Who's Your Green Inspiration?

Happy Earth Day, ghia friends!

On this lovely Earth Day, I'd like to encourage you to think about people who have inspired you to live a greener life and thank them for the difference they are making.

My green inspiration this year is my friend Ariana. A few weeks ago I was visiting Ariana's house with the city delivered an extra recycling bin. I was shocked -- her two-person household needed TWO recycling bins?

Ariana explained that she and her husband found they just didn't have much regular trash anymore. They eliminated a lot of household waste by trading one-time use products for reusable products; for instance, paper towels were ditched for cleaning rags. They also checked the city's curbside recycling guidelines and posted them in the house to be sure they were recycling everything they could. Products that didn't qualify for curbside recycling, such as glass, were collected until Ariana made a trip to a recycling center. They also tried to avoid buying products in non-recyclable containers, switching to brands that offered more environmentally friendly choices.

Wow! After listening to Ariana explain her recycling strategies, I felt like I had been stuck in 1990 recycling mode. Sure, my household recycled aluminum cans, paper, and cardboard, but most everything else got chucked into the trash. After seeing the huge difference Ariana made by putting a little extra thought into her choices, I decided to try it for myself. Now those plastic containers labeled 1 through 7 are rinsed and recycled, and I'm more careful with my shopping choices. I think I may need my own extra recycle bin soon.

Thanks, Ariana, for inspiring me to go greener!