CT Green Scene

Meatless Mondays - Coming to a School Near You

by Heather Burns-DeMelo

I often wonder how old my son will have to get before his peers notice he's a vegetarian. He's in kindergarten, and so far, no one's the wiser that his "turkey sandwich" is made from spelt and soy-beans and his "hot dogs" are SmartDogs. It was no big deal last year when I could afford to send him to Waldorf, but this year we headed to, gulp, public schools.

Even so, I keep thinking that with a little luck (and global warming + overpopulation = not enough land for raising animals) being vegetarian will become the norm and he won't have to cope with being seen as different (doesn't every family have a bug relocation program?) Well, the Baltimore school system is one of the first to introduce Meatless Mondays, where they'll serve 80,000 kids up an all veggie menu. 

And they're not stopping there. From The Green Fork, "BCPS has teemed up with local farmers and distributors to provide students fresh, locally raised fruits, vegetables and milk. They’ve also introduced Great Kids Farm, a 33-acre teaching farm, home to chickens, goats and a variety of fruits and vegetables. Educators on the farm teach kids and adults how to produce home-grown fresh food, even in an urban setting."

I'm staying the course and letting the tides turn - and if they don't, he can go to therapy like nearly everyone else.

Trash-Free Lunch

by Eileen Weber

I don’t know what it is. Every year when September starts to roll around, I suddenly feel the urge to dash out and buy a pack of loose leaf paper and a pencil box.

It’s the pencil box that makes me giggle. You know the kind—it has a pair of scissors that won’t cut dirt but a compass with a point so sharp you can kill a horse. Add to that a protractor for all that geometry homework assigned in kindergarten and you’re starting the school year off right.

Back-to-school always means shopping for supplies. And most importantly, some of those supplies will go in your child’s lunch box.

Now there’s a can of worms. If you give your child a homemade lunch, too often your child is throwing away excess waste with plastic bags and tin foil. If you allow your child the hot lunch from the cafeteria, you’re dealing with a sticky issue about the actual nutrition your child receives. Those lunches consist of processed foods with way too much sodium and high fructose corn syrup, which only adds to our juvenile diabetes and obesity rates. School lunches are not so easy.

Ready or NOT!

by Heather Burns-DeMelo

I'll be the first to admit that I'm extreme when it comes to what I feed my kids. Whole food, organic, local, vegetarian, no sugar, non-GMO...the whole nine yards. Grandparents and friends have long since given up trying to convince me that I work too hard at keeping my 5 and 4 year old children in a "bubble," but in less than a week, I'll be forced to let them venture off to (gulp) public school and POP, the bubble will go.

Thanks to the film, Two Angry Moms, its group site and the example of other moms who have forged ahead to become advocates of healthy school food, I know I'm in good company. But the truth is, I'm scared.

While I know nothing will improve unless a squeaky wheel garners attention, creates a plan and rolls up her sleeves to encourage action, I'm not shy to admit that I want someone else to do it. After all, why would any mother in her right mind want to be the fall guy or risk having her child labeled as the kid with the vegetarian, tree hugging mom who complains all the time?

Love.

So here I go, jumping head first into school food advocacy, with the same "can't turn back now" attitude I summon when cliff diving.

Wants vs. Needs: What's the Diff?

by Heather Burns-DeMelo

About once a year I have to work hard to fight off a hankrin' (yes, I lived in Ohio for 10 years) to make a  large purchase. One year it was a new house in the country, last year it was a new Mac and this year, a spankin new Prius.

Much to my dismay, I'm incredibly crafty when it comes to excuses as to why I NEED something, but like Sheryl Crow once said, "the trick is wanting what you have, not having what you want."

Now that I'm discovering the difference between necessity and desire and facing my somewhat tenuous financial circumstances, I must confess that my recent penchant for a hybrid is not being solely fueled by a desire to cut my personal carbon emissions. In fact, as the Editors of E Magazine point out, buying a new fuel-efficient car isn't always the greenest choice.

Green B&Bs

by Eileen Weber

 

Thinking of making a last minute get-away for the holidays? You might want to consider a “green” hotel or bed and breakfast.

Increasingly, proprietors are trying to meet their clientele’s interest in greener practices. From organic foods to green cleaning practices to energy efficient amenities, your next stay could be more eco-friendly than stopping off at a roadside Super 8.

Kate Bauer, co-owner of Homespun Farm Bed and Breakfast with her husband Ron in Griswold, takes being green very seriously. They compost their organic refuse and use the eggs from the chickens they recently purchased. Bauer said on the B&B’s web site, “I hope this [green] movement is in time to save what is so important to us all.”

In a New York Times article dated June 26, 2007, Kimpton Hotels and Restaurants found in a survey they conducted in 2005 that 16 percent of guests choose their properties because of the company’s environmental practices. Kimpton, named for its founder Bill Kimpton in 1981, is a San Francisco-based collection of boutique hotels that leads the hospitality industry with its ecologically-sound practices.

Michael Depatie, Kimpton’s president and chief executive, was quoted in the article saying he got a lot of unsolicited letters from guests about the company’s green initiatives. “I’m a little surprised by how many mention our green programs. We’ve been doing this for a while, but it seems like it’s suddenly at a tipping point.”

Beware of Nukes!

PACE is a GREAT organization to get involved in Connecticut and a wonderful resource, should you have questions and/or want to organize an effort in your neighborhood!

A Conversation with Kate L. Harrison on Green Weddings

Environmentally conscious weddings are on the rise. And for a multi-billion dollar per year industry that is great news for our environment!  From organically-grown dishes, conflict free diamonds, recyclable invitations and earth-friendly party favors I can't help but ask; is green the new white?

Kate L. Harrison a New Haven, CT resident and author of The Green Bride Guide due out in stores December 2nd tells us more:

Q. What is a green wedding?

A. "A green wedding is any wedding where the couple tries to decrease the impact of the event on the planet -- and there are many ways to do it!  Every part of a wedding, from invitations to the favors, has eco-friendly options worth considering."

Q. Is it more expensive to have a sustainable, eco-friendly wedding?

A. "No! This is a myth that I am working hard to dispel.  A green wedding can cost more than a conventional wedding or it can cost less (up to 60% by my estimates).  It depends entirely on the choices you make.  That is why I have divided each section of the book up by price.  I offer low, medium and high-end choices in every category so couples can easily decide where to save and where to splurge.  You never have to sacrifice style or comfort to be green."

Q. What is the easiest component any wedding can incorporate to make it more sustainable?

A. "Couples spend about half of their budget on food, so this is a great place to make change.  Ask your caterer to create a menu with local, seasonal and organic dishes.  In addition to being better for the environment, they taste amazing!"

Q. There are many products on the market that claim to be "all-natural" or "organic", how can couples be sure they are choosing legitimate green products for their wedding?

A. "This is a significant problem.  Look at the recommendations in my book ( I have a whole section on green washing) and at thegreenbrideguide.com, check Co-op America's green pages and most importantly, ask questions!"

Q. What inspired you to write The Green Bride Guide and what can readers expect?

A. "The short answer is that it was the resource that I wanted to have but could not find when my husband and I were planning our wedding. The Green Bride Guide has all the basic wedding information (e.g. checklists and vendor contact sheets) but also offers hundreds of eco-friendly ideas and up-to-date resources in an organized, easy-to-navigate format."

What's next? The future looks green! And Kate will be contributing more green wedding ideas right here on CTGreen Scene.  Check back soon!  Interested in having your own green wedding?  Have more questions or concerns?  Ask Kate.

What's In Season CT?

by Megan DiPerri

Had any cherries or strawberries lately? Bet they don't taste half as good as they did over the summer.  Chances are you didn't grab a bad bunch at the grocery store; they're just not in season.  Knowing which fruits and vegetables are in season will reduce future disappointment and actually start saving you some money.  Best of all, seasonal produce is much more nutritional because it requires less chemicals, pesticides to produce.  They also offer one more way to support the local economy.  Who knew buying in season would taste that good!

The Connecticuit Department of Agriculture has this fantastic guide that takes all the guess work out of knowing what to buy and most importantly, when.  Next up?  Apples, cauliflower, eggplant, lettuce, greens, pears, potatoes, herbs, carrots...the list goes on.  Just because we live in New England doesn't mean we're short on variety! Local farmers markets and pick your own facilities also take the guess work out of buying seasonal produce.  Ok, I agree, most of us aren't going to go pick our own fruits and vegetables once the snow comes, but that's where knowing what to buy from your local grocer comes in handy.

Spending extended time somewhere else?  The USDA offers an extensive list of local farmers markets and Field to Plate has plenty of links to help you find out what's in season and when across the entire country.  How great is that?

The Greener Halloween

by Eileen Weber

Halloween. It kick-starts the holidays, doesn’t it? From here, it’s a straight shot to New Year’s Day with its ubiquitous hangover and ensuing Christmas bills.

But Halloween also starts the sweet treat feeding frenzy that the holidays bring every year. Gobs of candy in pumpkin-sized buckets that kids plow through in less than a week. One organization is looking to fight that by offering healthier alternatives.

Green Halloween, a non-profit organization based in Seattle with a local branch in Canton, Conn., seeks to promote healthy families and, subsequently, healthy communities by preventing childhood obesity.

But what’s one day out of the year? Why not live a little? “The problem is it's not just one day,” said Corey Colwell-Lipson, founder of the Seattle-based company. According to a press release on their web site earlier this month, Colwell-Lipson said it wouldn’t be so bad if it were just one day out of the year. But, it’s all the special occasions we celebrate in which our choices make a difference.

“In reality, we are constantly celebrating,” she said. “Whether it's the biggies like Christmas, Easter or Thanksgiving or the myriad individual celebrations that clog our calendars—birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, baby showers, office parties, family reunions, religious and ethnic holidays…We're not asking people to give up the fun of celebrating, only to consider the impact our traditional approaches might have and consider the alternatives.”

Baby Greens

by Eileen Weber

Every mom wants what’s best for her baby. So why not have all natural, environmentally friendly products for your little one? There are a number of them out there that promote lotions, shampoos, and even boo-boo cream.

Linda Zielski, Founder and Chief Visionary Officer of Seaside Naturals in Branford, found it important to include baby products with the rest of her all natural line.

She and her husband David bought the Simple.Pure.Clean. cleaning service in 2003. About a year or two later, they had launched a Simple.Pure.Baby. line of all natural ingredients with essential oils infused with herbs.

One product that has been very popular is her diaper cream. She said that one customer told her that her newborn had been on antibiotics and had gotten a horrible rash as a result. After one application, the baby’s rash had disappeared. “They’re really effective,” she said. “I’m really proud to say that.”

Besides the slew of all natural products available on the market, a bigger issue looms on your baby’s bottom: diapers. Many parents turn to organic cotton cloth diapers. But those parents also deal with the hassle of cleaning them or using a service. And, the cloth ones are often less convenient than a disposable.

That’s where the eco-diapers come in. There are a few companies that have championed the biodegradable diaper that do not contain harmful chemicals.