Post-Apocalyptic Self-Sufficiency

The best blogging advice is "write your passion." Blogs also tend to be more successful and interesting if there is a particular theme--I think I've found my niche. I'm thinking of keeping my other social-networking blog for more personal items, and this space for one of my passions: self-improvement. This is kind of a misnomer as I see self-improvement as socially-conscious decision making, healthful choices, and doing a little here and there to improve not only our lives but becoming aware of how one may help others.

In the medical field, doctors take an oath to "do no harm." Currently, out society is endlessly pelted with the news coverage of a warming planet, a "Planet in Peril," how to be more "green" how to foster sustainable energy, the benefits of a plant-based versus meat-based diet...etc. Being eco-friendly is the new black and in order to be more compassionate to your fellow citizens and your animal friends, I'd like to express how I try to "do less harm." Here are a few things I do, and a few you can try too to be less socially harmful.

Buy certified Fair Trade products when you can. Fair Trade advocates payment of a fair price and a staple economic self-sufficiency and environmental standards related to the production of a wide variety of products that we use and consume on a daily basis. I have always been a proponent of fair trade, not only because Free Trade is rather exploitative, but because products tend to be organic and healthier. I try to find Fair Trade products whenever I can, and while they are sometimes pricier than their counterparts and slightly harder to find, the benefits are overwhelming. Here are a few I use:

(1) Trader Joe's Organic Fair Trade Breakfast Blend Coffee

(2) Certified Fair Trade Malbec-Merlot (available at Target) this wine tastes like a delightful combination of cherry and dark chocolate (my fellow winos will understand) and won an eco-friendly award to boot!

(3) Maxim Organic Cotton Balls--These are Fair Trade and available at CVS

Another way to behave in a socially conscious manner is by purchasing vegan products. While I abstain from consuming meat of any kind and lean towards vegan myself, this doesn't mean you have to go vegan to use vegan products. Many of the products you use every day unnecessarily contain animal by-products (certain nail polish remover and certain vitamins containing gelatin for no real reason as several brands make the same exact product without it) or are tested on animals. Research shows that nearly all products can be successfully tested without the exploitation of animals. And with the scientific community inching towards more available means of testing such as cloned human tissue (not as icky as it sounds) testing on human skin for products consumed by humans seems to be working better than testing on the cheaper and crueler option--defenseless animals. For more, click here

There are some fabulous make-up companies that are vegan (and some that offer several awesome socially-conscious options:

Urban Decay My personal fave shades are "baked" and "gunmetal"

MAC Cosmetics Let me forewarn you that MAC is severely NOT vegan...though some of its products happen to be, for instance the Sheertone Blush Tints are cruelty-free. Plus MAC started the Viva Glam campaign to raise money for AIDS charities and runs a recycling program as well.

An easy way to identify vegan products at Sephora is by identifying this seal :

While this does not guarantee cruelty-free or vegan, it most-likely is and it DOES ensure that the products have less of all the bad icky stuff I'm talking about and is certified organic. All of this means it's better for the environment and your skin!

An additional way to save the planet (or at least do our part) is by going paperless. I haven't gone completely paperless yet because I'm old fashioned when it comes to bill paying and bank statements (scared of the interwebz!!) but I do pay several bills online and subscribe to a few online versions of magazines instead of getting hard copies. My job also recently went paperless having our pay statements and training materials available online and allowing only direct deposit as a form of payment.

You can find more ways to go green here

If you have ways to help the environment, your fellow (Wo)Man, or animal let me know!