Get rid of your clunker

By Rachel Tanis


Finally it will pay off in a big way to do something good for the environment! Get rid of your old junky car that burns through the gas and oil and replace it with a newer more fuel-efficient and environmentally-friendly car and the government will reward you with cold hard cash!

Yesterday (Tuesday, May 5th, 2009), the Democrats in Congress and President Obama agreed on a new proposal affectionately called “cash-for-clunkers.” Under the program, which encourages car owners to trade in their older model gas-guzzlers for more fuel-efficient cars, consumers could get as much as $4,500 toward the purchase of a new vehicle. There is a slight catch: you must be upgrading your vehicle’s fuel economy by an average of ten miles per gallon, and your current vehicle must get less than eighteen miles per gallon (average for city/highway). For many college students or recent graduates driving hand-me-downs or road-side specials, meeting such an obligation might not be so hard. Lawmakers believe that they will be able to help out the auto industry with the sale of at least one million new cars as a result of the bill, making it a rare win-win for both the automakers and the environment.

It is important to support legislation and changes that were created in new, thoughtful and creative ways that support both domestic manufacturing and environmental causes. And what could be better than getting to see some green for going green?

For more on the deal check out the Wall Street Journal news article.

A Green Career Path

By Rachel Tanis

Green jobs are everywhere these days. Presidnet Obama made them the center of his economic stimulus plan, claiming that the number of environmentally-friendly jobs added to the economy would change the way America gets its energy. They are advertised on all of the job-search websites and highlighted in front-page articles of newspapers across the country. Environmental law is surging in popularity at universities. Nearly every coastal community is looking for wind energy engineers. In this growing field it seems that green jobs will be the driving economic force of the future.

When I think about my career choice (teaching high school English) it’s hard to imagine what I can do to make the situation greener. Then, the more I ponder it, the more I come up with to change things.

For instance, maybe I can start a program to raise money for Kindles or some other electronic book system so that my students can be more aware of the number of trees it takes to print schoolbooks every year. I’ll definitely take all of our scrap paper to the local printer where it can be bound and used as memo pads. I’ll work to adapt whatever assignments I can to electronic ones, like tests and quizzes, to eliminate wasted paper. I’ll teach my students about the importance of recycling. I’ll take them outside more often for classes. I’ll teach them to appreciate the environment through literary examples. Yes, I can have an impact even if I’m not working in a green career.

With the growth of green jobs, I have been wondering if the environmental or economic payoffs have persuaded any of you to alter your career or educational paths. If you haven’t chosen an obviously green career (like me) have you second-guessed your choice? If not, have you thought about how you will improve your job to make things greener for you, your employees or your co-workers? Have you thought about how you can have an environmental impact at work, even if you didn’t choose a green career? If you did choose a green career, what motivated you to do so?

Share your stories and ideas with us so that we can inspire one another to begin greening up our cubicles and classrooms!

Generation Green

By Rachel Tanis

When history looks back to define our generation I wonder what they will say. Were we on the cutting edge of technological development? Did we serve our country well with the advancement of equality and the end of racial divide? Did we rush in a return to patriotism? Were we the ones who finally stood up to rampant greed and worked to form a well-managed financial system? Or, were we the generation of people who took a stand for the environment, who didn’t just speak up for the earth but cried out for her? Are we the green generation?

To be the green generation we have to be the group that facilitates change that sticks. Sure, there have been green advancements in the past: recycling, energy conservation, clean water and park acts. These have all been great progresses but they have not been enough to define any previous generation. To be labeled the green generation we will have to completely overhaul our lifestyles so that those coming after us will not be faced with the hard choices. We will have to have been the ones who changed and took on the difficult challenges to make life better for the future.

It’s easy to say that you want to save the planet. It’s easy to buy the cloth bags to reuse at the grocery store. It’s easy to switch to energy-saving light bulbs. It’s even easy to recycle and compost.

It’s not so easy to make the harder choices like investing a great deal of money in solar heat for your first house, or choosing to buy and eat only locally-grown produce. It’s difficult to stop and think about energy consumption and how much you should really be using. It’s difficult to re-think travel plans or even your daily commute so that you are being more aware of your carbon footprint.

These are the little, and not so little, decisions that amount to a massive task facing our generation. The question remaining is whether or not we will step up and answer the call.

Will the generation after us already come into the world living their lives differently than we began ours? Will recycling and energy conservation be second-nature to our own children, even though we had to struggle through it? This will be the definition of our generation. If those that come after us are environmentally aware, not because of our preaching but rather our example, then we truly can claim the title: Generation Green.

I’m Lovin’ It

By Rachel Tanis

Recently in Chicago, McDonald’s unveiled their newest restaurant design, aimed at countering all of the nasty attacks it has faced for not being green enough. McDonald’s has been the target of scrutiny for the litany of litter found scattered among highways and roadsides across America. It seems that popular sentiment finds it necessary to tag the nation’s largest fast food restaurant as the sole antagonist in the fight against roadway litter.

Never mind the fact that there are countless fast food restaurants, and even more businesses, which use similar bags and wrappers to enclose their goods. And never mind the fact that it is the patrons of the restaurant, and not the restaurant itself, that scatters the trash. All of this seems to be irrelevant when the media slams the fast food giant for its so-called environmental atrocities.

Lucky for the rest of us, the company chose to respond to these allegations, not with improved product packaging (since most of it is already made with recycled materials), but with an all-new store design that features environmentally-friendly features.

The store has green qualities like a heating source that runs off of the steam and heat captured in the kitchen. Water run-off from rain in the parking lot drains through the newly designed permeable pavement to an underground well that feeds the sprinkler system instead of relying on processed, filtered city water. The entire store is filled with equipment designed to maximize efficiency. Skylights adorn the ceiling of the dining room, while water-saving toilets can be found in the public restrooms. A green “vegetable” roof covers the top of the building. Special parking spots have been designated for hybrid and electric cars.

The Chicago store is the newest in a fleet of green restaurants that McDonald’s began constructing way back in 2000. The first environmentally focused building opened in Sweden that year. In 2009, the company plans to open green stores in Brazil, Canada and France. Each time they build a green restaurant the company stretches to reach new environmental initiatives, adding challenges to its previous designs to continue to improve upon its own designs. The company hopes to continue the green expansion around the globe and encourages its current stores to take steps to go green. Now that’s a plan that you can really sink your teeth into!

The Next Generation of Green

By Rachel Tanis


It always takes a while for something to catch on or fizzle out. It’s our job to make sure that the generations coming after us understand the importance of living a green life, and not think that this movement is a fad. Many companies and businesses are doing their part to ensure that the youngest among us are growing up green. Here’s how their doing it, and some suggestions for how you can help.

Nickelodeon will celebrate this Earth Day by asking its viewers to unplug and turn off energy consuming items that are not necessary for one hour on April 22nd. The kid-focused network is encouraging its viewers to turn off or unplug video games, lights, cell phones, anything that draws energy and can be done without. This is a great idea because it encourages little ones to have their parents help them go green. What a better motivator for a parent than his or her own child? In addition, at this year’s Kids Choice Awards, Nickelodeon will give away its first ever “Big Green Help Award” to someone who has done much for the environment: Leonardo DiCaprio.

The Disney Channel is not to be left out. Their green spokesman, Wilder Valderrama (aka – Fez of “That 70’s Show” fame) does several commercial-like announcements throughout the programming to promote everything from simple energy savings (like reminding little ones of the importance of turning off the lights when they leave a room) to more involved projects like gardening and recycling. Valderrama’s Spanish heritage helps him convey his message in a bilingual approach, telling his audience that he’s living “la vida verde,” or “living the green life.”

Groups like Green Kids Inc. travel the world putting on entertaining hours of shows that teach children about everything from global warming to being responsible for their carbon footprint – no matter how tiny their shoes may be right now! Green Kids will perform for any audience, but it specializes in elementary school performances.

The web is not short on green influences for children either. Websites like KidsBeGreen.org feature creative characters to help teach the principals of green living, printable worksheets and coloring pages, activity suggestions, and games focused on promoting the green life. More nationally recognized sites like National Geographic’s, have dedicated entire sections of their pages to children’s understanding of environmental causes. National Geographic’s site features stories and videos, many showcasing its zany Zipper the Chihuahua character, telling kids about simple green steps they can take to better green living and showing them what they are protecting. Most of the content here is upbeat and teaches children that our amazing world is worth keeping.

Many children’s books have been written and illustrated to get the message across as well. Children as young as infants can enjoy hearing stories like “William the Garbage Truck and Crew: William Is Going Green,” by James Martin II and Don Berry, while other ones might enjoy Julie Hall and Sarah Lane’s, “A Hot Planet Needs Cool Kids.”

No matter the medium used to expose kids to green living, none will prove more powerful than a living example. You are never too old or too young, too involved or uninvolved, to influence someone younger than you. Your example can be as simple as waiting to throw your trash into a can instead of on the road, or as elaborate as organizing a great of children to clean up a park. Remember that a big part of green living is making sure that it doesn’t end with you. Or your generation.

A Greener Vacation

By Rachel Tanis

As the warm days of summer approach, my mind always turns to travel. I can’t wait to plan my next summer vacation and look forward to lounging away my time in some tropical locale. This year, I’m going to put a little more thought into my adventures and be sure to make the entire experience greener. That means that my green vacation starts before I ever leave home.

Before leaving home be sure to…

…turn off the air conditioning or heat if possible. If not, adjust to temperatures that will protect your plants, animals and plumbing, though this shouldn’t be the same comfortable temperature you’d want if you were actually home.

…turn your water heater to “vacation” or its lowest temperature setting. This means that the water sitting in your hot water heater will not be continually heated again and again when no one is using it.

…unplug appliances that won’t be used while you’re away so that they are not drawing a charge, unnecessarily.

…stop newspaper and mail delivery. You may be able to donate your newspapers to a shelter, nursing home or school while you are away. If you really want the papers, most companies will hold them for you. Stopping your delivery services means that you won’t come home to soggy mail or newspapers, in the event that it rains at home while you’re away enjoying the sunshine.

When planning your trip…

…check out travel books from the library rather than buying new ones. You’ll not only save money, but trees as well!

…plan your trip to include public transportation whenever available. Check for a website created by the municipality that you’ll be visiting for a link to their department of transportation which can usually provide you with maps, schedules and pricing for public transportation like buses, shuttles, subways and trains.

…take advantage of green technology like e-tickets offered by most airlines. A big plus of an e-ticket is that picking up your ticket at the airport makes it harder to lose or forget!

Businesses Going Green

By Rachel Tanis

While the downsizing in the newspaper business is nothing short of traumatic if you work, or wish to work, in the industry, many publications are seeing black over green decisions. Choosing to operate in a greener manner by reducing print copies or switching their publications entirely to virtual formats (see the Detroit News and Christian Science Monitor websites for two such examples) is a move that is actually helping the businesses operate in a profitable state.

It can be argued that the newspaper move was one to save ink and not really an actual attempt at running a more environmentally-friendly operation. I have mentioned many times over the last few months in this blog several different business maneuvers, aimed at saving corporate dollars, which have doubled as an advantage for the environment. (You might remember the four-day work week or telecommuting policies at companies like Sprint). It might be impossible to distinguish motive from effect, but regardless, sound business decisions that have a positive effect on the environment are always a worthwhile investment.

Some companies have a reputation for going green. Ford Motor Company built a green roof on its Dearborn assembly plant in 2003, long before it was chic. The roof is actually 10.4 acres of a “drought-resistant perennial groundcover, planted into a specially layered bed,” that the company claims will last twice as long as a traditionally constructed roof. The roof soaks up rainwater and carbon dioxide, and reduces the plant’s overall energy costs by working as a layer of insulation protecting the assembly plant against the cold Michigan winters. The roof even earned the company a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s largest living roof.

Even though they passed on the cost to customers, businesses like Star-Kist have made environmental changes that are for the better. Star-Kist reacted to negative press that it received when customers learned that it was accidently catching (and sometimes harming or killing) dolphins in its nets while fishing for tuna. In response, the company moved its fishing operations for safer areas, even though the tuna was less plentiful there. (Lagace)

And, the return on the investment has been high for most of the environmentally-friendly changes that companies have made. For example, in 2004 General Electric (GE) invested $7.5 million dollars “into technology to reduce energy consumption and waste products.” In 2005, the company’s “Ecomagination” line (the one that you’ve seen all of those inspiring commercials about) brought in a handsome profit: “$10 billion in revenue, and an expected $20 billion by 2010.” (Voigt)
In this time of economic opportunity it is important for companies to remember that the new frontier is green, and so are the rewards!

Sources:
Ford Installs World’s Largest Living Roof on New Truck Plant. http://media.ford.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=15555
Lagace, Martha. Going Green Makes Good Business Sense. Harvard Business School: Working Knowledge. http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/3015.html
Voigt, Kevin. Business sees green in going green. CNN: World Business http://edition.cnn.com/2006/BUSINESS/12/14/environment/index.html