Getting Started

While Green Living is a constant process and requires changing some habits, you can get started and be well on your way in a few short weeks. This is meant to be a gradual process which I feel is the best way to change habits. These pages will outline some techniques so that you can achieve this in your home and family while still living a comfortable lifestyle. While the entire plan can be accomplished in 4 weeks, there is some cost involved so you may need to spread it out longer. It is understandable that some things cannot be accomplished immediately. Each week will provide you with three things.

Action List

The first thing each week will provide is an action list. This is a list of things that will help you achieve the week’s goals and put them into place.

Action Plan

Next each week, you will be provided with an action plan. The action plan will help you continue the week’s actions in the future. While some tasks are one-time, others will take place over the rest of your lifetime. Don’t worry though, they quickly become second-nature.

Taking it further

Finally, each week will provide a list of related tips that are similar to the week’s action list. By implementing these tips, you will reduce your impact more and enhance your lifestyle over time. While each week will explore concepts and ideas that are easy to implement and not necessarily costly, the tips may have higher costs associated with them.

Week 1

Let’s get started on making our lives a little more green. In week one, we will develop a plan of action that will guide you in the process. This guide will become your action plan and to-do list over the next four weeks. Your actions this week will enable you to immediately make an impact and put some money saving concepts to work. The things to undertake on week one, can be implemented in a single day and won’t cost a lot of money.

Week 2

This week we will start implementing changes that will have long term affects in reducing your global impact. However they will have a long term impact on your life and the environment around you. This week I’ll give you hints and tips that show you how to accomplish this.

Week 3

Originally, I said we were going to adjust habits in order to be more environmentally friendly and live green. This week we learn how to put what we learned in Weeks 1 and 2 within our long term goals. This will help you change those habits and think more about living green.

Week 4

In week four, you will review your action plan and make any necessary changes so that it becomes a life-long action plan. You will also get ready for the remaining 48 weeks of the year so that your plan is put into place over the year and becomes a true part of your lifestyle.

Beyond

While still a series of baby steps, you need to implement what you learned in the previous four weeks on a lifelong basis. This will also help your children grow up to be green. Buying habits and our outlook on life need to change but the comfort of our lives do not.

Going Green

The phrase ” going green” is something that we hear frequently these days. It seems everywhere we turn we are bombarded with products and suggestions that promise to help our families live a more green lifestyle. Unfortunately, it is not always economically feasible for every family to make some of the more obvious large changes. However, there are many small simple changes everyone can make that will have a big impact on the environment over time. Read more

What Are The Benefits Of Organic Food?

There is much discussion today about the pros and cons of organic food. People want to know whether organic food is better than non-organic food. They wonder whether the term “organic” is nothing more than the latest money-making marketing term being thrown about. They question the regulatory oversight bodies that determine whether the food that’s labeled organic really meets all of the criteria. These are difficult questions to answer with certainty especially since the answers often depend on who is asked. Regardless, there are several very real benefits of consuming organic food. Here is an overview of the most common.

Organic Food Tastes Better

The people who eat organic food claim that organic food is more flavorful and studies have actually been conducted that confirm this belief. The chemicals that are used in the production of non-organic food definitely affect flavor.

Organic Food is Better for the Body

The United States Environmental Protection Agency now lists many of the chemicals used in the production of pesticides and fungicides as potential cancer-causing components. It makes sense then, that when non-organic foods are consumed, so too are these cancer-causing ingredients. Since these types of chemicals cannot be used to grow organic foods, they simply are not present and therefore, they cannot be ingested. Eating organic foods won’t unfortunately prevent cancer because there are plenty of genetic and environmental factors that can cause it to develop. However eating organic food greatly reduces the chance that certain cancers will develop.

In addition, organically-grown produce contains up to 50% more of the vitamins, minerals and antioxidants the body needs to stay healthy and perform at optimum capacity. If you’re trying to add more fruit and vegetables to your diet, you can double the benefits by eating organic ones.

You Can Feel Good about What You Eat

When you eat organic food, you know what you’re not getting. You know you’re not eating food that’s been genetically altered or shot up with growth hormones and antibodies. You know that the skins of your fruits and vegetables aren’t a thick covering of chemicals and other harmful ingredients. The bottom line: You know that you are fueling your body with healthy fuel. Centuries ago, people did not have as many health-related issues as they do in these more modern times. Plenty of people feel it is our food that is killing us.

You Help Protect Environment

When pesticides and fertilizers are applied to plants, there is no way to keep the chemicals used in their production from covering the ground. Rain and irrigation cause these chemicals to be absorbed into the ground. As they absorb into the ground, they percolate down to the underground water tables. Ultimately, the chemicals leach into nearby water bodies. The soil as well as the water begins to be contaminated. Over time the birds, fish and other animals living in these environments become affected. Since organic foods are grown without using these dangerous chemicals, their growth will never impact the environment in this manner.