Tag Archives | Earth Day

Making Vegan Easy Week 16 Round-Up

April 23, 2012

Here are seven more tips for an easy vegan life. This week I focused on Earth Day. Enjoy!

Tip #106: Connect the dots.

Check out the Peace to All Creatures  ‘zine. It connects the often missing link between cats and dogs, and farm animals.

Tip #107: Don’t be alarmed.

Many vegan restaurants opt to spell meat substitutes on their menus using the real name. You may see chicken, turkey, etc. but rest assured it’s not an animal product. For example, Herbivore restaurant in San Francisco spells everything like this but it’s a vegan restaurant. Some use alternative spellings such as eggz and chi’ken. If you’re confused, just ask. People love to help.

Tip #108: Reduce.

Check out The Story of Stuff Project. Consider ways you can reduce your impact on our home planet. Small steps make a big difference over time. Can you take one today?

Tip #109: Reuse.

I reuse plastic zip lock bags, over and over. Just wash out between uses. What can you start reusing today?

Tip #110: Repair.

Before you toss something broken into the recycling or trash, consider the possibility of repair. Of course, replacing it with something shiny and new is fun, but the process of repair can also be fun AND rewarding. Have you repaired anything lately?

Tip #111: Repurpose.

Get creative and reuse stuff another way. For instance, use newspaper to clean windows (instead of paper towels) or make a sculpture out of worn-out kitchen tools. When it comes to repurposing, the possibilities are limitless.

Tip #112: Recycle.

Before you recycle (or throw away), consider tips #108-111 (reduce, reuse, repair and repurpose), then recycle. Toss in the trash only as a last resort. Learn more about what can be recycled and where to drop off on earth911.com.

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Hey friends, have you shared these tips with your family and friends yet? If not, do it today. Join me on Facebook to read these tips daily and to learn more about what’s going on in the vegan world.

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Making Vegan Easy Week 14 Round-Up

April 9, 2012

This past week started off with a bad April Fools’ joke. Of course, it’s easy being vegan. Share these tips with everyone you know. Together we can make the world a better place for people and animals.

Tip #92: It’s really not easy being vegan. In fact, it’s really hard. (Happy April Fools’ Day.)

Tip #93: Don’t believe everything you read. Be skeptical. Pay attention to the sources. Check out Vegan Chicago’s Baloney Detection Guide.

Tip #94: Broaden your horizon. Earth day is April 22nd.  As a vegan, I don’t automatically consider myself an environmentalist (much to my fiancés dismay). Why not? Water. I love water. I use a lot of it, especially taking long hot showers and washing dishes. The April issue of Whole Living magazine focuses on water conservation. I’m reading it to learn more about water issues. This month pick an eco-subject you don’t know much about and read up on it, then take action. Small steps are good. I promise to keep you posted on any changes I make regarding my water consumption.

Tip #95: Be grateful. Thank restaurants for vegan options. Thank the management directly and in person. Or, be public about it and show your gratitude by posting a message on the restaurants Facebook wall.

Tip #96: VegNews hosts monthly Twitter chats. Each month it’s a different topic. The April Twitter chat topic is vegan parenting. If you have questions about raising kids vegan, this chat is for you. I attended a chat last year for vegan bloggers and found it really helpful. The 2012 schedule and topics can be found here.

Tip #97: Learn about vegan transition foods. There are cruelty-free substitutes for almost every meat product. Explore your local natural foods store to find a variety of options. You can also order these online. These are good options when you want something “meaty.” It’s best to eat a primarily whole foods diet, so eat transition foods (aka processed foods) sparingly.

Tip #98: Try one of these vegan recipes for Easter.

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Hey friends, have you shared these tips with your family and friends yet? If not, do it today. Join me on Facebook to read these tips daily and to learn more about what’s going on in the vegan world.

If you enjoyed this post,
click here to get free updates by email.

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Caring for Mother Earth

April 21, 2008

 First the rhyme…

13 steps you need to know
to make this world forever go

Recycle paper from a tree
to keep your breath forever free

Keep faucets off while brushing teeth
h2o doesn’t need to flow

Burn less coal, wood and oil
greenhouse gases make us boil

Stop unwanted letters and mail
so this Earth will never fail

Snip plastic six pack rings
save gulls and terns from the sting

Clean up trash by the road
so we won’t see any mold

Use detergents that are clean
flowing phosphates can’t be seen

Save some energy and pay less fees
turn water down to 130 degrees

Don’t go with the flow
Short showers keep us in tow

Ozone depletion through CFC’s
avoiding foam peanuts is the key

Carpool to work everyday
to keep our gas here to stay

Go shopping with a canvas bag
avoiding plastic is no gag

Toxins add to hazardous waste
buy non-toxic to have good taste

Simple things to save the Earth
it’s no trend, it’s the birth
~Christine (1991, Poetry 101)

 Now the lesson behind the rhyme…

In 1991, I was a student at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. For the first time, I learned about Earth Day that year. I attended an Earth Day festival on campus, photographed and wrote about the festival for one of my last projects in journalism school, and wrote a couple of poems for my Poetry 101 class. I wanted to do my part to care for Mother Earth, so I started recycling, a step in the right direction.

Earth Day was a big deal that year, but now it’s 17 years later and once again it’s a big deal. So my question for all of you is this: Is caring for Mother Earth going to be another trend that comes and goes, or are we all going to commit to doing our part — always? What can you commit to on an ongoing basis? What is “sustainable” for you? Recycling? Going vegan? Buying less stuff? Saying no to plastic water bottles? Small steps are good. Do what you can but do something, and keep doing it — day in and day out.

In the past year I began saying no to FREE bottled water at work and started bringing my own reuseable water bottle. I began consistenly bringing my own reuseable bags to the grocery and other stores. I also changed out the majority of lightbulbs in my home to environmentally-friendly compact fluorescent bulbs. I would love to hear steps you have taken to protect the Earth and what you plan to do going forward. Post a comment below and share your ideas! We are all in this together.

Earth Day is Tuesday, April 22nd. Happy Earth Day!

 And now another poem from 1991…

For Earth Day ’91 (and now 2008 and beyond)
Take the Earth to borrow
for your lifetime

Climb the high mountains
     see for miles
Swim in clear blue oceans
     guided by wild dolphins
Walk on hot sands
     smelling cactus flowers
Camp in great forests
     crowded with Redwoods too tall to climb
Run in wide open fields
     green grass growing past your knees
Bicycle on neverending trails
     feel the wind on your face, the sun on your back

See it
touch it
be with it
don’t break it

What is here today
may become shattered hopes of Mother Earth
destroying the future of 
unknown generations
invited to share
this one Earth with
you

Take good care of her.
~ vegan girl next door (1991, edited 2008).

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Lights out.

March 28, 2008

Join millions around the world this Saturday, March 29, from 8-9PM for World Wildlife Fund’s Earth Hour. Save energy and turn off your lights for one hour. You don’t have to sit in the dark, but be sure to light vegan-friendly candles made from soy available locally at Ethical Planet in Evanston.

Earth Hour originally started in Sydney, Australia, last year, and is going global this year. As well it should. Consider it a pre-Earth Day ritual. After all, Earth Day is every day, but officially April 22 this year.

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Free digital issue of Vegetarian Times

March 26, 2008

In honor of Earth Day next month, Vegetarian Times created a free digital issue. Excellent way to save some trees! Although not entirely vegan, I have noticed the magazine has more and more vegan recipes. Maybe they are catching on?

Get your copy today!

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