Green Your Day

About a decade too late, Israeli’s are finally starting to understand the importance of recycling. This is most obviously seen by the recycling bins that have been popping up in the streets of Tel-Aviv (where I live.)

Unfortunately, most of these bins seem to be filled with mostly water bottles, so I wanted to point out a few other things that (believe it or not) ARE made of plastic and SHOULD be recycled as well:

• plastic cups AND straws (usually sold at coffee shops: ice coffee, milk shakes, fruit shakes, juices, etc…)

• plastic boxes, forks, knives, spoons (especially from take-out and food ordered in at the office or at home)

• plastic lids (usually found on top of paper coffee cups)

• plastic beauty products (shampoo, conditioner, liquid soap, hair products, body lotions, nail polish remover, deodorant, etc…)

• plastic cleaning products (laundry detergent, almost ALL cleaning materials, liquids and sprays)

• plastic food packaging (almost ALL cheeses, yogurts, ketchup, mayo, puddings, syrups, etc…)

• plastic trays INSIDE food packaging (for example, the plastic trays inside cookie boxes or frozen foods, etc…)

Of course, there are many more places we can find plastic right under our noses. If you can think of any, please comment and add them below. Oh, and recycle, recycle. recycle! Thanks!

For the first time in history, Tel-Aviv will be representing Israel in the global Earth Hour 2008 and turning off the lights for one hour of energy-free bliss.

Unfortunately, as we have yet to hear about separation of church and state, let alone separation of church and globe, due to the Jewish Sabbath, Tel Aviv will kicking off the project one day earlier than the rest of the world: tomorrow, Thursday March 27, between 8pm to 9pm.

(Note to self: focus on the positive side…)

So yes, Israel is taking action, action long overdue, but action nonetheless.

Bottom line is, I dont care who you are, where you will be, what important things you’ll need to be doing.. tomorrow night please, please, please do us all a favor and:

TURN OFF THE GODDAMN LIGHTS!!!!

Thank you.

Image by annienothi

We have all been there: we wake up groggy, we grab the kettle, carelessly fill it all the way up, and then wait impatiently for our morning coffee so that we can start facing the long day ahead of us…

Little do we actually consider the unnecessary energy and water that is being wasted as we are doing this.

Yeah, but what could I possibly do about it?

Easy: Don’t fill the kettle all the way to the top, simply boil as much as you really need. If you are making yourself a cup of coffee or tea you don’t need to boil enough water for the entire family.

You’re driving down Ayalon highway and casually shift to the left lane. A few minutes later you casually shift to the middle lane to pass the asshole in front of you. Once again you’re back on the left lane, when suddenly: Oops! You almost missed your exit and you whoosh back to the right-hand lane to get off.

No harm, no foul, right?

Wrong.

Every time you casually shift lanes, acceleration is necessary - which ultimately leads to increased fuel consumption…

Yeah, but what could I possible do about it?

Pick a lane and stick with it for as long as possible and avoid shifting lanes until absolutely necessary. Not only will you be saving gas and money, you just might be saving lives.

Who would have thunk? By choosing the wrong size pot or pan we are wasting energy from having to heat the empty space on the pan.

Yeah, but what could I possibly do about it?

Use cookware that is appropriate for the meal you are making and save energy without even trying. For example, if you are boiling water for your non-fat, whole wheat, organic pasta ;), don’t use a pot that is bigger than absolutely necessary.

Did You Know?

Every month, we throw out enough glass bottles and jars to fill up a giant skyscraper (think Tel Aviv’s Azrieli towers full of glass jars). And guess what? All of these jars are recyclable!

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From its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the “stuff” in our lives affects communities at home and abroad, yet most of this is intentionally hidden from view.

The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside of our production and consumption patterns. It exposes the connections between a huge number of environmental and social issues, and calls us together to create a more sustainable and just world.

It’ll teach you something, it’ll make you laugh, and it just may change the way you look at all the “stuff” in your life forever.

Bottom line: this short movie is a ‘must’ in order to raise awareness in our society and needs to be seen by as many people as possible, and FAST.

Yeah, but what could I possibly do about it?

1. Watch it: Clear 20 minutes from your busy, busy schedule to see the bigger picture.
2. Live it: Live by example, be the change that you want to see in the world.
3. Speak it: Tell everyone you know about it: your email list, your family, your friends, your neighbors, in line at the supermarket, on the bus… you get the picture.
4. Host it: Share it with your community by showing the film at a house party, or classroom, or church group, or neighborhood association or any other location. (The official websites includes everything you need for a successful event including invitations, group activities and more.)

The new law in Israel prohibiting smoking in public areas and restaurants means one step closer to cleaner, greener living, right?

Not exactly, walk by any coffee shop in Tel Aviv and the first thing you will notice are dozens of cigarette butts surrounding the area.

Why is this happening? Restaurant owners are prohibiting smoking anywhere on restaurant property (including tables outside) and requesting that their customers smoke just outside the property line before returning to their tables.

The result? City sidewalks and curbs are turning into heavily littered personal ashtrays.

Yeah, but what could I possible do about it?

1. Don’t smoke. I know: easier said than done. But if you can’t not smoke, then at least smoke less.
2. When you finish your cigarette, head to the nearest garbage can. Since most coffee shops in Israel are located under residential buildings, a garbage bin can usually be found within seconds if you just make an effort.
3. Talk to the restaurant owner or manager and request that they provide an ashtray to place where their customers stand to smoke.
4. Quit assuming that there is some kind of cigarette fairy that comes out in the middle of the night to make your dirty litter magically disappear. Street sweepers work extremely hard in tough weather conditions to make sure that you and I have a clean street to walk on. Most of these workers are old enough to be our grandparents.

Electrical appliances and chargers (including cancer cell phone chargers) left plugged in drain electricity like there’s no tomorrow - even when they’re not in use! Yes, even appliances that are switched off can draw power from the grid (it’s called phantom load).

For example, a TV set that’s switched on for 3 hours a day (the average time Europeans spend watching TV) and in standby mode during the remaining 21 hours uses about 40% of its energy in standby mode. Forty (freikin) percent of all electricity is used to power home appliances while they’re turned off!

Yeah, but what could I possibly do about it?

1. Switch your TV and other appliances off completely - don’t use standby modes!
2. Unplug, unplug, unplug: Just as you know to turn off the oven when you’re done using it, condition yourself to unplug entirely an electrical appliance when you’re done using it. It’s really that easy - even a child could do it (though I wouldn’t necessarily recommend that a child do it…)

Sidenote:

I just did a quick scan around my house to see what appliances were currently not in use and unplugged them. I counted 14 energy wasting appliances (not including those that are currently in use. )

Did You Know?

During the time it takes you to read this sentence, 50,000 12-ounce aluminum cans are made.

SOURCE