Wow, the weather is gorgeous today – there’s a bumblebee just outside the office window, the chickens are getting excitable (they even came to hang out under the kitchen table at lunchtime) and it’s time to get planting. It feels as though Spring is already here, though it doesn’t officially start until the Spring Equinox on 20th March.
I’m very excited about the garden and all the edibles that I am planning to grow. My current gardening bible is Food Not Lawns by Heather Flores. It is a amazing resource, full of ideas and inspiration, with a permaculture approach. It is unlike many other gardening books in that it is not so much about what to plant when, as a chunky guide to getting involved with your community, growing things for free and how to support the current ecosystem in the garden. Brilliant!
We have just this moment finished another edition of the magazine which will be available in a few weeks time. It was great fun to put together and is packed with articles. Jez has gone to have a lie down in the sun, having not slept for two nights. We have sunk into a funny rhythm the last week or so and I am looking forward to straightening that out and getting back to ‘normal’ life again!
I did a radio interview this morning with a local London station about attachment parenting, peak oil, food systems and the magazine. It was good to debunk a few myths such as washable nappies are hard work and it’s tough being green in today’s society.
Right, am off to sow some seeds…
Hey, we have completed the first week or buy nothing month and all is going well. I expect the real challenges to come in a couple of weeks time. I am carefully rationing food items and it is making me more creative in the kitchen. We are going to a party tonight and I am planning what to take with me as a gift – will probably make some edible treats and maybe something from the garden, like a bunch of carrots, in place of flowers!
One pleasing aspect is the reduction in the amount of waste that we have created over the last week. So far we have accumulated half a carrier bag of rubbish in just over a week. I know that we have further to go on waste reduction so I am aiming to cut this as we progress.
I haven’t travelled further than we can cycle over the last week so have enjoyed more time spent with close neighbours and people in the local community, which has been another added benefit. Next week we have a couple of home ed trips planned and I haven’t yet worked out how we are going to travel and pay for these, if we go. I am sure that there is some creative trading that could be possible. I’ll keep you posted.
Meanwhile, off to make something to rival a box of organic chocs…
Well, we haven’t spent any money for three days although I did go a little crazy whilst playing shops earlier and spent a whole purse full of crystals on some pieces of wooden fruit. I also got a slight pang for lunch in a café, rather than having to make everything from scratch again (and wash up afterwards!) but that passed quite quickly.
Our office is also part of the Buy Nothing Challenge as well so we will not be splurging on stationery items this month or indulging in edible treats to fuel the late nights that are often necessary when producing a magazine every two months. We don’t really buy ‘things’ for work though so I thought I would come up with a few other ideas on how to create a really clean green office.
• SAVE PAPER – The average office worker uses 20,000 sheets of A4 paper a year, most of which gets thrown away. It is easy to reduce the amount of paper used though – print and photocopy on both sides, send emails rather than letters, reuse envelopes and turn scrap paper into notepads. Set up an office recycling scheme and be sure to source recycled paper.
• BUY TO LAST – Avoid disposable biros and choose refillable pens or pencils instead. A plastic pen in landfill will still be there in 50,000 years time. Globally 14 million biros are bought a day!
• SOURCE GREEN STATIONERY – Buy recycled stationery, eco staplers and more from the Green Stationery Company. If each of the UK’s ten million office workers used one less staple a day, 120 tonnes of steel would be saved a year.
• FAIR TEA BREAK – Drink Fairtrade tea and coffee, bought from a local shop, if possible. Use a real mug, instead of a disposable cup. Rather than buying pastries and cakes to treat colleagues, bring in homemade goodies instead.
• PACK AN ECO LUNCH – Mrs Green recommends a zero waste approach to packed lunches over at the fab Little Green Blog, capitalising on nature’s own perfect packaging.
• RECYCLE YOUR CARTRIDGES – Over 7.5 million toner cartridges and 12 million ink cartridges end up in landfill each year – and the sad thing is that about 90% of them could be recycled. Cartridge World says that 12 months of cartridge recycling in the UK could save up to 15 million litres of oil. Look for one of its 280 stores in high streets across the country where you can refill your cartridge instead of buying new. Alternatively check the manufacturers guidelines on the packet for the freepost address to send used cartridges to for recycling.
• RECYCLE FURNITURE – Unwanted furniture can be recycled by Green Works, a not-for-profit organisation that donates office furniture to schools and charities. This reduces landfill, supports projects in need and provides employment for disadvantaged and disabled people.
• SAVE ENERGY – Position desks to get the best natural light. Switch off lights and machines when not in use. Screensavers do not save energy – switch your machine to sleep mode or turn it off.
• GET WATER EFFICIENT – The Environment Agency has produced a range of leaflets to encourage organisations to become more environmentally aware. You can download free guides on becoming more water efficient and other aspects of greening your business.
• LOOK FOR THE STAR – If you need to buy new equipment, look for the Energy Star – a system developed in the US that also applies to goods sold in the UK. Purchasing a printer, modem or monitor with the Energy Star, you know it will be one of the most efficient models and you will save around £25 a year in energy costs.
• READ CHANGE THE WORLD – For lots of inspiring ideas and actions to take at work, check out We Are What We Do’s book – Change the World 9-5.
• TRAVEL LIGHT – Work out your carbon footprint of travelling to and from work and how you can reduce it. Try a car pool and who knows you might find some new friends whilst saving the planet.
• GET A PLANT – House plants improve indoor air quality, they can reduce pollution by 87% in 24 hours. They look good and lift your spirits too.
• GO NEW AGE – I have a selection of crystals round my desk, specifically clear quartz, as it helps to soak up some of the Electromagnetic Radiation that leaches from electrical equipment.
Any more ideas? Do let me know ways that you have managed to make your work environment a greener, more lovely place to work!
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