14 Days of Green Valentines

Gift Idea #4
Eco Getaway

I grew up in Lancaster, Pennsylvania – land of the Amish.  Rolling farmland surrounded my neighborhood and was a part of daily life.  Sadly, as more and more people visit Lancaster, more and more hotels and outlet stores are built on the very farmland that the people came to see.  Further, as Lancaster’s population booms, more and more farmland is being cleared to make room for all of the people who want to live by the farmland which is being cleared to make room for all the people who are moving there to live near the farmland …    

Why am I writing about Lancaster when I should be discussing a romantic getaway gift for Valentine’s Day?  I want to talk about sustainable tourism – an industry committed to making a low impact on the environment and local culture while helping to generate income and employment for local people.  It doesn’t seem to be happening in Lancaster and it is definitely not happening in many exotic locales, but there are destinations out there that care and therefore, you should support them!  With sustainable tourism, the socio-cultural and environmental impacts are neither permanent nor irreversible.  So before you pick your getaway, you might want to find out if the creation of that very getaway impacted the local environment and community.  

Samasati Nature Retreat in Costa Rica is just this type of place.  Their mission is “… to provide an unforgettable destination for responsible travel while improving the well being of the local population”.  They “seek to demonstrate that personal well-being and health can be successfully combined with high standards in sustainability.”   Guest rooms have all the modern amenities and have spacious verandas that overlook the jungle and the sea.  Food is vegetarian . Fruits comes from Samasati's land and chocolate comes from nearby cacao plantations.  The Retreat was built without heavy machinery or any major land movement such as clearing of land or cutting of trees.  The different buildings have been positioned so that they carry the minimal impact to the environment taking advantage of the existing clearings in the property, therefore preserving the primary and secondary rainforest in its totality. Read more.  Some of the many activities you can participate in are a rain forest canopy tour, surfing, bird watching, waterfall trekking, sea and river kayaking and horseback riding at the beach.  Sign me up! 

14 Days of Green Valentines

 

Gift Idea #3
Ethically Sourced Jewelry  

Before you purchase your valentine a nifty new bauble, you might want to check from where it was sourced.  The movie Blood Diamond documented how diamonds are mined in African war zones and sold to finance conflicts and thereby profit warlords and diamond companies across the world (hence the name).  But that is not the only issue.  According to Green America, gemstone mining can be hazardous to the health of workers and communities alike. Diamond miners often work in cramped and unsafe conditions in tunnels, and dust from the mines can cause respiratory diseases in workers and residents of nearby communities. Because mining involves moving large amounts of earth, it can also alter local ecosystems and damage watersheds. And, although many of the countries where gems are mined have laws setting a minimum age for workers in hazardous occupations, the International Labour Organization has also documented child labor in mines. 

So how can you be sure you won't feel guilty about your purchase?  Choose a jeweler that cares.  Bario-Neal is a woman-owned company in Philadelphia that handcrafts its jewelry from reclaimed precious metals, ethically-sourced stones, and low-impact, environmentally conscious practices.  They use 100% reclaimed precious metals whenever possible, derived from recycled jewelry or industrial materials.  In addition, they offer conflict-free diamonds as well as recycled diamonds that had initially been introduced into the jewelry supply chain for sale to the consumer and were then re-sold to a jeweler, refiner or other agent.  In addition, you can select from ethically sourced gemstones that are closely tracked from mine to market. This ensures that every gem has been handled according to strict environmental, labor, health, and safety protocols, and has been handled in a tight chain of custody which eliminates the possibility for treated or synthetic gems to be introduced into the supply chain.  

Even though they are in Philadelphia, they work with clients all over the world.  In addition, boutiques in Canada, Japan, California and Illinois and Oregon stock their jewelry. 

14 Days of Green Valentines

Gift Idea #2
Fair Trade Certified Flowers

In addition to fair wages and labor practices, a Fair Trade flower certification ensures that farms comply with rigorous environmental standards governing the use of pesticides, conservation of water, treatment of wastewater, protection of ecosystems and more. There is an extensive list of agrochemicals that are completely prohibited on Fair Trade farms, and others that must be phased out over time.

So this year, instead of giving your valuable cash to a big box florist conglomerate that sources from farms that don't care about their workers or the environment, support one that does!  Ask your florist where their flowers are sourced from and if they are fair trade.  If they don't give you a decent answer, try One World Flowers.  They are running lots of specials on a variety of roses for Valentine's Day.  Once you read about them, you'll be proud to support them!

 

14 Days of Green Valentines

Gift Idea #1
Fair Trade Chocolate

I grew up 45 minutes from Hershey, Pennsylvania and the land of chocolate bars.  Every summer, I'd visit Hershey Park and year-round I'd indulge in assorted types of Hershey's candy.  No surprise, they are the largest US manufacturer of chocolate and candy, but Hershey has been criticized for sourcing cocoa from plantations that employ slave labor and trafficked child labor. Read more. 

I'd rather support a company that uses healthy ingredients, takes care of the environment when growing cacao, and ensures its workers have safe working conditions and receive a fair wage.  Unfortunately, the big chocolate companies don't work this way. 

So when purchasing chocolate for your Love this year, consider
Endangered Species Chocolate.  They donate 10% of net profits to charitable organizations supporting species and habitat conservation efforts.  In addition, they empower communities in cacao growing regions.  Employees are encouraged to commit a portion of their paid time to volunteerism and in-kind donations of chocolate are given to a variety of non-profit groups who positively support species, habitat and humanity.  They use all-natural and organic ingredients, leaving out those evil artificial colors, flavors and preservatives.  All of their chocolate is shade-grown, which supports lush forests and the species that thrive there to promote biodiversity.  Finally, the cacao is grown on farm co-ops that foster responsible labor practices, community enrichment and sustainable farming.       

7th Annual CCAN Polar Bear Plunge

Coming OUT of the Potomac.  SUCCESS!  

 

 Why I Plunge in the Potomac Every January
In the summer of 2006, I went to see the movie "An Inconvenient Truth" and was truly disturbed.  As the credits were playing, I stood up from my seat, I thought, "This is RIDICULOUS!  I want to DO something!"  As I walked out of the theatre complex into the daylight, I was approached by representatives of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN) who asked me if I wanted to help fight climate charge.  "Of course!" I answered.  When they asked me if I wanted to join their e-mail list, I didn't hesitate to add my name.  A few weeks later, I received an invitation from CCAN to attend a Clean Energy Open House at the home of Mike Tidwell, CCAN's founder and executive director.  I attended and my life was changed forever;  I went from light green to dark green.  I saw Mike's solar panels, his laundry drying outside in the sun and his native plants growing in his yard.  I went inside his house and saw a video he made about all the energy efficient actions he has taken in his house including using a corn-fired stove, Energy Star appliances and compact florescent light bulbs (CFLs).  I left that day with my first CFLs (they weren't easy to find in stores back then) and went home an unplugged my appliances (Mike taught me about phantom energy and how even though appliances are turned off, they are still using energy, running up your electricity bill and putting CO2 in the air).  As time went on and I read more and became more active in the green community, I realized I wanted to choose only the most sustainable options for home and work life. 

So when CCAN has their annual Keep Winter Cold Polar Bear Plunge, I don't hesitate to get cold for about a minute each January.  Two days ago, I participated in my 5th Plunge, which was CCAN's 7th.  The first year I plunged, I noticed that the event wasn't very green.  This shocked me since CCAN was an environmental organization, but I've learned over the years that even environmental groups don't know how to green events, so for my second year Plunge, I volunteered to help make this annual event GREEN and have continued to help make it green ever since. 

How We Greened This Year's Plunge
Chesapeake Bay Roasting Company, a local roaster out of Crofton, Maryland, provided attendees with fair trade, organic coffee (and they also generously provided organic tea while lori hill event productions provided fair trade, organic hot chocolate).  You can buy CBRC's coffee in stores.  The cups and stirrers were compostable and did I mention how delicious the coffee is? 

CBRC provided a variety of fair trade, organic coffee. 

Perfect Settings, an event rental company out of Landover, Maryland, donated our table linens and also provided table and chairs.  They get it when it comes to going green.  Some of their services include taking back linen hangers, bailing and recycling plastic linen covers, renting recycling containers and then picking up the recycling at the conclusion of the event. 

Waste Neutral Group out of Baltimore ensured that our waste was disposed of properly.  They provided bins for recycling, composting and landfill.  We barely created any waste and the majority of it was compostable (coffee cups and food waste) or recyclable. 

Waste Neutral's waste free area.  From left to right:  composting, landfill and recycling.  

Mark's Kitchen out of Takoma Park also gave us a great deal on vegan and traditional cookies.  Vegan and vegetarian diets are better for the environment for many, many reasons.  Look for future blogs about this topic! 

 Other Details
We plunged into the Potomac River by National Harbor which is right by the Woodrow Wilson Bridge at the Maryland-Virginia border outside of Alexandria, Virginia.  The air temperature was in the low to mid 30s and the water temperature was 38.  We had about 100 or so plungers and about 100 more supporters (who will hopefully join us next year). VIPs included Congresswoman Donna Edwards from Maryland (it was her second year plunging!) and James Hansen, world-renowned NASA climatologist (his first year plunging).

My Fundraising
Thanks to my generous donors (47 and counting), I exceeded my goal of $2,000 and raised a total of $2,098 (and money is STILL coming in!).  As of Saturday morning, I was the top donor who wasn't a CCAN employee!  As of today, Lise Van Susteran (a CCAN board member and sister of Fox News' Greta Van Susteran) has me beat by 82 bucks! For more photos by John Robinette, visit my Facebook page. 

Warm hat, kids' beach towel, mens' bathrobe, ratty sneakers = one glamorous gal!

Ready, set, plunge!  (All photos courtesy of John Robinette)