25 Ways to Save the Planet: 16 - 20
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA 
on 04.25.06
TreeHugger believes that if everyone comes together to make a couple small changes, we can make a big difference. As part of our continuing series, here are five more ways to green your lifestyle without breaking a sweat.
20) Eschew air conditioners (even though there are some nice designs, some pretty efficient window units and even an off-grid option out there, some think A/C is the killing frost sure to wilt the last fragile shoots of American culture) and go with a ceiling fan for year-round climate control. It'll help keep you cooler in summer; to push warm air back down into the room in winter, just flip the blades around.
19) Skip the energy-hogging clothes dryer for a drying rack or clothes line instead; it's easier on your clothes, your energy bill and our fragile planet. While you're at it, green your laundry practices or skip electricity all together.
18) Use rechargable batteries instead of single-use batteries. It'll save you some bucks and the hassle of trying to recycle spent alkalines (even though our friends at 3r Living make it a little easier by accepting them for recycling). For more info, check out Green Batteries for everything you'd ever want to know.
17) If given the choice, go for organic fruits, veggies, meat and dairy over conventional food. Organic food is becoming more widely available all the time in grocery stores across the world, and because it's all free of pesticides, herbicides and other chemical non-desireables, it's better for you and the planet.
16) When it comes to food, the only thing making more noise these days than organic is the local food movement. From the Eat Local Challenge to the 100 Mile Diet (so interesting that we added a part 2) to a growing number of resources to help you grow your own food -- it doesn't get more local than that -- it's tough to beat the "eat the season" mantra. If you're still not convinced, here are 10 reasons to give it a shot.
#25 - 21; stay tuned for # 15 - 11 tomorrow!
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That drying rack is upside down. I'm guessing the photographer of that product wasn't a real Treehugger!
And when recharging batteries, why not consider a solar powered charger, or just using a small solar panel to charge a regular charger?
Some of my neighbors go the extra step with ceiling fans: They have them on their porches so they can both be outside and stay cool.
But with air drying clothes: I'd like to do this, but my wife (who's more esthetically-minded than ecology-minded) won't let me hang a clothesline anywhere but outside or in our basement. Now, this wouldn't be a problem if we had room in our backyard for one, but if they're not in the sun, how are they going to get dry? I'm afraid they'll pick up mildew hanging around in the basement.
Forgo A/C? yeah hahahahhaha....No.
organic? when peppers are $0.99/ea at my local grocer for regular, and $4.99/lb at whole foods for organic, the regular is going to win out over organic every time. get back to me when prices are comparable.
we are going to try to eat local here in VT in august. it should be a good challenge and a great experience. im looking forward to it.
http://www.eatlocalvt.org/
No A/C works out fine in Ohio or Vermont, but I don't think Collin has been to Orlando in August.
Organics.
Depending on what is allowed to be labeled as "organic" will determine if its actually better then non-organic. Take "free range" chickens. Some laws specify a time frame, so for example if the chickens are let outside in a pen of a certain size for X amount of time per day then they are "free range".
Even if organics are grown properly no one seems to like to discuss the fact that they take up a significant amount of increased resources (land, etc...) to grow. So your yield goes down. You feed less people and those who can not afford it won't buy it.
No AC? It was 101F here in Dallas last week. In April.
It's a necessary evil here. We have ceiling fans in every room even with AC on.
The best tip I can give is to get a digital thermostat so that you don't run the AC when you don't need to.
I'm a student at Pomona College in Claremont, California and recently spent a good amount of time looking into the various clothesline and drying rack options since Pomona is going to purchase some for student use and I wanted to make sure we purchased the best available option.
In my research, I was shocked to find that there is NO good website explaining all the different clotheslines and drying rack options, so I made my own! It's a wiki page on the Tip the Planet sustainable living wiki that ANYONE CAN EDIT. You can check it out here: http://www.tiptheplanet.com/index.php?title=Air_dry_washing
I'm trying to spread the word so that the site becomes a clearing house for drying rack information, and people have to spend less time scouring the web for the best products. Have a look, share it with your friends, and by all means add your wisdom!
Take care,
Chelsea
I'm a student at Pomona College in Claremont, California and recently spent a good amount of time looking into the various clothesline and drying rack options since Pomona is going to purchase some for student use and I wanted to make sure we purchased the best available option.
In my research, I was shocked to find that there is NO good website explaining all the different clotheslines and drying rack options, so I made my own! It's a wiki page on the Tip the Planet sustainable living wiki that ANYONE CAN EDIT. You can check it out here: http://www.tiptheplanet.com/index.php?title=Air_dry_washing
I'm trying to spread the word so that the site becomes a clearing house for drying rack information, and people have to spend less time scouring the web for the best products. Have a look, share it with your friends, and by all means add your wisdom!
Take care,
Chelsea