It’s over, but it is something worth taking note of. Promotions were carried out during the April 2 and April 9 games of the San Antonio Spurs (yeah, you got a die hard Spurs fan here). Dubbed Green Nights, fans were treated to various delights such as coupons for ENERGY star qualified light bulbs, exhibits of Toyota hybrid cars, and others.

The Spurs also provide “fantastic green tips” in their media center. Here are some of the most practical ones:

Car pool. One trip a year saves money. Talk to people at work, see if you’re going the same way. Go to eRideShare and enter your zip to find people to carpool with. – It’s a great way to make new friends, too!

Ride your bike. Gotta run to the store? Ride instead. Remember, any amount you don’t drive saves. – I love this. Not only do you get to save on fuel, but you also get some exercise.

Get fuel when it’s cool. If you refuel at midday in August, small amounts of the gas are more likely to escape. It all adds up.- Fuel up at night!

Telecommute. If you can, work from home once a month. You’ll save time and money. – More and more companies are offering this option. It will not hurt to ask!

There will be seminars and workshops, among other things:

• Children’s Activities
• Educational Workshops
• Farmers Market
• Food Vendors
• Exhibitors
• Entertainment
• Raffles

Did you notice that first item? I think that was the first thing that caught my attention. I think that green living is all about education and information – something that starts when you are young. I am convinced that if the adults of today were raised with an awareness of the impact of their activities on their surroundings, green living would be a much wider movement. With children being included in this exposition, I think that the positive effects of the activity will be larger and wider than others. Whoever thought about holding this expo with activities geared towards schoolchildren should be lauded!

Here’s another great piece of news – admission to the expo is FREE! Of course, some of the workshops may have a registration fee for the materials, but that’s probably nominal. If you find yourself in this part of the world in May, why not drop by?

Wedding rings. Have you had new wedding rings made? If not, why not consider using family heirlooms? This will not only help the environment but also make the symbols of your love even more significant. You may even get old pieces of jewelry and have them re-fashioned to suit your tastes.

Wedding attire. While many brides may want a totally new gown, the option of wearing your mom’s wedding gown is always open. Why not take it a step further and make it a theme? Instead of having new dresses made for the entourage, why not make it a point to “re-use” old (but no less beautiful or elegant) clothes for everyone?

Invitations. Have you checked out the prices of professionally-made invites lately? They are astronomical! Why not consider electronic invites? Or if you want something more concrete, make sure you patronize recycled products. Again, this does not mean that they will be less elegant or beautiful!

So what can you expect from the Expo? Treehugger tells us:

From Glee gum to Honda’s Insight, more than 300 exhibits of green goods and services will be displayed under one roof at the Go Green Expo this weekend in Los Angeles. Open to the public, January 24-25 and Friday for B2B. The floor is jammed with new earth-friendly products along with speakers, seminars, and films. Free yoga, poi dancing, food samples, and live music. Want to green your pet, a green job, and half-off admission?

Event keynotes are by actor/activist Ed Begley Jr. of Living With Ed on Saturday and Mariel Hemingway, author of Healthy Living from the Inside Out on Sunday. Other speakers covering the full-range of green-oriented topics, from wellness to eco-tourism, and clean energy, include Sophie Uliano of Gorgeously Green and sustainability consultant John Picard, founding member of the US Green Building Council on the latest exciting developments.

There is more than that though. You can watch films and short features about environmental issues. You can also find a job the career fair that will be held during the weekend.

The tickets are cheap – $10 for a weekend pass. You can also register NOW through Treehugger and get half price!

Earth Day is a wonderful opportunity to help kids understand and get involved with saving the earth. Making Earth Day a fun event to look forward too, with projects that they see through the year, will hopefully instill values of being environmentally caring – something they can bring into adulthood.

Here are some places you can start:

1. i Go Green at Every Age – The folks here at iVillage have great tips on how you can get kids to go green. For example, preschool kids can wash their hands using a thin “pencil” stream of water, while a grade schooler can unplug the tv or computer at night or using reusable containers for school packed lunches.

2. Make Some Crafts - Kids love crafts, so getting creative is a great way of teaching them about Earth Day while having fun. Kaboose has some super craft ideas which uses recycled products to make useful things like a pet food scoop made out of an old laundry detergent bottle or herb planters from empty cans.

3. Do Activities Online – For kids who enjoy learning online, there are many kid- friendly websites you can visit with them. A good one is Roofus’ Home, which shows how a golden retriever’s home can be energy efficient.

4. Host an Earthday Party! – Why not get your kids together with some friends for an Earth Day party? Its a fun way to learn about Earth Day by playing games, eating sustainable foods, and doing a project like recycling or planting a tree. You can can then revisit what you’ve done at next year’s Earth Day and the children will be thrilled to see the results.

Earth Day 1970

Not many of us know that Earth Day has been around for a while. Nearly 39 years, to be precise. The first Earth Day took place on April 22nd 1970, marking the day when the movement for modern environmentalism was born.

The beginnings though, can be traced back as far as 1963, when Senator Gaylord Nelson, a democrat from Wisconsin, first voiced his concerns about the state of the planet. In 1969 he proposed Earth Day “to shake up the political establishment and force this issue onto the national agenda. It was a gamble… but it worked.” Nelson said.

And on April 22, 1970, 20 million Americans rallied with Nelson – in parks, auditoriums, schools and streets – for a healthier Earth. Millions protested the industrial destruction of the environment and the results were tremendous:

” Earth Day 1970 achieved a rare political alignment, enlisting support from Republicans and Democrats, rich and poor, city slickers and farmers, tycoons and labor leaders. The first Earth Day led to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species acts”

I think its wonderful that Earth Day is getting big around the world. Just a few years ago very few people even knew what it was, let alone celebrate it, but today, as early as March, I have been getting emails from people and groups to start planning for the event.

In my community, we have an organic garden and herb center (created from a vacant lot) which we opened on Earth Day two years ago. It has a spirulina fountain, a recycling area and a nifty machine that turns waste into energy which supplies heat to an oven/cooker. A small group of nature-loving ladies (mostly seniors!) started the project with very little money (mostly their own), but with determination, creativity and hard work, the garden is something we are all so proud of today. They sell the produce for a minimal price which goes to the upkeep of the garden and for the foundation they created which also supports other environmental projects in the area (more on that next time).

For Earth Day we have an event planned, where we (I’ve joined the group!) will be unveiling a new part of the garden, some new equipment and talk about the success stories of the year and some great things we have planned for the future. Luckily we also have a chef as part of the group, so the food is always excellent and it becomes a party!

What is YOUR Earth Day event? Click here to find out.

Welcome to Yurto, the blog about eco-friendly living in the home. Inspired by the yurt, an ancient circular dwelling place built in tune with nature, we hope to explore the ways we can all make a change for the better in the world that we live in – beginning from our homes.

Why is it so important to go green? Al Gore, who woke up the world with his now-famous documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, puts it succinctly:

“…Some of the leading scientists are now saying we may have as little as 10 years before we cross a kind of point of no return, beyond which it’s much more difficult to save the habitability of the planet in the future…”

10 years??? Now that’s a scary thought.  If you have children like me, that’s enough reason to stop procrastinating and do something about NOW.

So from plastic to canvas, wasting to conserving,  lets find ways to care for the earth while we can and live healthier, happier lives.