Go Green
Sustainable Education Programs
Higher education is now focusing on helping people better understand what sustainability is all about. Sustainable education programs are being implemented in colleges across the country. This trend is paramount to the success of motivating everyone to take the proper actions in healing our environment.
Sustainable Education Programs
Sustainable Education Programs: Easy Ways to Go Green at Home
The relationship between the environment and human psychology is age-old, yet encouraging populations to alter their behavior to become “green” is another challenge altogether. To address this challenge, the field of ecopsychology is increasing in relevance and demand, not only in universities, but in business and popular culture.
The term “sustainability” in many ways echoes ecopsychology and is commonly used today as a tool to relate to, acknowledge and ultimately mitigate, climate change. But what does it actually mean? Oftentimes, it comes down to marketing. Many businesses and universities now have a sustainability coordinator on staff to help manage recycling and compost programs and “sustainability” pops up on many present-day products from food to laundry detergent.
Sustainability often addresses the need to mitigate climate change while ultimately maintaining our current economic relationship with existing resources on Earth; it does not necessarily aim to decrease demand of resources or change our inherent driving behavior, for example. Sustainability exists in such a way to be environmentally conscious while not entirely shocking the economic system — and in some cases even prolonging it, as seen with the Prius Fallacy and Jevons Paradox.
In many instances, it’s an economic issue with an environmental impact. In other words, very few people will choose to go cold this winter in an effort to be green, but they may take action to ensure their house is energy efficient, thereby demanding less energy and saving money in the process. It’s also important to note that the term sustainability is used predominantly from an anthropocentric standpoint taking into account existing — mainly western — ways of life; poorer cultures are often by default sustainable given they typically demand less.
Going green is not just a passing fad. History has already proven this. If you still are uncertain what you can do for our environment, go online and research the phrase “sustainable education programs.” There are numerous selections in which to choose. After you have educated yourself on this important subject, share your knowledge with your friends. Social media is an excellent way to quickly let your friends and colleagues to accomplish this. Just click on the Facebook and Twitter icons below.
Appliances: Simple Ways To Go Green At Home
Many people are still confused as to what to do to help heal the earth. Simple ways to go green at home include taking proper care of your appliances. This method is easy, appliances are readily available, you also save on your energy bills when done properly.
Simple Ways To Go Green at Home
Make Renewable Energy
One tip to make a refrigerator run more smoothly. Give refrigerators some breathing room by keeping the appliance at least two or three inches away from the wall. Also, place a refrigerator away from direct sunlight and appliances that produce heat to make a refrigerator run more efficiently.
Check and care for the rubber seals surrounding the inside of the fridge by using mild soap twice a year to help prevent cracked and torn seals. Use money to test the seals by placing a dollar bill halfway inside the refrigerator door. If the dollar pulls out easily, then the refrigerator is losing money in more than one way and it may be time to replace the rubber seals.
Keep the Heat Inside of the Oven and Out of the Pocket. One way to save more money is to make sure food isn’t cooking unevenly or it is taking longer than before, if so it may be time to replace cracked or torn door seals that can allow up to 20% of heat to escape. When cooking up a favorite meal, turn off electric burners two to three minutes before finishing cooking and let the residual heat sauté the rest to perfection. Also save a step by planning out a cooking schedule to only bake in the oven instead of preheating. Sometimes there is no need to preheat if the food requires more than an hour in the oven. When tidying up the kitchen don’t forget about electric and gas burners. Clean burners allow for a more efficient use of energy.
When using the dishwasher a consumer can save up to 20 gallons of water by hand scraping the dishes, instead of running water for the pre-rinse cycle. Also give dishes a breath of fresh air by turning the dishwasher setting to air-dry or open the dishwasher after the rinse cycle. Also Hold off on washing dishes until there is a full load. Dishwashers use the same amount of water per cycle, so fill it up with all of the hand-scraped plates. Give the dishwasher a wash of its own by running an empty cycle with a citric acid-based cleaner. The cleaner will remove soap and calcium build-up that makes the dishwasher work harder than it has to.
These simple ways to go green at home leaves no room for excuses. If you get started today you can save money on your energy bills. There are several other ways to help heal the earth. Please feel free to share your thoughts and ideas of going green. Check with your friends and share their suggestions on Facebook by clicking on the icon below.
Top Earth Day Ideas
Annual Earth Day is coming. Hopefully you have been thinking about what you will do to make a positive impact on the environment. If you are still struggling to find the top Earth Day ideas, this article may be just what you’ve been searching for. There are numerous ways you can help. You can start small or if you are already an environment conscious individual you may want to choose to do something more than you normally do.
Fox News recently shared a story focusing on Earth Day. They discussed 6 of what I consider to be the top
Earth Day Thru The Eyes of a Child
They are listed below:
Water conservation
Water conservation is a critical part of an eco-friendly lifestyle that can also save you hundreds on annual heating and water costs. By simply taking shorter showers and shutting off faucets completely when they are not in use, you can vastly reduce the amount of water your household consumes each year. You might even consider installing inexpensive appliances like low-flow shower heads and faucet aerators to limit your water waste even further.
Reusable bags
Each year, just 1 percent of the 100 billion plastic bags consumed in America are recycled, according to the Department of Environmental Conservation. So next time you head to your local supermarket, try bringing reusable bags with you. These sturdy and recyclable bags can drastically cut down on waste and pollution and can be purchased at most supermarkets and stores.
Donate old electronics
The meteoric rise of the tech industry over the past two decades has brought with it new and severe consequences for the environment. In response, a plethora of groups have emerged offering to recycle and reuse outdated and unwanted technology.
Best Buy’s Take Back program, for example, accepts all electronics for recycling, regardless of where they were purchased. Alternatively, there are a number of charities that will accept your old cellphones and other devices, for the purpose of refurbishing and redistributing them among the less fortunate.
Adjust the thermostat
As much as half of the energy used in your home is spent on heating and cooling, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. By making minor adjustments to your temperature control systems, you can save hundreds on energy bills while significantly reducing your carbon footprint.
For a more long-term solution, consider installing a programmable thermostat. Although these systems can be costly initially, they will more than pay for themselves over the course of several years.
Shop smart
Try getting the most from your regular grocery shopping by buying in bulk whenever possible. Not only will this save you from the hassle of making extra trips, but it will also cut down fuel and packaging waste. Similarly, if you’re shopping for clothes, you should consider paying a little extra for garments made from more high-quality material that will last longer than cheaper throwaways.
Pass on gas
According to the Worldwatch Institute, the United States consumes about a quarter of the world’s fossil fuel resources despite accounting for less than 5 percent of the global population. Why not consider biking or walking to work or school for a healthy way to save on gas and parking prices? Alternatively, you could try using more fuel efficient methods of traveling, like carpooling or public transportation, to get to your destination.
It is great that we are seeing progress in the world joining together to heal the earth. However, there is still much to be done. It’s imperative that we continue to be conscious of what the environment needs and that we continue to do our part. These top Earth Day ideas must be implemented throughout the year. Be sure to share these tips with your friends and encourage them to get started right now. If you want to spread this news fast, feel free to click the share buttons below.
