My husband and I have a 2003 black Honda Element. We have had it for three years and have used it well. It has taken us on many road trips across the country, camping trips, and fun outtings. We have used it to help ourselves move, friends move, and family move. We have taken it on trips with the youth group. We have given rides to loved ones and strangers alike and have had the pleasure of having friends and family use it for weekends or weeks.

In less than three weeks we are moving to Seattle. We will tow our car behind us, put the seats flat, set up sheets, blankets, and pillows and sleep in it at night. It will give us a good start in Seattle. However, in a year our lease will be up and we have some decisions to make.

We both feel convicted that we need to get a more fuel effecient car (hybrid, biodesial, or subcompact car). We have a TerraPass for the Smell (Smellement…Element) and while I support TerraPass it does not give me a free ride to thoughtlessly use non-renewable resources and pollute the earth. In the past couple of weeks we have also been exploring the idea of living for at least a year without a car.

We will be living in a city with public transportation and are picking the neighborhood we want to live in carefully so that we can walk to as many places as possible. I love adventures and living without a car would be an adventure, but it also brings up fears of being trapped and not able to go places I want. We will continue to think about it and figure out what the right decision is going to be for us. When we come to our conclusion in a year I will let you know. Until then I will continue to do research on cars and on how to live life without a car.? I would also love to hear any thoughts or words of wisdom that you might have on this subject.
*For those of you who are interested, a few days after we started talking about not having a car NPR did an interview with ” Chris Balish is the author of the forthcoming book How to Live Well Without Owning a Car: Save Money, Breathe Easier, and Get More Mileage Out of Life“.

The general idea behind the term “fair trade” is that producers and workers trading/selling their goods internationally will be fairly paid for their products. This can become very relative, therefore, standards in the form of certifications were started to keep everyone in check. There are a couple of different fair trade certifications/labels out there. If you see one of the following labels on a particular good (coffee, tea, chocolate, crafts, etc.) you are buying that lets you know that a set of fair trade standards has been met. Fairtrade Labeling Organizations International (FLO) is the “worldwide Fairtrade Standard setting and Certification organisation”.

There are two sets of generic producer standards, one for small farmers and one for workers on plantations and in factories. The first set applies to smallholders organised in cooperatives or other organisations with a democratic, participative structure. The second set applies to organised workers, whose employers pay decent wages, guarantee the right to join trade unions and provide good housing where relevant. On plantations and in factories, minimum health and safety as well as environmental standards must be complied with, and no child or forced labour may occur.

As Fairtrade is also about development, the generic standards distinguish between minimum requirements, which producers must meet to be certified Fairtrade, and progress requirements that encourage producer organisations to continuously improve working conditions and product quality, to increase the environmental sustainability of their activities and to invest in the development of the organisations and their producers/workers.

Trading standards stipulate that traders have to:
• pay a price to producers that covers the costs of sustainable production and living;
• pay a premium that producers can invest in development;
• partially pay in advance, when producers ask for it;
• sign contracts that allow for long-term planning and sustainable production practices.

Finally, there are a few product-specific Fairtrade standards for each product that determine such things as minimum quality, price, and processing requirements that have to be complied with.

A few trusted fair trade labels to look out for:

Fair Trade Certified

International Fair Trade Organization

FLO

Last but not least, the following are of course not necessary to enjoy a good yoga practice but they each bring additional benefits. Candles help to focus the mind and remind us of our inner light. Eye pillows are used during savasana to help us relax, quiet the mind, and shut out natural light. Essential oil is used as aromatherapy (works with our sense of smell to bring healing to the body, mind, and spirit), usually at the end of the practice.

Candles:
Pure Luxury Atelier Organic Soy Candles

Lumia Organic Soy Candles

Eye Pillows:
Viva Terra Herbal Animals: “We’ve filled these soft, friendly organic cotton critters with organic lavender and other herbs.”

Wholistic Planet Organic Eye Pillow

Kate’s Caring Gifts Organic Eye Pillow

Barefoot Yoga Silk Eye Pillow with organic flax seed and lavender: “Filled with organic flax seeds, scented with dried organically grown lavender that works as a mood tonic, antidepressant, sedative and detoxifier.”

Essential Oil:
Florapathics Organic Living

Young Living

You cannot very well go to yoga naked! Well….some places you can, but for those of you who choose to get your yoga on while clothed, the following organic clothing will get you started. Also, if you are riding a bike, walking, or talking public transportation to get to your yoga studio a good yoga bag makes the trek a little more graceful.

Yoga Bag:
Shuba Organic Cotton Yoga Bag: The bags are made with organic cotton with solar powered electricity and two of the four bags you can choose from are made with “a fair-trade 100% organic cotton design by socially resposible company Harmony Art Organic Design“.

Clothes:
WOMEN
Blue Canoe Organic Sheer Tops: perfect for Bikram/hot yoga.

Blue Canoe Camis and Tanks

Blue Canoe Fitted Yoga Pants

Prana Organics (tops and pants)

Eco Fleece Hoodie Wrap: Perfect for Savasana.

Innerwaves Organics, Maui Tops

Innerwaves Organics, Maui Bottoms

MEN
Prana Organic Momentum Short

Prana Organic Momentum Pant

Prana Orgnaic Tree Box Ringer: “All profits from the sales of this ringer T will be donated to the Conservation Alliance. The chest is water-base printed with an abstract tree design, and contrast topstitch detail is added to the neck and sleeves.”

Patagonia Organic M’s Go-T: “Go-T’s look and feel like a cotton T-shirt but have an important distinction: They manage moisture with the effectiveness of Capilene®. The cotton/polyester fabric is light and airy, dries fast, and feels skin-friendly. 70% organic cotton, 30% polyester with a moisture-wicking finish.”

Innerwaves Organics, Maui Bottoms

Because PVC, a.k.a. polyvinyl chloride or vinyl, is very harmful to your health and the environment.

PVC is the worst plastic from an environmental health perspective, posing unique and major hazards in its manufacture, product life and disposal. Global vinyl production totals over 30 million tons per year, and 75% of PVC is directed to building applications.

PVC has contributed a significant portion of the world’s burden of persistent toxic pollutants and endocrine-disrupting chemicals - including dioxin and phthalates - that are now universally present in the environment and the human population.

When its entire life cycle is taken into account, it becomes apparent that this seemingly innocuous plastic is one of the most environmentally hazardous consumer materials produced.

To read more PVC facts visit Healthy Building Network.

This past weekend I attended my very first conference. I was glad for the experience, but to be honest I did not realize what I was up against and how hard it would be to keep up my earth loving ways. However, next time I will not be caught unprepared.

A few tips (you can apply these to plan old traveling as well):

1. Bring your own eco travel cup or eco travel mug for coffee or tea.

2. Travel plates and silverware for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and it also includes a cup for soup or drinks (OJ with breaky or cocktails by the pool–so Grace Kelly). The conference I went to provided all three meals and I was left using the provided disposable plastic cups, plates, and silverware.

3. Eco water bottle (a safe alternative to nalgenes) for all your hydration needs.

4. I very soon found out that you get bombarded with marketing collateral and swag at conferences. Only take what you want or are going to use. If you are attending the conference with someone else you don’t need doubles of pamphlets, schedules, maps, etc.

5. Green business cards printed using soy and vegetable based inks and environmental papers.

6. Bring an extra bag and space to take home anything in your possession that can be recycled.