Monthly Archives: October 2010

Do Green Energy eBooks Really Deliver?

There are a number of ebooks on Clickbank and other places that talk about ways you can generate energy at home. They sound pretty good, but if you take a closer look, they have a lot of problems. The biggest problem is that they don’t deliver exactly what you’re hoping for.

Solar, Wind, Magnetic?

There are a few products out there, going on about how you can generate enough energy to run your entire home on solar, wind or magnetic energy for cheap. Matter of fact, you can build it yourself at a reasonable cost!

These schemes work well because we all want to save money on our power bills. Make it sound cheap and easy to do it in a green way, and people will go for it. They even include plans for building the product and tips on how to get parts for cheap.

Let’s start with solar. You can’t make your own solar cells. You can buy old solar cells and connect them, but they aren’t going to be good enough for what is claimed, and may not be safe to run.

Good quality solar cells are expensive, although the situation is looking better with thin film solar. You need professional installation to make sure the installation is done safely. You aren’t going to be allowed to connect your system to the grid if you don’t have a safe product correctly installed.

Wind sounds easy, but have you ever looked at a wind farm? Those towers are tall for a reason, and the blades are very long. This is necessary to generate a reasonable amount of power.

As for magnetic, they’re blinding you with terminology to hide the fact that they’re promoting a perpetual motion device. It will not keep working on its own.

Are these products good for anything?

Well, they might make interesting science fair projects for kids, but I wouldn’t be hooking the result up to my home. They also provide some reasonable tips on saving energy in your home, but you can probably find that elsewhere.

If it were really so easy to make systems that generate energy for homes, there would be entrepreneurs all over the place making these and selling them. Don’t believe in schemes to keep these things hidden. If these things are so simple, it would just take an enterprising soul to buy the books, start building the systems and home and selling them for massive profits that are still less than you’d pay for the real thing.

I’d love for green energy to be cheap and affordable. It’s not yet, and that’s the reality. We need to support the real green energy solutions so that they can be improved and made cheaper over time.

How Do You Avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup… I Mean, “Corn Sugar” in Your Food?

There’s been a lot of talk about how unhealthy high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is. There’s been enough talk that the industry is changing its name to “corn sugar” in the hopes that people won’t realize they’re the same thing. They go on about how it’s perfectly safe in moderation, without noting how, in the standard American diet, it’s really hard to consume HFCS in moderation. That stuff is in foods you’d never expect to need sweeteners.

No matter which side of the argument you’re on, you can probably agree that avoiding unnecessary sweeteners is a good thing. Most of us don’t need the extra calories or the potential health issues. It pays to know that studies are showing definite issues with HFCS, such as a study done at Princeton where rats fed HFCS gained more weight than rats given table sugar, even when the total calories were the same.

There’s one simple step that will help you avoid significant quantities of HFCS: avoid processed foods.

It’s amazing when you look at the labels of processed foods and realize how many of them are sweetened, usually with HFCS. It’s massively overused because corn subsidies make it a very, very cheap sweetener. It’s one of the big reasons why I don’t like corn subsidies. There are many crops I would rather see grown.

You will also need to look at things like the bread you buy. Many store bought breads are made with HFCS. I was quite surprised to see sugar, honey and molasses listed on the ingredient list of my favorite store bought bread, which costs less than many other brands. Too often that’s not the case.

Rather than eat processed foods, focus on cooking from scratch. Yes, it is more work. With a good attitude, cooking is something you can look forward to. Give yourself some time and you won’t think all that well of the taste of processed foods.

Fresh fruits and vegetables are a big part of this. In season is best, but go with what’s available to you to keep things fresh rather than processed.

Try a variety of grains too, rather than sticking with basics such as rice. My kids don’t like quinoa on its own, but if I cook it with the rice, they like the combination better than rice alone. I like that we’re getting something a little better than plain rice out of the deal, and it’s no harder than making regular rice. I even use my rice cooker.

Most especially, avoid most sodas and fruit drinks with HFCS added. Some sodas have regular sugar added instead, and if you want a soda, that’s a better choice than HFCS sweetened products. Some juice drinks have significant amounts of sweetener added, and very little real juice involved. Check the ingredient list and go for the real stuff if you’re after sweet.

When you’re talking about your health, you have to pay attention to what you’re eating. Don’t let a name change fool you into thinking a product is new or better. You’re better off eating foods where it’s clear what they were made from, rather than processed into blandness, then sweetened to make them more appealing. The flavor variety of real foods is far more interesting.

FTC Changing the Rules on Green Marketing

Greenwashing is a constant problem when you go shopping for eco friendly products. So many product claims have no legal definition. Fortunately, the FTC is in the process of changing that. They’ve proposed revisions to their “Green Guides” that help marketers avoid making misleading environmental claims.

Can I say about time?!

These guidelines haven’t been updated since 1998. A lot has changed since then in the marketing of eco friendly products.

There’s a comment period open until December 10, 2010, after which the FTC will make the final decision.

So what are the changes proposed?

The revised Guides caution marketers not to make blanket, general claims that a product is “environmentally friendly” or “eco-friendly” because the FTC’s consumer perception study confirms that such claims are likely to suggest that the product has specific and far-reaching environmental benefits. Very few products, if any, have all the attributes consumers seem to perceive from such claims, making these claims nearly impossible to substantiate.

The proposed Guides also caution marketers not to use unqualified certifications or seals of approval – those that do not specify the basis for the certification. The Guides more prominently state that unqualified product certifications and seals of approval likely constitute general environmental benefit claims, and they advise marketers that the qualifications they apply to certifications or seals should be clear, prominent, and specific.

Next, the proposed revised Guides advise marketers how consumers are likely to understand certain environmental claims, including that a product is degradable, compostable, or “free of” a particular substance. For example, if a marketer claims that a product that is thrown in the trash is “degradable,” it should decompose in a “reasonably short period of time” – no more than one year.

They’re looking for comments on any of the changes, so if you have thoughts, now is the time to share them.

These changes won’t cover everything. That’s really not a surprise. It’s hard to come up with a good definition for “natural” for example, that could never be used in a misleading way, as it so often is now. I expect that it’s going to continue to be wildly abused since it’s not going to be regulated. Such an easy claim to make, too.

The rules in general may not be terribly specific, but environmental claims are hard to define in general. Hopefully these new guidelines will encourage more use of concrete evidence of claims made. In other industries such as weight loss, claims must be proven, but that’s more difficult  when it comes to the environment and we don’t always know the full impact of what we’re doing.

These guidelines aren’t law, but they do give the FTC a basis for declaring claims to be deceptive or unfair. They can order companies to cease and desist making claims that aren’t reasonable to make, or fine them if they violate the cease and desist. It’s not perfect, but it’s a step in the right direction.

But it’s still going to be up to consumers to pay attention and spot the greenwashing claims. These new guidelines should help, but they aren’t going to solve the problem.

Are “Things” Getting in the Way of the Lifestyle You Really Want?

It’s easy to want a lot of things these days, easy to have a lot of things too. The things many people consider to be normal parts of a normal life now weren’t a part of life not so very long ago. Yet these things can all but take control of your life, leaving you feeling as though you don’t have time for the things that really matter to you.

That’s why simplifying your life is such a good idea. It gives you more time for the things that really matter to you.

What Do You Enjoy?

The first thing you need to do is figure out what it is that you do enjoy in life. That’s going to be different for each of us. It might be more time with family, more time to read, more time to do things outdoors, even more time for work you really love. It’s a matter of personal priorities.

You want to focus here on the things you enjoy doing that you really could do if you just had more time, not just the things you dream about. Dreams are wonderful, but the focus here is on things you could be doing in a short period of time. That’s not always possible with dreams.

What’s in Your Way?

So, what’s stopping you from doing the things you enjoy? What changes can you make in your lifestyle so that you can enjoy your life more?

Some things, of course, you won’t want to give up. Some things you shouldn’t give up. But possessions that distract you from the things you’d really love to do are perfect. Get rid of those things that are keeping you from the lifestyle you want.

This could be electronic gadgets that you enjoy playing with, but take up the time you know you could be spending on simpler pleasures. These may be things you enjoy more when you get around to them, but the ease of electronic entertainment makes you forget about them.

This could be clutter around your home, that makes caring for your home take more time. All that stuff you’ve been meaning to get rid of… get rid of it.

Cutting back on excess things in your life means you don’t have to pay for electricity to run them. You don’t have to keep them clean anymore. You don’t need space to store them. Get them gone and you gain some space at the very least. You might even get some money if it was something worth selling.

Think of the Environment

Another point to consider is the environmental impact of all the things that are so easy to acquire. Are they really worth it? Do yo give much thought to the impact these things have on the environment simply from their creation?

This is a time to remind yourself why you want a simpler life. It’s better for the environment and it’s more meaningful to you. You get something that means something to you when you simplify, whether it’s a chance to hike through amazing natural areas or growing your own garden or enjoying some other hobby.

These are things that matter to you. They’re things you can teach your children as they get older. They’re things you’ll be glad to remember later on, rather than just recalling nights spent in front of the television.

What things are in your way?

Have You Added the 4th R to Your Thinking?

Anyone concerned about the environment knows the 3 Rs – Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. But there’s a 4th R, and it goes in front of the rest.  It’s related to Reducing, but may be a stronger reminder that you should be cutting back on what you buy.

It’s Refuse.

Refuse that plastic bag to carry your purchases. Refuse single use containers. Refuse unnecessary packaging whenever possible.

This isn’t easy to do in some ways. Packaging isn’t something you have much control over in some ways. Dodging that plastic bag when you shop by bringing your own reusable bags is easy, drinking water from a reusable bottle is easy once you build the habit, but actual product packaging you have only a little control over.

Even if you just do the easy things, you’re making a difference. Millions of water bottles are thrown out every year by Americans. Use your reusable bottle and help others to see how much fun it is to have your own bottle. It’s not all that inconvenient, after all, and the savings versus buying single serve, single use bottles comes quickly.

Pack your reusable bags in your trunk or someplace else where you’ll actually remember to bring them every time you go shopping, not just at the grocery store, but anywhere you shop.

The most challenging part is refusing to buy things that are overpackaged. It’s the area you have the least control over.

Some things you can buy online with less packaging, such as those products available with Amazon’s Frustration-Free Packaging. The selection is limited, but better than when it started. You can also seek out products locally that aren’t as heavily packaged, but you still face the challenge of getting something that isn’t heavily packaged.

When you’re stuck with packaging, think about what can be done to reuse it before you send it for recycling. Anything biodegradable can go in the compost pile. Some packaging materials can be used in crafts or to store other things you already own.

You can also avoid excess packaging by buying in bulk when possible. Buy concentrates and refills when they’re available. This is a habit that can save you money as well as reduce waste.

In general, we need to think when we shop. It’s not just what we buy, it’s how we buy it. Think about what you really need, consider the packaging, consider how you’re going to bring it home and try to make the best decision for your situation. You can make a difference by showing that you care how things are packaged and using less single use packaging whenever possible.