According to a recent study by the Global Business Travel Associating (GBTA) sustainability initiatives are playing an increasingly important aspect in managed travel programs. GBTA surveyed travel managers in the U.S., Europe and Australia in regards to sustainability or 'green' efforts in their companies when it comes to their business travel programs.
In the consumer domain, the interest of the public in ethical consumerism, i.e. the implementation of socially responsible and sustainable products and services, is quickly becoming one of the biggest movements within the consumer marketplace. More consumers are actively seeking out authentic travel experiences. Sixty-one percent of Americans believe their experience is better when their destination preserves its unique natural, historic, and cultural sites. Among them, 54 percent stated they would be more likely to frequent hotels or resorts they knew practiced environmental responsibility practices.... read more
Travelling abroad can be and in fact most often is, one of the most exciting and potentially inspiring things that any person could choose to do with their time. The intense mix of culture shock and in turn the feeling of being removed from your own comfort zone often than not leads to a very strange feeling of bliss and openness. For most of us going abroad is a break from work, home and normality, at a small price. But that price needn’t be forced onto the natural world as well, and it quite often is. For those of us who, whilst at home regularly use “mod cons”, heading away for a trip abroad can be a great excuse to cut back on expensive and environmentally damaging technology. By utilising your new found freedom to its full potential it can be incredibly easy to leave behind all the items and home comforts which make our lives easy and routine and in turn often damage the environment.... read more
If you are like me then you love the sun and summer, but also worry about sun exposure. I've been looking far and wide for a daily use sunblock that's good for my skin and has natural ingredients that won't harm the environment. I'd also like a bit of help in reducing signs of aging... like wrinkles. In my search, I have discovered that the research on sunblock has changed. The chemicals in sunblock can be far worse than sun exposure itself. ... read more
It’s summer! Which means lots of us are making plans for summer travel. This is a perfect moment to think about packing lists and ecotravel. How can you make your summer travelmore green? Check out 7 Packing List Items for the Ecotourist:
Reusable waterbottle | Bring your bottle for water - my new favorite is the Bobble because it has its own filter inside the bottle, no matter where I am I can know my water will get an extra boost of filtration since I have my own with me! ... read more
Our friends at Easy Finance look at some different stats for the finances of going green and saving money.
They go on to explain: "There are a number of ways to help our environment almost effortlessly and without spending a single dollar. Some principles of a sustainable lifestyle are pretty straightforward and easy to put into practice."
Check out the graphic below to learn more. ... read more
Question: Is Styrofoam recyclable? Answer: No. Yes. Well kind of, sort of.
I get this question almost weekly working for a recycling company. Many times people assume Styrofoam is recyclable, especially if it has a recycling symbol and number on the piece. Packaging pieces and Dunkin Donut cups keep appearing more and more mixed in with single stream and glass/plastics recycling.
Tristin and Tyler LOVE books. Big books, small books, superhero books, fairytale books, you name it, they love it! Their first, and now favorite, green/eco book is called THINK GREEN! by Jeanine Behr Getz. Jeanine self-published the book via her company Kids Think Big. In this episode of Tristin and Tyler's Tales from the City! the boys learn that they too can impact the earth, even though they are little guys!... read more
Although I've never been one much for "New Year's Resolutions," this year, I've been doing a lot of thinking about my way of "green living" and am dedicated to step it up a notch in 2012. Since leaving the ranch and the idyllic Montana country girl life I grew up with and transitioning over the last 7 or 8 years to apartment life and city dwelling, there have been many aspects of what I deemed green living that I simply gave up on or didn't think to see if they were feasible. The biggest is gardening. Without endless acres at my fingertips, and in fact, not a blade of grass that I can put my name to, I sadly simply stopped thinking of growing green things, of watering tender plants and plucking stubborn weeds. Composting followed shortly behind it. I grew up with a large "compost pile" just over the fence and down the hill and that seemed natural and easy enough, but how could I compost in an apartment, and even more, why would I compost in an apartment? Turns out, I don't need to give up either one of those, and in 2012, I don't plan to any longer!. Here's what I plan to do in "Phase 1" of my Green Up.... read more
I don’t know about you, but I’ve been seeing the term upcycling all over the place lately, despite not being quite sure why the new trendy word.In fact, it wasn’t until just recently when I finally searched the definition that it started to make sense, and I kinda got really excited about it!(And since we’re talking upcycling pumpkins here, I thought you might like to know what it is too…)Upcycling, at its basic core: is to reuse something in a way that cretes something of higher value or quality than what it started as.Oooh!Snazzy!Instead of getting rid of something in a better way (recyling), here’s to a creating a whole new and improved item!Love it.So, since it’s October and we here in the U.S. are about to burn through approximately 1.5 billion pounds of pumpkin, I thought it only appropriate to offer you some UPcycling ideas.(Otherwise that’s a whole lotta pumpkin sitting in landfills…)... read more
Here's a painless way to reduce one of your monthly bills and encourage a less waste-producing lifestyle: downsize your garbage can.
A couple years ago our city introduced three sizes of garbage cans, with corresponding reduced prices. The first is the standard size that we're all used to: 68 gallons. When we were using disposable diapers for our daughter (I know, I know, so-not-green!), we needed this full-sized can, so we had to pay full price on our garbage bill ($55.84/month). But once she was potty trained, we noticed we were only filling the can 1/2 way each week. ... read more
Travelling abroad can be and in fact most often is, one of the most exciting and potentially inspiring things that any person could choose to do with their time. The intense mix of culture shock and in turn the feeling of being removed from your own comfort zone often than not leads to a very strange feeling of bliss and openness. For most of us going abroad is a break from work, home and normality, at a small price. But that price needn’t be forced onto the natural world as well, and it quite often is. For those of us who, whilst at home regularly use “mod cons”, heading away for a trip abroad can be a great excuse to cut back on expensive and environmentally damaging technology. By utilising your new found freedom to its full potential it can be incredibly easy to leave behind all the items and home comforts which make our lives easy and routine and in turn often damage the environment.
