The Green Life

Fast Fact

If each U.S. household installed one low-flow sink faucet or aerator, it would save more than 60 billion gallons of water annually. epa.gov/watersense

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Less than one-fifth of obsolete computers are reused or recycled. Find a responsible recycler for your old PC or Mac at www.computertakeback.com.

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Women make 85 percent of retail purchases in the United States.

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A biodynamic vineyard must be chemical free and almost entirely self-sufficient, requiring little to no outside inputs.

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Nearly 30 million pounds of pesticides are applied to fields of conventionally grown California wine grapes each year.

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The average U.S. house creates double the greenhouse-gas emissions of the average car. Audit your home's energy use (and learn to reduce it) at hes.lbl.gov.

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Switching its tour bus to biodiesel reduced rock band Guster's CO2 emissions by 100,000 pounds a year.

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Constructing green buildings can reduce costs for the average U.S. elementary or high school by $100,000 annually.

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In 2006, Americans took 10.1 billion trips on public transit, the highest total in almost 50 years. Find local options at publictransportation.org/systems.

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If all U.S. households received and paid their bills online, it would eliminate more than 800,000 tons of waste each year.

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An energy-efficient home saves up to $400 a year in utility costs.

A Tip a Day...

...keeps global warming at bay. (And other environmental problems too!)

Want to start living a lower-impact, higher-quality lifestyle? Not sure where to begin? Sign up for our new Green Life newsletter and receive an easy tip every day about a small change that can make a big difference. Simple steps like replacing conventional lightbulbs with more efficient ones, keeping your car tires properly inflated, or adjusting your thermostat a degree or two can save you money, reduce waste, and help save the planet. Don't delay, sign up today!

Fast Fact

The average U.S. wedding and honeymoon generate 9 to 16 tons of carbon dioxide emissions.

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Americans throw away almost 100 billion plastic bags each year; only 1 to 3 percent are recycled.

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Changing your car's air filter every 12,000 miles (usually about once a year) can increase your mileage by up to 10 percent.

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U.S. airports and airlines discard enough aluminum cans each year to build 58 Boeing 747s. nrdc.org/trashlandings

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The average U.S. office worker goes through 10,000 sheets of copy paper each year.

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A dollar spent in a locally owned business is worth three times as much to the local economy as one spent in a chain store.

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More than 1,200 small U.S. farms offer fresh produce "subscriptions." Find one near you at foodroutes.org.

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One person's trash is another's treasure: Trade not-quite-right holiday gifts at eswapit.com, swapthing.com, or throwplace.com.

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The average American walks about 300 yards per day.

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A slowly dripping faucet can waste 2,500 gallons of water each year.

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High-definition TVs use up to 64 percent more electricity than similar-size conventional sets (pdf link; see Table 5).

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Airlines burned an extra 350 million gallons of fuel in 2000 due to U.S. passengers' increasing average weight over the past decade.

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The average American eats only one-third the recommended amount of produce each day.

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Daily use of beauty products exposes U.S. women to up to 200 chemicals. Only 10 percent of cosmetic ingredients have been screened for safety. safecosmetics.org

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The average U.S. college student spends more than $1,500 preparing for the new school year. Find green choices at shopbacktoschool.org.

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If every U.S. household replaced one roll of regular paper towels with 100 percent recycled ones, we'd save 544,000 trees. nrdc.org/land/forests/gtissue.asp

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In a 2004 survey, one-third of Americans said greed and materialism are our most urgent moral problems.

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According to Consumer Reports, prerinsing your dishes wastes up to 20 gallons of water per load--and doesn't get them any cleaner.

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For a family of four, a round-trip transatlantic flight creates as much greenhouse gas as driving for a year.

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Each year, 100 million trees are used to produce junk mail. Find out how to get off marketers' lists at newdream.org/junkmail.

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Barbecuing on a gas grill emits half as much carbon dioxide as using charcoal briquettes.

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The typical U.S. household spends about 16 percent of its budget on cars.

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Drivers of certain fuel-efficient cars enjoy free metered parking in at least seven cities, including Albuquerque, Los Angeles, and Salt Lake City.

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More than 110 colleges around the United States are using or constructing energy-efficient buildings.

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Mazda Motor Corporation offers its Japanese employees up to 1,500 yen (about $12) a month if they walk to work.

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A computer running a screen saver uses almost ten times as much energy as one in "sleep" mode.

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Gaining grounds: Fair-trade-certified coffee is available from more than 400 companies at 35,000 retail locations across the United States.

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Cleaning the lint filter on your dryer can decrease the energy used per load by up to 30 percent.

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Wind-power users in Colorado pay an average of $10 a month less than those relying on conventional sources. Find local providers at green-e.org.

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Since London initiated a fee for private cars to drive downtown, traffic has been reduced by a third and carbon dioxide emissions by 20 percent.

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Find purveyors of sustainably produced meat, poultry, dairy, and eggs in your area at eatwellguide.org.

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Twenty-seven percent of Americans' daily trips are one mile or less.

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A recent study concluded that switching to organic foods provides kids with "dramatic and immediate" protection from toxic pesticides.

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Exercising outdoors, exposed to the elements and uneven terrain, can burn 30 percent more calories than hitting the gym.

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Americans toss out more than 100 million cell phones every year. Recycle yours through CollectiveGood.com.

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U.S. sales of organic products are expected to almost double from 2003 to 2007.

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Nearly nine in ten parents say they would be likely to purchase environmentally friendly products if they were available where they shop.

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Reducing the number of cars on a congested road by 5 to 10 percent through ride-sharing can minimize delays by 10 to 30 percent.

Welcome!

"The Green Life" was launched in the November/December 2005 issue of Sierra magazine as a place to showcase trendsetting people, cool products, and empowering ideas. Quickly we saw that there was too much happening, too fast, to limit our coverage to a few bimonthly pages, and thus this blog was born.

When we devoted our January/February 2005 issue to the burgeoning green-lifestyle movement, we saw there was a huge interest in earth-friendly options for living well. What we wear, where we live, how we get around, and how we spend our money affects not only our own quality of life, but the quality of our environment. Fortunately, style and sustainability increasingly go hand in hand, reaffirming our belief that the best things in life truly are green.

What's your favorite green product? What ideas have made your life a little easier and the Earth a little happier? Share your rants, raves, tips, and questions with other readers and us.

--Jennifer Hattam, editor