10 Ways to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint This Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a favorite holiday for many. It's a time to eat, indulge and spend uninterrupted time with family. It's also a time for reflection. A time to think about what we're thankful for and a time to think about how the choices we make impact our families and the planet.

Although every day provides an opportunity for reflection and change, Thanksgiving stands out as the perfect day to kick off a few new habits that will effect the longevity of our planet. If each of us revamped our consumption and waste habits by slightly adjusting what's already in place, the overall impact could be huge.

Here are a few tips for the Thanksgiving holiday that will reduce our carbon footprint and help keep the planet healthy for generations to come.

1. Shop Local

Shop locally this Thanksgiving and lend your support to the little local business rather than the big box stores. Go for holiday supplies that don't need to travel far to get to your Thanksgiving table.

2. Buy Organic

Organic food typically requires 30-50 percent less energy during production than its conventional counterpart. Make the shift this Thanksgiving to a table with more organic food choices. Knowing that your food isn't sprayed with pesticides, chemicals or GMOs is enough reason to incorporate organic foods into your menu.

3. Turn the Heat Down

Watch your home heat up on its own as your Thanksgiving guests arrive and as the oven is turned on to warm the food. Rather than opening windows to cool off the space, remember to set the thermostat a few degrees lower before the celebration begins.

4. Don't Use Disposables

Make the switch to reusable napkins, skip the paper towels and pull out the good dishes this Thanksgiving. It's a bit more effort at the end of the evening, but it's worth it. Each person in the United States uses 749 pounds (340kg) of paper every year. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, the pulp and paper industry may contribute to more global and local environmental problems than any other industry in the world. The industry is the third largest industrial emitter of global warming pollution.

5. Reduce the Amount You Buy

Reducing is the first of the 3 Rs: reduce, reuse and recycle. When planning your Thanksgiving celebration, try making some slight alterations to your shopping list. Give some extra thought as to whether or not you truly need those items on your list and reduce the amount of food and decorations if possible.

6. Compost Table Scraps

Did you know that a typical household throws away an estimated 474 pounds of food waste each year? That means about 1.5 lbs. per person a day in the United States. Food scraps generated by all households in the U.S. could be piled on a football field more than five miles (26,400 feet) high. Compost those vegetable scraps and watch your garden thrive.

7. Fill Your Dishwasher Before Running

Fill your dishwasher to capacity before running a cycle. You'll end up saving water, energy and detergent.

8. Green Your Turkey

A Cornell study shows it takes 14 units of fossil fuel to produce a serving of turkey. If you're planning to have turkey, try to make it a little greener by purchasing it from a local market or farm. If the turkey is traveling a long distance to get to your table, that's adding to your carbon footprint. Best option -- skip the turkey!

9. Clean with Non-Toxic Cleaners

Make the switch to non-toxic cleaning products. When making the switch to green cleaning products, replace products you're currently using as they run out with a safer version. Take the time to research safer, non-toxic products and then make the switch.

10. Stay Local

According to USA Today, it's predicted that 24.6 million passengers will fly on U.S. airlines domestically and internationally between November 21 and December 2 this year. That's a 1.5 percent increase from last year, or 31,000 more passengers on average a day. For many of us, traveling is a long-standing tradition and needed to visit with our family. Use this handy calculator from The Nature Conservancy to help you calculate the amount of carbon you emit and offer ways of offsetting those emissions.

If your plan is to drive, make sure your tires are fully inflated and your car has been properly serviced. This will help reduce your carbon emissions and improve your gas mileage.

[via Huffington Post | photo Benjamin Chun]

Salute Mother Earth on Her Day with Eco-Friendly Wine

When the work day is done and it’s time for laughter on the porch with friends, there’s no better accessory than a glass of good wine in your hand. Unfortunately, in these days of rapid climate change, conservation and the wine industry are increasingly at odds. Every time we buy a bottle now, there are lots of questions riddled with eco-guilt: Is it better to buy a glass bottle or paper box? Cork or no cork? Organic or biodynamic? Did this glass of wine displace precious wildlife?

“Viticulture has traditionally been concentrated in places with a Mediterranean climate, in countries such as Italy and Greece and in regions including California’s Napa and Sonoma valleys,” wrote Care2′s Kristina Chew. “As temperatures have risen and rainfall fluctuated and even lessened, growers in search of a suitable climate for their grapes have been moving to other areas, with huge implications for ‘habitat quality.’”

As I reported earlier this year, demand for cooler climate wines, like pinot noir, has grown over the past decade. As climate change causes California’s interior valleys to heat up, vineyards have begun to eyeball the cooler regions of Northern California and Southern Oregon–coincidentally the same limited regions where redwoods flourish. Putting wine lovers in the position of deciding whether their favorite beverage is more important than age-old trees.

Luckily, there are some wine makers that realize the importance of working in harmony with the planet, rather than in opposition to it. Recently, I had the opportunity to taste test some wines from just such an eco-conscious wine maker: Concha y Toro. What I found most impressive about these wines (besides the delicious taste) is the creative ways they’re working to preserve the land in and around their wineries.

The Wine

Gran Reserva Serie Riberas Chardonnay – I typically do not like chardonnay. I find it bitter and dry in the worst ways. But this chardonnay was a pleasant departure. Although the acid was still there, it was muted and palatable. The stronger flavor was of tropical fruit with a soft, clean mineral notes beneath. We enjoyed it with some grilled halibut and greens, and it was delicious.

Casillero Del Diablo Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon – While I love all red wine, I’m typically a pinot noir kind of girl. I like my fruity wines, what can I say? This wine gave me another reason to consider Cabernet Sauvignon with dinner, however. The flavor was rich, but those fruity notes–cherry, black currant and dark plum–were still there to balance out the dryness. We enjoyed it with steak tips with a horseradish dipping sauce and sweet potato mash.

The Conservation

Wine production carries a significant water footprint, but with strong mitigation strategies in place, Concha y Toro uses 25 percent less water to produce a glass or wind than the estimated global average for the wine industry.

As the climate changes, Concha y Toro has chosen to place their newest vineyards in places that are naturally resistant to temperature changes. The “Riberas” or “riverbank” series is cultivated in areas with lower temperatures moderated by natural elements, like nearby rivers, elevation, and ocean breezes.

Like many wineries, Concha Y Toro is responsible for both cultivated and unplanted lands and forests. Rather than clearing these areas, the winery again seeks balance. Concha y Toro is committed to the conservation of 8,000 acres of Chilean native forest planted in harmony with their vines.

Lastly, the bottle. As of 2014, Concha y Toro has been able to reduce its carbon emissions by 3.3 tons, just by using lighter weight glass bottles.

[via Care 2]

A Green Summer Vacation

For those concerned with the future of the environment  every summer brings new challenges. If you truly want to be a responsible traveler here are the some ideas and facts to help you achieve your goal.

Which Transport is Greener?

We love to fly to get to our destination. It’s comfortable and takes a shorter while but it is also the means of transportation with the highest carbon footprint. If you can’t avoid flying consider compensating by buying carbon offsets and choose green lodging for your vacation. Carbon offsets can be bought along with your plane ticket. The money goes to organizations like Terrapass who uses it to build wind farms or other sustainable energy projects.

The Truth about Green Lodging

In spite of what you may think choosing sustainable vacation accommodation does not mean you will have to pay more money. The large majority of hotel administrators know that good sustainable practices are saving them money so in turn, you, the customer will pay less too.

When looking for green lodging , look for hotels that have the Blue Flag or Green key sign. These are earned after a realistic scrutiny from the profile organizations, which make sure they continue the good practices even after they obtaining the green certificate.

Acting Responsible at your Destination

Once you arrived to a resort there are a lot of things that can help you keep your staying green. Consider simple things like taking with you solar sources of energy for your gadgets, using the bedding and towels for several days before asking the hotel personnel to change it and bringing your own toiletries so you will save a bit of landfill by not using small hotel shampoo and shower gel bottles.

Another sustainable practice you can use is to be a responsible shopper. Encourage the local artisan industry and buy local made souvenirs instead of random things you can buy anywhere else.

Treating the Ocean the Responsible Way

A lot of people consider vacationing near the ocean the ideal getaway. However tempting such a vacation looks like you must keep in mind that you increase the carbon footprint of the area with every day you spend there.  You can be a green traveler in case you remember to do simple things that have a huge impact on the ocean.

Avoid buying souvenirs from the sea. Sea urchins, sea stars and sea shells are not washed ashore but rather taken from the reef in the tropical areas. Keep the water clean and avoid leaving in any type of residue. Eat local marine base cuisine and avoid cruises and boat parties which have a huge carbon footprint.

[via The New Ecologist]