Green Mentor : Providing resources and education to organizations who wish to minimize their impact on the environment and the commuity.

Workshops and Technical Assistance

LITE has developed a green workshop series and technical assistance program for households, groups, businesses and municipalities. Whether the preferred focus is zero waste, green businesses or green events, the process is generally the same: outreach and workshops augmented by research, clinics and one-on-one technical assistance.

Similar yet different from waste reduction and recycling program assistance, the LITE green training process also helps an event or organization be better organized as well as lessening its impact on the environment.

How Low Can You Go?

How Low Can You Go?

True or False? "People will never exchange their high impact consumer lifestyle for one that they perceive is less – less fun, less satisfying, less comfortable."

By Portia Sinnott, LITE Initiatives, Copyright, 2007

False. Most people simply need information and positive reinforcements to motivate them to establish new, lighter habits. As presented in the companion article, Shrink Your Ecological Footprint (www.liteinit.org), time management is a key to living a low impact life and to developing new habits. Information is another key. The adjacent list is chock full of websites that promote the suggested actions. Here are some additional concepts to motivate you:

Zero Waste - Or Darn Close
In nature, biodegradability is the norm and there is no waste. Zero Waste, the application of that fact, ensures that products are made to be reused, repaired or recycled into the marketplace or nature.

Seriously, we believe if it can’t be recycled – it shouldn’t be made!

Some people vehemently object to this term because reaching zero is impossible. Proponents consider it a worthy goal that shouldn’t be dismissed because it is too ambitious.

The State of California is leading the way: "Now, with recycling and conservation programs in every city, we are able to embrace the zero waste concept as our guiding principal and goal for the future." www.zerowaste.ca.gov. It is not just in California, this issue is being collaboratively worked on all over the world: www.grrn.org, www.zwia.org

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)
In the ZW worldview, the long-term responsibility for a product is on the producer of the item, not you the consumer or the local government agency that oversees your waste steam. The ultimate goal of EPR is clean, safe materials and production and the elimination of waste at each stage of the product’s life cycle. www.eprworkinggroup.org, www.productpolicy.org

Precautionary Principle – Do No Harm
If an action, policy or product might cause severe harm, the burden of proof should fall on those who are producing it. In other words, it must be proved to be safe before it is implemented - versus proving it is not unsafe. www.safecosmetics.org, www.noharm.org

Carbon Offsets – Trying to reconcile your actions with your values? Rather then sending money around the world and possibly through many hands, consider investing the same amount in greening your own home or donate to a local non-profit that supports your values. Internal trades are another story; no one needs to be 100% perfect. If you make an extra trip to the movie store tonight, plan to walk around town tomorrow. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_offset.

LITE Initiatives, a California-based DIY working group, promotes simple, straightforward practices with significant consequences. LITE’s programs include Car-Lite, Community Bikes, Green Mentor and Zero Waste Sonoma County.

For more info and additional checklists, visit www.liteinit.org, or contact us at LITE at sonic.net or 707 579-5811.

Shrink Your Ecological Footprint

By Portia Sinnott, LITE Initiatives, Copyright, 2007

The Ecological Footprint Quiz is a tool for calculating your impact on the Earth. It asks 14 simple questions about you and your lifestyle – your age and gender, where you live, what you eat, how much you waste, your energy use and how you get about. At the end it calculates how many acres of food and goods you need per year to maintain your lifestyle.

I recently took the quiz at www.myfootprint.org. In 5 minutes I determined that my Ecological Footprint is 9 acres, and if everyone lived like I do we would need 1.9 planets. The US average is 24 acres.

Given we only have one earth, neither of these lifestyles are sustainable. What can we do? The answer is to start integrating sustainable practices into our lifestyles and that of the average American.

Start simple. Using the list below check off the techniques you already practice, draw a line through impossible ones and circle a few you would like to take on. Once you integrate the new ones, check them off and select a new one when you feel ready. It is okay if you occasionally get sidetracked - like driving to the movies when you could walk or buying some expensive imported item. What is important is that you get in the sustainability habit - not that you are 100% on everything all of the time.

These prescriptions may sound simple but they are not easy - especially for those of us with busy active lives. The secret is setting a clear intention, coming up with a good plan and sticking with it for 14 days. Here are a few examples that hung me up for years - salad dressings and bag reuse. I prefer homemade salad dressing but found the idea of making them a bit daunting. When I finally blocked out some time, I found them easy to make and well worth the effort. The same thing was true with eliminating that irritating pile of bags next to the refrigerator. I set my intention, came up with a simple plan, and stuck with it: Right after unpacking the groceries, I hang my canvas bags on a doorknob. The next time I go out I put them in the car or bike bag so that they are always there when I need them. This habit has become second nature and I don’t even think about it except when I occasionally rush out and end up at the store without them.

Every dollar is a vote. Why am I talking about dressings and paper bags when we are confronted daily with much bigger problems? Everybody has to start somewhere, and simple, straightforward practices - like preparing our own food, reusing bags and driving less, help us address complicated challenges like unwanted food additives, resource shortages, landfill closures and air pollution. The choices individuals make day-to-day really matter, and the sooner we shrink our individual footprints the better it will be for the earth and us.

LITE Initiatives

Simple, Sustainable Practices With Significant Consequences

Car-Lite, Community Bikes, Green Mentor and Zero Waste Sonoma County.

www.liteinit.org LITE at sonic.net 707 579-5811

How To Shrink Your Ecological Footprint

LITE Checklist I

Check items you already practice. Draw a line through the impossible and circle a few you are willing to take on. Set a goal and go for it! Visit list again in a few weeks. See List II on back.

TRANSPORTATION

q Drive less and fly less

q Walk and bike safelyq Carpool - it’s good for your social life!q Plan meals and trips; clump errandsq Take transit when possibleq Work at home or close to homeq Keep your vehicle well maintained and tires properly inflatedq Select safe efficient carsq Rent other vehicles when neededq Vacation close to home

ENERGY AND WATER

q Get a good sweater; Keep the heat on lowq Close the door - don’t let the heat outq Use energy efficient appliances and bulbsq Turn lights off when not in useq Minimize opening the refrigeratorq Wash clothing with cold waterq Dry clothing on a rack or clothes lineq Conserve waterq Plant year round gardensq Select native and drought resistant plantsq Use mulch and compost to reduce water use and feed the soil

FOOD

q Eat fresh, locally grown foodq Choose organic whenever possibleq Make your own dressings, sauces and condimentsq Minimize animal productsq Enjoy natural snacksq Avoid empty caloriesq Share meals with neighbors and friends

WASTE

q Buy less and consume lessq Choose locally made goodsq Use non-toxic productsq Reduce, reuse, recycle and shareq Compost; try worms!q Reuse bags, containers and paperq Carry a cup and refill water bottlesq Buy in bulk; avoid packagingq Try refillables; avoid disposables.q Visit the Library for books and videos, and rental businesses for party equipment and power tools.

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