Green Deen: June 2008

Green Peace...
Monday, June 30, 2008

Assalamu `alaykum,

Insha'ALalh you are all well. For those of you that have not heard of this organization, you should definitely check it out :) I ran into them @ UCI (while on campus) and spoke to the guy and they are super cool :)

http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/

check them out!

salams.
mohammad ;)

Posted by Mohammad Mertaban at 8:48 PM | Permalink| 0 comments

"Blackle.com - Saving energy one search at a time".
Sunday, June 29, 2008

"In January 2007 a blog post titled Black Google Would Save 750 Megawatt-hours a Year proposed the theory that a black version of the Google search engine would save a fair bit of energy due to the popularity of the search engine. Since then there has been skepticism about the significance of the energy savings that can be achieved and the cost in terms of readability of black web pages.

We believe that there is value in the concept because even if the energy savings are small, they all add up. Secondly we feel that seeing Blackle every time we load our web browser reminds us that we need to keep taking small steps to save energy."

"Blackle saves energy because the screen is predominantly black. "Image displayed is primarily a function of the user's color settings and desktop graphics, as well as the color and size of open application windows; a given monitor requires more power to display a white (or light) screen than a black (or dark) screen." Roberson et al, 2002

How can you help?

"We encourage you to set Blackle as your home page (click to set). This way every time you load your Internet browser you will save a little bit of energy. Remember every bit counts! You will also be reminded about the need to save energy each time you see the Blackle page load."

Labels: Blackle, Clean Energy, save, watt hours

Posted by Nadya Aweinat at 4:03 AM | Permalink| 7 comments

Water water everywhere and not a drop to drink...
Saturday, June 28, 2008

70% of the Earth is covered in water yet 2.5% is fresh water and of that 2.5% only about 1% is readily available for consumption. Earlier today I kept noticing how wasteful many people were with water especially outdoors. Here are a few simple steps you can take this summer to save water:

1. If you have a garden, put a layer of mulch around trees and plants. Chunks of bark, peat moss or gravel slows down evaporation. Saves 750 to 1,500 gallons a month.

2. If you have a pool, use a pool cover to cut down on evaporation. It will also keep your pool cleaner and reduce the need to add chemicals. Saves 1,000 gallons a month.

3. Water during the cool parts of the day. Early morning is better than dusk since it helps prevent the growth of fungus. Saves 300 gallons.

4. Don't water the lawn on windy days. There's too much evaporation. Can waste up to 300 gallons in one watering.

5. Cut down watering on cool and overcast days and don't water in the rain. Adjust or deactivate automatic sprinklers. Can save up to 300 gallons each time.

6. Set lawn mower blades one notch higher. Longer grass means less evaporation. Saves 500 to 1,500 gallons each month.

7. Have an evaporative air conditioner? Direct the water drain line to a flower bed, tree base, or lawn.

8. Drive your car onto a lawn to wash it. Rinse water can help water the grass.

9. Tell your children not to play with the garden hose. Saves 10 gallons a minute.

10. If you allow your children to play in the sprinklers, make sure it's only when you're watering the yard--if it's not too cool at that time of day.

11. Xeriscape--replace your lawn and high-water-using trees and plants with less thirsty ones. But do this only in wet years. Even drought resistant plantings take extra water to get them going. That'll save 750 to 1,500 gallons a month.

12. When taking your car to a car wash--a good idea for saving water--be sure it's one of the many that recycles its wash water.

13. Dispose of hazardous materials properly! One quart of oil can contaminate 250,000 gallons of water, effectively eliminating that much water from our water supply. Contact your city or county for proper waste disposal options. And don't flush prescription medications!

Saving water also saves energy!! About 6.5% of energy used in CA goes towards pumping and treating water.

Sources: Mono Lake Committee, http://www.naturallybeautifulbackyards.org/, http://www.friendsoftheriver.org/

Posted by Asma Mana at 11:02 PM | Permalink| 0 comments

Watch out for Greenwashing!
Friday, June 27, 2008

"Green" is fashionable and more than ever, profitable. A recent LA Times article gives some good guidelines on how to navigate sincerely in an increasingly greenwashed marketplace. Greenwashing is the misleading of consumers regarding the environmental practices of a company or the environmental benefits of a product or service. (TerraChoice)

By Shaila Wunderlich

Organic cotton sheets, sustainable flooring, recycled glass countertops. The words hint at something lovely and healthy, but what do they mean exactly? Much like the word "organic" was used loosely years ago, the word "green" and all its synonyms are appearing everywhere in commercials, advertisements and marketing lingo. Its misuse has become so widespread, it has earned its own term — "greenwashing" — and the Federal Trade Commission has sped up plans to regulate the marketer's tactics. The FTC's final report (known as the "Green Guides") may take more than a year to be finalized. In the meantime, here are some guidelines to get you over the hump.

1). Do your homework. The "do your homework" mandate can seem cliche at times, but it is truer than ever in this instance. "A quick search on the Internet can usually turn up a few reputable editorial sources and most likely some readers comments and ratings," says Graham Hill. Hill's Web site, Tree Hugger.com, features its own "Green Guides" section, which breaks down the top environmental attributes and concerns among major product categories, such as lighting, electronics and gardening. More homework guidelines: Confirm green claims through a secondary source, and try to conduct at least part of your research over the phone or in person. "Ask sales reps about the various options they offer, and then drill down with specific questions," Hill says. (What kinds of questions, you ask? See No. 2.)

2). Energy at least. Ask about a product's greenness according to its energy consumption. "Most green problems come back to energy use," Hill says. How to evaluate a product's energy story? Hill says to question the distance a product must be shipped, and whether it is made with the least energy-intensive materials, contains the least number of chemicals and is made with the least amount of materials.

3). Get the story. "Look for companies that have an authentic story to tell, something of substance," says Sara Snow. Snow, host of the Discovery Networks' "Get Fresh with Sara Snow" and a lifelong follower of the green lifestyle, specifically seeks out products that are made by family-run businesses, community cooperatives and other groups that share her personal values.

4). Look for labels. Some day, home goods will have the equivalent of the food industry's "USDA Organic" label — a single stamp or designation that clearly verifies a product's claim. For now, you must rely on the industry's mixed (but trusted) designations, such as: Energy Star, GREENGUARD, Sustainable Furniture Council (SFC), Fair Trade-Certified, WaterSense, Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), etc.

5).Transparent equals true. If a product's ingredients or story are confusing, vague or missing all together, its claims may not be legitimate. In its recent study of 1,018 green products, environmental marketing firm TerraChoice found the "sin of vagueness" to be rampant. Rather than settling with slippery marketing words such as "eco-friendly" or "green," stick with the facts, such as ingredients, manufacturing processes and company history.

Source: LA Times

Labels: greenwashing

Posted by MetaMuslim at 11:04 PM | Permalink| 0 comments

Why Organic? A Kid's Perspective.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Labels: children, fruits, organic, video

Posted by Angie at 11:52 AM | Permalink| 4 comments

Islam and the Environment
Tuesday, June 24, 2008

"O Children of Adam! wear your beautiful apparel at every time and place of prayer: eat and drink: but waste not by excess, for Allah loveth not the wasters."

Quran 7:31

I found this two-part Khutbah by Sheikh Zia ul-Haque on the environment and the importance of safeguarding it. He ties in the Hadith and Qur'an and discusses consumerism, trees, water, the atmosphere, etc. It basically touches on a lot...very good.

Check it out!
Part One
Part Two

Labels: environment, Islam, Sheikh Zia ul-Haque, trees, waste, Water

Posted by Naadiya Patel at 10:16 AM | Permalink| 4 comments

Taqwa Eco-Halal
Monday, June 23, 2008

On June 19th, 2008 NPR discussed the concept of halal meat and how to know if halal is really halal meat - including the idea that it is eco-friendly. They also brought my attention to a eco-halal website called Taqwa Eco Halal that sells zabiha meat and chicken.

The farmers from which we acquire our products raise their livestock in a humane and ecologically sound manner. Taqwa Eco-Food provides meats that are halal and zabiha and goes one step further by providing a product that is tayyib. Our products are tayyib because we ensure that animals are treated with humanity, raised in respectful environments, and fed a natural diet free from antibiotics, hormones, and other such additives.

More:

NPR: How to know that halal is really halal
Taqwa Eco-Halal's website: http://www.taqwaecofood.org/

Labels: antibiotics, chicken, eco-halal, halal, hormones, meat, organic, taqwa eco-halal

Posted by Angie at 12:00 PM | Permalink| 2 comments

Green Faith
Sunday, June 22, 2008

Check this out! On behalf of Sierra Club, they have graciously sent us a newsletter about communities of different faiths who strive and work hard for a better environment. The Sierra Club has told Green Deen that they are about to release their first ever national report on Faith and the Environment. They highlight the people of faith from each of the 50 states who strive to work and protect Allah (swt)'s creation. Check out the article below as whats to come!

WEST BEND, WI
“It is He (God) who has made you His viceroys
on earth” (The Qur’an, 6:165). Inspired by this
passage, the Islamic Environmental Group of
Wisconsin (IEGW) shares Islamic environmental
teachings with its members, the larger
Muslim community and the general public.
They work to apply teachings to daily life and to
form coalitions with interfaith environmental
organizations in Wisconsin in order to create a
more just and sustainable future.
IEGW completed a successful energy awareness campaign in
the fall of 2007. Partnering with the Wisconsin Interfaith
Climate and Energy Campaign (WICEC), the IEGW helped
organize Interfaith Energy Awareness Month, which garnered
more than 100 pledges to use energy saving compact fluorescent
light bulbs (CFLs). Those pledges added up to savings of
84,600 kilowatt hours of energy and prevented 122,700
pounds of greenhouse gas emissions, earning the group the distinguished
2007 Energy Star Change a Light Pledge Leader
recognition from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
and the U.S. Department of Energy.
IEGW founder Huda Alkaff said caring for the
environment is central to the Islamic faith and is
supported by many passages in the Quran and the
Hadith. To help spread the message, Alkaff said she
regularly meets with the imams from many different
mosques and encourages them to share the connection
between Islam and caring for the earth.
“They’ve been very receptive and willing to do it,”
said Alkaff. “The earth is mentioned more than
450 times in the Qur’an. I formed [IEGW] to
bridge the gap between the practice and the belief.”
The 2007 energy awareness initiative is just one example of IEGW’s
work. The organization also holds free workshops for Muslims where
participating individuals and families learn ways to apply the Islamic
environmental and stewardship teachings to their daily lives, reduce
waste, conserve energy and water, eat healthier foods and build a
stronger sense of community. The organization also participated in the
2007 fourth annual Wisconsin Interfaith Earth Month.
“It’s great to work with the interfaith community,” Alkaff
explained. “It gives me strength, as we all face the same things. We
just keep on encouraging each other.”

For more information check out their website!
www.sierraclub.org/partnerships/faith

Labels: Clean Energy, environment, Hadith, Interfaith community, Qur'an, Sierra club

Posted by Sarah Al-Habib at 11:10 PM | Permalink| 1 comments

Green Your Summer!
Saturday, June 21, 2008

Yesterday marked the very first day of summer and already we are feeling it with three-digit temperatures. While it may seem difficult to beat the heat and conserve energy, as Sarah stated in a previous post, "It's the Little Things - Really!" Here are some tips to help stay cool during the summer while helping our planet become a cooler place, Insha'Allah.

Windows

Pulling down the shades in the entire house (or the at least the area where the sun comes in from) can help significantly lower the temperature of the house. The thicker the shade or curtain the better it is at keeping out the heat. If you don't already have curtains or shades installed in your windows try hanging a patio bamboo shade to help keep the sun's rays out of your home.

If you're planning on remodeling your house, consider installing low-emissivity windows (low-E). Low-E windows help keep your house cool during warm weather seasons and helps keep your house warm during the cool weather seasons.

Cool Down

Every summer's must-have items are the A/C and the Fan (the desk fan, the standing fan, the ceiling fan). The A/C does a fantastic job bringing the temperature of a room to sub-zero levels in no time despite the temperature outside. While its an amazing appliance, it can consume large amounts of energy while burning a hole in your pocket and the ozone layer at the same time. This summer, try raising the thermostat a couple of degrees and use the A/C a little less, your pocket will thank you, and hopefully the planet will too. If after all that, you still have to be in a highly air conditioned room in order to stay cool, do what I do, go to your local library and hang out there for a while, they are likely to have their A/C running anyway, so why not use it?

Try using a fan in an open window to help circulate the air through your house. An attic fan also does a decent job keeping things cool. Also, if you have a double story house, it is wise to sit downstairs as heat has a tendency to rise.

Water
Water is very important for you and your garden. We've said it many times, but I'll go ahead and mention it again...please do not use plastic water bottles! If you are on the go, take a re-usable water bottle along.

Don't forget to water your plants! The best time to water your plants is early in the morning or late in the evening when the sun is not beating too heavily on your garden. Watering your plants at these times will prevent your plants from going into shock due to the extremes in temperature and will also prevent water from being evaporated before it reaches the roots.

Please conserve water. Take short showers and please take one shower a day (unless of course it is absolutely necessary...you be the judge). Let's all take the 15 minute challenge, that is lets challenge ourselves to limit our shower time to 15 minutes. And of course, if you haven't already done so, install a low-flow shower head.

If you have a swimming pool, pull the pool cover over it when it is not in use. If you don't have one, its a good idea to buy one. Water evaporates; an uncovered pool can lose up to 1 inch of water a week.

Southern California often faces a drought in the hotter months of the year, lets be considerate to ourselves and our environment.

Summer Time = Picnic Time

During the summer, my family has a picnic almost every weekend. The last couple weekends I've sat and watched the items that we have, and with a ton of nagging about the environment, I've got them to think differently and think twice about the "goods" that are used. If your family is anything like my family, they enjoy playing sports whether its soccer, basketball, football or what have you. To keep hydrated, ditch the crate of water bottles! Instead, encourage your guests to bring their own re-usable bottles. Also, provide a water cooler with compostable paper cups. If, however, there are plastic bottles present, make a conscious effort to recycle them, do not throw the bottles in the trash.

Using re-usable tableware is always the best option, but if disposable goods are a must, try using something a little more earth-friendly. With everyone slowly becoming green-conscious, there are a variety of companies that make biodegradable tableware. Of course, they may be a little more on the pricey side, so at the very least, please ditch the Styrofoam.

Another thing that I have noticed at these family picnics is the amount of trash that is generated. The trash is loaded with cups, plates, bottles, forks, spoons, etc. In the end it all winds up somewhere in a landfill. Lets try an be a little more thoughtful. Have a pen available for writing names on cups so that they don't get thrown away too often.

For more tips for green-ing your summer check out:
TreeHugger
Ecopreneurist
ReGeneration

Enjoy your summer!!!

Labels: A/C, Cool, Hot, picnic, Styrofoam, summer, Water

Posted by Naadiya Patel at 11:00 AM | Permalink| 3 comments

Hypermiling for Non-Hyper People
Friday, June 20, 2008

Not sold on hybrids or not able to trade in your car for something with better miles per gallon? There is another way to get similar results with the car you currently drive; it's called "hypermiling". Hypermiling is a way of driving using techniques that greatly increase the fuel economy of your car. The downside? It requires a lot of patience. For that reason alone, my personal hypermiling skills are lacking big time. I was able to increase my miles per gallon 10-15% by simply accelerating slower and coasting a bit more than normal. Even a 10% gain in mileage translates to roughly 50 cents savings per gallon, which brings the current price per gallon back down to $4. The best hypermilers have been able to increase car mileage by more than 50%.

Driving to conserve gas should be the standard way of driving, regardless how much you are currently paying per gallon.

For more info on hypermiling, check out these links:

CNN Money
Hypermiling.com
CleanMPG: Hypermiling
Wikipedia: Hypermiling

Labels: gas, Hybrid, hypermiling, vehicles

Posted by MetaMuslim at 5:00 PM | Permalink| 1 comments

Green, green and green
Thursday, June 19, 2008

I want a holiday with a scene
Of green, green and green

A summer of green trees
A landscape of green grass
A view full of green vegetables

The color green
Is a beauty that must be seen!
From a moving vehicles screen

And while we hold onto those machines
That deprives us of the color green
Remember they provide us vaccines
As well as help the air to be clean

So for green, green and green
I will travel continents across and in-between
And also to any place that I have never been
I will make it routine
Just to see green, green and green

by, Sylvia Chidi

Posted by Rushda at 1:25 PM | Permalink| 0 comments

Baby Green Bean -- Natural Parenting
Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Natural parenting is coming back as a fad, even though it has been the instinctive way of parenting for centuries.

Natural parenting is also known as attachment parenting, in which the parent is guided by natural instincts to care for the child, being sensitive and responding to your child’s needs while showing them respect. Sounds like logic, right?

Well, actually the trend in the West has proven differently. The West, in trying to advance all aspects of life, has looked at child rearing as an area that could be controlled and stabilized, allowing for children to fit into a modern mother and father’s ever-quickening fast-paced world and schedule. A child, unlike a time-slot, does not fit so neatly and requires a lot more hands-on nurturing to meet the potential every child has.

As a result, natural parenting aims to have children grow into self-confident and independent children. A great resource and advocate of this method is Dr. William Sears, author of The Attachment Parenting Book. This book is an easy-to-read guide that illustrates that even a modern no-nonsense parent can follow these back-to-basics style of childrearing.

Here are a few basic tools that every parent should understand and implement into their lives.

Natural childbirth

Having a natural childbirth means more than no drugs. It means understanding the complexity of the relationship that a mother and child has and believing that there is a great benefit to the child when a mother understands her body, her labor, and the dynamic that occurs.
Breastfeeding Breastfeeding is one of the most simple and loving acts a mother and child can experience. Oxytocin, the “love hormone” is released and relaxes mother and child, as well has extensive health benefits for the baby.

Co-sleeping

Although there has been many studies regarding SIDS, co-sleeping can be very safe. Co-sleeping is simply sleeping with your baby. Or very near your baby, so long as the child is not alone, or given the feeling of being abandoned, as would be the case being left in a crib in a separate room.
Responsive Parenting

This is perhaps the most basic tool of all. Parents should be in touch with their infant’s emotions and respond appropriately to their cries rather than ignoring them or allowing them to “cry it out”. What parents may not realize is that letting children “cry it out” can lead to unwanted physiological responses such as high blood pressure, and elevated stress hormone levels.

Babywearing

This is the age-old practice of carrying your baby. We are always told to never never never allow your child to “get used” to being carried. Now we must realize that babies are programmed to want to be carried, no matter what we do. Babies are soothed and calmed by the mere act of being held. A sling or carrier is something that all parents, and especially the parents of naturally fussy babies, should invest in.

Source: Organic Baby Resource

Posted by Ferdaus at 12:19 PM | Permalink| 0 comments

Prophet Muhammad: Better Than the Environmentalist
Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Posted by Sarah Al-Habib at 12:04 AM | Permalink| 2 comments

Islam and the Environment Event
Monday, June 16, 2008

Labels: environment, event, Islam

Posted by Angie at 9:20 AM | Permalink| 1 comments

Celebrities Setting the Trend
Sunday, June 15, 2008

So while we have heard about what celebrity was the first to drive a Hybrid, or the celebrity who has created spoons and forks out of natural resources, take a look at the next trend being set by celebrities and see how its going to impact our society..

In today's LA Times article, Automakers are lining up celebrities to promote the technology, but the clean fuel isn't ready for prime time.

Oscar-winning writer and director Paul Haggis owns four Toyota Priuses and is high on the waiting list to buy a $100,000 Tesla electric roadster. But when he heard about the new Honda FCX Clarity, a hydrogen-powered car that gets 270 miles on a tank and emits nothing but water, he was desperate to drive it. "I want one. I want one," he said of the Clarity, later dispatching his agent to hunt for the not-yet-available vehicle. A step ahead of Haggis was Joely Fisher, star of Fox's " 'Til Death" TV show. She arranged for BMW to lend her a sleek metallic blue Hydrogen 7 Series -- one of just 20 such experimental sedans in the country. Never mind that it gets just 130 miles per tank and can be filled only by a trained professional, who takes it to Oxnard and refuels it with liquid hydrogen cooled to 423 degrees below zero, a round trip that can take three hours. The sedan comes with a feature that's worth the hassle: "Bragging rights," Fisher said, laughing. Fancy cars have long been integral to the one-upmanship among L.A.'s glitterati. But instead of Bentleys and Bugattis, Hollywood's must-have vehicles of the moment are green. And nothing conveys extreme exclusivity and earth-friendliness like a hydrogen car. The fad is a boon for car makers, which are leveraging the enthusiasm of the stars and their attendant paparazzi to boost their image as environmentally friendly companies. The cars aren't for sale -- and won't be for years -- but automakers are using celebrities to promote the technology and build support for the infrastructure needed to make hydrogen cars commercially viable.

(More)

...Beyond the cachet of holding the keys to such hard-to-get vehicles, environmentally attuned celebrities say driving the cars brings attention to a potentially important transportation technology in an age of $4-a-gallon gasoline and global warming concerns. Hydrogen technology has been around for decades, helping to power the space shuttle, among other applications. But serious study of its use in cars is relatively new. BMW burns hydrogen in a conventional internal combustion engine. GM and Honda, like most other carmakers developing the technology, mix hydrogen gas with oxygen from the air in a device called a fuel cell to create electricity that drives electric motors. Proponents note that hydrogen vehicles emit no greenhouses gases, unlike gasoline-powered cars. They have greater range than today's electric cars and can be refueled faster than a battery can be charged. But critics say hydrogen fuel is difficult to store and, at least for now, energy inefficient. It requires more energy to produce than it provides once it's in the car's tank. Moreover, the process of making hydrogen can create greenhouse gases. And fuel cells are very expensive because they contain precious metals such as platinum and palladium.

Continue here It just gets better!

I don't necessarily endorse the "celebrity trends" but with all the recent talk about hydrogen cars, natural gas / fuel efficient vehicles, this makes interesting insight for whats to come in the near future.
What do you all think of this?
How do you think this will impact the Muslim society in Socal - if at all?

Labels: celebrities, Clean Energy, Hybrid, LA Times, vehicles

Posted by Sarah Al-Habib at 9:41 PM | Permalink| 2 comments

Obama's Environmental Policy
Saturday, June 14, 2008

Obama discusses his environmental policy:

Posted by Asma Mana at 6:20 PM | Permalink| 0 comments

What's that smell in your bathroom?
Friday, June 13, 2008

No, I'm not referring to THAT smell. According to a recent LA Times article , it seems your new shower curtain may be killing you.

(green Muslim staff writer?)

Here's an excerpt:

Vinyl shower curtains sold at major retailers across the country emit toxic chemicals that have been linked to serious health problems, according to a report released Thursday by a national environmental organization.

The curtains contained high concentrations of chemicals that are linked to liver damage as well as damage to the central nervous, respiratory and reproductive systems, said researchers for the Virginia-based Center for Health, Environment & Justice.

The organization commissioned the study about two years ago to determine what caused that "new shower curtain smell" familiar to many consumers.

"This smell can make you feel sick, give you a headache, make you feel nauseous or [cause] other health effects," said Michael Schade, a coauthor of the report.

Researchers tested the chemical composition of five unopened polyvinyl chloride, or PVC, plastic shower curtains bought from Bed Bath & Beyond, Kmart, Sears, Target and Wal-Mart. One of the curtains was then tested to determine the chemicals it released into the air.

The study found that PVC shower curtains contained high concentrations of phthalates, which have been linked to reproductive effects, and varying concentrations of organotins, which are compounds based on tin and hydrocarbons. One of the curtains tested released measurable quantities of as many as 108 volatile organic compounds into the air, some of which persisted for nearly a month.

Seven of these chemicals -- toluene, ethylbenzene, phenol, methyl isobutyl ketone, xylene, acetophenone and cumene -- have been identified by the Environmental Protection Agency as hazardous air pollutants, said Stephen Lester, the center's science director and a coauthor of the report.

Potential health effects include developmental damage and harm to the liver and the central nervous, respiratory and reproductive systems, according to the report.

Posted by MetaMuslim at 10:54 PM | Permalink| 4 comments

Baby Green Bean -- Happy Toys, Happy Tots
Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Before my daughter was born I told myself that I would not have a house full of plastic garbage littered around the house. For me, plastic toys were not just unsightly but really not earth friendly. Not to mention, plastic toys don't last long, break easily, lose parts, and need batteries replaced so often that we let them sit there useless until we throw them out.

Here are four pointers to measure the green-ness of toys before buying.

1) What Materials are the toys made of?
Identifying what is classified as a ‘green toy’ starts with the materials used to create that toy. Choose toys which are made with natural or easily recyclable materials. Choose toys made with:

Leather
Wood
Organic cotton
Metal (aluminum is easily recycled)
Fabric

Avoid toys made with plastic as plastic is a non biodegradable oil based product.

2) What country are the toys made in?
Surprisingly the location where the toy is manufactured has a large impact on its ‘greenness’ . Most toys these days are produced in China and as a result incur an enormous environmental ‘carbon footprint’ due to the distances travelled. A Toys ‘Carbon Footprint’ increases every mile that toy has to be transported.

3) Will this toy break in the first 10 minutes?
Well made toys are inherently green because they can be passed down and are not designed to be used for a week before they break. Select toys that are robust, made with quality materials and designed to stand the test of time.

4) Can the toy eventually be recycled?
All toys will eventually find their way to the landfill unless their components can be recycled. Some toys are manufactured in a way that allows for their parts to be easily disassembled.

Posted by Ferdaus at 4:45 PM | Permalink| 6 comments

Green Cleaning Concoctions
Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Headaches, dizziness, rashes, and pulmonary constrictions were among some of the conditions experienced by the custodians of Lockport Township High School District before switching over to using toxic-free cleaning solutions.

The results: "Carbon dioxide levels in the classroom plummeted. Fewer custodians complained of exposure to unhealthy irritants. And the student attendance rate improved by 2 percentage points that year." Furthermore, "1,400 fewer visits to the school nurse were logged."

Read on here.

~~~

Common cleaning supplies are typically saturated with toxic chemicals that have potentially dangerous affects on our health. It's about time that we switch over to non-toxic-natural-home-made-products that get the job done just as well.

These are three must-haves: Vinegar, Lemon Juice, Baking Soda.
Also, you can almost never go wrong with a few extra drops on Tea Tree Oil and/or Lavender Oil in the mix!

A plethora great formulas may be found by following the links below:

Non-Toxic Home Cleaning
Clean and Green: Natural Homemade Household Cleaners

Benefits of homemade cleaners:

Less packaging waste.
Less expensive.
Less harmful (often not harmful at all) to humans, animals, and the earth.
Less noxious home smell.

25 more formulas to check out on the same link.

Compile a list of your favorite friendly cleaners and add true freshness to your cleaning routine!

Photo Source: http://nowsourcing.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/12/spring-cleaning.jpg

Labels: all natural, baking soda, chemicals, clean, cleaning, green, home-made baby food, lavender oil, lemon juice, policy, products, tea tree oil, toxic, vinegar

Posted by Aïcha Sebaa at 5:05 PM | Permalink| 1 comments

Saving Gas?
Monday, June 09, 2008

With the exponential rise in gas prices and increase in greenhouse gas emissions, take this Quiz and find out if you are being as earth friendly and pocket friendly as possible:

(( Saving Gas Quiz ))

Labels: gas, global warming, Quiz

Posted by Angie at 6:00 PM | Permalink| 3 comments

Need a Carwash?
Saturday, June 07, 2008

Is your car sitting in your driveway or garage covered with a coat of dust? Are your car windows decorated with sayings like "Wash me please"? Is it hard to tell what color your car actually is? If you've answered yes to any of these questions, don't worry, I'm in the same boat, it's time for a car wash!

What if I told you that you can have your car washed using as little as 2 cups of water?

That's right, just two cups of water can get your car looking sparkely clean! A company called Speed Steam has patented a system that makes it feasible to wash a car and be eco-friendly too. The secret is in the high temperature and high pressure steam. Steam is able to break through and dissolve mud, grime, dirt and whatever else is on your car without using the harmful chemicals found in car wash detergents. What's even better is that washing your car the Speed Steam way takes way less time in comparison to conventional car washes. What more could an eco-friendly, clean car seeking person want?

Try the Speed Steam car wash for yourself!
611 W 6th St.
G1 Level
Los Angeles, CA 90017
310-526-3391

Open Monday to Friday 7 AM to 5PM

Sources:
Ideal Bite
Speed Steam

Posted by Naadiya Patel at 8:00 AM | Permalink| 1 comments

Benefits of Dates
Friday, June 06, 2008

An amazing article on the numerous benefits of eating dates. Subhan Allah - a definite must read:

Muslims generally break their fast by eating dates. Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh) is reported to have said: "if anyone of you is fasting, let him break his fast with dates. In case he does not have them, then with water. Verily water is a purifier."

The Prophet used to break his fast by eating some dates before offering Maghrib prayer, and if ripe dates were not available, he used to substitute them with some dried grapes. When they too were not available, he used to have a few sips of water, according to some reports. Modern science has proved that dates are part of a healthy diet. They contain sugar, fat and proteins, as well as important vitamins. Hence the great importance attached to them by the Prophet.

Dates are also rich in natural fibres. Modern medicine has shown that they are effective in preventing abdominal cancer. They also surpass other fruits in the sheer variety of their constituents. They contain oil, calcium, sulphur, iron, potassium, phosphorous, manganese, copper and magnesium. In other words, one date is a minimum of a balanced and healthy diet. Arabs usually combine dates with milk and yogurt or bread, butter and fish. This combination indeed makes a self-sufficient and tasty diet for both mind and body. Dates and date palms have been mentioned in the Holy Qur'an 20 times, thus showing their importance. The Prophet likened a good Muslim to the date palm, saying, "Among trees, there is a tree like a Muslim. Its leaves do not fall."

Sayyidah Mariam (the Virgin Mary) mother of Jesus (Pbuh) had dates as her food when she felt labour pains and during confinement. They are definitely the "crown of sweets," and ideal food which is easy to digest, and within half an hour of taking it, the tired body regains a renewed vigour. The reason for this is that a shortage of sugar in the blood is the main factor that makes people feel hungry and not an empty stomach as is often assumed. When the body absorbs the nutritional essence of a few dates, the feeling of hunger becomes appeased. When one breaking the fast with dates takes some other food afterwards, he cannot eat much. It would seem that breaking the fast with dates then helps one avoid excessive eating.

Experiments have also shown that dates contain some stimulants that strengthen the muscles of the uterus in the last months of pregnancy. This helps the dilation of the uterus at the time of delivery on one hand and reduces the bleeding after delivery on the other. Dieticians consider dates as the best food for women in confinement and those who are breast-feeding. This is because dates contain elements that assist in alleviating depression in mothers and enriching the breast-milk with all the elements needed to make the child healthy and resistant to disease. The Prophet (Pbuh) has emphasized the importance of dates and their effectiveness in the growth of the fetus. He has also recommended they be given to women. Modern dietary institute now recommend dates to be given to children suffering from a nervous nature or hyperactivity. The Prophet (Pbuh) has also recommended dates as a medicine for heart troubles, according to some reports. Modern science has also proved the effectiveness of date, in preventing diseases of the respiratory system.

Sayyidah Ayisha, (R.A.) wife of Prophet (Pbuh), used to prescribe dates for those suffering from giddiness. It is now well known that a fall in the level of the sugar in the blood and low blood pressure are among the causes of giddiness. She was also reported to have used dates combined with cucumber to treat her over-slim condition! She said, "they've tried to fatten me giving me everything. But I did not become fat. Then they fattened me with cucumber and ripe dates and I gained!" Ayisha was quite correct, as we now know that one kilogram of dates contains nearly 3,000 calories which alone are sufficient to supply the minimum daily requirements of an active man for one full day.

Dates are rich in several vitamins and minerals. When the level of trace elements falls in the body, the health of the blood vessels is affected leading to an increased heart-rate and a consequent inability to perform its function with normal efficiency. As dates are also rich in calcium, they help strengthen the bones. When the calcium content in the body decreases, children are affected with rickets and the bones of adults become brittle and weak.

Dates are also important in keeping up the health of eyes. It is quite effective in guarding against night-blindness. In the early years of Islam, dates served as food for Muslim warriors. They used to carry them in special bags hung at their sides. They are the best stimulant for muscles and so the best food for a warrior about to engage in battle.
The Prophet (Pbuh) used to combine dates with bread sometimes. At other times he mixed ripe dates with cucumber, or dates combined with ghee. He used to take all varieties of dates, but he preferred the variety called Ajwah.

Source: Dates on www.cresentlife.com

Labels: dates, sunnah

Posted by Angie at 2:51 PM | Permalink| 3 comments

Baby Green Bean - Born Toxic?
Thursday, June 05, 2008

The human race is now polluted with hundreds of industrial chemicals with little or no understanding of the consequences. Babies are born pre-polluted with as many as 300 industrial chemicals in their bodies when they enter the world. Testing by Environmental Working Group has identified 455 chemicals in people, and again, no one has any idea if these exposures are safe.

We are at a tipping point, where the pollution in people is increasingly associated with a range of serious diseases and conditions from childhood cancer, to autism, ADHD, learning deficits, infertility, and birth defects. Yet even as our knowledge about the link between chemical exposure and human disease grows, the government has almost no authority to protect people from even the most hazardous chemicals on the market.

The nation's toxic chemical regulatory law, the Toxic Substances Control Act, is in drastic need of reform. Passed in 1976 and never amended since, TSCA is widely regarded as the weakest of all major environmental laws on the books today.

When passed, the Act declared safe some 62,000 chemicals already on the market, even though there were little or no data to support this policy. Since that time another 20,000 chemicals have been put into commerce in the United States, also with little or no data to support their safety.

But current law is so deficient that the Environmental Protection Agency couldn't use it to ban carcinogenic asbestos. In the past 30 years, EPA has evaluated the safety of just 200 out of 80,000 chemicals, and banned only five.

Pollution in people is associated with serious diseases like childhood cancer, autism, and ADHD, but right now the government has almost no authority to protect people from even the most hazardous chemicals.

click here to learn more.

Posted by Ferdaus at 12:14 AM | Permalink| 0 comments

What's wrong with what we eat?
Tuesday, June 03, 2008

In this fiery and funny talk, New York Times food writer Mark Bittman weighs in on what's wrong with the way we eat now (too much meat, too few plants; too much fast food, too little home cooking), and why it's putting the entire planet at risk.

Taken from:

http://www.ted.com

Labels: food, Mark Bittman, meat, Planet, plants, risk, TED

Posted by Sarah Al-Habib at 5:52 PM | Permalink| 1 comments

Best Buy tests free ewaste recycling program
Monday, June 02, 2008

Under pressure to help dispose some of the electronic waste it helped
create, Best Buy Co. is testing a free program that will offer consumers a
convenient way to ensure millions of obsolescent TVs, old computers and other
unwanted gadgets don't poison the nation's dumps.

The trial announced Monday covers 117 Best Buy stores scattered across
eight states that will collect a wide variety of electronic detritus at no
charge, even if the Richfield, Minn.-based retailer didn't originally sell the
merchandise.

The pilot stores are in Best Buy's Northern California, Minneapolis and
Baltimore markets, as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa,
Wisconsin, Virginia and Washington, D.C.

Depending on how the test goes, the nation's largest electronics retailer
may expand the recycling program to all of its 922 stores in the United
States.

Associated Press: Best Buy testing free e-waste recycling program

Labels: best buy, electronics, ewaste, recycle

Posted by Angie at 4:00 PM | Permalink| 4 comments

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