Pyramid of Conservation

Found this on treehugger and thought I’d share.

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Going Green

go green

I had to come up with a blurb about “going green” for print in the local phone directory, so I thought I’d share it with you.  Some items may or may not be relevant, depending on whether you live in The Bahamas, or not :P

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Going green doesn’t have to be difficult or expensive. There are lots of simple ways to go green that add up to make a big difference! Save the earth (and money) at the same time! Who wouldn’t love that?

Water Conservation

• Turn off the tap while you brush your teeth or wash dishes.
• Be aware of the length of your showers. Cutting down your shower time by just 2 minutes can save 10 gallons of water or more!
• Install low-flow shower heads and faucet aerators. These products add air to the water, giving you the same amount of pressure while using less water!
• Flush toilets less by adhering to the “if it’s yellow, let it mellow; if it’s brown, flush it down” philosophy in your home.
• Plant native, drought-tolerant plants in your garden as they require little to no watering.
• If you must water your lawn, do it during the cooler hours of the evening and night, when less moisture is lost to evaporation.

Energy Conservation

• Turn off lights and fans when you leave a room.
• Unplug unused electronics (computers, hair dryers, small appliances, stereos, etc) as even when not being used, they draw “phantom energy”, increasing your electricity bill.
• Wash your clothes in cold water, and then use the sun to dry your laundry outside!
• Carpool with your neighbours! And make sure that tires are inflated to get the most miles per gallon of fuel.
• Switch from outdated incandescent lightbulbs to energy efficient compact fluorescent lightbulbs! They last up to 10 times longer, and use only a fraction of the energy!
• Invest in a solar water heater. Electric water heaters are estimated to account for 30% of your home’s energy usage, and with more than 300 days of sun per year, there’s no reason the sun can’t do the work!

Reduce waste

• Buy locally grown produce when available. Not only are you supporting local farmers, but local produce tends to have minimal packaging, cutting down on waste! Local produce also doesn’t travel as far to reach the market, therefore cutting down on the energy used in transportation!
• Compost food scraps and other organic waste such as grass clippings and fallen leaves. Compost is a great natural fertilizer, rich in nutrients which feed the soil and plants. Composting also reduces the amount of waste being placed in landfills where it decomposes without oxygen and produces the green house gas, methane. Green house gases trap heat in the earth’s atmosphere, causing global climate change.
• Recycle glass bottles like Vitamalt, Kalik, Sands, Guiness & Heineken! You even get a few dollars back for every case you return!
• Recycle your aluminium soda cans by dropping them off at a Cans for Kids collection depot! Money earned from recycling the aluminium goes back to local schools.
• Invest in reusable canvas shopping bags! Disposable plastic grocery bags end up in landfills after only one use, or worse, end up in oceans where they choke and kill marine life!
• Print double-sided and reuse scrap paper to cut down on your paper use! Also sign up for paperless statements and online bill-pay when available to cut down even more!

BTC Directory

“Going Green”

Going green doesn’t have to be difficult or expensive. There are lots of simple ways to go green that add up to make a big difference! Save the earth (and money) at the same time! Who wouldn’t love that?

Water Conservation

1- Turn off the tap while you brush your teeth or wash dishes.

2- Be aware of the length of your showers. Cutting down your shower time by just 2 minutes can save 10 gallons of water or more!

3- Install low-flow shower heads and faucet aerators. These products add air to the water, giving you the same amount of pressure while using less water!

4- Flush toilets less by adhering to the “if it’s yellow, let it mellow; if it’s brown, flush it down” philosophy in your home.

5- Plant native, drought-tolerant plants in your garden as they require little to no watering.

6- If you must water your lawn, do it during the cooler hours of the evening and night, when less moisture is lost to evaporation.

Energy Conservation

1- Turn off lights and fans when you leave a room.

2- Unplug unused electronics (computers, hair dryers, small appliances, stereos, etc) as even when not being used, they draw “phantom energy”, increasing your electricity bill.

3- Wash your clothes in cold water, and then use the sun to dry your laundry outside!

4- Carpool with your neighbours! And make sure that tires are inflated to get the most miles per gallon of fuel.

5- Switch from outdated incandescent lightbulbs to energy efficient compact fluorescent lightbulbs! They last up to 10 times longer, and use only a fraction of the energy!

6- Invest in a solar water heater. Electric water heaters are estimated to account for 30% of your home’s energy usage, and with more than 300 days of sun per year, there’s no reason the sun can’t do the work!

Reduce waste

1- Buy locally grown produce when available. Not only are you supporting local farmers, but local produce tends to have minimal packaging, cutting down on waste! Local produce also doesn’t travel as far to reach the market, therefore cutting down on the energy used in transportation!

2- Compost food scraps and other organic waste such as grass clippings and fallen leaves. Compost is a great natural fertilizer, rich in nutrients which feed the soil and plants. Composting also reduces the amount of waste being placed in landfills where it decomposes without oxygen and produces the green house gas, methane. Green house gases trap heat in the earth’s atmosphere, causing global climate change.

3- Recycle glass bottles like Vitamalt, Kalik, Sands, Guiness & Heineken! You even get a few dollars back for every case you return!

4- Recycle your aluminium soda cans by dropping them off at a Cans for Kids collection depot! Money earned from recycling the aluminium goes back to local schools.

5- Invest in reusable canvas shopping bags! Disposable plastic grocery bags end up in landfills after only one use, or worse, end up in oceans where they choke and kill marine life!

6- Print double-sided and reuse scrap paper to cut down on your paper use! Also sign up for paperless statements and online bill-pay when available to cut down even more!

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Legit!

In case you doubted the legitimacy of taking your blog carbon neutral so easily, check out this email I got this morning!

Hi Laura,

thank you so much for participating in our initiative and making your blog carbon neutral! Your tree will be planted this month by the Arbor Day Foundation. The scheduled start plant date was Monday, April 19 and the trees will be planted by a contracted crew. The roads are being plowed, all contracts solidified, and twelve shipments of 150,000 seedling each are being assembled. We thank you for the support!

There are still some trees looking for a sponsor. So if you know some people who have a blog or website, pass it on and we’ll make their blogs carbon neutral too!

Best,

Melanie
“Make it green”-team

DO IT ALREADY!!

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Carbon Neutral

How cool is this? All you have to do to get a tree planted is write a post about your blog being carbon neutral! It really couldn’t be any easier!

We should all know by now the importance of reducing our carbon emissions. Carbon = A greenhouse gas. Greenhouse gases trap heat in Earth’s atmosphere = Climate change (NOT “global warming”). Climate change = all kinds of crazy bad things. Think hurricanes, floods, droughts, famine, extinction, sea level rise. All. Very. Bad.

So do me a solid. If you have a blog, do what I did and write a short post about being carbon neutral and get a tree planted in your honour!

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Cold Showers

You might be wondering from my last post, why I would say I’m gonna shower and then “more on that later”, as if this is something unusual or interesting…But here’s why: it’s friggin’ FREEZING here the last few days!!! And yes, I know all you northerners are probably thinking something along the lines of, cold? in the Bahamas? pshht please! But it is!! And while 50’s and 60’s may not sound cold to you, in a country where homes are not built with HEATING systems, it’s EFFIN’ FRIGID! There’s nothing you can do but shut the windows, bundle up and eat hot food…

And I also say this to you thick-blooded northerners…it is still damp, and very windy…so add that to a high of 59*F and it’s prolly more like 49*F!

God damn I hate the cold. Oh, I just remembered why I was writing this. The shower. I think the cold affects my brain function…

So BECAUSE it has been so cold/non-sunny, I have been reluctant to shower because #1-with no sun, our solar water heater can’t do its job, and I have to turn on the crappy, inefficient electric water heater…and #2-Even if there IS hot water, it’s still friggin’ freezing when you get out!!!!

Lucky for me (only lucky cuz I don’t have bills to pay) my non-showered grossness has not been inflicted on the public since I haven’t had work this week. Not cuz I’m on vacay, but because my (and several other coworkers’) contracts expired on Jan 2nd, so when we went to work on Monday, they sent us home, telling us the new contracts hadn’t been drawn up or approved as yet, and to protect them and us, we should go home…Sooooo…I been straight chillin’ (literally, Brrrr!)

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My next adventure?

Getting into grad school.

Specifically: Johns Hopkins University

Ha. It’s a long shot, but hey-can’t hurt to try right? Well it can hurt my feelings when I get rejected but…

So it’s actually an online Masters programme. 10 courses, 8 of them online, 2 of them in 2 3-week summer sessions on campus in Baltimore. And just like that, I’ll be a Master of Environmental Management. Sounds good, right? Online really would work out perfectly for me, because I can continue to earn a paycheque & gain experience in my field, while advancing my education. As opposed to up-rooting my life for 2 years while sacrificing an income and experience. (I’m guessing this is why online-school appeals to most adults…am I an adult?)

I’ve been “working” on my application for…geez…over a year now. But I guess I’ve never been 100% serious about it.

Yes, theoretically, I want a Masters Degree (more like I want the increased earning potential), and theoretically, I do have the time (although I’m not the most productive person…ahh Hello procrastination) and theoretically, I’m sure the bank would give me a loan to pay for it (am I actually responsible enough to have a loan?)

But…I hate school.

Let me rephrase that. My “college experience” was awesome. Tulane – great! New Orleans – amazing! Class, homework, exams, papers…not so much. It’s not that I’m not capable of doing the work, and doing it well…it’s just that, I’ve always been smart enough to get by without doing anything…and so…I haven’t…

Anyway. I don’t really have any excuse not to try. All that’s really left to complete on my application is my personal statement. Any ideas?

Dear Johns Hopkins,

I just got rejected from a dream opportunity in Fiji, and you’re my back-up. Maybe if I’d had a Master’s degree already, I would have been selected for that placement. So the idea behind getting this degree is to be a more appealing candidate in the future. Do me a solid and let me in, k? Thanksbye.

I like it. What you think?

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Sad News

Well, I found out on Wednesday morning…I didn’t get the placement in Fiji :'( *tear* For real though…I cried like a big baby. I didn’t think I would be as disappointed as I was, but I suddenly felt so overwhelming sad, and like a failure, and then…stifled. Oh God, no! I’m going to be stuck at BEST forever!! I was really hoping to blow off some of the crappy projects I have weighing on me now…but…no dice.

Yeah, I’m getting a whole lot of “you should be so proud you made it to the short list, you were runner-up!” consolation, and it’s true…but I’m still bummed. I’m trying to tell myself everything happens for a reason. I can’t wait til I find out why I wasn’t meant to go to Fiji this time around. (they said they were “very keen” to keep my application on file for future placements…so I told them they could) Maybe there’s going to be some horrific natural disaster, or another dangerous military coup…who knows? Maybe there’s no good reason and I just have to suck it up and accept that someone out there was a better candidate than me. (really though?!)

Benji has been great consoling me. He’s the best. But I know he’s secretly happy I’m not leaving him for 6 months. Actually not so secretly, since he suggested a “celebration dinner” that night! Sigh…anyyyyyyway. Let’s move on from the bad news.

What’s good for Halloween???

Pathetically, Benji & I have no plans. There are a few parties/events we’ve been invited to, but none we’re really too enthused to attend. We’re such homebodies. I bet we’ll end up just hangin’ around at home. I have a couple costumes I wore in my college years (can I still fit into them? Maybe not…) so I could always squeeze into throw one on if need be.

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Suggestions?

got 'em?

So I already feel like I’m running out of things to write about on my poor little blog, and that it’s already as dull as dishwater. Maybe you people in cyberspace have some suggestions of things I could try out (preferably along the lines of my interests…) My interests are pretty simple:

Environment/Conservation, climate change, invasive species

Animals; pets & wildlife

Health/Diet, vegetarianism, cooking, organic, gardening, composting

Fitness: gym, weights, tennis, swimming, water-sports

Some other interests of mine which I haven’t written about yet are things like: boating, reading, spirituality, decorating, crafts (oo that reminds me, I could show you guys some of the (pretty?) things I’ve made)

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Speaking of trying stuff…

What do you say to 6 months in Fiji??

HELL YES, is what I say!!! (hell yes please?)

Here’s how it happened:

A few months ago, my good friend, let’s call her Mollie :) was soul-searching, like she often does, and also searching for a career in animal conservation (she’s an animal freak!) anddd, she came across the Youth Volunteer Programme of the World Wildlife Foundation. They administer volunteer placements at various field offices throughout the world.

So Mollie submitted an application, and sent it to me as well, to read over. I figured, hey-while I have it right in front me, can’t hurt to send one in for myself, right? Sounds like a good opportunity. That was about 3 months ago…Mollie was actually selected for a 3 month volunteer position in Bhutan, but for personal reasons, was unable to accept the offer…

Then: last week, I got an email from the Youth Volunteer Programme (YVP from now on please) that I am being considered for a 6 month placement in Suva, Fiji, working on Climate Change & Sea Turtle Conservation!!!!

My readers (I actually don’t think I even have any…) may not realise that I actually already work in the environment industry, and that this placement is perfect for me! So, of course I wrote back that I’m thrilled to be considered, bla bla bla. We emailed back and forth a few times with questions and whatnot anddd I had my telephone interview this morning!! Hopefully, I should know in the next 2 weeks or so whether I’ve been selected or not!

I’m really hoping to be selected, but also trying not to get my hopes up too much…cuz I’ll be devastated if I don’t get it :(

Wish me luck!!

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