what is meant by eco friendly living??/

Eco friendly living is doing things in a simple way. Composting waste. Growing your own food (or at least what you can). Taking the time to make something yourself rather than buy it because that is the lazier option. Making and using a compost toilet. Planting trees that are useful, such as fruit, oak and ash, instead of keeping a garden as a lawn just because it looks pretty (saves mowing it too). Buying goods that you need from local sources. Selling or swapping goods that you have a surplus of, instead of allowing it to go to waste or sit there unused. Sharing tools and such with neighbours. Using and even making for use, plant based cleaning products. Reusing grey water. Giving scrap food to the wild animals. Using a bike to go to work or the shop, or if not possible, car share. Reduce what you really need to buy and own (doing this will save you masses of money, so you would not need to work for anybody else as much, giving you more time for doing things for yourself. Carrying out repairs yourself when possible. Saving old things that you no longer need to make other things (such as old radiators for making solar thermal water heaters). Do everything you can to reduce your bills so that your consumption is less. Think what else something can be used for instead of just having one item for one use (such as a laptop can be used to watch TV, so no TV needed, can be used to watch DVD’s, play music and games – wow, how many items would that save you buying, insuring and repairing?). If you use wood for heating, plant twice as many trees as you use, so that your kids and their kids have fuel too. Plant more fruit bushes than you need, so that the wild animals have food too (after all, we have taken their wilderness away from them somewhat). In between trees that you have, sow wild flower seeds, so that insects which in turn feed the animals have food (also saves mowing the lawn). Reduce your house temperature and wear an extra jumper. Saving old jam jars and making your own jam. Same for glass bottles – they can be used for storing fresh squeezed fruit juice.

The list is endless. Living ecologically is in part about smart thinking…

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Learn how to make your flat more eco-friendly with help from the friendly residents of Toroa House.

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Have you ever noticed how most (not all mind) people living in cities, are miserable and walk around with their heads down, never smiling, always ignoring each other, forever in a rush to get somewhere that they do not want to be? And then you go into the country, where the farmer leans on his gate, a blade of grass sticking out of his mouth, and waves, with a "cheerio" thrown in, as you pass him by?

Have you ever noticed how, when you sit under the canopy of a tree, and listen, you find a smile spreading across your face, because the grass smells so sweet, and a vast variety of birds are singing? Compare that to the concrete city. What do you hear, what do you smell? Cars roaring past? Exhaust fumes blocking out the other, more delicate smells? The occasional town pigeon, and if your lucky, maybe a seagull too?

I mention these things, because the green of nature, so full of life, can always make us smile, even on a bad day. What does the concrete city make us feel? By surrounding ourselves with a greener world, we become happier people, and in being happier people, there is a lot less stress associated with life. People become calmer, so arguments and fighting are reduced. Because we are happier with the world around us, we help each other more, and by helping each other more, the world becomes a more beautiful place to live.

Then there are the benefits of growing our own food, which means less bills, so we do not have to work as hard, allowing more time for ourselves. Likewise with using solar technologies to heat water and power our lights. So far, just doing these simple things, means that we can afford to work just 4 days a week instead of the normal 5, and still be better off financially.

But what else could we do? Compost toilets maybe, which would mean our rivers are cleaner, because the sewerage and chemicals used to treat it are not dumped in them, which would also mean, we would be able to eat the fish that live in the rivers. Hmmm… not only do we stop paying another bill, in waste water management, we also get fertilizer for the fruit trees (perfectly safe this way), save more money on food, and get to appreciate all the things in life, that modern day living is trying desperately to get us to forget. Maybe some of the trees we plant in our neighbourhoods are fruit and nut trees. Now wouldn’t that just be perfect, when after a day out in nature ( a free day you wouldn’t have otherwise had), catching your fish for supper, there is a lovely fruit tree with glistening pear on it, waiting for you to pick it quenching the thirst of your dry mouth. This extra time on our hands must be a good thing ~ it means that we do not need to rush through our daily lives as though it is a race. We can slow down ~ and be even happier.

Hmmm… maybe going green isn’t such a bad thing after all? …

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Based in San Francisco, Brilliant Earth grew out of a marriage proposal.

After Beth’s fiance could not find a reliable source that could guarantee conflict free diamonds, Beth Gerstein and Eric Grossberg created Brilliant Earth to provide certified conflict free diamonds as an alternative to current diamond industry practices. We chat with the duo about the challenges of finding eco friendly jewelry.

For more details, head to http://www.brilliantearth.com/

Duration : 0:2:59

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US $7.50 (0 Bid) End Date: Saturday Feb-20-2010 7:15:10 PST Bid now | Add to watch list

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US $7.00 (0 Bid) End Date: Saturday Feb-20-2010 16:34:56 PST Buy It Now for only: US $9.50 Bid now | Buy it now | Add to watch list

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US $0.99 (1 Bid) End Date: Thursday Feb-18-2010 19:00:01 PST Bid now | Add to watch list

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A place where you can just be, rest, pray, meditate or compose a new chapter of your life.
In a romantic setting on a cliff over looking the Pacific ocean, meditate with the sunrise, stargaze into the deep galaxies, and explore beautiful hiking trails to the ocean and waterfall lagoons.
Only 15 minutes from town, with features like free high-speed wireless internet, you can enjoy a new way of living elegantly green, off the grid in our bamboo cottages, the new lumber of the future.

Duration : 0:9:40

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I have baseboard hot water heat, and a gas-powered hot water tank. No central air… just window units in the bedrooms. I have a fireplace, but don’t use it much. I live in cold New England. Lots of trees around the house.

I just want to go green, but I don’t want to move. What can I do without spending too, too much money?

going green is a large term many companies use today and it used to widely, mostly for profit. but that does not mean the little people cant go and do a little green them selves. just short of rebuilding a house, you can help by recycling all paper and plastics and glass etc…. then start reducing the amount of electricity you use by using a digital A/C thermostat, change your bulbs from incandescent to compact florescent bulbs (home depot, Lowe’s) (remember to check your local trash company for disposal when they burn out)bad for environment but cheap to use, check your electric company web sites, they usually have great tips on how to reduce power in your home. start using paper bags at the grocery store instead of plastic. all of the things i listed are cheap to start and very inexpensive to do…… going green is not always changing all of the products in house but adjust to help the environment, that alone is going green…
hope this has help you!!!!

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US $9.99 (0 Bid) End Date: Tuesday Feb-09-2010 6:05:36 PST Buy It Now for only: US $12.99 Bid now | Buy it now | Add to watch list

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