New Years Resolutions

Jan 02 | archive | subscribe

The New Year is the time to reflect on promises made in the old year, gauge your progress and recommit going forward. When it comes to green, did you keep your eco-oaths? What about giving, did you up the ante, take on a new nonprofit or volunteer more? And, how good were you to your friends, family and community? Here are Phil’s New Years resolutions for a better green, good and giving year.

1) Choose Healthy, Local, Sustainable Food That Supports Community
When you buy locally grown produce 100% of your dollar goes to the farmer. You're not only supporting them, you're also supporting the entire local economy. Organically grown produce consistently tests higher than non-organically grown foods for vitamins, minerals, and other micronutrients, and less of that bad stuff such as nitrates, heavy metals and other contaminants. sustainable agriculture is economically viable, socially responsible, and ecologically sound and cannot use up resources faster than it can produce them.

2) Give Up Water Bottles & Plastic Bags
Bottled water is just water, but it’s also garbage that represents a great risk to marine life, killing birds and fish which mistake our garbage for food. Bottled water produces up to 1.5 million tons of plastic waste per year and requires up to 47 million gallons of oil per year to produce. mysigg.com

Americans throw away an average of 16 plastic bags per week, 4-5 trillion plastic bags worldwide. Use your own chic, reusable, market tote. methodhome.com

3) The Three R’s - Reduce, Recycle, Reuse
Implementing the three R’s will help you save money and help protect the environment. If we do that, we are reducing our stress by living in a healthy world. Only buy things you need and that come in non-wasteful packaging that can be recycled. Reuse and recycle whatever you can.

4) LED Light Your Home And Office
Use free natural daylight in your home and office it improves productivity and satisfaction. Incandescent bulbs should be replaced with compact fluorescents and there is an ever-growing selection of high-end LED (a light-emitting diode) desk lamps that use trivial amounts of energy.

5) Go Green And Get Clean
Most of the cleaning products we use are non-renewable petroleum-based and have health and environmental concerns. Instead make use of natural products and methods that keep a house clean and fresh smelling without toxins that are linked to illness, fatigue, and disease. shaklee.com

6) Plant A Tree
Trees act as carbon "sinks." During a 50-year life span, one tree will generate $30,000 in oxygen, recycle $35,000 worth of water, and clean up $60,000 worth of air pollution or $125,000 total per tree without including any other values. Since 1981, Friends of the Urban Forest (FUF) has provided financial, technical, and practical assistance to San Franciscans for Tree Planting and Care for over 1,500 trees each year. fuf.net

7) Buy Energy Star Certified
If looking for new household products, buy ones that have earned the Energy Star. They meet strict energy efficiency guidelines set by the EPA and US Department of Energy. Americans have saved enough energy in 2006 alone to avoid greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those from 25 million cars and saved $14 billion on their utility bills. energystar.gov

8) Calculate Your Carbon Footprint And Buy Offsets
Carbon mitigating is the act of offsetting greenhouse gas emissions from your carbon-producing activities such as car usage and personal air travel. While tree planting was initially a mainstay of carbon offsetting, a wide variety of offset methods are in use renewable energy, energy conservation and methane capture offsets have become increasingly popular. terrapass.com

9) Give Back By Volunteering
When you volunteer you are giving something back to your community by lending a helping hand to people and organizations. What you may not realize is that volunteering also benefits you as an individual. There are many good reasons to get involved in the community, including learning something about yourself and meeting other gay people with similar interests. You don't need a special talent to volunteer, just your dedication. volunteermatch.org

10) Apologize And Make Amends

An apology is an expression of remorse over having done something wrong, and a request for forgiveness. keep your dignity while being humble, and invite forgiveness with grace. A true apology entails a resolution, and you have to carry out your promise in order for the apology to be sincere and complete.