White House and Obama on climate change

I often frequent the White House blog to be kept apprised of what is happening in our nation's capital. Last week, the blog had a post on climate change and what Obama is doing to tackle climate change. Here is an excerpt from the article,

"Some exciting announcements today from the White House on our efforts to combat climate change and lay the foundation for a clean energy economy! The President will be attending the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen (COP 15) next month, and he will take with him an emissions reduction target to drive progress toward a comprehensive and operational Copenhagen accord.Over the last 10 months, the Administration, under the President’s active leadership, has made remarkable progress in addressing climate change and accelerating a clean energy renaissance domestically and abroad (see a list of accomplishments below). These aggressive initiatives have laid the foundation for a meaningful agreement in Copenhagen and longer term for a new, sustainable and prosperous clean energy future."

The article goes on to say that 192 nations will participate in the talks in Copenhagen this month and over 15,000 people will be in attendance. As well as highlighting the areas where The Administration has demonstrated domestic leadership such as the Recovery Act, Efficiency Standard for automobiles, Appliance Efficiency standard, advancing energy legislation and offshore energy development.

Here is the rest of the article

Final recalculated EF

If everyone lived my lifestyle, we would need 3.78 earths! My footprint in global acres is 146.84. Its funny i just noticed that my foottprint is a lower than the country average in all areas asked in the quiz. What reduced the most from my last recalculations of my ecological footprint is my carbon footprint. I think its because I have started to recycle more, a lot more. I went home for thanksgiving and went to my favorite coffee shop with the fam and they had no option to recycle! Regrettably I threw away my plastic water bottle that I got from doing the turkey trot downtown Gig Harbor. They handed out 2000 of these to all the race participants... Is there a bettter and different way of hydrating race runners... please tell me there is. One thing that frustrates me with this quiz is the lack specificity of it, granted its easy for the average person to take it because there are a lot of common sense questions but there no climate to describe the Pacific Northwest as well as some other questions they could get alot more specific on. I think after this class is over I will mainly focus on keeping up my recycling habits and work on energy saving like turning off the lights and using less water and shutting the refrigerator door. Here are my survey results

B corporations... What are they?

I am learning through this class that there are a lot of people that think the same way that I do. Being in business doesn't mean you have to reach maximum profits while kicking ass and taking names while you are at it. I came along a certification system or standard that certifies corporations and their efforts of being more sustainable. It is called B Corporation. It is kind of like the Global Reporting Initiative.

B Corporations "use the power of business to solve social and environmental problems. B Corporations are unlike traditional responsible businesses because they:

• Meet comprehensive and transparent social and environmental performance standards.
• Institutionalize stakeholder interests.
• Build collective voice through the power of a unifying brand."

This is according to their website.

The website and certification is then a basis for community for the corporations that are striving seek the best possible solutions and find support from other entrepreneurs who are trying to solve society's problems as well. Right now there are over 220 B corporations. To be honest it would be cool to be certified as a B corporation but no one barely knows about this network and certification standard, its almost like being certified organic... Anyways, check out their website at www.bcorporation.net and see their video below:

Nuru International

I was talking with a friend of mine who attends Stanford University's graduate school of engineering and we were discussing sustainable design and ending poverty. A friend of his, Jake Harriman, the CEO and founder of Nuru International argues and advocates that in order to end extreme terrorism, you must end extreme poverty. Something that was also mentioned by former Secretary of State Colin Powell. Check out their story and how they got started. The nonprofit started last year focuses on 5 areas of development: Agrilculture, Water and Sanitation, Health Care, Community Economic Development and Education. Their approach is not about giving handouts but being sustainable and "teaching them how to fish" instead of just giving them a fish.

How Nuru Works from Nuru International on Vimeo.

An update on how I am doing with my EF

Alright! I have some success to share with you! I have been working on my new goal (as previously mentioned) on conserving water while washing dishes. I have started washing dishes only when they pile up to conserve water. However, only eating beef once a week or not at all has been somewhat difficult because beef has been a staple item in my diet each week but probably once or twice a week. The problem is that I forget how many times I had beef that week...

Causecast.org... Check it out.

So on my quest to find sustainable companies doing their part to make the world more sustainable in terms of economic, environmental and social sustainability, there is one website that I am so stoked about! It has all of that in one central location! It is causecast.org.

It is one website where organizations, users, activists, sponsors can come together and share media, ideas and discuss a variety of causes. Organizations create profiles for members to browse their content and donate to their favorite causes. It's like a Facebook for philanthropies. You can learn about all these different causes ranging from environmental issues to social justice without having to go to each separate website. The website is its beta version but I hope blog posts like this will increase its popularity and the causes represented on the site.

Yet another sustainable company...

So it has been a week or so since I last blogged about highlighting companies that are attempting at being sustainable. In poking around on the internet, I discovered eBay's sustainable retail store and to be honest I was quite impressed with how well it is put together. It is called worldofgood.ebay.com and there are four ways you can shop on the website.

1. People Positive- This promotes economic empowerment, quality of life and preserving tradition.

2. Eco-Positive- Energy and Environment conservation, Eco-friendly production

3. Animal Friendly- animal welfare and preservation of species

4. Supports a Cause- Shop, sell or donate to a cause.

I like what eBay is doing with this website. They are providing a central hub for conscientious consumers to look around and shop for products that benefit the environment while also allow the consumer to express themselves. The site features organically made clothes, fair trade scarves, recycled jewelry, wooden USB drives and musical instruments.

Updated Ecological footprint

So, we are halfway in the quarter and with these steps for reducing my ecological footprint and I was surprised to learn that I reduced my footprint over a half an earth. From 4.47 earths to 3.89 earths! But there is still a lot of work ahead to do! Looking back at the last couple weeks and making some worthy observations has helped realized that I made some improvements. For instance, I live in a house that was built in the 1920's and it has no insulation whatsoever. You might think this will increase my footprint in terms of housing footprint. However I have realized that trying to heat a house that can't keep heat in can be very costly for a college student. So I have dealt with not turning the furnace on and dressing warm when around the house. It hasn't been that cold yet either! Also we started using our wood furnace to heat the house which makes a huge difference! Something that also changed is my recycling habits though I am not perfect, I recycle more and call my roommates out on it much more to do it.

As for eating meat once a week or none at all has been hard because eating meat is such a subconscious habit. But I have noticed something with my eating habits and food consumption that I noted in the recalculated footprint is that I probably only eat one big meal a day with light snacks throughout the day like bananas, apples, trail mix and Cliff Bars. This has helped in reducing my footprint.


If everyone on the planet lived my lifestyle, we would need:

= 3.89 Earths




So I am going to keep my original goals that I made at the beginning of the quarter because it is something that I need to be reminded of and maintain those habits

A new goal that I am going to emphasize more is monitoring and reducing my water consumption while I am washing dishes because I have noticed that I keep the water running while I am doing the actual scrubbing which doesn't really make sense because I am not using it. Something that I am going to work on for the rest of the quarter.


Here is a link to my updated results!

chicken, chicken chicken!

Yep, I have had chicken for dinner all this week. I am pretty proud that I have not indulged into red meat this week which means I am reducing my footprint!! Exciting, I know. I started recycling cardboard with my roommates as well, things are going pretty well for me this week. Let's just hope this continues.

TOMS shoe founder Blake Mycoskie to set sail on the plastiki

Have you ever heard of a boat fully made out of plastic? Well it exists! David De Rothschild, an environmental activist and ecologist is setting out for the Pacific Ocean on a boat completely made out of plastic in order to create awareness of the plastic crisis that we have going on in the world. Rothschild has invited scientists, artists, and friends to join him on the expedition that should arrive in Sydney early 2010. Blake Mycoskie is one of the guests invited to come on the expedition. I think this is a sweet idea and I hope that it will create enough awareness of the plastic crisis. The expedition will sail through the Pacific Gyre and the Eastern Pacific garbage patch, two areas of the pacific where ecosystems are diminishing because of our plastic consumption. Check out the site and explore the sustainability features of the 60-foot catamaran!

blake to set sail on the plastiki


Posted using ShareThis

Check out what this nation is doing to create awareness... Maldives is awesome on climate change

(CNN) -- With fish as witnesses, the president of Maldives and his Cabinet wore scuba gear and used hand signals Saturday at an underwater meeting to highlight the threat climate change poses to the archipelago nation.

The Maldives declaration will be presented at a U.N. summit on climate change in December.

The meeting, chaired by President Mohamed Nasheed, took place around a table about 16 feet (5 meters) underwater, according to the president's Web site. Bubbles ascended from the face masks the president and the Cabinet wore, and fish swam around them.

At the meeting, the Cabinet signed a declaration calling for global cuts in carbon emissions that will be presented before a U.N. climate summit in Copenhagen, Denmark, in December.

"We are trying to send our message to let the world know what is happening and what will happen to the Maldives if climate change isn't checked," Nasheed said, according to his Web site.

Asked what would happen if Copenhagen fails, the president said, "we are all going to die," according to the site.

The ministers signed their wet suits, which are being auctioned, to raise money for coral reef protection in the Maldives, the Web site said.

Maldives is grappling with the very likely possibility that it will go under water if the current pace of climate change keeps raising sea levels. The Maldives is an archipelago of almost 1,200 coral islands south-southwest of India. Most of it lies just 4.9 feet (1.5 meters) above sea level.

The United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change has forecast a rise in sea levels of at least 7.1 inches (18 cm) by the end of the century.

The country's capital, Male, is protected by sea walls. But creating a similar barrier around the rest of the country will be cost-prohibitive. Watch how the Maldives are fighting to survive »

Soon after his election in November, Nasheed raised the possibility of finding a new homeland for the country's 396,000 residents.

The tourist nation wants to set aside part of its annual billion-dollar revenue into buying a new homeland, he said at the time.

"We will invest in land," he said. "We do not want to end up in refugee tents if the worst happens."

Nasheed's government said it has broached the idea with several countries and found them to be "receptive."

Head and Shoulders shampoo

Ingredients in this product are linked to:
	Cancer
	Developmental/reproductive toxicity
	Violations, restrictions & warnings
	Allergies/immunotoxicity
	Other concerns for ingredients used in this product: Neurotoxicity, Persistence and bioaccumulation, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Miscellaneous, Multiple, additive exposure sources, Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs), Contamination concerns, Occupational hazards

So this is the first thing that appeared when I searched for my favorite shampoo, Head and Shoulders: Classic Clean 2 in 1, essentially a list of what is wrong with the shampoo that I so habitually use every morning. I was honestly surprised at this discovery. Looking at the toxicity report disgusted me even more with the ingredients that were listed such as Pyrithione Zinc and Dimethicone were listed as an environmental toxins as well as several other ingredients that were in violation of rules and regulations, harmful to the organ system, allergies and immune system. This list of ingredients is not to pleasing to the eye especially when the Environmental Working Group has junk on every one of these ingredients. In overall toxicity and hazard, Head and Shoulders score at a 5 out of 10, pretty moderate not good but not too bad.

I don’t think this will affect my use of this shampoo because I don’t see any immediate harm to my body or the environment. It is overall a pretty safe product as long as you don’t consume it! You could probably say that it is pretty lazy of me to say that and not change my habits. However if I was presented with an alternative option that was better for my scalp and the environment, I would go with that. I am not stubborn. One thing that the web site does not provide you with such an alternative which would be helpful to a conscientious consumer. But if no alternative is offered I will just stick with the Head and Shoulders. Here is the link to the list of chemicals

An update on my ecological footprint...

Well I went away for the weekend to Leavenworth so I am little late posting! But you would be happy to hear that the group I went with carpooled.

Here are some things that didn't contribute to reducing my footprint:

- No recycling all weekend

- Stopped at a Taco Bell ( But I did eat chicken and not Steak)

- ate meat chili... so good! but against my goals for this quarter

-our group consumed 2 cases of Costco water bottles

I did however only shower once this weekend... jk... no but really

Last week, I would say that I did pretty well in reducing my footprint. I walked and biked to class everyday! Although I did take some miscellaneous trips to the store that could have have been consolidated into 1 trip. And I was a failure at red meat! I ate it 3 times last week! I was so bummed! The worst part about it is that I only realized it after my second bite and didn't stop.

Bottom line, I think it comes down to being intentional about these goals especially reduction in my consumption of red meat because it is such a habit.

Kiva.org.. a sustainable organization

So I know this blog is supposed to be mainly about myself going green (which I will update my progress in the next post!) but highlighting companies and organizations that are not just in it for profit and see the need for being sustainable and being socially conscious and responsible are a passion of mine and one of the main reasons i am going into business. So this is the first installment of what i hope to be a weekly occurrence.

I would that you have figured out by now that the organization I am highlighting is Kiva. An organization who sets up micro-financing loans to entrepreneurs and small business owners in impoverished areas of the world. Such a cool idea. The company is run with a simple business model and this is how the lending cycle works:

To describe this better, first a lender (you) browses through all the profiles of entrepreneurs, pick one and pay your designated amount through paypal. Kiva then distributes that money to the entrepreneur. Over time the entrepreneur repays their loan to Kiva where then you can choose to reinvest into some other person's life, donate to Kiva or withdrawal your funds. Such a simple model.

On the Kiva website they describe their organization's purpose wonderfully and what we can do be a part of that. Give a loan.

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. Kiva borrowers already know how to fish. They just need a loan to buy a net.

This is helping people live sustainably.

Something to think about...

There is a triple bottom line approach to sustainability and it is three fold: economic stewardship (valuing financial continuity over profit), environmental/ecological stewardship (maintenance and renewal of natural capital), and social stewardship (equitable distribution of resources, human and community well being).



Social stewardship resonates the most with me with this definition of sustainability. I believe there is responsibility of all businesses to give back to the community, serve others, to serve "the least of these", corporate, social responsibility, public relations or whatever you want to call it. We are not on this earth merely to fulfill our own desires and look just for the benefit of ourselves. I found a video on a buddie's blog that challenges today's youth and twenty somethings to look beyond themselves and to bring about social stewardship in their local communities and globally. Here is a teaser to the feature film that will be released this November from The I-Heart Revolution

Alot of work ahead of me... I suck at being green.. Here is my ecological footprint

So I took the ecological footprint quiz on myfootprint.org and found out some pretty interesting results. So here they are...

If everyone on the planet lived my lifestyle, we would need 4.49 of these earths pictured here:

To be honest, I wasn't too surprised to see these results because two-fold, I haven't been to environmentally conscious and when I am I opt out for laziness. For example I choose not to search for a recycling bin when I need to throw away a plastic bottle. However, I would really like to know how myfootprint.org determines how many earths your lifestyle consumes, it is pretty scary at the first initial glance. I am pretty happy though when I compare my footprint in comparison to the U.S. Below is the comparison:

However when I look at my footprint in the pie chart in terms of biome, I can see some definite areas that I could work on in terms of footprint reduction. Such as my forestland footprint (40%) and my pastureland footprint (20%). And looking in the above chart, my food footprint is ridiculous (65.7!).

So that being said, some actions need to be taken to reduce my footprint in these areas. I did some research of some of the websites that Wendy gave us for resources in ecological footprint reduction and I have found some practical ideas that I hope I will follow through during the quarter and carry over after this quarter.

1. Eat red meat once a week or none at all (see pbjcampaign.org and omnivores dilemma)

2. Walk or Bike to class, bottom line, no excuses this quarter as well as carpool when going to the grocery store.

3. Recycle... plain and simple. Pretty lazy about that. Bottles and paper.

Secondary goals

1. Shorter showers

2. Bundling up at night, conserving heat

3. Turning off the water when hand washing dishes.

4. Closing the refrigerator or minimizing the time that it is open.