Bringing It Home

by Matt DeNoto

It’s true. The Green Revolution does mean more work for you. It means you will be expected to put thought and effort into reducing the amount of… well, everything you use. It means remembering to grab those reusable bags before heading off to the grocery store. It means looking for ways to cut out waste. And for some people, that alone is enough to turn them off entirely. Life is busy enough as it is, and one more thing to worry about would just… bring about the end of the world or something.

Fortunately, a lot of smart people are looking for ways to make it as easy as possible for us. After all, we’re living in the Information Age, where all the data to help us make our lives better is right at our fingertips.

For instance, Google has teamed up with a number of utility companies to take advantage of ‘smart meter’ technology to create an easy-to-use PowerMeter widget, which lets residents track exactly how much power they’re using in real time. Having that kind of instant feedback can be a powerful tool to inspire folks to turn off the appliances they’re not using, or perhaps take the extra moment to unplug those ‘vampire devices’ that suck down energy even when they’re off.

Another helpful tool to make greening your life a little easier is Earth 911’s iRecycle app for the iPhone and iPod Touch, which helps you quickly find local disposal locations for all your different kinds of recyclable waste.

And of course, the less water, gas and electricity you use, the less you have to pay for.

But the best way to save electricity is to not use any at all. Villages in Brazil have been reusing old 2-liter soda bottles to get free light all day long. How do they do it? Check out this short video to see the clever method and its fantastic results. They even compare the light quality between the soda bottle method and regular light bulbs. For those looking for something a little more stylish than soda bottles hanging from the ce iling, there are companies like Solatube installing similar systems right here at home.

I’m afraid it’s time to begin reevaluating those things we feel we have a ‘right’ to. Just because you work all day does not mean you can come home and leave lights on all over the house. Just because you have so many kids to take care of doesn’t mean the water can be left running while you brush your teeth. The world doesn’t ask much, just a bit of consideration.