Counting Down 5 Great Ideas for a Green New Year’s Eve!

With 2010 fast approaching, there is no better way to celebrate the New Year than the Green Connoisseur way! Wherever your plans may take you, here is a countdown of 5 ways to usher in a green 2010. 5) Keep it Close to Home While many cities become major destinations for New Year’s Eve, a wonderful time can still be had at home by flexing your eco-conscious muscles. Cooking ahead of time or even catering a sit-down dinner can be as classy as going out without as much hassle for your guests or gas, paper, or waste that going out can entail. Hosting people to sleep over or enlisting designated driver carpools can also ensure that a safe time is has by all. 4) Carpool or Use Public Transit If you are planning to go out, however, how you get there can make a big difference for how green your evening ends up. Taking a look at the public transit available to get you to your destination ahead of time will make things much easier for you the night of the 31st. If you are driving, carpooling is both the greenest and the safest way for both you and your loved ones. Beyond driving from point A to B, navigating the traffic as well as finding a place to park all add up to much more gas spent than on an average night out. As such, the fewer cars on the road, the better for us all. 3) Green your Food and Beverages Wherever you do eat your last meal of 2009, try to keep it green. When choosing a special restaurant, try for one that offers local or organic fare. When it comes to beverages, there are many great organic sparking wine varieties, such as those from Diamond Organics. If you don’t have time to order online, call your local liquor store and ask what organic wines they have in stock. If you are going out, it can sometimes be hard to ensure that you’re ordering a green drink. A good bet, however, is to order things produced locally, as well as those on tap. The rationale being that, while hopefully all beer bottles and cans are recycled, skipping that step all together will ensure that you’re doing your part to keep your waste down. 2) Dress up Something Old Instead of rushing out to get a festive new outfit, comb through your closet and see what you can think of with what you already have. Revitalizing a garment long since forgotten with your favorite accessories will not only save you money, but also save you carbon emissions. Reuse is one of the three R’s of sustainability (the other two being reduce and recycle), and this is a great way to reuse. If you can't find what you want in your own closet, try raiding a friend's for their old outfits and inviting them over to return the favor. You’re sure to come up with something fabulous and chic without spending a dime! 1) Make Green Resolutions for a Sustainable 2010! As the ball drops in time square, you can be setting goals for making 2010 the best year yet. Taking a quick inventory on your daily life and then setting goals for making those actions more sustainable will give you a great orientation for the new year. So, cheers to these tips sending you towards a greener New Year’s Eve and into a happy, and sustainable, 2010! Image Credit: Relax It’s Done, New Year In, The Wine Riot, University of Manchester, Sign Industry

A New Year's Resolution - Eco-Friendly Exercise

One of the most common New Year's Resolutions is to embrace a healthier lifestyle, which usually includes an increase in exercise. Oftentimes, eco-minded exercisers overlook the many ways one can incorporate eco-friendly values into getting fit, staying trim, and building muscle. Go beyond taking sips of hydration from a reusable, toxic-free water bottle (helping to cut down on the yearly waste accumulating in landfills) and allow us to broaden your horizons with the following green exercise suggestions: Footwear Running, jogging or taking a leisurely stroll are popular methods of increasing your daily exercise. The market is full of environmentally friendly footwear that allows you to accomplish your fitness goals. From recycled rubber outsoles to packing products in unbleached recycled cardboard boxes, an increasing number of shoe companies have stopped using chemicals and materials harmful to the environment, such as polyvinyl chloride (better known as PVC). To get an idea of the possibilities, check out the entire line of Brooks' Trail footwear collection or their Green Silence racing flat (shown above) – comprised of 75% recycled materials. Socks You can't enjoy a good workout without protecting your feet from sweat and friction. A good pair of socks doesn’t have to contain bleached, synthetic fibers. Choose socks from companies, like Teko, which provide high quality through renewable resources, such as wool, organic cotton, and fibers made from corn. Teko uses "premium merino wool" sourced from farms in Argentina and recycled tekoPOLY to create socks with a luxury fit and insulation. Shown is the tekoPOLY Light Mini Crew for women. Clothing During exercise, you may cover your limbs and warm your body with a range of eco friendly clothing choices – fashioned out of renewable, organic, and recycled materials. Companies, such as Patagonia and Gaiam are known for pushing the envelope of sustainability with cotton, hemp, bamboo and soy fibers that make an earth conscious workout program easier to achieve. In addition to Birkenstocks Unisex Eco-Friendly Socks (combination of EcoSpun and cotton) to eye-catching swimwear, the Cannondale bike jersey shown is comprised of high-quality fibers comprised of recycled soda bottles. Exercise Mats To accommodate your Pilates and yoga sessions, an exercise mat protects your body during a workout. You can protect the environment by selecting products that forego the use of toxic chemicals and damaging manufacturing processes. For example, the Natural Fitness Powerhouse eco friendly workout mat provides cushioning for floor exercises by using an environmentally friendly foam material sans toxic phthalates or PVC. As part of the Zero Impact Program, trees are planted every time one of the mats is sold. Other companies offering eco-friendly exercise mats include GreenYoga, Gaiam and BareFootYoga. Exercise Equipment From using eco-friendly paints to coat machinery and working with sustainable materials, incorporate earth-conscious exercise equipment into your get-fit routines. Interesting selections include the WaterRower – a wooden rowing machine that uses water to create resistance during workouts. The fine hardwoods used in the construction of the machine come from sources of replenishable ash, cherrywood, and Black American walnut sources. The WaterRower uses no electricity, as it gains power from your effort.