Whether you decide to join forces with one of the many environmental activist groups that hold annual Earth Day programs, or you opt to celebrate the planet all by yourself, you are bound to find that a few wildflower seeds will not set you back too much financially. You can also bank on the fact that the rewards that come from watching them grow and then flower will make you feel like a million bucks. Best of all, if left undisturbed, wildflowers will re-seed and replant themselves. They provide food for insects and birds, and offer the bee and butterfly a place to find pollen and nectar. So, create your very own natural wonder with a little effort, a few seeds, and a glad heart. Don’t forget, on Earth Day, we can all do something to help the planet.

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There are several ways to turn wind power into wind energy.  The resource can then be converted into power that can help other forms that need electricity.  Using a tool called wind turbines is a wonderful way to generate power through wind electricity.  Most of the wind power is converted into energy by using turbine blades.  The blades are then transformed into an electrical source through an electrical generator. 

Wind power was first introduced in 1999 and has increased greatly since 2005.  Most types of wind power are used by people in Europe.  The total amount of worldwide wind powered accumulation was 58,982 megawatts.  Twenty-three percent of this was accumulated in 2005 and was spoken for in Denmark, while Germany contributed six percent, and Spain reportedly had eight percent.  The growing concerns for the environment all over the world will probably contribute to utilizing wind power into making affordable and safe energy.  

Windmills are the oldest method of using wind power, but the modern concept is the technically the same.  Wind energy is very useful in locations with wind farms.  Wind farms have electrical grids to serve a large populated area.  However, wind farms can also be small for rural areas or small communities.  An added benefit of wind power is that it is recyclable, extremely powerful, clean, good for the environment, and it has to ability to start the greenhouse effect.  Wind is very dependant on the greenhouse gasses as a way of making alternative methods of electrical energy.  

There are several things to consider when you are purchasing a wind generator.  Wind power generators have to be fairly tall in order to have the best wind count.  Most home associations and town governments have restrictions on how tall a structure can be.  Make sure that you check with your local city or town’s policy before making the commitment.  Some areas are also not ready for wind power.  You need to check that your purchase will provide the services that you are looking for, or else it will be a large waste of money.  

Wildlife is also another factor in choosing a wind generator.  Wind power sources have a very bad reputation for harming birds.  This is basically a chance situation, that rarely happens.  However, if there is a bird sanctuary in your area, then you might have to check the policy of installing a wind power source.  Wind generators may not be enough to provide power by itself.  Wind power sources can be combined with other solar options to generate free power.  There is no use in paying for power when you can make your own.

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The most obvious benefit is that bio-diesel is completely recyclable, meaning that it helps the environment.  A car that uses bio-diesel fuel will emit less pollution into the air, as opposed to a vehicle that uses traditional diesel fuel.  The smoke from a car that is fueled with this new product is very clear, which is different than the dirty black smoke of regular diesel fuel.  Bio-diesel is also very cheap.  Bio-diesel was first created when someone had the idea to use corn and soy bean oils.  You can even make your own bio-diesel at home.  Restaurants that use a large amount of vegetable oil has to store the excess used oil in a separate container outside.  The recycle plant then comes and gets the oil.  You can ask these restaurants to let you have some of the used oil for your car.  Most of the owners will be very willing to let you have it.  

Keep in mind that if your car is not already set up for bio-diesel, then you cannot simply pour the vegetable oil in your gas tank.  Your engine might need modification first.  Some people will mix bio-diesel with regular diesel to help the car run more smoothly.  Bio-diesel has proven to help a vehicle run better.  This is because the organic fuel has a cetane number of over 100.  Cetane is used to measure the quality of the fuel’s ignition.  Bio-diesel can also help your car last longer.  The purity and clarity of the oil will prevent your car from being worn down by natural pollution and other additives.  The oil will give your car more lubrication.  

There is no need for bio-diesel fuel to be drilled out of the earth, transported, or refined like regular diesel fuel.  Therefore, it is less time consuming and more affordable.  Most bio-fuel is made locally.  There is no need for the community to pay taxes to other countries in order to obtain the fuel, which will in turn, help the growing economy.  Each country has the ability to make their own bio-diesel fuel and it slowly becoming an encouraged act.  

The production of the new organic oil has recently been favored all over the world.  Europe has already made this new idea come true with bio-diesel fuel stations.  There has also been talk about making future cars compatible with bio-diesel fuel in the future.  More and more countries are hearing word of this new development in fuel development.  Our world will be positively affected, as well as our income and our health.

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Celebrate the Holidays and Our Earth in Eco-Friendly Ways

The holidays are drawing near, and we all look forward to family, friends, decorations, pageants and gifts. We feel closer to our loved ones and the spirit of joy takes over. Along with all these wonderfully positive emotions and the rush of excitement comes garbage bags full of wrapping paper, boxes and bows, millions of trees that have been chopped down, and a huge increase in megawatt usage to light our chopped down trees, our windows and yards. For those of us who wish to, and are trying desperately to leave a smaller ecological footprint, we struggle with the desire to give beautifully wrapped gifts and light up the neighborhood, and the desire to help save the Earth. There are ways to celebrate, have fun, eat well and light up the yard and still have an eco-friendly holiday. And after all, nobody wants to be a Scrooge. There are many things we can all do to help make the holidays more eco-friendly, and even if each of us uses only some of these ideas, the positive impact will be momentous.

Gift Wrap and Packages

The holiday season, which traditionally begins in the U.S. with Thanksgiving and ends on New Years Day brings with it about a million extra tons of garbage! This is mostly wrapping paper and packaging, and with a few painless steps, you can reduce and reuse without turning holiday gift giving colorless and blah.

Robert Lilienfeld, who co-authored the book Use Less Stuff: Environmental Solutions for Who We Really Are, tells us that if every family reused just 2 feet of holiday ribbon, the 38,000 miles of ribbon saved could tie a bow around the entire planet. This is incredible! Can you wrap a gift reusing ribbon or without using ribbon at all? Of course you can!

And what about wrapping paper? Consider purchasing recycled wrapping paper. Or, become an artist and use plain brown recycled paper. With colored markers or tempura paint, decorate the wrapped packages by drawing or painting ribbons, bows and other holiday visions on them. If you don’t want to do that, have your little ones decorate them with their tempura painted hands. The warm creativity that shows through in these personalized packages is pure love. Another idea for gift-wrapping is to use fabric scraps. Tie them with colorful yarn and attach a gift tag made from recycled holiday cards and you’ve got a lovely presentation with old-fashioned flair.

Some gifts can be presented without wrappings. What about a pair of tickets to a great concert, show or sporting event? Put them in an envelope, write the recipients name and “With Love” from you in colored ink and wait to see their face light up when they open their gift.

Gifts can also be given in the form of donations to a favorite charity or non-profit. And what about giving gifts such as No Chore coupons, or free babysitting (of course, you have to be sure to make good on these). These don’t need wrapping up – very convenient and Earth-friendly.

Gift Purchases

Giving gifts is fun no matter what time of the year it is. When we give well thought out gifts that please the recipient, we feel like we’ve really hit the mark. When we give gifts that also help perpetuate the survival of the planet, we know we’ve done even better!

Gifts that are made from organic or recycled materials, or made by local artists are wonderful choices. Gifts from organizations such as Oxfam are a delightful way to give to your ecologically and socially minded friends and loved ones. You will also want to consider buying Fair Trade. People in underdeveloped countries around the world make Fair Trade items. Your purchase of Fair Trade gifts will benefit these people in many ways. Organic and locally made gifts are also a great way to go. These are so much nicer than the garden-variety gifts that can be bought at Wal-Mart. Remember that the biggest, best and most important gift of the holidays is the time you spend with, and attention you give to the people you love.

Lighting and Warming Without Being an Energy Pig

If you are completely and fervently committed to not adding to the megawatt and fossil fuel overload that occurs at holiday time, do not put lights on the tree or anywhere else for that matter and turn the heat down for goodness sake.  And don’t turn on the oven for hours for all that cooking and baking.

If however, you want to be eco-friendly, and still take part in some of the traditional celebratory rituals, try these tips:

• When you are going to have a group over for dinner or an open house, turn the heat down by a couple degrees. No one will notice because all those extra people milling around in your home will be creating heat.

• Use LED lights for your decorative lighting. Because LED lights have semi-conducting material rather than incandescent filaments, they are 90 percent more efficient than traditional Christmas lights. Literally billions of kilowatt-hours could be saved if everyone used LED holiday lights. LED lights also last longer, release little heat and if one goes out, the rest will keep glowing.

• Whether you are using LED or traditional lights, turn them off at night when you are asleep to save additional energy.

• When it comes to washing all the dishes after your holiday feast, make sure to only run the dishwasher when it is full – then use a water conserving setting.

Your Holiday Tree

The tree debate is always a big one. Do you buy an artificial tree that will last for years and years, thus eliminating your yearly car trip to the tree farm; but also used who knows how much fossil fuel in the course of it’s production? Not to mention the fact that when it goes to the landfill it will take millennia to biodegrade? Or should you purchase a real tree? The real tree releases a whole bunch (yes, whole bunch is a technical term) of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere when it’s cut down and (hopefully not) burned in your back yard after you’re done with it. Or it takes up space in the landfill. The best we can hope for it is that a real tree will end up being chipped into mulch or at least put outside where it’s remains will become a home to critters. So, real tree or fake tree? Well, that’s going to have to be your call. As noted above, there are pros and cons both ways.

If you decide to buy a real tree for your holiday, you can refer to The National Christmas Tree Association’s web site. This Scottsdale, Arizona based group will direct you to the nearest place to drop off your old tree for proper recycling.

Note that while you might hear the suggestion that you should get a rooted tree and bring it in for the holiday, then plant it outside, this isn’t a great idea. Your rooted holiday tree will not adapt well to the hot indoors and you won’t be able to plant it outside until you can dig in the soil. If you live in Northern climates, the tree will have to wait until spring, and it may not survive that long. If you want to plant a rooted tree, by all means do so, but do it in the fall. String LED lights on it and enjoy the way it lights up your yard.

Tree Decorations

OK, you’ve picked your tree and now it’s time to decorate. Let’s think of the ways you can decorate a tree so that it is beamingly beautiful and also more Earth-friendly. Here are some suggestions:

• String garlands of cranberries and popcorn to hang on the boughs. These will be a welcome treat for birds and squirrels after the holidays are over and your tree is retired.
• Search the web for ideas on how to make recycled or homemade ornaments for your tree.
• You can cut out pretty pictures from the cards you received last year (you saved them, right?), and back them with a bit of colored paper or felt, punch a hole, string yarn or cloth ribbon through, and you’ve got ornaments.
• Decorate your tree with pinecones that have fallen from nearby trees or even acorns from an oak tree – a little ribbon, some hot glue and a pinecone or a few acorns and you have Mother Nature’s best decorations.
• Purchase some pretty holiday-themed wired ribbon and artfully weave it through the branches and around the tree. This looks beautiful and you can use the ribbon for several years.
• Cut festive shapes from felt, decorate with sequins or glitter, and attach a ribbon for hanging.

Holiday Greeting Cards

The best way to help the Earth when it comes to greeting cards is by sending electronic greetings. Use any cards you received last year to make tree decorations or gift tags.

To Decorate Your Home

If you have evergreens or ivy growing in your yard, use the trimmings to drape around pictures and on the mantle. You can also fashion a wreath from the trimmings by attaching it to a wire form and finish with a pretty bow.

If you are going to purchase decorative items for your home, shop at antique and resale shops for interesting items that you can use to create a wonderful holiday décor. With a bit of creativity and artistic flair, you can give these items a second life and your home a lively holiday look.

Packaging for Shipping

Use packing materials such as Styrofoam peanuts from items you receive in the mail or from the parcel delivery service. Or you can always use popcorn (the real kind, without butter). Or loosely ball up newspaper or leftover scraps of wrapping paper, and pack around the gift for comfy shipping.

Consider the Go Zero program when shipping your gift purchased from a green retailer. Many will add a contribution of $2 to your order with the idea of erasing the impact of shipping your gift. The money goes to The Conservation Fund to plant a tree that will absorb more than one ton of CO2 from the atmosphere over its lifetime. Check out the Go Zero program at www.conservationfund.org/gozero.

Entertaining

• Don’t use Styrofoam anything. Or paper plates and cups if you can avoid it. Serve your hors d’oeuvres, meals and desserts on real dinnerware and glassware. Don’t worry if it’s not fancy Christmas china, your guest will appreciate your efforts.
• Keep in mind that all that food you will be storing afterwards should be completely cooled before you put it in the refrigerator. If you put warm food in the fridge, it works that much harder to cool itself down. Or you could send each guest home with a delicious plate of leftover treats.
• Turn the heat down a notch or two. All those people and the warmth from the oven will keep your house toasty.
• Buy organic wine, along with organic food items if you can. See about purchasing a free-range turkey for the centerpiece of your healthy, festive, and eco-friendly meal.
• Turn down the lights a bit. Create a warm, festive atmosphere by using those LED decorative lights to provide ambience. Turn off the lights in parts of your home that won’t be used for entertaining, and lower the lights in the dining room to create a lovely effect and save some energy.

The holidays are a time welcomed by us all. We celebrate our faiths, we celebrate our cultures and heritages, and we celebrate our families and friends. Let’s also celebrate this wonderful planet we share not only with all other humans, but our animal and plant friends, too. This web of existence is truly that – a web, and if we don’t maintain our web, it won’t work as well for us. Enjoy the holiday season in a way that makes sense ecologically, and don’t forget to share these ideas with family and friends. Happy Holidays!

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