Green Group discussion

I don't know if this is the right folder for it, but there has been some debate amongst people I know who are wondering if Earth Day really does any good or is just another gimmick. Any thoughts?

Well, I think it does good. Whether people think it's a gimmick or not....it does make you think about the environment and your impact.

I guess activities promoted for Earth Day should continue perpetually, but more public awarness and education must occur for persons to understand the importance of such...
I live on a small island and am involved with the environmental community and we have many challenges...

I think it would be a good idea to have some sort of education in school starting at the elementary level.

I agree, that way the kids will be completely used to green ideas. The best time to teach a person something is when they're young and don't get have ideas about the world. I have done some environmental education, and kids do really well with maintaining what they have learned.

i think a lot of really good things happen on and because of Earth Day, but there are a lot of gimmicks, too. like our tv stations making their logos green as if that makes them....you know...green.

can i use this as a confessional? of all the days to leave my coffee cup at home, i left my coffee cup at home. yeah, i, um, contributed to some starbucks trash. oops.

Marts...that's so interesting...what do you think your biggest challenge is? i often wonder if its more difficult to change wasteful, damaging habits among large urban populations or small, more isolated populations...

I didn't mean the thing about kids like brainwashing, just that it's easier to teach them before they form bad environmental habits. Teaching a kid to recycle when he's 6 is easier than when he's 35.

Caribou was giving away free coffee if you brought your mug! I was all over that like white on rice. It's ok, though, as long as you remember most of the time?

There are gimmicks, but you have to take the bad with the good, I don't think over all that the "gimmicks" do all that much harm.

Starbucks was doing the same. I felt so stupid. But I go to the same one regularly and the people there know me and my cup so when I forget it they say "marieke! Where is your cup?!" so yes, I think I do okay most of the time. :D

Well, I don't drink coffee so that is not an issue for me.

No coffee?! How do you survive?

Caribou gives 50 cents off every time you bring in a mug, Starbucks is stingy and only gives 10. My baristas also give me a hard time when I forget my mug. I've started keeping one in my car in case I walk out the door without one.

I have no caribou near me. Plus I only ever get mochas and I have yet to find another place that makes them with soy like Starbucks. Although there is a local place that makes a mean soy latte that I'll have once in awhile.

I'm kinda jealous of jennbunny. ;)

That's very sad for you. Caribou will make any drink with soy upon request, so if you're ever near one, you'll be all set! Minneapolis based company, I'm obligated to support them. I also travel around and patronize small, local establishments when I can, as well. Especially when I'm not in the Twin Cities.

I mostly try to stick with water and XXX vitamin water. Although I love me a Dr. Pepper....thus the reason why I try not to keep it in the house. I try to stay away from caffeine. I have been pretty bad this past year and now I am trying to get back on track.

I too am jealous. Being half Scandinavian pretty much doomed me to caffeine addiction. Also, here it's integral in social activities and meetings. Probably unhealthy. Kudos to you!

I heard one cup of coffee per day is not so bad for you! I am pretty much trying to get back to exercise and mostly vegetarian.

Haha, well I rather doubt I ever drink only one cup per day.

Sounds like a great plan. I try to go outside and be active for an hour or two every day, and during Lent I'm a vegetarian...in summer I eat mostly fish, fresh from the lake!

i don't know Kirsten...i think Starbucks is evil and they do something wacky to their mochas that no one else can touch with a ten foot pole, whether they have soy or not. :D

yes, jennbunny! a little coffee has health benefits! but i'm not going to try to get you to drink it. ;)

Haha, they might. I wouldn't put it past them! This morning I went to a different Caribou, and apparently the manager is friends with the manager at my regular store...boy did I hear about that. Stealing his regulars. They all must need more to do.

Maybe a lot of coffee has even more health benefits? I'll keep hoping on that one.

LOL....seems like a good plan...more coffee=better health. I found a drink I like at Panera, but it has A LOT of sugar (esp for green tea).

jennbunny wrote: "I think it would be a good idea to have some sort of education in school starting at the elementary level."

currently I sit on a protected areas committee and the educational arm is in the process of planning a variety of initiatives for children starting with ages 12 and under... our local environmental agency hosts activities year round for all environmental days there are also programmes for teenagers occasionally...

LOL....seems like a good plan...more coffee=better health. I found a drink I like at Panera, but it has A LOT of sugar (esp for green tea).

Less is more and sometimes more is more too, right? I LOVE Panera. Especially their grilled (panini?) sandwiches.

I'm looking at an environmental education job for this summer, kids love to learn about that stuff.

2012 Earth Day is fast approaching.

Anyone doing anything special to celebrate the day?

Probably picking up trash outside. I've been trying to convince my highway department to do a village-wide cleanup but they don't want to. I collected 1 kitchen trash bag full of litter last year. I'd like to be part of some event but there isn't any close to me that I know of.

Marts wrote: "jennbunny wrote: "I think it would be a good idea to have some sort of education in school starting at the elementary level."

currently I sit on a protected areas committee and the educational a..."

Thats a great idea. I'd love to see it more incorporated into the elementary curriculum, and wish that there were more nature preschools open and publically funded in the country. My ideal job is to work at a nature preschool. Someday.

Jessica wrote: "Probably picking up trash outside. I've been trying to convince my highway department to do a village-wide cleanup but they don't want to. I collected 1 kitchen trash bag full of litter last year. ..."

It's sad; there doesn't seem to be many Earth Day events lately - hasn't been for quite awhile - at least where I live as well.

I'm working on making my yard area more eco-friendly. First, a garden. And then more native plants that don't need any/much water.

Earth Day 2017 is nearly upon us - April 22nd.
To coincide NASA and their JPL or Jet Propulsion Laboratory (where outlying stuff happens) has been doing some work at communicating and promoting citizen science.

An app called Globe Observer can be downloaded for helping citizen scientists report real world sighting of various sorts to NASA. All around the world, for instance, NASA would like to know what the clouds look like from beneath as satellites only see them from above.
These real world observations will help tie in with the work of the module observing plant habitats.
Other observations which can be made include temperatures and even locations of mosquito larvae sites.
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.ph...

https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.ph...