Many years ago as a professional ballet dancer, I carried my ballet shoes in a string bag. My pointe shoes needed air after those long rehearsals. I remember shopping with a fellow dancer and watching her dump out her shoes in the car and then refill her mesh bag with apples and oranges.

My current string bag never carried my shoes, only produce. It is by far my favorite reusable bag. I love walking through Whole Foods and filling it with organic pears, apples, mangoes, onions, cucumbers, carrots, and it’s even strong enough for a melon. At the register, the cashier weighs and rings up my fruit and veggies with ease. Then, they put it all back in the bag, and I carry it out.

As I continue to shop with my reusable bags, I am noticing all of the packaging and other unnecessary plastic bags. DwellSmart carries an array of string bags, if I remember correctly, they were six dollars. You can also buy them through EcoBags, though we all know it’s important to support our local businesses. Go ahead and buy two, it is always good share green ideas with a friend!

When it comes to going green, our family’s mantra has always been “Do What We Can, When We Can.” To that end, a couple weeks ago the stars aligned and guided a 2008 Toyata Prius into our lives. We couldn’t be happier.

Over the last few years, I’ve spoken with many Prius owners about the car, and a pattern emerged. There was very little talk about saving money on fuel, despite the seemingly unstoppable surge in gas prices we are seeing. Instead, people bought them because it was simply the right thing to do. Skeptics often say that the savings in gas will never pay for the car, but this isn’t an exercise in ROI; it’s a chance to make a good choice for the planet…and I’ll pay for that.

Yes, I’m happy about the lower emissions, but that’s certainly not the whole story. One of the most effective ways to create social change is to vote with your wallet, and buying a Prius does that in a big way. The hybrid system is so amazing, and I really don’t understand why Detroit can’t seem to figure this out. Sure, they are “trying”, but a $50,000 Chevy Tahoe Hybrid that only gets 14/20 mpg is both laughable and embarrassing. Clearly they aren’t trying hard enough.

>> Continue reading ‘Finally, a Prius in the Driveway!’

What fun my littlest guy and I had riding the bus downtown!

Graham and I sat on the bench and caught the CARTA bus at 9 a.m. The bus was on time, so our wait was minimal. We boarded, paid $1.25, and rode route 40 downtown. Graham was comfortable and quiet on my lap, until we drove over the Ravenel. Then for the first time, I had fun with my little guy pointing and observing all the action in our beautiful harbor.

Graham and I got off the bus at Meeting and Mary Streets. We visited the Children’s Museum, had a snack, and waited for the bus home. It was on time again.

The Good News: I created less carbon emissions that day. I did not have to park my car or pay for parking. The bus driver was friendly and capable, and she performed some amazing maneuvers. Even Graham was impressed. We sat back and enjoyed the ride, and will do this again.

>> Continue reading ‘Route 40 Revisited’

I just got a note from Jason Cronen, founder and chief executive guzzler of Green Drinks Charleston. There has been interest in forming a new chapter of this international organization on Daniel Island. The Charleston Battery are hosting Go Green Night on this Friday, so if any of you D. Islanders want to get out and network, this is a perfect opportunity.

Please email Jason to express interest in forming a Daniel Island chapter of Green Drinks.

I’ve been in Montréal, Quebec for the last 5 days, and this has kept me from posting here at Go Green (sorry about that). But the silver lining is that I am able to get a feel for what another city is doing to reduce it’s impact.

Overall, Montréal certainly felt more progressive than most American cities (including Charleston), but not even close to what I saw in Vancouver last year. Nevertheless, there does seem to be an effort underway to green up the city, something I soon hope to see in our neck of the woods. Check out my notes after the jump.

>> Continue reading ‘Green Travel Notes :: Montréal’

It’s official. After living in Mt. Pleasant for almost eleven years, I had yet to use a form of public transportation. No longer - I introduced myself to CARTA via bus route 40. I am officially becoming a bus rider.

I consulted the website for CARTA, and was dismayed by the lack of working information concerning bus stops. I studied the map, then departed on Saturday morning to find the bus stop at Towne Centre. I missed the bus, but I saw it pass the stop: An unmarked bench baking in the sun by Hungryneck Boulevard. Good thing I had book, sunscreen, and tunes.

I boarded the next bus, paid $1.25, and rode the bus to Meeting and Mary Streets, near The Charleston Visitor Center. There were many stops along the way, even in front of Whole Foods. Some stops were clearly marked with the green CARTA sign, while some had benches and a litter bin. Other stops had little indication, like the one by the Goodwill on Highway 17 where there was just a man standing there signaling bus.

>> Continue reading ‘Bus Route 40′

Just a quick reminder for all you greenies that the Charleston Battery will be hosting “Go Green Night” at their May 9th home game against the Miami FC Blues. This is a great opportunity to get out an enjoy a great soccer match, but don’t forget to check out their newly installed solar array.  The Green Drinks Charleston crew will be on hand for cocktails, and there are sure to be at least a few other green activities to enjoy (there is oddly no information about this event on the Charleston Battery website - hhhmmmfff).

Last night, the Charleston Green Committee delivered its first set of recommendations to the city. This act is symbolic and encouraging, and it demonstrates a shift in thinking towards a more sustainable future. Yes, I find it shocking that it requires a volunteer committee to get the city moving on what could very well be the defining issue of the 21st century, but if that’s what it takes them I’m happy.

Most of the recommendations are great - some are big, and some are small. I really like that all buildings designed after 2008 will require LEED certification. I am a little surprised that the first two recommendations involve “requiring” city staff to recycle various items - are there actually people that still don’t recycle? Read all 12 recommendations after the jump…

>> Continue reading ‘Charleston Green Committee Delivers Recommendations to City’

Today is Go Green Charleston’s 1st birthday!

One year ago today, we launched Go Green with an abundance of energy and enthusiasm towards helping each of us make the Charleston-area a greener place. I want to personally thank each and every one of you for choosing to be a part of this experiment - the site is nothing without you!

Over 16,000 unique individuals have read one or more of our 245 posts, and you’ve left over 400 comments. We’ve received, parsed, and answered hundreds of emails, most of which have been helpful tips, links, stories, and ideas that we have woven into the site - keep ‘em coming! All this participation is what makes this project special - all of us working together to reach a common goal. So again, thank you.
>> Continue reading ‘A Birthday on Earth Day for Go Green Charleston’

Whole Foods Markets across the U.S. will be celebrating Earth Day by eliminating plastic bags. Once the store on Houston Northcutt Boulevard uses all of its supply, there will no longer be a choice of paper or plastic. Hooray! What a great way for this company to set an example.

Disposable plastic bags are an absolute menace to our planet. Whole Foods offers the only paper bags made from 100% recycled paper. They also offer a Better Bag, for 99 cents, made from recycled bottles. I look forward to seeing even more reusable bags at the checkouts. Happy Earth Day!

The 2008 Earth Day Festival in Park Circle was a great event, and we’d like to thank everyone for coming out and seeing us. We spoke to 463 people (I had a counter in my pocket), and I feel like our interactive waste-free booth was in perfect alignment with the event. Visitors seemed to be learning a few things from our display, and I hope they will come see us online and keep going. Now that we have this display built, let us know if you’d like us to appear at your event. I’ll also be developing and interactive “Is it Recyclable?” online game version soon.

>> Continue reading ‘Earth Day Festival Roundup’

The Sustainability Institute and TrySports present the Green Village Tour 8k Race /5k walk on May 3rd. The course winds through the new environmentally sensitive developments in the Park Circle area. This is a certified course - set your stop watch.

The organizers have taken many steps to be green. What a good reason to unplug the treadmill for a morning. Green initiatives include organic cotton race shirts and biodiesel shuttle buses.

To all you runners who passed me on the Arthur Ravenel, I dare you to try it again on May 3rd! I have new running shoes, and am donating old pairs to TrySports booth at The Earth Day Festival. They will be donating shoes to Samaritans Feet, another great reason to stop at the festival. See you there.

The 2008 Charleston County Earth Day Festival is this Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Park Circle, and Go Green Charleston will have a booth in the “Recycle and Litter Management” tent. We’d love it if you stopped by and said hello.

This year’s festival is calling for interactive, waste-free participation. To this end, we will have a hands-on “Is It Recyclable?” game on display, as well as an ode to unessesary modern waste.  We’ll be there to spread the word, meet some new people,  and enjoy the growing local green scene. We hope to see you there!

Two weeks ago, I went out with the boys to turn the compost pile we started last fall. As soon as I flipped the first forkful, a haze wafted into the air. At first I thought it was bugs, but then I realized what was going on: we had steam!

This is good news, and means that our pile is maturing. All the kitchen scraps and yard waste are finally starting to “cook” at temperatures near 140°, and are turning into nutrient-rich compost that we can use in our gardens. Check out the before and after turning photos - right under the surface lies the dark good stuff. You gotta love cradle to cradle recycling!

Here are some other compost notes: >> Continue reading ‘Composting Update :: We Have Steam!’

CleanGreen Charleston - It’s just fun to say, isn’t it? We just got word of a new eco-friendly residential cleaning service called CleanGreen Charleston. (thanks Maegan!) It looks like the Seventh Generation and Green Seal-approved products are the norm, and they’ll even take out your recycling. Good stuff!

I love seeing entrepreneurs developing all these green-focused brands, because it reminds you, me, and the entire market that a sustainable future can also be a profitable future. So if you want to take back your house in a green way AND support the local scene, have CleanGreen Charleston come out for a consultation.

One of our many goals around the house this year is to reduce the amount of electricity we use. We actually notice a difference in our bill when we’re vigilant about turning off the entertainment center’s power strip, but we’re sure there’s hidden power hogs elsewhere in the house.

That’s where our newly acquired Kill A Watt EZ Electricity Usage Monitor is coming in handy. I can plug in almost any device, set the cost per kWh (SCE&G is charging me $0.094), and it will estimate the total cost per year/month/week/day (though, I recommend also buying a power strip liberator). Here are the first three things I measured:

• Simple lamp with CFL: $3.29 per year
• Entertainment Center (TV/DVD/Stereo/etc.): $95.51 per year
• Phone & Answering Machine: $4.95

This will give me a good roadmap for other devices in the house that should either be used in moderation, or turned off when not in use, helping us reduce our carbon footprint AND save a few bucks. I’ll be sure to post back here with a full report.

I just got word that the ginormous Charleston Battery solar panels are now fully operational! This means the stadium’s ecological footprint has just been greatly reduced, not to mention the positive example Tony Bakker and the organization are setting for our entire community.

If you want see how much power the panels are actually producing, check out the real time data feed. To learn more about the Charleston Battery solar array, check out our previous posts here and here, or see the panels in action at the Charleston Battery’s May 9th Go Green Game Night (more info in a future post.)

On Tuesday, April 8th, The Mount Pleasant Farmers Market will reopen for their season. From 3 p.m. until dusk vendors will be selling their local goods in the field in front of Moultrie Middle School, off Coleman Boulevard. Local growers and farmers will be selling seasonal fruits and vegetables. Right now, we should be able to stuff our bags with vegetables like asparagus, salad greens, broccoli and carrots. It is so important to support local farmers whenever possible.

The Go Green Poll is showing that most of you buy locally by shopping at farmer’s markets. See you there, with your reusable bags. As a bonus, Triple Lindy will entertain us with their bluegrass. It’s good to take a dancing break!

The Charleston green scene is thriving thanks to tireless people like Jason Cronen from Green Drinks. He’s been stewarding Green Drinks Charleston in a great direction, and continues to bring together the local community in amazing ways. Here are 4 ways to get involved with Green Drinks over the next 30 days.

• Attend a gatherings - the next one is April 9th
• Read and contribute to the Green Drinks Charleston blog
• Enjoy the May 9th meeting @ Charleston Battery Go Green Game Night
• Connect with other greenies via the Green Drinks Facebook group

Cheers!

I just got an email from A Single Bag, a company trying to save the planet one reusable bag at a time. The North Charleston business is making these bags from fully recyclable (not here) polypropylene, which means they are durable and waterproof. And while I can’t vouch for the bags personally (send us some!), the 19″ handles are encouraging. The bags are $4.99 each, and there are wholesale opportunities available.

Whether or not you buy one from A Single Bag, please consider bringing your own reusable bag with you the next time you go shopping. This one small act can make a positive impact on the environment by reducing garbage production, plastic pollution, and dependence on oil. We have more information on the local reusable bag scene here, here, and here.