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!), […]

Guess what? Chad is turning 40 this week! OK, he’s not, if he wants his age known, he’ll tell. Chad’s birthday is an opportunity to consume wisely.
I began with gifts from the boys. We visited The Sea Turtle Rescue Hospital at the Aquarium. We have proudly adopted for Daddy. We […]

The history of toilet paper is long. From leaves to rolls, our fannies have never been more pampered. Flush, flush , flush, down goes that pristine paper. Pristine, you say? I say considering its origins, that Kimberly -Clark t.p. belongs in our jewelry boxes. The only way to stop flushing […]

*** EDIT *** I’m an idiot, these aren’t green at all (unless you dig toxic breast milk).  Live and learn.
During a delightful visit to DwellSmart, I purchased my first box of dryer balls. This purchase makes sense both economically and environmentally. I won’t have to purchase another box for two years. […]

I wanted to inform you all that Graham and I are still Gdiaper strong. We switched about a month ago, and I have no intention of ever relying on disposable diapers again. Gdiapers are easy to put together, put on, and put away in the toilet. The underpants and liners show […]

My little guys have celebrated their birthday parties, thus far, at our home. They’re young, and can entertain each other with no more than glow sticks in a darkened room. We love throwing these parties — they’re simple! And since we’re in control of the details, what little waste we accumulate is just […]

Are you becoming obsessed with plastic bags yet? I am. The bag phenomenon is everywhere. I mean, I’m hooked on my own canvas bag. Jen is blogging about becoming the “crazy bag lady”, and the other Jennifer started a project that gives them away. Then there’s the numbers: 100 billion each year in the U.S., […]

After living in a very bucolic setting for 8 and half years, we made a change. Or I should say, I made a change and my sweet husband, kind of disgruntled 10 year old, and up for whatever kindergartner came along for the ride.
I knew all along that I was going to struggle with […]

Turning landfill-bound kitchen waste into rich gardening soil is a very sustainable practice, even in tiny suburban-sized doses. I love the idea of using free homemade soil to enrich the garden plot I’m using to grow some summer veggies, all while learning loads about biology, chemistry, and patience.
Composting is a green activity that’s a bit […]

Sometimes I get so caught up in recycling that I pay less attention than I should to the other two R’s…Reducing and Reusing. Recycling is great, but ideally we should be using less and reusing more. And while reducing the amount of stuff we use is ideal, it often feels like a punishment.
Reusing […]

One way to address the issue of our mass consumption as a country, and the realities of what ends up in the landfill as a result is, well, ignore it.
A group of 5th grade students at Charles Pinckney Elemetary School are choosing a different tact. Pinkney’s Ecology Club, lead by S.A.I.L. teacher Mike Cline, […]

So, I’m no artist, but something about the holidays gets me in the mood to… CREATE!
There is nothing better than bringing the outdoors in to help you celebrate the season. There are lots of ways to save green and go natural during the holidays.
For the Halloween/Thanksgiving/Fall season:
Create a simple centerpiece in seconds by grouping three […]

Ever since a Hummer began showing up in the parking lot where I work, I’ve been dying to get a shot of it next to one of the many Priuses. Well today was the day, and to make it even sweeter, a Chevy Suburban was parked on the other side forming a veritable eco-sandwich.
A photo […]

Yep, it looks that way. Based on our recent poll, most Go Green readers either avoid bottled water when possible, or purposely drink only from the tap. Either way, it says a lot about where we are as a community, and how education can impact trends. A few years ago, I […]

Lately, we’ve been noticing how little garbage we have around our house. So much so, that I only have to take my big brown trash bin down to the curb every three weeks (still too much IMHO). I used to fill it up to the top every week, but now it takes 3 […]

Plastic bags consumed this year:
RbBagCounter.Add();

This morning I blew off sniping photos of poor trash management in favor of playing with my two boys - easy decision. So instead of posting a photo, I thought I’d post this numerical reminder of how blind we are to our consumption. Over 500 billion plastic bags are […]

One of the first really green things we did was to reduce our dependence on non-essential paper waste. This included paper towels, cups, plates, toilet paper, tissue, and napkins. Paper accounts for the largest amount of solid waste in landfills, and we wanted to reduce that.
So, Jen picked up 16 cloth napkins and put […]

Yes! I finally got to see The Little Green Bag Project in action. The Whole Foods in Mount Pleasant was swarming with Saturday traffic, and Jennifer and Mike were handing out bags to anyone willing to use them. As the bags went out, and the donations rolled in, it became clear that […]

My boys have learned the days of the week early in life, because of Thursdays. “Yes sweeties,” I explain, “On Thursdays the trucks drive down our street.”
It’s quite the spectacle. We don’t listen to music during breakfast. We dare not miss the first hiss of their brakes. We run out the […]

It’s been 2.5 months now since I pledged to have a bottled water-free summer, and I have to tell you it’s been pretty easy so far. If I travel with my canteen-style water bottle, I never have a need to buy one. I just fill it up at a sink or drinking fountain, […]