| What are some easy and inexpensive ways to live eco-friendly? |
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| posted Nov 9, 2006 1:34:47 PM | To All |
What bothers me most about trying to be eco-friendly is that organic, natural, chemical-free, etc. products seem to cost a lot more than what you would find at the typical neighborhood grocery store.
How can I live a healthy, eco-friendly existence without actually paying more than I do now for goods and services? When I look at the Safeway broccoli and compare it to the price of Whole Foods broccoli, my wallet winces in pain.
Am I being unrealistic? And, if so, does that mean those in lower income brackets are unable to live a healthy, eco-friendly life? You can't expect a single mother making $25k per year with three kids to pay twice the price for organic veggies when she can barely keep the electricity on.
So what's the answer? Edited by: Muted Liberal on Nov 10, 2006 3:00:58 PM |
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| What are some easy and inexpensive ways to live eco-friendly? |
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| posted Nov 9, 2006 1:51:29 PM | To All |
| Buy local and in season! Organic isn't always best if it's grown halfway around the world. |
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| What are some easy and inexpensive ways to live eco-friendly? |
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| posted Nov 10, 2006 7:52:50 AM | To All |
- That is a great idea. Also, you might try your hand at growing your own organic produce. Get some advice from books, fellow-gardeners, websites such as organicgardening.com, but start small. Don't bite off more than you can chew.
- You can do "container" gardening if you don't have a plot of ground. Teach your children how to be involved in it with you. Don't get discouraged; "experienced" gardeners will tell you, the "experience" is composed mostly of mistakes that you learn not to repeat.
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| What are some easy and inexpensive ways to live eco-friendly? |
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| posted Nov 14, 2006 3:49:03 PM | To All |
Sadly organic does tend to cost more directly. The costs of industrial agriculture and mass distribution are externalized and absorbed indirectly by society on the whole.
YES, buy local and in season! Buy directly from the farmers and the costs go down dramatically... especially if you join a CSA (community supported agriculture, wherein fresh locally grown produce is delivered to you (or picked up by you) each week. Visit http://www.wilson.edu/csasearch/search.asp to find a farm in your area!
It is a reality that organic purchases will hit the wallet a little harder. If prioritizing this commitment seems a luxury that you can't afford, have a look elsewhere in your expenditures before you give up. How much do you spend on television (cable or satellite) monthly? How about consumer electronics? What about gasoline? Electricity at home? Usually a shift of priorities from consumerism to non-consumerism opens surprising amounts of cash available to put toward purchases of high value--to your health, your community... the future of food.
Still can't afford it. Fair enough. See if your local CSA offers a Gift Share like some have started doing. Some subscribers donate to a fund that gets CSA foods into the hands of those who can't otherwise participate. If your CSA doesn't offer a gift share, recommend that they start one! |
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| What are some easy and inexpensive ways to live eco-friendly? |
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| posted Dec 5, 2006 8:35:19 AM | To All |
everyone knows "reduce, reuse, recycle"
most people forget that it's IN THAT ORDER for a reason--reducing is even better than reusing, which is evern better than recycling, which is even better than doing nothing.
an easy way to live in a more eco-conscious way is to REDUCE the amount of consumption and the amount of waste your family produces. that doesn't address organic produce or getting the chemicals out of your house, but it's something everyone can do, and it actually SAVES you money (which you can them spend on organic produce ) |
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| What are some easy and inexpensive ways to live eco-friendly? |
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| posted Dec 27, 2006 8:06:06 AM | To All |
Great advice! I'm going to check out that link.
I used to be really hard on other people for not doing their part. But I am beginning to understand how difficult it is to eat healthy, stay in shape, get a good night's sleep, keep a clean house and yard, spend time with loved ones, take care of your pet/s, lessen your burden on the environment, AND make enough money to survive all in 24 hours. I know it may sound as if I am making excuses, but when you work 50-60 hours a week to get by...
Does anyone get the impression that Americans are being purposefully worked "just hard enough" that they don't have enough time and energy to change the way they live? Is this why so many middle-class, suburban Americans eat McDonalds, buy crap they don't need and watch too much TV - because they are too tired to do otherwise after working all day, mowing the lawn, doing laundry, changing the oil in the car, grocery shopping, taking the kids to school, picking them up, cooking dinner, etc. etc. etc...? Can you blame them for wanting to "veg out" for an hour before bed instead of reading or playing a board game that requires thought?
The older I get, the more I realize that my "high horse" isn't so high after all. That's not an excuse. It is just an unfortunate reality.
Yes, I will visit the link above and try to find a CSA in my area. I live in Denver, so I'm sure there is one somewhere nearby. But in the back of my mind I know that there is a Safeway with everything I need two blocks away... |
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Informing America About Consumer Product Safety |
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| What are some easy and inexpensive ways to live eco-friendly? |
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| posted Jan 18, 2007 2:14:01 PM | To Everett |
Well, hopefully with the wages increases and democrats gaining power more people will be able to afford the eco-lifestyle they aspire to. I've come to accept that I can't afford most of the natural and eco-friendly things I' like. I'm content with second-hand clothes and living as healthily as I can afford.
It's so ridiculous to see $90 organ fiber pants, there's no way I could possibly buy them. Even American Apparel, who purports to me environmentally conscious, they're just more brand name bull. A three pack of beater shirts for $60!!!! It's insane, I can't agree more. |
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| What are some easy and inexpensive ways to live eco-friendly? |
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| posted Jan 25, 2007 2:15:43 PM | To All |
Do you ever feel like us "greenies" are being taken advantage of? I certainly get that impression when visiting the supermarket. How do I know as a consumer that whatever "certification agency" the supplier claims to have inspected their produce really knows and/or cares whether they are grown organically?
The truth is, those who value a sustainable planet are being lumped into a marketing category and we need to keep our eyes open and make sure the green movement doesn't get too coroporitised. It is a GOOD thing - in a way - that the business world is recognizing the want/need for eco-friendly products, but I'm sure they also realize that the "green" demographic is mostly well-educated and well-off - at least upper middle class. Someone working in a factory for $10 and poor healthcare coverage, an hour has more immediate concerns than the environment. So are they charging more because it costs more, or because they think this "market segment" can afford it? |
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Informing America About Consumer Product Safety |
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| What are some easy and inexpensive ways to live eco-friendly? |
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| posted Mar 24, 2007 9:36:16 PM | To All |
| On eco-friendly cleaning: let's face it, commercial/packaged biodegradable and nontoxic cleaners are great, but costly... but I've been using baking soda and vinegar as my all-purpose, inexpensive cleaners. |
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| What are some easy and inexpensive ways to live eco-friendly? |
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| posted Apr 4, 2007 3:00:20 PM | To All |
Well part of the problem is that it actually IS more expensive if you think about it. The market is only now getting to the point where economies of scale are allowing prices to drop. If you've got a farm that produces 100,000 X and one that's organic but only produces 1,000 X, the fixed costs that both farmers have are not split the same way at all. When the organic farmer can product 100,000 X, his or her price will begin to approach that of the conventional farmer. BUT it will never reach that price. Part of why things like that are cheaper is that the producers cut corners which an organic farmer can't cut if they are going to stay true to their ideals. They can't exploit their workers, they can't use cheap fertilizers to boost production, etc.
Doing the right thing isn't cheap. Doesn't mean it's not worth doing. |
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| Bungee Monkey |
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| What are some easy and inexpensive ways to live eco-friendly? |
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| posted Apr 6, 2007 11:17:13 AM | To All |
My question would be how much produce do you end up throwing away?
Last fall NPR had this expert on about how much food Americans throw away each year. He even talked about how when you're shopping you've got these high expectations of how you're going eat more healthy foods... Then a couple of weeks later, you're throwing out spoiled produce. One statistic says Americans throw out 200,000 edible food daily. That number doesn't even touch the amount thrown out because the produce was forgotten and spoiled.
In our household, we definitely were throwing away produce that had gone bad. (And we do compost.) Now we're trying to be more realistic about what we're going to eat and using the cost savings to buy a majority of organic produce. We also bought the Evert-Fresh produce bags from Gaiam after a friend recommended them. They do seem to help keep things fresher longer.
As far as Whole Foods... Our Safeway is in a poorer area of the city and we still are able to get a wide variety of organic produce there. Same for our King Soopers, which also features local produce as well. And we're counting the days until the farmers market opens.Edited by: Luckychien on Apr 6, 2007 11:55:32 AM |
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| What are some easy and inexpensive ways to live eco-friendly? |
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| posted May 19, 2007 12:33:48 PM | To All |
NO I don't think you are. I have been in your place. I have some questions for you:
- Do you have access to some land?
- If so, then make sure it has been fallow for a number of years to make sure it is organic.
- prepare the land for a garden, use organic means. Mother Earth News is a good resource.
this is the most economical means for organic and gives connections to the family. If you are not sure what to do, here are other options:
- find a organic gardening group
- find a local farmer who grows organic produce
- purchase a "share" from the farm.
- use "sweat" equity.
- give another activity of bonding for you and the kids
- Purchase from the local farmer's market.
This is about what I know in the fly. I hope this helps.
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Mitakuyae Oyasin!
(We are all One)
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| What are some easy and inexpensive ways to live eco-friendly? |
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| posted May 21, 2007 3:13:46 PM | To All |
I had one child at 39 in 1988, that was the biggest thing. I built a small solar powered house in 1997-8 and finished a 2 module Earthship a couple years later. It provides all the vegetables for a family of three, and a guest house/place to jam on guitar as loud as I want. Rainwater catchment, solar power, 12v pump w/purifier, sinewave inverter, lights, and a woodstove, and non-electric compost toilet. Kitchen waste composter outside, and Global Solar Ovens used often. Exterior gardens are seasonal. One vehicle, a 6 banger, all LCD screens for computer and TV, CF lighting, Staber Washer and clotheslines in and out. On demand hot water heater, and lifestyle change with bad weather--less TV!!!! Also less Jimi Hendrix style guitar playing.
It is important to do everything yourself and with your family's help. The sacrifices are strong, and the work hard. The necessary study of a lot of different subjects is a pleasure, but could be hard for some. Planning years ahead certainly helped with getting materials on sale, and recycled, re-usable materials when they were available. The tires were free and so was the decomposed granite for rammed -earth and soil-cement and base coat stucco. Thermal mass, solar heat gain and electric, super insulation, indigenous materials, along with planning ahead, morals and education, reducing, re-using, and recycling as a way of life. Less meat use, and our homegrown vegetables, plus more oats. Buy in quantity and store to pay less. Keep up with knowledge to avoid poisons, and spread the word on solar living. It all started with seeing the Solar Living Sourcebook and the Earthship book at the library in 1993, and seeing the decimated forests of the NW. |
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| With every action and decision, think seven generations ahead of the consequences first. Ute Rule of Life (too bad it has not been generally adopted) |
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| What are some easy and inexpensive ways to live eco-friendly? |
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| posted Jun 25, 2008 8:49:32 PM | To All |
As a student I was always pinching pennies but would splash out on some organic produce like strawberries and other soft produce that wouldn't survive a good scrubbing. Apples, potatoes and such were bought as cheaply as possible. Herbs and plants that aren't easily killed were grown on the balcony...I have a brown thumb.
As far as my house, I made a lot of my cleaning supplies and some of my toiletries. It is actually much cheaper than buying conventional or "eco-friendly" stuff.
Other ways that I would be eco-friendly is getting rid of stuff on things like craigslist or freecycle. I had an old water heater that needed to go to the dump and a freecycler picked it up and now uses it to water his land.
I also picked up lots of great stuff.
If you'd like to increase the amount of organic produce in your household see if there is a co-op or organic food program in your town. I know my university had a program that sold organic food. You'd pay a certain amount of money to them and they'd deliver fresh, organic produce to you each week. The produce was grown by the uni's agriculture students. |
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| What are some easy and inexpensive ways to live eco-friendly? |
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| posted Jul 9, 2008 10:53:02 AM | To All |
| How about something that saves the earth and saves money at the same time? Don't eat meat! Raising animals is an inefficient use of energy, with detrimental effects on the earth...not to mention our arteries! It's so much cheaper to eat whole grains, beans, nuts, seeds and veggies. I read John Robbins The Food Revolution and haven't looked back. Good luck! |
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| posted Sep 13, 2008 12:06:56 PM | To All |
I kinda agree, though I don't intend to ever stop eating meat, nor would I recommend it, but to an extent, I never seen the major profit of it. Why spend $1,000s of dollars to raise a cow, or chickens, or whatever, then turn around and sell the meat much cheaper later. It's like breaking even if you ask me. Only profitable food sources to me are fish sometimes, and mainly vegetation. As it requires no real money to do, unless your doing it massively, but that is a tradeoff for time.  Edited by: chinchillables on Sep 13, 2008 12:07:04 PM |
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