Teachers, Honoured Guests and Fellow Classmates - It’s speech time! If you or your kids having trouble coming up with a speech topic, Green Cricket is here to help with 8 suggestions on green topics that are not only interesting but also raise awareness about the environment.

1.       Clean but not very green - what is really in the soap we use? We all know that soap helps us get clean when we have a bath, shower or wash our hands, but what chemicals are in soap and are they safe for us? SLS and SLES are 2 to be concerned about.  Here are some links to get you started:

http://chemistry.about.com/od/cleanerchemistry/a/how-soap-cleans.htm http://www.kitchendoctor.com/essays/soap.php

http://www.natural-health-information-centre.com/sodium-lauryl-sulfate.html

2.       Hot air? What alternative energy sources really work? Whether you are talking about electric, hybrid or hydrogen power for vehicles or wind, solar and tidal energy for power generation, alternative energy is being used to lower our reliance on fossil fuels. Which of these sources is the most cost effective? Which produces the most power? Do these alternative sources have impacts on the environment?

http://www.planetfriendly.net/energy.html

http://netpilot.ca/aes/

http://www.alternative-energy-news.info/technology/transportation/hybrid-cars/

3.       Common scents and health risks. You may have seen the signs- Scent Free Zone,  please refrain from wearing scented products due to allergy reasons. Why are scented products a problem? Is there a need for fragrance free products? Check out some of these links to find out more:

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-500165_162-57349626/can-scented-products-make-you-sick/?tag=facebook

http://www.chrc-ccdp.ca/pdf/legal_sensitivity_en.pdf

http://www.davidsuzuki.org/blogs/queen-of-green/2011/06/companies-wont-disclose-parfum-ingredients/

4.       The dirt on recycling-it’s not working. We all know that recycling is important to save our environment. Is the program doing what it’s supposed to?

http://www.scienceclarified.com/Qu-Ro/Recycling.html

http://www.itworldcanada.com/news/canadian-it-pros-face-recycling-challenge/135914

http://www.environmentalindicators.com/htdocs/execsum.htm

5.       Going green at home. What sorts of things can the everyday person do at home to be green? There are tonnes of quick and easy ideas as well as some bigger ones. Lowering the thermostat a degree or two in winter can save energy. Switching to energy efficient lightbulbs also conserves energy. Installing a living wall helps provide healthier air to breathe. Learning about the ingredients of products you buy and where they come from is another way to go green at home.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/interactives/cp-fluorescent-bulb/

http://www.greenovergrey.com/living-walls/overview.php

http://www.saskenergy.com/saving_energy/tips.asp

6.       Carbon footprints and food-the 100 mile diet. How does our food get to us? Transport trucks drive from Florida to bring us oranges, bananas are shipped by boats from overseas. This increases our carbon footprint which we would all like to reduce. The 100 mile diet is one way to reduce that Footprint. It’s another name for eating local.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/time-to-lead/global-food/part-4-is-the-100-mile-diet-a-pipe-dream/article1813387/

http://www.ecolife.com/health-food/eating-local/100-mile-diet.html

http://www.davidsuzuki.org/what-you-can-do/reduce-your-carbon-footprint/

7.       Walk, drive or take the bus-costs and benefits. Places to go, people to see. How do we choose to get there? Distance, cost, time, convenience, impact on the environment? All of these are considerations when we need to get somewhere. What is the best choice?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainable_transport

http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/programs/environment-commuteroptions-menu-519.htm

8.       Green Buildings. What defines a building as green?  What technology is out there to reduce energy use?  What are the benefits of a green roof or living wall? What is LEED? Windows, insulation, furnaces and water heaters-can these help? An overlooked part of Green buildings are the products used inside them-are they environmentally friendly and safe for the user?

http://www.cagbc.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home&Template=/Templates/EnglishHome.cfm

http://www.greenovergrey.com/living-walls/overview.php

 http://vancouver.ca/sustainability/building_green.htm

It’s not good for you, or the environment, to idle your car

Although it’s tempting on frosty mornings to start your car long before you’re ready to hop in it and go, letting it idle in the driveway pollutes your neighbourhood, wastes gas, and isn’t any better for your car than driving away thirty seconds after you start it in the first place.

But warming up the car is a Canadian habit. Based on research by the Department of Natural Resources, in the peak of winter many Canadian motorists idle their vehicles for about eight minutes a day. Nation-wide it amounts to more than 75 million minutes of idling a day, wastes over 2.2 million litres of fuel and produces over five million kilograms of greenhouse gases.

Idling is such a pollution problem in big cities that some, like New York, have passed no-idling laws. Although our communities are not densely populated idling is still a pollution problem and a public health issue since many of the places where people idle are public areas where there are more people around to breath in the fumes. As well, you inhale exhaust if you’re sitting in an idling vehicle.

An idling vehicle emits CO2 (the primary greenhouse gas) and a mix of other gasses that have been linked to increased rates of cancer, heart and lung disease, asthma and allergies. Children and the elderly are more at risk. The environmental Defense Fund calls idling the second-hand smoking of the outdoors.

Warming your vehicle on cool mornings is only one of the reasons why Canadians idle their vehicles. Empty vehicles idle in public places while the driver runs an errand, people sit in idling cars in store parking lots, presumably while someone does the shopping, and people idle while they chat.

If you have a habit of idling, being mindful of its effect on your health and on the environment might make it easier to stop. Natural Resources Canada has some other suggestions too:

Your car doesn’t need to idle to warm the engine. In fact, the best way to warm your engine is to drive your car at a moderate speed. About 30 seconds is all that’s needed before you put it in gear and drive away. As well, driving your car gets the heater going more quickly so you won’t have to wait too long for the car’s interior to warm up.

Don’t leave your car running while you run an errand. It will only take a minute for your vehicle to warm up again once you return.

Instead of sitting in a parking lot with the car idling while someone is in getting groceries, turn off the car and go into the store. It saves on gas, reduces green house gas emissions and you won’t be breathing fumes that leak into the car.

As a general rule, if you’re stopped for more than 10 seconds, turn off your engine. It has a minimal impact on the starter switch, and idling for over10 seconds uses more fuel than it would take to re-start your engine.

[written by guest blogger Bridget Oland]

[from guest student blogger* Adam Grzegorczyk]

The ski season in Canada is in full swing, boosted by some good snowfall in many places since the New Year. Skiing and snowboarding is such a breathtaking outdoor sport that it seems wrong not to be green when you hit the slopes. After all, if you are taking advantage of that great part of nature that includes snowy mountainous inclines in its design, why not lessen your impact while there? So what’s the best way of going green when on the slopes? Well it is probably something you consider anyway: where to go?

Ski resorts are caught in a classic catch-22, they generate huge amounts of emissions through snowmaking, grooming, moving people, and even getting to the resort itself, that they can often be the largest non-point source polluter in any given area. Yet it is those very emissions that may very well lead them to having no snow at all in a few decades (or years depending on who you want to listen to). You do still need snow to ski, right? So you can imagine that ski resorts have a natural incentive to go green. Not all resorts are viewing this in the same manner however.

The choice you must therefore make is to choose a resort that is proactive in its environmentally sustainable principles. Resorts all over North America and the world are choosing to use different initiatives to make their resorts more sustainable, while some resorts still chose to keep their heads in the snow. Those who decide to do something are initiating projects such as the building of wind turbines for power, the purchasing of carbon offsets, or the promotion of car-pooling initiatives all to lessen their impacts on climate change. Making a conscious choice to support resorts that practise these principles is a great first step in making sure that when you hit the slopes you do so in a responsible and educated manner.

Whistler, British Columbia for example has made commitments to conservation efforts that have cut electrical consumption by 18% in the last two years. The resort has also dedicated $320,000 to conservation initiatives this season alone and has cut more the 540 tonnes of waste produced this year.  For examples south of the border one has to look no further than Aspen, Colorado. Aspen has been an industry leader in sustainability for years.  Some of its most significant environmental initiatives include using biodiesel fuel in all of its snow grooming machines, and making snow with specks of dust to lessen the energy and water needed for production. They were also the first in the U.S. ski industry to offset 100 percent of its electrical use with renewable energies. These pioneering principles have led to over 45 other U.S. based resorts to follow Aspen’s lead.

The choice you are making is a choice you will have to make anyway. So why not choose a resort that practises sustainability principles and makes commitments to reducing its impact on the environment. Ask questions and do some research. Not only will you be able to cruise down those slopes with a lighter conscience, you’ll be doing all the other resorts who don’t a favour, because unless they want to get inline they won’t be around much longer.

A great site that recommends and highlights sustainable ski resorts can be found at www.OnTheSnow.com: Green Guide.

* We would like to welcome the Niagara College Bloggers! These students are in the second term of a 1 year post-graduate program in Environmental Management and Assessment at Niagara College. The students have diverse backgrounds and will be sharing their expertise in all things green.

[Student Profile: Adam Grzegorczyk is from Oakville, ON who has been snowboarding for the past 15 years. He has been lucky enough to be able to travel around the world snowboarding and been involved in multiple sustainability initiatives during his young environmental career]

Well, it’s that time of year where everyone’s focus turns to finding that perfect gift. Whether it be for a loved one, co-worker or child in your life, the desire to go green has picked up enormous momentum, and this has spilled over into everything we do, including shopping! With so many options and so many claims of green labels, it can be a bit overwhelming as you head to the stores. However, here are a few suggestions to help you in your search:

1 - The gift of time. Ever thought about offering to be someone’s babysitter so parents can enjoy a night out? How about helping with other chores - dog walking, snow shoveling or even visiting!

2 - Personal basket of home-cooked meals. Why not make some of your specialties and package them up in a reusable box or basket? Everyone loves a homemade lasagna, baked pie or jams and jellies!

3 - Gently used gift exchange. Pre-establish with friends and family a theme (ie. books) and have each person select an item from their own collection that they’d be willing to part with.

4 - Rain barrel for the avid gardener. Not only saves the water, but saves the home owner money as well – it’s a win win situation!

5 - Books promoting outdoor activities and/or sustainable living. Could include hiking on local trails, camping, bird watching or greening a garden with water efficient plants.

6 - Organic personal products. Because so much of what we use becomes a part of us via our skin, introduce someone to the benefits and pleasures of natural ingredients.

7 - Solar or “people” powered gadgets - whether it’s a phone charger or crank flashlight, the impact made by reducing energy use is worth the gesture!

8 - Charitable gift in someone’s honour. Whether it be to a local charity that supports environmental initiatives or an international organization that encourages sustainable living on a global scale, this is an ideal option for the person who has everything.

9 - Fair trade, organically grown coffee for that coffee lover on the list!

10 - Basket of environmentally friendly (and appropriately certified!) household products. This is a great way to introduce friends and family to the benefits of unbleached, recycled paper towels or the idea of beeswax candles!

Finding the right green gift for someone can be a challenge, but by doing even a small amount of research, you not only do your part for the planet, but your thoughtfully selected gift might just be the most unique thing they receive all season!

So…In summary:

a) Buy local. This minimizes the need for items to be shipped, thus reducing emissions.

b) Reduce packaging. Consider wrapping items in reused material, cloth gift bags or even sections of the comics from the newspaper!

c) Offer your services rather than a material gift.

d) Shop online as much as you can to reduce the need to travel to stores and shopping malls. Be sure to research, however, where the items are shipped from.

Happy shopping and have yourself a green Christmas! ……….From all the Green Cricket Staff

[written by Guest Blogger: Katrina Dudar]

Bio for Katrina:
As an avid environmentalist, Katrina is honoured to be contributing to
this wonderful space as a guest! Currently working at an environmental
education charity for children, Katrina spends her days trying to find
fun and innovative ways to inspire children to care about our planet and
to do small things everyday to make a positive difference. Some might
think this sounds challenging, but when you take the time to think about
just how impressionable young children are, her job instantly becomes
easier! As a mom to a youngster who has had his fair share of health
issues, she is happily forced to invest a significant amount of time
staying informed about emerging environmental issues and searching for
ways to minimize her own footprint while encouraging others around her
to do the same.

For hundreds of thousands of years, billions of birds have flown between their breeding grounds in Canada and their wintering grounds in Central and South America.  Over the last 40 years habitat destruction in their wintering grounds has caused population declines of 50 percent in many songbird populations and some by 90 percent. Unlike so many environmental problems in our increasingly complex world, this one has a simple, proven and enjoyable solution:  Drink certified Bird Friendly® coffee.

According to Dr. Bridget Stutchbury (Canada Research Chair in Ecology and Conservation Biology at York University and author of “Silence of the Songbirds”, “The Bird Detective”), the single most important thing a Canadian consumer can do to help protect our Migratory Songbird populations is purchase certified Bird Friendly® coffee. Whereas modern coffee growing techniques aimed at higher yields eradicate rainforest and grow coffee in the sun, certified Bird Friendly coffee is grown using traditional organic methods under rustic shade that mimics natural rainforest.

A study released recently by the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center (Washington, DC) show that the shade-grown farms demonstrated increased numbers and species of birds as well as improved bird habitat, soil protection/erosion control, carbon sequestration, natural pest control, and improved pollination when compared with sun coffee farms. The report concludes that shade coffee farms are the next best thing to natural forest in terms of habitat and bio-diversity.

Our certified Bird Friendly coffees are “Triple certified” — Bird Friendly, Organic and either Fair Trade or Rainforest Alliance certified - making them good for the earth and the farmers. They are the most environmentally friendly coffees in the world.

by David Pritchard - Birds and Beans Inc.

http://www.birdsandbeans.ca

http://www.facebook.com/BirdsAndBeans.ca

Fall has always seemed like a good time to paint. I suspect it’s because we’re suddenly indoors more so can’t ignore scuffed walls, or are in need of a change before settling into winter.

Slapping on a coat of new paint is one of the simplest and least expensive ways to renovate, a quick and easy way to lift your spirits. But while fresh paint may look wonderful, as you may have guessed from the smell of it, a freshly painted room can be toxic. Paint off-gasses VOCs (volatile organic compounds) which are toxic chemicals that can cause everything from headaches and dizziness to respiratory tract irritation, memory loss and visual impairment. Many VOCs have been shown to cause cancer in animals and are suspected of being as dangerous to humans.

The toxicity of these fumes can depend on a few things. Dark coloured paint emits more VOCs, some people are more sensitive to these chemicals, and the ventilation in the area where you’re painting will impact toxicity.

Before you get paranoid about repainting the kitchen there are a number of low or zero-VOC paints available locally that can have you breathing easier in your home. Last fall we repainted two-thirds of our home’s interior. After doing a little research we chose Home Depot’s Natural line (CIL brand) of water-based latex zero VOC paint for our trim and walls. It’s the base that has no VOCs. Tinting the base will add VOCs so sticking with pale colours is your safest bet. This line of paint is EcoLogo certified.

Another option is Benjamin Moore’s Natura line of zero-VOC paints. These are more expensive (almost twice the price of the Home Depot paint) but according to Benjamin Moore the base and the tints are both zero VOC. If you’re looking for deeper tints this might be your best option. Although these paints are zero VOC, they can still pollute waterways when washed down the drain. To minimize the impact to the environment when cleaning up after a painting project consider the following:

· Wipe the brushes with newspaper before washing in water.

· If you’re mid-job (or just taking a break) wrap your paint-laden brush in plastic.

· If you’re taking a break for more than a day, wrap your wet brush in plastic and place it in the freezer.

If you have used paint to get rid of, look for your nearest household hazardous waste depot. Changes are the depot near you offers a recycling program that sees old paint recycled into new and even the paint cans recycled. This recycled paint (www.boomerangpaint.com) comes in 16 colours and is available at a variety of retailers. Old paint cannot go in the garbage.

So … What’s Wrong with Plastic?

First it’s important to understand that not all plastics are created equal.  Some plastics contain harmful chemicals that can leach out into our bodies, with a host of negative side effects.  Understanding which plastics are safe, and for what uses, is no small feat.

Here’s a little rhyme I heard to keep in mind when shopping.  5 and 4, 1 and 2 – all the rest are bad for you.  So check for the number inside the little recycling triangle on the bottom of your stuff and avoid the 3’s, 6’s and 7’s.   Just to be on the safe side, you’ll likely want to go easy on the 1’s as well.

What’s the problem?  Well, plastics contain a whole host of toxic substances that are put in there to make them strong, clear and flexible.  From phthalates, to BisPhenol A, to antimony, these chemicals are accumulating in the environment and in our bodies, causing reproductive challenges and cancers to name but a few issues.  And no one knows for sure how much is okay, which makes it very difficult to regulate and protect the public.

One of the best guides that I’ve seen to plastics is on the healthy child website http://healthychild.org/5steps/5_steps_5/?gclid=CIjg5df6s5wCFSMSagodPRuwnQ

This guide walks you through each of the various types, gives you some examples, and tells you about the challenges.

So what can you do with your lunches?

1. Avoid plastic – there are other options available, including stainless steel and glass.  Where its feasible, consider switching out.

2. Use only the “safe ones”.  Since an all stainless steel lunch can weigh several pounds, it may not be a great choice for the little ones, but particularly for your food containers, choose the safe options only.

3. Never, never, EVER heat food in plastics.  Heating increases the rate of leaching, and puts it directly into your body.

4. Be extra careful with babies.  Glass bottles are not much more expensive, and are a much safer option.

5. Limit use of cling wraps and baggies – these plastics can be less stable, not to mention less environmentally friendly.

It sounds daunting, but a little knowledge can help you significantly reduce your exposure to harmful chemicals in plastic.

THE CAMP BUZZ IS ON- HOW TO DEAL WITH BUGS THIS SUMMER

Presumably, you’re sending your kids to camp because you want to give them the opportunity to reconnect with nature.  It makes sense then,to pack them away with stuff that protects the nature they’re going to visit.

So where do you start?  Well the first thing that comes to many peoples’minds when they think of camp is the bugs.  So let’s start by addressing them.  There are a few simple tips to minimize bites of all kinds, before we get to creams and potions.

1) Choose light-coloured clothing –  Not only are these much cooler in the sun, but mosquitoes are attracted to dark colours, and much less likely to bite you in lightly coloured clothing.

2) Go for coverage – A light, long-sleeved shirt is not much hotter than a t-shirt, and can drastically reduce the number of bites that kids get.  Light, long pants can offer the same kind of protection, and there’s even the kind that convert to shorts if you’re out of the woods and get too hot.  Socks are important too.  Don’t choose the low kind that leave your ankles bare.  Bites on the joints can be some of the itchiest and most annoying for the kids, so we want to avoid them as much as possible. And finally, a hat is a great way to keep the bugs from burrowing in the kids’ hair and feasting.

3)  Don’t wear anything “stinky” – Send the kids with unscented shampoos, creams and sunscreens, and try to wash their clothes in unscented detergents before they leave.  All of these things attract bugs in droves.

If you still want some kind of a bug repellent, I’d suggest using something without harmful chemicals in it.  This protects both your childrens’ health, and the plants and animals that they’re going to visit.  DEET, while quite effective as a repellent, is a toxic chemical, and should be used sparingly if at all.   The challenge is that there are so many “natural” solutions out there that really don’t work, so are hardly worth the expense and effort.  Repellents containing either eucalyptus and citronella, or both seem to be the most promising.

How about the sun? Again the first strategy is to avoid it first.  Hats and long sleeved clothing are a great start. They even have clothing that contains a high spf, so that you can avoid putting on sunscreen underneath them.  .

Smart camps will schedule activities that keep the kids out of the sun during the 11am -1pm time frame when the suns rays are most harmful.

Just like bug sprays, sunscreens have come under a great deal of scrutiny in the past few years for their chemical content, and the jury is still out on many of the specific ingredients.  We’ll stick to a few guidelines here:

1) You’ll want to avoid parabens, as you would in other skincare

products.

2) Choose something “natural’, without a huge list of chemicals in it.

3) Avoid “nanotechnology”.  We’ll address this later in a separate blog, but essentially it means that the particles are so small that they can be absorbed right into your bloodstream – not a good thing.  Avoid products that say things like “micronized”. (more…)

“Biodegradable” has long been a staple of the green movement.  We know
to look for it on product labels because it’s good,  both in the
packaging and the product, but do we really understand what it means?

For the most part, no.  Unfortunately, it is one of the most commonly
abused greenwash terms, likely because there is no standardized
definition. Generally it means that the product will break down quickly
in nature to naturally occurring components with the help of the
existing bacteria.  But how quick is quickly?

Eco-Logo, the most prevalent environmental certification in Canada
requires that products or packaging be “readily biodegradable”.  They
specify a test for all products that measures how quickly a product
breaks down.  In general they are looking for at least 60-70% breakdown
within 14 days.

This test is going to screen out a lot of products.  Take plastic bags
for example.  Technically they do biodegrade - they break down in nature
– it just takes an estimated 1000 years to do it (we don’t know for sure
since plastic bags have only been around for 50 years…).  I don’t know
about you – but that’s not my idea of biodegradable.

(more…)