Archive for the ‘David Suzuki’ Category
Wednesday, April 29th, 2009
Sarah Kmiech writes:
I was reading your newsletter regarding what’s hot and what’s not in 2009. It was said that "Free Exercise" was hot and "Gym & Studio Memberships" were not. Being a person who goes to, and enjoys the gym (and also a person who cares for the environment), I was wondering what it was about gyms that make them not an environmental choice?
Gail from The Green Room replies:
Having a gym membership isn’t "not environmental," per se.
A lot of people believe that it takes a lot of money to protect nature – buying organic, owning a hybrid vehicle, etc. With the economy teetering, we want people to stay mindful of the environment and do the best they can to make green choices.
The point is that there are lot of things people can do to lighten their footprints that are free and/or inexpensive. And, that if a person chooses certain options – like repairing clothes instead of buying new ones, or running outside instead of joining a gym – that frees up funds to choose things he or she might care passionately about that seem beyond reach (like buying organic, etc). It’s about finding balance in life.
And, of course, people who spend time outdoors and feel a connection to nature care about protecting it, so we encourage people to get their exercise outdoors, where possible.
We did not mean that belonging to a gym isn’t "green." In fact, until you (and one other person) mentioned it, it never occurred to me that someone might read it that way! Thanks for bringing that to my attention. I’ve belonged to a yoga studio for years and cherish that community. And I know Dr. Suzuki works out in gyms all the time, wherever he is in the world.
Tags: environmentally friendly, exercise, gym memberships, nature, outdoor activity, yoga
Posted in Consumer Issues, David Suzuki, Green Living, Human Health, Newsletter response | No Comments »
Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009
Larry from Pickering, ON writes:
Thanks for the April newsletter . In connection to helping kids connect to nature, for over 50 years Ontario has held a competition for Grades 4 to 6 each year called Tree Bee. It’s about the identification of native tree species and conservation questions. The children who participate can identify dozens of native trees and gain a great appreciation for nature and the tree neighbours they see every day.
As a Tree Bee coach, I have had past students become foresters and arborists, but most just keep their appreciation of nature and trees. The Ontario Forestry Association hosts Tree Bee each year and more information can be seen on their website . If Dr. Suzuki and or members of the David Suzuki Foundation like this program, this fits very well into his interests of educating young people about nature.
Tags: conservation, education, elementary school students, native tree species, newsletter
Posted in David Suzuki, Newsletter response, climate change, conservation, forests and wild Lands, species | 1 Comment »
Monday, April 6th, 2009
Venus writes:
I would like to say thank you very much to Mr. David Suzuki. Two years ago I saw his article in the Vancouver Sun about cleaning with non-chemical products. I used to have severe sinusitis, but when I started using baking soda and vinegar to clean with, my sinusitis problem improved tremendously! And since then I’ve been telling all my friends and co-workers how to clean their place naturally. It’s been two years that I haven’t bought chemical products to clean our place!
Lindsay, Queen of Green, responds:
Thank you for sharing and letting us know about your success! Many people don’t realize how compromised their health and indoor air quality is when they use conventional cleaners day after day. Last year we developed more information about Green Home Cleaning .
Tags: baking soda, chemical cleaners, David Suzuki, Lindsay, natural cleaners, Nature Challenge newsletter, sinusitis, vinegar
Posted in Consumer Issues, David Suzuki, Green Living, Green cleaning, Human Health, Lindsay | No Comments »
Wednesday, March 25th, 2009
Kelvin Lam writes:
I am a member of your organization. I started to wonder if there is a way to identify GE food? The alarm starts ringing after seeing the apples growing bigger and bigger (same with other vegetables). It concerns me a lot and I just don’t know what to give to my kids. My friends told me there’s a number code, for example, on the apples starting with "4" that indicates GE. However, it would be better to get expert advice from you. Any lead is much appreciated.
Lindsay responds:
Quick research of a few resources I have on hand says there is no mandatory labeling of GMO or GE foods in Canada or the U.S. Our federal government voted this down.
Because nobody certifies the labeling it means it’s only voluntary at this point. What’s most likely to be GMO or GE products are corn and soy. One book I have on hand called "The Rough Guide to Shopping with a Conscience" suggests looking at the True Shopping Guide .
Your other bet is to buy organic because the rules around certification ban GE technologies, and of course buy local from a nearby farmer or farmers market. Other websites that will have more info include: genewatch.org , foe.org (Friends of the Earth), and the Union of Concerned Scientists .
Tags: apples, buy organic, farmers market, feed kids, GE food, GMO food, mandatory labeling, shopping with a conscience, vegetables
Posted in Consumer Issues, David Suzuki, Food, Green Living, Green Parenting, Human Health, Lindsay | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, March 25th, 2009
Peter Stevens from Toronto, ON writes:
I was concerned that you had missed the most deadly commonly used plastic in your plastic guide . POLYURETHANE FOAM is used in furniture stuffing and is the most commonly used carpet under cushion. When it burns, it gives off hydrogen cyanide better known by its wartime name ZYKLON B. In the old days of unlimited smoking, many people died after having a few too many drinks and falling asleep smoking!
Why do we use this dangerous product for carpet under cushion? Well for one, its cheap and there are no toxicity requirements unlike Europe where it is banned. Latex foam can do as well but, it costs much more money.
Lindsay responds:
Polyurethane foam did not appear in our plastic guide because it doesn’t fall into the category of numbers 1-7. It is in most furniture foam and indeed isn’t "green" by any stretch.
As you’ve mentioned, the worst part is the flame retardants that the foam is laced with or known as PBDE’s. We have been working on a campaign to ban PBDE’s in Canada, and have partnered with fire fighters to get our federal government to ban deca-PBDE’s .
Tags: Lindsay, pastic guide, plastic numbers, polyurethane foam, toxicity
Posted in Consumer Issues, David Suzuki, Green Living, Human Health, Lindsay | No Comments »
Friday, February 20th, 2009
Eva Zacharias from Toronto, ON writes:
I am a Senior Buyer at the LCBO (Liquor Control Board of Ontario) and subscribe to your newsletter. I am committed to environmentally responsible public procurement.
I belong to GIPPER, which is a voluntary organization of Public Buyers in cooperation to share and advance sustainable environmental procurement by considering the environment at all steps of the buying process, as well as the total life-cycle of the product and service.
At the LCBO, we’ve eliminated plastic bags altogether. We found that the best solution was to not even offer a complimentary plastic bag at all. We are depleting our plastic bag inventory and now only buy paper bags to give to our customers – or, alternatively, they can reuse our wine bottle cardboard boxes.
Now, as for understanding eco-labels, do you have information that could assist public buyers in making sense of labels and certifications and making more informed decisions? Please pass on my compliments to your team and your organization. My dream is to meet David Suzuki one day and shake his hand for being one of the few heroes left.
Lindsay responds:
Thanks for sharing your story about how your business is making less of a footprint. I think your success of eliminating plastic bags is very relevant and important!
As for labels, we haven’t done a whole newsletter on labels. You can find some resources at Greenerchoices.org and in David Suzuki and David R. Boyd’s book the "Green Guide " there’s a section called Labeling 101. I also enjoy the Rough Guides "Shopping with a Conscience " book.
Tags: David Suzuki's Green Guide, eco-labels, informed choices, newsletter, paper bags, plastic bags, products and services life-cycle, retailer
Posted in Consumer Issues, David Suzuki, Green Living, Lindsay, Newsletter response, garbage, recycling, sustainability | No Comments »
Wednesday, October 29th, 2008
Effie Carson from Toronto, ON writes:
I have started an initiative at the Toronto District School Board high school where I teach. We are saving up photocopying "errors" and over-runs to use as printing paper in our computer labs and the school administration has started to use the "second side" of paper for internal memos. We call the collection bins for the paper "Suzuki Paper."
Great idea Effie! I’m often dashing to the office printer to flip the page and print double-sided. I also like to reuse paper for rough notes instead of using a fresh page, and I encourage minimal use of the fax machine and printing emails. Thanks for sharing! Elizabeth
Tags: classroom, computer labs, emails, fax machine, high school, memos, office, paper, photocopier, printer, reuse, writing
Posted in David Suzuki, computers, recycling | No Comments »
Thursday, October 23rd, 2008
Lynn Keating from Calgary, AB writes:
For several years now, we have filled up our hybrid vehicles with fuel that contains ethanol, thinking this was the environmentally correct action. However, lately I have been reading articles indicating this may not be so. What is your position on this controversial topic?
Ryan Kadowaki, Climate Change Administrator for the David Suzuki Foundation responds:
While our organization has not been directly involved with the biofuels issue, I would say that we foresee a niche market for these fuels. The large-scale use of biofuels, though, is problematic.
Biofuels are not capable of replacing oil entirely, and there is the very real concern about using farmland to supply fuel for vehicles rather than growing food for human consumption. For biodiesel, we absolutely support its production when the fuel source is recycled cooking fat (i.e. deep fryer grease), as this constitutes reusing a "waste" product (though of course there would be other potential uses for it).
For ethanol, we do favour lignocellulosic ethanol (made from straw, corn husks, forest residue, etc.) because it does not require arable land to produce and it also has a much higher net energy (although this may have negative consequences for soil nutrient levels). In terms of the net-carbon benefits of using corn-based ethanol, there is still considerable debate on this issue, but as of yet, the modest to non-existent greenhouse gas benefits do not appear to outweigh the issue of arable land use.
Additional insight on this issue can be found in a Science Matters article by Dr. Suzuki on September 14, 2007, "Biofuels not necessarily all that green" .
Tags: biodiesel, biofuel, corn, environment, ethanol, farmland, greenhouse gas, human consumption, hybrid vehicles, straw, waste
Posted in David Suzuki, Food, Green Living, Sustainable economy, agriculture, transit, transportation, vacation/holiday | 1 Comment »
