Going Green

With Earth Day right around the corner and all things being green in the GOLDFADEN MD world we want to share a few easy things anyone can do to make the Earth a little cleaner. A tiny change in your everyday life can save trees, reduce pollution and treat the Earth a little better than the way we found it.

• Plant a tree or a neighborhood garden if you live in a city. Trees purify the air and make our breathing air that much safer. If you live in a city then you know how important greenery is. A great way to participate in celebrating Earth Day is to make your own window sill garden. This is a fun DIY or even group activity with friends.  Purchase a wooden planter or you can even use mason jars and then add your favorite little plants or herbs or flowering bushes. Choose a window that gets direct sunlight and then mark each of the plants with a cute little tag. Or you can get chalkboard pots (my favorite). Not only will your inside garden look beautiful it will smell delicious if you grow herbs and you can cook with them!

• Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. The three R’s. Reduce your intake of waste by incorporating material based towels as opposed to paper towels. You can also reduce air pollution by riding a bike to work or walking instead of driving. Carpooling also helps reduce pollution. Reusing and recycling go hand in hand. The next time you buy a plastic container, keep it, wash it and reuse it! This will take the place of tupperware. Invest in a reusable coffee cup. If you do use materials that can pollute, recycle them! Most cities recycle and bins should not be difficult to find.  Do yourself a favor and google images of landfills, you will never not recycle again……yuck!

• Cleaning up and taking care of an outdoor space helps the environment too.  Whether it is a turtle egg rescue or just a garbage pickup on the beach or in a park, this helps keep the Earth clean. Whenever I am on the beach I always try to pick up a piece of trash. Activities like this are fun for kids and create a sense of community!

• Switch to Earth friendly house cleaners. There are so many on the market now. They smell delicious and they won’t make you, your kids or your pets sick. Look at products made by Green Works and Seventh Generation. You can also make your own products with apple cider vinegar, lemon juice and baking soda.

• Switch to natural skin and haircare products to reduce pollution down the drain and out into the oceans. Plastic micro-beads used in many scrubs have been shown to be polluting waters. Switch to scrubs that are made out of aluminum oxide, conundrum crystals or sugar(for the body). All those yucky ingredients in toothpastes and shampoos are polluting the water too. There is a chemical used as an ingredient called triclosan, which is toxic to fish. Look for personal care products that are natural such as shampoos without sulfates and toothpastes made by Toms.

If we all make one little change it can add up to many more healthy years for the Earth. Happy Earth Day!