sarah's sustainable life

i was able to catch a few lines of the newspaper the other day, and i’m very excited to share with you what i read! nissan is introducing in 2010 a new all-electric, zero emissions car called the leaf! i know this is not the first electric car invented, but as far as i know, it is the first to be mass marketed. the leaf is due to hit nissan dealerships late this year, but only in certain states (including texas!). what nissan did to introduce this product is, i believe, what sets it apart from earlier models and what will ultimately make it a success. this fall, nissan took the leaf on tour to the states in which it will be sold; leaf execs met with major energy companies (like CPS here in san antonio) to discuss recharging stations. the car is designed to go about 100miles in between charges. this means the leaf would be great for getting around town, to and from work, but on long trips, you would still need to take the old-fashioned gas guzzler as there may not be any recharging stations on the way to your final destination. how much will a recharge cost? that will largely be up to the regional power companies, and in the end, having an electric car might not save you as much cash as you’d hoped. however, as more electric cars become mainstream, the cost should even out nicely and we will have taken a huge step toward our independence from oil and oil producing countries that have had us under their thumbs for so many years.

i wanted to share with you this most interesting website i found. treehugger.com has created a climate culture calculator section where one can commit to taking a small action (say, riding a bike to work), calculate the carbon impact, and join an online community of folks taking similar actions for the environment. this is a GREAT idea; people are more likely to follow through on commitments others know about. also, and my favorite part of it all, it’s nice to know you are not alone. it seems most of the actions we take to be more green seem so small and isolated, it’s wonderful to know there is a large group of people making the same commitment, and to immediately see the results this action will have in the future. go to the website and see what other climate culture calculators you can find. this could be the new year’s resolution you were looking for!

if you have not visited a public school for many years, i think you would be surprised to find that in many places they are improving. when i was a kid, it was a dare to eat anything that came out of the cafeteria, let alone the playground, but all that is changing. it seems to be a focus of education these days to end the childhood obesity epidemic, and that’s only appropriate considering how many children in this country get the majority of their meals from the public schools (no finger pointing intended, well, maybe a little bit…) alice waters a restaurateur in california, and the author of several cookbooks (including one for children) has begun a program called “edible schoolyard“, encouraging schools to grow edible produce on their grounds where students can help cultivate their own food and learn more about agriculture while partaking in healthy eating. similar programs are springing up in other areas of the country as well. when i was teaching at the ohio state university, we did quite a bit of work with adventure central, an after school venue dedicated to helping inner city kids get back in to nature (including a very nice veg garden which they eat from and help sell at a local farmer’s market). i have also recently become aware of the white house garden started by the first lady, the first of its kind since the victory garden of WWII. michelle obama thus far has used the garden to educate and feed children in need in the greater DC area. what is going on in your neck of the woods? is there a program to encourage healthy eating habits for kids, or do you need to get one started?