January Carnival: Greening Valentine's Day!

Photo Credit: D Sharon Pruitt

January's carnival topic is on how we can green Valentine's Day. Valentine's Day often means lots of waste but is that how it has to be?

This month I want to hear your ideas on how to make Valentine's Day a little greener. The tips can be for a green Valentine's for the kids, adults, or both.

Please email your submissions to love_cats05(at)yahoo(dot)com by January 17th and I will have it up on January 19th.

Thanks,
Lisa @ Retro Housewife Goes Green

December Carnival is Live!

The December Carnival is up over at The Conscious Shopper! Head on over to read some fascinating tidbits about some great green bloggers, including several newbies to the APLS Carnival.

Thanks again to everyone for all your submissions!

Reminder: December APLS Carnival on "Green Journeys"

A quick little reminder that submissions for this month's APLS carnival are due on December 15th to consciousshopperblog@gmail.com.

I'm looking forward to reading about all of your green journeys...Why did you decide to go green? What are the biggest changes you've made toward living a sustainable life? What are your shortcomings?

I think this is a very simple topic for the busy holiday season, yet also very appropriate since December is a good month for looking back and planning ahead.

Can't wait to hear what you have to say!

December APLS Carnival Topic: Green Journeys

When people find out that I'm a vegetarian, one of the first questions is always, "How long have you been a vegetarian?" and then "Why did you become a vegetarian?"

Going veggie was my first eco-related lifestyle change, but it took ten years of feet-dragging and a crashing housing market before I finally committed to greening my life about a year and a half ago.

That's a very abbreviated version of the story of my green journey...What's your story?

December is a good month for reflecting on beginnings and endings, where you started and how far you've come. So in that spirit, I'd like to hear about your green journey for this month's APLS Carnival.

• What triggered you to start trying to live a sustainable life?
  
• What are the biggest changes you've made to live sustainably?
  
• How far have you come since you started your green journey?
  
• And what do you feel you still need to work on?

Please email your submissions to consciousshopperblog@gmail.com by December 15. I'll post the carnival on December 18 at my blog The Conscious Shopper.

I'm looking forward to hearing your story!

November APLS Carnival is Live!

The November edition of the APLS Carnival is now live at Sustainable Living and You: November APLS Carnival.

As the holiday rush begins, take some time to relax and read this month's thoughtful entries. They will definitely encourage you to think about all the blessings in your life.

Happy Thanksgiving!

November APLS Carnival Topic: Sustainable Living and You

When I began making changes to live a more sustainable life, I frequently thought, "There is no way I'll be able to do that!" when reading descriptions of what others were doing. I was simply overwhelmed at the distance between my lifestyle and theirs. Now I'm doing many of the things from which I initially recoiled and know that they were changes well worth making. I've talked to others who have felt those same feelings so wanted to explore this notion of changing behavior in hopes of encouraging folks to start making changes that currently feel enormous. I know there are some more modifications I have on my list that seem a bit overwhelming right now!

The questions I would like you to consider when writing about this topic include:

What have your efforts to live a more sustainable life taught you about yourself? Have you been able to change a behavior you initially thought you could not? What has surprised you about your own capacity in your efforts to live more sustainably?

If possible, please include specific examples of changes as I think those would be particularly useful to people trying to make those and similar changes in their own lives.

I'm really looking forward to reading what everyone has to say! Please email your submissions to steph@greeningfamilies.com by November 15. I'll post the carnival by November 18 so we can all learn from, and be inspired by, each other!

Thanks much,
Steph @ Greening Families

October Carnival is up!

The October APLS blog carnival, Proselytizing Green, is now up on my blog, Greenhab. We have some great posts from a number of contributors this month, so stop by and learn how your fellow green bloggers spread the word.

If you didn't have a chance to participate, but have something to share on the subject, be sure to leave a comment over on my blog.

Reminder: October APLS Carnival

Hi fellow APLS! This is just a friendly reminder that the deadline for the October APLS carnival is coming up. In light of Blog Action Day, I thought I'd extend the carnival deadline to Saturday, October 17th. If you're anything like me, you were up late blogging last night and may need a little break.

Again, the topic is "proselytizing green". Do you shout the green word from the mountain tops, try to lead by example, or keep your opinions to yourself? How and when do you spread the word?

Email me your blog at greenhabgoods {at} gmail by Saturday evening to be included in the October carnival.

October APLS Carnival Topic: Proselytizing Green

I wish I could sit down with all of you and chat over a nice big cup of organic tea...or wine (really, let's be honest). There are so many things I want to ask you and so many topics we could cover. I've finally narrowed down the topic for the October APLS carnival and have selfishly picked the subject of "Proselytizing Green".

I started my Greenhab blog a few years ago so I'd have a place to track my family's progress and ramble on about the ways in which we were greening our lives. For a while I felt like I was preaching the green word until I realized that the people reading my blog (other than my mom I guess) were already like-minded people.

Over time, I became more confident in mentioning environmental injustices to some friends, family and coworkers, but I'm not really an "in your face" type of gal. Now that my kids are in school I'm encountering things like fundraisers, wasteful lunches, junk-filled parties and the absence of recycling. I feel like the stinky hippy parent in a school full of affluent unstinky soccer moms. On the inside I'm throwing up a little in my mouth while, on the outside, I'm all "smile wave".

So, I'm wondering when, where, how, and how much you proselytize living green? When do you just let it go? When is it not worth it to start something? Or do you always speak up? How loud? Are you a tell-it-like-it-is person? Or do you try to take a gentle approach? And, although I use "proselytize" in the loosest way, does living a sustainable lifestyle feel almost like a religion to you?

Okay, I think those are enough questions for now. Talk amongst yourselves! But don't forget to send me your thoughts by Friday, October 16th. The carnival will be up on my blog on Monday the 19th of October. Email me at greenhabgoods {at} gmail {dot} com.

As always, please feel free to interpret the topic loosely. I don't want anyone to feel boxed in by the questions I've asked above, they're just some thoughts that came to mind. I'm sure if we were chatting over tea we'd have lots to share on the subject!

September Carnival Is Up

The round up of the September contributions is now posted at: http://crstn85.blogspot.com/2009/09/does-size-matter-apls-carnival.html

Thanks for all your contributions!
Tina

5 days left!

Just a reminder that there are 5 days remaining until the deadline for this month's APLS carnival. I just got around to writing my post so I now feel justified in reminding you. In case you've forgotten, and are in a reader so you can't scroll down to the other post, this month's topic is:

"When does size matter?"
I read a lot of blogs about families and I occasionally find myself thinking "Sure, that's easy to do if there are 4 of you". For example, I can't maintain a worm bin since I just don't have enough food waste for them to live off of. Other times I will tell someone about a green change I made and they think (or even say!) "Sure, that's easy to do if there's only one of you". Such as when I describe line drying laundry in my laundry room. So, what efforts that you make are easier to do because of your household size? Which are harder and make you wish there were a better way?

Submit a link to your post to tina.cardone1@gmail.com when you're done!

Also, apples season really has gotten off to a great start. I'm lucky enough to have an apple orchard a mile down the street and they also have a farm store/bakery right at the orchard. There's apple sauce and apple pie and apple crumble and apple everything you'd ever want, fresh and local and delicious. So, APLS, how do you like your apples?

Fall carnival season

The fall APLS carnival schedule is now up!

Please note that all submissions are due to the blog host by the 15th of the month. The carnival will be posted a few days later.

September: When does size matter?
Tina at crstn85 writes:
I read a lot of blogs about families and I occasionally find myself thinking "Sure, that's easy to do if there are 4 of you". For example, I can't maintain a worm bin since I just don't have enough food waste for them to live off of. Other times I will tell someone about a green change I made and they think (or even say!) "Sure, that's easy to do if there's only one of you". Such as when I describe line drying laundry in my laundry room. So, what efforts that you make are easier to do because of your household size? Which are harder and make you wish there were a better way?

October: Greening your Halloween
Kellie at Greenhab is planning a fall-themed carnival. Look for additional details soon!

November: Lessons learned from sustainability
Steph at Greening Families writes:
What have your efforts to live a more sustainable life taught you about yourself? Have you been able to change a behavior you initially thought you could not? What has surprised you about your own capacity in your efforts to live more sustainably?

We're looking for hosts and topics for our winter season. Interested? E-mail me at goinggreenmama@gmail.com.

From August into September

First, make sure that you checked out everyone's contributions to the August Carnival. Robbie of Going Green Mama did a great job of rounding everyone up to renew APLS and there's an excellent post summarizing everyone submissions here.

Amazingly, next week it will be September! That means back to school for a lot of us (personally I'll be going back as both a teacher and a student, double the fun) and also means its time to think about the next discussion topic and I'm hosting this month. It would have been very appropriate to discuss sustainability at school, but I didn't have that much foresight so maybe someone can take that on in October.

September's carnival topic is "When does size matter?". I read a lot of blogs about families and I occasionally find myself thinking "Sure, that's easy to do if there are 4 of you". For example, I can't maintain a worm bin since I just don't have enough food waste for them to live off of. Other times I will tell someone about a green change I made and they think (or even say!) "Sure, that's easy to do if there's only one of you". Such as when I describe line drying laundry in my laundry room. So, what efforts that you make are easier to do because of your household size? Which are harder and make you wish there were a better way?

I look forward to hearing answers from the perspectives of people in all different size households. Please email submissions to tina.cardone1@gmail.com by September 15.

Thanks!
Tina at crstn85

p.s. Enjoy the start of apple season APLS!

Reminder - posts due Saturday

Participating in the August carnival? Don't forget to send your links to goinggreenmama@gmail.com by Saturday. Thanks!

APLS August Carnival Topic

Hi everyone,
I'm glad there's still interest in reviving APLS! Thanks to those of you who emailed or posted.

Our August topic is on Green on the Cheap. Has the economy impacted how you live green? Do you buy fewer green products to save money? Or have you redoubled your efforts to live sustainably? What have you learned about living environmentally friendly on a budget?

Let me know your thoughts! Please send links to your posts by Aug. 15 to goinggreenmama@gmail.com. The carnival will go live on Going Green Mama on Aug. 19.

Also, while we have the September topic and host confirmed, the rest of the year is open! If you'd like to host and haven't confirmed a topic or month, please let me know at goinggreenmama at gmail.

Have a great month!
Robbie @ Going Green Mama

Anyone still interested?

I know the APLS Carnival has went on an unofficial hiatus the last several months, but I'd love to get it going again, if anyone is still interested.

Let me know...Post a comment below or email goinggreenmama@gmail.com.

Details for the April Carnival & Looking For New Hosts!!

April's carnival will be hosted by me, Ruchi at Arduous Blog. The topic: Is Earth Day relevant?

As Earth Day approaches, I have mixed feelings. On the one hand, I feel like it's good to have one day a year where the focus is on the environment. Earth Day may build awareness in people, and it might give some people enough pause to significantly alter their lives. On the other hand, shouldn't every day be Earth Day? Many argue that Earth Day allows people to feel good about recycling their aluminum cans, driving their Toyota Prius, and bringing their own bags, when the truth is those actions barely scrape the surface in terms of what might be necessary to combat the forthcoming environmental crises. What do you think?

To participate, submit links to your posts to aplscarnival [at] gmail [dot] com by April 20. The carnival will be posted on Earth Day, April 22.

On another note, we are looking for hosts for the next few months. If you are interested in hosting, and you haven't hosted yet, let me know in the comments to this post. After that, we'll open it up to people who have already hosted, but we want to give everyone the opportunity to host if they so choose.

March carnival is up!

Hi everyone,

My internet connection is ridiculously unreliable these days, so I posted the carnival a day early, just in case. It is at Green Resolutions. I loved the contributions and appreciate the information about ways I can make a difference.

Jaime

March Carnival reminder

Don't forget to write a post about your favorite charities, and send the link to aplscarnival (at) gmail (dot) com by Tuesday, March 17.

March Carnival Topic: Where do you want to give?

When the APLS moniker was first under discussion, Green Bean posted a series of questions that helped me to understand what life could be as an Affluent Person Living Sustainably:

Do you spend less money than you make?

Do you consciously buy fewer products and, of those products you buy, do you look for used ones or ones that will last longer?

Do you treasure experiences over things?

Do you donate to charity? Time, money or goods?

Do you eat local food? Make your own bread, yogurt, or even your own dinner?

Do you garden? Bike? Hang your clothes out to dry? Compost?

Do you think about your own impact on the environment and what you can do to help our planet?

Do you care about what happens to your neighbor? Your children's classmates? The people manufacturing your children's toys in China?

Do you live a fuller, more meaningful life?

The part about charity resonated with me. We’d just sold our condo and bought a house. I’d just quit my full-time job to stay at home with my son and didn’t know how much I could make as a freelancer. I didn't feel like we had any money to give. And yet, I was reading blogs with a global perspective and realizing how much I have and how little others have.

When I first looked at the Global Rich List, I just focused on how rich I am. When I plugged in the numbers later, I realized that it shows me how far my money could go:

$8 could buy you 15 organic apples OR 25 fruit trees for farmers in Honduras to grow and sell fruit at their local market.

$30 could buy you an ER DVD Boxset OR a First Aid kit for a village in Haiti.

$73 could buy you a new mobile phone OR a new mobile health clinic to care for AIDS orphans in Uganda.

$2400 could buy you a second generation High Definition TV OR schooling for an entire generation of school children in an Angolan village.

And so, I’m asking all APLS carnival participants to share information about worthwhile charities. Inspire your readers to give, even in this time of economic uncertainty.

(Please feel free to share information about any charities, even if you haven’t yet been able to donate time or money to the charities that you discuss.)

To participate in the March carnival, please submit your post to aplscarnival (at) gmail (dot) com by March 13. The carnival will be published at Green Resolutions on March 20.

APLS in Eden - the February Carnival

The February APLS carnival is up over at The Green Phone Booth. Many thanks to The Purloined Letter aka The Green Raven for brilliantly rounding up a variety of viewpoints about the importance of "nature" in our lives.

Come back next month to discuss favorite charities hosted at Green Resolutions.

Calling all APLS!

Just a reminder that the topic for the February edition of the APLS carnival will be NATURE AND THE ENVIRONMENT.

To participate, please submit your posts to aplscarnival (at) gmail (dot) com by tomorrow at midnight, or write asking for a short extension if you need one. The carnival will be published at the Green Phone Booth on February 20.

A Carnival of Nature

I am honored to be the host for the February edition of the APLS carnival. The topic for the month will be NATURE AND THE ENVIRONMENT.

I think I must be the Last Parent in the World to read Richard Louv's excellent book, Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder. Louv's work is complex, thoughtful, and beautifully written. The author argues that a deep connection with nature leads to a calmer mind, a fitter body, and a more socially mature relationship with the world. Yet we are raising an entire generation with "denatured childhoods"--that is, childhoods where entertainment is more about electronic screens than it is about free play in the wild. Louv asked us to consider how these disconnected youngsters can ever become the good stewards of the land that we need in this era of environmental crisis.

I would love to see what connections you see between experiences in nature and your own efforts to live more sustainably.

What is "nature" in the first place? How is our experience of the natural world different in a place of awesome majesty (like the Grand Canyon), a place of more basic but still unstructured land like a local forest, and a more constructed outdoor space like a garden or park? What if we're just reading about an area we may never have seen, like a rainforest or a desert savanna?

What makes nature so powerful or meaningful? How has your experience with the natural world shaped your own environmentalism? Is love of the natural world an essential motivation for sustainability? Have you found ways to share a connection to nature with your loved ones, young and old?

To participate in February's carnival, please submit your posts to aplscarnival (at) gmail (dot) com by February 13. The carnival will be published at the Green Phone Booth on February 20.

January Carnival Is Up

Come see what mind games we APLS like to play.

(Belated) January Carnival

Happy New Year from snowy Vancouver!

There's always one bad APL in the barrel, and this month it's me. I am being a terrible host and forgot to post the topic for the next carnival. Many apologies. Ruchi has suggested that we move the carnival to January 22nd, to allow everyone more time to write their posts; if you could email me (aplscarnival@gmail.com) a link to your post by the 19th, I'd really appreciate it.

So! The topic!

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MIND GAMES

As an APL who is at a much earlier stage of going green than most of our other contributors, I am shamelessly using this edition of the carnival to pick your brains! I've already learned a LOT from you guys, but I need a little extra help to get me up the next section of the learning curve.

See, I need some better mental tricks to help me make the right decisions. I know I shouldn't be eating red meat, I know I should be buying local, organic food... but it ain't easy being green, and sometimes, when I'm staring at a restaurant menu and craving a steak, or when I'd really rather go to the local supermarket than cycle a very hilly 5 km to the farmer's market, I need a little help.

What mental tricks do you use on yourself to help you make the right choices, even when they make life a little harder? Or, conversely, does your mind play games that trick you into making the wrong decisions?

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Can't wait to read all your posts!