Every day is a wildflower day for me. I plant for the birds, butterflies, and bees and love when they are in my garden. The spring has been spectacular where I live. Trees and bushes are blooming, birds are singing in concert, warblers are migrating through, many butterflies are present, and its sunny and 70 degrees.
The hummingbirds have arrived!
Shooting star , wild geranium, and violets
Marsh Marigolds
Hummingbirds love columbine
It is a perfect time to add some native plants to your garden to draw more birds and butterflies into your yard.
We all can make a difference by reducing our plastic footprint.
The theme for this year’s Earth Day is Planet VS Plastic. The hazards of plastic are great, and we all need to take steps to reduce the harmful effects of plastic pollution in our environment and bodies.
What will you do to help our warming planet?
Greenpeace has nothing to do with this post.
Things you should know about plastic:
Plastic is made of fossil fuels and contains many toxic chemicals that are harmful to our health.
These toxic chemicals leach into our food from plastic packaging.
Plastics break down into microplastic. We each consume about a credit card of microplastic a week from our food and environment. These microfibers are found in our lungs, brains, blood and arteries.
When plastic is recycled it becomes more toxic.
40% of plastic is single-use.
The production of plastic continues to increase.
If plastic were a country, it would be the 5th largest emitter of greenhouse gases. Much of plastic’s pollution affects minorities and people without power.
Clothing with polyester and nylon contain plastic.
The producers of plastic should be held responsible for the harm they create in the environment and our bodies.
By banning the worst forms of single-use plastic, holding plastic producers accountable for their waste, getting wasteful packaging off store shelves, and more — a future beyond plastic is possible.
Waste less food: Food Waste Prevention Week is April 1-7
One trillion dollars of food is wasted yearly. We can all do better!
People are starving in Gaza, Sudan, Syria and other places in the world, let’s not waste food.
**Why is reducing food waste so important?
It saves Money
Wasting food is expensive. Every year, Americans lose more than $218 billion on wasted food. In Florida, the average family of four throws out around $1,600 worth of food annually. Households are responsible for the most wasted food. If we begin to reduce and prevent food waste, we can save that money that is wasted on spoiled food.
It reduces hunger in our communities
In the US, approximately 40% of all food grown and produced is never eaten. That’s a lot of food wasted that could go to people that don’t have access to food. 1 in 5 people lack consistent access to nutritious food, while up to 3 million tons of wasted food goes to landfills annually. Recovered food provides an additional source of nutritious food.
It protects the environment
Reducing food waste is the #1 personal action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while safeguarding critical natural resources. When food is wasted, it goes into a landfill. Once in a landfill, food waste breaks down and emits greenhouse gasses, including carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4). Methane is 30 times more potent than carbon dioxide, making it more damaging to the environment. If we reduce food waste, we could save the environment from this damage.
What Can I Do?
At home
Save leftovers and store/freeze food in portion-ready containers
Cook only what is needed for that meal
Make one night a weekly “leftover” night to empty the refrigerator before shopping again
Audit what you throw away; it will influence your next shopping trip
Keep kitchen essentials on hand (grains, spices, sauces) that bring new life to old meals
Freeze ripe fruits and vegetables for baking, cooking and filling in gaps in recipes
I’m for anything that is peaceful and kind. Get outside in March and please contribute peace to a Mindful March
Mindfulness helps us respond more wisely, especially in difficult times. So let’s pause, breathe and choose to live mindfully this month. By cultivating inner peace we can contribute to peace in the world around us too.
Look for beauty and live with awareness and kindness every day!
Many reasons to use a non-plastic reusable water bottle.
New studies on plastic start to emerge.
In a trailblazing new study, researchers have discovered bottled water sold in stores can contain 10 to 100 times more bits of plastic than previously estimated — nanoparticles so infinitesimally tiny they cannot be seen under a microscope.
At 1,000th the average width of a human hair, nanoplastics are so teeny they can migrate through the tissues of the digestive tract or lungs into the bloodstream, distributing potentially harmful synthetic chemicals throughout the body and into cells, experts say.
Another new report finds that 84 out of 85 supermarket foods and fast foods had plastic chemicals in them — including cereal, yogurt and even baby food.1
We shouldn’t be so nonchalant about harmful chemicals in the food we eat, and especially not in the food we serve to babies.
Among the chemicals found in the food were “plasticizers” like BPA, once found in so many plastic water bottles, and phthalates, a chemical used to make plastic more durable.
Companies have allowed these plasticizers into a dizzying range of food products. But they seem to have forgotten to ask themselves: Should we?
After all, chronic exposure to plasticizers can disrupt the production and regulation of estrogen and other hormones, and potentially increase the risk of birth defects, cancer, diabetes, infertility, neurodevelopmental disorders, obesity and other health problems.2
We can’t keep letting companies get away with this “ask for forgiveness, not permission” approach to harmful substances in our food.
I hope we can all start the year with hope for peace and joy and a healthier cleaner planet. Every action we take matters Our collective actions, can contribute to positive change and help us to feel we are making a difference, and we are!
If plastic were a country, it would be the fifth largest emitter of green house gases!
Easy ways you can reduce your plastic footprint:
Always carry a reusable glass or metal water bottle, and reusable shopping bags with you.
Learn to refuse single-use plastics, such as plastic water bottles and coffee cups, straws, plastic bags and plastic utensils.
Purchase fruit and produce in the bulk section, and don’t place items in plastic bags.
Always search out products in glass jars instead of plastic containers.
When you must buy plastic products, choose ones that you can recycle rather than ones you must put in the trash.
Bring your own containers and shop the bulk section of your local food coop.
Over 98% of plastics are made from fossil carbons such as oil and gas. Turning these substances into plastics involves the addition of petrochemical additives – quite a lot of them. Over 13,000 chemicals are known to be involved in the production of plastic. More than 2300 of these are “chemicals of concern.” Some are highly toxic, and include carcinogens, neurotoxicants, and endocrine disruptors. These chemicals pose serious risks to human health because they can leach or migrate at every stage of plastics’ life cycle.
Food Packaging: When food or beverage is packaged in plastic, chemical additives can leach into what we eat.
Microplastics: Plastics don’t biodegrade; they break up into smaller and smaller pieces known as micro- and nanoplastics, which are so small that they become caught up in the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat. These pieces are present almost everywhere researchers have ever looked, including inside the human body. Scientists have detected plastic particles in human lung tissue, intestinal tissue, blood, breast milk, the muscle of the heart, and both sides of the placenta – including inside fetuses and newborn babies.
Cell damage: Plastic particles inside the body can irritate, inflame, and even puncture cells. This is especially concerning in the intestine and lung, where microplastics make direct contact with thin, sensitive tissue.
Chemical leaching: Microplastics never stop leaching their chemical contents. Once they are inside the human body, they can act like tiny trojan horses, spilling out chemical additives for as long as they are present. Over 98% of plastics are made from fossil carbons such as oil and gas. Turning these substances into plastics involves the addition of petrochemical additives – quite a lot of them. Over 13,000 chemicals are known to be involved in the production of plastic. More than 2300 of these are “chemicals of concern.” Some are highly toxic, and include carcinogens, neurotoxicants, and endocrine disruptors. These chemicals pose serious risks to human health because they can leach or migrate at every stage of plastics’ life cycle.
Cancer: Many of the chemical additives in plastics are known to cause cancer. Bisphenol A, phthalates, and polyvinyl chloride, for instance, are welldocumented carcinogens.
Endocrine Disruption: A great number of additives mimic hormones and disrupt signaling throughout the body. They can scramble appetite cues and metabolism, leading to obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease. They can hijack reproductive signals, speeding puberty, lowering sperm counts, and prompting infertility. Endocrine disruptors are also associated with cancer – especially breast, prostate, and testicular cancers. Neurological Effects: Endocrine disruption can disturb brain development, leading to lower IQ, ADHD, and autism-spectrum disorders. Go to http://www.beyondplastics.org and email us at beyondplastics@bennington.edu to learn about the tools we have to reduce our exposure to harmful plastics and petrochemicals. Besides limiting your own personal plastic use, what can be done? Nearly half of all plastics manufactured today are single use items and packaging. Legislation that reduces the production of these items and mandates extended producer responsibility will go a long way toward relieving health risks. It is vital that lawmakers regulate the chemical content and toxicity of plastic. Many of the chemicals used to manufacture plastic are unnecessary and can be banned and substituted with safer alternatives. The brains and bodies of infants, fetuses, and small children undergo exquisitely complicated and carefully timed changes. When these are disrupted, the effects can be permanent – and profound. Infants and fetuses also face risks of prematurity, stillbirth, low birth weight, birth defects of the reproductive organs, impaired lung growth, and childhood cancer.
Every action matters! As we start 2024 many of us think of ways to resolve to make things better for our families, our friends and for the world. Below is the Action for Happiness calendar for January. Maybe just choose one action you like and do it over and over. Kindness is like a ripple; it grows and grows. Take deep breaths, smile, listen, and enjoy! Good Luck
We are in a climate crisis, a waste crisis, and a plastic crisis. The last thing we need is for people to purchase more landfill junk. Everyone has a right to clean water and clean air. Buying less stuff, and producing less waste helps keep our water and air clean.
Purchase items of quality and things you really need this holiday. Also, become aware of the plastic that you send to the landfill.
Zero Waste is moving from our throw-away and overconsumption culture to a more sustainable way of reusing and refusing.
Food waste in landfills produces harmful methane gas.
The EPA reports that garbage increases 25% between Thanksgiving and New Year’s. Here are new ways to reduce your waste.
Buy Nothing! It isn’t hard to get caught up in the hectic holidays and craze of overconsumption. Shopping til you drop is not what this time of year is really about.
We have a worldwide trash crisis, and we don’t need to be purchasing more junk to end up in landfills or garbage burners. All this consumption contributes to our climate crisis, more air pollution and more water pollution. When you shop purchase quality items that will last, always bring your own reusable shopping bags, and reduce your plastic packaging.
Bring your reusable bags and reduce your plastic packaging.
Below is from the Story of Stuff Team:
Black Friday is an annual heavily-advertised mega shopping day with the goal of convincing you to buy as much as possible. But every product you buy has an environmental and labor cost, from long before it hits store shelves to long after you toss it in the bin.
Shopping til you drop is not what this time of year is really about. This holiday season, we’re encouraging everyone to buy less, buy better or buy nothing. Let’s focus less on stuff and more on joy!
Handy tip: unsubscribe from brand emails to simplify your life. And use Catalog Choice to opt-out of junk mail and unwanted catalogs.
We want to get back to the original joy of the season. Here are some meaningful things we can spend our time and money on:
Do something you have been meaning to do for a long time, and have fun!
Go for a walk or read that book you’ve been meaning to start
Write personalized holiday messages for those closest to you
If you are buying gifts, shop secondhand or support small businesses
Invite loved ones over for a home-cooked meal and games
Try an experience: check out a new restaurant, movie or concert with friends
Donate to or volunteer for a cause you care about
Participate in a community exchange like your local Buy Nothing Group
Write a thank you note or a note of gratitude to someone.
Health4earth 