Hello again!
I wanted to take a moment to talk a bit about green design and why it's so important to me.
I know nowadays most people have heard the term "Green Design" but may not realize exactly what it means, how easy it is to implement in many ways to any upcoming projects in your home and just how large the scope of what environmental friendliness in many aspects of life can be! With so many companies slapping leaves on their products and calling them "green", it's easy to look at all the options and feel overwhelmed. Yes sustainable design may take a little bit more effort initially to source, and yes, in some cases it initially may cost more than the less environmentally conscious alternatives. These factors aside, a green home philosophy is so important for a number of reasons. Firstly (and what goes without saying in my opinion) is the fact that by making conscious choices about what products we are going to use in our homes and/or daily activities, we are taking control back from those who told us that we can use anything we want without having to worry about it "because the planet is ours and will fix itself". This is absolutely untrue. This mentality is what got us to where we are today; over forested, over polluted, space deprived, air destroyed and chemically swamped. Green Design is about so much more than 'fighting the man' so to speak. It's really about trying to lessen our carbon footprint by making a varying degree of changes to our lifestyles and habitual purchases so that we can minimize our negative impact thus slowing down the rate at which our natural resources are going to run dry.
Trust me.. This hasn't been a philosophy that I've been living by my whole life. I'm in no means going to preach about having a zero-carbon footprint or always without fail making the Green Choice. Since my studies in school including one course about sustainable alternatives as well entering into a lovely relationship with a sustainability PhD student, my views have drastically changed - which I think is a normal and healthy process. I've learned more about the effect of what our purchases and material selections can have on our environments; both our personal and our planet as a whole and I have to say I was pretty shocked. I too wanted to ignore the buzz and go about living my days in oblivion, but the facts were just too significant to ignore. Do I want to be inhaling harmful VOC's and known carcinogenics like formaldehyde, just because something looks expensive or trendy? That's a big NOPE. Do I want to be cleaning my plates, cooking surfaces and body with chemically drenched products that have been tested on innocent animals? Again, big fat NO WAY. Do I want to be purchasing big ticket furniture items or finishes for my house like flooring and countertops that have been pulled from an already starving planet by already starving and mistreated workers? Hopefully one day I'm going to have babies who will be crawling on these products and Do I want them subjected to that? Once again, that's a hard NO.
It's definitely not an easy thing to do.. Changing our daily routines or purchasing patterns I mean. Studies say it takes a long time to break a habit (Which shopping definitely is) and 21 days to start a new one... With all the advancements in not only peoples awareness, but their intention to be more environmentally friendly it doesn't have to be as hard as you think. Start out small! Try buying recycled garbage bags, paper towels and toilette paper instead of the 500x thicker wipes with the kittens. You won't really notice a difference, but our sewer and waste systems will! Cleaning products are a great place to start because the cost difference isn't really that substantial and trust me, many do the trick just as well as our skull-and-crossbones labeled familiars. When it comes to decor the options are just as vast. When shopping, ASK about any eco-friendly options! Many retailers are realizing how much this movement is gaining momentum and how seriously people are starting to take their individual impact. West Elm is at the forefront for making it really easy to shop for eco- friendly, handcrafted and ethically produced products which is why they are on the top of my list. (See their mission and their products here: http://www.westelm.com/about-us/environmental-commitment.html?cm_sp=GlobalLinks-_-Footer-_-WEGreen). Other considerations for making more environmentally friendly choices in relation to decor include products that were made using eco-friendly practices and considerations including :
- What type of packaging is used? Is it recycled? Is it recyclable?
- How is the air quality of a space effected by this product? eg. What type of sealant (if any) was used?
- Was the product made locally? ie. North America? Canada? Even closer? If not what are the conditions of the workers who made it?
- What environmental certification does the product have? (Make sure to check the credibility)
- Does the product contribute to L.E.E.D points?
- Did the product use virgin materials, natural resources, post-industrial resources?
It also includes everything from structural materials and finishes like wood, stone etc, mechanical systems, energy star rated appliances and windows, optimizing indoor air quality, hard and soft finishes like fabrics and textiles, cleaning products, kitchen and bathroom cabinetry, personal products and tons more!
I'll keep updating with new products and options i come across and generally just things that are interesting about a Green Home Philosophy. It's time to Live Life Lightly People!
You go, Glen CoCo.
-Elise
I wanted to take a moment to talk a bit about green design and why it's so important to me.
I know nowadays most people have heard the term "Green Design" but may not realize exactly what it means, how easy it is to implement in many ways to any upcoming projects in your home and just how large the scope of what environmental friendliness in many aspects of life can be! With so many companies slapping leaves on their products and calling them "green", it's easy to look at all the options and feel overwhelmed. Yes sustainable design may take a little bit more effort initially to source, and yes, in some cases it initially may cost more than the less environmentally conscious alternatives. These factors aside, a green home philosophy is so important for a number of reasons. Firstly (and what goes without saying in my opinion) is the fact that by making conscious choices about what products we are going to use in our homes and/or daily activities, we are taking control back from those who told us that we can use anything we want without having to worry about it "because the planet is ours and will fix itself". This is absolutely untrue. This mentality is what got us to where we are today; over forested, over polluted, space deprived, air destroyed and chemically swamped. Green Design is about so much more than 'fighting the man' so to speak. It's really about trying to lessen our carbon footprint by making a varying degree of changes to our lifestyles and habitual purchases so that we can minimize our negative impact thus slowing down the rate at which our natural resources are going to run dry.
Trust me.. This hasn't been a philosophy that I've been living by my whole life. I'm in no means going to preach about having a zero-carbon footprint or always without fail making the Green Choice. Since my studies in school including one course about sustainable alternatives as well entering into a lovely relationship with a sustainability PhD student, my views have drastically changed - which I think is a normal and healthy process. I've learned more about the effect of what our purchases and material selections can have on our environments; both our personal and our planet as a whole and I have to say I was pretty shocked. I too wanted to ignore the buzz and go about living my days in oblivion, but the facts were just too significant to ignore. Do I want to be inhaling harmful VOC's and known carcinogenics like formaldehyde, just because something looks expensive or trendy? That's a big NOPE. Do I want to be cleaning my plates, cooking surfaces and body with chemically drenched products that have been tested on innocent animals? Again, big fat NO WAY. Do I want to be purchasing big ticket furniture items or finishes for my house like flooring and countertops that have been pulled from an already starving planet by already starving and mistreated workers? Hopefully one day I'm going to have babies who will be crawling on these products and Do I want them subjected to that? Once again, that's a hard NO.
It's definitely not an easy thing to do.. Changing our daily routines or purchasing patterns I mean. Studies say it takes a long time to break a habit (Which shopping definitely is) and 21 days to start a new one... With all the advancements in not only peoples awareness, but their intention to be more environmentally friendly it doesn't have to be as hard as you think. Start out small! Try buying recycled garbage bags, paper towels and toilette paper instead of the 500x thicker wipes with the kittens. You won't really notice a difference, but our sewer and waste systems will! Cleaning products are a great place to start because the cost difference isn't really that substantial and trust me, many do the trick just as well as our skull-and-crossbones labeled familiars. When it comes to decor the options are just as vast. When shopping, ASK about any eco-friendly options! Many retailers are realizing how much this movement is gaining momentum and how seriously people are starting to take their individual impact. West Elm is at the forefront for making it really easy to shop for eco- friendly, handcrafted and ethically produced products which is why they are on the top of my list. (See their mission and their products here: http://www.westelm.com/about-us/environmental-commitment.html?cm_sp=GlobalLinks-_-Footer-_-WEGreen). Other considerations for making more environmentally friendly choices in relation to decor include products that were made using eco-friendly practices and considerations including :
- What type of packaging is used? Is it recycled? Is it recyclable?
- How is the air quality of a space effected by this product? eg. What type of sealant (if any) was used?
- Was the product made locally? ie. North America? Canada? Even closer? If not what are the conditions of the workers who made it?
- What environmental certification does the product have? (Make sure to check the credibility)
- Does the product contribute to L.E.E.D points?
- Did the product use virgin materials, natural resources, post-industrial resources?
It also includes everything from structural materials and finishes like wood, stone etc, mechanical systems, energy star rated appliances and windows, optimizing indoor air quality, hard and soft finishes like fabrics and textiles, cleaning products, kitchen and bathroom cabinetry, personal products and tons more!
I'll keep updating with new products and options i come across and generally just things that are interesting about a Green Home Philosophy. It's time to Live Life Lightly People!
You go, Glen CoCo.
-Elise