TIP for Monday October 5th, 2009

Your favorite pair of Gucci’s heels are worn…or those sexy boots you
rocked all last winter have lost their heels. A brand new pair sounds
great, but the cash is a little tight this month, so what to do?
Repair them! New heels for your shoes cost around $12 – much less than
a new pair! Plus putting a new sole on your shoes uses a lot less
material and energy than manufacturing a new pair. It’s cheaper and
doesn’t require the extraction of raw materials from the earth.

TIP for Thursday October 1st, 2009

AST week in the USA California put in place a ban on VOC (Volatile
Organic Compounds). The new regulations apply to consumer products
such as air fresheners, paints and solvents. VOC’s released into the
environment can contaminate soil and groundwater and react with
nitrous oxides to form ozone and ultimately, smog. High levels of
ozone are also a threat to asthma sufferers, cause serious lung
inflammation and decrease lung function. Plus VOC’s continue to be
emitted after the paint has dried. Look for paint that is VOC free and
opt for natural air fresheners and do your part in being GREEN!

TIP for Wednesday September 30th, 2009

Its Pay It Backwards Day! Head into any Second Cup location around
the GTA and buy the person behind you their coffee and $5 will be
donated to SICK KIDS Foundation. Make it a GREEN event! Bring your own
reuseable coffee mug and help reduce the amount of garbage going into
our landfills. If you don’t have a washable takeout mug be sure to
recycle. Some more ways to lesson your carbon footprint while taking
part in this event is to take transit to the nearest second cup or
carpool with friends.It¹s all the small steps that add up and allow us
to get together and create change. Make sure you join me, Jwyze and
Jus Red at the PIBDay headquarters Second Cup at Queen and John St
from 3-5pm. Pay it Backwards and help SickKids!

TIP for September 29th, 2009

We have recently witnessed one of the worst natural disasters to hit
the Philippines in 40 years. Toronto-area Filipinos have banded
together to pray and raise funds for victims. Its times like this
that we have to come together and help one another. Honestly I can¹t
watch any of the news footage without getting emotional. Living in
Toronto, if we are not directly affected by this, we know someone who
has family or friends in Manila who are trying to survive this
tragedy. Right now clean water is one of the most important things
needed to survive the aftermath and you can help by making donations
at any branch of the CIBC. The account number is 56-24010, transit
number 7012. Or Non-perishable food and other items are being
collected at Our Lady of Assumpton Church, 2565 Bathurst St.

Tip for Friday September 25th, 2009

R U still buying bottled water? Use a reusable bottle instead and fill
it up with tap water. We are fortunate to live in a city where we can
drink the tap water! We use billions of plastic water bottles each day
and most still end up in landfills. About 10% of every one of your
shopping dollars is used to pay for packaging and approximately 30% of
contributes to municipal waste. If we were to take a travel mug to
work with us every day instead of those plastic bottles or paper cups
the impact would be huge!

TIP for Thursday September 24th, 2009

Be GREEN at work and digitize! We may live in the digital age but we
still consume enormous amounts of mashed up, bleached tree pulp, most
of which gets used once or twice and then tossed or recycled. The
greenest paper is no paper at all, so keep things digital whenever
possible. The more you do online, the less you need paper. Keep files
on computers instead of in file cabinets this also saves space! Review
documents onscreen rather than printing them out, especially for
meetings. Send emails instead of paper letters.

Tip for Wednesday September 23rd, 2009

Have you made the switch from paper to cloth at your dinner table? On
average we use 2,200 paper napkins a year, and if 10,000 people used
cloth napkins 1 day a week for a year instead of paper ones, we’d save
374 trees. So opting for reusable, washable options keeps more trees
standing. Plus organic cloth napkins keep synthetic pesticides out of
the environment.

TIP for Tuesday September 22nd, 2009

Dog got fleas? Many flea collars don’t work and some conventional flea
control products contain pyrethroids, which can cause seizures and
heart attacks in your pets. Typical flea pesticides also pose human
cancer risks and contain brain toxins up to 1,000 times the levels
deemed acceptable by the EPA. Less than 0.1% of pesticides reach the
target pests, so more than 99% are left to impact the environment. Opt
for natural products like essential oils and citronella oils and be
sure to vacuum your carpets daily during flea season and wash your
pets bedding regularly.

TIP for Monday September 21st, 2009

Youre sitting at your desk right now tapping away at the keys on your
computerŠand it sounds a little crunchy! Time to clean that keyboard!
Clean GREEN by avoiding keyboard cleaners that contain toxins. A 10-oz
can of chemical duster will have the same greenhouse gas-creating
effect as burning 100 gallons of gas. Clean naturally with a cotton
swab and some alcohol and use two sided tape between the keys to get
the gross crunchy stuff out!

TIP for Friday September 18th, 2009

We’re all guilty of those hour showers? I know cleanliness is next to
godliness, but by shortening your shower by just 30 seconds you could
save 4 gallons of water and be GREEN!! If you want to see how much
water you use to shower just put the stopper in the tub and see how
much water collects. You’ll be very surprised. Another water saving
trick is to turn the water of while you soap up or lather your shampoo