Social is one of the three pillars of sustainability, focusing on the social needs of individuals, as well as our society as a whole.
Wedding planning can be really (really) stressful. For earth-loving folks, the process can get even trickier, as most classic wedding decorations, favors, and traditions are far from eco-friendly. Luckily, a DIY attitude is all you need to create a wedding celebration that is unique, true to you, and kind to the earth. Whether you’re knee […]
For avid readers, altering a book’s cover or pages in any way may feel sacrilegious. But do you really honor your books by letting them accumulate dust on the shelves? If you feel like putting your books to use after you’ve read them (maybe more than once), then give these creative, beautiful, functional projects a […]
Replace Toxic Household Products with Coconut Oil Coconut oil is best known as a curry ingredient, smoothie additive, and beauty product. It also belongs in the cleaning cabinet as a natural and powerful cleanser and polisher. If you haven’t switched to non-toxic household products yet, now is the time. Each year the U.S Poison Control […]
Preserve the Harvest in a Root Cellar Imagine eating homegrown cabbage, beets, potatoes, onions, carrots, apples, and other produce on a winter evening, without the use of canning or refrigeration. Before home refrigerators, this scenario was commonplace thanks to the low-tech root cellar. A root cellar is any food storage area that uses the earth […]
We’ve only recently become separated from our food sources. Until a few generations ago millions of people lived on farms. Millions more grew vegetables and raised an animal or two in city lots. Those who didn’t were still connected to what they consumed. They had to be: There were few choices other than milk, eggs, meat, […]
Want to take your commitment to local foods to the next level? Look no further than your own trashcan or compost bin. While many people think of food scraps—such as carrot tops, onion bottoms, and the tips of romaine hearts or pineapples—as waste (or future fertilizer), these items can be enjoyed all over again. Reduce […]
Between 1975 and 2005, the average American family got smaller—but their house got bigger. Then came the housing crash that almost wiped out the American economy, and in its aftermath, many people began to wonder how much space we really need to live well. The result: a much-publicized return to simpler living in 1,000 square […]
“My greatest skill in life has been to want but little.” – Henry David Thoreau, Walden Imagine if you got rid of all your excess possessions, gave up your car for a bicycle, left the job that takes up all your time, and started over with a simplistic life? Deep down, the human heart sings […]
Maybe you’ve heard of off-gassing, with headlines claiming a mattress or couch slowly ruined someone’s health. Maybe you shrugged it off. Who has time to worry about their couch? Maybe off-gassing just hasn’t made it into your dinner table conversation yet. In any case, it’s time to pay attention. When it comes to the chemicals […]
An Energy-Efficient Lighting Guide In 2014, the Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to a Japanese-American team of scientists who had achieved a milestone. What was their momentous creation? The humble LED light. “Incandescent light bulbs lit the 20th century; the 21st century will be lit by LED lamps.” —Nobel Foundation Though tiny—the standard size […]