One thing we don’t pay enough attention to is indoor air quality. Are there improvements you can make?

• Add houseplants * Many common houseplants help filter indoor air quality. Try philodendron, dracaena, English ivy, spider plant, weeping fig, golden pothos, peace lily, Chinese evergreen, bamboo, and snake plant – all recommended by NASA.
• Reduce plastics * Swap your plastic shower curtain liner for a fabric one (you can wash it, too!).
• Change air fresheners * Stop using commercial sprays and plug-ins (really – that’s wasting electricity, too). Google “essential oil air fresheners” to find recipes for making your own. Bonus – you’ll always have the scent you want. And don’t forget to open the windows. Sometimes that’s all it takes.
• Ban the dry cleaning * When you bring home dry cleaning, take the clothes out of the bag and hang them in the garage overnight. Then bring the clothes in. The solvents used in dry cleaning are toxic, and have no place in your home. Search out a dry cleaner that uses non-toxic materials, too.

Going green has a lot of meanings (hope you tried the kale chips yesterday!) and today we’re thinking about the upcoming growing season.

There’s something wonderful about getting produce – even if it’s just herbs – from your own garden. Choose something to grow in your yard, or on your patio or deck, or on your windowsill this summer. If you’re unsure about what will grow in your area, go to a garden center and talk to the experts there (we’ve had much better luck with this in locally owned garden stores; they’re passionate about what they do, and they love to share). If seed are too risky for you, start with small starter plants.

We’ve had herb gardens in the midst of our flower beds; we’ve grown green beans and tomatoes in pots on small apartment deck; we’ve grown berries in large chunks of backyard real estate. There really is something for everyone.

Choose a way to be part of the growing season. It’s not just getting closer to nature, it’s being part of the connection between the world and your table. Making that connection is more difficult when everything on your table came wrapped in paper or plastic. Have a relationship with your food.

Photo by Lavinia Marin

We often buy things with good intentions and big plans. Things like musical instruments, foreign language CDs, DVD courses, and craft supplies.

More often than not, all this stuff ends up in our garage or basement or attic, gathering dust and taking up space.

If you’re not using this stuff anymore, and you know you probably won’t get around to it, turn it into a gift for someone who has a new passion for the same thing.

Regifting is fine as long as you repackage and personalize the new gift. Put the cooking DVDs in a basket with some new cooking tools or some staples (like extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar). Add a French dictionary and a photo or wall calendar of Paris to French foreign language CDs. Offer several hours of babysitting with the craft supplies, and a gift card for some introductory lessons with the musical instrument.

Make good use of the things you don’t use. Pass them on. Recycle them. Regift them. Your good intentions make great gifts.

That’s Bring Your Own Bag.

We’re big fans of bringing your own bags to the grocery store, and every other store you can.

We’re also big fans of keeping those bags clean. One of our members pointed out that dirty bags are not healthy. Not for you, not for your produce, and not for store employees, either.

• If you have wet or leaky grocery items, put them in plastic (hey, that’s one way to get an extra use from the plastic bag you took last week…).
• If your canvas bags are stained, toss them in the wash with a load of kitchen towels.
• If you use plastic-coated tote bags, wipe them with a damp dishcloth and let them air dry.

Keep your (clean!) bags on the front seat of your car and they’ll always be ready for a trip to the store.

As the weather gets cooler and drier, it’s harder to stay hydrated.

• Carry a water bottle while shopping, running errands, and commuting. Get a nice refillable one – cut down on plastic pollution while you’re at it.
• Put a humidifier in your bedroom, and remember to clean it every week.
• Eat more wet veggies and fruits.

Photo: Zsuzsanna Kilián

• Check your water heater. Wrap it in an insulating blanket (made just for water heaters) to increase its efficiency. Check the steam valve. Check the water temperature setting.
• Change your furnace filter.
• Get your boiler or furnace inspected every 5 years.
• Check your thermostat settings. Add a sweater before you add a degree.
• Have the heating ducts cleaned or vacuumed.
• Check your doors and windows for air leaks. Caulk where necessary. Replace door seals if needed.
• Make sure the damper in your fireplace is closed until you build a fire.
• Use an area rug or a “door snake” to cut the drafts at the bottoms of doors.
• Sign up for the budget saver plan with your utility company. Leveling out your utility payments across 12 months is much easier on your bank balance.

Farm Sanctuary spoke up, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is listening. In 2007, Farm Sanctuary formally petitioned the federal regulatory body to consider the treatment and living conditions of farm animals when creating rules allowing producers to label their meat and poultry products as “natural.” It took two years, but the agency has now officially acknowledged the petition and is requesting public comments on this issue.

Tell the USDA That Factory Farming Isn’t “Natural” – From now until November 13, you can contact the agency and let it know that allowing producers to label food products from animals raised in intensive confinement as “natural” is misleading and deceptive.

Don’t let the USDA condone animal cruelty in this way. Speak up today! (Don’t wait until November – speak up now!)

More info about Farm Sanctuary’s Truth in Labeling campaign
More info about contacting the USDA

There are very few government restrictions on what ingredients can go into your makeup, shampoo, and other beauty products. As a result, some pretty dangerous stuff ends up next to your skin every day. Skin Deep can help – it’s an online safety guide to cosmetics and personal care products.

The site is easy to use – type a product, company, or ingredient into the search field and you’ll get a list of matching entries. The safety rankings are numbered and color-coded. You can click on an entry to see details – don’t forget to scroll down.

There’s a lot of info on this site. Not all of it is fun to read – we’re going to have to reconsider some of our favorite products after seeing them associated with health risks we’re not willing to take for beauty. We’re still a little sad about that. But we know we’ll be happier in the long run.

Skin Deep is a product of the Environmental Working Group, which has an email list. It’s a good way to stay informed about all kinds of environmental toxins.

Have you thought about water as a limited global resource? It’s one good reason to pay attention to how much water we all use. According to the United Nations Development Program, water is one of the biggest indicators of social and economic health. That is, the more fresh water there is, the better off people are.

The good news is that since 1990, the number of people with access to clean water has grown by 1.6 billion. But UN computer models suggest that the combination of climate change and an increasing global population may lead to six billion people facing water shortages by 2050 unless we all get serious about conservation.

Saving water does more than make sure there’s enough to go around. It also conserves energy and helps prevent the global warming that’s harming water supplies in the first place.

Using less water means less need for water pumping, distribution, and desalinization. All of these processes require energy, and that has an impact on the global climate, too. In fact, according to the Worldwatch Institute, reducing these energy-intensive services could actually have a bigger impact than mandating that homes and business use less energy. So it’s clear that it’s time to conserve every drop.

Do your part. Use less.
Save water outside.
Save water indoors.

Photo by Afonso Lima