Making a difference to your local environment is all about small changes. That’s why it’s important to dissect the unsustainable market of disposable chopsticks and to showcase a group of graduate students in Vancouver, British Columbia who were motivated to make a change.

The business of sushi is a large one, especially on Canada’s west coast. Although the market has other controversies, the amount of disposable chopsticks used to consume these delicious delicacies is alarming. The LA Times reported an estimated 100 acres of forests are harvested every 24 hours in order to meet demands for chopsticks.

That’s equivalent to 16-25 million mature trees–and that’s just in China–imagine how much wood is used for disposable chopsticks globally! This has clear effects on forest ecosystems, soil quality and erosion in the area, and the ability to combat climate change, amongst other negative environmental effects.

Pictured here is a Greenpeace campaign to raise awareness about the waste. Artists created displays made entirely of over 80 000 used chopsticks just to show just how many chopsticks are being used and thrown out.

Students create art from over 80 000 used, disposable chopsticks

Luckily, the issue is gaining traction globally. China has recently placed a tax on manufacturing disposable chopsticks.

Canada’s west coast isn’t far removed from the issue, which brought graduate students from Simon Fraser University’s School of Resource and Environmental Management (REM) onto the scene. After researching the issue, they saw an opportunity in sushi restaurants on Vancouver’s Commercial Drive, and saw the chance to “tip the first domino.”

“[We wanted to extend] an invitation [for restaurants] to re-think all of the needless use of resources/energy in daily practices,” REM student Larissa Ardis told me.

With this in mind, Ardis and her colleagues investigated current practices and challenged the restaurants they visited on Commercial Drive to make a change. They went to each owner with a public petition with around 75 signatures showing support for more sustainable practices. They found that out of the twelve restaurants they visited, only two (Isshin Sushi and Kishimoto Sushi) were offering reusable chopsticks to their dine-in customers.

As Ardis reported, convincing the other sushi restaurants to make the change wasn’t tough. “We heard from restaurant owners that there really was no cost advantage in using disposables. That’s why we feel this issue is really low-hanging fruit that the environmental movement here hasn’t even looked at yet.”

After seeing the petition, owners of a couple of restaurants who weren’t already offering reusable chopsticks said they would like more information on the topic and would consider the switch. One restaurant (Wakaba Sushi) signed a pledge, and now offers reusable chopsticks for dine-in customers!

Owners of Wakaba Sushi in Vancouver

For Ardis and team, the chopstick challenge was a great success. “The fact that three restaurants out of the twelve we visited already get it, and more were really receptive to more information, is very encouraging.”

It was only a few years ago when disposables were the norm. With initiatives like these, groups can make a difference in their communities and do their small (but significant) part for our planet.

Make a difference in your community by dining at restaurants that offer reusable chopsticks (or bring your own and talk to the owners of your favourite establishment about the issue). This will help you dine more sustainably and show restaurant owners that you care about where your utensils come from!

Kyle Empringham is a Masters student at Simon Fraser University’s School of Resource and Environmental Management (Burnaby, BC) and Co-Founder and Editor of The Starfish, an environmental news site.

The Starfish is currently looking for nominations for their Top 25 Environmentalists Under 25 campaign. See www.thestarfish2010.com/top25 for details.

I’m not a football guy, I’m a green guy.

It was not for lack of parental efforts to get me into sports; Dad told the world I’d lead the Argos to 1995 Grey Cup victory in my birth announcement.

Unfortunately for him, I possessed an immediate and instinctual aversion to footballs. (See photo.) Around the age of eight I developed a similar dislike of soccer balls. At eleven, it was softballs. By high school: volleyballs and basketballs.

Don’t even get me started on hockey pucks and skating…

So here I am, nearly forty years later, working as a graphic designer for an environmental non-governmental organization, with Dad’s delusions of my professional football career long behind me… writing about the Super Bowl.

Huh? Okay, I’ll give this a shot.

Where to start? I guess by admitting two kinda obvious things: 1) The Super Bowl is American, and 2) It isn’t exactly “green.”

Let’s skip the Canadian impulse to decry any “Americanization” of our culture, and the need to rally behind the CFL and Canadian-produced television shows. The numbers don’t lie; we watch the Super Bowl.

So what’s my green angle on this iconic sporting event? Serving veggie nachos and organic beer on game day? Sounds good, but hardly a game changer (pun intended).

Shall I sermonize about the staggering amount of money spent on Super Bowl ads to fuel unsustainable consumption? With all due respect to the NFL and Madison Avenue, I’m saving that for Black Friday.

No, I want to take the Super Bowl back to what professional sports inspire so passionately: civic pride.

We get so excited watching teams compete for a cup, title or trophy. Mayors make silly bets and we all cheer for our cities in The Big Game, whether it’s Toronto vs. Montreal, Vancouver vs. Calgary, or in this case, New York vs. Boston (although technically the New England Patriots play out of Foxborough).

I’m not a football guy or a sports guy, let alone a New Yorker or Bostonian. So who do I cheer for?

New York.

Why? Because it’s greener.

Don’t get me wrong, Boston deserves some major enviro cred. In most rankings of American and Canadian city “greenness,” New York and Boston both show up in the top ten—a good reason to cheer for each in my book.

But New York has the edge. Wanna see for yourself? Check out this comprehensive study (8.5MB PDF) conducted for Seimens by the Economist Intelligence Unit (part of The Economist magazine).

In an evaluation of 27 major Canadian and American cities, considering CO₂ emissions, energy, land use, buildings, transport, water, waste, air and environmental governance, New York ranked 3^rd overall, with top three positions in the CO₂, land use, transport, water, air and environmental governance categories. It seems population density and a government that really supports public transit goes a long way to greening a city. (Unlike Toronto, which ranked 9^th overall but only 22^nd on transport. Yeah, you know who I’m talking about, don’t ya Toronto?)

Boston was no slouch though. It ranked 6^th overall, with 2^nd place finishes in the energy and water categories, and 4^th in the land use category. Who knew they loved alternative energy so much in Beantown? Maybe we should thank MIT and Harvard researchers for that one.

Give them their due; both New York and Boston are great green cities. This Sunday though, I’ll be cheering, “Go Giants!”

(Also worth noting are these pieces in The Huffington Post and Popular Science — and my Dad’s great sense of humour. Thanks Dad!)

Brad Pearson is the Design and Technology Manager at Earth Day Canada

By Albert Ko

On January 23^rd, Chinese around the world, including myself, will be celebrating the beginning of Lunar New Year festivities and ushering in the Year of the Dragon. Just as with the Western New Year on Jan 1^st, the beginning of a new year is a time of reflection of the past, and making resolutions for the future.

Indeed, Chinese New Year marks a time when families and friends gather together, and extend good wishes and tidings to each other. Growing up, one of the common greetings in my family was to wish one a good health, and success in their many endeavors. This year is particularly significant, being the Year of the Dragon, a year that is characterized as one of excitement, intensity, and as well unpredictability.

The Year of the Dragon could be seen by many as an auspicious time for those who wish to finally achieve their much desired new year’s resolutions. Whether it be rethinking the way food is produced, or ensuring that later generations have breathtaking landscapes and clear skies to accompany a family reunion, the key is to understand that our interaction with the environment around us can and does play a direct role in how we celebrate the new year.

Just like the traits attributed to the Year of the Dragon, one must have excitement, intensity, and even a bit of unpredictability in order to fuel the determination necessary to ensure that future generations will be able to enjoy the new year as we have. As a result, for those who are interested in taking greater steps towards fostering behavior that is ecologically sustainable, engaging in actions that encourage conservation, or even just enhancing one’s knowledge and awareness towards the environment, there is no better time than the present to get started. Let us all make this year an impactful one.

Albert Ko is the current executive director of the Chinese Canadian National Council Toronto Chapter (CCNCTO).

How to make this year an impactful one

Follow these great suggestions from Asia’s Global Green Community, ecowalkthetalk.com. In addition to these suggestions, consider using non-toxic cleaners during the big home cleaning, when deciding what scrolls to buy, consider choosing non-disposable ones and reuse them year after year and if you are thinking of fireworks, consider what Taiwan has done to reduce the ill effects of them: they’ve offered free CDs with firework sounds!

You might also be interested in checking out the 2011 Best Canadian Feature Film Award that was awarded to Waking the Green Tiger, directed by Gary Marcuse. The television version will air on CBC’s The Nature of Things with David Suzuki.

Waking the Green Tiger follows an extraordinary campaign to stop a huge dam project on the Upper Yangtze River in southwestern China. Featuring astonishing archival footage never seen outside of China, as well as interviews with a government insider and the people who are working to save the river, Waking the Green Tiger is an inspired look at the new environmental movement in China.

Posted by Cheryl Gudz

Have you ever looked at your life or actions from the outside in?

This can happen inadvertently, like when you feel so thankful that it’s like you are watching a great moment in your life unfold. It happens on the flipside too, when things are falling apart and your mind forces you to step back and ask, “How did I get here?”

If we Canadians – as diverse as we are – could see ourselves through the eyes of the world, what would we see?

I read an article published recently in The Guardian (UK) that strongly criticized our federal government’s cuts to environmental programs and services – most notably the cuts to the ozone monitoring network and planned cuts to Environment Canada – while it subsidizes the oil and gas industry. This is not the first internationally penned article to denounce our prime minister’s choices, but still it struck a chord with me.

4 Consecutive Fossil of the Year awards

Canada’s poor reputation on environmental matters didn’t happen overnight. It grew alongside tar sands development, which became much more viable and profitable in the late 80s and continues to climb new heights. It degraded some more when we signed the Kyoto protocol in 1998 and didn’t make any progress in reducing our nation’s greenhouse gas emissions. It was recognized internationally when Canada was presented with a Fossil Fool of the Year Award in 2006 and with the Colossal Fossil award in four subsequent years at UN climate talks. The Colossal Fossil award is awarded to the country that has done more to disrupt or undermine the climate talks than any other country.

Outside our borders, Canada is seen as an environmental laggard who has failed to lead, however, inside these borders we know how much the majority of Canadians cherish environmental values and conservation.

How do we know this? The environment is consistently identified along with the economy and healthcare as top priorities for Canadians. Environmental programs in colleges and universities are expanding rapidly in reaction to high enrollment, as young people are eager to work on solutions.

And every year at Earth Day Canada we receive thousands of encouraging signs that environmental activity is alive and well. Through our entrance scholarship program, hometown heroes award program and community grant program, we see thousands of nominations of individuals and community groups who are passionate about working hard to reduce our collective environmental impact. With our environmental education program, we get to understand how children see the environment and through our youth engagement we get to help young people take their green passion to a whole new level. There are everyday Canadians practicing leadership every day.

“You can’t evict an idea whose time has come”

These days are not doom and gloom. It is an exciting time because you can feel the shift. Change is happening here and south of the border in different ways. The Occupy Movement, for some, is about questioning the health of continuing along a path that values consumption of goods, services, and fossil fuels over community, good health and sustainable development.

While there is disparity between this groundswell and our government’s decision-making, I, like many, hang on to hope. I imagine that our leaders sought public office to soundly represent people and to leave some sort of legacy. A prime minister or a cabinet minister is just a person after all, who is just as likely to succumb to that moment of self-reflection when they see their actions from a distance. And if what they see is far from an honourable legacy, there is still time to say “I need to make a change.”

It helps to remember that our government is not one united entity (nor is a political party). Champions are everywhere – and it’s our job to find them and remind them of what matters to us.

*Update*
The COP17 United Nations climate change conference 2011 kicked off November 28 in Durban, South Africa. For background information, please visit this FAQ page from CBC News and follow the conference on your preferred news source.

Last month, my coworker Brad and I made a public pledge to follow a vegetarian diet for the month of October (Vegetarian Awareness Month). What dish did I eat most? Unfortunately, that would have to be humble pie.

While Brad succeeded in going meat-free (way to go!), I made it 19 days but then flubbed it up at the onset of a cold/flu. But wasn’t I probably on the verge of a fainting spell and had to eat meat to save myself? Doesn’t the flu make you delirious? Sure, getting sick made me want familiar food but I didn’t have to cave and order that chicken meal to be delivered.

Then, the next day I cheated again. That was definitely my low point; sick and feeling like the worst person alive because I had told everyone about my vegetarian challenge, even announcing it on this blog and Facebook. What would people think about my lack of willpower?

My “a-ha” moment

A sage friend who listened to my sob story was the voice of reason against my pity party, “Ok, but how many meals have you eaten this month without meat? Think about it, three meals a day for almost three weeks is like 60 vegetarian meals—compared to three meals with meat.”

And there it was. By the numbers, you can’t argue that logic. I hadn’t failed the veggie challenge in October. I had made my own veggie meals at home, dined at vegan restaurants and gotten through a turkey thanksgiving at my aunt’s house all without indulging in meat!

From a sustainable agricultural perspective, what should we be aiming for– no livestock production whatsoever? Maybe, but that’s a pretty tough sell for the masses, many of who aren’t interested in making connections between climate change, environmental impacts and their own diets.

We could aim for the pragmatic – to eat less meat and think about where the meat that we choose to eat comes from. Any sensible health practitioner will tell you that what we eat is related to good or poor health. Is the meat from animals pumped with growth hormones, antibiotics and kept in pens full of their own feces, healthy? Factory farming (and unsustainable fishing) is still the norm for producing food in North America, not small, local, sustainable or organic operations. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

Veggie challenge foiled by chicken!

The most important thing you can do

April’s 2011 Give It Up for Earth Day campaign challenged people to give up not-so-earth-friendly behaviours for a chosen period of time. One of the suggested actions was giving up meat or animal by-products. In an interview, I had asked environmental writer Adria Vasil (Ecoholic), “What’s the most significant thing we can do to reduce our environmental footprint?”

“The Union of Concerned Scientists says being vegetarian is the number one thing you can do for the environment and in 2010 the UN said minimizing our meat and dairy are key to combating climate change,” she had responded. “I don’t think people need to go full-on vegan or even 100% vegetarian but we certainly can shave off some of our animal product intake—we eat 50 more pounds of meat per person than we did 50 years ago!”

So here’s what I’ve learned. Every time you challenge yourself to healthier habits, it’s impossible to fail because less is more. You win, because you did more by trying than by not trying at all. Don’t let your mind shame you in to giving up. Get out there and become a conscientious consumer, support local food producers, seek out natural or organic ingredients whether you’re eating all vegetables, grains or the occasional fillet. Just think of all you and the planet stand to gain from a healthy appetite.

–

image by Julien Tromeur

Last April for our Give It Up for Earth Day campaign, we asked you to commit to a meat-free or vegan diet for your desired length of time.

I gave up meat for a month and tried a vegan diet for a week. It was a healthy exploration in tasty eating and an affirmation that I could do it. My coworkers Brad and Josh participated by going vegetarian (Brad for eight weeks) and vegan (Josh for four weeks).

So where are we now, five months after making commitments?

“My meat-eating started very moderate, once or twice a week, but as the weeks went by, the pressures of convenience and cravings had me back to where I started before the campaign,” says Brad who also believes that no meat may be easier than less meat. “When I was eating 100% vegetarian I didn’t think about it at all. When I’m eating ‘flexitarian’ the temptation is always there and it’s easier to cheat.”

Josh and I are also off the wagon, but we all agree that the experience has changed the way we think about our eating habits in a positive way. So, instead of feeling guilty about being back on the meat, we are going to try again. Besides, our first attempts made us more veggie-friendly and interested in meat alternatives.

Brad and I have decided to challenge ourselves to go meat-free again and the timing really couldn’t be better because October is Vegetarian Awareness Month.

Vegetarian Awareness Month

The North American Vegetarian Society (NAVS) created World Vegetarian Day (October 1) to kickoff Vegetarian Awareness Month. Their vegetarian pledge contest rewards your promise to go meat-free for a month, week or day with the chance of winning a cash prize.

I’m ready to commit for the whole month, but the one thing that has me a little nervous is Thanksgiving dinner with the family. I’m heading back to my hometown and will just have to be strong-willed at the dinner table when presented with meaty options.

Brad is committing for one week for the NAVS campaign and has a new personal strategy when that is over. Rather than trying to stick to meatless days here and there, he’s going to prepare more of his own food. “Fast food, bought lunches and dinners out with friends are how meat got back into my diet. If I’m buying and making more of my own meals, I can skip the meat at the grocery store.”

Let’s do this thing.

So all you would-be vegetarians looking to adjust your diet, join us in making a pledge this October. Sure, it’s easy to let your “failures” discourage you from attempting again, but whenever you try to change a habit that’s just what you have to do. Even if you fall down, you’re still moving forward!

If you go meat-free, tell us how it’s going. We’ll keep you updated on Facebook and Twitter too.

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A refrigerator consumes the most energy of all domestic appliances – approximately 25%. It also represents 11% of total energy consumption in the home. Canadians report drinking more water than any other beverage, but milk, soft drinks, coffee and beer are not too far behind. What’s the connection?

Cutting your energy use is a good thing and so is drinking loads of water to maintain your health. Here’s the simplest trick to help you do both.

Fill a pitcher with water (and a few bottles too) and place them in the fridge. The water will help maintain the cool temperatures of the fridge, just the way an ice pack works in a cooler, and allow your refrigerator to work more efficiently.

With water already cold and ready to serve, you won’t be letting the tap run to get your desired temperature (and wasting water), plus it may discourage you from buying water in plastic bottles since you have some ready to take with.

Myth: Door opening is a significant energy loss factor for refrigerators.

One door opening is roughly the equivalent of leaving a 60-watt light bulb on for ten minutes. The refrigerator and the freezer use less energy when cooling a full unit. If there is a larger volume of cold items inside, the refrigerator is better able to maintain its temperature once all the cold air has escaped with the door opening. Keep it full but not jam-packed, because air needs to circulate.

One last thing while you’re paying attention to your fridge. Check the tightness of the seal on the refrigerator door by closing the door on a piece of paper. If it holds in place, the seal is still good. Replace the seal or align the door if the paper does not hold.

This article was originally published on Simple Green Action

When my friend and blogger, Tasneem Rakla prays during the holy month of Ramadan, she makes a special effort to conserve water while she washes herself before prayers. When her family breaks the month-long sunrise-to-sunset fast, they make vegetable curries and other traditional dishes from food grown in their backyard or purchased locally. She makes a conscious effort to live lightly, refrains from watching TV and uses resources in moderation. Without even knowing it, she is living a greener lifestyle.

For Muslims, Ramadan is a time of fasting and getting by with less. It is a reminder of the basic but invaluable gifts of food and water. As part of the focus on moderation, this is a great time to explore a new habit or way of life such as reducing waste, avoiding harmful chemicals in products and food, or even growing your own food. (If you’re interested in specific green Ramadan tips, read my post from last year.)

While moderation is at the very core of Ramadan, like Tasneem, there are probably many Muslims who are living greener lives during Ramadan but who don’t necessarily make the link between their religious observances and reducing their impact on the environment.

I asked her if she had considered the link before. She said she hadn’t but after thinking about it she told me, “Through fasting, we appreciate the value of simple luxuries and pleasures that we take for granted in our daily lives. By applying the same discipline, patience and resourcefulness that Muslims practice during Ramadan to the environment, we can all develop a greater appreciation of the earth and its resources.”

Islamic teachings emphasize the need and importance of conservation so that humans can live in harmony with nature and make the best use of the Earth’s resources. As stated in the Quran, “The faithful servants of the Beneficent are those who walk upon the Earth gently…” (Surat Al Furqan 25:63).

How about making Ramadan a time to strengthen your commitment to practice a green lifestyle all year-round?

In 2010, Earth Day Canada’s Community Environment Fund helped fund an expansion of the community garden project for an organization called Eva’s Initiatives. The organization works with homeless and at-risk youth ages 16 to 24 to get them off the streets permanently. They operate three unique shelters, Eva’s Place, Phoenix and Satellite for youth in the Greater Toronto Area.

The community garden project is called Planting the Seeds of Hope and Independence. The goal of the project is to teach youth how to plant and maintain herbs and vegetables to feed themselves and residents of all three shelters.

The gardens have provided thousands of at-risk youth with the opportunity to acquire knowledge and develop life skills. Corlan, a former resident/gardener said, “working in the garden provided a sense of family and home… I liked it when residents came to visit the garden and I could share what I’d learned.”

The idea to start a community garden came about when a youth resident and a shelter worker considered the area behind the Phoenix shelter. They saw it as a “smoke pad” with a couple of rickety picnic tables and a bunch of old tin cans but felt it had so much more potential. The area was underused but it was south-facing so they thought, why not make it nicer for people to come out and enjoy the sunshine?

The pair made the suggestion to do something about the space at a house meeting and the project planning got underway. With the help of Evergreen, an organization which helps Canadians create and sustain outdoor spaces, a design and layout was created for the gardens.

Today, the garden has become a vital part of the shelters. Youth gardeners are increasingly interested in the garden, taking responsibility for weeding, watering and harvesting. “Garden activities have boosted their self-confidence and sense of self-worth, while teaching them practical skills on growing and preparing fresh, nutritious food,” says Michael Cassidy, Director of Development at Evergreen. “The garden has also become a social gathering place for some a refuge and helped break down the barriers between youth and Eva’s staff.”

From community gardens to renewable energy workshops, Earth Day Canada’s Community Environment Fund has been helping fund the development and delivery of environmental initiatives all over Ontario. To date the fund has provided over a million dollars to not-for-profit organizations, charities and schools.

If your organization is interested in applying for the CEF grant, the deadline for this round is August 31, 2011. For more information visit http://www.earthday.ca/envirofund/default.aspx

Did you start your own environmental project? Tell us about it!