Tuesday, March 18
Today is the last day of my month living with a low carbon footprint in New York City. Tomorrow I leave on a vacation with my family but before I go I wanted to summarize some of the highlights of my experiences during the past month...
1. The Farmer's Markets in Union Square
I would not have been able to survive my ISP without the hardwork of the farmer's who sell their crops at the market. I have met the most caring and dedicated individuals in Union Square. These men and women tirelessly shlep into the city in rain, snow, and sleet to provide local food for the community. Without their efforts I can honestly say I would not have been able to continue my ISP.
2. The Freegan's Trash Tour
On Friday night I went on a trash tour with two of my peers. We were familiar with the practices of the freegans since two of us are members of their email list. Going on a trash tour was something that we have talked about for months but finally found both the time and the guts to go. It was an incredible experience to say the least, I wish that every New Yorker would join these individuals just once to see the amount of food waste generated in just one day. We met up on 14th Street and 8th Avenue in a large group (around 25 people), we were a mixture of students, twenty-somethings, fifty-somethings, novice divers, experienced freegans, and three private school girls. We did just what you would expect we went dumpster diving, touring the various supermarkets and bakeries in this neighborhood. We gently opened their trash and found a cornucopia of edible garbage.
3. My Walks To School/ Public Transportation
I am grateful to live in a city with a widespread and dependable public transportation system. Even though our transportation system is not only dependable but also "green", I have spent the majority of my commutes walking. These walks have become the highlight of my day.
Thank you to everyone who has helped me make the last four weeks a success!
I'll post some more post-vacation!
xoxo Green Teen
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Friday, March 14, 2008
Freegans, Farmers, and Family
The past week I have been extremely busy with my academics. Finally it is spring break, a very exciting time for my Green lifestyle. On this coming Tuesday I will stop officially living my green lifestyle in terms of my ISP. Before the day comes I still have a lot of work to do.
Tonight I am going dumpster diving with the Freegans and a couple of my friends. I hope that this experience will help me be able to visualize the amount of waste we generate. I am really excited to explore this new lifestyle and to meet others who believe in freegan philosophy.
I am still shocked by the kindness and generosity I have received from the farmers at the Union Square greenmarket. These individuals truly care about the products they have created and are strong advocates for the slow food movement. The three most caring people I have met in this market include the woman who grows hydroponic tomatoes on Long Island, and two honey harvesters.
I will post some details from tonight later.
In the meantime, have a fantastic spring break!
Xoxo Green teen
Tonight I am going dumpster diving with the Freegans and a couple of my friends. I hope that this experience will help me be able to visualize the amount of waste we generate. I am really excited to explore this new lifestyle and to meet others who believe in freegan philosophy.
I am still shocked by the kindness and generosity I have received from the farmers at the Union Square greenmarket. These individuals truly care about the products they have created and are strong advocates for the slow food movement. The three most caring people I have met in this market include the woman who grows hydroponic tomatoes on Long Island, and two honey harvesters.
I will post some details from tonight later.
In the meantime, have a fantastic spring break!
Xoxo Green teen
Sunday, March 9, 2008
I am over half-way done with living my environmentally-friendly lifestyle, and spring break is approaching quickly. Today's post will be a mixture of all sorts of things.
Yesterday at the Union Square Greenmarket I bought 6 oz Ronnybrook yogurts for 1.75 (they are absolutely fantastic) whereas the same product at Yura and OK market are $4! I do not understand why the one local product in either of these stores is over double the price it is normally sold at. I have scheduled a meeting with owners of On Madison (the "new" Yura) to discuss their environmental practices or lack there of and will bring up their total lack of local foods on that date (if anyone wants to come with me or has anything they would like me to tell Yura please email me!).
Walking. For the past two weeks I have walked everywhere. This has been one of the highlights of my project. In New York City and in the United States in general we don't appreciate the simple everyday things, the pleasures we can get from just walking for the sake of walking. I am lucky that I live in a place where I can walk everywhere, but we New Yorkers need to take advantage of this. My walk takes me from to all different neighborhoods and is the most relaxing way to start and end my day.
I am generating a list of tips that the Going Green Committee and the Earth Club are going to post around Nightingale. Here are some of them (source: "The Green Book" by Elizabeth Rogers and Thomas M. Kostigen available at bookstores and Urban Outfitters).
My Ten Tips of the Day:
1. Turn off the water when you brush your teeth! This can save 5 gallons of water a day!
2. Download music (legally of course) instead of buying CD's. Every month 45 tons of CD's end up in landfills
3. Use a re-useable water bottle. It take 1.5 million barrels of oil to supply the United State's demand for bottled water in a year.
4. Send Text messges or emails from your blackberry instead of from a computer. A computer uses upwards of thirty times more electricity per a message than a handheld device.
5. Use re-useable pens. In one year Americans throw away 1.6 billion pens.
6. If you chew gum throw it in the trash not on the street or under a desk. The average american chews 190 sticks of gum a year. All of this gum added together is equal to the an area four miles wide and six miles long full of gum.
7. Use less paper napkins! The average american uses 6 paper napkins a day!
8. Turn off the lights when you leave a room!
9. Don't use plastic bags. Instead bring your own tote to the market.
10. Eat Locally! The average piece of food travels around 2000 miles from the farm to your plate. New York City has a plethora of farmers markets (see the link above).
XOXO
Green Teen
Yesterday at the Union Square Greenmarket I bought 6 oz Ronnybrook yogurts for 1.75 (they are absolutely fantastic) whereas the same product at Yura and OK market are $4! I do not understand why the one local product in either of these stores is over double the price it is normally sold at. I have scheduled a meeting with owners of On Madison (the "new" Yura) to discuss their environmental practices or lack there of and will bring up their total lack of local foods on that date (if anyone wants to come with me or has anything they would like me to tell Yura please email me!).
Walking. For the past two weeks I have walked everywhere. This has been one of the highlights of my project. In New York City and in the United States in general we don't appreciate the simple everyday things, the pleasures we can get from just walking for the sake of walking. I am lucky that I live in a place where I can walk everywhere, but we New Yorkers need to take advantage of this. My walk takes me from to all different neighborhoods and is the most relaxing way to start and end my day.
I am generating a list of tips that the Going Green Committee and the Earth Club are going to post around Nightingale. Here are some of them (source: "The Green Book" by Elizabeth Rogers and Thomas M. Kostigen available at bookstores and Urban Outfitters).
My Ten Tips of the Day:
1. Turn off the water when you brush your teeth! This can save 5 gallons of water a day!
2. Download music (legally of course) instead of buying CD's. Every month 45 tons of CD's end up in landfills
3. Use a re-useable water bottle. It take 1.5 million barrels of oil to supply the United State's demand for bottled water in a year.
4. Send Text messges or emails from your blackberry instead of from a computer. A computer uses upwards of thirty times more electricity per a message than a handheld device.
5. Use re-useable pens. In one year Americans throw away 1.6 billion pens.
6. If you chew gum throw it in the trash not on the street or under a desk. The average american chews 190 sticks of gum a year. All of this gum added together is equal to the an area four miles wide and six miles long full of gum.
7. Use less paper napkins! The average american uses 6 paper napkins a day!
8. Turn off the lights when you leave a room!
9. Don't use plastic bags. Instead bring your own tote to the market.
10. Eat Locally! The average piece of food travels around 2000 miles from the farm to your plate. New York City has a plethora of farmers markets (see the link above).
XOXO
Green Teen
Monday, March 3, 2008
The Cost Of Going Green
Today I was walking in Union Square when I saw two middle-aged women eating happy meals from McDonalds. This image seemed rather ironic to me since 1) they obviously were not children and they were eating children's meals 2) I had just walked through the Union Square greenmarket, a cornucopia of local healthy food choices. I would like to debunk the myth that local food because it is "too expensive" to be bought instead of conventional foods. On Saturday I spent seventy-five dollars at the farmer's market on a wide range of items (sixteen pounds of carrots and potatoes, two loaves of local bread, two pounds of local whole wheat flour, local pancake mix, twenty or so apples, two heads of cabbage, hydroponic tomatoes, a tub of butter, two quarts of skim milk, a large container of yogurt, local granola, maple syrup, and goat cheese. (A picture of these items will be uploaded ASAP).
All of these products will sustain me for the week (21 meals and some snacks) which averages out to $3.57 a meal. My old lifestyle would allow me to spend 2.17 on an ice coffee from Yura (which is mainly ice and leftover coffee served in a plastic cup which will take a hundred years to decompose) and a $2 farmcake for breakfast, if I wanted to do so. When I lived this way I spent much more money on food and for what? To add to Global Warming? To make Yura richer?
When someone tells me that local food is expensive I laugh because I honestly believe I am getting the best deal in town with my diet. Not only am I saving money but I have also never felt better physically. My increased walking and healthier diet have had a fantastic toll on my physical well-being.
Most farmers now accept food stamps, which levels the playing field, allowing local healthy food choices to become a necessity not just a luxary for the wealthy.
I honestly believe that anyone can go green by lowering their carbon emissions, you just have to take it one step at a time.
Please let me know of any green actions you have made recently!
XOXOX Green Teen
All of these products will sustain me for the week (21 meals and some snacks) which averages out to $3.57 a meal. My old lifestyle would allow me to spend 2.17 on an ice coffee from Yura (which is mainly ice and leftover coffee served in a plastic cup which will take a hundred years to decompose) and a $2 farmcake for breakfast, if I wanted to do so. When I lived this way I spent much more money on food and for what? To add to Global Warming? To make Yura richer?
When someone tells me that local food is expensive I laugh because I honestly believe I am getting the best deal in town with my diet. Not only am I saving money but I have also never felt better physically. My increased walking and healthier diet have had a fantastic toll on my physical well-being.
Most farmers now accept food stamps, which levels the playing field, allowing local healthy food choices to become a necessity not just a luxary for the wealthy.
I honestly believe that anyone can go green by lowering their carbon emissions, you just have to take it one step at a time.
Please let me know of any green actions you have made recently!
XOXOX Green Teen
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Days Ten And Eleven
Happy Weekend!
On Saturday morning I went to the farmer's market with my father to purchase my food for the week. My favorite market is the Saturday market at Union Square but you can check out http://www.cenyc.org/greenmarket for a list of farmer's markets in your neighborhood.
It was a wonderful experience, I love being able to meet the men and women who planted, cared for, and picked the food I was purchasing. For example the woman who grows hydroponic tomatoes was incredibly warm and friendly she informed me and my father that because the days are getting longer and her crop is now exposed to more sunlight the tomatoes are especially sweet this week. It is this connection with farmers that our country has lost. As we have moved to a world that is virtually without seasons, one can walk into a grocery store and buy strawberries 365 days a year.
Speaking of grocery stores, last week my mother went into Whole Foods searching for some dinner for our family and some local foods for me to eat and came out of the store perplexed. The only local foods she could find were a local green bell pepper, coach farm goat cheese, Ronnybrook milk, and some eggs. Why does a "green" store lack a local foods section?
In Saturday's New York Times there was a fantastic article written by a farmer about local foods you can check it out at: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/01/opinion/01hedin.html .
Unfortunately, I spent the majority of the past weekend doing homework (On Monday I have a physics test and a five page paper due on eco-terrorism) and thus I don't have any tips on being a social green teen this week.
More Later
xoxo Green Teen
On Saturday morning I went to the farmer's market with my father to purchase my food for the week. My favorite market is the Saturday market at Union Square but you can check out http://www.cenyc.org/greenmarket for a list of farmer's markets in your neighborhood.
It was a wonderful experience, I love being able to meet the men and women who planted, cared for, and picked the food I was purchasing. For example the woman who grows hydroponic tomatoes was incredibly warm and friendly she informed me and my father that because the days are getting longer and her crop is now exposed to more sunlight the tomatoes are especially sweet this week. It is this connection with farmers that our country has lost. As we have moved to a world that is virtually without seasons, one can walk into a grocery store and buy strawberries 365 days a year.
Speaking of grocery stores, last week my mother went into Whole Foods searching for some dinner for our family and some local foods for me to eat and came out of the store perplexed. The only local foods she could find were a local green bell pepper, coach farm goat cheese, Ronnybrook milk, and some eggs. Why does a "green" store lack a local foods section?
In Saturday's New York Times there was a fantastic article written by a farmer about local foods you can check it out at: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/01/opinion/01hedin.html .
Unfortunately, I spent the majority of the past weekend doing homework (On Monday I have a physics test and a five page paper due on eco-terrorism) and thus I don't have any tips on being a social green teen this week.
More Later
xoxo Green Teen
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