Archive for Earth Friendly
Welcome back to the Planet Forward blog for another edition of our weekly green news highlights. This week: the EPA maps out the worst greenhouse gas emitters; 15 resolutions for a greener New Year; and 8 steps to a healthy home: the key for a healthy body and planet. Just click on the links to learn more.
EPA Greenhouse Gas Emissions Image Credit: epa.gov
The EPA maps the worst greenhouse gas offenders in the US. The EPA has developed an interactive map to help you understand who the major greenhouse gas (GHG) emitters are in the USA. “EPA’s online data publication tool allows users to review information quickly and easily by filtering GHG data in a variety of ways including by facility, industry, location, or gas. The tool displays data in two distinct sections: “Direct emitters” are facilities that combust fuels or otherwise put GHGs into the atmosphere directly from their facility. This data is the default view for the tool. “Suppliers” are those entities that supply certain fossil fuels or fluorinated gases into the economy which, when combusted, released or oxidized emit greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. This data may be found by accessing the suppliers section of the publication tool.”
15 Resolutions for a Greener New Year. There are lots of zero cost green resolutions on the list from the Daily Green created by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). Green basics like recycling, using reusable bags over plastic, and banning bottled water in favour of reusable bottles and good old fashion tap water make for excellent resolutions that are also easy to implement. One resolution that I immediately followed up on for my own household was to stop receiving those unwanted catalogues, which I seem to unintentionally stockpile and then eventually recycle. 19 billion catalogues are mailed in the US annually which requires 53 million trees to produce, not to mention the carbon footprint to deliver it to your mailbox. It’s time to get off those mailing lists sending you catalogues you aren’t even looking at. Besides, what’s in the catalogue is also available online which is a much greener way to shop anyway.
8 Steps to a Healthy Home: The Key for a Healthy Body and Planet. This article from the Huffington Post is a nice compliment to the green resolutions from the NRDC. Again, simple green tips for a healthy planet and healthier you. In fact, some of the steps suggested are also on the green resolution list like avoiding toxic chemicals and green cleaning with vinegar and baking soda instead; or eliminating bottled water with tap water and reusable bottles; or simply buying local and organic.
Got any green resolutions of your own? Sound off in the comments. Stay tuned for more green news.
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Planet Forward is an online retailer of ethically-made, earth-friendly products designed for everyday use with a distinctly urban feel. Products include reusable stainless steel bottles, stainless steel thermal travel mugs, waste-free lunch bags, reusable shopping bags, Make-it-Yourself toxin-free Green Cleaning kits, organic fashions and other accessories. SALE 50% OFF ALL PRODUCTS – SHOP NOW !
Reindeer Chow Christmas Treats for Kids to Make
Posted by: | CommentsWelcome back to the Planet Forward blog for an eco-friendly craft for kids Friday with a twist. Rather than a craft, we’re bringing a simple recipe today that kids can make with a little adult supervision.
Santa gets cookies on Christmas Eve with each home visit but what about his reindeer? Everyone forgets about them. Until today. Today we have a simple recipe for Reindeer Treats that the kids can make and put out for Santa’s reindeer. This great recipe comes courtesy of Bakerella which is an incredible site for all things baking. Not only is it beautifully designed but the recipes are amazing and the photography is excellent. If you haven’t had the pleasure and are interested in baking, do yourself a favour and visit this fantastic site. Now on to our Reindeer Chow.
Reindeer Chow image courtesy of bakerella.com
Ingredients
- 5 cups Crispix Cereal
- 1 cup peanut butter
- 12 oz. package of semi-sweet chocolate morsels
- 1 box confectioner’s sugar
Directions
- Melt chocolate in microwave 1 minute at a time until melted.
- Add peanut butter to melted chocolate and mix well.
- In a large bowl (with a snap on lid), add melted chocolate and peanut butter to top of cereal and mix well.
- Add confectioner’s sugar and cover bowl with lid. Shake well to coat thoroughly.
Note: If you don’t have a bowl with a lid, you can place the coated cereal and confectioner’s sugar in a large ziploc bag and shake well.
These Reindeer Treats are simple, delicious and are sure to be a hit with adults, kids and, well, reindeer too. Simply fill up a bowl and leave them beside the cookies for Santa and you’ll see a clean bowl in the morning.
We’ll return with more eco-friendly crafts for kids next Friday but we couldn’t resist this fun and easy recipe that is perfect for the holiday season (and can also work at any time of year too). Our thanks again to the Bakerella.
Happy Holidays!
For the latest sustainable and green related tidbits and headlines, connect with us on Twitter and Facebook.
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Planet Forward is an online retailer of ethically-made, earth-friendly products designed for everyday use with a distinctly urban feel. Products include reusable stainless steel bottles, stainless steel thermal travel mugs, waste-free lunch bags, reusable shopping bags, Make-it-Yourself toxin-free Green Cleaning kits, organic fashions and other accessories. SALE 50% OFF ALL PRODUCTS – SHOP NOW !
Eco-friendly Christmas Craft for a Wall Advent Calendar
Posted by: | CommentsIt appears the holiday season is officially upon us so as we head into December, our eco-friendly Christmas craft today, for kids and adults, will be a perfect way to count down the days until December 25th.
We have previously featured many crafts from the very talented Belinda Graham of kidspot.com.au and we continue today. Although you may have to purchase product to make our wall advent calendar, you can reuse items that you might have around the house which will teach resourcefulness and add to its eco-friendliness. It also stirs up some creativity and makes for a beautiful home decoration. Feel free to reuse boxes of varying sizes and shapes. You can also use leftover/used holiday wrapping paper, tissue paper and bows/ribbons to decorate the boxes. This craft is an excellent way of putting these leftover items to good use. I would recommend using colours, tones or designs that complement one another though. I’ve included the directions from Belinda’s Wall Advent Calendar post minus the store references so read on and have fun.
Image courtesy of kidspot.com.au
What You’ll Need
- 24 papier mache boxes, small gift boxes or mini cereal boxes
- Scrapbooking paper
- Ribbons
- Rub-ons (stickers or decals)
- Buttons
- A white gel pen
- Other crafty supplies – glitter, cutters, confetti, cut-outs. You’re limited by your imagination.
Instructions:
- Work out a pattern on the floor – the boxes in this formation were mixed up between vertical and horizontal for interest and more flexibility in the decorations on the front.
- Now get decorating! Vary using rub-ons and your own handwriting to date the boxes and use a similar colourway on all boxes in a range of different materials for a cohesive look.
- Once done, fill the boxes and stick to the wall with 3M removable tape and enjoy the nightly countdown ritual!
There may seem to be a lot involved in this craft but it’s worth working your way through and it can be a work in progress. You don’t have to sit down and complete all 24 boxes at one time. You can set aside special time each week to build your calendar and use the time in between to plan how you will decorate and fill them. Or if 24 days is too much, you can also do a “12 Days of Christmas” themed calendar and keep it to 12 days. Try to use what you have in the house so the craft keeps an eco-friendly and resourceful focus while fueling creative minds for hours.
An eco-friendly Christmas craft is a great way to pass the time while the kids are stuck indoors plus you get a pretty nice decoration out of it too.
Enjoy and our thanks (again) to Belinda.
For the latest green related stories and headlines, connect with us on Twitter and Facebook.
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Planet Forward is an online retailer of ethically-made, earth-friendly products designed for everyday use with a distinctly urban feel. Products include reusable stainless steel bottles, stainless steel thermal travel mugs, waste-free lunch bags, reusable shopping bags, Make-it-Yourself toxin-free Green Cleaning kits, organic fashions and other accessories. SALE 50% OFF ALL PRODUCTS – SHOP NOW !
