Daily Mitzvah

Texting to Help In Haiti

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 01:38:00 +0000

First Lady Michelle Obama encourages text message donations to the American Red Cross. Text HAITI to 90999 to make a $10 donation.

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Carnival of the Green #206

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 06:03:00 +0000

Daily Mitzvah is delighted to host this week’s installment of the Tree Hugger Carnival of the Green. A big thank you to last week’s host, Pragmatic Environmentalism. And you’ll definitely want to check out the carnival’s next stop, Lighter Footstep, on December 21.

Let the carnival begin!

Want to see your climate question answered live on television? Earth PM has the details in “COP 15: Let your voice be heard.”

Fake Plastic Fish is offering a plastic-free lip balm and body cream giveaway. As a bonus, the containers are compostable. Check it out!

Other blogs are embracing gender roles this week. For the boys: Guffly has green gifts for the men on your list, including my faves the upcycled Lego® cufflinks, as well as vegan sneakers, old-timey razor kits, and more. And for the young ladies: Go Green Street has tips on eco-friendly nursery decorating for a baby girl.

After you finish the nursery, Home Addition Plus has ideas for Inexpensive Green Home Improvements. And while we’re focusing on a happy home, Pragmatic Environmentalism offers useful advice for How to Preserve Your Laptop Battery

For those who are paring down, The Digerati Life reminds readers that they can donate older cars for a tax deduction

For those of a more theoretical bent, Project Earth offers thoughts on the connections between psychology, human behavior, and environmentalism.

And What Green Investments muses on climate and language

Last but not least, here is our Best Green Tweet of the week:

@SallyKneidel tweets about the Irvine, CA, school system’s plans to go solar

(Gang, we need more Twitter action! Interested in submitting your own tweets to Carnival of the Green? Learn more here.)

Thank you for visiting. Don't forget to stop by Lighter Footstep next week for the next installment of Carnival of the Green!

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International Literacy Day

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 04:04:00 +0000

September 8th has been designated by UNESCO as International Literacy Day. Do you part with an easy start: for every click on the orange box on The Literacy Site, site sponsors make a small donation to support literacy efforts, including First Book in the U.S., and Room to Read in developing countries. All you have to do is click!

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Pandemic Pupils: Resources for Instructors

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 04:38:00 +0000

Like most campuses we’re bracing for H1N1, with daily messages about pandemic contingency plans. I’ve been looking through my favorite online resources for things that could also be handy in the unlikely event we have to cancel in-person classes for a few weeks and switch to virtual classroom instruction. Here’s a rundown of my faves — all free!:

Group Chat – chatrooms to hold small class discussions
URL-based, “disposable” (temporary) chatrooms
* Tiny Chat: http://tinychat.com/
* Disposable Chat: http://www.disposablechat.com/
URL or embeddable
* Chatroll: http://chatroll.com/
Embeddable
* Parachat: http://www.parachat.com/basic/

Instant Message – IM for office hours in real time
* Yahoo!Messenger (desktop app, but also has a web-based option; and an embeddable Pingbox): http://messenger.yahoo.com/
* AIM (desktop app, but also has a web-based option): http://www.aim.com
* GoogleTalk (desktop app, or talk within Gmail page): http://www.google.com/talk/
* Meebo (web-based, embeddable): http://www.meebo.com

Other – to create short presentations or mini-lectures
* Video screencast: Jing http://www.jingproject.com/
* Audio recording and editing: Audacity http://audacity.sourceforge.net/
* Video hosting: TeacherTube: http://www.teachertube.com/
* Sharable online documents, spreadsheets, presentations: GoogleDocs http://docs.google.com/
* And of course a class blog, right here on Blogspot!: http://www.blogger.com

If anyone else has resources for online classes or ideas for creative ways to keep some semblance of school going in the unlikely event we can't go to campus, please don’t hesitate to share in the comments!

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Huricane Season

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 19:53:00 +0000

Here’s an animated radar loop, which is focused mostly on TS Claudette at the moment, although it looks like Ada may show up here soon, too. I also put a Weather Underground feed in the right sidebar — their site has great tracking maps and five-day projections, too. Welcome to late summer!

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Ask Google Earth to Upload Iran Photos

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 18:22:00 +0000

Student protesters in Iran are getting news out only by the power of the web. Google Earth has tools to show the world the people in the streets — join the petition drive to have Google earth upload current images.

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Secret Tips for Saving Gas

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 17:54:00 +0000

A few small tips — including a trick involving turning the nozzle upside down to get an extra half cup of gas.

With thanks to Mom Go Green for the link!

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National Train Day: May 9

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Sat, 09 May 2009 04:03:00 +0000

Yep, today is National Train Day! Check it out here.

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Help Your Mail Carrier Stamp Out Hunger

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Tue, 05 May 2009 21:59:00 +0000

The National Association of Letter Carriers is holding its annual “Stamp Out Hunger” food drive this Saturday, May 9th. Participating is easy — this is a food drive that comes to you! Just leave your nonperishable food donations in a bag next to your mailbox. You mail carrier will happily do the rest.

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World Malaria Day: April 25

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 04:03:00 +0000

Got 5 bucks? That’s all it takes to contribute a malaria-fighting bed net for a person in a vulnerable country. April 25 is World Malaria Day — a perfect day to head over to MyBednet.com, give $5, and add yourself to their Honor Roll. Check it out!

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Click for a Cure: The Breast Cancer Site

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 15:26:00 +0000

The Breast Cancer Site is trying to qualify for a matching grant. If clicks on the site in April can fund at least 200 mammograms, Greater Good will contribute an additional $10,000 toward breast cancer research. The Breast Cancer Site is a free click-to-give site, where sponsors donate a small amount of money for each visitor’s daily click on the site. The money raised goes to fund free and low-cost mammograms to women without health insurance.

There is no cost to you: simply visit the site and click on the pink box. Advertisers make a small donation for each click — and this month your clicks do double duty by helping the site reach the additional $10,000 matching goal.

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Carbon Fast for Lent: Concluding the Fast

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 16:44:00 +0000

12 April 2009 – Day 46
“Replace the light bulb you removed at the start of the Carbon Fast (make sure it’s an energy saving one!) Finish the Carbon Fast by contemplating to do next. What do you want your lifestyle to look like in five years? Commit to doing one or two new things a month.”

Happy Easter! Another Carbon Fast for Lent ends today. I hope this has provided good reading and some useful suggestions and links. In our own house, I’ve redoubled my attempts to save water and become more aware of the cleaning products we’re using. I had started moving away from petroleum based laundry detergent for last year’s Carbon Fast. This year I’ve followed by revamping all our household cleaners, which are now 99% petroleum-free. And we’re continuing our commitment to our utility’s Green Power Tomorrow program, as well as bringing our own reusable bags to the grocery.

Today’s mitvah: What about you? What lifestyle changes can you take with you moving into the post-Lenten season?

Photograph © 2008 by 13 Delancey Street.

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Carbon Fast for Lent: Pay It Forward

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 04:03:00 +0000

DAY 44 – THURSDAY 9 APRIL
“‘Love does no harm to its neighbour’ Romans 13:10. Help others to cut their emissions.You could buy an energy saving light bulb or something else mentioned in the Fast and give it away to someone to help them on the way to cutting their emissions.”

This activity is new this year, and I really like it. I’m still mulling what to give, but I’ll post whatever I come up with by the weekend. What about you?

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Carbon Fast for Lent: Save some paper today

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 04:53:00 +0000

DAY 43 – WEDNESDAY 8 APRIL
“Save paper today. Don’t print unless you need to and when you do, print double-sided onto recycled paper.” — Carbon Fast for Lent

Today’s activity is a nice opportunity to plug Tamara Krinsky’s Change the Margins campaign, in which she is urging Microsoft to reduce the default margin width in Word. She also encourages colleges and universities — big paper users — to do the same —a and had some success recently when students at Western Washington University to change the default margins on campus computer lab printers.

The plan is simple: wider margins require more paper; narrower margins mean less paper. Easy savings!

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"Unemployment Lifeline"

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 16:15:00 +0000

Working America has launched a web site for unemployed workers. Called Unemployment Lifeline, it’s a central place to find resources in your community, navigate government benefits, learn about legal resources, get support from others, and more. I thought the resource search section looked especially useful, with searchable information on unemployment compensation, nutritional assistance, utility assistance, emergency medical assistance. Working America is a political advocacy and community organizing group, so it has activist links as well, but it looks like a solid choice even for those who are just interested in its resources.

Today’s mitzvah: The NYT recently ran an article about how those with jobs can help friends who have lost their jobs. See Johnson Jots for details and a link, and think about what you can do to help. Or if you need help, check out Unemployment Lifeline.

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Carbon Fast for Lent: What Size is Your Footprint?

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 04:21:00 +0000

DAY 42 – TUESDAY 7 APRIL
“Calculate your carbon footprint today at www.tearfund.org/mgi and find out what more you can do about climate change. Order Tearfund’s green guide ‘For TomorrowToo’ at
www.tearfund.org/climate for ideas on cutting emissions.”

I wanted to find a carbon footprint calculator that didn’t immediately ask one to buy an offset. The one below seems to do the trick. If and when you are ready to offset, I’m a fan of Carbonfund.org, which is a nonprofit (offsets are tax deductible) and has its own calculators, too. TerraPass is another good choice, although they’re a for-profit and contributions aren’t deductible.

CoolClimate Carbon Footprint Calculatorgreat free widgetsWidgetbox

My score was 12 tons, equivalent to 29 barrels of oil and planting two acres of forest. That was sobering: I assume my numbers are on the low side since I live in a small apartment and don’t own a car. How was your score?

Today’s mitzvah: Calculate your carbon footprint, and consider purchasing an affordable offset at one of the resources above. Or get started right away — for free! — and offset; one lb. of carbon (about the amount of electricity for your computer usage today) at Care2’s click to give Global Warming page.

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Carbon Fast for Lent: One if by Land . . .

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 04:03:00 +0000

Day 41 – Monday 6 April
“Turn your central heating thermostat down by one degree.”

This is a Carbon Fast perennial, yet it’s always a good reminder. While most models suggest 3°, even one degree down in winter (or up in summer) is do-able yet also effective. A 1° change can save about 3% on an annual bill. According to the nifty calculator I found, that’s for a single-family home that’s an annual savings of about $74 and 1330 lbs. of C02. For an apartment, it’s about $19 and 336 lbs. of C02.

Today’s mitzvah: Try a one-degree change!

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Save $20 at the grocery this weekend

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 09:39:00 +0000

Coupons have limited life spans, but you should be able to save about $20 with the coupons we've gathered so far via the Great $100 Coupon Challenge. I’m hopeful this will make it a bit easier to buy organic and natural products (or just stuff I like). For this installment I decided to check out a new brand that’s getting a lot of shelf space at my local grocery. Wild Harvest Organics distributes (under its own label) organic foods made by well-known brands, and is positioning itself as the kinda-affordable and ubiquitous “store brand” of the organic world. It’s certainly working locally; their products — milk, eggs. crackers, cookies, cereal. canned food, frozen food — are all over the grocery stores here in town. I thought hey might be popping up in your store, too (and happily there’s no registration required to print), so here’s a coupon to start off this installment:

Wild Harvest Organics, any product: $1.00 off
Wild Harvest Organics waffles, OJ, or yogurt: $1.00 off
Horizon Organics: 55¢ off for their new Omega 3-fortified milk (for other organic dairy coupons including Organic Valley, click on this blog’s coupon label and scroll down)
Seventh Generation: $1.00 off baby product or cleaning product (after a registration process)
Nature Valley granola bars: 60¢ off one box (via Box Tops for Education; have to register)
Classico pasta sauce: $2.00 off on two (but with a long registration)
Muir Glen Organic: $1.00 off any product (pasta sauce, canned tomatoes, salsa, etc.), via Eat Better America

Happy saving!

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Carbon Fast for Lent: Bag the Plastic Bags

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 14:03:00 +0000

Day 38 – Friday 3 April 2009
“Reduce the number of plastic bags you use. Get a fabric or reusable bag instead and take it with you when you shop.”
— The Carbon Fast for Lent

This is another suggestion that finally nudged me into action during last year’s Carbon Fast. I’ve backslidden a bit (if that’s a word) after I used up all the spare plastic bags I’d been stockpiling for trash bags. But overall this has become second nature, with my little Baggus always in my purse or backpack. And I know that family members with cars, including my mom, just keep the fold-up square bags in the car so they’re at hand for any shopping trip.

Whether you’re using square-bottom bags made from recycled soda bottles like those above, neat fold-up bags the little Baggus, or a sturdy cloth tote, this is an easy way to cut down on plastics. As a bonus: check out an alternative for filmy plastic produce bags. The cute produce bags at left — light as a feather — are available on Etsy, the handmade site (mine are from DaisyDots, or you can just search “produce bags”). I tuck one in each of my Baggu pouches so I always have them with me.

Today’s mitzvah: Cute reusable bags abound. Check out your local grocery or Whole Foods, Reusable Bags, or the Baggu siteto get started,Find some that work for you and bag the plastic bags!

Top photograph © 2008 by Daily Mitzvah, with a shout out to Community Car!
Bottom photograph © 2008 by DaisyDots.

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Carbon Fast for Lent: Get on the Bus

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 15:18:00 +0000

DAY 36 – WEDNESDAY 1 APRIL
“Travel light. Think before you drive: cycle, walk the school run, share lifts with colleagues, use public transport. Find out more about cycle routes in the UK at www.sustrans.org.uk. [And find out more about planning public transit in the U.S. at publictransportation.org]”

Have you taken public transit lately? Times have changed — it may not be what you think! One improvement since the days of the omnibus: better real-time tracking. Our local system has just launched a Transit Tracker that lets one get real-time info on where a bus is on a map and when one can expect it to arrive. Unfortunately this isn’t integrated with Google Transit, but I hope Madison Metro will move in that direction soon. (Milwaukee, Green Bay, Racine, and Appleton are already onboard.) I used Google Transit extensively the last time I was in Chicago — it was very handy for figuring out the next bus no matter where I was in the city.

Today’s mitzvah: In 2008, American public transit ridership was the highest in more then 50 years. Help make 2009 another record-breaking year. Visit Public Transit Takes Us There for public transit options in your own community.

Image: G.W. Joy, Bayswater Omnibus, 1895. Collection of the Museum of London.

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Carbon Fast for Lent: Sign Up for Green Power

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 16:25:00 +0000

DAY 35 – TUESDAY 31 MARCH
“Ask your electricity and gas suppliers if they have a green or renewable energy plan. Make the switch to a green plan today.”

This was one of my favorite Carbon Fast activities last year. I’m happy to see it making another appearance so I can plug it again! Our power company’s Green Power Tomorrow program is very affordable. I pay just an additional 1¢/kWh for a 100% offset — for our house that’s been only about $1.60/month, although for most homes MGE estimates about $6/month. The way the way the plan works: our utility purchases solar and wind power to match the number of kilowatt hours that the Green Power subscribers use each month. This increases the amount of solar and wind power power in the pool by the amount that Green Power subscribers use — and thus increases the amount of renewable energy in everyone’s energy mix.

Bonus: Check out the local solar project near my house! (It’s the second project in the video, near the bike path.)

Today’s mitzvah: Check your local power company’s web site or the Department of Energy’s Green Power Network to find an affordable green power option.

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More Fun with Coupons

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 21:15:00 +0000

The Great $100 Coupon Challenge continues! If you're interested in checking out mainstream companies’ forays into greener cleaning products, here are two:

Any Clorox Greenworks cleaning product: 50¢ off (look on bottom right of page)
Nature’s Source from S.C. Johnson (natural Scrubbing Bubbles, etc.): $1.00 off

If you’re feeling sniffly, Zicam is also offering $1.00 off.

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Carbon Fast for Lent: Showered with Green

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 17:34:00 +0000

DAY 34 – MONDAY 30 MARCH
“Take a shower instead of a bath. Look into getting a more efficient shower with a ‘low-flow’ shower head (see the Carbon Fast fact sheet for more info).”

Low-flow showerheads always make me think of the Seinfeld episode where Newman goes on a black market hunt for full-force models. The latest crop of these water saving devices are much better and really to allow for a reasonable wash and hair wash. They also can reduce water use by as much as half. You may not even notice the difference!

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How Was Earth Hour 2009?

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 05:52:00 +0000

I tried out a new hand-crank lantern and listened to WORT and then Radio Taiwan International on my cute little shortwave radio. What did the rest of the world do? Read all about Earth Hour 2009 at right (I found a new widget!). And check out a silent around-the-world video from the BBC, below.

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Earth Hour: Tonight 8:30-9:30 pm

noreply@blogger.com (jen x) — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 07:05:00 +0000

I really like Earth Hour, which was fun last year too. I’m looking forward to powering down tonight. I have my hand-crank radio, my variety of hand-cranked flashlights and also some very nice candles I’ve received as gifts from my brother and his girlfriend. Won’t you join me? Consider turning off your lights and other electric stuff tonight from 8:30 to 9:30 pm your local time.

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