Tips for Greener Shopping

Shop Green, Live Happy

Buying green means shopping with the environment in your mind and really thinking about each thing you are putting into your cart as you go up and down the aisles. Many shoppers do not do this and it is hurting not only the environment, but their own wallets. Because of this, I have compiled a list of five main tips to keep in mind at your next trip to the grocery store:

1. Buy Durable- Be sure to buy products that are going to last you a long time. Rather than having to constantly go back out to the store to purchase small items. Right now, these products are more expensive but in the long run they will save you money. Some good examples include reusable cups rather than paper or plastic and rechargeable batteries rather than disposable. 

2. Buy Used- Used products can be just as good as new products, and they're almost always significantly cheaper. These used products are not wasting packaging like newer products as well. Take a day to travel around thrift shops and flea markets; you never know what amazing steals you'll find. 

3. Buy Local- When it comes to produce purchases, try to buy from local farmers. In doing so, you can guarantee that the food you are eating is not treated with chemicals and is fresher overall. Supporting local farms and giving them business will help spur your local economy. Rather than wasting the packaging and energy that large scale factory farms must use to ship their produce, you are purchasing right from the source. 

4. Buy Online- There are a number of green online retailers out there. You are saving the energy emissions from travelling to the mall or store by ordering products online. In addition, you can be sure that the vendor you are purchasing from is a reputable source that you can trust is eco-friendly. 

5. Don't Buy- The best tip I can give is don't buy at all. There are thousands of DIY projects out there to recycle and upcycle old belongings into useful objects to use around the house. Things that you may have normally thrown away or sold in a yard sale can be turned into something brand new. 

Everybody can be a "green" shopper if they follow these simple tasks and put a little more thought into their shopping trips. So next time you're planning on going to the store, make sure it's a necessary trip

Colleges Around the Country Compete in Recyclemania

Colleges across the nation are getting into RecycleMania, when they compete against schools to see who can reduce the most waste. As the semester progresses, competitors will be going after each other to see who will be top dog of the recycling world.

What is RecycleMania?

RecycleMania is a way for colleges to promote waste reduction around their campus. The competition lasts 8 weeks in the spring semester. By creating a competitive atmosphere, more students are excited to get involved and try to get their school on top. The colleges that participate report the amount of recycling and trash collected by the school each week on a per capita basis. They are also ranked based on who has the best recycling rate of total waste and who generated the least amount of combined trash and recycling. RecycleMania describes its goals as:

1. Motivate students and staff to increase recycling efforts and reduce waste generation
2. Generate attention and support for campus recycling programs
3. Encourage colleges to measure and benchmark recycling activity in their effort to improve their programs over time
4. Have a fair and friendly competition

Although most schools have recycling collection and education programs, it is difficult to get students and staff to actually participate. 

To cater to the many different schools and their interests, there are different categories and divisions:

• The Competition Division is a more formal competition and schools are ranked alongside their competition, they must accurately track their waste and follow the rules of the competition closely.

• The Benchmark Division is casual and schools can go at their own pace, they don't have to follow the rules as closely. In addition, they are not included in the rankings and therefore cannot "win."

It will be interesting to see which of the schools participating comes out on top. Check out the RecycleMania website to get a better look at what it is and how your favorite schools are doing. 

6 More Weeks of Winter? What About Global Warming?

As you may have heard, our friend Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow yesterday. Yes, we're in for 6 more weeks of winter. We all know what that means, shoveling out the driveway, slipping on black ice, and just generally being absolutely freezing all the time. It's not fun (unless you like winter, I suppose). I hear a lot of people complaining "...but what about global warming? Shouldn't we not even have winter at all?" Well, here it is folks:

The cold truth about Global Warming

Before you start to think I'm some crazy conspiracy theorist, that's not the case. Climate change IS happening, it is just misunderstood by the masses. Scientists stress that climate and weather are completely different things. Weather consists of the day-to-day weather conditions while climate consists of the average weather conditions over a long period of time. There may be periods of cold weather but as a whole the average temperature is increasing, thus causing a change in climate. 

So how exactly does global warming work?

Increases in greenhouse gases have cut down on the ozone layer, which is the protective layer between the Earth and the Sun. Due to this, the Arctic has been heating up and the ice and snow are going away and leaving dark blue ocean water. As many know, the Sun is attracted to dark colors so the dark water is heating up quickly. The rapidly heating up water contrasts the icy air in the Arctic which makes a high pressure system; this then swirls and pushes colder-than-usual air down onto the rest of the world.

I know that can be pretty hard to follow but basically, the melting Arctic ice is causing shorter, more intense winters and an overall higher average temperature. 

How to Help

There are a number of different ways to help stop global warming, among which are:

• Reduce the use of fossil fuels by using less energy or alternative energy sources
• Plant trees to offset carbon dioxide emissions from deforestation
• Reduce waste which cuts down on your carbon footprint
• Conserve water to reduce energy used to purify, heat, and distribute it

Remember the next time you're stuck inside because of a huge blizzard or walking around in more layers than you can move in that it is not just a cold day. It is the result of a larger issue. You can do your part to save the planet.

Sources

Every writer needs a little inspiration, these are the blogs I use to get mine:

Clean Technica is a website that focuses on the clean technology industry. Some of their main topics include renewable energy, recycling, and transportation. In today's world, technology is all around us. We need to make sure to be as Green as possible through our use of technology. 


Ecocentric is a blog written through Time Magazine by senior writer Bryan Walsh. The articles through this blog are focused on many different topics, but they often relate back to the government. A lot of his posts discuss how the economy is affected by issues regarding sustainability and the new laws and regulations being enacted. 

The last blog I have looked at is run by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). These posts take often dense topics about issues in the environment and sustainability and attempts to make them more accessible to average people. There are many different posters on this site, all of which are EPA staff members. 

What's the deal?

Welcome to Green is the New Black!

I'm not quite sure how you got here (it may not have even been on purpose) but nevertheless, you are. Let me give you a little background on who I am, what this blog is, and why you should continue to stumble back upon this page. So without further ado...

My name is Tori Hancock

I'm a blogger for the fictitious publication, Green Magazine, one of the leading sustainability magazines in the nation. We deal with a myriad of topics on sustainability. I am passionate about the field and am looking forward to giving some personal insight about some of the biggest (and possibly controversial) topics in the area. In the last few years, people all over the world have begun their quest to "Go Green," companies have set up initiatives to make their companies more Eco-friendly. My goal is to make sure that living a sustain-ably isn't just a New Year's resolution that you drop after a few weeks like getting healthy. Being sustainable is a lifestyle and is something that needs to be worked at and up-kept. 

If I haven't scared you away yet

As you continue to follow my blog posts, you will see me posting about different issues from renewable energy, to climate change, to recycling and everything in between. The goal is to keep it simple and interesting because, I know, sometimes solar panel talk can get pretty boring. The topics can be pretty controversial in the sustainability field, there are a lot of different opinions, including my own. 

Hopefully I've sparked your interest and you want to keep coming back for more!

(I am a student at Bentley University writing for an online journalism course)