Where is "Away"?

Last night, I attended the August meeting of the Kansas City Green Drinks group. The goal of Green Drinks KC is pretty simple: good times shared among people working in, or interested in, environmental and sustainability issues. This is only the 2nd month I've attended a meeting, and once again, I left the meeting informed, inspired, and with new contacts!



The next time you start to throw something "away", think about the above picture. Our society has been trained to think that once the garbage truck leaves our street, the garbage has gone "away". We carelessly and thoughtlessly throw "away" items that can be reused or recycled. What humans manufacture and think they are throwing away, is really disturbing all types of ecosystems. The reality is, the world is a closed loop. Nothing leaves the earth. The bottom line...we are the species responsible for polluting. The damage that we have done as a species, has reached the a calamity tipping point, between the earth and mankind. The earth will win, whether it be tornadoes, global warming, fire or other natural disasters, the earth will win. This is becoming an epic battle between man vs earth. Can man live in harmony with the planet. Yes. Is it too late? No. Waste is the byproduct of poor design. What can we do? Be thoughtful. Make conscious decisions.

• Purchase items with minimal packaging
• Write letters to companies demanding responsible packaging
• Reuse and recycle. Really. Think about everything you are throwing away. Can it be recycled or reused?
• Consume less
• Utilize services like freecycle.com

We can each do our part. Be Greener Every Day.

Daily tip from idealbite.com

I just got home from my first "greendrinks" meeting tonight. It's a social group that focuses on environmental issues. It was a great meeting, and I'll take time to write about it in the next day or 2 (it's late, and I'm beat). In the meantime, I thought I'd share the daily tip from idealbite.com:

Quoth the Raven, "How long does trash last in landfills?"

The Bite
Evermore. Like something out of a creepy poem, even biodegradable items like food can hang around in garbage dumps for years. Trash is packed so tightly that it doesn't always get the necessary light, oxygen, and/or microorganisms it needs to decompose, so truly, we implore: Reduce, reuse, and recycle when you can. Ca-caw!

The Benefits

• A future that's not all midnight-dreary. Researchers have found (perfectly compostable) 25-year-old corncobs and grapes, and (easily recyclable) 50-year-old newspapers that are still readable in landfills. The less waste we toss, the fewer mummified remains will hang around in dumps.

Mona here. If you want to read more (and I hope you do), check out their website at www.idealbite.com. Bite sized ideas for green living.

Enjoy!
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KC Green Drinks

Tonight I learned that the next KC Green Drinks meeting will be July 17 at Californos in Westport. I'm excited to attend, and meet others who are proactively working toward sustainability and positive environmental issues. I look back at the changes I've made over the last year, and I'm hoping to be more inspired to do greater things.

Today, I talked to several people about Habitat for Humanity's Re-Store. I've been to the new KCK store several times in the last few weeks...mostly to make donations. Now, I'm ready to pick up some crown moulding for the kitchen project (no, it's not over yet).