Happy first anniversary! This post is the fifty-third on the blog, marking one year of Radical Moderate. In honor of the traditional “paper” anniversary, that’s what we will be looking at this week: the resources needed, the pollution generated, how much actually gets recycled (despite our best attempts), and what you can do to reduce the quantity bound for the landfill.
In honor of the vacation we are currently enjoying, this post is about an amazing invention that is pretty standard across Japan and almost absent in America: the bidet. These devices are touted as more resource-friendly and bum-friendly than toilet paper, but the topic still seems to be avoided in polite conversation. And that’s what I’m here for – to do research and mention unmentionables.
For years I have wrestled with the moral quandary of weighing my love of travel and seeing beautiful places in the world with the knowledge that continued air travel to those places will likely hasten their destruction. That knowledge has not stopped me from traveling (at least not yet), but it does result in more frequent pangs of guilt every time I board a plane.
‘Tis the season for decorations, cookies, and warm greetings extended around the globe. What is the most environmentally responsible way to share those warm wishes? Is going paperless really the best option or should we switch over to electronic communications? It’s time for some holiday SWAGs (Scientific Wild-Ass Guesses) to give us a sense of our holiday card options and their related impacts.
I spend a good bit of time in my garden, weeding more than anything else. A year or so ago, Christian suggested that I use a weed barrier so I wouldn’t have to work as hard. I never knew of any weed barrier options other than plastic sheeting, so I didn’t consider weed barrier a viable option until a coworker mentioned her grandmother’s method.
When the weather gets hot, you need to stay hydrated, but how do you do that if you’ve pledged a Plastic-Free July? Sports drinks come in plastic bottles, and are further secured on flats in layers of plastic film. This summer I turned to an old recipe that predated plastic (and probably the Roman Empire) to help me through the heat and my zero-plastic challenge.
I recently came across a link for “Plastic-Free July” in my Facebook feed. As the name would suggest, the mission is to reduce or eliminate plastic use during the month of July. I have kept up with a lot of my habits from my zero-waste Lent this past spring, but, I thought this new challenge was worth a look.
Several months ago I saw an article posted on a sustainability website that suggested upcycling your Christmas tree to make beer. As the article correctly states, there is a precedent for using tree components in brewing. However, the article incorrectly implies that using your Christmas tree is the best way to go about making something drinkable.
It has been an interesting and challenging Lent. Some things I will keep doing; some I probably will not. All in all, it was very educational – I found myself doing research on subjects I hadn’t considered before. I was much more informed, thoughtful, and intentional in my decision-making, which was ultimately the goal.
Going into Lent this year, I realized that food would be my biggest challenge – whether eating while traveling, fueling/recovering from running, or just finding a way to make sure I got some nutrition during my long, busy days. This week I spent some time in the kitchen, cooking more in one day than I have during all of Lent so far, creating almost no waste.