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SIMPLE / SMART / SUSTAINABLE / STORIES
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SIMPLE / SMART / SUSTAINABLE / STORIES
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Friday, February 2, 2024
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Juvenile Bald Eagle in British Columbia, by Yasmin Namini
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Get ready! In two weeks, Audubon’s Great Backyard Bird Count begins. Whether you have bald eagles in your backyard (like these caught by our Home on Earth columnist Yasmin Namini), or just some merry little House Finches (hopefully free of House Finch eye disease that Dear Dot wrote about), you can help Audubon, the Cornell University Ornithology Lab, and Birds Canada tally them. From February 16 – 19, spend time in your
favorite places watching birds, then report back, along with bird lovers from all over the world. More than 7,700 species were observed last year; watch this very cool map light up as people reported in. Here’s info on how to participate.
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DISPATCHES FROM ALL OVER
SUSTAINABLE LIVING ADVICE
ECO-FRIENDLY RECIPES
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DISPATCHES FROM ALL OVER · SUSTAINABLE LIVING ADVICE · ECO-FRIENDLY RECIPES
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“There is no fresh water meadow, no inland plain, no prairie with this rainy, misty, early morning freshness so constant on the marsh; no other reach of green so green, so a-glitter with seas of briny dew, so regularly, unfailingly fed. … Here meet land and river, sky and sea; here they mingle and make the marsh.”
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–Massachusetts naturalist Dallas Lore Sharp, in the essay, “The Marsh,” in The Atlantic, July 1902. Three years ago, the United Nations established February 2 as World Wetlands Day, saying, “We are losing wetlands three times faster than forests.” Wetlands (creek beds, marshes, swamps, wetland forests) are critically important ecosystems that contribute to biodiversity, climate mitigation, and more. “The marsh is both boundary and buffer,” Sam Moore writes in this Bluedot story about salt marshes.“At the edge of the sea, it dampens wave action from storms, sequesters carbon, filters water, offers finfish and
shellfish a protected nursery, and draws a sharp line at the end of many coastal walks.”
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QUICK LINKS
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Skip scrolling! Here's what you'll find in this edition of the Bluedot Newsletter:
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FEATURED STORIES
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BIG IDEAS AND LOCAL CHANGEMAKERS
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Farming for food in a National Park? That’s what they’re doing in Wales where our Bluedot contributor Jodie Bond reports that, once it was clear that the carbon footprint of this rural haven was substantially influenced by food choices, the idea of farming for the local park inhabitants made perfect (economic and climate) sense. There’s a buzz at Hotel Paradox in Santa Cruz. Writer Sharon McDonnell visited the forest-themed hotel and learned what local honey (and its busy producers) has to teach us. She’s been dubbed Queen of the Mountains and Valleys — Malawi’s only
female tour guide, who’s determined to share her country’s rich natural beauty with those who want to travel sustainably. Charles Pensulo brings us the story.
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       Paid Advertisement
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A move in your future? Make it a green one:
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Reuse boxes, thanks to U-Haul, and take advantage of others’ moving supplies at U-Haul’s online exchange forum.For more Bluedot Climate Quick Tips, click here.
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It’s chocolate season, and we wish something so satisfying were not also so fraught: Much chocolate is a product of child labor and
environmentally devastating agricultural practices. On the coast of Maine, Ragged Coast Chocolate’s Steve and Kate Shaffer make chocolates that are sublime not just
for their taste (and their looks) — they use fresh cream and butter sourced from local farms, and produce bought and traded from Maine farmers and gardeners. They focus on ethical business practices, using single-origin, sustainably grown chocolate from a family-owned company in Ecuador. Read our story, and here’s how to order.
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Right at Home: Groundhogs and aÂ
From-the-Ground-Up Eco-Renovation
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We knew for certain we’d published something with “groundhog” in it and went looking for it to include on this most groundhoggy of days. Was someone preserving groundhogs, aka woodchucks? Was there a groundhog conservation society that might include their cousins, the marmots? Lost varieties of Marmota Monax restored? Were the portly prognosticators employed to … mow lawns, like goats, thus helping to save the planet? Turns out none of the above (but if any of those happen, we promise to keep you informed). But sure enough, our memories did serve: Bea Copeland, who produced our “Cabbage Dispatches” (a series of episodes where she takes a decrepit cabin and turns it into a lovely, eco-friendly cottage), wrote this in episode four: “Behind the house I grew up in there is a six-stall barn. Over
the years, it’s been home to horses, pygmy goats, chickens, and a persistent groundhog.” No mention of whether the groundhog foretold how long winter would last, but Bea does go on to talk about the materials — repurposed beams; and eco-friendly tile, paint, and other finishes she carefully selected. Check out the episode here.
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Dear Dot: What Are My Options for Eco-Friendly (Valentine’s) Flowers?
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– Illustration by Elissa Turnbull
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Dear Dot,
With Valentine's Day coming up, I have to wonder: Is there such a thing as sustainable floral delivery?
–Liza
Dearest Liza,
When my first child was born, a friend sent me an enormous bouquet of white lilies. Throughout the following days and nights of nursing, crying (mostly mine), exhaustion, and late-night soothing, those flowers never failed to make me marvel. Their simplicity. Their beauty. Their scent.
I have never forgotten the power those flowers had to lift my flagging spirits at a time when I felt inadequate to the task at hand. Mr. Dot favors living plants as gifts, which, sure. Okay. Plants have their place in my life and my home. But for occasions? Give me glorious, fabulous flowers. And the single biggest occasion for flowers is — you guessed it, Liza! — Valentine’s Day.Â
But can those glorious, fabulous flowers symbolizing boundless love extend that passion to Mother Earth?Â
The short answer is “not usually,” and it’s not just shipping that makes the cut flower industry a dirty one.
Want the blooming truth?
Read on (there are good choices!).
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BUY LESS/BUY BETTER: Athletic Clothing
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The Bluedot Marketplace includes affiliate links. If you purchase a product through one of our links, we may earn a commission, essentially a small digital finder’s fee.
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If you’re one of the many people who have committed to exercising more in the new year, you may want another pair of leggings for the gym or yoga or snag-resistant pants for hiking. However you like to get sweaty, these brands have you covered.
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Boody
Boody’s best known for super-soft underthings, tees, and basics made from bamboo viscose. We also recommend their activewear, which is made from viscose and organic cotton, with a little spandex for stretch. (Men and women.)
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Buy now orÂ
read our review.
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Prana
Bluedotters across the country love Prana’s tops, bottoms, and dresses for hiking, yoga, and just hanging out. The brand makes simple yet attractive clothing that doesn’t distract from the task at hand. (Men and women.)
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Buy now orÂ
read our review.
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Girlfriend Collective
This size-inclusive brand makes flattering activewear using recycled materials and good manufacturing processes. Our Boston co-editor Julia Cooper, a fan, appreciates the wide range of cheerful colors on offer.Â
(For women.)
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Buy now orÂ
read our review.
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The Social Hour
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February brings some holidays close to our heart! Whether it is World Wetlands Day (today, February 2nd!), Valentine's Day (February 14th), or National Polar Bear Day (February 27th) we are always thinking about Climate Change and Sustainability.
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FOLLOW US
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The Story Behind Bluedot
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“There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world,” astronomer Carl Sagan wrote in 1994’s Pale Blue Dot. “To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known.”Â
Sagan’s humbling words inspire us to deliver stories to you that reflect his and so many others’ work to cherish this blue dot. Our stories are never behind a paywall; please consider supporting our work with a contribution.
Enjoy midwinter, wherever you are. Our various team members are all over the map right now, seeking out stories about climate action in our communities: California (San Diego, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles); Key West, Florida; London and Toronto, Ontario; Martha’s Vineyard, Boston, and Western Massachusetts; South Carolina Sea Islands; Stonington, Connecticut; Brooklyn, Manhattan, Puerto Vallarta, and Paris. Have a great couple weeks.
–Jamie Kageleiry and Leslie Garrett
Editors
Write us at editor@bluedotliving.com
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Jamie Kageleiry, a longtime magazine and newspaper editor from Martha's Vineyard, says her favorite spot on earth is out on a kayak there, looking at birds.
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Leslie Garrett has been covering climate stories for close to two decades. She divides her time between London, Ontario, and Massachusetts. She’s still figuring out her favorite spot but it’s definitely near the
water.
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SIMPLE / SMART / SUSTAINABLE / STORIES
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SIMPLE / SMART / SUSTAINABLE / STORIES
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Read past issues of The Hub here.
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Bluedot Living® magazine and bluedotliving.com are published by Bluedot, Inc.
Find more simple, smart, sustainable stories at bluedotliving.com, our Martha's Vineyard website, our Brooklyn website, our San Diego website, our Los Angeles website, our Santa Barbara website,  our Toronto website, and our  Boston website. Subscribe to any of our newsletters here.
Write us at editor@bluedotliving.com if you’d like to see a Bluedot
newsletter or magazine in your community.
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