I gave up regular shampoo for the year!(hopefully for life!) I started washing my hair with Dr Bronner’s once a week at the beginning of the year- the transition was a bit rocky (I wore a lot of ponytails and scarves the first 3-5 weeks hah) During lent used nothing but water to rinse my hair. This experiment when really, really well actually! I was so surprised! As long as I blow dried it it looked fine. Now I’m washing my hair once every two weeks with Dr Bronners and i don’t even have to blow it dry for it to look good (I’m glad because hair dryers can be unnecessary use of energy) I’m noticing some dandruff however, so starting in May I’m going to try out an apple vinegar rinse! This is supposed to be good for your scalp I love not using shampoo Now I smell like my homemade soap with out any fake chemical fruity smells in my hair! No shampoo is liberating and it makes the showers shorter!
This post was submitted by Margaret.
I’m not sure it is reducing my impact but here is.
I used to ride a bike to get around, then turned 50 and it wasn’t as easy
as it used to be to do so.
I got an electric bike.
It is much nicer for me.
But concidering that ittakes about 1 kwh to go about 10 miles, I don’t
need to eat as much to fuel my own energy - is it really reducing my
impact to go to an electric bike or am I just feeling more comfortable.
I asked this question to a physicist web site once but I don’t know that
the question was received.
Just curious
Good Luck
Raul
This post was submitted by Raul Marchand.
I am eating a lot less than I have ever… I am mostly on living foods… however do have the occasional brown rice, or stir fry. All vegetarian, no wheat, no dairy, only natural sugars.
Have a green smoothie everyday, and have come to the place where I want to learn how much it would take to grow enough greens to support my consumption of green smoothies… so I have began a garden inside, started a variety of greens and will see if I can’t support my smoothie habit.
This post was submitted by Dana Lynn.
My husband is a carpenter and generates a lot of sawdust and wood chips. He separates out the stuff from pressure-treated lumber, which we know it is saturated with all sort of toxic chemicals. You don’t want to be inhaling the particles.
But sawdust from untreated wood goes into our cat’s litter box. If you’re not married to carpenter, your local lumberyard probably generates more sawdust & wood chips than they know what to do with. You might be able to haul it away for free.
This post was submitted by Betty Barcode.
When I gave birth to my son two years ago, I knew that I didn’t want to use disposable diapers on him for a variety of reasons. But the idea of using those old fashioned cloth diapers that our parents and grand-parents used didn’t appeal to me either, since I am a working mom. That’s when I met a young woman in my local community who makes the so-called modern cloth diapers with PUL waterproof covers. There is nothing better then a rash-free baby’s bum and a clean dustbin outside.
This post was submitted by Almedina.
This tip is so universal and so important both for the child, mother and nature. It is a win-win situation on all frontiers. Mothers’ milk does not pollute, it changes with the baby, always ready and the right temperature, you will be on-the-go with your baby without any fuss over carrying heaters, baby bottles,sterilizers etc. You’ll save money, time and your child will grow into a healthy individual, both physically and emotionally.
This post was submitted by Almedina.
FOR PEOPLE WHO STILL HAVE SOME TRASH: I got some waterproof material (think broken umbrella tarp, shower curtain, or a plastic table cloths) and cut it into fabric I can use to line my trash bags. Since I went plastic=shopping-bagless, I needed something to carry my trash down to the dumpster in my apartment’s trash area. I carry the trash down, then dump it into the dumpster bins they have, saving the plastic material to be thrown into the laundry. It’s so easy!
This post was submitted by CC.
I hate using the air conditioner, but my windows face east, and we get a lot of light. I tried a month without A/C, and I had horrible migraines. Here’s what I did: 1. I got one of those emergency blankets that come in camping kits ($1)-it has a reflective material that bounces heat off. 2. I cut to size and taped the top of one end to the top of my window under my window shade. 3. Then I taped the bottom end to the bottom of my window shade. Now, when I pull my window shade string, the reflector gets carried up so the light comes in. When I want to close it, the reflector rolls right down with the shade and blocks the light, reducing my need to use A/C.
You could also try aluminum foil if you have it around; although I haven’t tried it, it should reflect the sun.
This post was submitted by CC.
This film spoke to us! We are already organic-goers, use cloth diapers, recycle, etc., but the film got us thinking that we could do more! We are making a list of what we want to do… first the laundry. We use organic cloth diapers and our 4 month old daughter uses a potty for her bowel movements and a lot of her peeing (she pees diaper sometimes). It took us only about 2 weeks to get us all trained on her using potty, easy! So, we just have to wash her peed diapers and wipes once (no cold wash required). The other thing we began to do is to use the “soak” cycle on our laundry; let the laundry sit for 20 minutes, then a short wash cycle. Use the dryer only when it is pretty full. Too little things in there, things take forever to dry and too much, the same thing happens. We wash several loads, then fill up the dryer and save energy! This is while we consider options to ease out of using both these machines. We want to be independent of electricity, in case there’s a black-out and also to save, save, save!
This post was submitted by Veronica.
I just watched your movie and it really was encouraging to see. I believe we are a no impact family as well, so it was nice to see all the stuff we went through. It all started when we got pregnant for my daughter and realized we wanted to eat healthier. After 7 years I am now finishing an associates in Alternative Energy Engineering, Shane my husband is finishing certificates in Organic farming, watershed, and horse management. With this and lifestyle we have the ever changing goal in our life that we want to live self sustainable. I do notice that after looking at all the problems and solutions, not only in our life in a micro level, but from what we learned in our education on a macro level, the most impact is: the change within us and rejoining ourselves in community. The beautiful thing about human survival is that our bodies down to our souls know what’s best for us, basically we are our own best healers, and once the awareness seed is planted it just keeps on blooming. I think what your doing is great because the impact that you are making is planting those seeds. For some it may not grow now, but will, they may just find a different way to nurture it. But the ones that are ready, the work is done, now they will feed that need inside of them, because it is so rewarding. Keep up the great work, and just to let you know you are not alone, we and many others are doing our part to be as informative as possible, that a no impact life style can work. We cant fix an energy problem without changing our energy. In sequence these are some of the things we did.
Did wilderness survival classes
Started to eat Organic and local food and stopped eating out
Had a home birth
Only shopped at thrift stores
Stopped going to the doctor and only used herbal remedies, this has been our biggest change and most work because it made diet changes
We did a short lived news paper on networking organic and CSA farmers, midwives, co-ops, and heath based businesses.
Took up blacksmithing
composting
Joined co-ops
Drove a grease car
Went without deodorant (many complained)
Sewed our own clothes
Made our own shoes out of recycled tires
Did our own laundry, now we have resorted to just the drying part
Doing homeschooling
Got rid of our TV
We Lived off the grid for a few months on just a wind turbine, and solar panel on a CSA farm.
Bathed out of buckets, and took solar showers
Walked
Make our own soap
refused gifts
where natural fibers
cloth diapers
Do limited water dishes
recycle everything
bartered
Got involved with local government
Traveling working on farms for food and life style, at that time we moved alot
Took up playing instruments
Grey water system with our toilet
Made a composting toilet
Took up gardening, and raising livestock
Immersed ourselves in community
Got involved with education that involves sustainability
Do research on corporate buy outs of products
Surrounded ourselves with support
We haven’t gotten to the place where we want to be yet and sustainability and no impact has fluctuated to work with our life changes, But our goal is to have a low net energy community farm. We love this lifestyle and want to see how far we can take ourselves while still being a part of society. We are now just starting business called “Potential Energy” where we do a life cycle analysis on peoples lifestyles and give them resources, ideas, to improve change with their lifestyle, themselves and with their community, as much as they can and our willing to do.
We just really want to see the change in people, with out them feeling uncomfortable, and representing that in what we do.
Lots of love, Beth, Shane and Leda Celeste
This post was submitted by Beth Celeste.