Ok .. for the past few years now I've been making a serious effort on being more 'green,' especially as far as my house and the resources it's spending.
I woke up about a month ago and got pretty 'upset' thinking I need to do more. It's one thing to live green, but it's something else to help support the cause. I need to promote it more, tell people more, and help do my part along with the rest of the world to help the cause.
So ... I've now started a few recycling ideas / efforts at work. I'm preparing to go into our staff meeting tomorrow and declare in the meeting that I want to form a 'green team' for the company, if one does not already exist. We, as consultants, need to practice what we promote, and we as humans can always improve on our green efforts.
Wish me luck .. I'm sure they'll be positive about it .. but it takes a force to make a change .. I want to be that force.
I've decided to get a series of dry erase boards (seeing as paper wastes paper) to hang around the office and write Green tips.... in the kitchen, the copier room, etc. and then change them frequently. I think there are a few other green people myself and I believe that we can do little things to be better occupants of this planet because, in the end, every little detail helps.
Ok .. I know I ramble so without going into any more details .. my head is exploding with ideas and excitement about this.
I'm taking a class to incorporate this into my engineering career and I've already decided that I want to obtain my LEED certification. So I can live a greener life and build a greener world! Maybe my move last year was ultimately to get me where I'm at now because for once I want to do something like this with all of my heart and soul. I'm all about being in front of technological curve and this is both that and it's a passion of mine. So maybe the saying is true .. everything happens for a reason. We'll see...
I posted a topic on the Louisville Flickr boards as well, trying to spread the knowledge. I did not ramble off my 10000 suggestion because most people won't read them, but I gave a few.
Here is just a cut and paste of that ..
Long story short .. it's one thing to live a 'greener' life yourself but there's no point in keeping it to yourself.
Here are a few things.. feel free to add to this.
Simple Ways to be More Green:
1.) Get rid of the coffee stirs!! Pour in the cream and sugar first, then pour in the coffee. This will mix everything for you perfectly!
Why not just use a spoon? Because it requires either water to clean it or a towel to wipe it off. This option requires nothing .. :o)
2.) Turn them off or put them to sleep! Are your computers on all the time? Either switch them off when you're not using them or set them to auto-hibernate after a few minutes.
It takes a computer a second or two to 'wake up' from hibernation and that saves our resources and your pocketbook.
3.) Save on your heating and cooling bills! Are you heating or cooling the entire house but you live in just a few rooms? Try lowering your temperature a couple of degrees and use supplemental sources (space heaters) to warm the rooms that you're in. Why pay to heat areas that are not in use?
Another alternative is to use a time intelligent thermostat which adjusts the temperature based on pre-set settings, so when you're at home the house is more comfortable but when you're out it saving resources and your money. Price them at the store, they're cheaper than you think!
4.) Buy local! There are so many farmer's markets around town now and so much promotion of local products that there are options now to buy local and not spend the gas and resources to get food from the other side of the country. And .. the local stuff tastes great!!
5.) Turn your car off, I can't breathe! (I had to!!) Are you sitting idle in your car for a few minutes? Consider turning it off while you're not moving, even if it's only 5 minutes. An idling car is still consistently spending our hard earned money and gas and we're also contributing to the air pollution problem.
6.) RECYCLE!!
7.) Save your water!! When you're brushing your teeth in the morning does the faucet stay on the whole time? If it does put a cup in the sink and 'capture' how much water you're normally just sending down the drain unused. You'll be amazed how much you're paying for that's being wasted. It takes two seconds to turn the faucet off and on.
Also, consider adjusting the pressure of the weather when you don't need it coming out at full flow. These two things will save you a lot on your next water bill!!
Ok ... I'll stop for now, but if one person reads this and finds one suggestion useful, then I've done good .. :o) Every little detail helps!!
I woke up about a month ago and got pretty 'upset' thinking I need to do more. It's one thing to live green, but it's something else to help support the cause. I need to promote it more, tell people more, and help do my part along with the rest of the world to help the cause.
So ... I've now started a few recycling ideas / efforts at work. I'm preparing to go into our staff meeting tomorrow and declare in the meeting that I want to form a 'green team' for the company, if one does not already exist. We, as consultants, need to practice what we promote, and we as humans can always improve on our green efforts.
Wish me luck .. I'm sure they'll be positive about it .. but it takes a force to make a change .. I want to be that force.
I've decided to get a series of dry erase boards (seeing as paper wastes paper) to hang around the office and write Green tips.... in the kitchen, the copier room, etc. and then change them frequently. I think there are a few other green people myself and I believe that we can do little things to be better occupants of this planet because, in the end, every little detail helps.
Ok .. I know I ramble so without going into any more details .. my head is exploding with ideas and excitement about this.
I'm taking a class to incorporate this into my engineering career and I've already decided that I want to obtain my LEED certification. So I can live a greener life and build a greener world! Maybe my move last year was ultimately to get me where I'm at now because for once I want to do something like this with all of my heart and soul. I'm all about being in front of technological curve and this is both that and it's a passion of mine. So maybe the saying is true .. everything happens for a reason. We'll see...
I posted a topic on the Louisville Flickr boards as well, trying to spread the knowledge. I did not ramble off my 10000 suggestion because most people won't read them, but I gave a few.
Here is just a cut and paste of that ..
Long story short .. it's one thing to live a 'greener' life yourself but there's no point in keeping it to yourself.
Here are a few things.. feel free to add to this.
Simple Ways to be More Green:
1.) Get rid of the coffee stirs!! Pour in the cream and sugar first, then pour in the coffee. This will mix everything for you perfectly!
Why not just use a spoon? Because it requires either water to clean it or a towel to wipe it off. This option requires nothing .. :o)
2.) Turn them off or put them to sleep! Are your computers on all the time? Either switch them off when you're not using them or set them to auto-hibernate after a few minutes.
It takes a computer a second or two to 'wake up' from hibernation and that saves our resources and your pocketbook.
3.) Save on your heating and cooling bills! Are you heating or cooling the entire house but you live in just a few rooms? Try lowering your temperature a couple of degrees and use supplemental sources (space heaters) to warm the rooms that you're in. Why pay to heat areas that are not in use?
Another alternative is to use a time intelligent thermostat which adjusts the temperature based on pre-set settings, so when you're at home the house is more comfortable but when you're out it saving resources and your money. Price them at the store, they're cheaper than you think!
4.) Buy local! There are so many farmer's markets around town now and so much promotion of local products that there are options now to buy local and not spend the gas and resources to get food from the other side of the country. And .. the local stuff tastes great!!
5.) Turn your car off, I can't breathe! (I had to!!) Are you sitting idle in your car for a few minutes? Consider turning it off while you're not moving, even if it's only 5 minutes. An idling car is still consistently spending our hard earned money and gas and we're also contributing to the air pollution problem.
6.) RECYCLE!!
7.) Save your water!! When you're brushing your teeth in the morning does the faucet stay on the whole time? If it does put a cup in the sink and 'capture' how much water you're normally just sending down the drain unused. You'll be amazed how much you're paying for that's being wasted. It takes two seconds to turn the faucet off and on.
Also, consider adjusting the pressure of the weather when you don't need it coming out at full flow. These two things will save you a lot on your next water bill!!
Ok ... I'll stop for now, but if one person reads this and finds one suggestion useful, then I've done good .. :o) Every little detail helps!!
