Pon tu granito de arena en el clima de tus niños/
Focus on the climate your children will inherit
- Walk and bike more, drive less
- Work from home if you can
- Meet virtually more, fly and commute less
- Combine shopping trips, errands, deliveries, and pickups
- Remote-Learn more, attend classes less
- Think about ditching your SUV for an electric or hybrid car
- Switch bulbs to LEDs to save money and electricity
- Turn out lights when leaving a room
- Set thermostat a few degrees lower in winter, higher in summer
- Consider solar panels or a geothermal pump
- Upgrade your windows to cut down drafts and heat loss
- Use power strips to turn TVs on and off
- Buy less plastic, especially single-use items
- Take cloth totes when you shop
- Drink more water, less cow’s milk
- Eat more grains, beans, vegetables, and fruits, less red meat
- Microwave more, cook in gas oven less
- Go all-electric for kitchens
- Run dishwasher only for full loads
- Turn water-heater temperature down
- Buy fewer, sturdier (gently used) clothes and wear them longer
- Learn to mend
- Wash fewer, fuller, cooler loads in washing machine
- Dry clothes outside if you can
- Vote for climate-aware local, state, and national candidates
- Call/Write/Email your Senators and Representatives to support climate policies
- Share concerns about climate change with family, friends, and neighbors
- Form or join a local activist group advocating for climate action
Act Now
Trying to decide on an energy-efficient roof
This blog by Alexandra Marks in the Christian Science Monitor is a bit of a tease. You’ll have to read her next blog to find out which is the greenest and cheapest roofing material available to renovate an old building. Partly that’s because the owner interjects another criterion
How can I “green” my school?
Here’s an article about a project that students or teachers could pursue with interest and environmental impact. Any school can be greened — high, middle, or elementary. How much greening will cost will differ with every school, and on how green your school decides to go. Using 30%
Green inaugural ball
A week ago on January 20th, 2009, Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States of America. That evening, numerous balls were held around Washington D.C. to celebrate President Obama’s historic victory. One of them, the Green Inaugural Ball, was hosted by a
Green your blog
Every time a new article is posted to ClimateYou, we contribute to the problem very problem we write about (global climate change). Believe it or not, maintaining a blog and website is associated with greenhouse gas emissions. While the magnitude of the emissions from an individual website like
Cloth or disposable? The diaper debate is back
Here’s a report from the Christian Science Monitor of the latest developments in the long-running debate between cloth or disposable diapers. While it doesn’t commit unequivocably to one or the other, the report does note that a baby can use 8000 diapers, and America cuts down 250,000 trees
Tracking carbon footprints to the breakfast table
It matters — to the earth — what you have for breakfast. You have probably never thought about the carbon footprint of your morning glass of orange juice. But there is an emission cost to OJ, and, in a growing trend, Pepsico is trying to find out how
Energy Inefficient
This New York Times editorial urges soon-to-be-President Obama not to rely solely on technological breakthroughs to address the necessary restructuring of America’s energy systems. In addition, the Times argues, the Obama administration should strive to make existing technologies more efficient. The U.S. does not use energy efficiently,
Do I have to throw out my Christmas lights?
Here’s another discussion of how to shrink your energy footprint. It’s not always easy to know what to do. This article from Slate.com considers whether to buy new Christmas lights or Hanukkah candles, or continue using the ones you’ve been using for years. The recomendation for Hanukkah candles
In Mayor’s plan, the plastic bag will carry a fee
This article from the New York Times discusses a plan for New York City, proposed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, to start charging shoppers 6 cents for every plastic bag they use while in stores. Similar proposals have been explored in other cities in the United States and have
