Recent Articles

By Kim Robson: I live in an off-grid community and rely wholly on solar power for my home, which means no air-conditioning. During the dog days of summer, it takes some creative solutions to beat the heat. We’ve already covered this topic before, here and here, but this time we’re …

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By Emma Grace Fairchild: Between retailers and consumers, an astounding 30-40% of the United States’ food supply is wasted. This results in a huge strain on our landfills and the environment, as well as our wallets. As we carelessly dispose of it, there are millions of families and individuals who …

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By Larraine Roulston: Shop secondhand … first. On Thursday, August 17th, nonprofit thrift stores celebrate National Thrift Shop Day (also known as National Thrift Store Day). By supporting secondhand shops to purchase and donate items, you will save money, conserve resources and reduce waste. Buying gently used goods from thrift stores will also create “green” jobs as …

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By Fredrica Syren: My family, especially my kids and I, are huge tea drinkers. Besides enjoying the usual green, rooibos and chai teas, we also like drinking herbal teas; so this summer while in Sweden, I decided to start making my own teas from all kinds of flowers, leaves and …

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By Narayan Khalsa: Most parents have certain values, beliefs and even skills that they work to teach their children as they grow up and make sense of the world. It’s important for us to pass on to our kids the values that we think are important for a happy and …

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By Larraine Roulston: It’s hard to image a world without plastic, yet this invention did not become wildly popular until after WWII. Due to its light weight, plastic is practical for many applications, including packaging for transportation. The problem, however, is that there is far too much of it. Not only …

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By Fredrica Syren: In past years, there have been many toy recalls because of high amounts of chemicals and heavy metals found in them. Sadly, there are very few guidelines or regulations regarding chemicals in toys in the U.S. However, the good news is that, thanks to recalls, more attention …

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By Kim Robson: We vegetarians do love our mushrooms. They’re meaty, filling, and full of vitamins and minerals; but they are also virtually calorie free and add delicious umami to food without the extra salt. Certain mushroom extracts can help stop migraine headaches (in addition to a number of other …

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By Fredrica Syren:  I love this time of the year when our homestead is exploding with ripe vegetables and fruits. My tomato plants are producing like never before, and on top of that, I also received tomatoes from a neighbor who does not know what do with her huge tomato …

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By Larraine Roulston: Replying to my environmental email, a friend added that her father-in-law always used to say, “Life was the making of good and the breaking of bad habits!” Regarding climate change, his motto speaks volumes. Man’s folly has always been to buy the latest and most convenient innovations, only to realize that when …

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