Green Holidays

Travelling to big cities can be as green as you want it to be.

Take New York for example; a city of shopping and high-rise.  But it is also a place where public transport is very well organised and everything you need is right on your doorstep!

If you plan your green holidays New York style, then you won’t be disappointed with the results.  Whether it shopping you want; a taste of the culture or just a city with a difference – you would be going to the right place.

I recently added a trip to New York as part of a road trip around  North America – and I wanted to make it as eco friendly as possible while still enjoying the city for what it is.  I mean living with a green conscience doesn’t have to mean never leaving your small-holding and only wearing repaired clothes.

Yes, I enjoy wandering around the stores looking at everything new and useful, but I also enjoy people-watching and how different people and places can be even when they are all using the same space and doing the same things.  I get a lot of inspiration from other people for both activities and products I’d like to try as well as for photography and story-telling.

I love the way other people will try things that I perhaps would have overlooked – yet seeing them with it changes my mind, and I want to learn more.  Similarly with foods; I won’t buy a whole meal of something new, but tapas and the like can allow me to explore a new lifestyle, a new experience, a new me even.

Cities are good in general for a lot of things – like an interesting mix of cultures and technology.  Yes, much of it is imported in – but the innovative qualities are still there, and it is nice to see how people and businesses apply it.   And the vibrant mix of people can really make a corner coffee house a really interesting yet relaxing place to spend a few hours.

There is also plenty of ‘green space’ in the city for those of you who need to see green at least once a day.  Central Park is ginormous and you can see as much wildlife as you would in any park in any town or city – and a short journey out of town can lead you to a few wild areas, zoos and botanical gardens.

Cities like New York are a delight to visit as part of any vacation and I would recommend at least one visit in your lifetime – if only to see how pleasant and ‘easy-to-use’ a metropolis can be.

Have fun exploring…..

Cod & Chips; Tuna & Sweetcorn and Salmon and Cucumber sandwiches – Just STOP!

Of course, as humans in a developed nation – we can eat whatever we choose; but should we be a little more picky?

As consumers, we can demand whatever we want from retailers and manufacturers without donning placards, signing a 10,000 people petition or starting any riots.

How? you may ask – How else can you get people to listen to your opinions?

It’s called: Your Choice.

By choosing to buy a certain product, we are also choosing to leave something else behind – and it is what is left behind that forces retailers and manufacturers make big changes.

If 40,000 people all chose not to eat cod this week – there would be plenty of it left on the shelves of shops or in the fridges or restaurants. And this means that they probably won’t order any more of it for a while.

It also means that they are selling out of all the other fish products that you are buying, and so need to buy more of those to suit your needs.

Basically, your shopping choices can help to make big changes – and save threatened species.

Cod, Tuna and Salmon:
Of course you can still chose to eat any of these threatened species if they are available for sale when you eat out on holiday, but it is interesting to know a bit about what makes them so attractive to fishermen.

Firstly, they are big and live in shaols or behave in a way which makes them easy to catch; and due to their size and tasty flesh, they make more money per fish than the same weight of sardines (tuna can weigh up to 200kg and are mostly muscle – but the same weight of sardines would be riddled with bones and guts – even if they are still just as tasty).

The only downside here is that the reason they get so big is because they live for so long – and living a long time generally means that they reach sexual maturity later in life. Ultimately, if we catch more adults than can be replaced by reproduction then we have a serious problem.

A second downside to these ‘higher’ fish, is that they are predatory fish and so have to eat lots of other smaller fishes to get so big themselves. And as happened with Tuna recently, they can accumulate very high levels of toxin (a little bit from each of the smaller fish they ate over the years) and can actually became dangerous to humans if ingested.

The Answer?
We need to do the opposite to what we do now.

By aiming to eat all those little tiny fish we could not only help the larger fish numbers to recover, but we could also eat more sustainably and more healthily!

Smaller fish like herring, kippers and sardines reproduce very fast – so catching the adults doesn’t affect the number of young still in the water; and as they are not predatory fish, they will not accumulate high levels of toxins and heavy metals through their feeding habits.

And, as they are not normally caught by the big trawlers (who want to save all the space on their ships for the larger species), these fish can be caught by more sustainable and small scale fishermen making the most of the oceans along our coasts without affecting fish stocks.

So, next time you pull over in a small village for a travelling lunch – try something different!

I have found a new way to learn a language – and it’s great!

Having used all the ‘standard’ language courses before and having got bored or completely lost less than half way through – a friend lent me her CD only course telling me that it was totally different to any other language course.

So I had to give it a go.

And it was SO different that I feel that I have learnt so much more about the language than from any other course that I have ever set eyes on.

Nouns, Nouns & More Nouns:
Most other language courses focus on a common phrase and then add loads of nouns on to it to make it seem fun. So for example you may learn the phrase ‘I would like….’ then you have to learn a page of words including tea, coffee, sandwich, milk, orange juice, soup and cheese etc. They may even show you a few ‘sizes’ like: a bottle of wine, a tin of tuna, a packet of chips, etc.

However, you are only really learning the 1 important phrase.

They then take you through the following chapters: ‘Where is the…’, ‘Ordering food’, ‘I live in a….’ and ‘In a Supermarket’ all in the same theme of common phrase then loads of nouns.

Verbs Are Great!
However, this course spent more time on the verbs and conjugating them. Now at school the thought of ‘conjugating verbs’ was enough to make almost anyone groan – but not so here.

We were taught how verbs can work for you in a sentance in a way that nouns can’t. You can learn 200 nouns for food – but you can still only say the same sentances (I would like a…/Can I have a…/I don’t want a…) – whereas with this course I don’t really need the noun to be understood.

For example I can say: I don’t want to buy that today, but I would like you to buy it for me tomorrow; or, Why don’t you want to come with me today, but you want to go with him tomorrow.

As you can see I can string together long sentances to express myself without a cup of coffee or some cheese even in the sentence! Yes, learning nouns is very useful in the long run – but to understand the verbs is to actually speak the language.

The Language:
Pronunciation is also a key to learning a new language as the stress on the wrong part of the word can render the word useless. It will either mean nothing to the listener – or worse – mean a totally different thing!

So the fact that this course is totally audio is great. Sitting in my car or at home and just listening to the voices on the CD is so helpful. There is no need to keep stopping and starting the CD in bits here and there – it just flows as though it is a conversation.

And the fact that there are also 2 students with him is really useful as a sort of ‘benchmark’ for yourself. Do you get the answer before they say it – or do they get it totally wrong? I found myself shouting at one of them as he just couldn’t get it right when I found that bit quite easy – but I suppose we all learn different bits faster.

The course was by Michel Thomas, andwas 8-part and is used as an introduction to the language as part of a more exstensive language course – but I feel that I have learned so much already.

I can’t wait to move on to the next level!

Green Travel keeps working even when you have stopped!

Now we all know that parking in town can be a complete nightmare at the best of times – and I suppose that is why we favour purpose-built car parks as a result.  They usually have clearly marked out car-size spaces for everyone to park in and arrows telling you which way to drive so you don’t bump into other drivers!

That way – we all know that they have worked out the greatest number of spaces that that particular car park can hold and everyone can fit in with no wasted space – or accidents!

However, not so for the country car park or the long parking bays with only the end zones marked out.

How is it best to park in these spaces when you first arrive?

Eco Friendly Parking:
Now you might not think that where you park could have eco friendly – or not so eco friendly – consequences, but it does.

Take for example the person parking infront of an entrance or right infront of a sign that says ‘Do Not Park Here’  You can tell immediately that this car could cause other people some trouble – wasting their time, their money and possibly causing an argument.

But can you see how they are also reducing the revenue of local services, decreasing visitor numbers for local attractions and businesses as well as possibly affecting the number of people that visit that location over the next 50 years!

Obviously these are scaled up problems – but if you arrived in a town or remote beauty spot only to find that you can’t park anywhere or others have been irresponsible – you might never return.

If you had to drive 40 minutes to visit an old church and you could never find a space there – would you keep going back year after year?

Or you just wanted to grab a quick snack and there was never a space outside the shop when you drove by – wouldn’t you just find somewhere else?

But what happens to those places when you decide to go elsewhere?  Who buys their products, uses their services or donates to their cause?

Think About It:
So, what can you do to make sure that you don’t affect your local services when you pop into town or drive into the countryside to walk the dog?

Firstly – think about how you can maximise the number of spaces in the place you are visiting.  Put simply – always park up to the edges or the spaces and close to any other vehicles on site.

photo credit: Blyzz

If there is a car in the middle of nowhere and you park away from it in the middle of nowhere too – how can you be sure that an exact number of cars can fit into the gap you have left? Surely you have been looking for a space before and thought ‘if only that car was a foot to the left it would create enought space for a whole car’.

Obviously nothing you can do about it while you wait – but very often when that person does move – someone else parks right in the same place themselves – just the 1 car instead of 2.

And those thoughtless people who park half a car away from the end of a bay!  I mean there was no reason not to park up the edge of the bay – leaving all the rest of the bay free for other vehicles – but they chose to just park wherever they wanted making sure that other people couldn’t park close to the shops/doctors/hotel/castle/seafront/etc.

Your Choice:
Now I know there are lots of different size cars on the road, and it seems a bit weird to park next to another car when the rest of the car park is empty – but it won’t always be empty.

People need to visit places to keep them there – and so surely, the more people that can park close to where they want to go, the more money they will spend there.

And it’s not all about using public transport either – I mean if I am on my way home from somewhere in my car and need to grab some bread or milk – I don’t want to have to walk miles to get them – I want to be able to pull up and park real close to the store and pop in and out in a second.  So, if I can’t get close in the car – I will go to another shop where I know I can.

Not everyone can walk a long way either and buses don’t go absolutely everywhere – so people do need to use their cars to get to places – and so rather than just pulling up somewhere are parking without a care for anyone else – think eco.

If you want that store to be there for your convenience – then you need to help it get as many customers as it can to turn a profit.  If you want to keep using that car park near the National Trust woodland – then make sure as many people as possible can park there are pay their money to keep it open!

If you park for too long in a space, take up more than 1 space or block other road users – you are harming the very services and locations that you are using yourself.

You might have driven there in as ‘green’ a way as you could – so don’t spoil it when you get there!

Why not try some new recipes to save money on the road?

There are plenty of new dishes you can try when you travel overseas – but when you are on a budget – or living in a remote location – you might need to try some new things!

There are a lot of new foods available in the countries that you are probably travelling through – so why not take advantage of them when you are working you way through a continent or working on a volunteer project.

Forget your normal ways of eating – and embrace the new!  Maybe this will involve taking a cooking book with you or just taking a few classes on cooking times and sauces!

The Standards:
Now, there are many combinations of foods that you could come across when cooking overseas – although to be honest most of them will be focused on rice!

However you might not have a fridge for most of it – so you need to be aware of how best to store fresh food – and how to limit what you buy in the first place!

Depending on how far away from stores you are – your menus will vary immensely.  I mean if you can get you hands on fresh veg almost every day, then buy as little as possible each day – but when you only get fresh supplies every so often – then you need to get creative!

Storage Skills:
Something in the kitchen almost as important as the cooking is the storing!

If you don’t look after your ingredients or use them in the right order – then you are wasting them.  So you need to think ahead as soon as you get raw materials.

Thinking of basic recipes can really help you – but learning how to create new recipes and to store things to get the best shelf-life out of them is key to making you food go further and saving on waste.

Food doesn’t normally come with more than a few days freshness when picked and left on the kitchen table – especially in tropical climates.  And even in the fridge, dairy products and watery vegetables don’t pass the week really.

So you need to work out which things can be used fresh, which need cooking before storing and those which can be treated in some way to preserve them for many months – and many of these things you will find already in use by the local people.

photo credit: andrewrennie

Local Skills:
There are many ‘specialist’ foods that have evolved not due to their great taste – but because they are locally found foods and this is the way they need to be cooked or stored to best serve the communities they are found in – and learning a bit about them won’t do you any harm!

For example ‘stir-fried’ food was used in China where they didn’t have a lot of fuel for cooking over a long period of time – so they invented a food that took just minutes to heat up. 

Many colder European countries needed to grow all the root vegetables they needed for the year in their short growing season – so they learned to pickle a huge amount of them to last them through the cold winters when nothing would grow – like sauerkraut!

And if you didn’t have a car or supermarket – or a lot of money – wouldn’t you eat things that was found close to home and that you could make last a long time!

Stores where you visit might sell brands from back home – but you don’t need to buy them….

Could Supporting Local Bee Farmers Help Reduce Demands On The Environment?

We need to think big these days – and certainly look to be sympathetic to the developing world – who are living in conditions similar to those that we were only a few 100 years ago.

They are mainly subsistence farmers or herders who live on what they can grow and the little that they can sell.  They have to rely on resources that are local to them and are as good as free – just as those in the US and Europe did not so long ago.

Now, unfortunately – we are painfully aware that living like this is not going to be possible for the millions of people now currently living in the developing world.

The climate is changing to make herding and farming virtually impossible in some areas; the population has risen to ridiculous and unsustainable numbers making a few trees for the family firewood become a whole woodland for the expanding village; and the demands of the (comparatively) richer individuals are stripping whole countries bare of resources, taking land and water from local people and dumping waste in their backyards.

So – What Can We Do?
Well, as we know what is currently ‘damaging’ to our planet – we can use our buying power to make the right choices.

Just as back home – what you buy determines what manufacturers make – the same applies to internationally traded goods.  Although the honest truth sometimes slips by us:

If you keep buying illegally logged hardwoods (ie. by not opting for FSC approved alternatives) you are actively supporting the destruction of the rainforests and the extermination of orangutans, jaguars, and the endless number of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and plants that depend on them.

If you keep buying any old fish or seafood that you like the look of (rather than opting for MSC approved sustainable alternatives) you are actively supporting the extinction of many endangered species that are being over-fished.  You are also actively supporting the wasteful and destructive nature of bottom-trawling and long-line fishing that are killing off more than just the fish you get to eat; this includes all sorts of birds, mammals, other fish and sea creatures.

I could go on with this list – but sometimes we don’t think or the end result of our ‘easy’ food choices.

Alternative Living:
So back to the bees: They reproduce extremely fast, do all the hard work themselves and don’t need a huge amount of space to grow. What a great alternative to cattle and dessicated crops! But they need someone to buy the honey.

And so, if a family has chosen to ‘farm’ these insects rather than farm something illegal or damaging to the environment – then shouldn’t we support that?

All across the globe we are trying to help communities to become more self-sufficient and sustainable by introducing bee-keeping, fairtrade specialist products and co-ops so that they don’t have to plunder their local area just to survive. 

We are also helping to make sure that they have access to biomass heating, solar cookers, water purifiers and education and skills so that they don’t have to depend on limited rainwater, local forests, bushmeat and food handouts.

So, make sure that you support these efforts back home with your shopping choices.  If they are making something that you don’t buy – then they won’t be sustainable alternatives, will they?

If they are saving the rainforest and it’s endangered wildlife buy manufacturing fairtrade honey, organic coffee or FSC approved furniture – then you had better make sure that you buy it over the ‘not so eco friendly’ alternatives.

If not – then they will have to go back to living off the land – even if that means killing another tiger, clearing some lush forests or over-grazing their land with cattle.

Your choice!

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It’s your chance to meet some inspirational people – and get your hands on some great equipment!

It’s not all about birds – but if you love birdwatching and great wetland landscapes – then I suggest you clear your diary for any day over the weekend of 20th to 22nd August 2010!

For only £10 entry – you could have the opportunity to ask Chris Packham for some wildlife-watching tips, listen to Mark Carwardine discussing endangered species and maybe watch a slide show of great wildlife moments from Simon King – not bad, eh?

The Show:
Basically, BirdFair is one of the biggest bird-watching and outdoor shows in the UK and is set in the most beautiful scenery to add even more to your day.

As with many great shows, there will also be the opportunity to visit the stands of all the local and international wildlife stands and ask questions about the work they do and how to become a supporter or volunteer.

Add to this stalls that are filled to the brim with the best photographic equipment to improve your photos and to increase your viewing range as digiscopes and binoculars of all shapes and sizes are on offer.  As well as a host of specialist manufacturers and users to help you decide on the best items for your needs.

Whether you are hoping to get some advice for starting out or whether you are looking to take the next step in your craft and hoping to increase your equipment collection to cover more wildlife and birds – it will all be there.

Using A Zoom Lens Can Get Great Images

And it’s not just about technical things – there will be a whole host of stalls selling outdoor clothing, camping goods, walking shoes, wildlife holidays, travel books, field guides, wildbird seed, nest boxes, wildlife art, and so much more!

And, to be ‘green’ the organisers are offering free transfer buses to the show from the local train station to save on all those cars on the roads!

Show Extras:
It’s not all about just being a show – there is so much more there than stall after stall.

For example, there is a grand auction selling a whole range of random goodies from paintings to one-off experiences – all donated to the show specifically to raise funds for this years fundraising targets.

There are also 3 different agendas for events and talks throughout each day and kids events as well for the little learners!  Bushcraft skills, art and education are the themes you can find here in the several big tents on site.

And, your entry ticket gives you free access to the nature reserves here too – so after you have brought that new camera you have been promising yourself – or upgraded to a better digiscope – you can get straight out there are try it for size!

If you plan to go for the day – make sure you get there early and plan to do a lot of walking, and you won’t regret it.  If you know you love this type of show then make sure you stay for the weekend as you might not get to see everything on just the 1 day!

And this only happens once a year!

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What a great summer we have been having here!  I have been out and about almost every day!

I have taken a few eco courses with some local charities and helped out and attended several green summer carnivals and general fairs with the family.

There are a few more on the horizon as well and maybe some educational volunteering at a local wetlands reserve for me too!

So, what has everyone else been up to?  Well, lets take a look……..

One Family enjoyed some hiking in the woods for the day – so join their story – with great photo’s – for Enjoying Yosemite Valley with Kids – A Trip Report. Amazing!

And if that puts you in the mood for the great outdoors and you are thinking of camping for the first time to save some money, then take a look at Beata Antoszek’s quick post with 6 Tips for Camping on a Tight Budget.

Or, will you be on the road this summer? If so – is your car prepared for the journey? Look in on Jena Ellis’ article for a list of 10 Essentials for a Car Emergency Kit, and then hop over the Eco Holidays for a quick guide to help you Check Your Car For Basic Safety. 

On The Road

This way you can be doubly sure you don’t get held up by some stupid basic problems instead of enjoying your trip!

And what about your clothes? If you need new travel or camping gear – make sure you read Eco Living Advice’s tale of whether natural or man-made materials are more eco-friendly – and as usual it is not as straight-foward as you might think! So open up Eco Clothes and see both sides of the debate!

But if you want to get away from where you are for a while – or for ever – then maybe take a look at The Investor’s information with some help Researching moving abroad.

Whatever you decide – do take plenty of photos!

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Do you know enough about both biodegradable products and biodegradable packaging?

I know it might seem obvious what they are when you just think abut the word ‘biodegradable’ as we all sort of know what this means – but what about behind the products?

When you think about biodegradable washing up liquid or shampoo for example, are you thinking about the product itself, or the packaging – or both?

And what exactly are the benefits of each – if any?

And is a product that breaks down even better than one that stays in it’s original form – chemicals or not?

Well, in this article I have put together a very basic summary of the good and the bad of both – so you can make a more informed choice when you think about your next purchase.

The Products:
Well, holiday toiletries and suncreams, etc should all ideally be biodegradable as otherwise your everyday shower is washing all these ingredients into the waterways and rivers of the village or vacation spot you are visiting.

This way, when you wash off your shower gel when in your hotel or out camping, it passes into the neighbouring ground or lake and gradually ‘breaks down’ with the help of bacteria, sunlight or water into virtually harmless little bits. 

Although it could still cause a bit of a problem in the first few days or weeks – it will eventually be gone – which is better than always being there for years and years no matter how diluted it is.

However would you be interested to know that there is no legal definition of ‘biodegradable’ for products in the US or EU – it’s just a vague assumption.  That assumption being that the product will break down more or less naturally into naturally existing particles in around 6 months or so.  However – it doesn’t have to do this at all to use the phrase on it’s packaging or advertising!

Needless to say – anyone can use this ‘claim’ on the product accompanied by a standard flowery or plant looking picture or image – and you can’t prove either way, you just have to take their word for it.

It is the same with the word ’natural’ on products.  This word has no legal right or wrong on packaging – and anyway, petroleum oil is natural and so is arsenic, so the word natural is a bit of a strange one anyway!

The Packaging:
Then there is the bottle it’s in.  It would be virtually impossible to not use plastic bottles when traveling, so you should really try to use biodegradable plastic bottles, right?

Well, there is an argument for and against strangely enough – and it’s all quite simple: if you buy a container that has been designed to degrade naturally over a period of time – then you can’t use it over and over again can you?

Buying a normal plastic bottle means that you can either recycle it or use it repeatedly for any product – but if that bottle is liable to start breaking down, then you certainly can’t use it over and over, it’s unreliable.

And of course, you can’t really recycle it either as otherwise the recycled products you make out of it will be unstable too and just as liable to break down as well!

So, it’s a tricky one really.

Buying biodegradable plastic bottles is encouraging continued plastic production – but is better than new regular plastic being made.  But if the demand for recycled plastic products drops as a result, then surely that is a bad thing; as all the existing non-biodegradable plastic will be left for ever on earth in dumps and floating in the sea!

And if regular plastic isn’t made anymore, then we won’t be able to reuse our bottles and tubs again and again forever – we will always have to buy new!

The End Result:
I can’t say for certain what is the better in terms of the whole plastic situation, but it certainly makes you think a bit further into the issue than just assuming that a biodegradable product is instantly better.

However, I certainly recommend seeking out products that really are made of safe natural ingredients and those which should not have a harmful effect on wildlife – as it means that they will probably not be harmful to humans either.

I mean using products on your body that contain man-made chemicals which are known to poison fish can’t really be that good for you either, can it?

Rather than focus on using your car less – you should be thinking about using it to do more!

And by more I mean cramming more into your day than ever before. I mean if you are going into town in the car – make sure that you plan ahead to do everything while you are there!

Sometimes public transport just will not cater to your needs – or you have to add another hour or 2 on to your journey time!  So sometimes it is better to take the car if you can make good use of it!

I mean – it’s far better to drive into town 1 time than pootle in and out 3 times a week!  So let’s start thinking about planning our lives a bit better to better suit our planet!

The Plan:
Well, I live about 14 miles away from my family and about the same from one of the places where I volunteer – totally out of walking distance.  So, I always plan to visit my family on the way home from volunteering.  And while I’m out I plan to grab the shopping and maybe a trip past a friends house too.

It would also work for other things, like if you had booked a trip to the dentist or optician – why not look at meeting friends in town too, or arranging to grab lunch with a colleague who is working that day?  Or even bring a neighbour into town too and then meet up to go home together.

It can even work for passing things on to save a journey – like I don’t often get to my brothers, but he often visits my mum – so I just pass things to her and she passes them to him when he’s next over.  No extra journey needed!

The Benefits:
This obviously will save you petrol and wear and tear on the car – which has a direct impact on the amount of energy your use and the emissions you create.  And possibly reduce the replacement car parts you need if you are using it less!

It also encourages you to make more use of your time and to fit more fun into your day rather than wasting the same 30 minutes driving the same route over and over again!  There is a horrible route to town for me, so the fewer times I have to do that – the more time I get at home or volunteering!

And car sharing could mean that you get to make new friends – and help out your neighbours.  Elderly people still want to get out and about – but it’s the journey that can be the problem, and of course carrying everything back home!  You don’t need to escort them everywhere – just leave them to it and arrange a ‘home time’!

The Results:
So, there we have it – a good reason to use your car!  So rather than 3 or 4 separate journeys a week – you could cram everything into just the 1.  Better for you, better for your wallet and better for the planet!

It is using exactly the same green travel technique as travel abroad – if you are going to take the big trans-Atlantic flight – then cram in everything else you can while you are there!

If you are heading over to Europe, then make it a long trip and visit city after city rather than March: Paris, May: Berlin and July: Madrid.  Look to use the train and see them all at once! 

So plan ahead and see the Dr, Dentist, Optician, family and friends all on the same day – and then relax, knowing that you have the rest of the week to yourself!