Do One Thing: Close The Vents In Unused Rooms.
Now that I have moved from a house with radiant floor heat to an apartment with forced air heating, I am really thinking about how much energy I use to heat my place. I have 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms and while it hasn’t been that cold here yet, I have had to turn on the heat a few times in the morning to take the chill off. However, before I did, I went around and closed the vents in my 2nd bedroom, the hallway, and the 2nd bathroom because I didn’t need to heat rooms I wouldn’t be using for a while. And since I closed those vents I haven’t reopened them, as I have discovered that the heat flows into them a little anyway from the main living are

Greenwash Of The Week: McDonald’s Europe Logo Going Green.
Now I truly have seen it all. Until next week, I am sure. But for this week, McDonald’s is showing everyone in Europe what they think the meaning of “green” is by, get this, changing the color of their logo to green. From the Chicago Tribune: About 100 German McDonald’s restaurants will make the change by the end of 2009, the company said in a statement Monday. Some franchises in Great Britain and France have already started using the new color scheme behind their Golden Arches.

Corporate Paper Waste: Comcast Sent Me 7 Letters Saying The Same Thing – In One Day.
Last week I received no fewer than 7 letters from Comcast, on the same day, informing me that I had changed the password on my voicemail and my account. 7 pieces of paper and 7 envelopes to tell me something that A. I already knew and B. they could have sent through the email account they had me set up. Why have me set up the email notifications if you are just going to send out all this paper to my house? It makes no sense. See for yourself the waste that is Comcast mail:

Trust Me, We’re Not As Green As You Think We Are.
It’s easy for some of us to sit up on a throne and dictate all things green, but make no mistake about it – most of us are not so green as to think we are better than anyone else who is trying their best. (Save for No Impact Man, who may actually be the greenest person I know.) I get emails asking how I live so “green” all the time, and while I feel bad bursting their bubble, I have to tell the truth – I don’t and I can’t. I don’t live near as green a lifestyle as someone living in an off-the-grid house or someone who grows their own

The Environmental Impact Of The Fashion Industry.
Dear EarthTalk: Can you enlighten on the environmental impact of the fashion industry? As I understand it, the industry overall is no friend to the environment. According to the non-profit Earth Pledge, today some 8,000 synthetic chemicals are used throughout the world to turn raw materials into textiles. Domestically, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that one-quarter of all pesticides used nationwide go toward growing cotton, primarily for the clothing indu