A Week Without Processed Foods

Read about one woman's quest to go one week only eating unprocessed foods:

A Week Without Processed Foods: What I’ve Learned (Plus Resources for Cooking and Eating Whole Foods) ReadyMade Magazine

I have been meaning to do something similar for a while, by living off of local foods for a week. All the basics are already produced here: Coffee? Check. Fruits? Check. Veg? Check. Starch? Yam, cassava, sweet potato, check. Protein? Beans, dairy, check. All that's left is for me to get organized, pick a date, and just do it already...

Bright Idea: The BigBelly

Philadelphia has just gotten a little cleaner, a little greener, with the help of the BigBelly. The BigBelly (I love typing that!) is a solar powered trash compactor used in place of traditional waste bins, which allows for more trash to be collected and reduces the number of pick-ups necessary from garbage trucks, thereby reducing fuel usage and emissions. They even send a text message when they are full, so that pick-ups can be routed to where they are needed most, saving even more time and energy. Brilliant!

This morning, in the park

After my run in the park this morning, I was sitting on a bench stretching and looked down to see a leaf, shaped just like a heart. I took a look around and saw two more lying nearby. They made me smile and I thought I would share them with you. Sorry for the poor photo quality, I took the pics with my phone...

On my way out of the park, I also saw this cluster of mushrooms growing in a perfect 'C' shape. I thought it was odd, but kind of neat. Take a look around your environment, what do you see?

White roof is the new green roof

Photo: NY Times

Although the idea has been around for a while, white roofs are now 'cool'. Well, I suppose they've always been that way, its just that with climate change heating things up, and more and more people looking to cut energy costs, now its getting talked about. You may have seen them on the tops of malls and office buildings, but now white roofs are moving into residential areas. In the same way that a white t-shirt is going to keep you cooler than a black one on a sunny day, a roof that is white in color will keep your home or office cooler than a dark-shingled or tar roof. All that sunlight beating down gets reflected off of a white roof, creating an energy-efficient way to chill out. According to the NY Times, a white roof can cut 20 percent of air conditioning costs on a sunny day. This means less energy use, fewer carbon dioxide emissions, and more money in your pocket.

However, the idea also works in reverse. In winter, a white roof is still going to be reflecting sunlight away, potentially increasing heating demands. A black roof absorbs the sun's rays, which helps to keep the house warm in winter. If you live somewhere where there is more winter than summer, additional heating costs in winter may outweigh savings on air conditioning from a white roof in the summer.

Check out this article from the NY Times for more on white roofs:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/30/science/earth/30degrees.html?_r=1

Bright Idea: Start a co-op to green your neighborhood

Check out this article from Scientific American on starting a green co-op. It's actually a great idea to join up with like-minded neighbors and share the burden of doing all the research and coordinating for larger projects, such as installing solar panels. Houses in the same neighborhood are likely to face similar issues regarding zoning permits and finding a suitable contractor, and families can work together to split up the necessary tasks. Also, as a group, there is the chance that you will have more sway in getting local government support, make it easier to get permits approved, and possibly get a discounted rate for materials and installation. As an added bonus, you may get to know some of your neighbors a bit better, while also doing something great for the environment!

http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/60-second-science/post.cfm?id=the-pleasant-way-to-go-solar-neighb-2009-08-13

Welcome!

Welcome to the heart the earth blog! Here, I hope to create a source for interesting and innovative ideas related to current environmental issues and to provide easy ways to green your everyday life. I am always reading about and trying out new ways to green my own life and often come across interesting articles and products that I would like to share. Now I have a place to do so. Please feel free to add comments to this or any future posts... I welcome your input and insight!

To start us off, a video I came across today. This clip is an entertaining, yet informative, reminder about the importance of eating local. The video was made for Canada, however, I can assure you that the problem is many times worse in the States. So, everytime they refer to Canada, replace that in your head with the US and multipy the statistic by 5 (not exactly scientific, but you get the idea).

Hellmann’s - It’s Time for Real from CRUSH on Vimeo.