Black Friday Blues

Did you go shopping on Friday?  If you did, I’m sure the sales were great, but there are also large consequences for climate change that come from Black Friday, according to the EPA and the Product Policy Institute, or PPI.
Production, consumption and disposal of the huge quantity of short-lived products and packaging used in the [...]

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Renter Power

If you are renting a home or apartment, you might think that you have less power to make changes to green your living space and save energy.  But even if you have a landlord, there are still many actions you can take to save money on your electricity and heating bill.

Make sure your furniture is [...]

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Learn how to drive $marter

When gas prices get me down, I usually just leave my car at home and bike, bus or walk where I need to go. It helps me get exercise, I like being outdoors and I save money. But I also live in the city near lots of great bike trails and I work [...]

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Little red tickets saving $800/month

It doesn’t always take grand gestures to save energy. As Hollydale Elementary students are proving, something as simple as a little red ticket can serve as a useful reminder – and now their school is saving $800 a month in energy costs! The Watt Watchers team, comprised of Hollydale students, put their warning [...]

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More on driving the speed limit

CNN Money and Yahoo Finance collaborated on this great article about the financial benefits of driving the speed limit:
Pushing air around actually takes up about 40% of a car’s energy at highway speeds, according to Roger Clark, a fuel economy engineer for General Motors.
Traveling faster makes the job even harder. More air builds up in [...]

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Driving the Speed Limit: Way Cooler Than You Imagined

I think the least popular action on the Challenge is driving 55 on the freeway. I understand how people feel about slowing down in their cars – I used to have quite the lead foot myself. However, there are a lot of benefits to driving 55.
First, environmental: Driving 55 on the freeway increases [...]

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Turn it off for Earth Hour

Here’s the perfect example of small actions making a big difference – Earth Hour. On Saturday, March 29th, people around the world will be turning off their lights for one hour from 8pm to 9pm. Earth Hour originated in Sydney, Australia in 2007 with the goal of reducing the city’s carbon footprint by [...]

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Easy fix for costly air “suckage”

We’re all familiar with the little cracks and holes in our homes and apartments; a little draft here, maybe a cold spot that you’re so used to you don’t think about anymore. But all those little cracks and holes can add up to a big energy drain on your home – in fact, they [...]

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So fresh and so green, green

Maybe it’s because the hot water was turned off in my building last night, but for whatever reason, I find myself considering the question of hot water today. Specifically, just how important is hot water heating when it comes to energy use? The U.S. Department of Energy tells me that water heating can [...]

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Suburban ridership booming in Minnesota

Leaving your car at home and trying alternative forms of transportation is a quick and easy way to make a big impact on your carbon footprint. In fact, choosing public transportation just one day a week can save over 800 pounds of carbon dioxide pollution annually – and put nearly $100 back in your [...]

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