Sustainable Living 101 Archives - Page 2 of 2

5 articles with good news for the environment

Patagonia Founder Donates Fortune to Charity

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you may have heard that Patagonia’s founder, Yvon Chouinard, and his immediate family have donated their shares of the prolific outdoor-apparel company to charity. Valued at roughly $3 billion, these shares are now under the tutelage of the Patagonia Purpose Trust and the Holdfast Collective—a climate-focused trust, and grouping of non-profit organizations—that will be taking any profits not reinvested into the company and funding initiatives to protect wild lands and fight climate change.

EV Charging Stations Approved Nation-wide

If you’re like me and the fear of getting stuck in a dead-zone has kept you from seriously considering an electric vehicle, this may be the news you needed! This project, titled the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula Program, has allocated $5 billion to help create an infrastructure of charging stations throughout the US over the next 5 years. Hopefully that means we’ll never have to be afraid of being stuck in a forest, in the dark, with no power and means to travel, ever again.

Dutch Students Invented an Eco-Friendly Car

While we may not have invented flying cars just yet, a group of Dutch students has gotten us one step closer. The Zero Emission Mobility (ZEM) car is a 3D printed vehicle made from recycled plastics that will solve the problem of pollution from the production of battery cells that makes it difficult for electric vehicles to balance out their carbon footprint (despite what the advertisements tell you.) The ZEM holds two filters that can capture up to 2 kg of CO2; while not a huge amount, the car signals positive progress made towards a carbon neutral vehicle.

New York and California Make Huge Strides to be zero-emission by 2035

California has pioneered the way for other blue states to ratify measures meant to protect and preserve our environment. In fact, after the state voted to start banning the sale of new gas-powered cars in 2035, New York followed suit, and is requiring all new cars sold in the state to be zero emission by the same year. As two of the most heavily trafficked states in the US, these initiatives are huge for a greener future—and is a key step in New York reducing its greenhouse gases by 85% by 2050. And with the other news about an expanding EV charging network, it looks like we’re on track to slowly transition away from fossil fuels and gas cars.

Ozone Layer on Track to Close in the Next 50 Years

If you’re a 90’s kid, you know all about the terror of the hole in the ozone layer. The science teachers loved talking about how detrimental the hole was, and how devastating it could be for us in the future. And while movement to a greener society can feel slow at times, the newest research shows that the changes made because of the Montreal Protocol has dropped the concentrations of harmful chemicals that damage the ozone layer just over 50% compared to the 1980s.

Have you heard any good news stories lately? Comment below!

Who always feels guilty throwing away food scraps? Like not the gross, moldy bits, but potatoes that have grown eyes, or spinach that’s just a *smidge* too wilted? While composting may be the first thing most people consider when trying to reduce their food waste, it’s not always a realistic option if you live in smaller spaces or live in an area with limited resources.

That’s why I love the “scrappy cooking” series created by Carleigh AKA @plantyou on Tiktok.

Carleigh’s created a whole movement unconventionally repurposing the odds and ends we don’t quite want to waste in our kitchen, but also don’t want to necessarily eat either.

And while I’m all for a Tiktok binge, I’ve decided to save everyone some time and make a list of a few common groceries that I’m sure most, if not all, of us would love to repurpose the food scraps from!

how to repurpose food scraps

Potato, Po-tah-do

While the pronunciation of this spud may be the subject of heated debate, its versatility in the kitchen is not. If you happen to peel your potato—and want to cut down your food waste—you can either season and crisp them up into potato skins or freeze them in a bag of scrapes that you can boil into veggie broth later on.

If, however, your potatoes have grown too many eyes for safe consumption, you can cut them up and propagate them in a small container of water or soil to grow your own plant (space permitting)!

Onion

Cutting an onion may make you tear up, but the thought of wasting them doesn’t have to! Like potatoes, onion scraps can be saved and frozen to make a veggie broth, or you can propagate the ends in a small jar to grow your own plant.

For a fun DIY at home, you can also boil down the skins into a natural dye for fabric! Depending on the kind of onion and fiber you’re using, you’ll get anything from a pale yellow to bright orange or even pink.

Green Onion

Green onions are one of those great plants you can grow in the smallest of spaces. If you save the bulb end, instead of throwing them away, you can stick them in a jar and they’ll keep growing so you can snip a little to cook or garnish with here and there.

To reduce food waste, if you find yourself with too much green onion, you can freeze them to be used fresh later, or dehydrate them in your oven to use as a seasoning like oregano or thyme.

Lemon

It always feels like such a waste to have to throw lemon rinds away. Never again. Depending on what you’re looking for, you can make pickled lemons to top your salads, cocktails and more. For a sweeter twist, you can mix with an equal amount of sugar to create lemon cheong for a fantastic tea to fight off the winter chill. You can also dry your rinds and grind them up to make a lemon powder for cooking!

Or, for a non-edible zero-waste solution, you can mix lemon and vinegar to create an all-purpose household cleaning spray. The possibilities are endless.

Carrots

Did you know you can eat carrot tops? Carrot tops and parsley are actually in the same veggie family, and you can use them much in the same way. Blend them into sauces or mix into a salad and reap the same nutritional benefits!

You can also freeze any carrot scrapes to add to a veggie broth, or propagate the tops to begin growing your own carrots. And if you have just the skins, you can crisp them up in the oven for a vegan alternative to bacon (yum).

What do you do with your food scraps?

5 Recent Stories with Good News For The Environment