Solar Cookers International

If you’re looking for a meaningful way for you to symbolically save power this holiday season, why not consider sponsoring a solar cooker through Solar Cookers International? In fact, sponsoring a solar cooker through this organization could make a very good gift. Making donations to nonprofit organizations in someone else’s name rather than purchasing something they neither need or want is a great way to support a good cause, reduce your consumption and waste, and help perpetuate a more sustainable future.

Of course, there are many great options for nonprofit gift giving but this is certainly a great one. Solar cookers come with many benefits for fighting climate change. Not only do they require no dirty energy, their use helps to protect forests and human health.

Traditionally, people in developing countries cook over open fires by burning things like wood and animal manure. The resulting air pollution leads to millions of respiratory problems and many deaths. It is estimated that as many as 2 million children die from health problems caused by the black carbon smoke emitted by cooking fires. And this black carbon is said to be the second more significant global warming pollutant in the world! Solar cookers create none of this air pollution and are therefore healthier for people to use. Of course, when forests are protected, they are able to help sequester carbon, too.

And instead of spending time to forage for firewood with the potential for depleting local forests, women who cook with solar cookers can do so without harming their community’s natural resources and have more time for other endeavors, such as entrepreneurial work or caring for their children.

The Solar Cooker International’s kit comes with the solar cooker and a pot along with tips and hints on how to use them. What’s even better is that a water indicator is included. This makes it possible for women to measure whether harmful microbes have been killed in the water so that they know whether it’s safe to drink.

So make a difference this holiday season—donate a $50 solar cooker to someone in a developing nation to change a life and offset emissions in the process. Of course, you could also purchase one for yourself or a family member or friend to get into the renewable-cooking movement yourself!

Livestock and climate change via Flickr - Sunfox

Want a simple way to reduce your impact on climate change without a lot of hassle or cost? Cut back the amount of meat and dairy you’re eating. That’s the conclusion of a recent Worldwatch Institute analysis of the impact of raising livestock and poultry entitled Livestock and Climate Change: What if the key actors in climate change are…cows, pigs, and chickens? In it, they discount the figures from a United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) report that estimate greenhouse gas emissions from raising livestock at 18 percent of the total annual worldwide amount.

Instead, the WorldWatch Institutes report puts the damage at a whopping 51 percent! That’s 32.6 billion tons of carbon dioxide that gets dumped into the atmosphere every year simply because of our dietary choices, which is less than any other source.

But where does it all come from? Well, apparently 13.7 percent comes as a result of livestock respiration. During their normal existence, livestock animals add a lot of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere.

Slightly less is the impact from inefficient land use. As land is converted from tropical forests—tremendously valuable sources for carbon sequestration—to grazing land for sheep and cattle, we suffer a double whammy. First, we lose the carbon-sinking ability of the trees, and second, the rotting biomass (trees and underbrush) release a lot of carbon dioxide into the air. This accounts for 4.2 percent of all livestock-related emissions.

Next, there’s the methane gas—a greenhouse gas that’s 21 times more potent than carbon dioxide in terms of its ability to trap heat in the atmosphere—that livestock emit during normal digestion. This equals 7.9 percent.

There are more ways to count our meat- and dairy-eating habits’ effects on climate, but those are the main sources. Needless to say, it would be easy to make a change here to benefit the planet. Simply adopting an eco-friendly diet by cutting back on the quantity of dairy and meat we eat every week—have one meat free day, for instance—would make a big difference. And choosing an environmentally friendly veggie diet might actually save you money, too.

They say you are what you eat. Likewise, the earth is what we eat, too! The more we pour conventional agricultural chemicals into our landscapes, the more polluted the planet becomes, harming us and our non-human friends as well. Choosing organic food is a great way to reduce your impact on the planet and promote good health in the process. And we know that when we’re healthier, we’re more productive and less prone to requiring trips to the doctor. So eating healthier means saving money, too!

• Buy food in season! These fruits and vegetables will have traveled a shorter distance and therefore be fresher (and healthier!). And because they’re in season, they’ll also be cheaper.
• Cut prepared foods out of your diet. Pre-packaged foods are usually more expensive than cooking at home and they’re higher in preservatives, fat, salt, white flour, and other unhealthy ingredients, making them pricier for your wallet and pricier in terms of your health.
• Get your produce from a local CSA (Community Support Agriculture) organization to get inexpensive, often organic fruits and veggies delivered to your door! You’ll save money on gas for trips to the grocer, too. Find a CSA via LocalHarvest.
• Farmer’s Markets are great places to find locally-grown, often organic food options of all types that usually cost less than what you’d find at the grocery store. They’re also a lot of fun and support your local economy. Find a market with FarmersMarket.com.
• Eat at home rather than at a restaurant. Doing so will reduce your gasoline bills and save you at the till, too, since most restaurant meals are costlier than home-cooked options. Plus, they’re usually healthier, which means smaller medical bills in the long-run, too.
• Choose store-brand organic foods to save money of Certified Organic options. These are usually good quality but more affordable than name-brand items.
• Ruminating animals (cows, sheep, goats, etc) add significantly to climate change by emitting a powerful greenhouse gas: methane. Eat one less pound of beef weekly to save $109 yearly in food costs.
• Whether you buy your food at the local farmer’s market, the grocery store, or grow it in your own backyard, canning, dehydrating, and otherwise preserving food is a great way to enjoy season foods year-round—at a fraction of the cost. Check out the National Center for Home Food Preservation for ideas and tips.

If you can’t afford to buy all of your food organically, go for those options that would otherwise be the most laced with pesticides. Check out this Dirty Dozen list for those fruits and veggies that should be at the top of your “organic foods to buy” list.