SUSTAINABLE SESSIONS

Edward C. Little Water Recycling Facility Tour - 9/12/09

Sustainable Sessions — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 03:00:59 +0000

Ever wondered what happens to your water AFTER it goes down your drain? Join us on Saturday, September 12 at 9:30AM as we your the Edward C. Little Water Recycling Facility. I’ve reserved spots for the public tour as it fills up quickly. The flyer for the tour is available here.

Email us to reserve your spot! For more information visit the West Basin Municipal Water District website.

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Who Doesn’t Recycle?

Sustainable Sessions — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 02:49:00 +0000

This last week I was awakened to how fortunate I am to live in California, a progressive and forward thinking state when it comes to sustainability and our environment. A little over a week ago I departed LAX for my annual family vacation in a small town called Chetek, in northwest Wisconsin. Its a vacation town that sits around a chain of lakes and hosts numerous cabin filled resorts. My family has been going for just shy of 40 years, and myself since the day I was born. Only this last week did I realize something strange about this little town of Chetek. THEY DONT RECYCLE!

I was shocked! How is there a place in this country that doesn’t have a recycling program? The owners of the resort we stay at only collect and recycle aluminum cans (for obvious reasons). The first two days of vacation I insisted my parents save their recyclables until I could discover what to do with them. On Monday morning I immediately phoned Waste Management whose bright logo covered the face of the garbage dumpster. I was told that they don’t have a home recycling program for Chetek, or a collection site, and suggested that I call the city. So I did. I looked up the number and called Chetek City Hall and asked for the Public Works Department. I spoke with the head of Public Works and I was informed that there is indeed no city wide resident recycling program. However, there was a central collection site near the City of Chetek Sewage Treatment Facility.

So its hard to get 40+ people (forgot to mention I have a large extended family) to get the message about saving all their recycables, but I at least tried. I asked everyone to save their plastics and glass and told them I would pick it up on Friday to take to the recycling site. At the end of the week I collected all the goods. Most came from my immediate family as they felt the pressure the most (and probably did it to shut me up). But, I was able to collect some more from the rest of my family. It wasn’t as much as I expected, but hey, I still diverted 4 bags of recyclables from heading to the landfill. Next year, I’ll double it!

I always try to find new ways to be more sustainable. Here are a few tips I’ve been doing or discovered this week while on vacation!

When the water quality is poor, buy the largest jug of water possible and continuously refill your SIGG.
Those little worm containers can be used again. Next fishing outing buy the larger container and refill the small ones. Or just drop off the small containers back at the bait shops!
When traveling, bring your EMPTY SIGG to the airport. After you get through security walk into one of the restauarants and fill your bottle with water from the the pop (yes, pop, not soda) dispensers.

Earth Hour Event this Saturday

Sustainable Sessions — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 04:36:54 +0000

This Saturday, March 28th is Earth Hour. If you haven’t heard of Earth Hour check out their website and read more. In short, Earth Hour is a worldwide campaign making a statement about the importance of global climate change and the need to live more sustainable lifestyles. At 8:30pm local time around the world, homes, buildings, and cities will be shutting off their lights for 1 hour to support Earth Hour. Earth Hour is a great event for all of us to come together through Sustainable Sessions and show our support for this movement, educate ourselves, and socialize. The details are below, email us to RSVP and get the location for the event! (info@sustainablesessions.com)

Sustainable Sessions - Earth Hour

Saturday, March 28

6:30pm - Hi! I’m (your name here)

Start showing up to mingle and meet some other green minded people like yourself.

7:15pm - Saving Energy In Your Home

Kathleen Jacecko from TeachingGreen will lead us into an hour discussion about the importance of energy conservation. She’ll have tons of tips to share for where we can save energy and be better environmental stewards in our daily lives! www.teachinggreen.org

8:30pm - LIGHTS OUT!

Now that we know how to save energy, lets do it! We will shut off the lights and light up the candles! From here on is your time to meet more people, discuss the great things you learned from Kathleen, share more information, throw out ideas for another event, whatever you want! Of course with a good beverage in hand and a few snacks to munch on!

Energy 101 For Remodeling

Sustainable Sessions — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 05:19:11 +0000

Last night I was able to attend the South Bay Environmental Services Center (SBESC) class on ways to remodel your home with energy efficiency in mind. The class lasted about 1.5 hrs and was full of information for addressing every aspect of your home. Whether you want to replace an appliance, install new windows, or add a ventilation fan in your bathroom this class covered the basics of the choices for it all. Unfortunately, by the time I’m able to own a house in LA most of these choices will be completely outdated, or maybe they will have become the standard. For me, the most interesting part was to hear about all the programs and rebates offered by the various local utility companies. It seems that these companies realize the potential for these new products and also realize how much they can indirectly benefit from the savings they create.

I highly encourage you to keep up with

Story of Stuff

Sustainable Sessions — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 08:43:32 +0000

I know that many of you have already seen this video, maybe even numerous times. However, being as this site is fairly new and the group is just getting back on track I think its appropriate to link to the ‘Story of Stuff‘ and point out how cool of a video it is. For me, it really opened my eyes to understanding the entire impact that I have on the world. Go ahead, watch the video and see what you think! (http://www.storyofstuff.com/)

Opportunity Green Conference

Sustainable Sessions — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 07:08:44 +0000

This weekend, 11/8 - 11/9, I’ll be attending the Opportunity Green Conference at UCLA. I think this conference is going to be an awesome opportunity to see what some of the worlds leading corporations are doing to ‘green’ up their operations. Check out their website if you are interested in more information. I’ll try to at least post a summary of my experience this weekend!

Interested In Joining Us?

Sustainable Sessions — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 06:42:28 +0000

We are intent on maintaining the casual, discussion-oriented culture on which our group was initially premised but are very open to new members. We typically meet once per week and, depending on attendance, will meet at an apartment, the beach or a bar where we have reserved space. If you found out about our group from a friend and you are interested in joining us, just ask your friend if you can come with them to our next gathering! If you randomly came across our group, shoot us an email at info@sustainablesessions.com and we will get in touch with you!

Welcome

Sustainable Sessions — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 06:59:17 +0000

Sustainable Sessions is a community of passionate individuals brought together by a common interest for learning what it means to be ‘sustainable’. Based in the South Bay, just on the outskirts of Los Angeles and along the beautiful beaches of Southern California, we are focused on learning sustainable living practices of which many have direct effects upon the environment in which we live and play every day. We are a casual and open group that enjoy coming together to build relationships and collaborate with other like minded individuals. Please enjoy the site and the information contained within. Our apologies for the current information and functionality shortfalls, as the site is still under construction! Feel free to email us at info@sustainablesessions.com for more