Banish junk mail forever. Not only is it annoying to open a mailbox crammed with flyers, but junk mail is also costing us one hundred million trees each year, according to Conservatree and US Forest Service statistics. Limit your junk mail by logging on to the ,a href="http://www.the-cma.org/?WCE=C=47|href=http://ca.rd.yahoo.com/lifestyles/articles/rogers-flare/SIG=11d0fk1ck/*http%3A//www.the-cma.org/?WCE=C=47|K=224217">Canadian Marketers Association and signing up for their "do not contact" service. You'll be removed from their marketing list-and see less flyers in about six weeks. And remember to toss any junk mail that does end up in your box in the recycle bin.
Be eco-beauty conscious. Pay attention to what's in the products you use and avoid potentially harmful chemicals like parabens, phthalates, and toluene. These chemicals have been linked to cancer, and reproductive and developmental toxicity. Instead try to buy "fragrance-free" and "paraben-free" products, like those available on British-based online organic beauty apothecary Love Lula or from brands like Kiss My Face, Nvey Eco, and Care by Stella McCartney, available at Holt Renfrew.
Calculate your personal footprint. Log on to Zerofootprint's carbon calculator (http://earthhour.zerofootprint.net) to find out your personal carbon footprint. You'll be asked questions about your travel, eating, and lifestyle habits and then be shown how much CO2 you're emitting in comparison to the national average. Or sign up for the more in-depth Carbon Manager, an online network where you'll be able to compare your footprint to other users, set goals for reducing your emissions, get tips for greener living, and invite your friends to become eco-friendly too.
Catch your ZZZ's and B and Bs Choose to stay at an independently run, green-friendly bed and breakfast, rather than bunking at chain hotels, whose mass produced products make them notorious waste generators. Try: Arbutus Hill Bed and Breakfast in Victoria, Kitsilano Heritage House in Vancouver, Calgary's Knob Hill Bed and Breakfast, Toadhall Bed and Breakfast in the Toronto area, and Montreal's A la Bonne Heure Bed and Breakfast. Another strategy? Vartan suggests traveling with your own products in reusable containers rather than indulging in the individually wrapped hotel soaps and mini-shampoos.
