Eye Opener: Photo Essay

A Daily Use of Household Chemicals and Toxins

A few the chemicals present : Sodium Hydroxide, Benzoic Acid, Sulisobenzone, Polyquaternium, Sodium Laureth Sulfate

A few of the chemical present: Cyclopentasiloxane, Trihydroxystearin, Methylparaben

A few of the chemicals present: Castor oil, Aluminum zirconium,  Copolymer, Biotin

Ingredient information found on http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/

Chemicals in Vectra 3d (a common flee and tick treatment for dogs): Dinotefuran, Pyriproxyfen, and Permethrin.

Because companies do not label pesticides and GMO's on packaging, consumers do not know what they are buying.

These foods are filled with hydrogenated oils.

Cleaning products can cause respiratory irritation chemical burns, and contain highly toxic materials

A few of the chemicals found in laundry products:  Phosphates, Sodium tripolyph-osphate.   http://www.naturalnews.com/001061.html

Eye Opener: Junk on the Brain

Antiquing- going out and shopping or looking for antiques in a variety of locations.  Antiques can be found in many different locations such as estate sales, garage sales, special shops, and flea markets. Many people enjoy the thrill of seeking out valuable objects and restoring them. 

Junking- The art of searching or shopping for bargains, anitques, collectibles, or any concievable kind of dust collector or garbage.

flea market- A flea market or swap meet is a type of bazaar where inexpensive or secondhand goods are sold or bartered. 

Thrift store- A shop that sells used articles, especially clothing, as to benefit a charitable organization.

Upcycling-Upcycling is the process of converting waste materials or useless products into new materials or products of better quality or a higher environmental value.

resale shops- all shops that sell gently-used goods 

1 These terms above all describe environmentally friendly alternatives to buying new products.  By purchasing items that have already left their ecological footprint, the demand for new products to be created will decrease. 

2 antiques- Antiques Off Broadway Mall, 103 Avenue C Cloquet, MN. 218-879-5284,  http://www.manta.com/c/mm0b3sz/antiques-off-broadway 

   junking- Guilded Salvage Antiques. 4430 Lyndale Avenue North. 612-789-1680

   Flea market- Post Road Flea Market, Hwy 5 Minneapolis. http://www.tagsellit.com/flea-markets-directory/Minnesota

   Thrift store-  Ragstock http://www.ragstock.com/  Superior Street. 218-722-1201

   Upcycling- http://www.snowmanhill.com/2010/08/farm-junk-repurposed.html   

   Resale shop- Plato's Closet.  http://www.platoscloset.com/locations/list/MN  5115 Burning Tree Road Suite 315C Duluth, MN 55811

218-733-9455

3.  I occasionally shop at thrift stores and resale shops.  They usually have good products that are much cheaper.  I also do a bit of Upcycling.  If there is a possibility I could reuse something at a later date, I will keep it.  Because I have limited living space, and no house of my own, I don't do much antiquing, junking, or flea market shopping.  When I do purchase my own house someday I hope to mainly decorate with previously owned items.  

Eye Opener: Environmental Working Group

I typed all of my cosmetics into this database to find out how toxic each was.  The product I chose to write about was my Cover Girl mascara.  I was happy to see that one of my favorite cosmetics was scored at a four and not higher, but it  still worries me a little.  It has a higher risk of cancer than many of the other products I looked at.  It says there is a high risk of endocrine disruption, persistence and bioaccumulation, and organ system toxicity.  It's scares me to think that I use something everyday that raises my chance of getting cancer.  The next time I go shopping for makeup or other beauty products, I will search them out on this website to find items with low risk.  This website is a great resource and I will be sharing it with friends and family! 

http://www.covergirl.ca/en_ca/prodimages/prof_super_thick_mascara_1.jpg

Eye Opener: CSPI

For our second eye opener, I decided to take the "Score Your Diet" quiz.  My grand total was 62 which is in the excellent range.  The highest number I got was a 33 in the fruit row.  I love fruit, and now that apples are in season I have been eating 3 or 4 a day.  The lowest number on my score card was a negative 14 in the milk and yogurt row.  Organic Greek yogurt is one of my favorite foods and one of my main sources of protein.  I am a vegetarian so the yogurt and milk are important for me to get essential nutrients.  I also am at risk of osteoporosis, so I make sure to get enough calcium and vitamin D through these two sources.  I would like to improve on the environmental score.  By eating more organic foods, I will be able to get a lower score.  I was happy to score in the excellent range because I try my best to eat environmentally and animal friendly, while still taking care of my health.  

Eye Opener: Ecological Footprint

For the first eye opener assignment we took quizzes to determine our ecological footprints.  I was shocked and slightly horrified with my results.  In order to support my activities, the IUHPE quiz informed me that I would need 3.9 planet Earths to provide enough resources.  When broken down into a pie chart, 51% is services, 20% is for food, 14% for shelter, 5% mobility, and 11% for goods.  I try to be as environmentally friendly as possible, so I can't imagine how many planet Earth's a person who doesn't try would need.  I read the FAQ on this site and it said it may be impossible to keep yourself within the limitations of one planet.  It scares me that most of the services are societal and ones I have very limited control over.  Another quiz I took was titled Carbon Independent.  This compared your households total CO2 usage to the rest of the world.  My families use was 7.23 which is much less than the USA's average of 20.  This number made me feel better than the 3.9 Earths did.  To reduce my footprint I will try and buy products with less packaging, buy more locally, and wait as long as possible before turning the heat on.  

Welcome to Let's Go Green With Emily! This blog is going to give tips on being more eco-friendly.  

There are 5 possible types of posts on my blog.  They include:

1. Advocacy Project
2. Eye Openers
3. Reflections
4. Read 'n' Seed
5. Share and Voice

The members of my web groups are:

1.   Jamie@Perserving the Ways of Hanauma Bay with Jamie Kay 
2.   Ashley@AshleysGoneGreen
3.   morganne@morgannesintentsoutdooradventure 
4.  Dr. V.@Enviro-Surfing

You can also follow my blog by clicking "Follow this Blog" in the gadget column. You can see my complete profile and all the blogs I am following by clicking on "See Complete Profile." 

Hope you enjoy reading my blog, and learn some new information on going green!