make a smaller ecological footprint

Our company’s Commuter Challenge is officially starting next week! We’re having a kick-off event Thursday toward the end of the day to present it to everyone and get them psyched up for it. Which is getting easier all the time! We’ll be serving margaritas (“green” drinks!) and announcing the PRIZES!!

After work I went to a couple outdoor gear stores we picked to ask them about prizes – added value really, because we have some money to spend. I was blown away by the positive response!! They’re talking about doubling the money we’re spending, free schwag, percent-off coupons – wow.

So awesome.

Do any of you twitter? I’m brand new at it, and interested in finding some green/eco posters to ‘follow!’

As part of the Honda helpful campaign, the SoCal Honda dealers are planting trees to replace those lost to wild fires!! Just go to http://www.socalhonda.com and enter your name and email (you can choose to opt out of future offers) and a tree will be planted in your name. It’s good to see big companies doing something like this!

Hooray! My new company has a whole green committee! I found out about it when I asked about compost. There are 4 areas we want to address in Stage 1: 100% recycle, reduce paper use by 50%, reduce carbon footprint (commute, etc), and a green roof.

Wish us luck, we’re presenting to the partners this afternoon! I’ll update tonight with their reaction!

**UPDATE
It was a total success!! We’ve been told to “move forward with everything!” EVEN THE GREEN ROOF!!

So, the Chittenden Solid Waste District recycles old paint. They re-blend it, filter etc, and sell it as their own brand, Local Color. How awesome!! I have a feeling my condo will have some Champlain Blue and Autumn Yellow!
http://www.cswd.net/hazardous_waste/localcolor.shtml

Does anyone recommend a brand of programmable digital thermostat? What features should I look for, what’s a reasonable price? Are they all pretty much the same? Thanks!

My new condo:
-TWO BLOCKS from my new job, so clearly I’ll be walking every day
-closer to my guy’s apartment, so we can continue to walk to each other for dates, with much less temptation to hop in the car
-closer to the library
-has lots of garden space!!
-and space for my own compost bin
-close to the bike path that leads to the dog park

And it’s all mine, so I’m ready to dive into making it the most eco-awesome condo ever!!

Attended my first Burlington GreenDrinks event tonight! It’s a casual, social networking event for eco-minded people. Didn’t network my way to a better job, but I did make a new friend!

See if there’s one in your city – www.greendrinks.org

of Put Your Presents Where Your Politics Are is underway.

This is a pretty simple concept: every holiday gift I give is either locally-made, fair trade, made by me, or benefitted a worthy cause.

The point should be apparent – it’s hardly an option in our culture to not spend any money during the holiday season, and it really is fun to give and receive gifts. But why spend money on one more thing my friends and family don’t really need? I want the gifts I give to be functional for the receiver, as well as for the producer. I love supporting local businesses and artisans, so the holidays are the perfect dare-to-be-great opportunity to exercise my commitment to sustainability. In addition, when giving the gift, I explained my project, therefore spreading the know, and the appreciation for the gift.

I’ve got it as a separate goal, I’d love for everyone to join me! Put your presents where your politics are

Attention fellow kitchen composters!! I’ve got the coolest thing to share with you! So I’ve got a serious fruit fly problem these days. It’s gross. I know, fruit flies are a natural part and to be expected when one has a very active compost pail. Great, that still doesn’t mean I want them swarming around my kitchen, drowning in my morning coffee.

In a bottle with a narrow opening (plastic water bottle, etc), mix equal parts dish soap, vinegar, and honey. Just leave it out on the counter, and wait! The next morning, there were more than fifty fruit flies!! (I know, I live in squalor, lay off). Since the weekend I’ve added more of each ingredient at random, and I’ll probably mix up a fresh bottle tonight.

I learned this from a woman at Gardener’s Supply. She keeps it right next to her compost, so they never really get out of control. That’s my goal from here on out! Another option is a glass of red wine.

Hooray! Any other genius solutions out there?

I’m a media buyer. My job requires a lot of paper. I’ve done my best to use less while still doing my job. My boss recently told me he greatly respects my commitment to reducing my impact BUT I need to print out everything still. He said, and I quote “I will even write a check…”

So I’m wondering…what should he write a check to? And for how much?

I really am going to hold him to this. I know offsets are a band-aid for guilt, but if I’ve got to use the paper anyway and he’s the one paying…thoughts?