After submitting this article, Aubrie left on a green travel expedition.  Look for her report on what she learned in a future issue.

The summer travel season is upon us, and it can be easy to forget all the eco-conscious behavior we practice in our everyday lives.  There are ways to go green on vacation, however.  First off, you need to decide where you want to go and what you want to do while you are there.  Staying closer to home is easier on the planet as it leaves a smaller carbon footprint.  Travelling near or far this summer, the type of vacation you take can be eco-friendly too.  There are options like volunteer-based vacations and eco-tours.  Check out the American Hiking Society and Sustainable Travel International for trips abroad to get information about environmentally-friendly vacations.

Karen's water conservation efforts are having a big impact on her 232 neighbors.
I live in a condo which means 233 homeowners share landscaping and maintenance expenses.  I am also on the homeowners board of directors, a volunteer position that is paid in much grief and many complaints.  When I see our landscaping water go into storm drains, I see my homeowner fees going down the drain.
Our community is blessed with 60 percent green space. Yes, it looks nice but Water Scrooge sees water meters running - increasing expenses.   We used over 17.5 MILLION gallons of water in 2009.  I decided this would be an easy target in my goal to reduce landscape expenses.  We have a poorly designed and inadequate irrigation system.  Once a cycle started, it had to complete itself even if we had a two-hour drenching rain.

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Tanis is working on transitioning to a drought tolerant landscape.  She offered to share what she has learned.
 
If your garden is taking a beating during the long hot summers, drought resistant native plants may very well be your solution.  Till in a couple of bags of compost. The amount depends upon the size of your garden.  The compost allows water to drain more easily in our clay soil.
 
The flowers listed below are native to Texas, perennial and heat tolerant.  

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 Mike Correale of Solar Wind Technologies had a full house for his talk on applying solar energy to residences at the May "Learn Green to Live Green" lecture.  Mike explained photovoltaic (PV) powered energy makes use of a variety of cell materials.  Poly Crystaline has proven itself to be the most reliable and long lived material in collecting 80 percent of the sun's energy that makes it through the atmosphere.  Seventy-two cells make up a 3 foot x5 foot module and 16 modules make up an array that could provide up to 600 volts of DC power.  Once hooked up, the system provides high reliability and low maintenance, and usually comes with a 20 to 30 year guarantee.
 
Is your home a candidate for solar power?  Consider these questions:
�         Does the rear orientation face south with an east/west exposure free of shading from trees, houses and utility wires?  Use Google Earth to view your roof line.

Originally published in 1981, Duane Elgin's book "Voluntary Simplicity: Toward a Way of Life that is Outwardly Simple, Inwardly Rich"is now considered the manifesto of the simplicity movement.  It is a philosophical work, opposing consumer culture and affirming that material simplicity is important to aide one's pursuit of spiritual growth and to reduce one's environmental impact.  The book does not suggest that one should live in poverty, but that one should find a personal balance between their pursuit of material wealth and pursuit of spiritual fulfillment.  The most common critique of "Voluntary Simplicity" seems to be its lack of practical advice on ways to simplify one's life.  I believe, however, that each reader will find ways to simplify his or her own unique life when reading the compelling reasons for and objectives of such a lifestyle.