10 Healthy Foods Under 1 Dollar

Food prices are rising and for people who own cars we're feeling it at the gas pump. Eating healthy can be more expensive and with prices going up around us stretching a buck while eating well is a great thing. WebMD has a list of 10 Healthy Foods Under 1 Dollar which is a great start.

A while ago I posted about nutrition and grocery shopping and some comments I received related to the cost of healthy food and how that impacts people at lower income levels. Hopefully this is a good start in resolving those issues.

Junk Mail as Garden Mulch

This is the time of year when many people look to work in the garden. People check the soil, add mulch, peat moss and other materials to amend the soil and get it prepared for the plants they plan to grow. The allure of gardening is making things your way. Surfing the web I found that you can make mulch from your junk mail. I haven't tried it but the theory sounds interesting. There are many ways to turn "junk" into something useful and online they are seemingly endless for anything you want to do.

Innovative Transportation

Transportation poses one of the most significant environmental challenges. People the world over find the freedom of being able to go anywhere indispensable. Finding fuel for transportation and the pollution resulting from finding and using that fuel is the challenge. Over the weekend I have come across several innovative modes of transportation and fuel.

Sourcing Bio-diesel in Sierra Leone.

A truck that runs on used coffee grounds. This makes you think about saving the coffee grounds for something other than the compost bin.

How-to for building your own solar powered trike. A nice way to get around town.

I continue to be amazed by the creativity and drive of people all over the world. It gives me hope to continue searching for a better way. I hope these things inspire you to find your own way to make the world better.

Job Search

There has been a lot of talk recently about "green collar" jobs and creating a "green" economy. In my opinion, it is inevitable we will have to make some changes in our economy. If you are interested in taking your current skills or looking at what is in demand in the current "green" economy then check out the following sites for jobs in the field.

Green Jobs

Green Energy Jobs

Environmental Career Opportunities

Environmental Studies Digital Library

Environmental Studies Digital Library is a great place to go to if you're looking for academic information. It covers a wide variety of topics from numerous sources. A great resource if you're looking for facts to use at a party or for serious research on how to change your ways.

Fast and Preserved

I'm not 100% sure of the accuracy of this video but I suspect it is not that far off nor is it exclusive to McDonald's. Preservatives in food are not uncommon and we should not be surprised. Who knows what is in fast food or processed food in the grocery store. Makes you wonder about how this stuff is allowed to be sold.

"Scuppies" and the Environment

Scuppie is a term that stands for socially conscious upwardly mobile person and defines a segment of the population. Fundamentally, scuppies want to do good but don't want to give up the luxuries and comforts afforded them by virtue of their income. This is a relatively new term and whether or not it becomes part of regular language it is definitely a marketing demographic. This scares me.

We are already seeing an increase in greenwashing and almost every product and service has a green tint to it. The risk is that all of this marketing will dilute the message and purpose behind it and not actually reduce the harm we cause by our activities. I think we all understand that North Americans are not going to change overnight but the idea of consuming everything because it feels good has to change. Our solutions never include waste reduction or rethinking the production and consumption cycle. In my opinion, blue boxes created more waste but people feel like they're doing their part. Scuppies are an extension of that mindset and will only have a limited impact on the "socially conscious" aspect of their lives. I don't discourage buying alternative products where available but I feel we need to think about what we're buying and become more active consumers to change what is coming to market.

Finding Pollution Where You Live

Global environmental issues receive more media attention. But what about finding pollution in your neighborhood? In the U.S. you could go to Scorecard and enter your zip code and see what came up. You could also download Google Earth maps and find all the Superfund sites and see how close you might be and look up what was left behind by some great corporate citizen.

Canada was a little bit behind in providing this information in one place. Environment Canada has recently released a Google Earth map for the National Pollution Release Inventory. You can enter your postal code and it will show locations on the map and outline what the emitter has reported. For example, a factory would report that it emits so much carbon dioxide into the air on an annual basis.

The impact of technology on sharing information is well known. It is applying this technology to share information that was previously unknown or unavailable to the public. With tools like these citizens can make decisions and question what is happening in their neighborhoods.