Tag Archives: environmental stewardship

Bus Adventures

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Bus

Today is the first day since 1999 when I was going to NAIT that I’ve started taking the bus to work.  We’ve had the luxury while my wife’s father is in Holland to borrow their vehicle and make things a bit easier.  However today that’s come to an end and I’ve started taking the Edmonton Transit System to work.

All in all today’s experience wasn’t all that bad.  Edmonton has some pretty nice bus’s, we’ve got a fairly new fleet so they are not dirty or dingy or falling apart like some the bus’s that were running back in 1999.  They were I believe 40 year old bus’s at that time.  Now the oldest bus’s are maybe 10 years old I think? 

While I wasn’t overly happy with taking the bus, there are quiet a few positives that I am able to find with taking the bus.  I’m able to listen to my audio’s a lot easier, I can listen to podcasts, I can catch up on emails at work and get them sorted out before I actually get to work, I can check my regular news sites and lastly I’m actually doing something good for the environment.  Not driving a second vehicle actually saves us even more money and we can put that towards something more useful like some extra stuff for Wyatt!

ETSIt will take a little getting used to because I have to get up 15 minutes earlier and I get home around 20 minutes later than when driving.  I think today was a busy day because a lot of school has started up again and that’s putting a lot of stress on the bus schedules.  None of them were on time which caused some confusion and I actually missed one of my bus’s home.  Oh well.

Anyway I think during the winter it’s actually going to be a plus.  If I don’t have to worry about driving in the winter then that’s a plus in my books.  This won’t be forever because as I walk away next year from my job there won’t be any reason for a bus pass any longer.

Earth Hour 2011

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60plus_taglineIt’s that time of year again where we switch our lights off around the globe to take a stand against climate change, Earth Hour.  At 8:30 pm for one hour on March 26th, turn your lights and unnecessary power consuming devices off for one hour.  I think each and every one of us should not only participate but as the campaign says this year to go beyond the hour and think about what else you can do to make a difference.  Making a difference is not hard, it’s those little changes to our daily habits that can compound over time if people are just able to get out of their old habits and in some cases selfish ways.

What I think it pretty cool about the business we operate from is that we do it out of our own home and don’t need to have traditional business infrastructure in place.  We also work with a company that has high environmental stewardship and has since 1959.  Not many companies I bet can say that and that’s something we are pretty proud of.  Legacy of Clean provides us with some great green cleaning supplies that actually work, are priced just as comparable if not better than other products that your local Wall-Mart provides.  I’ve actually gone and compared so I’m not just spouting out false claims.  Even our vitamins are sustainable in that they are the only global vitamin and mineral brand to grow, harvest and process plants on its own certified organic farms.  I could go on and on about how Amway is an environmental leader when it comes to stewardship but I won’t, you can check it out for yourself here: Amway’s Environmental Stewardship Commitment.

Even before Lindsay and I started our business we were always conscious on what we bought and who we bought from.  As an avid outdoors men I’ve always keep a close eye on the impact I make on this world.  I’ve been able to take that same mentality from the outdoors and bring it to normal day living with who I buy from, where I buy from, what I buy and how I use it.  I think it’s more important than people realize and if a small event like Earth Hour can help us realize for one hour what our impact is maybe we can start to change our attitude.  I love how this year’s new tagline is “Go beyond the hour for Earth Hour in 2011”, because it’s not just one hour that we can make a change, it’s in every day living.  So start thinking about how you can make those simple changes and start supporting companies and products that promote a greener planet!

 

 

Check out the Official Earth Hour 2011 Video here.

 

Earth Hour 2011 Official Video

Environmental Stewardship

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I’ve been wanting to write this entry for awhile and after our new order that came in last week I finally got around to thinking about it and actually writing it.

What I find awesome about the company we contract with, Amway Global, is the fact they have a high standard for the impact they have on the environment.  The packaging materials we get are all recyclable and biodegradable.  How cool is that?

I work in IT and every day receive a ton of packaging from companies like Dell, IBM, etc.. and NONE of them have any consideration for the environment.  I don’t even think the cardboard boxes are recyclable.  I could be wrong, however I know the packaging inside the box is not especially the foam.

Amway Global has a few things that really stand out:

  1. The cardboard is made from post consume products and is recyclable.
  2. The packing peanuts as you’ll see in the video below are made from cornstarch and can be washed down the drain, eaten, or thrown out where they will dissolve and won’t hurt the environment or landfills
  3. The air bags that stop the product from moving around or being damanged is bio-degradable as you’ll see in the picture. I’ve never seen this with any other company to date.  It may be out there but I’ve not seen it yet. 
  4. They are one of 2 companies that have won the United Nations Environmental Protection Award for their cleaning products that have been green and save for the environment for over 50 years.  This award is typically given to countries not companies.  Goodyear is the other company for recycling tires.

I don’t know about you but as an avid outdoor enthusiast I’m pretty big on the impact we have on our environment and I’d much rather partner with a company that takes this type of commitment and seriousness to heart.  Depending on your values, what kind of company are you supporting? 

Bio-Degradable Packing Peanuts