Grist | Topics | 9 Results

RESULTS		Results 1 – 9 of 9
Headline	Author	Published	Section
Unnecessary Evil On short-haul flights	Umbra Fisk	25 Jun 2008	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, I work in the touring music business, based in the U.K. but touring worldwide. I have noticed recently that the record companies are booking cheap flights for short distances, e.g., London-Manchester, about 200 miles. Over such short distances, there is no saving in time, due to travel to and from airport, checking in, etc. Trains would be quicker, but unfortunately in the U.K., trains are more expensive. I would like t ...
Topics: advice, air pollution, air travel, Ask Umbra, climate, ecological footprint, green living (all these topics)

Take a Number On carbon calculators	Umbra Fisk	04 Jun 2008	Ask Umbra
Dearest Umbra, I recently heard an interesting interview on NPR, and the speaker was talking about how, to stop global warming, all humans would have to limit their carbon emissions to just one ton of carbon per person, per year. I've never weighed my carbon emissions, but I'm going to guess that I throw a lot more weight around than one ton. What would I have to do to slim my ton to one? I'm approaching my carbon tonnage like a diet ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, climate, climate change mitigation, ecological footprint, green living, greenhouse-gas emissions (all these topics)

Cake and Iceberg On Earth Day office parties	Umbra Fisk	14 Apr 2008	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, Earth Day seems like a good opportunity to raise environmental awareness in the office. Do you have any ideas for an Earth Day office party? The best I can come up with is vegan cupcakes in the park and an inter-department "use less paper" competition. I work for a publishing company that is relatively eco-apathetic ... sometimes we toss paper into the regular trash, and sometimes we toss non-recyclable ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, ecological footprint, green living (all these topics)

Quick and Dirty On paper plates	Umbra Fisk	28 Jan 2008	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, Maybe you can help settle this dispute between my husband and me. He likes to use paper plates for quick/short meals like toast in the morning, cheese and crackers in the evening, etc. He claims that he's saving energy by not having to wash a dish. (We have a new energy-efficient dishwasher and an on-demand hot water heater.) I say he's wasting paper unnecessarily, and besides, I hate seeing paper plates all over the place. Wh ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, ecological footprint, energy at home, green living, recycling (all these topics)

You Are What You Buy On the impact of food purchases	Umbra Fisk	19 Sep 2007	Ask Umbra
Hi Umbra, I practically live on Lean Cuisine (that brand specifically -- they are frequently on sale for $2 each). In my community, the plastic tray is recyclable, as is the cardboard box. The only thing that goes in the trash is the film that covers the tray. Microwave time averages five minutes per entree. Total dirty dishes: one fork. I have a friend who swears I'm a hypocrite -- that cooking is "better" ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, ecological footprint, food, green living (all these topics)

Heads You Lose On replacing toilets	Umbra Fisk	09 Jul 2007	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, I'm selling my house in Los Angeles and my toilet is not low-flow. One of the inspectors is trying to tell me I need to replace my toilet with a new low-flow. Well, I know the old ziplock baggie filled with water trick. But I saw that you made mention of some kits to reduce the flow from 3.5 gallons per flush to 1.6 gallons a flush. I believe in recycling. I don't feel that I have to replace my working toilet. Can I modify ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, ecological footprint, green building, green living (all these topics)

Prints Charming On ecological footprints, again	Umbra Fisk	14 Dec 2005	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, I have a couple of questions that relate to how I live and ask others to live. First, my guess is that many of your readers are above average in terms of income and education; who is the average American that we need ultimately to create a sustainable life for? Second, as we try to make our personal lives more sustainable, what is the ecological footprint we need to seek (i.e., square acres or miles or whatever ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, ecological footprint, green living (all these topics)

My Left Footprint On ecological footprints	Umbra Fisk	09 Sep 2004	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, I just took the Ecological Footprint Quiz, feeling rather confident that I've been doing my part to minimize my personal impact on environmental despoliation. But my results weren't reassuring. My ecological footprint is nine acres, which is much better than the U.S. national average of 24 acres per person, but still twice what the planet could sustain. In short, the quiz tells me, if everyone lived like me, we woul ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, ecological footprint, green living (all these topics)

The Pill of Chill On environmental stress	Umbra Fisk	27 Apr 2004	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, I'm the poster child for a late-twentysomething environmentally responsible adult. I use less than 100 gallons of gas a year, less than 100 kilowatt-hours of electricity a month, less than 20 gallons of water per day, less than 100 therms of natural gas during the winter in Minnesota. I take my garbage out once every two months because nearly everything is recycled, composted, or bought in reusable containers. My ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, ecological footprint, green living (all these topics)

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