I am relatively impatient when it comes to waiting.  I am constantly scrolling through old emails as I wait for and sit on the subway; I find myself making calls while standing in lines; I even pay for express shipping on items that I don’t really need urgently.  If there is a particular type of waiting that drives me mad, it’s definitely flight delays.

As a native of Brazil, I developed a severe dislike for flight delays having to travel back and forth from South Florida to Sao Paulo two to three times per year (as a kid it was much easier to deal with thanks to my Game Boy). Given my disdain of flight delays, I cringed at a recent study by the U.S. Joint Economics Committee. The report showed that in 2007 alone, delayed flights consumed an additional 740 million gallons of fuel, resulting in a whopping $1.6 billion wasted and 7 million tons of carbon emitted for no reason.

Surprisingly, I also heard about recent efforts on the part of airlines that actually justified longer flights. By slowing down cruising speeds and tacking on a few extra minutes to each leg, airlines have shown that they can save millions of dollars in fuel and thousands of tons of carbon emissions. For example, Southwest Airlines projects it will save $42 million in fuel this year by extending each flight by one to three minutes.

So, if the airlines can save money (and hopefully keep ticket prices at bay while energy prices keep skyrocketing), use less fuel (which helps out the environment and energy prices), and only add about 10 minutes to a nine hour flight from New York to Sao Paulo, I give it a solid two thumbs up!  After all, who is REALLY going to notice the difference, aside from your everyday macrophobiac (fear of long waits)?

But seriously, no more delays.

-Raphael, Greenzer Team - Business Development

Daily Greenz #159

We recently expressed delight at finding out that China had decided to join the ranks of nations who’ve outlawed disposable plastic bags. These petrochemical-based bags currently choke our ecosystem to the tune of 500 billion a year worldwide, causing immeasurable damage to the earth and its inhabitants. While we continue to encourage everyone to stock up on reusable plastic bags like EcoBags’ Recycled Cotton Canvas Tote, we’re thrilled to discover that a Canadian teenager has come up with a natural solution to the plastic bag problem we’ve already created.

For his high school science project, 16 year-old Daniel Burd’s goal was to create some way to deal with the mountains of plastic bags that faced him every time he opened a closet door.

Burd decided to test his assumption that microorganisms were what caused plastic to eventually degrade, attempting to isolate the ones responsible for plastic’s breakdown.  His first step was to grind the plastic bags into a powder, mixing it with household chemicals, yeast, tap water, and dirt to encourage the growth of the microbes. After isolating the plastic-degrading microbes, he continued to add them in more and more concentrated amounts to shredded plastic, eventually achieving an impressive 43% rate of degradation in six weeks.

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Daily Greenz #158

Since the sun’s finally out for the summer, we’ve been particularly intrigued by solar-powered products of late. So when we caught wind that Apple recently filed a patent to incorporate solar cells into their products, we couldn’t have been more psyched.  What could be more convenient than boosting the battery power of your iPod, iPhone, or MacBook while you enjoy time spent outside? The patent proposes that solar cells could be layered below glass and LCD layers, and that each of Apple’s solar devices could monitor and display solar cell performance.

EPEAT, which rates just how eco-friendly electronics are, has already granted the MacBook their Silver rating, but it appears that the company wants to do more.

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Daily Greenz #157

Greenzer applauds stars who use their celebrity status to raise awareness about living eco-friendly, from cruising around in hybrid cars to composting. Julia Roberts is particularly committed to reducing the amount of waste she and her family produce. Roberts used chlorine-free, non-toxic diapers for twins Hazel and Phinnaeus and was introduced to gDiapers when newest addition Henry came along. The flushable diapers, comprised of a reusable outer cover and flushable lining, cut down on the 50 million disposable diapers that are tossed in landfills yearly and don’t begin to decompose for up to 500 years. GDiapers’ Cradle to Cradle certification means that every material used to make these flushables is absorbed back into the ecosystem with no negative impact.

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Daily Greenz #156

With the popularization of reusable bags by celebrities and mainstream clothing and accessories brands, there’s now hardly a soul unaware that using plastic bags is far from eco-friendly. But exactly how bad are they? Bangladesh banned them four years ago. Beginning June 1, they’ll be banned in China. And last year, San Francisco was the first U.S. city to prohibit their distribution in supermarkets and chain pharmacies. So what’s behind these bans? Firstly, their production requires valuable, non-renewable petroleum, and lots of it – 12 million barrels of it, to be exact. Secondly, the roughly 100 billion plastic bags we use here in the U.S. take up to 1,000 years to begin to decompose, and they don’t biodegrade. Rather, they photodegrade, meaning they break down into small, toxic bits that end up contaminating soil and waterways over and over again. 

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Daily Greenz #155

  Just because your lawn or garden is lush with vegetation doesn’t mean it’s actually green. The EPA tells us that an astounding 30% of the water Americans use is devoted to the outdoors, and more than half of that is used on lawns and gardens. Save water by fitting your garden hose with a low flow nozzle like Niagara Conservation’s 6 Position Hoze Nozzle, $9.95. But saving water isn’t the only way we can make our own backyards more eco-friendly. The millions of pounds of fertilizers and pesticides we apply to our lawns every year have the potential to pollute water when used incorrectly. And pesticides don’t discriminate – they kill all of the insects in your garden, including the beneficial ones.The National Resources Conservation Service
suggests these natural methods

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Daily Greenz #154

Now that the weather’s finally taken a turn for the warmer, we’re all looking forward to spending as much time as possible in the great outdoors. Gaiam, which offers a number of other eco-chic furnishings for your backyard, has the perfect solution to allow you to appreciate the sun long after it goes down. Hang their Solar Shoji Lanterns around your outdoor area or place them atop a table to keep the party going long after dusk. These festive lanterns collect sunlight through a solar panel and charge the rechargeable AAA battery all day, relying on a photo sensor to cue the illumination of your surroundings at dusk.   Plus, the lanterns’ glow comes from light emitting diodes (LEDs),
which can last up to 20 times as long as incandescent light bulbs and
consume significantly less energy.  These durable LEDs are protected by
a weatherproof nylon orb, ensuring you’ll be able to hang them for many
summers to come.

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Daily Greenz #153

When it comes to prepping for summer travel, finding convenient, portable travel accessories is key. None of us want to schlep around a single ounce more than necessary, especially when we’re planning on occupying some of that precious suitcase space with goodies from our destination of choice.  Luckily, brands like Solio and Reware are making it easier for us to travel light and eco-friendly. Solio’s Classic Universal Hybrid Charger, which has received quite a bit of buzz over the past year or two, allows you to juice up a multitude of different devices at about the same rate it takes when they’re plugged into the wall. Because the $99 charger harnesses the sun’s energy rather than using traditional energy sources, you don’t have to worry about the carbon footprint of charging all of your must-have gadgets. And how many times have you left home, ready to relax over the next few days, only to stress because you left your iPod/cell phone/digital camera charger at home? This small, easy-to-carry charger does it all – no outlet needed.

Reware’s Juice Bags, which are made from recycled soda bottles and feature a large solar panel on their exteriors, are another convenient, green solution. Just plug your device of choice into the bag using the item’s car adaptor, and charge as you hike, bike, or explore.

For more tips on how to make your summer travel more eco-conscious, check out Greenzer’s upcoming Green Travel Buyer’s Guide and Travel Accessory Green Face-Off.

Daily Greenz #152

1.  Okay, so we know you’ve heard this one before, but we can’t emphasize it enough: replace your standard incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescents (CFLs). Given that the average home has about 30 light bulbs, using CFLs would save about $200 a year and nearly $1,100 over the life of the bulbs. Plus, you’ll be reducing your energy consumption (and responsibility for greenhouse gas emissions). Calculate your energy savings on GE’s website.

2.  Stop buying plastic water bottles. The average American buys 167 bottles of water per year. At close to $2 a bottle, that adds up to about $335 – nearly a dollar a day. Instead, invest in a reusable water bottle and a home filtration system. Even at $20 for an aluminum Sigg bottle and $60 for a Brita system and replacement filters, you’ll have an extra $276 to spend on something else.

3. Clean up your household cleaners. Cutting down on the variety of cleaners you use reduces the waste produced by all that packaging, and choosing products made from natural ingredients with no toxic synthetics is much healthier for both your respiratory system and the earth. Instead of buying multiple cleaners for each different surface, choose an all purpose cleaner like Method All Purpose Cleaner or Seventh Generation All Purpose Cleaner. Both are biodegradeable, non-toxic, and derived from natural ingredients. 

4. Unplug phantom appliances. Many appliances continue to sip electricity while they’re plugged in, even if they’re turned off or not in use - think cell phone chargers. Make your life a little bit easier by using a power strip, so you only have to unplug a few times. This small change in routine can actually help you save big - Energy Star estimates that 40% of the electricity that home electronics use is consumed while the products are turned off. One Berkeley study concluded that you can save up to 25% on your bill. With the average American family spending $1,400 a year on electricity, that could amount to a $364 savings.

5.  Switch to a low-flow showerhead. We particularly like the Panda Rain Eco-friendly Shower Head, which basically conserves the water that’s wasted while you’re waiting until it reaches the perfect temperature. Even conserving that seemingly small amount can save you up to $75 and 2,700 gallons of water per year.

The average American can save up to $1000 a year by incorporating these simple, eco-friendly changes - all while reducing negative environmental impact.

Daily Greenz #151

We’ll bet you didn’t know that the air inside the average American home was on average 2 to 5 times more polluted than the air outside. Scary, right? According to the EPA, the things that cause our indoor air quality to suffer the most are simple household products like cleaners, paints, cosmetics, and even carpets and furniture. All of these products emit toxic vapors called volatile organic compounds, or VOCs. VOCs continue to be released over time, so even after your freshly painted walls have dried and the bleach scent has faded from the bathroom, toxic gases continue to be released.  So with VOCs present in so many products, how can we improve our indoor air quality without completely revamping our homes? Simple: invest in an air purifier like the NanoBreeze Air Purifier. In addition to reducing indoor air pollutants on a molecular level, the NanoBreeze also gets rid of odors, algae, bacteria, dust mite waste, mold, viruses, pollen, tobacco smoke, and pet dander. All of these offending polluters are oxidized into harmless carbon dioxide and water, allowing you to breathe easier in your own home.  Plus, it doesn’t require cleaning or filter replacement. We think that all of that’s certainly worth a $199 investment. To read more about how NanoBreeze works and where to buy it, take a look here.

Check out our Buyer’s Guides for more advice on how to green your cleaning and your home furnishings.