Over at Earth First, they have a neat column in which they feature a series of green colleges. This week they feature College of the Atlantic, in Maine.

(photo credit - flickr)

Considering that the school is dedicated to ecology, it’s no surprise that it’s often called ‘the greenest of them all’.  All 325(!) students are personally committed to making the college as green as possible, and not just by planting lots of trees. They actively work to reduce waste, maximize energy efficiency, use low fossil-fuel transport, eat local and organic and educate the public about sustainability.  A free bike program provides bicycles, helmets, lights and reflective vests to all students, faculty, staff and visitors, and the entire fleet is comprised of restored and repaired older bicycles.  The college’s small fleet of watercraft used in academic programs as well as for recreation run on ethanol.

It is easy to see, why College of the Atlantic made it on the Earth First top green college list. To see others, visit here.

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At first it would seem to be a contradiction in terms, Ferrari and Eco friendly! These words would not normally be associated together, but Ferrari may be a brand that has been built on speed, but they are also a business and a business will only survive if it adapts to the world around it.

The president of Ferrari Luca di Montezemolo has said that Ferrari intends to bring out a hybrid car and that they are working to reduce the companies Co2 levels by forty per cent by the year 2012. But an eco friendly Ferrari would still have to be first and foremost a Ferrari!

Source [Electric Pig]

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Virtually everyone knows about carbon footprints and many of us try to reduce them by cutting down on travelling and other things that can be adding to the amount of Co2 being produced because of our actions.

But do we ever think about our pets and in particular the carbon footprints of our dogs, this can cover everything from where the dog food and collars are made, to what the dog leaves behind in the park. There is a quick survey to take on Pooch and Mutt, where with a few ticks of the boxes you can quickly find out.

In the mean time here are some extra tips to make doggy’s carbon footprint reduce:

Biodegradable poop bags

Wonderful walkies

Sustainable accessories

Biodegradable packaging

Time with your pet

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Well, if you haven’t, first of all, there is one. If you have heard of it, you are a solid all around eco aware individual. Kudos to you!

I don’t recall if i have heard of the CD Recycling Center Of America before, there is too much info floating around in my head. But if not, i just discovered it on the TechSoup.org blog. Which by the way has a super cool article on What To Do With Old CD’s and DVD’s.

The CD Recycling Center of America is based in Salem, North Hampshire and accepts CD’s of different sizes and shapes, instructions on what, where, when, and how are found on their website. It is important that you read their guidelines first, before sending anything their way. Recycle, Reduce, and Reuse.

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If you live in a small town like me, then you already know it can be quite difficult to recycle. The resources for mass use are simply not in place. In my small town the closest recycler is almost 50 miles away. Yikes!

(the bins above NOT available in most small towns)

I believe this distance pretty much cancels out the environmental benefits of recycling. If one has to drive 45 minutes (or worse) to recycle doesn’t this invalidate the effort? Small towns really get the short shaft when it comes to recycling resources. Whereas bigger cities and towns such as Chicago (my hometown) residents are provided with blue bins for easy recycling and nearby recycling centers abound.

However there are things we small town folks can do to somewhat alleviate this recycling problem. We can still apply the other two R’s, Re-use and Reduce. Below is a list of things i re-use.

Things I Re-Use:

• Milk Containers (re-used as plant containers)
• Paper (use back side, cut into small squares and use as note paper, etc)
• Any and all Plastic Bags
• Pringles Cans (use as coin holders for the kids)
• Composting (the re-use of certain food products for outside soil)
• Old Tee’s (re-used as rags)
• list goes on and one

Another pet peeve of mine, if you will indulge me abit, is consumer packaging. It is completely out of control, i am amazed at times, at the sheer waste in certain procut packages. For example, my roommate likes to munch at KFC (nazi-chicken killers, if you ask me, explanation = i’m a vegetarian) and their packaging is insane. You get gobs of GIANT plastic containers for small food pieces, it is a ridiculous amount of waste. They could easily streamline this up and go with much smaller containers, and sans lids. Improved packaging alone would help SMALL TOWN RESIDENTS who may (or may not) be able to recycle, to curb waste locally.

Let me get back to my post. I see i went off on a tiny tangent there. I reuse alot of items and essentially re-purpose many of them.

Re-ducing and Re-using are but two ways small town residents can turn a negative into a positive. The negative being not many options for in town recycling, and easier access to recycling resources. I would like to open this topic up to you, with a reader question.

Reader Question

If you live in a small town, how do you practice the three R’s - recycle, reuse or reduce?

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If you are wondering what you can do to contribute to the whole green awareness thing we are all trying to frantically know these days, a lot can still be done so in the traditional way…hitting the books.

All knowledge and references can be done by hitting the books. They are and will always be the main reference point of explaining things, including eco-friendliness, to help readers understand and digest what they can do.

Reduce, reuse and recycle. These words are a constant reminder that our environment needs some tender loving care, and one of the ways we can help is to learn new ways to manage waste.

Although we have become accustomed to sorting our trash into separate recyclable containers, there are many other ways to stop household items from filling up our landfill sites.

According to Environment Canada, 17 million Canadians have access to recycling. This is an enormous step toward the preservation of our environment, but, through fun and imaginative ways, we can do better.

Your library has several new books offering advice and helpful hints on how to reduce, reuse and recycle in new and exciting ways.

(Source) Packet and Times

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Post offices across America are now offering free iPod and gadget recycling for FREE to all. Everything from cell phones, MP3’s, to inkjet cartridges will be properly disposed of for you.

Simply go to a participating post office, ask for the recycling envelope, and then drop in your used or old electronics. Yes, the trial run is only available in certain states, including L.A, San Diego, and my hometown, Chicago.

This project is courtesy of a joint partnership between the U.S. Post Office and a recycling company called Clover Technologies Group. This is impressive considering the costs involved in designing and implementing a concerted nationwide recycling program.

The easier it is to recycle, the more apt people will be to do it. I’ll keep tabs on the trial run and report new findings and news. Hopefully many electronics will be recycled through this program, and saved from the landfills.

Source: Computer World Blog

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Whether you run a restaurant or a dry cleaner, there are things you can do to lower your carbon footprint. It all starts by taking an assessment of your enterprise and looking around at your various departments. You can do a complete overhaul, or you can start small and build from there.

Educate yourself on green issues and research possible solutions and providers. When you go green it imparts a message of sustainability that will grab the interest of todays savvy consumers. It isn’t enough anymore to recycle and call yourself eco friendly. It will take more than that, but keep in mind it should not turn into a competition of who is greener. The mission of becoming more socially aware and responsible should more or less align with your overall company goals and mission.

Let’s take a look below at 4 Random Ideas To Green Your Business.

The 3 R’s (Recycle Reduce Reuse) - What are you recycling? Are there more things that can be recycled at your company? PC equipment is a big e-waste issue today as most landfills are brimming with discarded computer units, monitors, printers, scanners, etc. It may be costly to find a proper solution and provider, but you will reap rewards when you let your current and prospective customers know, that you are different and you care enough about our planet to discard properly and safeguard our future.

Resource: Earth 911

Save Money and Conserve, Too - Again all it takes is for you to take a good look around and see where, what, and how you can conserve more. Take a look at something as simple as the ink in your office printers. The ink can be refilled at Cartridge World, versus buying brand new each time. This method is two-fold in that it conserves and will save you money, too. The ink for my small home office printer brand new costs about $25, but to refill at Cartridge World, it sets me back all of $13.

Use Energy Efficient Products - More and more major manufacturers are creating energy efficient products. Look for the EPA’s label titled “Energy Star” which certifies the item as meeting standards for energy efficiency.

Enlist a Consultant - If your wanting to go big, and perform a complete overhaul of your operations, your best bet is to seek the services of a consultant. Find an architect or interior designer that specialize in green design and/ or green renovation. If you’re wanting to green the outdoors part of your company, seek the services of a professional eco friendly landscaper.

Stay tuned for my next article, as i will cover More Random Ideas to Green Your Business including: Green Your Site or Blog, Educate Your Employees on Green Issues, and Have a Green Giveaway or Contest.

As i stated earlier, there are many strategies to green your business, these 7 are but a few random ideas to get you going, and to ignite additional ideas.

Please share below your thoughts and ideas on how you have managed to green your business, and the results.

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Hi, guys i have found a series of eco friendly futon covers from a loyal reader of our blogs, his name is Matt. I like to call him Futon Matt. He specializes in all sorts of futon mattresses and has been in the futon business for over 7 years. That’s alot of time to be around any one thing. LOL.

Let me get serious for a second. I was perusing the site that Matt has created and on the left sidebar is a section devoted to his eco friendly offerings. He has futon frames made out of sustainably harvested lumber (from Pennsylvania), futon covers made of recycled fabrics, and a selection of organic futon mattresses.

What Makes the Futon Covers Eco Friendly?

The futon covers are made using 89% post-industrial recycled polyester, and 11% post -consumer recycled polyester.

If you’re looking for one, give Matt a visit. With all his years of experience, he should know how to direct you to what you need.

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Here is another in the line of recycled gift ideas. This one will leave a big impression for sure. (yes pun intended)

This oil lamp is made from actual surplus military hand grenades. These have to be quite sturdy, and promise to be a conversation starter in any room. These are super cool to me really and quite a good re-use for the surplus grenades.

What do you think of the hand grenade oil lamps?

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Did you read the funnies in this weekends newspaper? Well an artist in Los Angeles, has read the funnies and then taken them to make wallets out of it.

The wallets above are made from recycled newspaper, you get to choose whether the comic section or the finance section. How clever is this. The recycled newspaper wallets are also then plastered with soft but strong laminate to make them shiny and water resistant. These are made in the USA, in Los Angeles. Great gift idea.

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Taking the recycling trend further, gifts.com profiles a set of rings made from recycled soda and beers cans.

soda can rings 

These are really cute, and they make quite a green fashion statement. The recycled product comes from Elsewares, a site devoted to unique items. The recycled soda can rings are made in Vermont, and are unisex.

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This Raisinet notepad is great for a dull office desk or to brighten up a kids room table. It is a notepad that uses recycled paper.

via - etsy

The notepad is bright and colorful and who wouldn’t want this on their desk. I think it makes for a neat office mate gift.

The recycled notepad comes courtesy of our friends at Etsy.

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I wrote on the recycled business card wallet over at my other blog, which carries the same name. This cute wallet is made out of vintage 70’s era fabric.

via - groovy entrepreneur

The wallet is an Etsy product, which means it is a hand made item. As some of you know i love Etsy and showcase their handmade products regularly here at Keetsa.

from site: “works perfectly for business cards, a whole deck of playing cards, or other stuff, like gum, smokes, what-have-you…”

The seller is named Katesy and she has a bevy of funky and hip products all made with recycled materials. Check out Katesy and her recycled wallet at Etsy.

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The Dr Scholls brand is known the world over for creating comfortable shoes, and now they will be known for eco friendly footwear as well. They have recently come out with Renew, a green sandal.

What makes the groovy sandal green? It is made using sustainable wood, has a hemp canvas strap, and uses recycled metal for its buckle. This style of clog sandals usually don’t look comfortable, but surprisingly they are. I like the white strap, and overall fresh look.

The vegan hemp sandals from Dr Scholls are great for an upcoming Spring or Summer stroll. The final say, “Fun, hip, and flirty”.

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