Janice brings up a good point. How can we, as individuals, make any big difference in saving the planet? The task seems daunting. True, big business can really make the biggest impact. And, large corporations should really act on their own to help save the world, but sadly, their motive has to be profit driven. Can the little things we do at home really make a big difference? I see green moms doing little things everyday, for example, plugging their kitchen basin then using the water at the end of the day to clean all the dishes. Some switch to earth friendly cleaning products or they make their own with biodegradable ingredients like vinegar or baking soda. Some moms reduce consumption of disposable items and try to re-use what they have. Many of the little things people do are just pure conservation of resources, which always helps, especially when we do it collectively. But, how does a ‘little’ thing like making your own non-toxic cleaning products help save the world? When a mom decides to stop buying mainstream cleaning products and instead makes her own from earth friendly ingredients, she halts her demand for the more polluting products and increases her demand for greener products. Industry takes notice when we do this collectively, even if they see a small drop in their profit margin. These are consumer acts of protest or consumer votes. How we don’t spend or how we do spend our money drives our economy and our world’s corporations. Industry is the world’s biggest polluter in the stripping of natural resources, manufacturing, and transportation of products.

Consumer acts of support for green businesses have already changed mainstream industry and our worldview. Because consumers have demanded greener products and practices, we have more and more businesses offering green products and services. For example, Clorox is now offering green cleaning products, Wal-Mart is building more energy efficient buildings and offering some green products, and Toyota is making more hybrid cars. We change the world by showing industry what we demand. So, how do we, as individuals, save the world? We vote ‘yes’ for a healthier planet by spending our dollars on green products and services, and we vote ‘no’ for global warming by halting our demand for polluting products and services. Whatever you are ready to change to green, whether it is a little or a big step, makes a difference. There is a big green movement and a budding green economy in the world right now. Join in, and help it build momentum, because we can only make a big difference collectively.

How to search for green products and services? Check our Resources page on this website. Or, if you are looking for something like chocolate, try using Google and type in descriptive words like ‘eco-friendly’, ‘organic’, or ‘fair trade’. If you are looking for something like furniture, try descriptive words like ‘non-toxic’, or ‘sustainable’. A great directory to use for finding approved green products is the National Green Pages found here: http://coopamerica.org/pubs/greenpages/

-- Melinda