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SIMPLE / SMART / SUSTAINABLE / STORIES |
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SIMPLE / SMART / SUSTAINABLE / STORIES |
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“As the tides surge, eagles converge from all directions for a banquet of stunned hake,” photographer Yasmin Namini wrote in this month’s “At Home on Earth” photo feature, which she photographed at Nanook Lodge in British Columbia. “With wingspans exceeding six feet, hooked beaks, razor-sharp talons, and keen eyesight, these raptors are the epitome of avian majesty.” Read, and see more here. |
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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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“You are not Atlas carrying the world on your shoulder. It is good to remember that the planet is carrying you.” –author and activist Vandana Shiva |
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How often do you hear references to “saving the planet?” As George Carlin hilariously pointed out, the planet doesn’t need saving. It will be just fine, shaking us off, as he put it, like so many fleas off a dog. It’s us we should be focused on saving (a point made clear in the title of the book Saving Us, by climate champ Katharine Hayhoe). Which changes things a bit, doesn’t it? It’s why Vandana Shiva’s reminder that we are not carrying the world but rather the other way around is one we should pay attention to. The planet supports us. It feeds us. It is our home. The health of the planet is inextricably tied to our own.
This past week was Climate Week in New York City, dubbed Burning Man for climate geeks by the New York Times, where the paper reported, “solutions” were being offered even as “problems” were barely being defined. We love climate solutions, of course. But we love what Katharine Hayhoe said, especially: “What do you need to solve the climate crisis?” she said. “The answer is, everyone.”
–Leslie Garrett (and Jamie Kageleiry), Bluedot’s editors |
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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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To avoid using unnecessary plastic products while traveling, don’t take hotel toiletries, and bring your own reusable containers instead. |
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THE BLUEDOT KITCHEN |
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Prioritizing seasonal and local ingredients gives you sustainable eating at its very best. We picked these two recipes for our first fall newsletter because, well, they look cozy, and while suitable year-round, they seem just right for a chilly evening. |
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Showing the changing trends in California wines in response to shifting climates, Union Sacré, based on California’s Central Coast, is producing Alsatian-style wines. “While many consumers realize that wine is an agricultural product that is subject to adaptation in the wake of changing climates,” writes Bluedot’s Julia Cooper, “wine drinkers have still been programmed (through marketing and experience) to see ‘California’ on the label and to expect specific grape varietals.” [Chardonnay!] The winemakers at Union Sacré set out to challenge that. While most of their wines are sold only in California, here’s an Orange Gewürztraminer Julia loves that can be found more widely. |
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Dear Dot: How Can I Get Rid of Ants Without Using Toxic Pest Control |
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Dear Dot,
I am unable to stop the swarm of ants in my kitchen. Have tried Terro, which has always worked for me in the past, but my bottle might be out of date. Tried cinnamon, clove, borax with sugar dry, borax with sugar wet. Tonight I am trying something made by Raid. Any help would be appreciated
—Harriet
Dear Harriet,
It seems that if you want to live in a place where ants can’t annoy you, you will need to move to Antarctica, Greenland, or Iceland — though it’s likely just a matter of time (and climate change) before ants find their way there, too.
There are an estimated ten to 100 quadrillion of them on the planet (quite a range but I think we can forgive whomever was tasked with counting them for being a few quadrillion off) so I suppose it’s not surprising that a bunch of them have decided, to your chagrin, to take up residence Chez Harriet.
But clearly they have overstayed their unwelcome; and while I understand that you are at your wit’s end and are, thus, pulling out the Raid, let’s consider alternatives so that you can avoid a solution that, yes, will kill the ants, but that will also pose health risks to people and pets, especially babies. Dr. Death, an eco-friendly pest control company serving Las Vegas (with the industry’s greatest name), tells us that “The two specific ingredients [in Raid] that are not safe are cypermethrin and imiprothrin … Essentially, what makes them so deadly to bugs can also make them poisonous to [us].”
So let’s consider methods that are less toxic (to humans and animals, not so much for ants) …
What does Dot recommend? Read on. |
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BUY LESS/BUY BETTER: Phone Finds |
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Our newsletters may feature links to products we like. When you make a purchase through our retail links, we may earn an affiliate commission. |
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According to a 2019 U.N. report, the world produces up to fifty million tons of electronic waste every year, and only twenty percent or less ever gets recycled. This week, we take a look at two tech companies we think are doing things right. |
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Nimble |
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Nimble’s portable chargers, power cords, and other tech accessories contain at least seventy-two percent recycled materials and come with a two-year-minimum warranty. The company will also recycle your old tech products for you. |
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Buy now or read our review. |
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Pela Case |
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Canadian company Pela makes hip, flax-based cellphone cases that can actually be composted. Pela offers lots of styles, ranging from basic to trendy, and has even managed to create clear cases! We also love the grips, which help Pop-Socket devotees make the switch. |
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Buy now or read our review. |
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The Social Hour |
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#Climatechange is in the media this week! Hollywood is bringing climate issues to our favorite TV shows with a group called Hollywood Climate Summit. Young people around the US are fighting against fossil fuels. Time Magazine cover story brings attention to missions to save the ocean because “The impacts of climate change are not something that is going to be suffered by somebody else,” says Enric Sala, a marine ecologist, conservationist, and ocean advocate. “It’s here.” |
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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.” Sagan’s humbling words inspire us to deliver stories to you that reflect his and so many others’ work to cherish this blue dot. Please consider contributing to Bluedot, so that we can keep bringing you these solutions-focused stories.
Enjoy the weekend, and we’ll see you in two 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 and our Los Angeles website. Subscribe to this newsletter 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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