Earth Day Widget!

We are counting down to Earth Day with environmental tips from the book, so make sure to grab the MySpace OurPlanet widget below!

My Eco-Promise

As a citizen of the world and a friend of our planet, I embrace the fact that our planet is my responsibility.

  • I believe that small actions can—and will—lead to significant change.
  • I am conscious that all of my choices have a lasting impact on our Earth, and will strive to balance my actions to offset harm and contribute positively.
  • I will continue learning about the environment and the needs of our planet so that I can effectively influence the eco-awareness of my friends, my family, and my communities.
  • I will find ways to be involved in actively promoting change, and will give of my time and talents to join with others who are equally committed to our planet.
  • I will continually challenge myself to find new ways to live a life that matches my ideals and my commitment to positive change.
  • I will deliberately choose ecologically sensitive options over convenience in all areas of my life, and will encourage others to do so by my example.
  • I will question assumptions.
  • I will start today, with a single action:
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01 / OurPlanet

For an introduction to what you can do:

For more on the science and facts of climate change:

  • The Climate Group’s climate change site / Link
  • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s climate change site / Link
  • Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change / Link
  • NASA’s Earth Observatory site on global warming / Link
  • Natural Resources Defense Council / Link
  • Pew Center on Global Climate Change / Link
  • Union of Concerned Scientists global warming site / Link

Sites that focus on eco-friendly living:

  • The Daily Green, an online portal for green living / Link
  • Earth 911, an environmental resource / Link
  • Grist, a news site with environmental news and commentary / Link
  • Treehugger, a media outlet focused on making sustainability mainstream / Link
  • WorldChanging, a site that investigates how to change the world through the technology and ideas that already exist / Link

Sites with more technical information:

  • The Earth Trends database from the World Resources Institute offers comprehensive information on current environmental trends / Link
  • RealClimate is a news commentary site written by working climate-change scientists / Link
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02 / Health & Body

U.S. Food and Drug Administration www.cfsan.fda.gov/

To learn more about the ingredients in your products:

  • The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics / Link
  • The Center for Clean Products and Clean Technologies / Link
  • The Consumers Union Guide to Environmental Labels / Link
  • The Green Guide’s “Dirty Dozen” / Link
  • Skin Deep, The Environmental Working Group’s cosmetic safety database / Link
  • Toxics Search from greenerchoices.org / Link

Eco-friendly eating guides:

  • Monterey Bay Aquarium’s seafood guide / Link
  • The Green Guide’s summary of food labels / Link
  • The Environmental Working Group’s guide to food and pesticides / Link

To find local-food options:

  • 100 Mile Diet / Link
  • LocalHarvest / Link
  • Locavores / Link
  • U.S. Department of Agriculture’s farmers market guide / Link
  • Food Routes / Link

For more information on water:

  • The EPA’s guide to local drinking water / Link
  • Information on bottled water from the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) / Link
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03 / Your Home, Your Planet

100 Tips from Con Edison / Link

For more on offsetting - carbon footprint calculators:

  • The EPA’s Personal Emissions Calculator / Link
  • Carbonfootprintcalculators—a list from the ConsumerReports Greener Choices / Link
  • Eco Business Links offers a list of offsetters and compares their services / Link

How to compare carbon footprint calculators:

  • A guide by F&C Investments on how to evaluate carbon offsetters / PDF Guide
  • New England’s regional non-profit Clean Air-Cool Planet’s “Consumer’s Guide to Retail Carbon Offset Providers” / PDF Guide

More information on green and renewable energy:

  • U.S. Department of Energy’s Green Power Network / Link
  • Environmental Working Group’s clean energy guide / Link
  • EPA’s Green Power Locator / Link
  • U.S. Public Interest Research Groups (PIRG) / Link

Recycling information:

  • Earth911’s “Find a Recycling Center” tool / Link
  • The EPA’s guide on how to reduce, reuse, and recycle / Link
  • Energy Kid’s Page guide to recycling from the Energy Information Administration / Link
  • The EPA’s guide to recycling electronics / Link
  • National Recycling Coalition / Link
  • GreenDisk, a recycling company for computer waste, including CDs / Link
  • The Compact Disc Recycling Center of America / Link

For more information on composting:

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04 / Your Free Time

Music:

Reverb www.reverbrock.org—keep informed about what bands are going green

Electronics:

  • Guide to evaluating the energy efficiency of your electronics / Link
  • The Energy Star site has information on buying different energy efficient entertainment gadgets / Link
  • Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool / Link
  • Guide for building a “Green PC” yourself / Link
  • Guide to recycling rechargeable batteries / Link

Swapping or trading in entertainment

Video-game console recycling:

Video-game trading:

For more information on greener sports:

Other entertainment resources:

Green Press Initiative - information on green initiatives in the book publishing industry / Link

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05 / Social Life

For more information on greening your holidays:

  • EPA's Consumer Tips - Holidays and Parties / Link
  • Audubon's Tips for Greening Your Holidays / Link

For more information on holiday lighting ideas:

EnergyIdeas.org

To find out where to go in your neighborhood to recycle your holiday trees and trimmings:

Earth911.org

For ideas on alternative, greener gifts:

For a list of eco-retailers that offset emissions:

CarbonFund.org

Eco-tourism & eco-vacations:

Volunteering for the environment:

Alternative spring breaks:

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06 / On The Road

National Center for Safe Routes to School - online resources to encourage and enable more children to safely walk and bike to school / Link

For more information on biking:

  • Adventure Cycling Association / Link
  • America Bikes / Link
  • BicycleSafe.com / Link
  • Bicycle Transportation Institute / Link
  • Bikes Belong Coalition / Link
  • International Bicycle Fund / Link

For more information on carpooling:

For more information on greener driving:

  • Better World Club / Link
  • EPA’s Green Vehicle Guide / Link
  • Hybrid Center / Link
  • Pump ’em Up / Link
  • World Carfree Network / Link
  • Yahoo! Autos Green Center / Link

To find out your car’s fuel effi ciency/alternative fueling:

For more information on car-sharing and renting:

  • City Carshare (Bay Area) / Link
  • Evo Limo (Los Angeles) / Link
  • EV Rental Cars (Phoenix, Arizona, and Los Angeles and San Francisco) / Link
  • OZOcar (New York) / Link

For more information on walking:

America Walks / Link

For more information on public transportation:

  • American Public Transportation Association / Link
  • Center for Transportation Excellence / Link

Trip planning on public transportation:

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07 / Money - The Original “Green”

How to find eco-friendly products:

  • Tips from Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports, on how to read labels, suggestions about products to buy, and guidance on how to avoid being “greenwashed” by environmentally friendly claims that don’t hold up / Link
  • An online marketplace that allows you to prioritize your eco-values and then suggests companies that match them / www.alonovo.com">Link
  • Greenloop, a directory of green clothing stores/lines / Link
  • A list of companies that dedicate at least 1 percent of their sales to environmental causes / Link
  • Provides information on companies and how they rate on climate change / Link
  • Printable pocket guides from The Green Guide to make you a smarter shopper / Link

How to find eco-friendly companies:

  • Climate Counts / Link
  • Co-op America / Link
  • Green 50, from Inc. magazine / Link

For more information on reducing, reusing, or recycling:

  • Reusing Styrofoam / Link
  • Buying recycled paper products / Link
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08 / The Community At Large

A guide on how to talk to a climate-change skeptic / Link

School:

  • Campus Climate Challenge, a joint project of youth climate-change organizations from the United States and Canada that connects high school and college students who are organizing to win 100 percent Clean Energy policies at their schools / Link
  • Children’s Environmental Literacy Foundation, the organization’s mission is to promote sustainability education from kindergarten through high schoool / Link
  • Go Green Initiative — a grassroots organization that seeks to foster a culture of environmental responsibility on school campuses across the nation / Link
  • Green Squad, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Healthy Schools Network’s guide to greening your school / Link
  • Make a Difference Campaign, the EPA’s “Make a Difference” campaign for middle school students / Link
  • One World Youth Project, a sister-school program for middle and high school students, linking groups in the United States and Canada with groups from around the world through community service around United Nations Millennium Development Goals / Link
  • The U.S. Department of Energy’s guide to building greener schools / Link

City:

  • Cool Cities, the online organization for cities who have signed the U.S. Mayors’ Climate Protection Agreement / Link
  • ICLEI—Local Governments for Sustainability, an international association of local governments and national and regional local government organizations that share a commitment to sustainable development / Link

Websites with information to use in school projects focused on the environment:

  • Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), which is an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, links to pages that students can use to gather background information for projects / Link
  • The EPA’s student information website / Link
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09 / Eco-Activism

Youth groups for environmental action:

  • Global Youth Action Network / Link
  • It’s Getting Hot in Here, a community media project that features dispatches from the youth climate movement / Link
  • Natural Resources Defense Council’s Activist Network / Link
  • Sierra Student Coalition / Link
  • Stopglobalwarming.org’s Virtual March / Link
  • Student Environmental Action Coalition / Link
  • SustainUS, the U.S. Youth Network for Sustainable Development / Link
  • Teens for Planet Earth, youth activist offshoot of the Wildlife Conservation Society / Link
  • Youth Service America, a resource center for youth service organizations / Link
  • Change.org and MeetUp.com search for groups that share your eco-interests

To learn more about what the government is doing:

  • Track legislation / Link
  • Find your congressional representative / Link
  • Research their environmental record / Link
  • Background on the Kyoto Protocol from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change / Link
  • The EPA’s list of major environmental laws / Link

To find out what’s going on in your area:

  • United States Carbon Footprint Tables show you how your state’s carbon footprint compares to other states’ carbon emissions / Link
  • Use the Sierra Club’s tool to fi nd news about the environment in your neighborhood / Link

For educational opportunities:

  • Audubon Expedition Institute at Lesley University / Link
  • The E.E. Just Environmental Leadership Institute / Link
  • League of Conservation Voters Education Fund / Link

Think tanks:

  • Earth Policy Institute / Link
  • Pacific Institute / Link
  • Resources for the Future / Link
  • Worldwatch Institute / Link

For more eco-speak definitions:

Natural Resources Defense Council’s glossary / Link

Environmental organizations and non-profits:

  • Alliance to Save Energy / Link
  • Environmental Working Group / Link
  • Global Green USA / Link
  • Oceana / Link
  • Voice Yourself / Link
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