 Hot Off the Presses!
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The Green Life from TeachingGreen now Available on Amazon.comWe are happy to announce that TeachingGreen's green living guide, The Green Life, A Guide to Sustainable Living in Los Angeles, is now available for purchase on Amazon.com for just $14.99.  The Green Life, which was originally developed to accompany TeachingGreen's Green Life workshops for adults, is an easy-to-use, at-a-glance guide to sustainable living in the modern world. The comprehensive yet user-friendly guide will help you reduce the environmental impact of your day-to-day life in the areas of Transportation, Food, Home & Garden, Solid Waste and Household Toxics & Hazardous Waste. This is not just a list of things you can do to save the Earth. It's a guide to the what, why and how of sustainable living. Laid out in a simple-to-read table format, it contains hundreds of tips and resources to help you save energy, water and other natural resources. Although this edition of The Green Life has been fine-tuned to the Los Angeles area, we guarantee that it can help you live a significantly greener life, regardless of your zip code. "
"You present the information in such a concise way...I find the Green Life Guide to be invaluable. I frequently share the most memorable points with my friends."
- Susan Rogers, Los Angeles, CA
"Your Green Life Guide is loaded with a lot of great use-right-now action."
- Virginia Hilker, Torrance, CA
"The Green Life Guide is very useful because it is so comprehensive and well-researched." - Barbara H., San Pedro, CA
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To buy the Guide on Amazon, click here, or search Amazon Books for "Jacecko" or "Teachinggreen." Go beyond reusable bags and hybrid cars...start living The Green Life today! |
Go Green, $ave Green
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Daily Deals Gone Green
Are you a daily deal junkie? Then you already know how much cash you can save with the daily deals offered by Groupon, LivingSocial, FamilyFinds and countless other deal-of-the-day websites.
If you're not familiar, the idea is simple: a business, be it a restaurant, spa, movie theater or dance studio, offers a steep discount for a product or service. If enough people buy the deal, then the deal is "on" and everyone saves a wad of cash. The only catch: most deals have an expiration date, so some care must be taken to ensure that they are used before they expire. 
Regardless of which category you fall into - the junkie or the novice - you can now save money and support green businesses with deal-of-the-day websites that offer exclusively green deals.
One great green deal website is Care2 Daily Deals, with recent deals including 43% off a NatureMill home compost system and 50% off Bambooki premium bamboo products. Another is GreenDeals, whose most recent deal was 30% off a bottle opener made from disarmed and recycled nuclear missile systems.
Like Groupon, these websites are extremely easy to use: a simple registration, and you'll receive the daily deals by email. Unlike Groupon, all deals sold on these sites are either environmentally-friendly, nontoxic to the user, humane, or all three.
To learn more and sign up, visit www.care2.com/daily-deals and www.greendeals.org. Happy shopping!
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Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
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Bye Bye Junk Mail Death, taxes, and...junk mail? Unless you've been vigilant to avoid it, it's true: junk mail is inevitable in the modern world. And even though junk mail is woefully ineffective when it comes to actually creating new customers, marketers continue to send it. Never mind the estimated 100 million trees and 28 billion gallons of water it takes to produce the roughly four million tons of junk mail delivered each year. Although it may seem like a fact of life, junk mail is, in fact, avoidable. Yes, it is possible to greet your mail each day without the sense of dread so many of us feel as we the approach the box, leery of the unwanted credit card offers, catalogs and coupons stuffing it to the gills. Reducing junk mail, or stopping it all together, will require a small investment of time, it's true. But how much time do you currently spend sorting junk mail each day? Spend the hour now, save some trees and free yourself from the scourge that is junk mail. Here's how. The first thing you can do, right now, is to get your name off mailing lists by registering with one or all of these online registries. Signing up is quick, easy, and free. 
www.dmachoice.org - Opt out of credit offers, catalogs, magazine offers and other mail offers from the nearly 3,600 member companies of the Direct Marketing Association
www.catalogchoice.org - Opt out of catalogs, coupons, credit card offers, phone books, circulars and more
www.directmail.com - Register with directmail.com's Do Not Mail List to selectively remove yourself from mailing lists, including everything from mortgage offers to political mailers
www.optoutprescreen.com - Permanently opt out of receiving firm offers of credit or insurance from Equifax, Experian, Innovis, and TransUnion, (collectively the "Consumer Credit Reporting Companies")
www.ecologicalmail.org - Register your business to stop receiving catalogs, magazines and other junk mail addressed to your former employees
If you'd rather pay someone to stop the barrage of junk mail, check out 41pounds.org. For $41, they promise to reduce unwanted catalogs and other junk mail by 80-95%. Each dollar represents one pound of the roughly 41 pounds of junk mail that the average American adult receives each year. Once you've registered to get off the mailing lists you are already on, follow these simple guidelines to avoid getting yourself on new mailing lists in the future: - DO NOT list your address in the White Pages
- DO NOT submit product warranty cards
- DO NOT fill out a change-of-address form when you move
- DO skip supermarket "buyers club" cards
- DO give out your address only if absolutely necessary, and if you must, state that you do NOT want your information sold
- DO call the companies that send you junk mail and ask to be taken off their mailing list and tell them to never share your address
- DO send junk mail back: simply cross out your name and write "Return to Sender-Remove Name from Mailing List." They pay the postage and deal with the waste.
What are you waiting for? Get busy and say goodbye to junk mail for good!
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| Duty Calls |
Connect the Dots on Saturday, May 5  Melting glaciers, eroding beaches, freak storms: it's time to connect the dots. On May 5, 2012, protest, educate, document and volunteer along with thousands of people around the world to support the communities on the front lines of the climate crisis. The goal of Connect the Dots, a project of Bill McKibben's 350.org and its partner organizations, is to shine a spotlight on the connections between extreme weather, melting glaciers, rising sea level and climate change. On May 5, people all over the world will take a photo of a gigantic dot on a sign or banner, each dot representing a local climate impact.
Volunteer to Connect the Dots to show our communities, the media, and our politicians that climate change is a clear and present danger. To learn more about Climate Impacts Day, and to start or join an event near you, visit www.climatedots.org.
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Worth Your Time
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Renewal2011, Available on DVD
What do Evangelicals, Muslims, Jews, Buddhists and Catholics have in common? In the documentary film RENEWAL, they are all working to become better caretakers of the Earth. Produced by Emmy-award winning filmmakers Marty Ostrow and Terry Kay Rockefeller,  RENEWAL is the first feature-length documentary to tell the stories of America's grassroots religious-environmental movement. Each of the eight inspiring stories is set in a different faith tradition, addressing a different environmental concern. With topics ranging from global warming and recycling to environmental justice and the devastation of mountaintop removal, love and respect for life on Earth are the heart of RENEWAL. "I hope this movie is screened in church basements and synagogue social halls across the country, and that it moves many more people of faith off the fence and into action." -Bill McKibben
"I watched this film with admiration and hope millions of others will have the chance to see it." -Bill Moyers
To learn more, watch the inspiring trailer, and order the DVD, visit http://renewalproject.net. |
L.A. Confidential
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Events and Other Stuff for Angelinos Earth Day Celebrations for the Whole Family Celebrate Mother Earth and her protection at an Earth Day celebration near you:
Pasadena Earth and Arts Festival Date: Saturday, April 14 Time: 11:00am - 5:00pm Location: The Armory Center for the Arts, 145 North Raymond Avenue Pasadena 91103 Cost: FREE Earth Day Bird Fest
Date: Saturday April 21
Time: 8:00am - 3:00pm (beach cleanup from 8:00 - 10:00)
Location: Cabrillo Marine Aquarium; 3720 Stephen M. White Drive, San Pedro 90731
Cost: FREE
11th Annual Earth Day Celebration at the SEA Lab
Date: Saturday April 21
Time: 10:00am - 2:00pm
Location: SEA Lab, 1021 North Harbor Drive, Redondo Beach 90277
Cost: FREE
Aquarium of the Pacific's Earth Day Celebration
Date: Saturday & Sunday, April 21 & 22
Time: 9:00am - 5:00pm
Location: Aquarium of the Pacific, 100 Aquarium Way, Long Beach 90802
Cost: FREE with general admission and for AOP members
SMPA Earth Weekend
Date: Saturday & Sunday, April 21 & 22
Time: 11:00am - 6:00pm
Location: Santa Monica Pier Aquarium, 1600 Ocean Front Walk, Santa Monica 90401
Cost: FREE for anyone who participates in the beach cleanup (cleanup will run from 11:30 - 2:30)
Earth Day Latino
Date: Saturday & Sunday, April 21 & 22
Time: Sunrise to Sunset
Location: Los Angeles State Historic Park, 1245 N Spring St Los Angeles 90012
Cost: FREE
STAR ECO Station's 12th Annual Children's Earth Day
Date: Sunday April 22
Time: 10:00am - 4:00pm
Location: STAR ECO Station, 10101 Jefferson Blvd, Culver City 90232
Cost: FREE (with discounted tours of the ECO Station)
VOICE Earth Day Celebration & Concert
Date: Saturday April 28
Time: 11:00am - 4:00pm
Location: Polliwog Park, Manhattan Beach 90266 (corner of Manhattan Beach Blvd. and Peck Ave.)
Cost: FREE
16th Annual WorldFest Earth Day Festival
Date: Sunday, May 20
Time: 10:30am - 7:00pm
Location: Woodley Park, 6350 Woodley Ave, Van Nuys 91406
Cost: Pre-sale before April 30 $7; At the festival $9; Seniors and college students $5; 12 & Under FREE, Parking $5
Other Upcoming Events for the Eco-Conscious
4th Annual Mar Vista Green Garden Showcase
Date: Saturday April 21
Time: 10:00am - 4:00pm
Location: Mar Vista (map)
Cost: FREE
This free citywide event will feature a public, open house tour of 90 private resident gardens broken into 6 compact self-guided walking tours throughout Mar Vista. Participants will learn about drought-resistant landscapes, edible gardens, composting techniques, water capture practices and free range farming.
City of Alhambra Eco Fair 2012
Date: Saturday, May 5
Time: 9:00am - 2:00pm
Location: Alhambra Park Bandshell, 500 North Palm Avenue, Alhambra 91801
Cost: FREE
Solar Homes Tour of the South Bay
Date: Saturday May 12
Time: 8:30am - 5:30pm
Location: Palos Verdes/South Bay area
Cost: FREE
Join Environmental Priorities Network and the City of Manhattan Beach for their annual solar homes tour. For more information and to obtain a tour flyer contact Diane Wallace at 310.266.1241 or [email protected] or Lillian Light at 310.545.1384 or [email protected].
4th Annual Torrance Environmental Fair
Date: Saturday June 9
Time: 10:00am - 2:00pm
Location: Torrance City Yard, 20500 Madrona, Torrance 90503
Cost: FREE
For a list of many more upcoming environmental events though out Los Angeles, visit www.earthday.org.
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Support TeachingGreen
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Three ways you can help:
1. Sign up for a presentation today!
Are you a teacher? Check out our Growing Up Green program for kids and teens.
Are you a member of a community group, alumni group, Mom's group, church group, or other community group? Have a business you're trying to green and want to get your employees on board? Check out our Green Life presentations for adults.
Visit www.teachinggreen.org to learn more and to request a presentation.
2. Volunteer or intern with TeachingGreen
We are seeking interns and volunteers to help further our mission of helping people reduce the environmental impact of their personal and professional lives. We need help with curriculum development, classroom presentations, fundraising and outreach. Your involvement will help us to grow the organization so that we can reach more people with the message of sustainability. Sign up today!
For more information, contact Kathleen Jacecko at 310-372-7484 or [email protected].
3. Donate and become a member of TeachingGreen
We are a 501(c)3 organization, so all donations are fully tax-deductible. Your support helps us spread the message of sustainability via workshops, presentations, our website and this newsletter. We currently operate only in Los Angeles, but our book The Green Life: A Guide to Sustainability in Los Angeles, which will help you green your life no matter where you live, is available for sale on Amazon.com.
To make a tax-deductible donation to TeachingGreen, click here.
We hope you find this newsletter helpful and informative, and should you have any suggestions, questions or general comments, we'd love to hear from you.
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