Sunday, June 15, 2014

The Picture Behind The Title of This Blog

The picture of the barn in the morning mist is one I took a couple of years ago on my friends' 300+ acre farm in Wisconsin. Their kids are grown and they have regular jobs down Illinois way, if being a doctor and a writer can be considered regular. 

So when his family's farm became available, they bought it. How many of us have wanted to do something like that? Purchase the place where we grew up? Well, they went and did it. Now they live and work in the Chicago suburbs during the week and hang out at the farm on weekends. 

Needless to say they have help. There's the guy who plants the fields and brings in the crops. And another guy who tends to the cows. That's because they decided to raise grass fed Angus and harvest [the new euphemism for slaughter] a few from time to time for people who have room [and money] for half a side of organic beef in their homes. Meanwhile, they've been focused on completely renovating the original farmhouse and outbuildings. 

I tasted the beef and it's delicious. I have also tried Bill Kurtis' Tall Grass beef, but that beef tastes like fescue in comparison. As if someone took a perfectly good piece of meat, then covered it with the smell of grass clippings.

With the farmers' markets getting under way, I just thought it would be nice to show some solidarity with a way of life that's fast becoming extinct -- the family farm. I love the barn they restored. And they added this Amish fence. 

Friday, June 13, 2014

This Is Unexpected

This was just posted on the League of Conservation Voters Facebook Page

ICYMI: Senator Sheldon Whitehouse wrote a great editorial breaking down reasons why Congress should craft policies to #ActOnClimate – and he corrects some polluter lies along the way. Read it here: http://bit.ly/1pN1ie1 

If you would like to show your support for Senator Whitehouse’s efforts to address climate change, you can do it here: http://wefb.it/xKcryy

Thursday, June 12, 2014

Burt's Buzz - Official Trailer

Fans of Burt's Bees' homespun products will enjoy this trailer for an upcoming documentary about the guy who thinks a good day is when no one shows up.  Read about Burt and the movie HERE.



DELETING UNWANTED EMAIL NOTIFICATIONS

If you were a follower of the former blog, Go Green Northbrook with the URL -- gogreennorthbrook.blogspot.com -- you might be receiving email notifications from a brand new blog with that exact same name and address. 

That blog is NOT associated with the Go Green Northbrook organization. It is written by someone named Reginald Ricca. And he posts about health issues, not green issues. 

In addition you may also be receiving email notifications from this blog, Go Green Activist. 

So -- how do you get rid of all those emails notifying you that something has been published? On a blog you may not want to follow? Go to the bottom of the email notification and click on UNSUBSCRIBE. It's that easy. 

Sorry for the inconvenience. 

The current Go Green Northbrook blog associated with Doug Gerleman's group has been integrated into the gogreennorthbrook.org website. You can view it HERE.

This blog -- Go Green Activist -- is no longer affiliated with Go Green Northbrook. 

Confused? We were too. You can thank the folks at Blogger. 

Friday, June 6, 2014

Eschew the Plastic Bag. Choose a Reuseable.

Teenaged Activist Abby Goldberg posted a letter she sent to the Evanston, IL aldermen who have been hemming and hawing about a ban on plastic bags for a long, long time. Read and learn what your town can do to wean themselves from plastic to reusables.




Come on City of Evanston Illinois Government! You've got this! Make a reusable bag Evanston's bag!

I couldn't make a community meeting last night about plastic bags, but I sent the Aldermen of Evanston a letter and the local newspapers. Here is a portion:

Board, community and committee meetings show that you know legislation can work. You also know that recycling and other incentives are not working. Recycling is put on a pedestal whenever the word ban is mentioned. Because you know, if we were all a little more thoughtful and brought our plastic bags back to the store, we wouldn’t have a problem. This is easier to believe than changing our habits. It is easier to believe then having our retailers, legislators and bag makers be responsible for a solution! It is easier to believe than having you and everyone else who cares about this issue come together and actually work out the best and maybe difficult ordinance. We are living in a world where we want to do what is easiest and cheapest with no thought to the consequences. I am here to tell you that sometimes the hardest things are the right things to do! We cannot wait and wish that all retailers do the right thing and stop giving out plastic bags and we cannot wait any longer for bag makers to take responsibility for their product. I am glad you know that the city needs to take action now.
Although we cannot wait any longer, we must take steps to do it correctly. The good news is that since many communities have adopted plastic bag legislation, the hard work has been done for you. Examples of great legislation that is working is in place in other U.S. cities and other countries. The best proven legislation is either a ban on plastic bags with a fee on paper or simply a fee for all types of carryout bags. This type of legislation guarantees a change in consumer behavior with no financial burden on businesses. A free bag of any kind is not part of the solution. Legislation that addresses all bags is the solution.
It is my greatest wish that Evanston work with all who have experience, knowledge and commitment to this issue. You need to work together because you all want what is best for the environment and the city. You are all the solution to plastic bag pollution. Please know that I am willing to help to help in any way I can.
Thank you,
Abby Goldberg

Sunday, June 1, 2014

The Promise of Solar Roadways: Scott Brusaw at TEDxSacramento



Here's the SOLAR ROADWAY WEBSITE with every video you've seen show up in your Facebook feed. And some you may have missed, like this one.