In anticipation of our Environmental Change-Makers “Greener Gifting” event tonight, I have been compiling resources about how we can make our holiday celebrations greener.  We don’t need to sacrifice our environmental ethics as we participate in the festivities.
Although the topic of our event is “Greener Gifting” (because all those ‘G’s looked too cool!), the resources […]

Was that another earthquake?  No, but it is ground-shaking news here in Southern California!  The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, joined by five other major Southern California cities, has declined to renew a major contract for coal-fired electricity.
The contract, with Utah’s Intermountain Power Agency, was set to expire in 2027, and has supplied […]

In February 2005, when the Kyoto Protocol took effect for 141 nations of the world, yet the U.S. federal government steadfastly refused to participate, Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels took matters into his own hands.  Nickels formed the U.S. Mayor’s Climate Protection Agreement, a pledge made city-by-city by mayors across the country.
Nickels’ original stated goal was to […]

The city of Oakland, California (population 411,000) has passed a resolution to become oil-free by 2020.  They have set up a task force whose “main job will be to examine innovative oil dependence reduction policies being used around the world and come up with a strategy tailored to Oakland’s needs. This will include looking at […]

“The rise in concentrations of the greenhouse gas methane in the atmosphere has slowed down considerably in recent years, research suggests.
“Scientists say levels have been stable for about seven years following a steep rise during the last century.
“Researchers believe the slowdown may be due to measures aimed at reducing the release of methane from gas […]

The WorldWatch Institute is challenging people to try a “100-mile Thanksgiving,” serving foods grown or raised within a 100 mile radius of their homes.Â
One of the interesting points raised in their article is that a local meal uses 4 to 17 times less petroleum in transport than would be used to generate the same […]

“For more than a hundred years, the graceful, bushy-topped fan palm has been an iconic symbol of L.A.’s balmy, postcard lifestyle.
“But city leaders now want to put an end to the tree’s reign on the grounds it is bad for the environment.
“City Council members voted this week to halt the placement of fan palms on […]

Curbside, December 26, the trash bins are overflowing.  Cardboard boxes, wrapping paper.  Even if they’re in bins that are headed for recycling, these mounds still represent massive wastes of resources. Fossil fuels to manufacture, warehouse, and haul to market, with related greenhouse gas emissions.  Fossil fuels to haul away the waste, and landfill issues for decades […]

The little parish where we hold the Environmental Change-Makers meetings has recently declared their site a “Styrofoam-free zone.”  They printed up an informative and friendly flyer which briefly explains why they have taken this step, and invites people to use the church’s reuseable “real” china and silverware.
This weekend I began reading more about the Styrofoam […]