In changing your ways to greener living, the key thing to remember is:

“little things mean a lot”

Meaning, you don’t have to go out marching in Washington or move your family to a yurt in the wilderness to save the earth.

Take your weekly trips to the grocery store, for instance. Just by being aware of what you buy can make loads of difference. For me, the main thing I’ve done in my home is to switch the cleaning supplies I use from the nose-burning, toxic, chemical-laden stuff to non-toxic, bio degradable brands. It was the smell that actually bothered me the most (especially when I was pregnant), so switching to the lovely natural stuff I use now as a surface cleaner, which uses orange oil, is such a great thing.

A small local company in my area makes most of the stuff I buy now (more points for saving on transport fuel) , but even the bigger guys are starting natural, eco-friendly lines now, like Clorox Green Works, which launched early this year. Did you know they bought Burts Bees too?

Here’s a part of a good article I found which should help you in the grocery. Read and heed.

Buy local. When food doesn’t have to travel far, it requires less packaging materials, fewer preservatives and often fewer pesticides. Not only are these processes bad for the environment but they also take away from the taste of the food. Another benefit to buying locally grown food is the shorter distances the produce needs to travel, which results in less damaging greenhouse gases.

Buy environmentally friendly products. Many companies are trying to be more environmentally conscious so look for brands that offer natural products in recycled packages.

Take fewer trips. Car emissions continue to be a major contributor to greenhouse gasses in Canada making carpooling and fewer trips to the grocery store a must. Making a grocery list in advance can help cut down on trips to the store for one-off forgotten items. Organizing a grocery store carpool with friends or neighbours is also a fun way to spend time with people while reducing the number of cars on the road.

Cut down on plastic bags. Canadians use approximately 10 billion plastic bags each year. Reducing that number means bringing reusable grocery bags with you to the store. If you don’t already have some, most stores have their own brand of reusable bags you can purchase while you are there. Another alternative is to use cardboard boxes to carry your groceries or paper bags that can be recycled.

Enter “Eco Balls”, amazing little balls which, when thrown into your wash, do all the work your regular soap does (and claim to kill bacteria too) without any chemicals, detergents and the like. When you work out what you save on soap, the savings are enormous, with something like 6 cents a load with the balls, to approx. 80 cents with detergent, more depending on what brand you buy. You can buy kits which come with refills, stain remover (it doesn’t do that great with heavy stains) as well as dryer balls for “fabric softer” role.

So does it really work? While I wait for my order to arrive, I found a good review worth checking out. The verdict? Some liked it, others were disappointed with its cleaning power. There was also one complaint about how the ball came apart and broke her washing machine. Either way, its a product I think worth trying out for yourself -because I think eliminating detergents would be a great thing.

Buy green cleaning products. Much like many other offices, we have supplies to keep the premises clean: carpet cleaners, glass cleaners, detergents for the rest rooms, hand soaps, etc. We normally have the commercial stuff that you can easily get at the supermarket. Perhaps we can make a change and buy products that are easier on the environment.

Go digital. We actually have been trying to do this in our department. We love print outs, I have to admit. However, there are many things that we do not really have to print. Perhaps an official memo on avoiding print outs if possible will help cut down on paper (and ink!) consumption.

Supply re-usable kitchen utensils. We always have plastic and paper cups in the pantries (we have two). We also have paper plates and plastic forks, knives, and spoons. Naturally, people would use them indiscriminately. If only re-usable utensils were supplied, we could cut back on the use of plastic materials.

What do you think? Will these ideas fly?

I don’t know about you, but I tend to go through earphones quite quickly. I understand having to replace a set within a couple of months if the set is cheap, but even better quality earphones do not last that long. That’s why when I heard about ThinkSound, I got excited. I have been hearing lots of good things about them: aside from giving excellent sound, they are eco-friendly!

Let’s start with natural wood, which they use for the earphones. This makes for a lower impact on the environment and produces better sound quality as well. The company is proud to say that they use plastic materials sparingly – only when absolutely needed.
If you’re wondering about where the wood comes from, the good news is that the company makes sure that they get wood from renewable resources. Their cables are also PVC-free. Even the packing is made from recycled materials!

You can choose from Rain (9mm) or Thunder (10mm) headphones, the latter having enhanced bass. Rain costs $99.99 while Thunder costs $74.99. US orders costs an additional $4.95 for shipping. For international orders, contact them first to make sure there are no problems.

“Green” food
I don’t mean green leafy vegetables, but that would also work if that is your preference. What I was thinking of was food products such as turkey, game fowl, honey, jams, etc. You can always get these at the supermarket but a better alternative would be to go to bazaars and markets where you can find products that are made in an earth-friendly manner. More so, you can never go wrong with food!

Beauty products
These may cater more to the women population, but who says men do not appreciate soaps and lotions? There are more metrosexuals out there than we probably know. Just make sure you buy organic products – they’re much better for the skin and they don’t have such a bad impact on the environment.

Herbs and spices
These days, you can buy all sorts of herbs and spices in pots. They would be excellent gifts for those who love to cook and don’t have space for their own herb gardens. Choose one or two pots and send them on their way.

Beeswax candles
I am a candle addict, seriously. While some people think that candles are generic gifts, I would love to receive tons of these! Again, choose natural products to lessen your impact on the environment.

Any other ideas?

Have you every considered the impact of your clothes washing on the environment? The electrical power that you consume, the water that you use, and the chemicals found in your laundry detergent and fabric softener have negative effects on the earth! There are ways by which you can soften this impact though.

Let’s start with the laundry detergent and the fabric softener. What should you look for? Go beyond the tags “natural,” “environment-friendly,” and the like. They are convenient labels but sometimes, they are mere interpretations of the manufacturer – they may not be a guarantee that the product is indeed environment-friendly. Instead, look for ingredients – or the lack thereof – such as phosphate. Go for products without phosphate as they stimulate algal growth and mess with the biology of aquatic life.

Now on to the machines. Unless you have the time and patience to do your laundry manually, you will have to rely on electric washing machines. The key is in making sure your machine is efficient, both in terms of electricity and water. If you bought your machine before 1994, you might want to get a new one – it will save you more in the long run. Another tip: if you can do away with using the dryer for certain articles of clothing, then do so. Next to refrigerators, dryers consumer the most power.

I’m lucky enough to have hardwood floors in my home but between the kids’ spills and pet mess (we have an elderly dog and a new puppy), cleaning our wooden floors is a challenge. At a loss with what to use, I have simply been using plain water in a bucket with a couple of cap-fulls of citronella. For more severe mess, I keep a spray bottle of water with Citrus Magic all purpose cleaner and use that to mop as well once a week.

Yes, there are lots of products around you can buy, one of the best ones is the one pictured above by Method, who I must say make some really sweet-smelling stuff albeit a bit pricey. My next project is to spend a weekend concocting my own brews to care for wood. Here are some of the recipes I found online that I’ll be trying out:

The Daily Green
Vinegar: Whip up a solution of 1/4 cup white vinegar and 30 ounces of warm water. Put in a recycled spray bottle, then spray on a cotton rag or towel until lightly damp. Then mop your floors, scrubbing away any grime.

Green Living Ideas
Furniture Polish: Mix 1 cup lemon juice with 1 tbsp olive oil and 1 tbsp water; lightly apply to furniture using a soft cloth. Let sit for a couple of minutes, then buff.

Eartheasy
Wood Floors: apply a thin coat of 1:1 vegetable oil and vinegar and rub in well.
Furniture Polish: For varnished wood, add a few drops of lemon oil into a 1/2 cup warm water. Mix well and spray onto a soft cotton cloth. Cloth should only be slightly damp. Wipe furniture with the cloth, and finish by wiping once more using a dry soft cotton cloth.
For unvarnished wood: mix two tsps each of olive oil and lemon juice and apply a small amount to a soft cotton cloth. Wring the cloth to spread the mixture further into the material and apply to the furniture using wide strokes. This helps distribute the oil evenly.

Burt's Bees is considered a "murky" company

I love bodycare products and actually thought I was safe buying seemingly organic or natural brands available at my local shops. Not so, according to Organicgal’s List of Fakies and Non-fakies. Well, I did report on the carcinogens found in kid’s bath products, so this isn’t really isn’t a surprise.

My hat goes off to Organicgal though, who has taken the time to do her research and show her findings. Here are some facts which we should all know:

* Body care is not a regulated industry.

* The USDA Organic regulations/laws only extend to food items or body care items that are food grade.

* Because of lax regulations a body care company can use the word “Natural” any way they want, regardless of if they threw in chemicals and synthetics to the final product.

* A company can only use the word Organic (as in the product name, etc) on the front of their packaging if the product contains at least 70% organic ingredients

* For a company to display a label that reads “Made with Organic ingredients” the product must carry 70% or more organics with no restrictions on the other ingredients.

* For a company to display the USDA organic label, it must have 95% or higher organic ingredients with the other 5% being from an approved list.

* To carry the new Natural Products Association Label the natural product must only contain pre-approved naturally derived ingredients.

* The Eco-Cert label has fallen under scrutiny lately, for allowing synthetics in products (which is against it’s own rules) with many interest groups now not trusting the integrity of the EcoCert logo

Fakes include Alba Botanica (help! I am using their coconut body cream right now), Jason Pure Natural Organic (nice use of words, faker Jason), Kiss My Face Organics and Nature’s Gate Organics, all of which I sadly have used and believed them to be truly natural and/or organic.

Real natural/organics include Natures Baby Organics and Dr.Bronners ( Hurrah! I use their lovely lavender soap). And lastly, there are the “hit and miss guys”, whose products have both the good stuff, and the bad stuff. Included here is Burts Bees, who Organicgal says is at least honest about their ingredients, good or otherwise.

Good to know when you next shop for toiletries!

One of the mantras in my household is “Wash your hands please”. When the kids get home from school, before mealtimes, before cooking, after playing, after touching the pets and so on. But when you’re out of the house, using water and soap obviously isn’t the most convenient thing. And the solution a lot of people have been using come in the form of antibacterial gels, which are cheap, plentiful and found just about anywhere. The problem with it though, is that terrible ingredient, triclosan, an antibacterial agent found in a lot of products nowadays, from soap to socks! But the fact remains: Triclosan is no better than plain soap.

Several months ago, I read a very disturbing article by a Mom, aptly called: “Cancer or Germs? I’ll Take the Germs!”. She took the time out to do research on the stuff (the things a Mom will do!- bravo) and it made me ban triclosan from my household forever – why? because among other nasties, it causes cancer and is bad for the environment. Enough said. If you want to know more about it, or what products contain it, please go here.

Okay. So we know antibacterial gels with triclosan are bad, but that doesn’t really solve our problem about killing germs while we are on the go. Mind you, soaps have it too, so be wary and always read labels. Well, the best solution is to buy the natural stuff (like Clean Well), or better yet, make it yourself.

Here are some ideas:

Grapefruit seed extract: diluted with distilled water, makes a great all-around germ-killing spray for hands, air, surfaces and even wounds!

Vodka and essential oil: Mixing vodka, essential oil (like lavender) and distilled water, is another easy and cheap alternative. Put it in a spray bottle and keep it handy.

Essential oils and water: Simple yet effective, take your favourite essential oil and mix it with water to create a very natural antibacterial. The most potent are: cinnamon, cloves, verbena, lavender, angelice, juniper, sandal, cedar, thyme and lemon.

Remember that awful pet food poisoning scare a couple of years ago? Luckily, none of our pets (5 dogs, 7 cats) were victims of the poisoning, but many people I knew lost their beloved pets because of it. One good thing to come of the tragedy though, was that organic and natural pet food sales rose as more people decided to switch.

I am one of those people, and though I often wondered what was in the usual brands like Alpo, Pedigree or Whiskas, I never really bothered to really look. Well, according to Newman’s Own Organics, whose organic pet products I love and use (and their people products too!),it’s pretty disturbing, such as poultry “by products”:

“Ground, rendered, cleaned slaughtered poultry carcass parts such as necks, feet, lymph nodes, undeveloped eggs and intestines (and a small amount of feathers). The quality is very inconsistent between batches. Note: By product meals are often derived from 4-D meat sources – defined as food animals that have been rejected for human consumption because they were presented to the meat packing plant as “Dead, Dying, Disabled or Diseased”.

Ugh. Would you honestly feed this stuff to your cat or dog? If your pets are considered part of the family, as ours are, it makes total sense to put as much thought in their food as you do yours. Yes, it can cost much more to buy organic or holistic pet food, but there is an alternative. Make it yourself. Here’s a great book I found, The Natural Pet Cookbook (pictured above), which will help get you started. Not only will you be happy in the knowledge that you are feeding your pets healthy, natural food, but you’ll also notice the change – healthier, happier pets!