You don’t have to shuck a lot of bucks to go green in your cleaning routine. Natural, nontoxic alternatives to high-priced detergents and cleansers can be easily — and cheaply — made at home. Not only will you have the satisfaction of saving money, but you’ll be pitching in to help the Earth while creating a safer, chemical-free environment for you and your family. Just keep these all-natural and inexpensive items on hand and you can clean green all year around. You’ll be surprised at just how many cleaning uses these common household items have. I’ve tried most of the techniques mentioned below, so I know they work.

1. White Vinegar. Such a simple substance is remarkably versatile for cleaning throughout the house. Vinegar’s mildly acidic nature helps it break down dirt and grime, and kills bacteria, mold, and germs. Its pungent odor, which disappears as soon as it dries, is nontoxic, unlike most commercial cleaning solutions. Be careful when using it on tile grout (too concentrated can be damaging), and never use it on marble or other porous stone surfaces.
   • Laundry. Use 1/2 to 1 cup of vinegar during the laundry rinse cycle instead of a commercial fabric softener. It’ll cut down on lint and also break down the harsh chemicals of the detergent, which is great news for those with sensitive skin. For added greenness and savings, invest in reusable dryer balls (found at Target and many supermarkets and pharmacies). They may look like doggie chew toys, but they’re phenomenal at fluffing up your clothes.
     Cost Comparison (per load):
     Fabric softener (washer and dryer): $.08
     Dryer balls and vinegar: $.02
   • Kitchen. Use a solution of one-part vinegar to one-part water (1:1) to clean kitchen surfaces. (Again, due to vinegar’s acidic nature, test on grout and tile before using, and shy away from marble.) Instead of expensive dishwasher detergent, toss half a cup of vinegar in the bottom of your dishwasher.
     Cost Comparison (per dishwasher load):
     Dishwasher cleaner: $.15
     Vinegar: $.10
   • Bathroom. Pour three cups of vinegar in the toilet to get rid of rings. For continuous cleaning, pour three cups into the back tank once a week to keep the bowl fresh. Vinegar works great against soap scum and hard-water stains, even ones that have been around for years.
2. Lemon. Commercial cleansers have long sung the praises of citrus, hyping the presence of lemon prominently on their labels. It’s no wonder: Lemon’s cleaning powers extend beyond a fresh scent. Its acidic properties can cut through grease and grime better than most manmade products.
   • Living Room. Use a ratio of one-part lemon juice to two-parts olive oil (1:2) for an all-natural furniture polish; finish off with a soft, dry cloth (recycled, of course). If you have cats, lemon peels in your potted plants can deter them from digging — or worse.
     Cost Comparison (per ounce):
     Furniture polish: $.42
     Olive oil and lemon: $.35
   • Kitchen. Halve lemon and sprinkle with baking soda to scrub dishes. Dump leftover lemon (or orange) peel into your garbage disposal to eradicate nasty odors.
     Cost Comparison (per cleaning of garbage disposal):
     Commercial cleaner: $.43
     Leftover lemon peel: $.25 (or free, if you’ve already used the rest of the lemon)
3. Baking Soda. This seemingly benign white powder serves dual purposes: as an abrasive cleaner and a frontline odor fighter.
   • Kitchen. Make a paste with water for tough stains on your counter, or store an open box in the fridge to keep it smell-free. To more easily clean the stalactites that have formed in the microwave, boil two tablespoons of baking soda in a mug of water, then simply wipe out the gunk.
   • Laundry. Use a water-and-baking-soda paste on most fabrics to remove stains. Or put pure baking soda into sachets (stuff old socks or pantyhose) to remove odors from olfactory offenders like stinky sneakers.
   • Bathroom. Sodium bicarbonate can even help clear drain clogs. Just dump a cup of baking soda down the drain, followed by a cup of that other clean-all, vinegar. This may take a few tries, but it should clear even the nastiest of clogs — with a lot less fumes than chemical methods.
     Cost Comparison:
     Commercial drain cleaner: $3.00 (per suggested use — I usually used the whole container, at $6 a pop)
     Baking soda and vinegar: $1.50
   • Rubbing Alcohol. If you’re looking for one-stop household cleaning, the vinegar-water solution previously mentioned can solve all your glass and mirror issues. To go a step further, for added shine, add one-part rubbing alcohol to a spray bottle with the solution. For added greenness, use newspaper instead of paper towels. Newsprint doesn’t streak or smear as might be expected, and it actually makes the surface a lot cleaner. Note: Since this liquid is mostly alcohol, it is flammable, so store in a cool, dry place away from heat and sparks. Also, be sure to spot-test surfaces as rubbing alcohol may react with certain plastics and other substances.
     • Bathroom. Using the formula described above, polish mirrors and glass surfaces. Slightly diluted rubbing alcohol also works great as a germ killer, which comes in handy when someone in the household is sick.
       Cost Comparison (per ounce):
       Commercial disinfectant: $.32
       Rubbing alcohol: $.11
     • Home Office. A dab of rubbing alcohol on a lint-free cloth can clean your printer head. It is also safe for LCD screens (only when diluted) and dry-erase boards, and works to remove ink (even permanent marker) from most surfaces. Be sure to spot-test first as some materials may not react.
     • Kitchen. Use to disinfect and cut grease off switch plates, phones, and other frequently handled items. If vinegar and baking soda have failed to remove a stain, try rubbing alcohol, but spot-test to avoid potential damage to the surface. Remove dust from candles by rubbing with a cloth dampened with rubbing alcohol. (Be sure candle dries before lighting.) You can also use it to tackle soot in jar candles.
     • Outside the Home. Carry in a small spray bottle and use it to disinfect shopping carts or other items in public places. A cotton swab and rubbing alcohol go far in giving your car’s interior that professional, detailed look.
   • Salt. The Salt Institute purports that there are more than 14,000 uses for salt, beyond its common seasoning duties. Just the plain ol’ variety will do — no need to get fancy with kosher or sea salt.
     • Kitchen. Sprinkle on lemon to scrub pots and pans; rinse to avoid stickiness. Pour a strong concentration of warm salt water down sink drains to avoid grease buildup. Rub pure salt on cups and mugs to remove stubborn tea and coffee stains. A salt-and-soda-water solution will freshen your refrigerator and won’t scratch enamel. Rub tarnished silverware with salt before washing. Stains on copper pans come off more easily if you rub salt into them with a vinegar-soaked cloth. Get rid of old odors by running your coffee maker with a mixture of water and four tablespoons of salt; be sure water goes all the way through. You may also want to run the coffee maker again with fresh water to make sure your next cup of joe has no salty residue.
     • Living Room. A paste of salt and vinegar can be used on brass and copper to restore shine. If wine is spilled on a rug, dab up as much as possible, then immediately sprinkle the stain with salt, which should absorb most of the remainder. Rinse with cold water.
     • Laundry. Sprinkle salt in laundry starch to keep iron from sticking to fabric. Linens and cottons shine after a good salt-ironing. Salt in the color cycle will brighten colors.

   Skeptical? So was I, so I decided to experiment before putting my name on this article. By the end of my cleaning foray, I’d decided to permanently ditch several of my steadfast commercial cleansers, including the glass cleaner and spray disinfectant. Here’s a quick rundown of some of the more significant results:

4. My favorite tip by far was the baking-soda-in-the-microwave trick. Holy timesaver, Batman! It took me less than a minute to clean out the crud.
5. My mom turned me on to using vinegar in the dishwasher, and I haven’t bought a commercial glass brightener since. For some reason, I failed to make the connection with other glass surfaces until I began my research — and, once again, I was pleasantly surprised. When I cleaned one side of my mirrored closet doors with a name-brand glass cleaner and the other with my homemade vinegar solution, I couldn’t tell the difference.
6. The experiment I was most wary of trying was the lemon/olive oil furniture polish, so I offered up the back of my Ikea bookcase as sacrifice. I was so pleased with the result that I quickly went to work polishing my brand-new entertainment armoire. My furniture is shiny and my living room now smells like a lemon grove.
7. I had to call in my scouring pad for backup with some of the tougher baked-on foods, but scrubbing dishes with lemon otherwise went as smooth as can be.
8. A bonus tip for having read this far: For added greenness — and cost savings — throw sponges in the dishwasher to extend their life.

More Green Cleaning Tips:
http://www.care2.com/channels/lifestyle/guides
http://housekeeping.about.com/od/environment/f/greenclean.htm?terms=green+cleaning

article by By Jenna Rose Robbins @ Dineyfamily.com

The weekday vegetarian plan is simple: go vegetarian during the week, and reserve your meat intake for the weekends. BBQ, grill, broil and saute organic, sustainable meats all you want on Saturday and Sunday, but during the week, stick to meatless meals. This drastically cuts down your meat intake, and therefore drastically cuts down the amount of meat we as a country raise, the amount of pollution generated by factory farming, the amount of fossil fuel going into raising corn which goes into raising meat.

Benefits:
It’s easy to follow.
It’s non-binary.
It’s significant (reduces impact by 70%).
It’s not too restrictive.
It’ll save you money.
It’s good for your health.
You can start today.

Oliver’s plan calls for, “The grassroots movement must also challenge corporate America to support meaningful programs that will change the culture of junk food.” The weekday vegetarian concept helps to accomplish this very thing.

You can help Oliver achieve his wish by not only going veg during the week, but also by signing his petition for a food revolution.

article found on treehugger.com

In each case I had a number of email exchanges with each blogger (all on the same day) and ended up laughing to myself at the common theme but extremely different opinions being expressed by each of the bloggers.

In each case the bloggers had strong opinions (and experiences to back those opinions up) on what type of traffic was ‘best’ and how to get it.

1. In one case the conversation started with a blogger telling me that I focus too much upon social media traffic and not enough on traffic from search engines. Their niche didn’t work with social traffic but with search traffic they did best.
2. In another case the blogger told me that they’d been told to forget about search traffic in their niche and work more on building traffic from other sites and to convert it into ongoing traffic with newsletters.
3. In the last case a blogger told me that in their opinion the best type of traffic was social media traffic and they didn’t see the point in newsletters.

I was reminded through these conversations just how many different valid approaches there are to blogging. I also came away with a few thoughts that I thought I’d jot down here on the topic of driving traffic to blogs.

1. There are Many Valid Sources of Traffic

The above chart shows just 8 of many sources of traffic to a blog. As I write this others are already springing to mind (for example some bloggers run paid advertising to drive traffic to their blog – others get it from banner exchange programs). The reality is that there are many potential sources of traffic.

2. The ‘Best’ Source of Traffic Varies from Niche to Niche

As I thought about the 3 bloggers I was chatting to above it struck me that each had found great sources of traffic but that they were each operating in very different niches.

The first blogger who had written off social media was in a niche that people were simply not using social media for (I won’t reveal the niche as I don’t have their permission but it was a very very niche focused blog). Perhaps they could have driven a tiny bit of traffic with social media but for them Search was a much better place for them to invest their time.

3. Different Sources of Traffic Will monetize differently

Another important factor to consider is that some sources of traffic will monetize ALOT better than others. I’ve found that search traffic can work very well with AdSense for example (it depends upon the niche and intent of the reader). People arrive on your site searching for specific information, read your content, see an ad that relates to their search term and click on it.

RSS readers on the other hand don’t tend to convert for AdSense as they tend to be loyal readers and many don’t even click through to your site to read your content. RSS readers (and social media traffic) however can convert really well for affiliate promotions or selling your own products to.

4. Traffic Patterns Change over the life cycle of a blog

As a blog matures its sources of traffic often quite naturally change.

There’s no typical one size fits all pattern to this but at first the traffic might mainly come from other blogs or forums where you comment – or blogs where you guest post – or articles that you write. In time you might start to see more traffic from RSS or newsletters as a few people subscribe. Perhaps then some traffic will come from other sites who link to you (people who subscribe via RSS might have their own blogs) and from social media. After a while your search engine ranking might kick in as a result of the links from other sites and your guest posting and article writing and you might start seeing Google traffic. Once your blog is more established you might start seeing social bookmarking viral events that spike your traffic.

Again – this is not going to be the pattern for all blogs but in time traffic will naturally start to come from different places – the key is to try to leverage it for ongoing good (trying to get your blog to be sticky rather than just having one time visitors) and to work out how to convert that traffic for the goals you have.

5. Bloggers should be open to different approaches

While each of the three bloggers had discovered great lessons and good sources of traffic for their niches and the life cycles of their blogs – I was left wondering in each case whether the bloggers were being a little too closed off to different sources of traffic that perhaps could have added to the overall mix of traffic.

I see a lot of SEO type bloggers write about the worthlessness of social traffic for instance. One common comment that I get from some SEOs (definitely not all) is that social media traffic can’t be monetized. The reality could not be further from the truth. It won’t always convert but it certainly can. For example I know in each of the E-book launches that I’ve done in two niches that I’ve seen significant conversions from Twitter traffic.

On the flip side of things I hear some social media focused bloggers write off SEO and say that it works itself out and you don’t need to optimise your blog for search if you just produce good content. While there is some truth in that (good content does tend to generate natural incoming links to some extent) with a basic understanding of principles of SEO and a few minor tweaks a blog can rank much better in search engines without compromising the integrity of the content.

I guess what I’m getting at is that if you get exclusive about the type of traffic you are after you could actually be limiting the potential of your blog’s incoming traffic.

6. Too many Eggs in One Basket Can Be Dangerous

I used to be very focused upon search traffic in my early days of blogging. I worked hard to optimise my first blogs for search and got to a point where I was making a full time living from the ad revenue I was getting almost exclusively from Google. As a result I got a little lazy in some of the other areas – I didn’t work to convert readers to be loyal with newsletters or with prominent calls to subscribe to RSS, I didn’t build too many relationships with other bloggers to generate referral traffic and I was very inactive in social media (although it was much more limited back then).

As a result when Google decided to adjust their algorithm one day and my rankings dropped (and almost completely disappeared) in their results I lost almost all of my traffic – and as a result almost all of my income.

I was lucky in that Google readjusted their algorithm a couple of months later and I regained a lot of (but not all) of that traffic but in the mean time I looked for and found a ‘real job’ – and more importantly learned an important lesson about the power of having more than one source of traffic.

That experience was the beginning of me doing a few things that included working harder on capturing readers as subscribers (email and RSS), networking more with other bloggers in my niche and getting more involved in promoting my blog in other places (mainstream media, social media etc). My hope in doing all of this was to build up other sources of traffic so that if Google ever switched off my traffic again (temporarily or permanently) I’d at least have enough traffic to survive.

Google still does send me around 40-50% of my traffic (it varies a little from blog to blog) but I’m in a position now where I could survive for an extended period if it all disappeared (not that I’d like for that to happen).

7. The Importance of Personality and Being Yourself

I’m sure there are other factors that are at play that might be worth considering when looking at traffic. One of these (that I’m yet to fully think through) is personality type.

For example a lot of my my technically thinking friends seem to enjoy the challenge of SEO a little more. They love experimenting with and testing what happens when they make small tweaks to different aspects of their blogs. They’re constantly testing different setups and do quite well from it. I am not technically minded and find their attention to detail very very unusual (and so far from where that I’m at that I feel like I’m from another planet).

Other friends are perhaps a little more social by nature and as a result seem to do well on Twitter.

Others seem to do better by applying their freakish ability to write blog posts that get tonnes of links from other sites and which do brilliantly on social bookmarking sites..

Others are networkers and spend a lot of time interacting with other bloggers and site owners and tend to get links and traffic that way.

Others just seem to be brilliant at building community on their blog and as a result retain almost everyone who ever comments and build new readers from those people telling their friends.

I guess the lesson here is to be yourself and work with your strengths. Of course you don’t want to let your strengths dominate so much that you ignore or become lazy in areas that you’re not as strong in – but do follow your natural abilities and leverage them as much as you can.

Remember that there is no wrong or right way to generate traffic for a blog. If you were analyze the sources of traffic on many top blogs you’d find quite different factors at play!

Article found here originally written:

Written on February 12th, 2010 at 01:02 am by Darren Rowse

The following is a guest post by Ezra Drissman of GreenCareersGuide

If you thought 2009 was a year that green took over, then think again. Over the next 10 years, the green industry is predicted to experience growth in the neighborhood of 1.5 trillion dollars. Green will continue to shape the foods we eat, the products we buy, and the way we get around — and increasingly the jobs we have.

According to the Pew Charitable Trusts, by 2007, more than 68,200 businesses across the country accounted for more than 770,000 jobs in clean energy, “despite a lack of sustained government support in the past decade.” This is expected to increase with fresh help from the Obama administration. In 2008 alone, private investors directed $5.9 billion into American businesses in this sector, a 48% increase over 2007. This rate should continue to accelerate.

Here are five green careers that are not entirely new, but are now being completely reinvented. If you want to keep a competitive advantage in the workforce, one must learn how these top-growing jobs are “going green.” These fields, according the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), are expected to see a growth from 6% to nearly 30%.

Mechanical Engineer

$59,000 to $94,000 median salary range, according to the BLS. Mechanical engineering will have many opportunities in the future. However, you don’t have to wait to start in green areas of this field. Nearly all energy areas, including wind and solar, need these engineers.

You will need a four-year engineering degree to start. If you have your degree, there are three great websites that can help you work green: the American Wind Energy Association, the Solar Energy Industries Association and the American Solar Energy Society.

Environmental Engineer

$56,000 to $94,000 median salary range (BLS). One of the hardest hit fields in the recent recession has been engineering, due to contractions in the auto industry and infrastructure spending. Fortunately, this profession has numerous applications in the green field.

Environmental engineers are expected to see a 30% increase in jobs over the next ten years. They will be vital in the wind and solar fields. In addition, environmental engineer technicians and civil engineers should see a 25% growth.

If you are looking for a job in this field, a great place to start is the American Academy of Environmental Engineers. You may also want to plug yourself into the Association of Energy Engineers, which offers training for engineers to become energy auditors.

Environmental Educator

$47,000 to $50,000 median salary range (BLS). The teaching field is expected to expand by almost 20% in the coming years. What’s exciting is that weaving green practices into the classroom is becoming much more commonplace. Many schools are on the forefront of using clean energy. And science teachers are in the most demand.

Beyond the basics like environmental science, many community colleges have expanded offerings in courses like solar panel installation and energy efficient building; universities have expanded environmental policy and politics offerings, often developing entirely new departments and curricula; and graduate programs are routinely offering advanced courses in a range of subjects, like corporate sustainability. There are even green MBA programs. All of these new positions need teachers to fill them.

Becoming a teacher involves a college diploma and generally a teaching certificate. If you are an out-of-work professional you may want to consider getting a teaching certificate. While the full degree may cost you around $8 to $20 thousand a year, a teaching certificate may cost around half.

In order to really save money, you might want to consider community college first. This will allow you to take general education classes at a much more affordable price. Don’t forget that there are plenty of student loans available through the federal government. A guidance counselor will be able to point you in the right direction.

Heating and Cooling Installer

$15 to $25/hour (BLS). If you are looking for a great green job and are not interested in the college route, then heating and cooling could be the field for you. It is expected to see more than 28% growth in the coming years. Being able to install an extremely efficient solar water heater can not only put more money in your pocket, it will save the customer money in the long term and help them go green. Installers are able to put some of the most cutting edge energy-saving products to use right away.

Another reason for the strong growth is the increasing emphasis on green building, supported by the United States Green Building Council and the federal and state and local governments. Heating and cooling play a big role in energy saving.

For a more specialized training, look into geothermal. One particular training provider in this area is the GeoExchange, which can help you find the programs to get started today!

Arborist

$9 to $14/hour (BLS). If you want to get a green job outdoors then this may be the career for you. There are many variations of this job. Tree trimmers, pruners, and landscapers are expected to see more than 26% growth. Green arborists help protect plants from disease and pests with less-toxic, environmentally friendly techniques. They can also work to minimize harmful runoff, protect watersheds, and shade property, which leads to less energy demands for cooling.

A good place to start learning about the career is the Arbor Day Foundation.

Finding a green job is getting easier every day. If these don’t work for you, make sure to check out nearly 100 more at Green Careers Guide.

1. Geneva, Switzerland is Rich and Ready.

Earlier in January 2010, Geneva’s City Council members voted 2 to 1 to close 200 of the city’s streets to car traffic. That’s a huge first move put forth by the Green Party but supported by Social Democrats and even the center Radical Party. However, the measure is in no way guaranteed, as it may face stiff opposition from the city’s business leaders. They should take note of Copenhagen’s move to make some streets car free - business hasn’t suffered and in some cases has improved!

Geneva photo credit Michael Dawes.

Photo Credit I am Mike’s Photos via Flickr.

2. Davis, Calif. U.S.A. Does Biking Best (Some Say).

O.K., maybe Davis is just a big college town rather than a bona fide “big city” but it’s got a few advantages as far as car free is concerned: a relatively good climate, not too many hills, a great bike infrastructure (the city is getting ready to build a 1.7 million bike-only thoroughfare under a major road and considers itself Bike City, U.S.A.). It also has a fairly well-functioning bus system and a sort of stealth car-free culture. Innovations in Davis include a car “lockdown” during the University’s enrollment period due to the great mass of bikes on the campus, plans for a cycling museum and a month-long celebration of cycling each year in May called Cyclebration.

Photo credit: Payton Chung @ flickr.

3. Inner Paree Would Be Lovely Car Free.

Eric Britton of Worldstreets.org says Paris, France has everything it takes to have a carfree inner city. He lists the city’s purposeful gradual removal of parking spaces, and the high cost of inner-city parking as two disincentives for car owners to drive their cars directly into the city, and also the high level of noncar households (60% or more) as another sign that Paris can easily go carfree. Forward momentum? Of course, that plum that is Vélib bike-sharing is great, and Paris’ plans to keep expanding the system are enouraging. Paris also has great car sharing and plans to implement electric car sharing with its Autolib program. And then there’s Paris Plages, that month of summer when the city turns a portion of the Expressway on the banks of the Seine into an inland beach, with sunbathing, kayaking on the river, people watching…and no cars.

Photo credit Cyclovias Unidas.

4. Big City Guadalajara Needs a Big Plan.

Make no mistake about it. Guadalara, with 1.6 million residents and Mexico’s second largest city, is still steered by the motorized trifecta of car, bus,and truck. In fact, some people think crossing the street is southern-style Russian roulette. Yet Guadalajara has some factors that nevertheless make it a good candidate for a car lite or car free place. Guadalajara has won awards for its quick (2 year) implementation of a full BRT (bus rapid transit system) called Macrobús as part of its “Movilidad Urbana” project. In addition, Guadalajara didn’t originate the idea but has taken to heart the Ciclovia approach to improving city streets - every Sunday there’s a six-hour stretch when 15 kilometers of the city’s streets are turned over to pedestrian and all other non´motorized bike-style traffic. That 170,000 city residents enjoy this Via RecreActiva every weekend says a lot about the city’s possibilities as an oasis of inner city car lite or car free living in spite of its current urban bustle. Promising initiatives? A plan to make the Centro Histórico in the inner city a completely pedestrian zone.

Photo credit Malmö stad’s Framtidskikare.

5. Malmö, Sweden, Takes Baby Steps to Progress.

Sure, it may only be radical groups like Klimax that are willing to come out and say “car free inner city” is their goal for this southern Swedish city. However, Malmö’s city government is taking baby steps that may one day end up in the very same place. The city’s premier sustainable housing development Bo01, is dense, walkable, and virtually car free. Your first impression of Malmö if you step off the train at the Central station, is not of a car-oriented inner city but of a bike- and pedestrian-accomodating small town. Steps taken include Bo01, Western Harbor’s car free streets, and over 400 kilometers of bike paths for this city’s 285,000 residents.

Stylized 3D map credit by Colin Zhu at flickr.

6. Anywhere, China, Could Decide to De-Car.

And the bonus burg? Well, this is a 3D stylized map of Guangzhou, China, but it could be any of a number of China’s rapidly developing big cities. As car culture has swept the cities so swiftly, there’s still a chance for many of them to fairly easily change direction, and decide to go car lite. According to Carbusters, Guangzhou’s Xiguan region of the city still sports very low car usage (less than 1 percent of trips). Pedestrian alleyways predominate. Guangzhou, with 13 million inhabitants, has its own 14-mile-long BRT system, which when it formally opens next month is expected to transport 23,000 passengers an hour!’

article found on treehugger.com/

by April Streeter, Gothenburg, Sweden on 01.26.10

Green Eyed Monster Clears Out 2009 Designs With 50% Off

by Kara DiCamillo, Newport, Rhode Island

Call us crazy, but it seems we can’t have enough reusable totes. A few for the car, two for the purse, a couple hanging by the door…it seems we always use them no matter how many we have. If you’re like us, you might want to take advantage of today’s TreeHugger Deal$ from Green Eyed Monster, a company that offers a unique and socially responsible alternative to disposable paper and plastic bags. Images for the bags are created through online design competitions (yes, you can participate too!) and each tote that is printed is a limited edition. So this is your chance to grab a wearable, reusable piece of art!

The bags are made out of 100% post-consumer material made from recycled cotton fabric and recycled plastic bottles, are manufactured in the U.S.A., and are larger than your average disposable or reusable tote. In honor of the New Year, Green Eyed Monster is clearing out its 2009 designs.

From now through March 1, 2010, TreeHugger readers will have an opportunity to purchase these fun, unique totes at 50% off to help spread the word to friends, family and other disposable bag using culprits about the benefits of “BYOB.” Green Eyed Monster is also a member of 1% For the Planet. Coupon code: 2010.

Green Eyed Monster also sells designer handbags and sneakers created by up-and-coming artists who take Mama Earth into consideration with their work. For a limited time, grab one of these handmade, unique designer goodies at 10% off the retail price. Coupon code: newyear. Green Eyed Monster

TreeHugger Deals offers discounts and specials exclusively for TreeHugger readers. TreeHugger never receives any monetary compensation or proceeds through these promotions.

By Terra Wellington

One of the myths of being eco-friendly is that it takes a lot of money. While some large-scale changes may require a chunk of change, such as buying a tankless water heater or adding solar panels to your roof, the majority of going green choices don’t have to cost a fortune. Here are 7 ways to go green on the cheap.

Be a Friend to Farmers
The best prices on organic produce are usually close to home at your local farmers’ market. Organic is best for your body and the planet. By shopping more directly with the organic producers you can not only save money but also put more cash in the farmers’ pockets and support local food production. Find out more about living and eating organically.

Clean for Under a Buck
Did you know that you can clean most of your house with a non-toxic cleaner that usually costs less than a dollar? That magic bullet is baking soda. A little water and baking soda makes a terrific cleaning paste for tubs, sinks, stoves, and other surfaces. Its whitening effect is great for cleaning grout. Add a handful to your whites in the wash for brighter clothes. Baking soda is also a great deodorizer, and it won’t irritate your lungs.

Fertilize with Garbage
One of the great benefits of eating is that there’s waste. Seriously. Put your food scraps to work in an at-home compost and voila! You’ll have a free supply of soil amendment and mulch from the compost that can also be used as fertilizer for your lawn and garden. Compost is organic and non-toxic, extremely healthy for plants and the soil, and gives back to the planet with minimal effort from you.

Super Sun Savings
Open those blinds and curtains and turn off the lights. Sunlight is free … and completely renewable. You’ll save on electricity. And sunshine is better for your body. The sun’s rays are just the right brightness and spectrum to give you more energy, better regulate your sleep patterns, and improve your mood. Sun equals smiles.

Well-Contained Lunches
Opt for reusable containers for lunches whenever possible. You have a one-time investment on the containers that can save you a boatload – throwaway baggies and individually packaged lunch items (like juice boxes and applesauce cups) are much more expensive than if you filled up reusable containers at home with juice, fruit, and a sandwich. And that means less goes to the landfill too.

Old News is Good News
Have a package to send? Avoid the expense and waste of bubble wrap. Instead, reach for yesterday’s newspaper as packing material. It might seem old fashioned, but what was good for grandma is still good for you.

Save Money and Miles
Put on your thinking cap next time you plan errands and schedule them together on a miles-saving route. By strategically combining errands and avoiding unplanned trips to the store, you’ll save gas and make your wallet a little fatter. Plus, you’ll be spewing less pollution into the air from your car.

Terra Wellington is the author of The Mom’s Guide to Growing Your Family Green: Saving the Earth Begins at Home. She figures that anytime she can save a few cents while being green her wallet gets a little fatter and that brings her one step closer to spending money on what really counts – fun-filled family outings.

Information found here

1.Pass on plastic: Grab your reusable bags for bringing it all home and give reusable gift bags as gifts too- always a good idea.

Some of my favorites are: Flip & Tumble, Ecobags, Envirosax

2. Walk: Walk between stores when possible. You’ll reduce the amount of gas you use and burn calories at the same time!

3.Make one trip:Before going shopping, make a list of everything you need and do all your shopping in one trip.