Welcome to our Green Living area!  

Please enjoy this information from Laura Klein:

  "No one person has to do it all, but if each one of us follows our heart and our own inclinations we will find the small things that we can do, and together we will come up with enough to create a sustainable future and a healthy enviroment." - John Denver 

Going green could earn you a lot of green

Not too long ago, the phrases "making money" and "environmentally conscious" were polar opposites. Those days are gone.

Today, America's movement toward going green in many aspects of life is actually a great way to not only save money, but to make money too.

Are you the next green millionaire?

A green millionaire recognizes that you can save money while helping to save our planet. He or she is also someone who understands that being environmentally conscious leads to real wealth - by saving money on everyday utilities and using new "green" technologies to become wealthy.

The Green Millionaire book reveals these secrets.

Author and green entrepreneur Nigel Williams has condensed all of these profitable ideas into one source - the Green Millionaire e-book.

Inside this book, you'll discover how to:

• Get an instant $21,000 raise - by staying home from work
• Claim your share of $1,000,000 in government money
• Receive $25,000 worth of solar energy free
• Save $4,000 on water and electricity
• Never pay for gas again

You'll discover ways of saving thousands of dollars every year in "fixed" expenses and find new, environmentally friendly methods for saving money.

You can learn these strategies for free.

Best of all, Williams is so dedicated to the idea that saving the earth can make you money, he is now offering this e-book free of charge. You just have to pay a $1 processing fee and download the PDF online. Along with the e-book, you'll get a free trial of The Green Millionaire eMagazine.


Get the insider secrets you need to make great money while saving the Earth. Visit www.greenmillionaire.com today to get your copy of the eBook for just $1.

Green Business Basics

Green business is not just a new buzz word, but a way to make your business more sustainable and socially responsible in today’s society. Going green with your business is one way you can make a difference and have peace of mind that you are doing your part to help protect the environment.

“Going green” generally refers to the process of making decisions that decrease your ecological footprint. Rethinking the way your business uses paper and using energy efficient appliances are two simple ways to become more environmentally friendly, or “go green.”

Benefits to Going Green

By going green you can:

• Save Money: By improving your business’ efficiency, you can lower energy costs, reduce supplies and cut costs on commuting.
• Reduce Carbon Emissions: Burning coal and oil has been linked to acid rain and global warming. By decreasing your business’ carbon emissions, you are reducing the amount of CO2 put in the atmosphere daily as a result of your routine.
• Conserve Resources: Making a deliberate effort to stop or decrease the use of products made of natural resources can help slow down the destruction of forest and depletion of oil supplies. 

Ways to Create a Green Business

You should reduce paper waste, and monitor the amount of paper your business uses; make adjustments as necessary. Print only documents that you really need in hard copy, otherwise use digital versions for your review. Use print preview before printing a document in MS Word or other word processing software to see how your document will print onscreen and make any adjustments beforehand to stop unnecessary printing.

When printing from a webpage, use the “Print this Page” icon or use your browser’s Print Preview button to ensure that you do not print additional pages of content that you do not need. Additionally, you can copy the text to a blank text document and print from there.

Two additional options include cutting down on paper by implementing double-sided printouts and using recycled paper.

You should reduce energy in the office, and use natural light in the office if possible. Switch lights to compact fluorescents where natural light is not an option. Plug all electronics into power strips to shut everything off at once, and shut down all computers completely at the end of the day. Use the energy saving mode during the day.

You should also reduce commute times. Offer employees the opportunity to telecommute a few days per month to cut down on their commute. Encourage carpooling amongst your employees, and offer employees the opportunity to work four 10-hour days instead of five 8-hour days.

Making a few simple changes to your office environment can have a great impact on the bottom line and the social consciousness of your business and employees. Take the time to evaluate what you can do to save energy and resources, and start “going green” today!

Information from www.doityourself.com

3rd Annual Green Expo was a big success

The 3rd Annual Green Expo was a big success on April 22nd, 2009.  There were vendors from food marketing to handcrafted woodwork, recycled art work, locally grown prairie and perennial plants, Blackthorn Hill Nature Perserve, wind energy samples and many more. Plus both Knox college and Monmouth College showed projects that they are working on to conserve energy or rainwater.

Here are some photos:

NEW!  PRLog.Org - Global Press Release Distribution
Online Retailer Stays In Touch With Customers Through Twitter.
By Green Nation Gardens
Dated: Jun 07, 2009

"We're revolutionizing the way we communicate with customers with a new, up to the minute approach."
In a world where people barely have time to gesture a friendly wave to a neighbor or stand in line long enough for fast food, micro-blogging Twitter has found an effective and increasingly acceptable place within todays micro-managing society. GreenNationGardens.com is accommodating busy customers with lightning fast updates and announcements.
"While email delivers relevant information to customers such as feature articles, tips, updates and pricing, it does not measure up to the real time value of Twitter", explains Mark Pappas, Co-owner of Internet based retailer, Green Nation Gardens. Twitter is a real time blogging platform where members can follow one another, reading short entries from each member. Of course, the idea is to let each other know what you are doing.
Green Nation Gardens recognizes the advantages of sending out frequent updates to customers and fellow Twitter followers including up to the minute price changes, new product listings and select articles featured on the E-commerce site. Pappas goes on to say, "Twitter is the perfect communication machine and this is the perfect time to change the way we stay in contact with a busy and fast paced society."

You can follow Green Nation Gardens at http:// www.Twitter.com/GreenNation
Mark Pappas, is Co-owner of Green Nation Gardens, a leading Internet retailer of Green Living Products for Home and Garden. You can visit Green Nation Gardens at http:// www.GreenNationGardens.com
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Green Nation Gardens is an online retailer of Green Products for Home & Garden. We offer organic
gardening supplies, green cleaning products, composters...
Category Green Products, Organic Gardening, Home & Gardenin
Tags green living, organic gardening, green products, home garden, organic gardening supplies, gardening
Phone 856-499-4182
City/Town Cinnaminson
State/Province New Jersey
Zip 08077
Country United States

The Green Guide: Plastic bottles, to reuse or recycle?

This month’s guide will be covering the uses of disposable plastic bottles.  The national geographic Green center is the main source for the information presented here.
There are 7 different types of plastic.  To find out what type you are in contact with just look at the bottom of the container; there should be a number there telling you what type of plastic it is.
#1 polyethylene terephthalate (PET or PETE)
Examples: Disposable soft drink and water bottles
#2 high density polyethylene (HDPE)/
Examples: Milk jugs, liquid detergent bottles, shampoo bottles
#3 polyvinyl chloride (V or PVC)
Examples: Meat wrap, cooking oil bottles, plumbing pipes
#4 low density polyethylene (LDPE)
Examples: Cling wrap, grocery bags, sandwich bags
#5 polypropylene (PP)
Examples: Cloudy plastic water bottles, yogurt cups/tubs
#6 polystyrene (PS)
Examples: Disposable coffee cups, clam-shell take-out containers
#7 other (plastics invented after 1987; includes polycarbonate, or PC, and polylactide, or PLA, plastics made from renewable resources as well as newer plastics labeled "BPA-Free")
Examples: Baby bottles, some reusable water bottles, stain-resistant food-storage containers (National Geographic)
There was some recent drama in my home about whether or not reusing water bottles was a good idea so I decided to do some research.  As you can see above the bottles my family was debating over were type 1.  Type 1 plastics are porous according to national geographic green guide.  Since they are porous when reused they can acquire bacteria that cannot be washed out and they absorb flavors.
The good news is that most recycling facilities accept type 1 plastics so rather than reusing a disposable water bottle you can recycle it.  The best bet is to get a reusable container and keep fatty foods away from it! 
Keep up the green work!
The Green Girl, Chelsea Franey

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Green Guide
    Now that spring is coming near I want to focus in on a few green ways to clean your home.  By using green cleaners for your home you not only help the earth you make your home a safer place to be!
    Vinegar-it is the everything cleaner.  If you don’t like the smell just add a little lemon to the mix.  Use white distilled vinegar for cleaning (any others may stain).  Thanks to the National Geographic Green Section I have a few recipes for homemade cleaners

 Floors
 
Wood
1/4 cup white vinegar
1 gallon warm water

 Linoleum
1 cup white vinegar
2 gallons warm water
Mix in mop bucket, rinse afterwards.

Furniture Polish

1/2 cup white vinegar
1 teaspoon olive oil
Mix and apply with a clean rag to dust and polish.
Reduce the olive oil if wood looks too oily.

 Metal Polish

 Copper and Brass
2 tbsp salt
White vinegar
Add vinegar to salt until you've created a paste.
Adding flour will reduce abrasiveness.
Apply with a rag and rub clean.
 Stainless Steel
Baking soda
White vinegar
Apply baking soda with a damp cloth,
using the vinegar to eliminate spots.

The Green Girl, Chelsea Franey

Article 2: Reuse

Now that you have incorporated the first guide lines into your everyday life I bet you are wondering “what else can I do?”  Well I am going to give you three more easy things to do that will help conserve water, energy, and cash!

1. Reuse towels.  After you take a shower instead of putting your towel straight into the hamper hang it up on a peg or a towel rack and use it again a couple times.  By doing this you will lessen the amount of water you use washing towels (thus helping the environment) and you will lower your water bill!
2. Reuse Pajamas.  Unless you are very active in your sleep your pajamas shouldn’t get dirty quickly.  Make a habit of wearing the same PJs for two nights in a row and you’ll cut down that water bill even more!
3. Reuse containers.  When at all possible use jars and plastic containers again in place of going out and buying Tupperware.  This way you are saving the environment and money at the same time.

  -The Green Girl
*These are original ideas*

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   Article One: The Beginning
    It is not uncommon to hear the phrase “going green,” but what does that mean for you?  There are plenty of websites based solely off of the idea of going green.  They can be rather daunting so I am here to bring you monthly tips on ways you can help the world.  
    The best advice I have heard so far is start small.  Saving the world is a big task and it can’t be done in one day; doing simple things like turning out a light when you leave the room will lower both your carbon emissions and electricity bill.  Mythbusters recently disproved the myth stating that it was better to leave your lights on rather than use the extra energy to start them up again.  It turns out that it is more cost effective and to turn lights on when you need them and to turn them off when you don’t.

A few other easy things you can do to go green are:
1) Put extra grocery bags in your car
2) Turn off the tap water while brushing your teeth
3) Unplug things when they aren’t in use
4) Pay bills online

The biggest thing to remember is that one person alone can’t do much, but all of us together can do anything.  Join in the green revolution today and help change our world!