Make Everyday Earth Day

I always have been, and am pretty sure I will always be a sucker for trees. A quick search for "trees" in my Flickr photostream brought up a number of imagines which were centered around trees or just had trees in the photo.



I am always compelled to shoot a tree or two. In any season or time of year they are always lovely, with or without leaves, tall, short, aspen or pine......you can learn from them. And they could teach you a great deal given the chance.



I think of their roots embedded into the ground, and it reminds me to anchor myself when I'm feeling unbalanced. I see how resilient they are, and it reminds me that I too have the power and will to survive and succeed against the odds.



Although they may be aesthetically pleasing, they are also ecologically important and provide a great deal to the environment in which we all live. From the air we breathe to the shade upon with we seek shelter, they are there, unfailingly and without asking for anything in return.



Donating to a worthy cause on Earth Day was the very least that I could do. I thank you all so very much for enthusiastically participating to help rebuild the Brazilian Rainforest through the efforts of The Nature Conservancy. The "Plant a Billion Trees" campaign is far from reaching their goal.



When I first put up the "Where's your Green" post, they had 237,000 trees, now six days later they are up to 263,588! So, they're getting there slowly but surely............My total donation was $40.00 which equates to 40 trees; I had 18 request total to "Plant a Tree for Me!" and some who simply left a comment with the word tree in it, which I counted any way!



These photos are of all sorts of different trees, some here, some there.......from North Carolina, to Florida, and even Nevada.......a little of everywhere! None of which ever made it to the blog, which works out great since now I have something to share with you :o)

Thank you all again for keeping me inspired......it means so very much to me.

It's Easy to be GREEN..........

BRAZILIAN RAINFOREST

(From Conservation International)

So far, I've only had 12 requests to plant trees with the Nature Conservancy in honor of Earth Day. My intention is to match the total request, each request being $1.00, right now the total donation would be 24 trees. If you have yet to leave a comment on "Where's Your Green?!", you may do so now. I don't plan to donate until this evening, so there is still time!!

Start by making small changes.
Today, implement one change that will help the environment.

Start with the grocery store:
Look for products with minimal packaging, and while you're at it, take a reusable canvas tote instead of answering the all encompassing question of, "Paper or Plastic".

More than 380 million plastic bags are thrown away in the United States every year, and those plastic bags can take up to 1,000 years to biodegrade in landfills. And while paper bags do eventually biodegrade, an estimated 14 million trees a year have to be cut down to make 10 billion paper bags.

At home:
Instead of buying individually packaged bottles of water, why not upgrade to a water filter, and fill up a reusable container. Any plastic container, that has the numbers - 2,4, or 5 is safe. You can find this number by checking the bottom of the bottle in the middle of the recycling triangle logo.

Eliminate plastic utensils and paper plates/cups in the kitchen, these items most likely can not be reused.

Get rid of the junk.......CATALOGS......I suffer from receiving unwanted catalogs on a constant basis. No matter how many times I've called to be removed from the mailing list, I continue to receive them month after month! I read about this new and FREE service the other night called: catalogchoice.org A quick sign up allows you to search, select, and decline those unsolicited catalogs you don't really need.

Not only does junk mail clog up your mailbox, it also requires an estimated 100 million trees and 20 billion gallons of water every year.

And of course:
Compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs) use four times less energy than incandescent ones. If every American family substituted five CFL bulbs for incandescent, it would be equivalent to taking eight million cars off the road for a year. Ball says "They cost a little more up front, but they last up to 15 times longer."

REDUCE.REUSE.REPURPOSE.RECYCLE.

Where's Your Green?!

Don't blow it - good planets are hard to find.
Quoted in Time

*I made this artcard without Earth Day in mind, but I figured what better time to post it than now! To me it is somewhat plain, and I have found that the cards have become bigger than I need to be working with - too much space to fill. I'm trying to break into layering, that I have a problem with because I like them to look too clean. Don't worry, I'm working on that, for now it is what it is........

For every person who leaves a comment on the blog that says, "Plant a tree for me!" I promise to donate $1.00 to plant a tree for you to the cause above in honor of Earth Day on April 22nd.

The trees will be planted by Conservancy staff and partners working in The Atlantic Forest of Brazil. The Atlantic Forest is considered one of the world's most endangered tropical forests -- only 7% of its original area remains.

Tropical forests like this one play a particularly special role in the fight to end global climate change. And this reforestation effort to Plant a Billion Trees in The Atlantic Forest will remove 10 million tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere every year -- that's like taking 2 million cars off the road.

*The above photo was taken by Cody when we were in Mt. Charleston - Las Vegas*

+ Going Green Interactive Tip Guide:
Some are easy, and some are a little more extensive. *A lot of great ideas!
+ Earth Day 2008 Events Worldwide
See what's happening in your neck of the woods. * We're having a festival that I didn't know about!
+ How to go Green Guides:
Treehugger.com


Don't Forget:

For every person who leaves a comment on the blog that says, "Plant a tree for me!" I promise to donate $1.00 to plant a tree for you to the cause above in honor of Earth Day on April 22nd.