
I previously had Greenfleet offset my car's emissions. At the time they were undertaking tree planting in Victoria. This is a good cause, even though I live in Queensland because there are a lot of areas within Victoria that need to be have tree re-planting done because of the significant amount of vegetation that has been cleared from these areas since white settlement. I was happy enough with the service Greenfleet provided, they gave me a sticker and a certificate telling me how many trees they were planting and that I was offsetting my car's emissions for the year. At the time it was a standard fee for your vehicle no matter what size your car was (for example, whether it was a little, economical, zippy car or whether it was a petrol guzzling V8 or large four-wheel drive).
Since I last signed up and paid my dues, there has been a boom in this market and there are a number of companies that will offset your emissions and some of them don't even offer to re-plant trees as your emission compensation process. There is also a significant rise in the price of these private purchase carbon offsets. This time round I decided I would "try-out" the new Ecofund. This is a Queensland government initiative (not sure whether it is going to remain as a government-owned organisation or not). I felt that it would provide me with some "solutions" closer to home. Ecofund offers a carbon offset service by increasing the amount of national park in the Queensland protected area estate. Presently I can't seem to find anything that calculates my offset directly (ie the amount of national park I have basically purchased for the small amount of money that I have contributed to this 'program') and I certainly haven't received any official acknowledgement of them receiving my funds (except for the electronic banking receipt). But I will stick it out at least a year and see if I feel better about using my little car around the suburbs and my assistance in increasing the amount of national park here in Queensland. Pin It
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