SIMPLE / SMART / SUSTAINABLE / STORIES

A Greener San Diego: 2025 Edition

Every year around Earth Day, we look back on the progress we’ve made (and the challenges we’ve faced) locally on environmental issues. And every year, it’s mostly good news! The local news day-to-day is obsessed with problems, but when you pull back a bit, you see that San Diego keeps getting greener!

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Skip scrolling! Here's what you'll find in today's Bluedot San Diego newsletter:

• Trail Cams Bring Wildlife to You 

• Dear Dot’s Pleather Pants Fiasco!

• A Cool Net-Zero House! Check Out Our Instagram 

• Better Turkish Pasta

• Food That’s Rated V

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Featured Stories

Environmentalists are obsessed with energy. Clean energy, dirty energy, renewable energy. And the good news is that the energy sector is transitioning to cleaner fuels faster than most experts thought possible. But the issues are complex and far from black-and-white. In our new Energy Bar series, Bluedot editor Jim Miller, who has worked in the environmental field for decades, will take us through the issues and technologies that will shape our energy future for the better. Jim also worked in regional planning, and he has found some surprising places where “common sense” doesn’t work very well, specifically housing and transportation.

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Dear Dot: Is Vegan Leather a More Ethical

Fashion Choice?

– Illustration by Elissa Turnbull

Dear Dot,

I’m seeing a lot more references to vegan leather. Is leather bad because it’s an animal product? Is vegan leather a more ethical alternative?

– Kylie

Dear Dot,

I’m curious about your take on vegan leather versus genuine leather from an eco perspective but also from a quality perspective.

– Sofia

Dear Kylie and Sofia,

If the vegan leather you’re considering is nothing more than fossil-fuel-based plastic, it is neither an environmentally or ethically sound choice. (Not to mention being a terrible choice for maternity wear.)

Genuine leather remains a sought-after material. But, as you note, it’s an animal product, primarily from cattle, which are a leading cause of deforestation and methane emissions. That said, leather is a byproduct. We’re raising cattle anyway, so wouldn’t making use of the entire animal be a good thing? In theory, yes. But unused cattle hides — those from about 17% of the cattle raised — are burned or go to landfill, where they rot and contribute to greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. …

Read the rest of Dot’s answer.

Got a question for Dot? Write her at deardot@bluedotliving.com.

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What Wildlife Lives in Your Backyard?

Bluedot Living Kitchen

Plant-Based Turkish Pasta

Late last year, a Turkish Pasta recipe took the internet by storm, offering a hearty and easy-to-make Middle-Eastern spin on an old favorite. As with most dishes, it’s just as easy and just as tasty when you use plant-based ingredients.

We’re excited to announce that a new issue of Bluedot Living Kitchen magazine is out! Subscribe now and get six digital issues per year!

Travels With Vegans

Eunice Reyes is the creator behind Rated V for Vegan on YouTube and Instagram, where she eats plant-based foods all over the world. Her health was the reason Eunice began her plant-based lifestyle, but sustainability plays a large role in inspiring people to embrace veganism. Eating plant-based can reduce an individual’s greenhouse gas emissions by 75% compared to a meat-heavy diet, typically uses less than half the amount of water, and results in 66% less biodiversity loss. But even more important, she says, “I wanted to show people how exciting plant-based food can be.”

It’s Easy Being Green

The environmental movement is really into words like “struggle” and “fight” and “battle.” And there are places where those words are totally appropriate. You know where they’re not appropriate? Our lives. There are battles and struggles going on all over, but not in our house. In our house, we want it easy. And that’s been the best thing about being part of Bluedot Living: Every time we have an environmental question, there’s an answer. Take this week’s Marketplace: It’s all about easy swaps from worse products to better ones. Or eating less meat and dairy: It’s frickin’ easy. Need new batteries? Buy rechargeable. Easy.

Having a better, greener life is not hard, it’s easy. And that’s good because we’re lazy (especially Jim, soooo lazy). Take our lead, save your strength for the truly hard stuff, and take it easy.

We’ll see you in two weeks.

– Nicki and Jim Miller

Editors, Bluedot Living San Diego

sdeditor@bluedotliving.com

We live in San Diego and love the opportunity to be on the water and in the mountains in one day. Nicki, a writer and editor, and Jim, a writer and environmental economist, are excited to combine skills as the editors of Bluedot Living San Diego. Since we’re avid cyclists, you may see us riding along the Silver Strand or hitting the trails in Cuyamaca (probably not on the same day). Thank you for joining us on this Bluedot ride!  

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