Eco-Friendly Living

[babyanj]

from www.wisegeek.com

The term “eco-friendly” is used to describe activities which are good for the environment. It is a shortening of “ecologically friendly,” and you may also hear terms like “environmentally friendly” or “green” used to describe similar activities. There are a range of ways in which activities can be eco-friendly, ranging from products which are constructed in an environmentally friendly way to making lifestyle changes which are designed to benefit the environment.

I've seen posts here and there about eco-friendly ways of doing things but I haven't found a thread here in GT about it.

Anyway, I've always been interested in eco-friendly stuff because I love watching nature and animal shows. I joined an environmental organization when I was in college and that's when I found out that there were more ways to save the earth.

I've started blogging more about it but I would like to hear from fellow GTers 

I'll post more later but for now, please check my blog posts if you have time.

http://unfairytalesandramblings.blogspot.com/search/label/environment

[red_dragon8]

^ i checked out your blog and admire your passion for the environment. being a minimalist, i am doing my share to help our mother earth by consuming less thus reducing my personal carbon footprint.

[babyanj]

^kudos to you. I actually bookmarked your blog, it was a good read on simplifying life which is included in first tenet of being eco-friendly which is "Reduce"

---Simplify
---Reduce Purchases
---Replace Disposables
---Buy Used
---Borrow From Friends
---Share
---Bulk Purchases
---Tree-Free Home
---Buy Only What You Need
---Avoid Creating Trash and Reduce Waste
---Junk Mail
---Address Early Consumption Habits

[greenpease05]

Recycle!

[babyanj]

recycling is always good but before that... think about what you purchase ---
do you really need it?
can you reuse it?
is it recyclable?

[blatherina]

What I struggle with is fast food. I wish I had time to cook my food and take it with me, pero eck. Fail. Pinapabawasan ko na lang yung plastic bags na ginagamit nila. OA naman kasi minsan, 1 bag for fries, 1 for burger, 1 for soda.

Ayoko din ng idea ng "moon cup" for periods. Parang madumi. Naimagine ko yung monthly flow sloshing around inside me. Yech. Stick to pads ako. Mas maganda siguro ang tampons ano? Mas maliit, mas konting space sa landfill. o_O;

[betty]

choose biodegradable detergents.

[betty]

babyanj, just a thought regarding your blog....since you have allergic rhinitis, it is better to use tissue, to stop spreading the germs or to stop the virus coming back to you, instead of face towel.   imagine sneezing on a towel, after it has dried, you will sneeze on it again. the virus is still there.

[Hevn]

^ Actually, for us with allergic rhinitis, it is better to use hand towels/handkerchiefs. Constant change and washing lang. Kasi [textspeak!] bits and pieces ng tissue mas nakakadagdag sa allergy pag napapasok sa ilong at makakaubos ka talaga ng isa or dalawang roll ng tissue.

I used to not take any medicine for my allergy and usually leave it to water and resting but I recently found out Allerta fixes the allergy after a day.

@topic
When buying anything that can be hand carried, I don't usually let them put it in plastic bags anymore. I also bring those eco-friendly bags with me so I have spare bag for those times when I suddenly drop by the grocery.

Little by little, I try

@TS
I'm curious about the menstrual cup/mooncup. Is that available here locally? o_O

[blatherina]

Yun yatang mentrual cups, online purchase. May mention siya sa beltran medical website under "services" pero link lang to the website.

I have allergic rhinitis too. Cotton or lint-free cloths work well for allergies. Iba kung cold kasi medyo unsanitary nga because of virus. I find antihistamines sort of a necessary evil. It makes me sooo sleepy but then I DO want the sneezing and the nose-running to stop.
 

- use of biodegradable detergents & organic bath soap/products
- use of Downy 1-banlaw for water conservation
- bringing reusable bags for grocery/general shopping
- carpooling or using public transpo
- buying pre-loved clothes/shoes/bags/etc
- buying locally-made products
- carbon-offsetting
- maintaining a garden & a compost pit
- saving rain water from gutters for watering plants
- waste segregation

Any other suggestions a baby-stepper might make? 

[denxa_1]

it's good to hear these efforts from you, guys. i'm an interior designer, and in our firm, we try to be advocates of "green design". most of the time din, i do design under the "returdesign" concept where, basically, we re-use and upcycle products/items through modification, deconstruction, etc. to create let's say a chair, or a table, or a wall feature. it's less costly din for the client, if ever, d ba?

by 2011, a friend and i will be developing a concept store where we will have a separate collection of home furnishing made from upcycled and sustainable materials.

personally, i use organic products for my personal needs, i lessen plastic bag on purchases lalo na pag konti lang naman yung bibilhin and pwedeng dalhin by hand or ipasok sa bag (if hindi sa mall). and use energy saving cfls para lighting sa bahay.

kudos, fellow gtalkers. with the baby steps that we are doing. we can help in reducing the environmetal problems in our country.

[betty]

sis whats a baby-stepper?

kasi advice sa sister ko ng doctor nya,  tissue daw use nya...allergic rhinitis pa naman is hereditary diba?

[blatherina]

^sis betty, just someone taking baby steps towards a goal. 

Dad ko kasi may allergic rhinitis din. Siguro depende sa tissue? May tissue kasing madaling mag-shred or maraming fiber kaya naa-aggravate yung condition.

@ denxa_1

I love it. I love deconstructed, repurposed items, yung medyo tumbled/scuffed/scruffy. Parang 12th hand leather satchel that a world-traveller has taken everywhere.  I think the store is a great idea. Are you familiar with nightwoodny? Ganun ba ang mood ng items nyo or more upscale? Or halu-halo?

We use CFLs din, I'm thinking of upgrading to LEDs though.
Keber ko sa mall SAs, lalo na sa SM pag may reusable bag ako. Wag nang iplastic! Para san ba ang green bag nyo, diba? heheh

my gaz, pangarap ko ang solar panels saka hybrid car. Wala atang subscription eklavu dito sa pinas pag solar energy diba? Sa States meron e.

[denxa_1]

@blatherina: yup, i <3 nightwoodny items. gusto kong gamitin yung weathered-type interior concept nila sa ginagawa kong glass treehouse right now..

for the store, halu-halo. pero we're thinking yung concept nya is to produce items na surprising yung outcome. we're still conceptualizing and sourcing right now.. ill definitely let you guys know once we're ready to hit the market. as for the solar energy items, i'm lemming for a garden light with solar panels in yummy colors. kaso wala pa akong garden or deck.

[blatherina]

Naku wind energy yata yung sinasabi kong may subscription fee.
Kung pwede lang I'd totally go off the grid. Kaya lang you still need backup energy source in case cloudy, etc. Hay, pangarap!

^Sige tama i-announce mo pag mag-open na kayo. Sana di masyadong pang-mayaman ang price. hehe

[chocobaby]

it's good to hear these efforts from you, guys. i'm an interior designer, and in our firm, we try to be advocates of "green design". most of the time din, i do design under the "returdesign" concept where, basically, we re-use and upcycle products/items through modification, deconstruction, etc. to create let's say a chair, or a table, or a wall feature. it's less costly din for the client, if ever, d ba?

by 2011, a friend and i will be developing a concept store where we will have a separate collection of home furnishing made from upcycled and sustainable materials.

personally, i use organic products for my personal needs, i lessen plastic bag on purchases lalo na pag konti lang naman yung bibilhin and pwedeng dalhin by hand or ipasok sa bag (if hindi sa mall). and use energy saving cfls para lighting sa bahay.

kudos, fellow gtalkers. with the baby steps that we are doing. we can help in reducing the environmetal problems in our country.

Supernice naman ng idea mo. It's good to hear na kahit papaano, other people are looking more into upcycling and a greener living. Hay, yung mga customers ko nga sa clothing store ko e kailangan ko pa minsan ipaliwanag yung benefits ng upcycling clothes. Cheers sa thread na ito!

[blatherina]

^Wow galing naman. I wish I could sew! Pero titingin pa lang ako ng sewing basics na book (pattern-making) tumitirik na mata ko. 

[snowyice]

When I resigned and start reading a lot of stuff from the internet I have actually learned a lot.  I started in switching to organic food and now organic  or safe products na like detergent soap, shampoo, veggie wash and etc although its more expensive at least I have made my share to keep our planet last longer.

To our sisses who chose to be Eco-friendly two thumbs up! 

[showermist]

I recycle. And I bring my own water now. Less plastic. That's a start.

[clumsish]

Mas marami ng Organizations that are educating people para ilessen and paggamit ng mga bagay na nakakasira sa ating environment. Kasi alarming na rin ang status ng ating mother earth.
Since dumadami population dumarami rin yun mga risks that contributes harm sa nature.

Number 1 talaga to help is educating each and every one or reminding na isa lang ang place where we can live. So dapat we give so much value for it.

I don't also use much plastic bags nowadays. Even pag magpupurchase ako sa supermarkets or somewhere, kun kasya naman sa bag ko, dun na lan. I always try to let others see what I am doing. Para mahiya naman yun mga abuso.

Another thing is, we collect all bottles sa bahay tapos we give it to people na nagkakariton. Nun una we are amaze on how much plastic bottles etc we'd collected.  2 bagay yun nagagawa namin, it's helping the environment and helping others na ang ikinabubuhay ay mangolekta ng mga bottles saka newspapers.

Im proud of you girls who are doing better para sa environment natin. I do support those who have products na made from recycled materials.

xoxo