Cities suffering from major traffic congestion would provide bicycles for community use, for a low rental fee. Costs include initial purchase of the bicycles, setup of rental stations, setup of a payment system (e.g. computerized credit-card terminals) and ongoing service contract for broken bicycles.

Can It Work?

The French cities of Lyon and Paris have had community bike-rental programs in operation since 2005 and 2007 respectively, and these programs are still thriving.

How Is It Paid For?

Over time, the rental fees for the bikes would cover the cost of the program; for more immediate returns, the city might choose to negotiate a deal with the bicycle manufacturer for (e.g.) the use of city-owned advertising space in lieu of cash.

What Good Does It Do?

The city of Lyon estimated that in the first two years of their 3,000-bicycle program, several thousand tons of carbon dioxide emissions were saved. Vehicle traffic in the city dropped by 4 percent and bicycle use tripled. Public fitness levels showed an increase, and many frequent renters have also opted to purchase bicycles of their own, further propagating the beneficial effects of the program.

Each post tagged ’80 ways’ will feature something which can be done to help, on scales from the individual to the global. Where appropriate, we will be setting up online petitions to send to our elected representatives. We urge you to make your voices heard.

Of course, if we can come up with more than 80 ways, we’ll keep right on going!

If you have a particular idea which you would like to contribute, please email us by clicking here.

What, indeed, can a person do to combat an oil spill of such immensity that it would halfway fill the Empire State Building? What can one do when the source of the spill is a mile beneath the surface of the waters? How can one help when each new ocean wave spreads the oil further and further afield?

For some, the disaster is just too large to comprehend. Few people truly feel as though they as individuals can do anything to make a difference.

Wrong.

There are ways in which you can help, and if enough people are helping, we CAN make a difference.

Volunteering your time and effort to the vast cleanup operation helps. In Florida alone, over 20,000 person-hours have been put in by volunteers to aid BP and its partner organizations. Some organizations charge a fee for training you as a spill-response operative, but isn’t that a small price to pay?

Donating to the National Audubon Society or the National Wildlife Federation can help them rescue affected animals from the spill zone, thus preventing mass die-offs that would perpetuate the ecological instability.

Giving the very hair of your head, discarded fur clothing or torn nylons to Matter Of Trust can help them to capture oil from the surface of the water.

Writing to your elected representatives and urging them to embrace alternative energy legislation could be very helpful, especially right now as we approach the midterm elections.

Use this as an educational opportunity to teach your children about the dangers posed by oil drilling and the benefits of alternative energy. After all, they like to play on the beaches being fouled.

These are all positive steps you can take, and to make a difference, positive change must be the goal.

While Lady Gaga and other celebrities have advanced the notion of boycotting BP gas stations around the globe, this does very little to hurt BP but can have a major impact on the livelihoods of local gas station owners who in some cases don’t even buy their gas from BP any longer since BP’s 2007 disinvestment in many of the retail gas stations carrying their name.

If you want to be positive, consider taking steps to reduce your dependence on ALL oil. Walk, ride a bike or take the bus when you have the opportunity. Become aware of the oil-based products you yourself are using; not just gasoline, but plastics and synthetic fabrics too.

If you live in the Gulf coast area, be aware of what to look for every time you head to the beach. The federal government has set up hotlines for reporting shorelines contaminated by oil (1-866-448-5816), oil-related property damage (1-800-440-0858) and wildlife stricken by oil (1-866-557-1401).

Your help isn’t just possible. It’s necessary.

We do try to make our footprint as small as it can be, but there are factors outside of our control. Living without a car, for example, is impractical for us. We live too far from school and work to walk or bike (though we are trying to change that, even as we speak!), and the public transportation in our corner of southwestern Florida is incredibly sub-par. Instead, we try to limit car-usage as much as we can. My husband carpools home from work, rather than me having to drive to and from his place of business an extra time. When we run errands, we try to save them up and do several at once, to minimize extra trips – and when possible, I do them when I’m leaving the house to pick up our son from preschool, for further minimization.

We’re also guilty of buying beverages (though usually not plain water – for that, we use reusable bottles) in glass or plastic, individual-sized containers. Surely giving those up would be greener. Though we do try to be mindful of packaging when we’re doing our shopping, in general – buying larger quantities rather than individually-wrapped or -packaged items, carrying our reusable bags rather than using paper or plastic (and reusing the bags we do get, if we’ve forgotten to bring our own) – beverages are our “guilty pleasure,” in this circumstance.

Generally speaking, we do try to live a relatively green lifestyle, but no matter how much you do, there’s always more that can be done. It never feels like enough, and I frequently feel guilty when I allow convenience or life circumstance to overpower a green-minded decision. Perhaps we should agree to give up one small convenience every so often, to move even further towards a greener lifestyle… and to quiet the guilt.

After a long hiatus, which has seen the birth of our son and a change in employment, we are coming back to the Green Room to bring you more environmental news, more op/eds, more music.

Our archives will gradually be uploaded to these pages along with new content.

Welcome back, one and all.

If you’ve bought any small-electronics within the past couple of years, you’ve probably encountered this stuff. Because plastic itself wasn’t enough, someone decided it was even better to seal the edges of the plastic so it could not be breached with anything short of a chain saw. It’s impossible to remove your item from the package without completely destroying its housing, making returns difficult at best. If you’re lucky, you can get to your new toy without slicing open any of your fingers – not on the knife, mind you, but on the sharp edges of the plastic itself.

Now, using these things for electronics items is bad enough, but I was stunned to find the same packaging on lightbulbs! Worst yet, these were the fluorescent bulbs we keep hearing touted as more environmentally-friendly than incandescents. I’m not doubting that they are more energy-efficient. As such, the bulbs themselves are certainly more eco-friendly. However, some of that effect is certainly negated by the use of non-biodegradable materials in the packaging.

What’s worst here is that none of the “three r’s” can be applied to heat-sealed plastics. It’s additional plastic, negating the idea of reduction. You have to cut them open, so they can’t be reused. In many areas, the types of plastics used for this are not even recyclable.

So what can we do? Short of boycotting the products which use this type of packaging (which may not be practical, considering its wide-spread usage), it may seem hopeless. My suggestion, however, is to start writing letters. Write to companies – manufacturers and retailers alike – and let them know how inconvenient these plastics are to the consumer. If enough voices are heard, perhaps a change can be made!

While many people can quote scripture to justify their actions, almost all religions across the world have examples in their sacred texts of ecologically sound wisdom.

Early in the Christian Bible (Genesis 2:15), we are told that “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till and keep it.” The Earth is given to us, but is to be cared for rather than disregarded. Romans 1:20 goes on to say “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”

Luminaries past and present have warned their flocks against wanton destruction of Nature. Bartholomew I, Ecumenical Patriarch of Orthodox Churches, said “To commit a crime against the natural world is a sin…For humans to cause species to become extinct and to destroy the biological diversity of God’s creation, for humans to degrade the integrity of the earth by stripping the earth of its natural forests, or destroying its wetlands… for humans to contaminate the earth’s water, its land, its air, and its life with poisonous substances…these are sins.”

The current Pope, Benedict XVI, recently noted in his annual message for peace, “In recent years, new nations have entered enthusiastically into industrial production, thereby increasing their energy needs. Meanwhile, some parts of the planet remain backward, and development is effectively blocked, partly because of the rise in energy prices. What will happen to these peoples? What injustices and conflicts will be provoked by the race for energy sources?” This came in discussion of what His Holiness termed the “ecology of peace,” the notion that safeguarding the environment and developing alternative energy sources is a great step forward in the reduction of global conflict.

The Unitarian Universalist church has gone so far as to urge individuals, congregations and indeed governments at all levels to become aware of their ecological impact and aim to minimize it, in a forward-thinking resolution adopted in 1977.

Further from home, we find this gem of Buddhist wisdom: “Rajah Koravya had a king banyan tree called Steadfast, and the shade of its widespread branches was cool and lovely. Its shelter broadened to twelve leagues…. None guarded its fruit, and none hurt another for its fruit. Now there came a man who ate his fill of fruit, broke down a branch, and went his way. Thought the spirit dwelling in that tree, “How amazing, how astonishing it is, that a man should be so evil as to break off a branch of the tree, after eating his fill. Suppose the tree were to bear no more fruit.” And the tree bore no more fruit.”

The lesson inherent in this parable bears consideration by Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike. We cannot afford to destroy any natural resource simply because we personally have no further need of it. Perhaps our children – or our children’s children – may yet derive some benefit from it.

Islam too urges against the destruction of our natural resources, in sura 55 of the Qur’an.

Allah Most Gracious!
It is He Who has taught the Qur’an.
He has created man:
He has taught him speech (and intelligence).
The sun and the moon follow courses (exactly) computed;
And the herbs and the trees – both (alike) bow in adoration.
And the Firmament has He raised high, and He has set up the Balance (of Justice),
In order that ye may not transgress (due) balance.
So establish weight with justice and fall not short in the balance.
It is He Who has spread out the earth for (His) creatures:
Therein is fruit and date-palms, producing spathes (enclosing dates);
Also corn, with (its) leaves and stalk for fodder, and sweet-smelling plants.
Then which of the favours of your Lord will ye deny?

We need not expect the adoption of environmental practices to impinge upon our religious views. It is our hope that readers will take a few moments to peruse the texts and tenets of their own religions or philosophies, and find out how they too can live in greater harmony with the Earth.

January may not be the best time to be writing about shopping, as a lot of us are all shopped out after the holidays. On the other hand, I think it’s on everyone’s mind, as we think about our gifts, and as our spending habits come into the spotlight. This year, most of my own Christmas shopping was sustainable – I adopted my husband a polar bear from the World Wildlife Federation, and the two of us had a Redwood planted for his father. Most of our other presents – to family and to friends – were homemade.

Christmas isn’t the only time for sustainable shopping habits, though. For years, I’ve shopped in consignment shops and used bookstores. Of course, I was mostly doing it to conserve the other green – that which lives in my wallet. However, in addition to being a less expensive way to shop, it’s more eco-friendly, subscribing to the first and third of the Three R’s: Reduce and Recycle. If I’m not buying new products, I am not contributing to the waste which goes into their creation. As well, I am supporting a market which allows for our previously-purchased goods to find a new home. Clothes that don’t fit any longer can be taken to thrift stores, where someone else can find them. (This is also recommended for any of those Christmas gifts which were not quite the right color or style. Someone else may absolutely love what you couldn’t stand!)

There is also the concept of going “shopping” in your friends’ closets. Everyone has a few items of clothing (some have a whole wardrobe!) they can’t or don’t wear anymore – shirts that are too big, pants that are too small, entire ensembles which no longer suit your tastes. Get a group together, sort out these items, and have a try-on party. Anything not claimed by someone else can then be donated to the Salvation Army or other such Goodwill thrift stores, as mentioned above. The same could be applied to kitchenware or other household items as well.

Even music is more sustainable, these days. With more and more MP3-purchase sites available at reduced rates, consumers are more able to buy their music electronically instead of store-bought CDs. While many people are likely doing it without a single green thought, electronic music purchase saves the planet from unnecessary plastic use and production. Besides, MP3s take up no physical space and don’t collect dust!

As we advance another year towards 2010s, environmentalism seems to take new and different forms. What used to be limited to organic farming and remembering to recycle has expanded into a whole field of its own. Every part of living has been affected, and will continue to adapt and change. The more we can adapt, the longer we can keep this planet turning.

The answer is that no, it wouldn’t. Like so many other people out there, I can’t imagine having to live without the Internet, or CD/DVD players. Other folks feel similarly about their televisions, their SUVs. And living with the knowledge that we once sent people to the moon and went on to abolish the airplane would be impossible. Then, of course, there is the impossibility of persuading humanity as a whole to move toward a goal of this kind.

So a newly-verdant paradise scenario is out of the question. Few Green Room readers will deny, however, that staying our current course is also out of the question. What’s the alternative?

As in all conflicts, the answer lies in compromise, in a little give and take.

What we have lost sight of, from the Industrial Revolution onward, is that progress does not have to entail sacrificing and abusing natural resources. Indeed, now more than ever it is imperative that we find ways to live sustainably. If we are to avoid further damage to the planet we call home, it is vital that we learn to plant two trees for every one which is cut down, to utilize land without impacting its existing ecosystem, to produce according to our needs without our waste poisoning the air and water around us.

The world now needs to invest its resources in clean-burning fuels for existing vehicles, light railway systems rather than new highways, and power stations whose emissions are either zero or harmless.

While we’re developing and converting to clean fuels, we need to invest in local resources to cut down on shipping emissions. A small local store where people know and respect their customers can provide a happier, more thoughtful service as well as cutting down on shipping costs, making for a more pleasant shopping experience.

High-yield agriculture is good, if we can be sure of doing it in such a way as to avoid leaving the land barren in its aftermath. Soybeans are being used for almost everything imaginable these days, and the increase in soy cultivation is now responsible for a great deal of deforestation in South America. We can learn to grow soybeans using better space management, to efficiently cultivate corn and sugar cane for ethanol fuel production (and devise more energy-efficient methods of producing it!). Nature herself has provided a plethora of examples for humankind to follow, if only we would look closely.

Organic produce is another area in which we can do more. Both the industrial chemicals used in non-organic farming and the means of producing said chemicals are a source of contaminants to our bodies and our environment. There’s also something else that I discovered: organic produce actually tastes better. We switched to buying organic bananas some months back, and on the occasions when we’ve been unable to find them and have had to settle for non-organic, the flavor is much weaker.

What we should be aiming for is not to cover the Earth in trees and flowers, but to go about our business in such a way as to complement the Earth’s own natural processes rather than trying to go one better.

A few months ago, I did a fairly extensive websearch, trying to find a local place to recycle my used batteries. To be honest, I wasn’t able to find very much. There are a few places which will deal with regular, household batteries, but none were local to me, and all required an additional fee.

Moreover, further research showed that the state waste facilities don’t consider alkaline batteries to be hazardous. I’m no waste management expert, I admit. However, to me, any chemical thrown into our landfills is a “hazard”. Batteries leak acid when they get old. Do we want that acid seeping into our soil or water?

Many non-alkaline batteries do have recycling options within New York state, thankfully. Those containing mercury, lead, and other toxic components are widely recycled. I’m not convinced it’s enough, however. I would like to see the program expanded to include more types of household batteries.

In the meantime, I urge you to use recyclable batteries in your household devices, wherever possible. The fewer batteries being sent to our landfills, the better.

Sources consulted:
http://www.dec.state.ny.us/website/dshm/redrecy/battery.htm (NY state specifically)

http://www.batteryrecycling.com/household.html (US)