environment

Tips For Having A Green Holiday

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christmas ornamentsThere has never been a better time to have the UN Climate Change Conference, or COP21.  Climate change is the most pressing issue affecting the planet and its inhabitants.  However, all the holiday shopping and consumption going on now creates an even bigger carbon footprint.  We all need to do better for our future.

Here are some tips and ideas on making your holiday a little greener:  

  1. Buy a real Christmas tree: I know it’s easier to just get a plastic tree that can be reused every year, but they are not sustainable.  Real Christmas trees are more environmentally friendly than artificial trees. Fake trees usually have a lifespan of 6 to 10 years and are made from polyvinyl chloride, or PVC, which is not biodegradable.  This is problematic when they are tossed into a landfill, where plastic lives forever.  Consider not only buying a real tree, but a potted, live tree that can be repotted, replanted or turned into mulch and chippings later.
  2. Reduce holiday lighting: Everybody loves looking at beautiful holiday lights on homes, but those lights can be a strain on your electricity grid and your wallet.  Consider a smaller light display by using LED mini-lights, and instead of keeping the lights on all night, maybe turn them off before you go to bed.
  3. Recycle wrapping paper and gift bags:  Carefully open all your gifts so you can reuse the wrapping paper next year!  Also, if you have to buy gift wrapping, try to find paper that is environmentally friendly.  
  4. Reduce, reuse & recycle technology:  This is the time of the year everyone buys new electronics and toss old electronics still in working order into the trash.  If your old television or computer still works, consider donating it to a local nonprofit in need.  Many homeless shelters and domestic violence programs are always looking for gently used mobile phones.  Also, when you are not using your tech gadgets, don’t just turn them off, but unplug them to reduce vampire energy.  (Shameless self-promotion: I wrote a whole book on this topic.)     
  5. Handmade gifts: I think some of the best gifts I have ever received were handmade.  My mom made me a quilt many Christmases ago that I still use and love.  It might be too late to start sewing a quilt, there are many other homemade gifts that you can make just in time for the holidays.  There are tons of arts and crafts books and online resources out there to help you out.  I make my own holiday cards using recycled materials.  While buying a store bought gift might be easier, people will remember your handmade gift because it is the thought that counts.
  6. Shop local:  Yes, it is very tempting to shop at Amazon or Walmart, but also try to give some money to locally-owned small businesses.  Not only are you reducing your shipping and handling carbon footprint, but you are also supporting your local economy.  If you are hosting a holiday party, consider purchasing locally sourced food.
  7. Re-gifting: I see nothing wrong with re-gifting an item that you don’t need to someone who does need it, so long as you are not giving it back to the original giver (Now that’s tacky!).  Save money on gifts and pass it forward.
  8. Reduce travel: It’s great to see friends and family who live far away, but also keep in mind the carbon footprint you create every time you fly or drive anywhere.  I have reduced my holiday traveling in recent years.  Think about if there is an alternative to traveling long distance?  Maybe you have friends and family who live right around the corner that you haven’t seen in an while.

Why Going Car-less Is Really Better

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orange line mbtaThis month as part of my resolve to not resolve series, I was scheduled to write about how using public transit, bikes and walking are better options than the hassles of a car.  However, we had the worst winter in Boston ever and the city’s public transit system was a hot mess, and that made me really think about this issue again.  After thinking about it, I still advocate for being car-less.  I have been car-less pretty much all of my adult life for four main reasons.

Expense: It is cheaper to buy a bus or subway pass and/or ride a bike than to buy and maintain a car.  When you add up the cost of gas, insurance, routine tune-ups, the premium prices for parking and the occasional “fix the problem” with the car, it gets expensive.

Sustainability:  Too many unnecessary cars on the road is bad for the environment, especially single occupancy cars.  Unless you have to drive many things or people (small children, disabled, elderly) around and/or regularly drive in an area where public transit and bike-friendly roads are limited, it is best to avoid cars.

Health: I think it goes without saying that driving around in a car all the time contributes to bad health habits, like physical inactivity and mindless eating.  In my experience being car-less forces you to walk, run or bike more often and the desire to eat mindlessly diminishes.

De-stress: Driving is very stressful.  Dealing with other drivers, getting lost, finding directions and car breakdowns can take a toll on you over time.  Walking or biking (when you are not competing for road space with other cars) is more relaxing.  You also get more free air, which is good for the mind and body.  When you ride a bus or subway train, you can use the traveling time to do other things like reading, napping or just watching your surroundings.

I actually wrote this blog post while traveling to a client meeting on the bus! I get more done sometimes when I am on public transit than in my office.  Also, when you walk, bike or take public transit, you are more mindful of things going on in your environment that you wouldn’t notice if you were driving.

Again, I should stress that being car-less only effectively works if you live and work in an area with access to decent public transit, dedicated sidewalks and bike-friendly roads.

While this winter season was unprecedented,  if anything, the many storms highlighted why Boston needs to invest in better public transit and infrastructure.  The problem isn’t just that the MBTA is corrupt as heck and run like the mob. The problem here is that car-less people are treated like second-class citizens because public transit and infrastructure are viewed as an afterthought and not essential in America’s car-obsessed culture.

It is totally unheard of that a major cold weather city would shut down its whole public transit system for multiple days, and then run on limited service for another month because of snow and cold temperatures.  The MBTA general manager actually recommended riders to not take the T during the storms. I talked to friends from Toronto and Montreal; both cities that get considerably more snow and colder temps than Boston.  All of them said that their winters are harsh, but their transit systems are always running, regardless of weather.

One Torontonian friend who happened to come to Boston during one of the storms in February was also shocked by how many sidewalks were not shoveled for pedestrians.  Although there is a law on the books about shoveling sidewalks within three hours of a storm in Boston, for the most part, it is not enforced.  I found myself walking in roads trying to avoid skidding cars because of icy, unshoveled sidewalks in many areas.  The only reason I can use sidewalks again now is because the snow is finally melting with warmer temperatures and heavy rain.

It would actually make more sense to have better public infrastructure for inclement weather.  If there were better trains and buses in Boston, we could encourage more people to use public transit and ditch cars.  If there were less cars on the road during storms, there would be less traffic accidents, spin-outs and other safety hazards.  If snow removal on sidewalks was enforced better, more people would be willing to walk around.  There are some people who ride bikes year-round, even when snow is on the ground, like a former roommate I had many years ago.  If roads were shoveled better and had dedicated bike lanes, they could accommodate both cars and bikes in a more efficient way.

I would even go as far as saying that maybe parts of the city should permanently ban cars, especially downtown.  Only allow buses, bikes, cabs and delivery trucks in those areas.  That could significantly improve traffic.  Unlike New York and Washington D.C., Boston was not a planned city.  Traffic is horrible in these areas mainly because of narrow, awkward roads that were originally built in the 1600s for horses and buggies.  Boston would actually be an excellent city for making alternative transportation more of a reality.

Also, I should note that MBTA breakdowns are not just a winter phenomenon.  I have been on the Orange Line with no air conditioning many times during summer heatwaves and suddenly the train stops running for 10 or 20 minutes due to “signal problems.”  And you wonder why nobody in Boston wants the city to host the Summer Olympics in 2024?

Being car-less can be done; it’s just that America needs to change its car-filled mentality.

5 Lessons I Learned From The MH370 Tragedy

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A memorial cross for MH370

For the last two weeks the world has been closely watching the drama play out over the missing Malaysian Airline flight 370.  Out of this tragedy have come some hard lessons and truths we can learn about ourselves.

  1.  Lack of Modern Surveillance Technology – You mean to tell me that I can find my missing mobile phone with a GPS app, but apparently the world can’t find a Boeing 777 with 239 people onboard?  And why is it possible to disable the transponder on a plane?  Shouldn’t that be something that stays on all the time when the plane is travelling?  Despite advances in technology, global air traffic is still radar-based, the same technology used 70 years ago .  Once a plane is beyond 150 miles over water, radar control fades and the pilots depend on staying in contact with air traffic control using high frequency radios.  However, there are some new devices that are being tested for missing planes. Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) was the onboard data system for Air France flight 447 when it crashed in 2009, as well as MH370.  Rescuers were able to gain some insight into what went wrong on those flights. Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ADS-B) is another data system being develop that will eventually replace radar systems.
  2. The world’s oceans are filthy – Initially it was believed the plane went down in the South China Sea when an oil slick spotted off the coast of Vietnam appeared.  However, it turned out to not be aviation fuel, but rather bunker oil.  There have also been subsequent findings of other “floating objects” that turned out to not be related to MH370.  This should alarm anyone who cares even casually about the environment that there is so much flotsam, jetsam, pesticides, herbicides, chemical fertilizers, detergents, oil, sewage, plastics, and other solid wastes in the world’s waters.  What is even worse here is that as soon as a “floating object” is determined to not be related to MH370, the media moves on from that story and not give further investigation and reporting on why the world’s oceans are so filthy.  But I guess they have more important issues to discuss… Speaking of which…
  3. Media personalities as conspiracy theory enablers – Because cable news needs to fill space for 24 hours and no one has a clue where this plane is, most of the media “reporting” for the last two weeks has been pure speculation.  Hours and hours of so-called aviation “experts” and news “reporters” throwing out any possible theory they can think of without any factual evidence, such as the fanatical pilots theory, the Iranian passengers theory, the Pakistan theory, the North Korea theory, the black hole theory, the shoot-down theory, and the plane disintegration theory, among many others.  On top of all this, TV cameras are being shoved into the faces of grieving families.  Out of respect for the victims’ families and journalistic integrity, I have to agree with Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson when he says simply that “… when we don’t know the answer, we should just say so — and then shut up. Endless content-free coverage deserves to be eaten by a black hole.”  But I guess TV ratings matters more here.
  4. Countries don’t have friends, just interests – You would think with all the spying most countries are doing on each other, somebody would have picked up on where a plane of this size would have last flown.  There is a lot of dishonesty, or rather strategic secrecy going on here.  Malaysian officials make an announcement on new information one day, only to backtrack on it the next day.  Are they incompetent, or do they know more than they want to let on to the rest of the world about this plane?  China, America, France and other countries share their limited satellite images that are four days old possibly because it takes a long time to decipher the findings, or they don’t want to reveal to their enemies their true technical capabilities.  It is pretty sad that in this time of need for international cooperation, countries still treat other countries as enemies and not supporters of humanity.
  5. The world is still a mysterious place – Regardless of when and if MH370 is ever found, it is quite fascinating that a plane with 239 people on it can vanish into thin air.  Just when you think you know everything, Mother Earth always has a way to throw a curve ball.

“Recharge E-waste” Ebook Now Available

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rechargeewastepressphoto800x500I am happy to announce the latest publication from Global Wire Associates – Recharge E-waste: Ideas For Reducing Electronic Waste And Greening The Tech World.  This is a multimedia anthology of the best work from the firm’s “Recharge E-waste” campaign, illustrating the global environmental problem of electronic waste and possible solutions presented by both grassroots activists and international policymakers.

Recharge E-waste also shows the results of three, year-long  surveys conducted with 600 past and present Global Wire Associates clients worldwide on their views on e-waste.  One survey shows that while most clients have at least some knowledge about electronic waste and the environmental and health problems they cause, nearly a quarter of participants still throw away their old electronics into the trash.  Most North American and European participants had the least knowledge about electronic waste and were shocked to learn that this waste stream mostly makes its way to developing countries.  This is crucial to know as most e-waste originates in developed countries.

Our study also shows that most participants globally have a distrust in tech companies having a say in electronic waste recycling, and that either the United Nations or individuals governments should be responsible for setting e-waste policy.  As on participant in New Zealand said: “If Apple is not transparent about working conditions in the foreign factories making their products, how can we trust them to be responsible for properly discarding old products?”

Recharge E-Waste: Ideas For Reducing Electronic Waste And Greening The Tech World
Buy the e-book here. Price: US$3.99

Amazon.com
PDF Version

(The ebook is in English, but we hope to have it translated into other languages in the next few weeks.)

Upcoming Webinar

Recharge E-Waste Online Book Release Party – Saturday, 12  January 2013 Noon EST (Full)

Join us for our official book release party of our latest publication, Recharge E-Waste: Ideas For Reducing Electronic Waste And Greening The Tech World.  Global Wire Associates managing director Talia Whyte and research director Maria Ferrera will discuss their findings on electronic waste systems and innovations on dealing with the problem. Price: Free, but first come, first serve as space is limited. As of 7 Jan, this event has met capacity. Email info[at]globalwireonline[dot]org to register to get on the waiting list.

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