Author Archives for Jennifer Chait
California public schools eco-curriculum
Officials are calling California’s new state-approved environmental curriculum a landmark move, and with good reason. Until currently, many teachers have been teaching eco-issues but without a curriculum guide. Also, state officials have called the current environmental education lessons taught by teachers, purely supplemental because lessons are not focused on state academic standards.
That’s all changing this spring though. The state Board of Education just signed off on 76 sections of eco-curriculum for California public schools which will be available for for teachers online this spring at no charge. Now, all California public schools will now have access to state-approved environmental curriculum [...]
Post from: Blisstree
The most eco-friendly essential oil
Technically I’m not sure if there’s ever been a vote for the MOST eco-friendly essential oil, but in my opinion tea tree essential oil would likely win. Not because it’s harvested in a particularly eco-friendly manner but because tea tree oil can replace so many worse things in your home. You can use it for cleaning, good health, and all sorts of other things due to its antifungal, antibacterial, and antiviral properties.
For example…
Sprinkle it on a cloth and use it in your dryer thus eliminating over-packaged and often chemically laden dryer sheets.
Mix a few drops of natural soap, 2 cups [...]
Post from: Blisstree
Where to find local food
When it comes to food talk among tree huggers, local vs. organic debates tend to come up often. On a grand scale the right answer – local or organic boils down to many issues, but if you can aim for local and sustainable first that’s a good start in my opinion.
Local food is not all that tough to come by and it’s a smart choice in terms of eco-ethics. While it’s true that not all local food is certified organic, it doesn’t mean it’s not produced with sustainable methods. Some smaller farmers don’t want to go through the cost of [...]
Post from: Blisstree
Save fridge energy in the kitchen
Fridges can waste a lot of home energy. In fact some organizations note that fridges may be the leading most expensive electrical appliance you’ve got in your home. To make sure you save money and energy do the following…
Clean your coils regularly.
Don’t put totally hot food in the fridge – don’t leave it out forever, but at least during your meal.
Next time you need to upgrade make sure you choose an energy efficient model. Look for the Energy Star label and buy the smallest fridge to meet your needs – bigger equals more material and energy use. You can even [...]
Post from: Blisstree
New USDA Organic Standards for Meat & Milk
Last week, after years of debates (some of which are still ongoing) the USDA finally released their new regulations surrounding organic labeling of meat and dairy.
The final USDA rules will help provides certainty to consumers that organic livestock production is a pasture based system in which animals are actively grazing pasture during the grazing season. According to the USDA, most organic dairy and ruminant livestock producers are already using the system – i.e. grazing animals and maintaining pastures that meet the requirements of the new rules. However, the new standards do contain clear requirements that can be used across the [...]
Post from: Blisstree
Good Inexpensive Reusable Bags
In the last post we looked at the many cons of cheap reusable bags. However, just because a bag is inexpensive doesn’t mean it can’t rock. Basically you’re looking at a few issues…
How it’s made – decent materials? To see if a bag gets good reviews or not check around the web before you buy.
Can it be recycled? For example, my reusable bags are cotton so later I can reuse squares cut from them as cleaning cloths, plus in the end they’ll biodegrade. Not so for all reusable bags. Avoid hard to recycle materials. Your best bet is to stick [...]
Post from: Blisstree
Not So Eco-Friendly Reusable Bags
Not all reusable bags stack up as eco-friendly. Adrift in a world of perfectly good eco-friendly reusable bags are a slew of less eco-friendly, poorly made reusable bags that place more of a drain on the environment then you might think and that can cramp your eco-style in a big way.
Consider this:
Many store brand reusable bags aren’t made to last. However, they still take energy and materials to produce. Often, store brand bags aren’t made with eco-friendly materials, won’t carry a decent load of groceries, and most are not made with Fair Trade standards. You also can’t machine wash [...]
Post from: Blisstree
Does Your Dentist Need An Eco-Makeover?
February is National Children’s Dental Health Month sponsored by the American Dental Association and while early dental care is an important topic, we’re going to go beyond that and look at eco-friendly dental care this month here at Blisstree Green as well.
Your first step on the road to greener dental care starts with your dentist. Not all dentist offices or dental professionals are as eco-friendly as they could be. Fr example, a dentist office not in tune with the environment may be handing out old school plastic toothbrushes while an eco-friendly office will hand out toothbrushes made of recycled plastic.
Other [...]
Post from: Blisstree
Does Your Dentist Need An Eco-Makeover?
February is National Children’s Dental Health Month sponsored by the American Dental Association and while early dental care is an important topic, we’re going to go beyond that and look at eco-friendly dental care this month here at Blisstree Green as well.
Your first step on the road to greener dental care starts with your dentist. Not all dentist offices or dental professionals are as eco-friendly as they could be. Fr example, a dentist office not in tune with the environment may be handing out old school plastic toothbrushes while an eco-friendly office will hand out toothbrushes made of recycled plastic.
Other [...]
Post from: Blisstree
Love Blooms at Farm Sanctuary
Normally I don’t post about animals here – or anywhere really. It’s just not an aspect of green living that I focus on. That said, animal rights are very much linked to green living and it’s an important issue. For example going vegetarian is not only kind to animals but makes a large positive impact on the planet and why buy leather or products tested on animals when there are other, greener options?
In any case, I don’t tend to post about animal issues and maybe it’s just the whole Valentine’s Day bug, but when I got a recent email from [...]
Post from: Blisstree