A few weeks ago, Susan Mey (Green Cricket President) and I (Trevor Smith) visited Niagara College (Niagara on the Lake), where Green Cricket Expert Katie Altoft teaches.  We challenged the Environmental Management students to write a Blog on a topic of interest to them.  The three best Blogs have been chosen to be published here on our website… All entries were very good - CONGRATULATIONS WINNERS!   Please read on…

BLOG A : Making a Difference, One by One!   

How can one person make a difference by buying green products? This is often a question among people of all ages, but the real issue is taking responsibility for the environment, young or old. There is conflict in today’s generation gap with many differences in the ways green issues are viewed. Younger generations are more aware of their impact because of the attention it receives through media, education, and other sources. Some people may be influenced by the financial limitations to “going green”, but this is the only alternative if we want to live in a sustainable world. It is time to take ownership of what our actions have on the environment.

Changing our ways can be accomplished one step at a time and it’s time that we begin making the earth a safer place to live. If one person at a time makes a change towards buying “Green” products, this will increase the demand for greener products. The resulting change will be an increase in supply and therefore a reduction of costs, making the products more accessible and affordable for everyone. By purchasing just one green product, there is a message being sent to the manufacturers regarding the types of products consumers want. Don’t be discouraged, without each drop of water there would be no ocean.  Start the wave!        

[By: Heidi Littlejohn, Edith Bouchard, Jade Bowen, Lisa Hay]

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BLOG B : How Do I Green My Wedding?

With the green revolution sweeping through all of life’s phases it has finally influencing peoples decisions on wedding preparations. With the wedding season starting up some couples are curious about how to incorporate green initiatives into their day. With issues around caterers, flowers, transportation and invitations the potential impact could be larger than you think.

There are ways to reduce the impact that your wedding could have.  The food served at the reception could be made using local products.  Instead of using cut flowers to decorate potted plants will do as well and can be replanted afterwards.  Transportation from the ceremony to the reception can be done by using horse and carriage over a Limo and there are printing places that use enviro-friendly ink on recycled paper.  There are more ways to green your wedding than a few years ago.

My wife and I were married two years ago and did as much as we could then to have a green wedding.  Since we lived in a rural area the food was local and fresh and organic.  We decided to use local native plants for the majority of our decorations.  Our invitations, seating plan and guest book were made with recycled paper and recycled inks.  Ever since that day our friends keep on asking us about how they can do the same and we give them advice and direct them to companies like Green Cricket.              

[By: Terrance Gole]

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BLOG C : What is the point of something being Bio-degradable?

If packaging/product is bio-degradable but its sent to a landfill and buried, it won’t have a chance to degrade at all. This is because most bio-degradable product/packaging need sunlight (like plastic shopping bags) or oxygen (for aerobic bacterial growth) to breakdown.

Bio-degradable is a buzz word. People buy products thinking it’s better for the environment but in reality, if not disposed of properly, it is no better.

There should be a campaign to enlighten the public what is really true…

[By: Melissa Gibson, Sovi Ahoansou, Christine Spano,  Mathusha Sivakumaran.

Green Cricket Editor Note:   This blog touches on an important issue. Whereas paper breaks down in landfill, plastic is much more of a problem….that is until recently - with the advent of biodegradable plastics.  The term biodegradable means that the material is able to be broken down and composted by living organisms into simpler components that have a much reduced impact on the environment.  Plant polymers derived from corn or wheat are chosen over traditional plastics derived from non-renewable resources such as oil and coal.

It is correct that, in an anaerobic (air-locked) landfill, deprived of oxygen and the microorganisms that “eat” naturally biodegradable materials, the decomposition will be severely restricted.  However composting (Green Bin) city programs provide better opportunity for decomposition.  Check out the Maxx Air holder/BioBag system sold by Green Cricket (for under the sink storage and Green Bin disposal) as a way to maximizing the integrity of the holding container (no messy breakage) and the ultimate biodegradability of the bag and contents.