What ideas do you all have on putting the pieces together, for a Greener Healthier tomorrow?

 

I don't have any real innovative and creative ideas, but I like to reuse the plastic bags I get at stores as trash bags in my room. And I turn off the lights when I don't use it. Only washing clothes with warm water if necessary, things like that.

 

I cook for myself or eat my mom's homecooked meals for cheaper, but healthier and wholesome food as well.

I feel that if were were alocated vegi patches when we bought houses from now on it would help us to become more self suficient. Owning your own tank is another brilliant idea. In schools, they should be teaching us to become fully indepentant in case something does happen other wise we would stave, die from sickness and disease and not be able to fend for ourselves. One day the world will get so bad, it will come to that and I feel we need to be ready.

I don't have any real innovative and creative ideas, but I like to reuse the plastic bags I get at stores as trash bags in my room. And I turn off the lights when I don't use it. Only washing clothes with warm water if necessary, things like that.

Yea, I think that's a good way to go, too Starlight! And, I feel we need to make the plastic bags (for the most part) bio-degradable, and there are some naturally derived plastics (corn-starch based, bacterial based) which are already on the market. But at least the bag gets one more use before getting tossed! Still, there's the oceans full of bags, and the manufacturing from stem to stern has some serious issues with dangerous chemicals, people breathing the gaseous emissions in the plants, etc. I'd like to see us switch to the eco types, but in the meantime, there's a challenge - what works for garbage can liners?? :thinking: Tell me watcha think!:)

 

I cook for myself or eat my mom's homecooked meals for cheaper, but healthier and wholesome food as well.

Can I come & visit??;):)

Haha of course! :P

 

Yeah, bio-degradable bags would be real nice, stores should begin to use them. I don't know much about the science that goes into living more 'eco-friendly', but I try to do the best I can at home.

They are thinking of obolising plastic shopping bags altogether in Oz

I feel that if were were alocated vegi patches when we bought houses from now on it would help us to become more self suficient. Owning your own tank is another brilliant idea. In schools, they should be teaching us to become fully indepentant in case something does happen other wise we would stave, die from sickness and disease and not be able to fend for ourselves. One day the world will get so bad, it will come to that and I feel we need to be ready.

I like that idea!! When I was a student at the U, I would have loved to have had a garden - but the landlord wasn't too keen on the idea.. And with the down economy, a lot of home owners are putting in big gardens to get by with. (unfortunately, the developers strip the topsoil, and you have to buy it back - but it's probably worth it!)

Hmm.. Well, some religious groups do that - they are taught to be self-sufficient in case of emergency, but on a more practical level, maybe just have a really good garden, and trading with others for the veggies and crops you're not raising makes sense. Or CSA's work out well, if you're really busy. The cities have community gardens now, and that's a blessing!

I think we'll transition alright - farm and garden the yards, make the houses more self-sufficient, and make the vehicles super-efficient and green - I believe it's quite do-able. But times are tough now from the economic fall, yet I'm sure we'll recover - and we can be doing so much more with so much less, it's really a win-win-win for everyone!

What about government mandating that all plastic bags, outside of certain ones for irreplaceable uses (such as hospital I.V. bags, etc.) be made of bio-degradable or inert (like glass fiber woven mesh) material at the minimum. I know Government regs. can be a real pain, but government is supposed to be there as the referee and ultimate check on things, to make our societies more equitable. Is this a good idea?

YEA!! OZ is doing it right! Where is this Oz??

YAY!!! I can visit Starlight!:)

(I'll bring a cloth bag, I promise!)

Hmm.. well the science of living more eco-friendly can get complex, but basically is boils down to things closer to nature are generally better for us and the environment. So, we've evolved in sync with nature, and natural bio-polymers are fine with our bodies, and with the micro-organisms in the soil, etc. Cellulose is one example of a natural bio-polymer (flax and cotton, two basic examples), as is lignin (in wood), chitin (insect shells), starches, etc. These things are natural, edible, bio-degradable, and generally don't require all the messy chemicals to process into products. But industry isn't geared for them yet, because the other types are incredibly cheap to make (without considering human health), the resource is presently abundant (natural gas and oil), and there's no incentive for them to make bio-plastics in quantities just yet. Hopefully, we can get that to change.;)

Oz in in the southern hemisphere below the PNG and china.

I see - Tasmania then?!:laugh3: (nah, I getchya! Aussielander!)

Well, how do you feel about your government abolishing plastic shopping bags??:inquisitive:

 

Hug trees

 

 

Lots of trees

 

 

So they know we're on their side

 

 

 

 

 

jk

 

 

 

Really just recycling, not throwing out as much waste, and just being kind to the planet in any way you can

Separating science and politics is the solution.

...Or making politicians accountable to the will of an educated citizenry! The body politic needs better smarts to better regulate what it does to itself...

Science has become a political tool, just like religion was and is. Separate them all and we can move froward faster.

I see - Tasmania then?!:laugh3: (nah, I getchya! Aussielander!)

Well, how do you feel about your government abolishing plastic shopping bags??:inquisitive:

 

 

It would do the country a lot of good. All they will make us do then will be to buy these $1 fabric bags and we'll just have to remember to use those all the time.

Science can be conducted for the purposes of seeking the truth above all else by any number of individuals if it is funded (basic research, that is) in a manner that rewards good science (that which uses the scientific method properly), respectful teamwork, and is conducted in a manner isolated from moneyed influences of all types. But unfortunately, basic research is often the thing most often not funded, and collaborative, reflective thinkers find little room in the competitive and group-think world that often exists at many a research institute.. But as far as becoming a political tool, I am inclined to agree in certain instances, and not in others. One has to look carefully at the science being conducted, and if critical thinking is being applied to test the assumptions - which varies. There's also the issue of upsetting long-standing pet theories held by esteemed faculty members; some of ideas which should be supplanted with better ones are often held back not by the influence of money or politics, but more by the loyalty oath one takes to the older faculty in the field.

It would do the country a lot of good. All they will make us do then will be to buy these $1 fabric bags and we'll just have to remember to use those all the time.

Alright! But I feel it would be better to simply mandate "bio-degradability", as the real issue seems more a matter of how the material affects the environment, although the sheer volume of bags in enormous (although, how does this compare to the sheer number of un-recycled plastic containers?). It's a visible things - and a big part of what's gumming up the oceans, but to ban something in this manner is a bit too clumsy of a way of handling the issue (least to me it seems!).

I'd be all for something to solve the problem here as well - but bags made of biodegradable plastic, fiber, or paper would all seem just fine as well. I believe the issue is more with pricing externalities into the product, and only banning the worst types of materials which have good replacements for most applications..

I usually take the shipping boxes with my groceries, and then recycle the cardboard - it's a bit more clutter, but works as well in reducing the problem..