Lunch-time waste ... it's staggering

Facts compiled and reported by reuseit.com  ...

The Problem

• The Environmental Protection Agency estimated that 780,000 tons of plastic and polystyrene cups and plates were discarded in 2008.
• The Container Recycling Institute claims that 2.81 million juice boxes were sold in the U.S. in 2006.
• An independent study done in June of 2010 by the Environmental Law Foundation found toxic levels of lead in more than 40 different juices and juice boxes.
• The EPA estimates nearly 4 million tons of plastic bags, sacks and wraps were produced in 2008. Of those, 3,570,000 tons (90%) were discarded. This is almost triple the amount discarded the first year plastic bag numbers were tracked (1,230,000 tons in 1980).Annual worldwide production and use of plastic material has rocketed from 5 million tons in the 1950s to 100 million tons in 2000.
• Estimates by the BBC and CNN claim that anywhere from .5% to 3% of all bags winds up recycled.
• In good circumstances, some plastics will take more than 20 years to degrade. In less ideal circumstances (land fills or as general refuse), plastic refuse will take more than 1,000 years to degrade. The extremely slow decomposition rate of plastics means they will drift on the ocean for untold years.
• A U.N. study from 2006 stated that every square mile of the ocean has 46,000 pieces of floating plastic in it. The same study also stated that 10% of the plastic produced every year worldwide winds up in the ocean, 70% of which finds its way to the ocean floor, where it will likely never degrade.
• Plastic cutlery is non-biodegradable, can leach toxic chemicals when handled improperly, and is widely used. Worldcentric.org estimates 40 billion plastic utensils are used every year in just the United States. The majority of these are thrown out after just one use.

The Impact

• When plastics break down, they don't biodegrade, they photodegrade. This means the materials break down to smaller toxic fragments which contaminate soil, waterways, and animals upon digestion.
• Refuse plastic absorbs pre-existing organic pollutants, including Bisphenol A (BPA) and polychlorinated biphenyls(PCBs).
• The Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry has this to say about PCBs: "Animals that ate food containing large amounts of PCBs over short periods of time had mild liver damage and some died. Animals that ate smaller amounts of PCBs in food over several weeks or months developed various kinds of health effects, including anemia; acne-like skin conditions; and liver, stomach, and thyroid gland injuries."

The Solution

• The solution is to embrace a cultural shift away from use-and-toss mentality. Use durable, long-lasting containers that will last years rather than disposable sandwich wraps, chip bags, fruit salad or pudding cups.
• Bento boxes are a perfect example of a solution to disposable sandwich wraps; they are compartmentalized, allowing one to bring up to four separate dishes without using a single bag or wrap.
• Stop using disposable napkins and instead opt for durable, washable cloth napkins that won't wind up in a landfill.
• Use a high-quality water bottle to bring a drink instead of a disposable container (like a juice box). Thermal-insulated ones will even keep your drink as cold or as hot as when you packed it.
• Don't use paper bags. A study on the life cycle of three types of disposable bags (single-use plastic, paper, and compostable plastic) showed that both compostable plastic and paper bags require more material per bag in the manufacturing process. This means "higher consumption of raw materials in the manufacture of the bags...[and] greater energy in bag manufacturing and greater fuel use in the transport of the finished product. ...The added requirements of manufacturing energy and transport for the compostable and paper bag systems far exceed the raw material use in the standard plastic bag system." (from a peer reviewed Boustead Consulting & Associates report)

See what you can do this school or work year to be part of the solution!

Packing a waste-free lunch

It's back-to-school time, and for many busy parents this also means a return to lunch-packing. Did you know that the typical child generates 67 pounds of lunchtime trash per year? With more families trying to save money by brown bagging it that's a lot of waste - and money - going into the trash. Creating a waste-free lunch kit is smart ... and it's one of the easiest ways to significantly reduce your consumption of use-and-toss items - and save money (about $371 annually).

Reuseit.com has compiled five great ways to reduce the waste your family generates during lunches on the go.

Come back later this week for some staggering facts and figures related to our culture's near-epidemic use of tossable lunch materials.

How does your garden grow?

Those of you who attend Christ Church might already know this, but we have a beautiful organic vegetable garden! It's part of the "Gardening for God" ministry, and its harvest is donated to local food charities.

God has again blessed our garden harvest!

Here are some amazing harvest totals (as of June 29, 2010):

• Cabbage: 38 pounds
• Cauliflower: 26 pounds
• Lettuce: 33 pounds
• Carrots: 24 pounds
• Squash: 51 pounds
• Zucchini: 83 pounds
• Cucumbers: 140 pounds
• Potatoes: 67 pounds

Wow! Gardening for God coordinator Emily Dykstra reports that the volunteers' hard work is paying off and helping to feed the homeless of Chattanooga who come each day to the Community Kitchen. The workers there are always so grateful when they see us drive up with our bounty two days each week. We get the same response when we deliver the produce to the Chattanooga Food Bank and St. Andrews Center -- thanks over and over.

Volunteers are needed to water the garden and to help with harvesting. Watering is assigned a week at a time (and we need volunteers for the last week of July, plus the first two weeks of August). Harvest times are Wednesday at 9 a.m. and Sundays at 6 p.m. It only takes about 30 minutes and is a lot of fun. Please join us.

If you're interested in helping, please respond to this post in the "comments" section, and we'll put you in touch with Emily. Thanks!

Mmmm ... blackberry picking

Chattanooga's own Crabtree Farms offers pick-your-own blackberries ... starting tomorrow at 9 a.m.! Make your picking even greener by bringing your own recycled container to store them in! Word on the street is that the berries are HUGE and so sweet!

Celebrate local food!

New Food Economy Week began today, and the new-ish Main Street Farmers' Market has planned a week full of activities to celebrate!

Here's the schedule of events:

• Thursday June 24: Local foods potluck at Crabtree Farms - Bring a dish and your favorite recipe featuring local ingredients, 5 p.m.
• Saturday June 26: Area restaurants feature local specials - Support your Local Food Economy by dining out at 212 Market, St John's Restaurant, St John's Meeting Place or Niko's on the Southside
• Sunday June 27: Support local farms and artisans at the Chattanooga Market, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Tuesday June 29: Bread, Brats & Beer on Bikes! Enjoy freshly baked bread from Niedlov's Breadworks and sausages from Link 41 with a bike tour that begins at Link 41 (217 East Main Street) and stops along the way at local breweries, 6 p.m.
• Wednesday June 30: Local blueberries are ripe and ready! Celebrate this summer favorite at Main Street Farmers Market's Blueberry Fest 2010, 4 to 6 p.m.

The Main Street Farmer's Market is located on Main Street between Market and Broad streets, at the corner of Main and Williams. For a map and aerial photograph, plus a list of participating farms, click here.

New Brainerd farmers' market!

There's good news for folks living in Brainerd - or really anywhere in Chattanooga! Grace Episcopal Church  has begun hosting a farmers' market on Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.; this Saturday marks the the market's third week. Grace is eager to support the people who grow food in and near Chattanooga as well as offering its neighbors a chance to buy food grown in good soil, harvested recently and raised without the many chemicals that can cause health problems. Along with the farmers, some of Grace's food-enthusiasts will have a table at the market offering recipes, food preparation ideas, and other useful information. You can support local farmers and take home healthy food for your family with one visit to Grace's Brainerd Road parking lot. Please visit! (For directions, please click on the link above.)

Participating farmers include:

Tant Hill Farm
Broccoli, cabbage, lettuce and cauliflower.

Owl Hollow Farm
Fresh herbs (spearmint, chocolate mint, and rosemary), snow peas, red and yellow onions, garlic, assorted flowers and plants, and preserves (peach, strawberry, and blackberry). English peas and potatoes will be coming in by the end of June.

Ridgeside Farm
Lettuce, collards, kale, cabbage, and spring onions, blackberries and peaches. We will also have free range eggs.

Walden Farm
Lettuce and salad greens all summer and a few summer vegetables.

Cloud Crest Farm
Grass fed beef and pork.

World Oceans Day

Did you know that World Oceans Day was this week (June 8)? The day began as a day celebrating the many ways humans are connected to the sea, and with the looming oil disaster in the Gulf, this year it's more important than ever to appreciate and preserve the earth's waters.

You don’t need to live near the beach to be connected to the ocean. Oceans and coasts affect people’s lives every day, around the world.  According to The Nature Conservancy, here are five reasons we should care about oceans - not just on World Oceans Day but every day!

1. The air we breathe. Oceans are a critical player in the basic elements we need to survive. Ocean plants produce half of the world’s oxygen, then these amazing waters absorb nearly one-third of human-caused carbon dioxide emissions. Oceans also regulate our weather and form the clouds that bring us fresh water.
2. The food on your plate. Besides seafood, oceans are connected to what you eat in many more ways. Ocean ingredients, like algae and kelp, are used in making peanut butter beer, soymilk and frozen foods. Plus, 36 percent of the world’s total fisheries catch each year is ground up into fishmeal and oil to feed farmed fish, chickens and pigs.
3. The items in your medicine cabinet. You’ll find ocean ingredients flowing out of your medicine cabinet in everything from shampoos and cosmetics to medicines that help fight cancer, arthritis, Alzheimer’s, heart disease, viruses and other diseases.
4. Jobs and the economy. One in six jobs in the United States is marine-related and more than $128 billion in GDP annually results from ocean tourism, recreation and living resources. Healthy marine habitats like reefs, barrier islands, mangroves and wetlands help protect coastal communities from the results of hurricanes and storm surges.
5. A shared resource. While many of us enjoy the spectacular recreational activities that oceans offer, for some people oceans are a lifeline for survival. Keeping oceans healthy keeps people healthy, and we each have a personal responsibility to protect our oceans

Show off your photos of the ocean - or any other natural wonder - by entering The Nature Conservancy's fifth-annual photo contest. Details are here, and the winning photograph will be featured in the group's 2012 calendar.

Summer green

With summer here and kids out of school, the focus of many families turns to entertainment. But having fun can also mean - literally - tons of trash. Here are some ideas for greening up your entertainment, courtsey of The Green Book.

Books
Use the library or buy secondhand books. Consider sharing the ones you have with friends or donating them, rather than throwing them away. About three billion new books are sold each year, requiring 400,000 trees to be chopped down.

DVD's
Rent DVD's instead of buying them. Depending on how much you watch one, you could save money too! The average movie rents for about $4 (and many online movie rental services are even cheaper!), while the average new DVD sells for more than $16. You also won't have to worry about contributing to their trash pile: 100,000 DVD's and CD's are thrown away each month. If you own DVD's that you want to get rid of, donate them to a local library or thrift store, or look for a DVD recycling center.

Tunes
Download tunes to an mp3 player instead of purchasing them at the store. The average price of a CD is $15, whereas an album download is about $10. Each month, more than 45 tons of CD's become obsolete, outdated, or unwanted - and end up in landfills. And when you upgrade your iPod or mp3 player, recycle your old one or return it to the manufacturer. Some companies give customers up to 10 percent off their next purchase when they return their old players. And about 40 percent of the lead in U.S. landfills comes from improperly discarded electronic waste, and the lead in turn pollutes the air and groundwater.

Candy
Buy loose, unwrapped candy from the bin, if you can. Many candy wrappers contain chemicals that make them stain- and water-resistant but also make them difficult to recycle.

Parties
Use electronic invitations (Evite is a great one!) or choose chlorine-free postconsumer recycled paper for your party invitations. (Better use of paper could allow the world's wood consumption to be reduced by 50 percent and possibily as much as 80 percent or more.) For your table, use "real" dishes, silverware, and glasses rather than plastic and paper. Each year, 40 billion plastic utensils are thrown into landfills across the country. You can also save money - using your own stuff is free, whereas the cost of plastic plates, forks, knives and cups for 50 meals could add up to $100.

Drinks on the go
If you have the choice, buy soda from the fountain in a paper cup instead of a can or plastic bottle. You'll reduce the amount of aluminum cans and plastic bottles that are wasted. More paper (48 percent more) is recycled and recovered to make new products than aluminum soda cans (43.9 percent) or plastic bottles (25 percent).

Tickets
Buy your movie and event tickets online or via telephone and print them at home. You'll save time and paper waste. Print-at-home tickets use plain copy paper, which is easier to make into recycled paper than the paperboard used for printed tickets. Some 1.4 billion movie tickets alone are sold in the U.S. annually - and almost every one of them goes in the trash can.

Wanted: A Christian response to the oil spill

Reprinted with permission from www.joshuacase.net

The other night while watching the show Life I was amazed. There were these ants that would eat these mushrooms and then rush off to die under trees where new mushrooms would sprout from their dead heads. I mean, when it comes to tv, this is serious stuff. So serious in fact, that it seems odd that you could call it anything but natural. I mean lets face it, although it is somewhat mysterious that the ants love to eat the plants which drive them crazy, it really is just a natural cycle of a natural creation. It is life.

What is happening in the Gulf of Mexico this week as a result of BP Chemical’s failure to make good on its promise to protect the wildlife of the world’s oceans while extracting oil to be used for cars is not something to marvel at. Species of fish, pelican, squid, duck, and who knows what else are all being swallowed up into the black gulf of oil which will not only limit their capacity to fly or swim, but will inevitably be the cause of much death. Death that is both unnatural and preventable!

Preventable or not, the disaster is here. The question I have is: where are all the Christians? I mean honestly, here you have an example of humans exacting a kind of injustice on the creation that they claim to be responsible for stewarding, and there has been no effort to try to help or to mobilize (at least from what I can find) people as good stewards to action. And whereas many Christians in the empire were more than ready to suggest that drilling for oil was Biblically justified on a stewardship basis, few are coming forward to take up responsibility for clean up or care.

I have to admit that as I write I am more than a little bummed that if you Google “Christian oil spill volunteers,” you actually find an Atheist organization recruiting volunteers to help with clean up before you find Christians. Now this isn’t to say they are not out there, only to say they are not activating their bases, they’re not stepping in and saying “we love to drive our cars with our fish on them, and so we too are kind of responsible for this mess.” They are not even saying that the oil clean up is part of their responsibility as people of faith in the public square.

But shouldn’t a Christian response to this crisis be equally as measured as a response to other tragedies like hurricanes and earthquakes? Or, in some classic sense, do most Christians still fundamentally believe that God only cares about human life and human surviving? Is there a way in which this oil spill, like the slowness of Christian response to HIV/AIDS in the early years of the pandemic, will be the beginning of breaking of this kind of disconnect? Maybe, but maybe not.

Maybe response really depends on how one views God’s relationship to Creation. If one views God as completely other and distant then it makes sense why caring for the animals about to be destroyed would matter less. And if you buy the Left Behind logic, it matters even less as everything is going burn.

But what if Sallie McFague was right when she suggested thinking about the relationship between the world and God this way: “the world is God’s body?” Would our response be different? Would we be quicker to help if we experienced the violence against the earth as violence against the goodness of God?

McFague’s understanding of the world as God’s body challenges and calls disciples of Jesus to re-imagine the doctrine of creation not merely as God’s acting upon the world, but as God “sharing” divine power with humans that all of creation may flourish. In McFague’s articulation, not only does God meet with humanity in the “intrinsic and intimate” details of their lives, but in the everyday experiences of life at home in planet earth. With this vision of earth as home, McFague hopes to inspire humans to not only be planted as good stewards of the earth (as God’s body) but also to bear witness to the goodness and sustainability of creation in God. (Some might even argue, that it is this way of understanding God/World that allows Christians to challenge the injustices they experience under any political system.)

Might not this view call more Christians to a sharing in clean up? Might not this view make for a kind of green revolution necessary for sustainable life on earth for all that share it?

You may remember that Glenn Beck infuriated Christians all across the US just a few short weeks ago by suggesting that people should report their pastors for using any kind of social justice language in the church. Beck’s point at the time was that these pastors were just buying into a liberal socialist agenda of the Obama administration and that Jesus’ movement had nothing to do with it. Well, on this point, maybe Beck will have nothing to worry about. For it seems to me that the Church is still very much behind the times with regards to creation care. Or, maybe I’m wrong! Let’s give Beck something to talk about and let Rush know that though he may wish to blame ‘the environmentalists’ for this tragedy, its everyone in the empire who is to blame!

I’m convinced that there is a huge need for Christians to wake up and to respond to this crisis as good stewards of a good creation. As people who ought to be working already to participate in the healing of the world, it is our duty! I’ve started rallying my circles and my networks to mobilize people towards action. Won’t you join me?!

Do Justice!
Joshua

Joshua Case is a blogger (http://www.joshuacase.net/), podcaster (http://www.thenickandjoshpodcast.com/), and activist. As a co-facilitator of the Atlanta Emergent cohort, he has blogged and podcasted on matters related to Christianity in the emerging culture for a number of years. Joshua is the chair of the Candler Social Concerns Network and is a third year MDIV student at the Candler School of Theology. He has led a roundtable discussion via podcast about the Christian response to the oil spill, which can be found HERE.

Go outside and play!

North Chickamauga Greenway, Hixson

Studies show that experiencing nature is an important ingredient for a child's physical, academic, emotional, and spiritual growth. But statistics show that children are six times more likely to play a video game indoors than to ride a bike outside, and older children spend an average of 6.5 hours per day in front of some sort of electronic screen.

Here are some ideas for getting the whole family outside ...

• Hiking is a recreational activity that works for the entire family, and Chattanooga is full of great local trails. (Check Hiking Chattanooga for all types of hikes.) Hiking is great exercise, it's free, it can be done almost year-round, and it requires very little equipment. Even young children can participate as long as you start slowly and consider the terrain. Remember the sunscreen and water!
• Camping is a great way to spend quality time with your family outdoors, but it does require some extra preparation. Try to avoid long car rides, and find out ahead of time whether the campgrounds are kid-friendly. Help children take part in everything from pitching the tent to making dinner (with close supervision, of course!).
• Outdoors at home. Don't neglect the simple pleasures of being together in your own back yard. Chasing fireflies, family sunset-watching, looking for four-leaf clovers, and raking/jumping in leaves are all no-cost family activities that children will remember for a lifetime!
• Astronomy. The night-time sky can be magical. Do some research on the Internet or in the library to help define your local night sky, and then lie on your back on a clear night to watch the show God puts on every night. (This is fun for preschoolers, who often enjoy the extra "treat" of getting to stay up a bit later.)

Spending unstructured time outdoors - without the distractions of screens and chores that often take priority inside the home - is a wonderful way to connect with children through meaningful conversations. Since a language-rich family environment is an indicator of school achievement, these ideas for unstructured family time may help you discover ways to improve your family's physical and academic health at the same time!

(Sources: Creative Discovery Museum, U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services, and Harvard Education Letter.)

Warner Park recycling center to close temporarily

from recycleright.org

Due to construction on property adjacent to the Warner Park Recycle Center, the Center will close for approximately one month beginning May 17, 2010. Citizens are encouraged to take their recyclables to one of Chattanooga's other four recycle centers until the project is completed.
Chattanooga convenience center locations:

• Access Road at DuPont Parkway, 4500 Access Rd., with the Residential Refuse Collection Center, 37415
• John A. Patten Recreation Center, 3202 Kelly's Ferry Rd., 37419
• East Brainerd Baseball Complex, end of Batter's Place Road, 37421
• Brainerd Recycle Center, 5955 Brainerd Rd., 37411

The convenience centers are open seven days a week, operating under the following schedule:

• Mondays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Sundays, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

In addition to everything that is recyclable through curbside collection - cardboard, newspaper, all paper grades, plastic #1 and #2 bottles with a neck, aluminum and rinsed out steel cans - Chattanooga's recycling convenience centers accept wet and dry cell batteries, small electronics (no TVs or microwaves), shredded paper, glass bottles (brown, green and clear), motor oil, compact fluorescent bulbs and tubular fluorescent bulbs.

Citizens may recycle their computer monitors at Orange Grove's Industrial Training Center, 720 Arlington Avenue in Chattanooga. A $10 fee applies.

Recycling the right way in Chattanooga is easy. Clear guidelines for both curbside recycling and recycling at convenience centers are available at www.recycleright.org. The Web site also offers online subscription for curbside recycling, calendars for curbside collection days and answers to frequently asked questions.


The Warner Park Recycle Center is located at 1250 East Third St., in downtown Chattanooga.

Did you know?

If you were at the April 21 evening meal at Christ Church, you might have noticed the slideshow going on in the background. If not ... check it out here!

Green Facts

(You may have to manually scroll through each side by clicking on the right arrow.)

Earth Day freebie!

To celebrate Earth Day, ReusableBags.com is offering its top-selling reusable bag for FREE! The Acme Ultra-Compact Tote is made of 100 percent recycled fabric and plastics (no petroleum). When not in use, the bag folds up into a tiny sack (the sack is built into the seam); when fully opened, the bag holds 25 pounds. The tote also comes with Acme Bags' lifetime guarantee!

There's no minimum purchase required to get the free bag; however, you must pay shipping costs (approx. $5). This special offer expires at midnight tonight (4/22/10), so hurry! When checking out, use offer code EDAYFREE in order to get the discount.

How you can help

Last year was the first year of Christ Church's Gardening for God, an on-site organic vegetable garden.

Want to get involved in something "green" but don't quite know where to start? The answer is as close as Christ Church! CUMC's Gardening for God ministry needs summer volunteers to help water the garden and harvest the vegetables once they start ripening.

Here's a message from Gardening for God coordinator Emily Dykstra:

I want to thank all of you who signed up to help with the garden this summer. You do not know how much your help will make a difference in so many people's lives.


There are two ways that we need help: One is harvesting; the other is watering. We are more in need of water volunteers than harvesting volunteers, but if you would like to do both, please feel free to do so.


Harvesting is done twice a week -- Wednesday mornings at 10 and Sunday evenings at 7. Harvesting usually takes about 30 minutes and is a great time to fellowship with other church members and see the fruits of our labors. If you decide this is how you want to help, all you have to do is sign up for one of the harvesting days and show up with a bucket and pick ripe vegetables. We have two volunteers who will be delivering the vegetables to people who need them.


If you want to water, all you need to do is sign up for one week this summer and go to the garden twice that week to water. We need volunteers to water from May through September. Only two weeks have been taken for this summer, and they are the weeks of June 6th and June 27th. The sooner you sign up for your week, the better chance you have of getting the week you want.


This Sunday at 2:00 pm (April 25th) we will finish planting the last of the seeds in the garden and will have sign-up sheets for harvesting and watering. At this time I will also do a run through of how to water the garden and show you where the hoses are. If you want to water this summer, please make every effort to attend this meeting. I will also have another watering demonstration next Sunday at 4:00 on May 2nd for those who cannot make it this Sunday.
Hope to see you all Sunday. Earth Week is this week, and WE ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE.

If you're interested in helping out or just want to learn more, stop by the Gardening for God info table in the atrium at tonight's church dinner, or call Emily at 933-4440. What a great way to celebrate Earth Week - by serving God, meeting new Christian friends, and learning a little about gardening!

Weekend plans??

Doesn't this look like a gorgeous place to spend a beautiful spring weekend? Well, it's never been easier (or cheaper!) to enjoy such an amazing setting. Come enjoy the Chattanooga Nature Center, which - in honor of Earth Day 2010 - is offering free admission Saturday, April 24, and Sunday, April 25!

For directions to the nature center, click here.

Photo courtsey of Hope Alexander, Chattanooga Nature Center

It's Earth Week!

Come back each day this week for a new fact, tidbit, or small thing you can do to help the environment - in honor of Earth Week!

Today's goodie comes courtesy of Publix grocery stores - CLICK HERE to receive a coupon good for $1 off a G.E. compact flourescent bulb two-pack and a free reusable grocery bag! (Once the coupon page opens, you'll need to print it.)

Need more incentive to switch to CFL bulbs? Consider these facts: Only 10 percent of the energy used in an incandescent bulb produces light; the rest is given off as heat. And even more staggering - If every American replaced just one light bulb with an Energy Star compact fluorescent bulb, the energy saved could light more than 2.5 million homes for a year.

We at the CUMC Green Team encourage you to try making just one change this week!

Spring plant sale!

Don't miss the 10th annual Spring Plant Sale at Crabtree Farms this weekend! Chattanooga's downtown organic farm has prepared thousands of healthy, beautiful plants to fill your spring garden, such as Heirloom Tomatoes, basil, cucumbers, sunflowers, blueberry bushes, and lots more! All plants are cultivated in the greenhouse at Crabtree Farms using sustainable methods, which creates healthy, productive plants.

Vendors at the plant sale will also offer hand-crafted foods, vermicomposting bins, body care and crafts for purchase. Other vendors selling plants at the sale include: Sequatchie Cove Farm, Irie Hilltop Gardens and New Harmony Farms.

In addition, each day will feature a different Gardening Talk. Come on Saturday at 11 a.m. for an Organic Gardening Talk and Sunday at 1 p.m. for an Herb Gardening Talk.

Sale hours are as follows:

Saturday April 17, 2010: 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Sunday April 18, 2010: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Click below for:
Directions
Plant Sale Information
Crabtree's Plant Sale List

Eco Expo

Mark your calendars! On Tuesday, April 13, Chattanooga will host its very own EcoExpo. The Expo is Chattanooga’s biggest environmentally friendly expo and showcases practical solutions to learn green and live green. You can visit local businesses and industries that are working hard to minimize their environmental impact, and also learn how to make your home and lifestyle more ecologically friendly. You’ll even discover ways to save money by going green!

The Expo runs from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Chattanooga Trade & Convention Center.

What will they think of next?

A friend posted this on facebook, saying it was an easy way to keep her 4-year-old entertained on a rainy day. I think this takes recycling to a new level ... and a fun one!

http://www.netflixorigami.com/

Yes, it's NetFlix origami ... The website claims that NetFlix tear-off flaps are perfect for origami and paper airplanes because they're sturdy and colorful. And although most origami requires special paper squares, they have adapted their designs for use with unaltered NetFlix flaps. Just tear them off carefully at the perforated line and follow our step-by-step instructions for making paper-folding magic.

Check out the website - it's amazing what they can make out of these little mailers!

March green tips

Green Team member Jennifer Hobbs is currently reading the book Eco-Friendly Families, by Helen Coronato. The book is full of tips we can all implement each month - things that add up to big changes over the course of a year. We're sharing these with our readers each month as well!

• Motivate kids to become part of your home's housework solution by letting them make their own cleaning solution. Making your own cleaner is much safer for your family's health. Start by mixing 1/4 cup vinegar, one tablespoon baking soda, and one gallon of water. Put in individual spray bottles and let your children start cleaning.
• Put your playroom back in order after the long winter months by using disposable wipes containers, yogurt cups, and oatmeal boxes for storage. Over-the-door shoe holders keeps arts and crafts pieces organized and within reach. (Plus, if you know where things are, then you need to buy them less often.) You can also rub out minor marks on the walls with a damp washcloth dipped in baking soda.
• Start seedlings to plant in your garden. After a breakfast of eggs, rinse and air-dry the shells. Pinprick two or three holes in each shell, resetting them in a cardboard container. Lightly fill shells with soil and one or two seeds. Keep seedlings moist and warm until ready to transport outside. When planting, crush shells so roots can grow freely, but leave them there as nutrients for the soil. Check with your local nursery to find out when the best time to plant is.
• If crayon drawings are ruining your floors, remove stains by placing a dollop of toothpaste over the area. Using a sock that has lost its mate, rub the area. Scratches on wood floors can be treated with equal parts lemon juice and olive oil. This solution also makes a great furniture polish!

Cookware goes green

 

Add a few pieces of eco-friendly cookware made from materials found in nature - such as cast iron, glass, and bamboo - to the pot and pan collection in your cupboard. Some products may even add more to your cooking than just the ability to perfectly sear a chicken breast: Cast iron pans add dietary iron, making them an ideal choice for both the environment and your heath.

• Cast iron. Grandma had at least one cast iron skillet; she knew it would last forever. And, contrary to the popular belief, food won't stick to the material - just don't scrub it or let it rust. Manufacturing cast iron cookware since 1896, the Lodge company (located just down the road in South Pittsburg, TN) makes skillets and Dutch ovens of every size, including specialty pieces that are just as decorative as they are functional.
• Glass. Glass is made from readily available sand - there's no environmental shortage. Tempered glass (heat-treated to increase strength) baking dishes, such as those by Pyrex, cook evenly and can easily go from oven to refrigerator (let it cool first). Bonus: Many styles come with storage lids and are easy to clean.
• Bamboo. Bamboo is a truly renewable, sustainable material. It's a reed, not a tree, so when it's cut, it regrows from the tubers. You can't cook in the material, but it makes for aesthetically pleasing serving pieces. Plus, bamboo utensils won't scratch your pans. See http://www.bambu.greenfeet.com/ for more information and retail locations.

from Clean Eating magazine, March/April 2010 issue

A 90-minute world tour!

Bring the entire family to learn about animals all over the world!

On April 3, award-winning author Marty Essen will present his high-energy digital slide show, Around the World in 90 Minutes. This event is presented by the Chattanooga Nature Center (CNC), Reflection Riding Arboretum and Botanical Garden (RR), Tennessee Aquarium, UTC and Lookout Mountain Conservancy.

“This will be a great opportunity to learn more about the incredible diversity of life around the world from someone who has seen so much.” said Dr. Jean Lomino, CNC executive director. “We hope participants will leave with a greater desire to protect our planet.”

Marty’s show features interesting facts, humorous stories, and the best of thousands of photos he took while traveling the world for his book, Cool Creatures, Hot Planet: Exploring the Seven Continents. It's the type of show where the audience has fun laughing at the stories, oohing and aahing at the photos, and then, when it's all done, they realize just how much they've learned. Around the World in 90 Minutes is great for wildlife lovers from 7 to 107!

Highlights of the show include:

•  Amazing animal facts
• Debunking animal myths
• Cuddly wallaroos and spiny walking sticks
• Charging elephants and howling wolves
• Deadly snakes and friendly penguins
• Bizarre creatures and endangered species
• Swimming with pirranhas
• Kayaking in the rainforest
• Hiking with the Porcupine caribou migration
• Rafting with humpback whales
• Surviving a hippo attack in Zimbabwe

“Marty’s presentation is the kick-off for the 2010 BioBlitz, and it is intended to bring more attention to this significant undertaking,” Lomino said. The Chattanooga BioBlitz brings together scientists and experts from across the region in a race against time to see how many species can be counted during a 24-hour biological survey of CNC and RR properties. Chattanooga BioBlitz combines the best of a festival, educational event, scientific endeavor, and contest into a unique event which is set for 3 p.m. April 30 and continuing through 3 p.m. May 1.

Around the World in 90 Minutes will take place at Benwood Auditorium on the UTC Campus, Saturday, April 3 at 2 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. (Benwood Auditorium is located inside the Engineering, Math, and Computer Science building, at the corner of Vine and Palmetto streets. Click here for a map of the campus.) Cost is $5 for adults, $2.50 for children ages 4 to 11 and 3 and under are free. Attendees can pay at the door or reserve seating by calling 821-1160, ext. 0.

Books and photographs will be available for purchase.

February green tips

Green Team member Jennifer Hobbs is currently reading the book Eco-Friendly Families, by Helen Coronato. The book shares short tips we can all implement each month - things that add up to big changes over the course of a year. We're sharing these with our readers each month as well!

For February:

• If you have club soda that has gone flat, give it to your houseplants! Plants benefit from club soda's minerals, regardless of the carbonation. Instead of pouring it down the drain, share it with a leafy friend.
• Make your own natural air freshener by adding a cotton ball dipped in essential oil to your vacuum bag.
• For mopping, steep a cup of peppermint tea and squeeze in half a lemon. Combine with one cup of distilled white vinegar and swish in bucket. Once cool, mop floors clean. Vinegar is a disinfectant, the peppermint tea has antibacterial elements and helps remove scratch marks, and the lemon will act as a room freshener!

Green Disney - part 2

While walking the short trail to the Conservation Station area of Disney's Animal Kingdom, we were happy to notice handy tips for making backyard habitats - a perfect reminder that we can all make a small difference, no matter where we are!

So here, in pictures, are Disney's tips for making your yard a little greener!

Green Disney - part 1

"Landscapes of great wonder and beauty lie under our feet and all around us. They are discovered in tunnels in the ground, the heart of flowers, the hollows of trees, fresh-water ponds, seaweed jungles between tides, and even drops of water. Life in these hidden worlds is more startling in reality than anything we can imagine. How could this earth of ours, which is only a speck in the heavens, have so much variety of life, so many curious and exciting creatures?”

—Walt Disney (1901-1966)

While on our recent Disney trip, I was surprised to see several "green" initiatives being put into practice. Biodegradable cardboard straws are used instead of plastic, at least in some areas of the parks and resorts, and in-room recycling is encouraged. We found this in our hotel room on the first day:

I loved that guests were encouraged to save their plastic bottles, alumimum cans, and newspapers, and that housekeeping staff follows through with the recycling (I asked Barb, our room attendant, about this). Many of the park's garbage containers had separate disposal areas for plastic as well. Parks like Animal Kingdom and resorts like Animal Kingdom Lodge provide natural habitats for about hundreds of species, many endangered, while also educating millions of visitors. (Just last month, the AKL welcomed two Ruppell's Griffon Vulture hatchlings, the first of this threatened species bred at the Florida park.) And the trains in Disneyland now run on biodiesel fuel that starts as cooking oil in the park's restaurants and hotels.

Corporately speaking, Mickey has gone green. The Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund distributes money to nonprofit organizations worldwide that help wildlife and wild places. The popular fairy Tinkerbell is now a spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Energy's "Kids Saving Energy" program. And Disney has partnered with The Nature Conservancy to create the Disney Wilderness Preserve. This 12,000-acre area offers a model of ecological restoration and is one of the largest off-site wetlands mitigation projects ever undertaken in the United States.

But Disney is quick to point out that you don't have to be a gazillion-dollar corporation to make a difference; throughout Animal Kingdom, guests get small tips here and there, all of which add up to helping preserve our planet. Next time, we'll take a look at some of these!

Pardon the interruption ...

- a personal note from LeeAnne, the Green Team member primarily responsible for all things bloggy ...

I apologize for the lack of posts the past week or so - I've been out of town on a winter vacation. I intended to put a couple of things in the blog queue, so to speak, and set them to publish automatically, but with last weekend's snow and the chaos that ensued right before we left, I just forgot all about it. So sorry!

So last week, my family and I were at Disney World! It was a belated birthday trip for our daughter, who turned five in October, and we had a truly terrific time. But as someone who's really "into" the green way of life, I'm usually pretty bothered when visiting theme parks of any sort. I tend to focus on all the consumption and accompanying waste that occurs at places like this - the overpriced food and souvenirs, the mountains of trash, the pollution-yielding cars that pour into the parking lots ... it really gets to me if I let it. So I was worried about not enjoying Disney as much as I might otherwise.

I'm happy to say that I was pleasantly surprised! I found Disney to be pretty environmentally conscious. Maybe it was where we stayed (the amazing Animal Kingdom Lodge, where there's probably more focus on conservation than at other resorts), or maybe I was just caught up in the "magic" Disney likes to trumpet, but I took note of several green initiatives, and these led to more enjoyment on my part. Is Disney perfect? Certainly not. Is there still waste, consumption, and room for improvement? Yes, yes, and yes! But overall, I was really happy with what I saw. Throughout this upcoming week, I'm going to share some of these things here with our blog readers. I hope you enjoy them - stay tuned for more!

Book review - "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle"

This is the first in what we hope will become a frequent topic here on the CUMC Green Team blog - book reviews that deal with green topics. In this first review, Green Team member Keely Farris reviews Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle.

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Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life

by Barbara Kingsolver with Steven L. Hopp and Camille Kingsolver

The New Oxford American Dictionary chose locavore, a person who seeks out locally produced food, as its word of the year in 2007. When I began this book I had just started to become aware of these locavores, people who eat food grown or produced locally or within a limited radius. The locavore movement encourages consumers to buy from farmers’ markets or even to produce their own food, with some arguing that fresh, local products are more nutritious and taste better. Locally grown food is an environmentally friendly means of obtaining food, since supermarkets that import their food use more fossil fuels and non-renewable resources.

The local foods movement is gaining momentum as many people prefer the taste and more environmentally sound effects of foods that are fresh, seasonal, and grown close to home. Some locavores draw inspiration from the The 100-Mile Diet or from advocates of local eating like Barbara Kingsolver, whose book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle chronicles her family's attempts to eat locally. Others just follow their taste buds to farmers' markets, community supported agriculture programs, and community gardens.

But you don't have to be a locavore to appreciate Kingsolver's memior. It is moving, informative, sincere - an honest potrait of a family who moved back to Southern Appalachia from Phoenix and committed to a one-year challenge of eating only what they could grow (they were "allowed" to buy only things that were produced within 100 miles of their home). Kingsolver takes readers through the seasons, sharing the joys and challenges of eating only foods that she, her husband, and two daughters grow in their backyard or purchase from neighboring farms. Part memoir, part cookbook, and part exposé of the American food industry, AVM is one family's inspiring story of discovering the truth behind the adage "you are what you eat" and a valuable resource for anyone looking to do the same.

While reading this memoir, written by such a gifted novelist as Kingsolver, it felt as if I were doing more than reading. It was more like drinking the words in, being invigorated by this descriptive story of the impact one family can make on this big world. Truly, I did not want this book to end. I enjoyed so much that I not only own a copy of it, I bought the audiobook too. It took me to mountains and Southern communities I remember as child, a landscape that is ever-changing and disappearing. Reading it was more of a treasured experience for me personally than just a pleasureable read.

Kingsolver allows you an intimate window into her family's year-long journey. It would be hard not to admire them and their committment as you follow them through the pages of the book. The Kingsolver-Hopp's are charming, funny, poetic, and informative all at the same time. This family is full concern for the farming community, and the book captures the pulse of a life that is dissolving like the misty haze that gives the Smoky Mountains their name. This one of my top picks and I suggest it to everyone who enjoys reading.

- Keely Farris

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If you have suggestions for other books you'd like to see reviewed here, please leave a comment in the "comments" section following this post. We'll do our best to accommodate you as soon as we can!

Green trivia

Did you know?

The well-known recycling symbol you see above was a college student's winning contest entry in 1970, the same year as the first Earth Day. Stay tuned for more exciting news about some Earth Day activities we're planning at Christ Church!

Monthly Green

Green Team member Jennifer Hobbs is currently reading the book Eco-Friendly Families, by Helen Coronato. One of the things the book shares is short tips you can implement each month that add up to big changes over the course of a year. We'll try to share these with you each month as well!
For January:

• Have a Family Game Night where all electronics are turned off and only necessary lighting is used. Play fun games such as board games or card games. Have playing cards that need to be cleaned? Put them in a brown paper bag with 1 tablespoon of baby powder and shake vigorously. Remove cards and wipe down with a damp rag.
• Save energy by using old tights or men's tube socks by filling them with rice or beans and tying off the end. Children can even make creatures out of them by adding googly eyes and leftover craft supplies. Assign a child the role of making sure they are placed in window sills or at the bottom of drafty doors.
• Be sure to clean your humidifier with baking soda between uses to extend the life of your purchase.
• Houseplants are natural air purifiers, use no energy, and make an especially welcome health asset when homes are locked up tight during winter months. It is suggested that you have one plant for every 100 to 150 square feet of living space. These top five choices said to help remove carbon monoxide, trichloroethylene, benzene, and formaldehyde: spider plants, English ivy, mums, peace lily, and bamboo palm.

Green in 2010

The Sierra Club recently published several tips for making 2010 a greener year. I thought it was interesting how simple changes can make a big impact.

Tip #1: Drive Less

If your pledge is to walk or bike more and drive less, you’ll relieve the environment of harmful greenhouse gases as well as reducing our dependence on fossil fuels. Added bonus: This will nicely complement an exercise or diet resolution.

Yearly Impact: Reducing your driving distance by just 15 miles per week will save 900 pounds of carbon emissions annually.

Tip #2: Eat Fewer Animals

The environmental vegetarianism movement grows by the day, assisted in part by the recent assertion by the Worldwatch Institute that livestock production is to blame for more than half of the world’s greenhouse-gas emissions. If people resolved to cut back on meat and dairy in 2010, the world would be a much cleaner place.

Yearly Impact: If you refrain from eating meat just one day a week, you'll save as many emissions as you would driving 1,000 fewer miles this year.

Tip #3: Commit to Composting

We hear people preach about recycling all the time. But did you know that composting may be as important? As food and other organic waste decomposes anaerobically in the landfill, it releases methane, a greenhouse gas that's more than 20 times as potent as carbon dioxide. Because composting is an aerobic process, it only produces carbon dioxide and not methane. Not sure how to get started? Click here and here to find out.

Yearly Impact: If the average family composted regularly, that household would prevent about 30 pounds of methane emissions per year, the equivalent of around 620 pounds of carbon dioxide (the same as what a small diesel car driving 1,200 miles would emit).
Tip #4: Give Your Time

Heed President Obama's call to service by signing up to help an organization that works to improve the world by protecting and preserving the environment.

Yearly Impact: Immeasurable.

The Green Book

Kohl's has The Green Book on sale right now for $5 as part of its "Kohls Cares for Kids" promotion -- all proceeds from the book sale go to health, education, and recreational opportunities for children (Chattanooga's own T.C. Thompson Children's Hospital is one of the 2009-2010 partner hospitals). The book is a great collection of simple things we can all do to reduce waste and conserve energy. It also includes green-living anecdotes from celebrities like Faith Hill, Justin Timberlake, Robert Redford, and Martha Stewart.

Kohl's has also taken steps to become greener - both corporately and within each individual store. For more information, go to http://www.kohlsgreenscene.com/.