NY State Senator Tony Avella has sponsored a bill to ban hydraulic fracturing. “Fracking is the most important environmental issue this state has faced in the past 100 years,” he said.

Click to read the article in the Wall Street Journal.

What is Sustainable Living?

Our definition is “A life that is deeply satisfying, fulfilling, and appealing – and at the same time, environmentally responsible.”

To understand what sustainable living is, it helps to understand what it’s not.

First of all, it’s not about living in the woods, eating nuts and berries, and wearing tie-dyed clothes. It’s for mainstream adults – typical Americans with two cars in their garage, one of which might be a sport utility vehicle. It’s for people who ski, watch TV, hike, read, snowmobile, go to movies, rollerblade, play video games, bowl, and camp. For people with mortgages and those who drop their kids off at child care. It’s for people with credit cards and those who shop at malls. And for people who regularly drive up to fast food windows.

Second, sustainable living is not about never buying anything again. It is about making thoughtful decisions, considering the impacts of our consumer choices, and finding alternatives.

Third, sustainable living is not competitive. Individuals have different needs and values. Sustainable living is deeply personal, based on individual definitions of quality of life. For example, this quote might express your sentiments exactly – or it might not.

Fourth, sustainable living is not guilt-driven. It focuses not on what was done in the past but on what will be done in the future. It combines practical ideas – such as turning off lights – with intangibles such as lifestyle values and personal quality of life.

And finally, sustainable living is not “gloom and doom.” It does, however, put our individual actions into a global context. While it’s about taking positive steps at the individual and family level, the world we live in is an important consideration. Wackernagel and Rees, in Our Ecological Footprint, state, “It would require four Earths for everybody on the planet to live the lifestyle of North Americans.”

Read more about the OSU Sustainable Living Project at cof.orst.edu/cof/extended/sustain/

“Our goal when we opened Living Light Marketplace was to carry products not only for the raw food chef, but for anyone who wants to make a difference when they select household items, products, and gifts for family and friends,” says Soria. “We’ve created this simple holiday list for the conscious consumer with sustainable values in mind.”

• Bamboo-one of the fastest growing renewable plant species on the planet. Try bamboo flatware or chopsticks. Cherie’s advice: “Use these plants to eat more plants.”
• More Bamboo-The Bamboo Bottle for hot or cold beverages is BPA free, durable, and 1% of sales go back to the planet.
• Acacia bowls-sustainably produced of Hawaiian hardwood are both beautiful and durable.
• Glass Dharma Straws-lifetime guarantee, and made of borosilicate class in Fort Bragg, California, where we live. It’s the last straw you’ll ever need.
• Greenware-this stainless steel water bottle is lightweight, BPA free, durable, and 1% of the sales go back to the planet.
• EcoBags Natural Tote-in durable cotton canvas with Living Light logo – great for shopping, errands and travel.
• Thai Coconut Sugar-known also as jaggery, coconut sugar is a world renowned low-glycemic sweetener favored by Mahatma Gandhi.
• Rawsome Creations Nut Milk Bag-fair trade, philanthropic, functional, and durable. Make your own nut and seed milks with this simple tool, and drink to your health.
• Guatemalan Aprons-beautiful striped, hand woven icats in a palette of rich colors and patterns in long or short styles, with adjustable straps.

Click to read the entire article

All this and more is being offered at the second annual Local Living Festival, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sept. 24 and 25 2011 at the Cooperative Extension Learning Farm, 2043 Route 68 in Canton, NY.

Click for more information.

This article in EcoSeed – Energy | Environment | Economy explains how His Royal Highness Prince William of Wales will marry Miss Catherine Middleton in an eco-friendly way, from the wedding ring to the flowers.

Let us hope their marriage is totally sustainable, too!

Click to read the article in EcoSeed.

This blog post on the New York Times website talks about a plan to open a ski park in a waste management plant. The article says, “If you’re itching to visit the new advanced waste management plant that will open in 2016 in Copenhagen, be sure to bring your skis. An urban ski park will cover the plant, which will incinerate the waste from five municipalities to generate heat and electricity for 140,000 homes.”

Imagine taking an elevator to the top of a building, then skiing down one of 3 slopes while your trash – and all the trash from the surrounding region – burns merrily inside.

Read this article to find out what these “geniuses” are thinking.

Hmm. Go skiing to take you mind of pollution.

The detailed study, known as a Draft Solar Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement, names 24 “solar energy zones” that Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said are “best suited for large-scale solar development.”

Click to read the article on the Environmental News Service website.

photo by Jim Fairchild

Maharishi University of Management has launched a $1.5 million renovation project to fix buildings, upgrade facilities, and improve energy efficiency at the same time. After completing a $2 million dorm renovation project last year, the University plans to spend half of the new funds on energy efficient upgrades.

“Our University Trustees were eager to make energy efficiency a major focus of the project,” said David Streid, MUM chief administrative officer. In addition to making the campus greener, the upgrades will save money in the long run.

The roof of the Art Center received an additional 2 ½ inches of insulation and a system to capture the heat from the kiln . . .

Click to read the rest of this article.

Try or buy The Green Parent for more information. This magazine is aimed at parents in the UK and Europe who want to raise green kids. The entire article is available online to subscribers and trial members.

Environmental benefits of trayless cafeterias:

• conserves water and electricity
• reduces water pollution (detergents, drying agents etc.)
• decreases food waste

When given a tray, the tendency is to fill it up with more than you can eat. One survey showed a 25-30% drop in food waste after trays were removed from school dining halls. Maharishi University of Management’s food waste was nearly 800 lbs/day.

This will also reduce cost.

Source: Dome Announcement

Click to read an article on this nationwide trend.