Environment, Organics, Fair Trade & Recycling at Big Green Purse

"Green" Holiday Rentals Powered by Solar Energy

Green living doesn’t need to stop when you take a vacation. An increasing number of properties are available that offer close-to-nature lodgings that tread lightly on the earth. 

 

 Our sponsors at Perfect Stays, a UK-based rental or “letting” agency specializing in unique homes for holidays, special occasions, and short breaks, has drawn our attention to the properties at The Emerald, a five-acre estate in England’s Cornwall district that has achieved the UK’s highest level of sustainability (code level 6).

 

The properties include five different rental homes (including "Fern," pictured left) and several additional facilities (like an indoor swimming pool and a gym) powered by solar energy, to the point that the entire property is carbon neutral. Rainwater is captured from the roof, while grey water from the kitchen sink, bath, and shower is recycled to maximize water conservation and ensure water is abundantly available for the landscape as well as the house. Waste paper is recycled on the property. Lights are illuminated with energy-saving compact fluorescent light bulbs, though the properties are also designed to maximize use of sunlight indoors to minimize the need for electricity. Appliances are energy efficient and save water. Each house is cleaned with products free of toxic chemicals and compounds.  

 

Kitchens in the houses can be stocked with locally-sourced food, including milk, eggs, bread, and cheese. If you want to venture into the beautiful Cornwall region rather than hit amusement parks or shopping malls, you can go kayaking, sailing, windsurfing and paddle boarding at one of the nearby beaches. Or if you prefer, bicycle along the coast. Fine dining is available at local pubs rather than chain restaurants. Enjoy the region’s history at the National Maritime Museum in Falmouth, or at Pendennis Castle.

Shop Local on Small Business Saturday...and Every Day

 Today is "Small Business Saturday" or "Shop Small" day, a day designed to encourage consumers to shop at local stores and boutiques rather than global chain stores. What's the diff? Think about both your community pocket book, and the planet.

On the pocket book side, according to this nifty info graphic from elocal.com, "if the people of an average American city were to shift just 10% of their spending from chains to local businesses, it would bring an additional $235 million per year to the community’s economy." How? By keeping profits at home rather than sending them abroad. Plus, favoring local stores keeps neighborhoods vibrant. I see this in my own town, where our mainstreet bustles with boutique shops that offer one-of-a-kind treasures, the post office and hardware store provide the basics, and the restaurants support shoppers and shop keepers alike. If we didn't have local stores, our downtown would be a dead end: bleak, dreary, and drab.

On the environmental side, it turns out that buying products made locally helps reduce the climate change impact associated with shipping goods made in China or India half way around the world. We've gotten used to the idea of buying food produced locally - it tastes better, is fresher, and is often treated with fewer chemicals and preservatives because it goes from farm to farmers market to table in short order. Buying locally made clothes, crafts, and housewares may have the same benefits: better quality, more unique characteristics, and plus, it's fun to know who made the items you buy.

Wondering where you can find items on your shopping list that are sold by local stores or made locally? Plug your zip code into this cool "finder" at American Express, grab your reusable shopping bags, and go!

Have you taken the "Buy Local" challenge?

Want to show your support for environmentally friendly, locally grown food?

Yes, you can eat it!

You can also take the "Buy Local" challenge, a campaign to get shoppers to eat locally grown food every day from July 23-31.

Here are a few reasons why buying and eating locally grown food is so important.

Here's where you can find organic, locally grown food in your community.

Here are a week's worth of menus for meals made with locally grown ingredients. Or get an entire cookbook of delicious recipes inspired by locally raised fruits and vegetables.

And here's where you can take the challenge.

 

Meatless Monday: Gazpacho

Salads and cold soups offer a delicious eco-friendly and healthy alternative to meat. Here's my favorite recipe for gazpacho, a refreshing tomato-based soup made from ingredients you can easily find locally grown at the farmer's market or your grocery store. Serve cold or at room temperature with a simple salad of mixed greens and a sprinkling of grated carrots, plus a crunchy crusty bread to sop up the soup when you get to the bottom of the bowl. For a little protein on the side, hard boil some eggs or grill several slices of marinated tofu. Another option? Drizzle olive oil on a mound of fresh goat cheese, dust with freshly cracked salt and pepper, and spread on the bread. Good for "meatless Monday" or any day of the week.

Gazpacho (serves 8 people as an appetizer or 6 for a meal) ...

Salmonella-poisoned eggs make a strong argument for local, organic, family farms.

I love eggs, but I hate food poisoning more.

I'm betting so do the more than 2,000 people who have been sickened by eating tainted eggs produced by factory chicken farms in Iowa. After all, no one I know enjoys the impact salmonella has on their digestive tract, since it induces vomiting, dizziness, diahrrea, fever, abdominal cramps, blood infections and even death. 

 Investigators are still trying to understand how this potentially lethal bacterium was able to infect so many eggs in such a short period of time. One possible cause is getting a lot of attention: the way the laying hens were raised. Conventional poultry operations raise millions of chickens at a time, often in confined spaces and under filthy and inhumane conditions that reduce the ability of the animals to fight off germs. When disease hits, it spreads like wildfire. But with a fire you can see the flames coming. With salmonella, you don't know it's got you until you're doubled over in pain or on your way to the emergency room.

For now, eggs in 14 states in the midwest have been recalled. The good news is that this amounts to less than 1 percent of all eggs produced in the U.S. Still, disease outbreaks like these remind all of us to be vigilant about the food we eat. The following precautions will help you stay healthy: