Eco New Year's Resolutions

The week between Christmas and New Years is often a week off work for many of us--or at least a few extra days off in there. It serves as a good time to make sure you get a chance to see all your family and friends, and get in all of your celebrating.

It's also a good time to reflect on your year, and make plans for the year ahead.

It might also be a good week to get a jump start on forming your New Years resolutions. Here are some great eco-resolutions to consider.

• Clean your closet and donate clothes you no longer want or wear to a donation center or homeless shelter.

• Contribute to a charity that speaks to your heart. Maybe a one time donation, or perhaps consider making a monthly commitment. Great environmental ones I love:
• charity: water
• 4Oceans
• Chesapeake Bay Foundation
• Or check out this link of "10 High Impact Environmental Charities with Integrity." 

• Read an environmental book or two.

• Watch a eco-documentary once a month.

• Up your recycling or composting game.

• Shop with your reusable bags.

• Cut down on your food waste.

• Buy less bottled water--BYO reusable water bottle or coffee mugs.

• Upgrade your diet--go flexitarian, vegetarian, or Meatless Mondays.

• Shop more sustainably--cotton products require a lot of chemicals and water!

• Buy fair trade coffee and chocolate

• Walk (or ride your bike) more and drive less. Or, consider public transportation or carpooling.

• Grow your own garden--that's as organic as it gets!

• Switch to greener cleaners for your home.

• Take a pass on the straws... or go with a non-plastic alternative.

• Go with eco-friendly and energy efficient home products.

• Become an activist--take part in local campaigns, spread the word about the growing impact of humans on climate change, take part in park or stream clean ups. Barack Obama tweeted of this a day or so ago: "find something you want to change in your community and take the first step toward changing it." Always good advice!!

For more, check out these websites, which served as my inspiration for this post.

2018 Sustainable New Year's Resolutions You Need To Make, According To The Biggest Eco Names

Eco Talk: Environmentally-Friendly New Year's Resolutions

11 Green New Year's Resolutions That Put The Planet First

10 Easy, Green New Year's Resolutions (Even If You're a Slacker)

Ten Simple Green New Year's Resolutions

8 Simple Eco New Year's Resolutions for 2018

10 Green New Years Revolutions

Image created at Canva.com.

Grounds For Change

Breakfast the other day was at our favorite bagel shop. A toasted sesame seed bagel with cream cheese, cucumbers, sprouts, lettuce and tomato is one of my favorite forms of comfort food.

While there, waiting for all the yummy layers to be layered, I noticed some signage for Grounds for Change--their coffee source. I'm not a coffee drinker, but more of a green tea girl these last 18 months (previously a Diet Coke aficionado), so I usually don't pay much attention to coffee. But their mission of sustainability is what hit me first, causing me to do a deeper dive.

The Seattle-born company's notables:

• Organic 
• 100% free trade
• Much of their coffee is shade grown--which creates habitats for the migratory birds.
• They use 100% renewable energy on all sides of processing, packing, and shipping. Therefore, they are considered "Carbon Free Coffee."
• They use composting for all organic waste (including coffee filters)--the coffee chaff is given to local farmers to enrich their soil.
• Packaging is made from 100% recyclable paper
• Burlap coffee bags are recycled by donating them to local farmers to hold back the weeks and stave off erosion.
• They donate 1% of their gross annual sales to social/environmental organizations
• They empower women in the coffee growing communities, many of whom are the ones to the do the lion share of creation.
• And, they work with local/national organizations to promote positive change and awareness.

That's a lot of good going on. I love when places I love show an outward commitment toward the stewardship of our planet. It made my morning bagel a double win for me!




Video from https://groundsforchange.com/blogs/learn/carbon-free-coffee; Images from https://dailycoffeenews.com/2012/02/22/grounds-for-change-partners-with-greendeals-for-sweepstakes/ and https://bcorporation.net/directory/grounds-change.