The EcoChic

As I lay here in bed typing away on my iPhone, too scared to pull out the laptop in fear of waking the wee ones, I am pondering the weekend that has appeared.

Today will be spent at the Little League field with the Opening Ceremonies. It’s going to be a little different this year since the hubs and I aren’t coaching. Instead I have a new role, recycling coordinator!

The past 6 months I’ve worked to implement recycling at the fields. The only element that I didn’t finish is the signage. I’m out of printer ink so posters will have to wait. I just hope people are smart enough to realize that the trash can next to the recycling bin is where the trash goes! Seems like such a simple concept, right??

The rest of the weekend?? Recovering from a round of colds. Designing our bathroom remodel. And whatever else comes our way. Maybe I’ll even find some time to pull out the laptop and write.

For now, the iPhone is being set aside as I hear the babbles from Lil B.

What are your plans for the weekend?

Today I spent an hour at my son’s school with about 40 first graders talking about trash!  The Great American Teach In is a time for parents and community members to come into the schools and show the kids what we do for a living.  I love talking to the kids but I was a bit intimidated when I drove up…there was a garbage truck, a helicopter, and a police car in the parking lot!  And here I come with my reusable shopping bag full of goodies.  I was afraid they wouldn’t be interested but they loved it.

I decided that this year I would talk about the 3R’s – Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!  The media tends to push recycling but they don’t mention the other 2 R’s.  I started by asking kids if they knew where their trash goes to…that big hole in the ground we call a landfill…and told them that hundreds of years from now their trash will still be there!  Then I talked about the Mobius Strip (the recycling symbol) and what it means.  Did you know that it was created in 1970 by a 23 year old college student; Gary Anderson? 

I showed the kids some simple ways to reduce and reuse their waste.

-Reusable bags
-Reusable water bottles
-Using both sides of the paper
-Using trash for craft projects

I even prepared a small craft project for the kids.  I took some of our cardboard boxes from the recycling bin (cereal, pop tarts, mac-n-cheese, etc) and cut them to the size of a bookmark.  Each kid got to draw and color a picture on the backside and I finished them off by adding a ribbon to the top.  It was so cute to see the kids all excited about playing with trash! 

I can’t wait for next year to visit again; I wonder what I’ll talk about then?

Like most parents our house is littered with kids toys that require batteries.  You can’t celebrate a birthday or a holiday without obtaining a few more of those e-toys that are suppose to make your child smarter.  My baby alone is sleeping with 3 stuffed animals that require batteries to send her off to sleepy town more peacefully.  We have a special basket in our pantry that stores all of those excess batteries so that we never have to deal with ‘dead’ toys.  I even have 2 battery chargers and about 8 rechargeable batteries…however they are always dead when I need to use them!  My son hates it when a toy actually dies because he knows it is usually months before I actually replace the batteries.  Seriously…he has a set of walkie talkies that have never had batteries…and he uses his imagination to make them work!  Shocking I know…but we survived this way as kids, so can he! 

Inevitably we all require batteries in our home to make things work.  From the Wii remotes to the digital cameras; there isn’t much that doesn’t need batteries.  What is the most eco-friendly way to deal wtih batteries?  I’ve been on a rechargeable battery kick for a few years now but like I mentioned earlier they are always dead.  I’ve either used them until they run out of juice or they loose their ability to hold a charge.  After all, even rechargeable batteries are only made to be charged around 100+ times.  Well we all have a new option available…

Fuji EnviroMAX!

Most batteries (even rechargeables) contain heavy metals such as cadmium, lithium and mercury which can be poisonous to our health and very harmful to our environment.  The Environmental Protection Agency even classifies batteries as a Universal Waste (a type of hazardous waste) and requires that they be disposed of properly (and not sent to the landfill).  The company I work for actually has a battery recycling program in place to ensure that we act responsibly. 

Fuji EnviroMAX is different!  The contain NO poisonous cadmium, lithium or mercury!  They are packaged in recycled paper and recycleable PET plastic.  They can be harmlessly disposed of with your normal waste.  None of the ingredients are harmful to the environment.  They are landfill safe.  Lastly, they perform equal to (if not better than) traditional batteries so you don’t need to purchase them as often. 

I’ve mentioned ISO 14001 in a previous post.  ISO 14001 certification ensures that a business operates in an environmentally friendly manner and that they are regularly audited by an outside company to ensure their conformance with the ISO 14001 standards.  The Fuji EnviroMAX manufacturing facility is ISO 14001 certified.  They strive to achieve a zero emissions manufacturing process and currently recycle waste at a 93.3% rate.  You can read their full Social and Environmental Report HERE to learn more. 

How do they work?  I received two sets of Fuji EnviroMAX batteries, the AA and AAA digital alkaline batteries, for review.  I put some in our Wii remotes (because they are always dying) and the rest went in Lil’ Bs bedtime toy (it plays sleepy music and has a soft light) about a month and a half ago.  I really wanted to see if I could tell a difference in these batteries compared to traditional batteries and rechargeable batteries.  Let me tell you…they are still working today!  My boy plays the Wii like a crazy addicted crack addict…and they still have juice!  Every night Lil’ B goes to bed with her little lullaby toy…and it still has juice!  I’m a believer and on our next trip to the store I will stock up on the Fuji EnviroMAX. 

Where can you buy them?  Starting over the summer Fuji EnviroMAX can now be found at Target stores nationwide.  You can also purchase them at Amazon.com, just click on the link on the Fuji EnviroMAX website and make your purchase.  They retail for $3.99-5.99 MSRP. 

To learn more about Fuji EnviroMAX:
Visit their website.
Follow them on Twitter.
Become a Fan on Facebook.

Yes, I’ve been on vacation!  My Twitter followers have followed my adventures with my family at Disney this past week but I wanted to share a few fun things with everyone. 

Cloth Diapers and Traveling:  We didn’t have a washer or dryer so we took disposables to Disney.  This made me very sad but it was very stress-free.  One day I’ll try to travel with my cloth but I have to be able to wash them. 

Breastfeeding:  In honor of World Breastfeeding Week…we have a long way to go to educate people about breastfeeding.  You would think at Disney World, a place for kids, breastfeeding would be easier than it was.  The parks have these great baby care centers where you can nurse but they are not always where you need them.  There is only one center per park and the parks are huge!  I ended up breastfeeding in some odd places and got quite a lot of different reactions…including the one mom who made her family leave the bench I was sitting on while breastfeeding (PS…I was not exposed in any way!).  The worst experience were the water parks.  There were NO baby care centers or air conditioned areas AT ALL!  With a 6 year old we are very active and the baby comes along to everything.  There aren’t many places she doesn’t go with us.  I’m not asking for nice cushy nursing areas everywhere I go…but a simple bench in some air conditioning would be helpful! 

Baby Wearing:  We took the stroller, our Dittany Baby pouch sling, and our Ergo Baby Carrier with us to Disney.  Which worked out the best?  All and None!  Honestly they all came in handy at one time or another.  The Ergo is great for Dad and it works well for me when carrying her for a long time.  It started to hurt my hips though after a while and it was H-O-T!!!  The Dittany pouch sling was lighter weight and great for short carries (waiting in lines).  The great thing about the Dittany pouch sling is that it also served as a nursing cover and a stroller blanket and it folded down very small!  The stroller was great for naps.  Like I said earlier…our life doesn’t slow down often so she just adapts and sleeps wherever we are. 

Eco-Must-Haves:

1. To-Go-Ware sidekicks.  These small stainless steel food containers were perfect for the baby finger food snacks (those puffs) that kept Lil’ B happy while waiting in line! 
2. To-Go-Ware RePEaT utensil sets.  I wish I had 3 sets of these.  With all the eating out we did we went through a lot of disposable forks and spoons.  I did use mine a few times and it was much nicer than the cheap plastic stuff. 
3. Planet Wise Wet/Dry Bag.  Yep…even though we didn’t use cloth diapers I still took my wet bag with me!  I hate diaper bags with a passion…they are so BIG!  Instead I packed my wet/dry bag with diapers and wipes and off we went.  It fit nicely inside our small backpack and didn’t weigh us down.  It was great for the water parks too, the wet bathing suits went right down inside the large pocket and our backpack stayed dry!

Disney itself has made a great effort to go GREEN with their Enviromentality program.  There is recycling everywhere, even in the hotel rooms.  The best part is that they encourage guests to help them go GREEN by educating them on small steps they can do during their stay (like reusing towels and sheets). 

Now that I’m back I have a lot of catching up to do.  The Knicker Nappie OS diaper giveaway ends in just a few hours and I will be picking a winner tomorrow.  There are over 175 comments right now so it’s going to be quite exciting to pick a winner!  Thanks for all your comments, tweets, subscriptions and follows!

Coming up this next week I have LOTS of fun stuff!  I have another cloth diaper giveaway (GADbaby) and some Rocking Green Soap giveaway for those cloth diapers!  Not into cloth diapers?  No worries!  I have some great jewelry to review, e-cloth giveaways, Tropical Traditions Coconut Oil giveaway, and more!  Oh, and school is starting soon so I have some great waste free lunch solutions to share too!  

On a personal note…Lil’ B had a blast meeting all the Disney characters!  She squelled (literally) everytime a character came near!  It was priceless!  Her big bro still got excited too!  While we were gone she learned how to take a few short crawls across the floor!  LOOK OUT WORLD…here she comes!  To top it all off…her first tooth started to come it yesterday.  I think I need to look into some new teething toys!  

Have an eco-friendly product you would like to know more about?  Leave me a comment and I’ll try to do a review or giveaway on it!

GIVEAWAY ALERT!  Be sure to read all the way to the bottom for the fifth contest of The Eco-Summer Blog Party!

CONGRATULATIONS KIM!

Today is a little different post for the Eco-Summer Blog Party, it’s about green fundraising.  School is out and I’m still thinking about fundraising, I must be sick!  Not really, just have some good ‘virtual’ friends in the green fundraising field that I had to include in the Party.  Plus now is really a good time to start planning fall fundraisers for your schools (and other organizations). 

I had forgotten how many fundraisers kids are involved with until my son started Kindergarten last fall.  Between school and sports there was never a time when we weren’t raising funds for something.  Last year we sold cookies and coffee; and collect donations for Jump Rope for Heart and Take a Hike.  For t-ball alone I think we had 3 different fundraisers.  This coming year I will have a little more input into the fundraising programs at school…I have some how volunteered myself to serve on the PTA as an environmental chairperson.  I’m good at volunteering my eco-services I guess because I’ve also been tasked with some recycling and fundraising efforts at our church too. 

My first organization is Eco Label Fundraising.  I ‘met’ Jeanne online a while ago and owe her huge kudos for introducing me to the world of Twitter. (*Thanks!*)  Below is an interview that I had with Jeanne a few weeks ago.   

The Eco Chic:  What inspired you to develop Eco Label Fundrasing?

Jeanne:  Walking away from a high-income career selling petroleum-based chemicals and oil, to be part of the solution for sustaining Our Earth and educating future generations, was life-changing for EcoLabel Fundraising’s Founder.

She shares her story with others today in hopes of inspiring them to make positive changes in their lives that will impact Our Planet.  Through our eco-friendly fundraising programs, it is our goal to help school and non-profits raise funds responsibly.  It is our dream that we will help to leave a healthy planet to many generations of children to come.

EcoLabel Fundraising donates 95% of the profits generated by our Green Fundraisers.  The balance of the profits are reinvested into
marketing our program so that we may help as many schools and non-profits as possible.
 
The Eco Chic:  What’s different between this and other fundraising programs?

Jeanne:  Our primary goal is to offer a program that is a good example to children all around.  The traditional fundraising programs of the past 25 years have gained a reputation for selling low to mid quality products and over-charging for the products.  Our primary goal is not to reap huge profits.  We simply take enough profit away to cover our expenses and reach as many schools as we can.  We are in the business of helping to raise funds for much-needed programs within schools.  While helping schools to accomplish fundraising goals, we are able to assist in their eco-friendly education programs since the products we sell through our program create chatter about the environment.  
 
The Eco Chic:  What types of products are available in your program?

Jeanne:  Eco-friendly, Fair-Trade and/or Organic Products

The Eco Chic:  What are some of the unique programs that you offer?

Jeanne:  In addition to our traditional fundraising programs, we offer Seed and Bulb Fundraisers, as well as, Customized Water Bottle Programs.  Both programs have been very popular.  Many schools choose to run all three programs staggered throughout the school year.  It gives a healthy variety.  The Water Bottle Program offers the school a way to build school spirit as well.  By personalizing the insultated bottles with the school’s logo (or non-profit’s), the students get really excited to have a bottle with their school’s name and logo on it.  (*The Eco Chic is thinking this might be a great idea for kids sports organizations too!*)

The Eco Chic:  What kind of organizations can participate in Eco Label Fundraising?  Do we have to be a non-profit?

Jeanne:  Yes, you must be a non-profit or school.

The Eco Chic:  Any tips on convincing our school to change to a greener fundraising program like Eco Label Fundraising? 

Jeanne:  It is really a no-brainer.  First, people get really discouraged by traditional fundraising programs when they get the products and it is not good quality.  Especially now, when dollars are tight in the average American household.  People want their dollars to stretch.  Our products are high-quality, which means they will last for many years.  We are proud that they place the highest integrity in every aspect of our program.  The products are also healthy.  That’s important in setting a good example to children.  You know, the old adage of “leading by example.”  When you ask a child to take an EcoLabel Fundraising catalog to friends, family and neighbors, they can be proud that they are asking them to buy something that they will actually use for many years.  Second, the environment is a topic that is not just a fleeting conversation or just to be celebrated one day a year anymore. This is an ever-growing concern for our children.  They will be the generation to deal with much of the irresponsible decisions made by our and previous generations.  It is important for them to learn about making choices that will sustain our environment in their daily lives.  Parents are busy, so this offers the parents one more opportunity to talk about the buzz words every child should know about concerning the environment today.  Last, PTA’s and Non-profit Directors choosing our Fundraising programs are really expanding their impact beyond just “raising funds” as most PTA’s have been limited to do over the years.  Today, they can diversify their impact by helping to educate friends, family and neighbors of the students served in their school population about the importance of sustaining our Earth’s resources.

The Eco Chic:  What are the benefits of choosing Eco Label Fundraing?

Jeanne:   First, we offer 40% of all sales.  We make it easy – there is no sliding scale, etc.  Second, we are extremely customer service oriented. We know PTA’s and Non-profit Directors are busy people, so they need answers right away.  Finally, it just makes sense to choose a program that offers raising funds and important life lessons.

The Eco Chic:  Most fundraisers offer the kids prizes for different levels of sales they achieve; does Eco Label Fundraising offer any recognition for the students?

Jeanne:  Upon request by the school or non-profit we will run “team” incentive programs. Usually, by homeroom or some other grouping of 30 or less students that the school decides.  We do not offer individual incentives to students, as we believe it is poor form to encourage students to compete against each other in this way.  By creating a team approach, it really does give the students a sense of spirit and a taste of what it means to work with others towards a common goal.  In today’s workplace, more and more employees have to learn to work with others on a team.  It sets a good example for the children for the future.

The Eco Chic:  If a school/organization wants to participate; now what?  How do we sign up and what’s the next step? 

Jeanne:  Signing-up is really easy.  A school or non-profit simple clicks the link located on our homepage to Register Your Organization.  They fill out a short form with the details related to their organization and are approved within 24 hours to begin on-line fundraising.  We HIGHLY encourage that schools and non-profits conduct at least one paper catalog program for two weeks during the school year.  On-line fundraising is a great supplemental way to raise funds, but the bulk of fundraising will be accomplished through the paper catalog program.  Parents are so busy, so it is easiest for them if the students put the catalog right in front fo them to place their order.  

The Eco Chic:  What types of payments do you accept?

Jeanne:  For on-line ordering, we accept VISA, M/C, AMEX.  For paper catalog purchases, a check is required made payable to the school or non-profit.  For online purchases, payment is due at the time of ordering via credit card.  For paper catalog programs, payment is due at the time of placing the order via check.

The Eco Chic:  How long until we get our stuff? 

Jeanne:  The products are delivered within 1-4 weeks.

Thank you Jeanne for taking the time to share with me and my readers.  You advice will certainly help me in my journey.  I hope that others will be inspired by your company as well.  You can follow Eco Label Fundraising on Twitter @EcoLabelFund and on Facebook Pages. 

The next company that I have to share is Terra Cycle!  If you look in my archives you will find several posts on my love of Terra Cycle.  I was introduced to them about 4 years ago by a lady I ran into at work.  They had been sending their plastic soda bottles to Terra Cycle in exchange for funds to go towards a non-profit that they supported.  You may have seen their products at Home Depot, Target, or Walgreens and can now buy them online at Shop Only Green.  What I like most about Terra Cycle is that they find alternate uses for our trash.  They have taken recycling and made it better…they upcycle and turn trash into something of value.  

This backpack is made using juice pouches that are upcycled through their fundraising program.  Organizations earn 0.02 cents per pouch.  That doesn’t seem like a lot but do the math!  The average family with kids in school can go through a box of juice pouches in a week (if not more).  And think of all the juice pouches that are saved from the landfill, they can’t be recycled using traditional methods.  

Terra Cycle calls their fundraisers Brigades.  You decide which Brigade you want to participate in, sign up at Terra Cycle’s web site, and begin collecting the items.  Terra Cycle sends you postage paid packages for you to send back the items.  All you have to do is save those items from the trash!  I’m working on getting our church set up in several Brigades right now to help earn some extra funds.  Our goal is to provide the local community a place to drop off these items for recycling.

Giveaway!  Terra Cycle is giving away one juice pouch backpack and one cookie wrapper spiral notebook to a lucky reader.  CONGRATULATIONS KIM! 

LEAVE A COMMENT HERE!

This past Saturday was the closing day for Big B’s Little League.  We don’t usually spend much time at the park and rarely visit the concession stand but this weekend was different.  Halfway through the game Big B looked at the dugout coach and said “Look at all these bottles in the trash, why aren’t they being recycled?”  Gotta love a 6 yr old who is more interested in recycling than the game. 

Spending a whole day at the ball park I was in shock with the over flowing garbage cans of plastic bottles!  By noon all the trash cans were full and most of the content was bottles.  They obviously don’t have a recycling program in place.  We’re lucky though, this year we at least have trash cans in the dugouts. 

Well since Little League is a volunteer organization I guess I’ve volunteered myself to a new pet project…setting up a recycling program for the league.  I can see so much potential.  I may even link the recycling program with a fundraiser.  Many teams bring drinks for the kids following the game and Capri Sun is a common choice.  Wouldn’t it be neat to take those juice packs and join a TerraCyclebrigade to earn money for the park?  Hmmmm…the juice is flowing! 

Stay tuned as I try to green out little league before next springs season begins.  Anyone have any tips?

We’ve all heard the term RECYCLING but how many of you have heard the term UPCYCLING?  Anyone want to take a guess what the definition of UPCYCLING is?

According to Wikipedia; Upcycling is the use of waste (trash) materials to provide useful products.  The main difference between recycling and upcycling is that there is minimal processing involved with upcycling.  The waste materials are used in the waste form to create a new and useful product.  I’ll give you some examples in a minute.

TerraCycle, Inc is a company out of Trenton, NJ that has mastered the art of upcycling.  While in college at Princeton University, TerraCycle founder Tom Szaky had a wonderful idea for marketing worm poop.  Worm poop?  Yes, I did say worm poop.  A form of composting is vermicompost where worms break down the materials and the worm poop is then used as a mulch or plant food.  Well Tom had the idea of selling this worm poop as an all natural plant food.  There’s more; Tom decided that he would bottle this special plant food in used soda bottles.  Thus bringing in the upcycling. 

Pictured above is one of the many plant foods marketed by TerraCycle, Inc.

Soda bottles are collected through the TerraCycle Bottle Brigade where schools and organizations can earn money for sending in used soda bottles.  I first heard about TerraCycle about 4 years ago at work.  One of my facilities participated in the Bottle Brigade as a fund raiser for an Equine Rescue Non-Profit Organization. 

Now, years since Tom’s original idea the company is exploding.  I’ve seen their products at local big-box retailers such as Home Depot, Wal-Mart, and Target.  The products now range from garden products, cleaning products, and even accessories like tote bags.  And each product includes the upcycling idea using what would have been a waste material and turning into something useful. 

In the coming days I will focus of the different brigades that TerraCycle currently has to collect waste.  I will also spend a day on each area of products; gardening products, cleaning products, and the fun accessories and bags.  At the end of my series on TerraCycle I will even have a GIVEAWAY of one of their fun tote bags.  So stay tuned and learn more about TerraCycle and upcycling. 

I mentioned a few months ago that I was so excited that our waste services were finally offering curb side recycling in our neighborhood.  In the past we’ve hauled our recyclables up to the local drop off location about once a week.  While it’s not that horrible of a method it’s also not encouraging everyone to participate.  The drop off center is free though.  The curb side program costs about $5.50 every 3 months plus a one time fee of $7 for the bin.  That’s really not much when you calculate the cost of gas these days. 

Most of March I sat patiently as we awaited our bins to be delivered.  I was told it could take a few weeks because of the high demand.  Towards the end of the month I decided to call the company and inquire about our bin and service start date.  They said there was a shortage of bins and that more were on order; however I could go ahead and use the service now by placing my recyclables by the road on the pre-determined day each week and they would be by to pick them up.  She made a note on their list to start coming by. 

Excitedly I set my recyclables out for pick up late in March and waited, and waited, and waited for the driver to come by.  The next day I called the company back and they told me someone would be out later that day.  The drivers were new to the routes so there was some learning curve on the new routes.  I waited, and waited, and waited.  Still no pick up.  So on Saturday we hauled the items to the drop off center ourselves. 

Several more weeks have gone by since then and we’ve only had one successful pick up to date.  Each week I call the company and let them know we were missed.  Each week they apologize and tell me that they will send them back out the next day.  Each week I watch as by bin of recyclables sit patiently by the curb waiting for their final desitination.  Each week I am disappointed as I haul the items back into the garage and make yet another call. 

This weeks pick up is scheduled for tomorrow.  I called them yesterday and remind them to come pick up my items.  They ensured me that this will get better with time.  We’ll find out tomorrow.

So my question is this, how long do you give them to make this work?  On one hand I want to be as supportive as possible in hopes that it is just a learning curve.  I want to see the program succeed and I want to wake up on Thursday morning to see a row of blue bins sitting by the curb of all my neighbors.  I fear that if I don’t support the program through the challenges that the service will be suspended due to lack of participation.  On the other hand it is just as easy to make that weekly trip for free to the local drop off location myself.  They actually take one item that the curb side service won’t pick up; cardboard.  I prefer however not to take the easy route.  I really do want to help them make this a success in our community. 

Any advice for handling new community programs? 

On Saturday the family was coming home from a birthday party when we saw the sign about the county Electronics and Chemical Mobile Collection going on that day.  We’ve had an old tv in the garage for over 2 years now that I told hubby we had to recycle.  We’ve had the mobile collection dates for 2 years now but somehow we always forget.  Since it was already 1:30 and the event was only suppose to run until 2pm we rushed home and packed up that old hunker of a tv in the truck.  I wasn’t expecting anything very organized or large.  To my surprise there were over 20 cars in line waiting to drop off electronics and household chemicals. 

They had two big rig trucks to haul the stuff off.  They had staff on hand to sort the household chemicals into the appropriate hazard classes.  I even saw them packing some of the containers with the hazardous waste labels on them.  It was interesting to see this stuff from my professional experiences there.  I deal with this type of stuff daily but I never expected to see this at a county run event. 

This final picture was the trailer that they packaged all the old tvs into.  I was also shocked at the number of computers, monitors and tvs that were collected in just one day.  I guess if anything it really shows how many of the residents care about the environment and want to do the right thing.  I’m curious to see if the county posts how much electronics and chemicals were collected for this event. 

For those of you who live in Pinellas County Florida here is a link to future moblie collection dates and times.  For those of you who live elsewhere you can check with your local solid waste department to see where you can recycle your electronics and chemicals.  You can also search by your zip code on www.Earth911.com.

Since my Earth Hour post was so well received (LOL!) I decided to try to show how the airlines are trying to combat some of their negative impacts to the environment.  I should also give you a little more background about myself and my family.  First, I work for a governmental agency developing and implementing their environmental program.  Since it is the government I don’t want to go into too much detail but I honestly feel that in the last 4 years our program has really come a long way.  I am very proud to be a part of it.  If you are interested in reading more about all government agencies and their requirement to comply with environmental regulation and mandates you might like to visit the Office of the Federal Environmental Executive.  Since my program is found in all of the states in the United States and in their territories my team and I are required to travel to most locations annually to ensure that each facility is in compliance and to provide education and assistance with implementing our programs. 

Part two, Delta Airlines.  My husband has been an employee at Delta for many years now and I have seen many improvements and achievements with the companies environmental program over the years.  Recently they have added in-flight recycling to some of their hub locations; and are working on expanding this program nationwide.  All cans, bottles, plastic cups and newspapers are included in their recycling program.  I had heard about their carbon offset program where for under $11 you can purchase carbon offsets when you purchase your ticket online.  For Earth Day 2008 Delta will be matching all contributions to the Conservation Fund (program that receives the funds from the carbon offset) up to $10,000.  The Conservation Fund will in turn plant trees and restore habitat for wildlife in protected parks and wildlife refuges.  Delta is the first airline to offer carbon offsets and is making great efforts (with our help) to reduce our impact on the environment.  I really suggest that you go read more about Delta’s environmental program because I couldn’t possible have the time to mention it all here.

In closing I wanted to show you that just because I travel by airplane doesn’t mean that I am a bad environmental steward.  Just the opposite; by implementing the programs for my agency we have greatly reduced our environmental footprint.  Also, the airlines are trying to compensate for their impact with initiatives such as Delta’s carbon offset program.  This just goes to show that even baby steps to turning green are better than no steps at all.