Sustainable Storage Choices

In my short researches this afternoon, I've found that glass containers are acknowledged as the best, with porcelain, ceramic, and stainless steel following up as good choices. My plans now are to raid the old kitchen things my mom and grandma have given me over the years as they've modernized their kitchens, to find the glass and ceramic containers I know I have somewhere. Next, I'll raid Goodwill and Salvation Army shops (where, bonus!, I usually also find great old vinyl records).

If you'd like to support some green, sustainable product manufacturers, I did come across a few awesome websites that you could check out for brand-new good stuff.

http://worldcentric.org/
http://www.to-goware.com/
http://www.grinningplanet.com/

Other options are glass products from such well-known names as Pyrex, Corningware, and Anchor Hocking.

It's easy to reduce plastics in your kitchen! And I'm even taking one website's suggestion and storing my smaller sewing items in some of the old plastic containers I've removed from the kitchen cabinets. Next on the agenda: get rid of all paper napkins and paper towels. I'm already halfway there.

funky cloth napkins rolled up and ready for dinner

Seven Apparently Recyclable Unrecyclables

Time for a confession from your local conservationist (me): I only just began to recycle.

This sounds worse than it really is. While I lived in Baltimore and had curbside recycling, I joyfully separated my trash and sent it on its way to reincarnation. While I lived in Germany, I became a pro at understanding the differences among Biomüll, die gelbe Sack, Restmüll, and various forms of glass and paper recycling. However, since returning to this beautiful land of mountains and countryside, I have unfortunately also returned to a township that does not offer curbside recycling.

This summer, I finally set up boxes in my garage for separated plastics, junk mail, magazines, and metals. Every couple weeks, as the boxes fill up, I'll drive them a mile away to a collection point. The collection point is even across the road from my favorite pizza shop, so it works well for everyone.

Something I have only just learned, however, is that I can't recycle everything here the same way I would have in Germany. My mom found this article through the Weather Channel about seven things you can't recycle. How illuminating! Caps, yogurt, glass....

I recommend a read-through. Some things are more obvious than others, but in all points, they provide a good explanation instead of simply saying "don't."

Something Tells Me It's All Happening At the Zoo

I do believe it's true. A friend of mine sent me this article from MSN all about zoos and their current movement to be more natural and environmentally friendly.

The only zoos I've ever been to and enjoyed were the National Zoo in DC and Busch Gardens in Florida. They had natural habitats for the animals, not concrete slabs, and they had huge ditches to separate humans from dangerous beasts, not bars and cages.

I'm glad to see that more zoos are taking that initiative, and that there are programs that encourage this sort of zoo setup over the other, less humane versions. It's also exciting to see that the Philadelphia Zoo is offsetting its carbon use. As much as it helps for individuals and families to think ecologically, it's the huge institutions that will really make a difference just by setting an example.

Encourage the good zoos around you. Appreciate their conservation intentions, and consider how they can improve still more.

Storm Petrels in Portugal

Look what I get to do in June!


These little birds -- Storm Petrels or "Stormies" -- have fascinating migratory routes, and like many sea birds, seldom come to land. A Rocha Portugal, an environmental conservation organization, is tracking these Stormies to learn more about climate change and its impact on marine life.

Now, I should add that I know next to nothing about how to catch, ring, and release wild birds, but I do know how to be quiet and observe what's happening around me. And that's just what I intend to do this June when I spend a week with A Rocha, so that I can write about my experiences when I get home!

Excited? Of course! As much as I love my backyard, it's been four years since I've been to Europe, and ages since I've done much of anything truly exciting. Like the Stormies, it's time for me to follow my migratory route eastward and over the ocean.