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EcoGirl's Holiday
Page
A tangible way we can honor the earth right now is in
how we create our holidays this year. Aligning with the
earth's ways can bring us great joy, now and long into the
future.
To help you do that, I've created this webpage with
links to my past holiday-related columns. Here you'll
find organized and helpful tips for honoring the earth in
your gift giving, greeting cards, family meals,
celebrations, and cleanup.
I also invite you to consider giving your friends and
loved ones a gift of my Ask EcoGirl booklets, "Healthier
Housecleaning" and "Detoxing Your Life." These
attractive, handy, and cheerful resources help folks
tangibly create healthier, more earth-friendly lives.
They're quite affordable, and you can add them to related
gift baskets. I offer quantity discounts, and all proceeds
support my eco-healing community work. www.askecogirl.info/booklets.html.
I wish everyone Happy Holidays!
• • •
- December
2011: From Gratitude to Action
- Too often, children can devour their Christmas gifts
so quickly that they don't really experience or
appreciate each one, let alone the person who gave it. In
much the same way, our culture is voraciously turning the
earth's amazing ecosystems into momentary objects that we
barely notice and quickly become part of our overwhelming
piles of waste. To help remedy this, EcoGirl offers some
easy ways that we can redirect our actions towards
sanity, and through this more fully enjoy the objects and
experiences we have, reduce our harm to the precious
earth, and help ensure that there will be happy times
tomorrow!
-
- November
2011: Honoring Change and Tradition
- Like many folks, EcoGirl has been fascinated and
thrilled to see people come out onto the streets to call
for major changes in our system's structures. These
movements offer us a chance for the scale of change that
we need to steer ourselves away from so many crises,
including eco-collapse. EcoGirl offers her thoughts about
how we all can respond constructively to the opportunity
of this powerful moment, wherever we are; what she feels
is vital for the movement's success; and how the earth's
ways can (and must) be included in the new solutions. She
also honors the tradition of our winter celebrations by
offering organized and helpful lists full of ways that
you can honor the earth in all your holiday
activities.
-
- November
2008: Greening Your Holidays, On a Budget
- Yes, you can create greener winter holidays while
treading lightly on both the earth and your budget. In
fact, one of the silver linings of this economic downturn
is that it can help us reduce the consumerism rates that
are more than the planet can bear. Here's some ideas for
how to do that while still having loving fun with friends
and family!
-
- December
2010: Nurturing Authentic Holiday Green
- With so many companies claiming to be green, how do
we choose products that are truly better for the earth?
EcoGirl can help! Read her column this month for quick
and easy tips for buying and being authentically green,
this holiday season and all year 'round.
-
- November
2007: Greening Your Gifting
- Want to truly green your gifting? Here in one place
are key principles for thinking green to include Mother
Earth in your holiday giving. Includes specific ideas you
won't find other places -- plus great local
resources!
-
- November
2009: Detoxing Your Holidays
- Unfortunately, our need to protect health and planet
from hidden toxics doesn't stop during the holidays. This
column offers specific tips for recognizing common
seasonal threats and choosing less-toxic options,
including when buying toy gifts. Plus there's information
about how you can support current much-needed proposals
to strengthen toxic regulations, thus better protecting
ourselves for many holidays to come.
-
- July
2009: Greening Our Techno-Tools
- Our daily lives can be enhanced in many ways by
today's technological devices, including computers, cell
phones, cameras, TVs, stereos, game players, and more.
However, it's vital for us to be smart about our use of
these techno-toys, because they do have eco-impacts
throughout their lifecycles. Here are specific ways that
you can buy, enjoy, and discard these products while
minimizing their harm -- and even saving money as
well!
-
- February
2011: Are Smart Phones Green?
- Smart phones, MP3 players, and other mobile devices
are sprouting up all over the place. But are they good or
bad for the earth? To help answer that question, EcoGirl
walks through her assessment process for her latest
purchase, the iPod Touch. The web version of this article
also has additional information, resources, and app
recommendations!
-
- November
2010: Sipping Earth-Friendly Holiday Cheer
- Does it really make a difference if we serve and
bring eco-wines to our holiday events? Yes! Here are the
reasons they're indeed better for both your health and
the planet. And they're tasty too! EcoGirl also gives you
tips for sorting through the eco-labels to find ones you
like -- and even lets you in on her local favorites!
-
- December
2009: Trimming Your Holiday Waste
- A reader wonders how their family can reduce the
increased trash they generate during the holidays. Yes,
given how much our waste increases this time of year,
this is a vital and fruitful time for us all to cut back.
Luckily, as usual, EcoGirl comes to the rescue with an
organized list of tangible ways that you can trim your
trash, this holiday season and beyond, thus reducing your
eco-impacts, your garbage costs, and even often having
more fun! Topics you'll find covered in this column
include: entertaining, food, greeting cards, gift
wrapping, gift giving, disposal after the festivities,
and resources.
-
- December
2007: Holiday Donations: Your Magic Wand for Planetary
Change!
- You can empower change in the world through your
holiday donations (and perhaps even get a tax
deduction!). Here are inspiring ideas for finding your
own passionate issues, and suggestions for wonderful
local groups you can support.
-
- December
2008: Taming Our Tiny Ant Friends
- Ant invasions can tempt one to use poisons. But
studies show that toxics are no more effective than
household cleansers! Instead of putting your family at
risk, follow this three-tiered approach for addressing
your visiting ant armies.
-
- "Dear Patricia -- I just read your article, "Taming
Our Tiny Ant Friends." I think it's just great that you
write these articles, and always with such conscious
respect for the earth, and in this case, all those
amazing little ants."
Patrice Ryan
-
- January
2010: Greening Your New Year's Resolutions
- The new year offers us a handy time to identify the
changes we want to make in our lives. And it's smart to
include caring for the earth among our intentions,
because the planet's well-being is key to our survival,
and because aligning with the earth can help us
achieve our personal goals. Here some example ways that
you can eco-charge your New Year's resolutions to be
healthier, save money, connect with others, and have more
fun!
-
- June
2008: Can We Afford to Care About the
Environment?
- I'm anxious about the economy, writes a reader, with
rising gas and food prices, medical costs, even food
riots. How can we worry about the environment when real
survival issues are at stake? EcoGirl responds by
describing how our survival depends first on the earth,
both physically and economically. Therefore, our current
economic disruptions actually offer us an opportunity to
redesign our economic systems to better align with nature
and thus better ensure the survival of us all!
• • •
You can find lots more ideas for being green during the
holidays on this page of tips that I created! www.healthyworld.org/ecoholidays.html
• • •
Ask EcoGirl is written by Patricia Dines, Author of
The Organic Guides, and Editor and Lead Writer for
The Next STEP newsletter. Email your questions about
going green to <EcoGirl [at] AskEcoGirl.info>
for possible inclusion in future columns. View past columns
at <www.AskEcoGirl.info>.
You can also become a Facebook fan of "Ask EcoGirl",
to show your support and stay in touch! Join at
www.facebook.com/AskEcoGirl.
"EcoGirl: Encouraging the eco-hero in
everyone."
© Copyright Patricia Dines, 2011. All rights
reserved.
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