‘Tis the season when we look back on the year and make some commitments on going forward.  This year, why not include a little greening into your resolutions.  If you’re looking for suggestions, here are a few to get you started:

1) Ditch the plastic waterbottles.  If you are going to do just one thing to improve your ecological footprint, your best bang for your buck is to kick the bottled water habit.  Not only are you paying a ridiculous mark up on water, but you’re contributing billions of bottles to the planet, and all the associated greenhouse gases that come with them. Stainless steel waterbottles are reasonably priced and easy to find, and tap water is cheaper.  Save some money and the planet!

2) Go litterless at lunch.  Whether for you or the kids, its really no extra work to pack a few reusable containers instead of using plastic wrap or baggies.  One day, not a big day – 320 work days in a year – well that’s a lot of baggies in the landfill.  Consider a lunch kit – it makes packing kids lunches much easier.

3) Go green when you clean.  Our health tends to be the focus of most of our new year’s resolutions, so this is a good time to remember how closely the environment is tied to our health.  When we choosegreen cleaners for example, its not only better for the planet to choose a green cleaner, it’s also much healthier for you and your family.  Same goes for personal care products – the very same things that make a shampoo green make it easier on the body.

4) Drive lightly on the planet - We’ll explore how to save money on gas later - but you can get started simply by going lighter on the gas pedal.  Every 10 kilometres over the speed limit that you drive, costs you 10% more fuel to drive the same distance.  The two minutes that you save by speeding cost the planet and your pocketbook more than you think.

** Add your resolutions below – and check out the resolutions from my fellow Green Cricketers.

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In the aftermath of the UN’s conference on Climate change in Copenhagen last month and what seems, atfirst glance, to be the lack real progress from countries for plans and commitments to reduce Greenhouse gas emissions, we are tempted to say “Why bother?”

The magazine The Economist comments: “Faced with the undoubted grandeur of climate change, a grand response seems in order. But, to the immediate disappointment to most of those participating and watching, the much anticipated UN climate conference held in Copenhagen in December led to no such thing…” [The Economist (Leader) Dec 30, 2009]

The article goes on to comment that two positive outcomes may have been on some agreement for a process for international monitoring and also the recognition of new political structures to enable progress across developing and developed countries.

While this international debate is raging should we, the public, the consumer, the homeowner…really care?

I feel we must – individuals can make a difference - we must all strive to learn more about our environment, our lifestyle, the products we use and impact on climate change, pollution, depletion of natural resources as well as the health impacts of products we use every day.

The Green Cricket Blog can provide a forum for sharing thoughts, ideas and actions. What do you think? Do you think you can make a difference to what often seems to be a hugh issue and out of your hands? And why should we care?

In the coming weeks we shall talk more about the Copenhagen Accord, but also discuss the 5 criteria for selecting Green Cricket products that we feel support the move towards achieving a Green Lifestyle and a more sustainable world. We also want to hear from you - to understand what you think, what governs your buying and lifestyle decision choices. Post your comments!

(Trevor Smith, Editor)

Perhaps one of the most difficult issues that we’ve tackled as Green Cricket is the search for Green Cosmetics. Ideally, we’d love to recommend a line of cosmetics that reduces both the environmental impacts and the health risks of traditional cosmetics, yet function just as well.

Sadly, that is not as easy as we had hoped. The challenge is that there is not a great deal of consensus around what is acceptable or isn’t in these products. While we always want to err on the side of caution, some of the truly green ones that we’ve found really aren’t a great substitute for more conventional cosmetics.

Some highlights of the debate:

1) Parabens – A widely used preservative to inhibit microbial growth in personal care products, in particular cosmetics. It’s good, because it does a good job of keeping cosmetics safe, extends their shelf life, and it replaced formaldehyde. The challenge is that while both Health Canada, and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States currently say that it’s safe, there is mounting concern over its long-term safety too. Most major cosmetic companies are looking for alternatives to phase it out. But there is no easy switch, so companies like Jamieson, Avon and Almay, are experimenting with new options.

2) Nanoparticles – Microscopic particles being added to all kinds of personal care products – usually because of their UV blocking capabilities. The problem is that they haven’t been tested for safety either on people or the environment, and early reviews aren’t optimistic. Again, we’re hoping to avoid it.

3) Propylene Glycol – Used to moisturize both the skin, and to prevent cosmetics from drying out themselves. Again, Health Canada and the FDA have given it the green light, but the debate outside these forums rages on about short-term skin irritation, and long-term safety. A deciding factor for me – if it’s a major component of automotive antifreeze, I probably want to minimize in the products that I put on my face.

So where can we get good information? Well that’s another part of the challenge. (more…)

As a Canadian living in America, I have learned many things about the differences in our cultures. There are many. Americans say that Canadians have so many more long weekends. I count 12 if you include Family Day in three provinces. In fact, Americans are correct – there are nine official holidays in America. With Civic Day and Labour Day right around the corner, you need an appropriate host(ess) gift, right?

Long weekends in Canada are precious. They usually involve family, friends, and travelling. And Canadian summers can seem so short sometimes. So when you receive the invitation to your friend’s cottage, a visit to your kid’s camp, a brunch on the beach, baby shower, wedding, or a barbeque on the back deck in the city, you want to bring a gift for the host(ess). And you know you want to make a difference and make your gift “green”. Here are my top picks from www.greencricket.ca.

1. Check out the Cottage Weekender Gift Basket. This is a perfect gift for your host(ess). Tea, reusable water bottles, chocolate, a cookbook, and Green Cricket hand lotion, hand soap and dish soap.

2. A selection of coffee and tea. Everyone needs a jolt after a big barbeque, a soothing cup of tea after a long swim or hot tub. And as the dew dries on the lawn in the early morning sunlight, nothing beats a hot cup of joe. Sweet nectar of the morning!

3. Summer brings out two nasty things – our desire for a tan (usually ends up as a burn), and bugs. Chances are that your host(ess) has a collection of preventative balms and lotions, but they may not be totally “green”. Green Cricket has screened them all. A bit of sunscreen and bug repellent will make you and your host(ess) very happy.

Have a safe and happy long weekend!

(written by David Greene)

Well, the devil is always in the details, but it’s sure a good start. Ontario’s proposed new Green Energy Act is hoping to make a few key changes in the way that we manage energy in the province:

• It sets strict conservation targets. Conservation is always the most cost-effective to start, so this is a good angle.
• It introduces real cost pricing of energy. Right now we’re subsidizing consumption – which is NOT an effective way to foster conservation.
• It weans us off of coal once and for all by 2014. Coal is neither clean nor renewable, so this is an absolutely necessary step.
• Incentives for clean and green technology development, not status quo. We’ve been subsidizing the wrong technologies in past, so this makes amends.
• Streamlined approvals for renewable projects so that we don’t create additional costs for already expensive development projects.
• It creates mandatory requirements and priority spots for renewable energy on Ontario’s Electricity Grid. This means guaranteed consumers for energy projects and that will lower the risk for new development.
• New technology for energy storage. One of the challenges of renewable energy is that it’s not always windy or sunny when you need energy. Better storage means that we don’t need to fire up the coal plant as backup.

You’ve probably also heard a lot about the green jobs that the new Act will create. This part is a little harder to judge, given that we really haven’t seen a plan that details how the proposed 50,000 jobs will be created. Canada is not exactly a hub of green manufacturing – so we’re not likely to be building many large-scale turbine or solar panel plants to compete with Europe. Sustainability includes being able to meet our own needs locally, though, so we’ll need to get started.

Clearly Ontario doesn’t have a long track record of environmental success, but on paper, this is a very strong leadership move. In the words of the Premier, Dalton McGuinty, “Because of our Green Energy Act, our province would be greener, stronger, and in a better position to compete and win against the rest of the world. We’re going to seize this opportunity to build a better Ontario — better for jobs, better for our children, better for our planet.”

Here’s hoping that’s the case…

Check out the details of the act  http://www.greenenergyact.ca/

[written by Katie Altoft]

Editor’s Note:    At Green Cricket we are keen to raise awareness to environmental issues. We want to help our customers make intelligent choices with products they can purchase, that make best use of the earth’s precious resources. Our “Green Quality Criteria” designation is an easy way to access product specific information about how items are made and sourced, as well as their distance to market.