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A World of Difference Do you recycle but want to do more? Check out these environmentally healthy ideas to put your thoughts into action 
Katie Burrill has a pet peeve and she wants the world to know about it: “Cheese individually wrapped is so wasteful, so I prefer to buy the kind that is in a block, wrapped one bag.” Why care about Burrill’s cheesy misgivings? It’s just one way the 31-year-old nonprofit program manager in Oakland, Calif., applies her environmental values in her daily living. From recycling shopping receipts along with the rest of her paper waste to turning off lights, her computer or appliances when not using them, Burrill routinely puts thoughts about making a healthier world into positive action. “For me, it’s just as easy to throw something in the recycling bin as it is to throw it in the trash,” Burrill says. “If everyone did that, it would make a huge difference.” Burrill is not alone in her concerns. Achieving environmental balance rated high among people surveyed in 2004 by the Center for the New American Dream, based in Washington, D.C. It scored higher than achieving financial success and the ability to buy whatever we want. Freedom, happiness and family, of course, were the highest priorities of the 1,092 adults surveyed. And like Burrill, a majority of those surveyed said they could make a big (46 percent) or some (43 percent) difference if we reduced the amount of stuff we consume. And a whopping 91 percent said they believe that protecting the environment is important in defining the American Dream. Can we really save the world one individually wrapped cheese slice at a time? It’s a resounding yes, according a multitude of organizations and ecologically minded folks who offer a wealth of practical ideas for cutting back on waste and being “kinder” to living things and the earth. For example, the Monterey Bay Aquarium administers Seafoodwatch.org, a program that helps diners pick the right fish to eat. By decreasing demand for overfished species, people can stop the threat of possible extinction and habitat destruction for a host of sea creatures, plants and birds by simply adjusting what lands on their plate. Creative ideas from Circle of Life offer doable ideas for saving the environment, from nifty ways to reduce landfill waste by recycling old CDs to choosing the right toilet paper. “We’re in the solution-finding business,” Ingrid Newkirk, president and co-founder of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals says in “Making Kind Choices: Everyday Ways to Enhance Your Life Through Earth and Animal-Friendly Living,” ($13.95, St. Martin’s Press). “It isn’t unusual, for example, for someone to call because bees have moved into his garden. We can point the inquirer to a local keeper who will come and scoop bees up without harming the hive and without using harmful pesticides. “Another day, it may be that someone is baffled as to how to make the best use of a relative’s fur coat now bequeathed to her,” Newkirk explains. “We can offer to send the coat to a refugee in Afghanistan, to a poor person in Appalachia, to a homeless woman in a cold city in the winter ...” “It’s hard to change your habits and a lot easier to go with the flow,” says Tracey Osborne, 35, a doctoral degree candidate at the University of California at Berkeley. Osborne, who has worked for several environmental concerns, is passionate about preserving resources. “I keep myself motivated by thinking about the affect it would have if everyone did what they could to support the environment.” Following are some tips to take your awareness to the next level: See about your seafood Avoid eating fish that will lead to the destruction of ocean wildlife by choosing fish that is caught properly and doesn’t harm other sea creatures or birds in the process, says Michelle Jost, a conservationist at Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium. It’s easy to make the right choices with a cheatsheet offered by Seafoodwatch.org or the Rite Bite card offered by many city aquariums that offers an extensive list of fish that are categorized as Best Choices (Green), Good Alternatives (Yellow) and Avoid (Red). Why care? “We’re not just talking about fish,” Jost explains. “Sea turtles, mammals, coral, they’re all affected by the global fishing industry.” On a practical note, says Ken Peterson of the Monterey Bay Aquarium, “Once you disrupt the ocean, the impact is there’s less fish to eat.” For example, Jost says, bycatch is a huge problem that threatens water habitats. It occurs when fishermen catch anything not meant to be caught in a net or on a fishing line, like dolphins were before save-the-dolphin campaigns raised public awareness about what was involved in catching the tuna fish we love so much. Overfishing is another reason to make the right menu choices, according to conversation groups. The death of commercially available Atlantic cod is one of the biggest examples of how overfishing has lead to the virtual extinction of the fish. Some “best” choices include farm-raised catfish, farmed American caviar, wild Alaskan salmon and trap-caught shrimp. Imported shrimp is on the “avoid” list because overfishing destroys vital water filtration and coastal protection for humans, Jost says. “The basic idea is choice. We strive to help people become aware that there are definitely choices that are environmentally friendly, but it’s tough to remember all that. So we provide a card that folds out and is color-coded. We always tell people it’s an easy way for you to make a direct impact by voting with your dollar.” Flushed with ideas Save the trees and reduce landfill waste with “green” toilet paper, Circle of Life urges. Make sure product labels say “Made from 100 percent recycled fibers,” “80 percent minimum post-consumer content” or “No chlorine bleaching.” Replacing just one four-pack of 500-sheet virgin fiber bathroom tissue annually with 100 percent recycled paper could save 1.2 million trees and 5.1 million cubic feet of landfill space each year, Circle of Life says. Save those cds Circleoflife.org implores computer users to avoid tossing unwanted CDs. Alternative uses include using them as candleholders to decorate a dinner table or covering them with felt to make a coasters. Junk that mail Junk mail has earned its reputation as more than a nuisance, according to Circle of Life, because more than 4 million tons of it is produced annually, taking about 100 million trees to make, using 28 billion gallons of water. Help clean up the paper trail by getting off of junk mail lists. • Asked to be removed by sending a postcard to Mail Preference Service c/o Direct Marketing Association, P.O. Box 9008, Farmingdale, N.Y. 11735. • Or pay $5 online and click to Dmaconsumers.org/cgi/offmailinglistdave. The Direct Marketing Association says its do-not-mail list is updated several times a year and a person’s name stays on it for five years. • Stop unwanted credit card or insurance offers by calling the OPTOUT program at (888) 567-8688. Check yourself Take the quiz offered by Ecological Footprint (Ecofoot.org), which measures how much land and water it takes per person with maintain their standard of living. The tool is designed to help people understand how their actions impact the planet’s ecosystems. “Today, humans’ ecological footprint is over 20 percent larger than what the planet can regenerate,” the group maintains. “It now takes more than one year and two months for the earth to regenerate what we use in a single year. We maintain this overdraft by liquidating the planet’s natural resources.” When Jeff Vasilatos took the quiz, he was surprised by how big his ecological “footprint” was. “Wow,” the 39-year-old real estate agent said, blinking in disbelief when he found out it takes 26 acres to live his lifestyle compared with the global average of 24. When Vasilatos answered questions like how often he rides his bike weekly or how much waste he generates compared with people in his neighborhood, he thought was doing pretty well. Though he lives in a big Midwestern city, Vasilatos rides his bike 20 miles a week and gets good mileage in his car, which he rarely rides in alone. But his footprint says it would take 5.9 planets to survive if everyone lived like him. “Hmmm. That’s nice, but don’t forget to put my wife in there. Keep in mind, we have a row house, which lowers my heating coasts because we have thick masonry walls. We don’t use air-conditioning,” says Vasilatos, who takes his commitment seriously. “Those are all factors in your way of life.” Save a book, save a life Donate books to public or school libraries, suggests “Making Kind Choices.” Better yet, consider giving your old books to prison libraries. “Even if someone is in jail on a light sentence or pending trial,” Newkirk writes, “the clock ticks slowly, and a good book can be the closest thing someone inside can find to being with family and friends.” |
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