Sustainability
PPE Use Protects Us Against Coronavirus, but It’s Harming the Oceans
Did you know that 91% of the plastic produced has never been recycled? Yet calls to eliminate single-use plastics have been lost in the panic of a new pandemic and the rush to secure personal protective equipment (PPE). And many of these items — including disposable...
Earth911 Quiz #39: Wishful Recycling
The U.S. recycling system uses a “single-stream” model that focuses on the big blue curbside bin. Unfortunately, people throw all sorts of unrecyclable items into the bin in the hope that they will be recycled. Known as “wishful recycling,” this results in...
Tips for a Green Dorm Move-In Day and Sustainable College Year
College may not nearly as social this year but you can still make it a sustainable experience. If you (or your kids) are heading to college this upcoming semester, it’s going to be a bit of a different experience than it has in the past. Some institutions of higher...
Earth911 Inspiration: Nature Is Hinting at Us
Today’s quote is from American poet Robert Frost, who wrote: “Nature is always hinting at us. It hints over and over again. And suddenly we take the hint.” Earth911 inspirations. Post them, share your desire to help people think of the planet first, every day. Click...
Earth911 Inspiration: For Future Generations
Today’s quote is from Senator Gaylord Nelson, Co-founder of Earth Day: “The ultimate test of man’s conscience may be his willingness to sacrifice something today for future generations whose words of thanks will not be heard.” Earth911 inspirations. Post them, share...
Earth911 Inspiration: We Must Decide
Today’s quote is from American author Barry Lopez: “The land gets inside of us; and we must decide one way or another what this means, what we will do about it.” Earth911 inspirations. Post them, share your desire to help people think of the planet first, every day....
Earth911 Quiz #53: Recycle Motor Oil the Right Way
Everyday recycling takes a little extra time — and will until the companies that make what we buy integrate recycling into their product life cycles. So, it’s important to keep simple steps in mind. In this Earth911 Quiz, you’ll find the keys to recycling automotive...
Earth911 Podcast: How To Talk to the Other Side
The time to talk about climate change and social equity is now. Author and sustainability consultant Kevin Wilhelm has a valuable new guide to bridging the political, social, and ideological chasms that keep that discussion from happening, How to Talk to the “Other...
The Week’s Sustainability, Recycling, Business and Science News
The Earth911 team combs news and research for interesting ideas and stories about the challenges of creating a sustainable world. We call it the Earth911 Reader and we hope you find it useful. IN SCIENCE Arctic Sea Ice Loss May Set Off Accelerated Global Warming...
How To Turn a Photo Frame Into an Extraordinary Serving Tray
Turning a photo frame into a serving tray is a DIYer’s dream. You can you upcycle an unused frame into a unique piece of home decor, making use of an old item that might otherwise end up in the dump. Plus, you can use the serving tray for a variety of purposes. From a...
Plastic Bag and Plastic Film Recycling for Beginners
Ideally, we should avoid single-use plastic bags and plastic film. Failing that, we should reuse them as much as possible. But not all bags are reusable. And most can be reused only so many times before they tear. Plus, plastic wrap and plastic film are...
Can We Innovate Our Way Out of Our Environmental Mess?
Can Innovation Solve Our Problems? Innovation is an abused business buzzword that is often applied to the topic of sustainability. Online literature is full of articles and reports on sustainability and innovation, sometimes converged into “sustainable...
We Earthlings: 4 Good Ideas for the Earth
You can make a positive difference for the planet every day. We put together this poster to give you a quick reference — and something to share with friends — to four ideas that can make an immediate difference to your carbon footprint: Substituting vegetables for...
Earth911 Inspiration: Add to the Sum of Accurate Information
Today’s Earth911 inspiration is from American anthropologist Margaret Mead. She said, “I was brought up to believe that the only thing worth doing was to add to the sum of accurate information in this world.” Earth911 inspirations. Post them, share your desire to help...
Maven Moment: Have Extra Stuff? Bring It to Work
Sometimes, when I was cleaning or decluttering, I found multiples of the same type of item. This might be anything from umbrellas to reusable takeout food containers to pens and note pads. What to do with the extras? Mom’s answer was simple and smart: “Bring it to...
How Can You Calculate Your Business Carbon Footprint?
Understand Your Environmental Impact Do you understand your impact on the environment? So many of our daily actions add greenhouse gases to the atmosphere and it’s not all our fault. Much of the technology which makes our lives more comfortable and better was...
5 Fun Ways To Recycle Your Jeans
Clothing is probably one of the easiest things to avoid putting in the trash, yet Americans throw away more than 11 million tons of textiles annually, which is about 66% of the total textiles produced in a year. There’s no need for this. Next time you’re wondering...
Moringa: Versatile Tree With Sustainable Superfood Powers
Are you familiar with the moringa tree? Every part of this special tree offers unique benefits. Parts of the moringa plant have been used for medicinal purposes for centuries. Among its many healing benefits, it is used for antifungal, anti-inflammatory, and...
Clean Your Whole House With Vinegar, Baking Soda, and Lemon
One way to reduce the number of cleaning products you bring into your home is to clean with products you already have. People have been cleaning with household staples like vinegar, baking soda, and lemons (or lemon juice) for a long time, and believe it or not, these...
Embrace Being Green With These Practical Energy Saving Tips
Adopt Energy Saving Tips for Your Home and Business We all understand that we have an impact on our environment and the costs involved. It's natural to seek ways that you can save money. In this article I'm going to talk about several simple and...
Plastic Is In People, Women Suffer More From Climate Change
Start your environmental and sustainability reading with us! We read a lot so you don’t have to. Every week, Earth911 Reader delivers the must-read articles around the web you should know to be up-to-date on stories that share our understanding of the issues. This...
Can You Clean Up Your Amazon Purchases Carbon Footprint?
Have You Thought About the Amazon Boxes on Your Porch? Most of us have those boxes, delivered by Amazon, stacking up on our porches. Have you thought about what the carbon footprint is of those deliveries? Amazon’s boxes are doing more than just piling up on...
Hot Year, Earth Overshoot Delayed, and COVID Fallout
Tune into the Earth911 Reader every Saturday for the week’s useful climate science, sustainability, and recycling articles from around the Web. We read so that you can read more efficiently. This week, we look at 2020’s track to becoming one of the three hottest years...
Beverage Container Showdown: Plastic vs. Glass vs. Aluminum
When you’re shopping for beverages, what kind of container do you choose? You have a few options: plastic bottles, glass bottles, or aluminum cans. What to choose? The decision can be daunting for environmentalists. We’re here to give you the lowdown on which of these...
We Earthlings: Recycle Your E-waste
When you recycle your old computers, printers, phones, and other electronics responsibly, you help prevent soil, groundwater, and marine pollution around the world. The International Telecommunications Union reported that in 2016, the world produced 44.7 million...
Is Your Business Guilty of the 7 Sins of Greenwashing?
The Seven Sins Of GreenWashing! Greenwashing is the deceptive use of green marketing or green PR to promote the perception that an organization’s products, services, or policies are environmentally friendly. Greenwashing can be as simple as mislabeling a...
Q & A With Author: ‘No-Waste Kitchen Gardening’
When in the kitchen whipping up salads, soups, and stews, you typically pile up random scraps from freshly sliced veggies and fruits. Possibly, within that slurry of unwanted produce pieces, you have pits and seeds that could be the foundations for fresh new plants....
Fun (Really!) Alternatives to Halloween Candy
Halloween and candy. They go hand in hand, right? Well, over time, that surely has become the case. Did you know that we spend more than $2 billion on candy each and every Halloween in the United States? That’s a lot of money! How much candy does that $2 billion buy?...
Home “Eco”nomics – Window Replacement
Getting new windows is one of the most satisfying ways to improve your home’s efficiency. You save energy and your whole house will look nicer both from the street and indoors. But unless you have really old single-pane windows, window replacement is probably not the...
Clear the Clutter: Stop Organizing and Just Have Less Stuff
If you’re a Pinterest person, as I am, then no doubt you have read hundreds of intricately detailed tips about how to organize your stuff. These run the gamut from color-coded bins and meticulously organized junk drawers to hidden shelving units tucked neatly into the...
Mowing the Lawn Without Pollution
The American lawn is an icon of homeownership, social gatherings, and family fun. Unfortunately, the perfect grass lawn is resource-intensive. Lawns must be irrigated, weeded, fertilized, and mowed in most climates. As lawn technology, including tools, fertilizers,...
Home “Eco”nomics — Should You Buy a New Car?
Do you need a new car? Are you considering choosing an electric vehicle over a gas-powered car? It’s one of the most impactful environmental decisions you will make in your life — in fact, Americans buy an average of 9.4 vehicles during their lives. You have plenty of...
Maven Moment: Refrigerator Magnets
Mom’s friend Louise loved her refrigerator magnets. She had all kinds and each one came with a memory or a photo attached to it. There were pictures of her younger self, magnets that represented saints or had prayers on them, and souvenir magnets that she got on her...
Earth911 Inspiration: Choose a Green Future
Today’s quote is from Australian philosopher Toby Ord. In his book, The Precipice: Existential Risk and the Future of Humanity, he wrote, “We have seen how the long arc of human history has brought us to a uniquely important time in our story — a period where our...
Medicine Disposal – National Prescription Drug Take Back Day
October 24, 2020, is the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency’s nineteenth National Rx Take Back Day, an opportunity for Americans to return unused drugs safely. During last year’s event, 882,919 pounds — 441.5 tons — of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted...
5 Easy EEK-o-Friendly Halloween Decorations
Unfortunately, many of our holidays have become an opportunity to buy stuff that is used once and then tossed in the garbage. Halloween is an especially hyper-commercialized celebration with individually wrapped candies, disposable costumes, plastic accessories, and...
5 Reasons You Shouldn’t Use Homemade Laundry Detergent
I recently received an email from a journalist asking if I had a good recipe for homemade laundry detergent. If you’ve visited goingzerowaste.com before you know that I have a fairly extensive list of effective and easy homemade cleaning recipes and even more featured...
How To Recycle a Broken Treadmill
If you have a home gym, it’s likely you own a treadmill. Too often, this kind of gym equipment goes unrecycled. Whether you use it regularly or not, your treadmill will eventually stop working. When mine was beyond repair, I was determined to recycle every part of the...
Another Reason to Recycle Cartons — and Other Materials
Good news to report: The COVID-19 pandemic has not stopped people from recycling. In fact, some people are recycling even more. According to research conducted by the Carton Council of North America, 56% of consumers say they have been recycling as much as they...
We Earthlings: Rethink Air Travel
The coronavirus pandemic has proven that we can decide not to travel if it’s not essential. Before you book your next flight, consider this: Air travel contributes 4.9% of the greenhouse gas emissions that are the leading cause of climate change. Data source: What...
This Easy DIY Dry Shampoo Recipe Rinses Away Dirt
No matter whether you like a dry or wet shampoo, the objective remains the same — clean, fresh hair. If dry shampoo is your thing, we have just the DIY recipe for you! Even if you’re skeptical, give it a try. In this episode of Earth911TV, we show you how easy it is...
We Earthlings: We Love Being Cooped Up
What connects us all? Nature and our shared relationships through nature. Share We Earthling posters to inspire others with your stories (click the image for a larger, high-resolution poster). The post We Earthlings: We Love Being Cooped Up appeared...
How to Build a Compost Bin | Easy and Cheap DIY
If you know me, then you know I am PASSIONATE about composting. We just moved, and are waiting for our apartment complex to finish their resident composting program. While I’m waiting, I didn’t want to put my food scraps in the landfill so I decided to build a compost...
Yes, Pizza Boxes Are Recyclable
The Recycling Partnership last week released a scientific study that demonstrates that used pizza boxes are recyclable, even when they are greasy and have some cheese contamination. The report will be used to get more recycling programs to accept pizza boxes. The...
Sustainable Parenting: 15 Eco-Friendly Moms and Dads You Should Follow
With sustainable parenting, there’s an emphasis on teaching children to be eco-conscious as well as making mindful decisions based on environmental impact. Basically, you seek to raise kids that love and care about the environment which can be done in a number of...
Maven Moment: Good Old-fashioned Bar Soap
Grandma Jennie used bar soap all of her life. When she was young, there was a bar of soap that was used for laundry and household purposes. She used a bar of Castile soap for her hair and body. I’ve seen pictures of Grandma when she was young and she had the most...
U.S. Flood Risk Is 67% Higher Than Historic Projections *
Will your home face flooding due to climate change? A new study by the New York-based nonprofit First Street Foundation found that 67% more American homes than previously estimated face a high risk of flooding during the next 30 years. It could save your life and can...
How the First Net-Zero Energy Communities in the U.S. Operate *
As with any brilliant innovation, net-zero energy communities were an idea first, and then came the hard work on making the idea a reality. Their goal was to operate without drawing any non-renewable energy from the local power grid. Making a single building net-zero...
Top 3 Misconceptions About Carbon Emissions
According to climate scientists, we have the best chance of avoiding a 2 degrees Celsius rise in global temperatures if the average annual carbon footprint per person drops under 2 tons by 2050. That would require a big change from today’s global average of 4.8...
What Happens When Sustainable Farming Meets Urbanization
What is an Agrihood? Why are They Sustainable? Agrihoods are residential housing developments with a professionally managed farm as its centerpiece. Considered healthy-lifestyle communities, agrihoods are designed with a purpose — to connect people with the...
