Healthy Living
Is Your Toilet Paper Dirty?
What’s in your bathroom cupboard? If you’re buying toilet paper made by Procter & Gamble, that purchase contributes to the destruction of rainforests in Canada and Indonesia — one million acres of which are razed every year to make what you’re flushing. Every day ONE MILLION TREES are cut down to make TP!
Who Needs Therapy When You Have Stranger Things?
Last year, I wrote about watching “Stranger Things” with my daughter. I described how the series helped us connect during the pandemic. I was conflicted about whether or not to publish the piece, but finally felt that sharing what we went through might be helpful to other parents – and it was. I heard from so many people that they had also shifted habits, gotten more lenient with things like television watching and chores, all in the name of making things a little bit easier for our children, who were going through so much.
Why I Only Wear Reef Safe Sunscreen (and You Should, Too)
May is Skin Cancer Awareness Month, which is great for people but often fails to keep in mind the planet: Many awareness campaigns from sunscreen companies don’t disclose that the chemicals in their products can damage ecosystems — especially in the ocean. Are you using reef safe sunscreen? Here’s how to find out.
The Beautiful World of Sally Rooney
I just finished Sally Rooney’s Beautiful World, Where Are You. I’m not giving away any spoilers with this reveal: The Irish author’s third book is narrowly focused on four characters; one, a writer, seems to be a stand-in for Rooney. The plot is straight out of a Brontë novel — there’s even a brooding Heathcliffian love interest — and the prose can be distractingly cold and distant. But the questions this book forces readers to contemplate — wow. I’ve never read anything like it. Have you?
Flood Zone Homes
Last week a flood zone home in a beachfront North Carolina town partially collapsed into the Atlantic Ocean, scattering boards and debris that floated as far as seven miles. The cream-colored clapboard beauty with the bright-blue shutters was built in 1980 and had recently been listed as a vacation rental. Its dismantle must have been shocking to residents of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, where the home was located, but it didn’t seem to make much of an impact on a national scale. Why? I think it might have something to do with Celsius.
Giving Tuesday: Nonprofits That Matter
As we approach Giving Tuesday, I wanted to take the opportunity to present a few organizations that I believe in and support. Have you earmarked your end-of-year giving? Please consider these nonprofits, which force corporations to do better, defend democracy at a local level, and empower emerging BIPOC conservationists. Let’s do this!
Healthy Recipe: Chocolate Chunk Cookie
I’m not a huge foodie. I don’t follow chefs on TikTok. But when I want to make something that’s plant-based, gluten-free, and delicious, my go-to is Anna Getty’s Amalgam Kitchen. These healthy recipes go beyond good for you and your family — they’re yummy and easy to make, with step-by-step photographs that Anna takes herself. Want to score Anna’s amazing Tahini Chocolate Chunk Cookie with Smoked Sea Salt recipe? Read on!
How To Get A Sustainability Degree (Without Quitting Your Day Job)
I began working with brands and nonprofits — and writing about sustainability on EcoStiletto and Mommy Greenest — during what now feels like the dark ages. I was basically fumbling around, absorbing the wisdom of scientists like Arlene Blum, doctors such as Dr. Leo Trasande, and leaders including Ken Cook of the Environmental Working Group and Annie Leonard of Story of Stuff. But things have changed since then. Now you can get an actual degree in sustainability, which can lead to a high-paying position. And guess what? Through asynchronous online programs, you don’t have to quit your current job to study. Want to learn more? Read on!
