Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution

I am a kid in America and I can honestly say that I do not think that I have learned enough in school about nutrition and cooking in school-- and I took home ec and actually paid attention in health class. Health education is not made relevant enough in school-- All we do is fill out sheets on what we ate for a week and get told to eat our fruits and veggies and cut back on the sweets.

I don't really know how to cook a healthy meal. I don't really know where to get good produce or how to tell when things are ripe. Not everyone learns those things at home and I wish my schools taught me early on to be more involved in my food choices.

And that is what Jaime Oliver's food petition is all about. He wants to send the president a message about how many Americans want their kids to know more about where their food comes from and how to make healthy choices in an active, engaging way. You'll notice that we have a new eco badge in the right hand bar. That's for signing the petition! click that or the link above to sign it too!

The website also showcases recipes and restaurants that he thinks live up to his ideas about fresher, healthier food.

Urban Growth

I am a huge fan of urban gardens and urban farming. I've yet to start my own garden at home but rest assured, seed catalogues have been ordered and my parents are great gardeners, my grandmother, an expert. Hopefully they can help me along the way as I try to grow things on my own (I'm starting off with watercress!).

MNN just did a feature on several beautiful and creative urban gardens which you can see here.

Some of them are space-saving vertical gardens-- plants growing sideways off of walls and buildings. Check out this tutorial on Modish to learn how to set up your own vertical garden of low-maintenance succulents.

I also enjoyed reading a copy of a magazine called Urban Farm which talks about growing methods, techniques, and stories about urban farmers, from tips on starting a community garden, to where to buy supplies, to inspiring stories about eco-inspirations like Anna Chan, The Lemon Lady. I would really love to get a subscription to this.

Urban farming seeks to increase the local food supply in urban or even suburban areas by maximizing space and using innovative, creative methods of working with nature. I first became intrigued in the idea after watching an excellent documentary called Fresh where they showed a man named Will Allen who had created a farm in the middle of Milwaukee! I was inspired to find ways to do more to grow my own food. I want to start off with watercress and work my way up. My family already grows lettuce, spring onion, asian pears, eggplant, peppers, tomatoes, blueberries, and more in our backyard. I want to get in on this.

By diversifying our food sources and growing things more locally, we are ensuring our community's food security. For those of you all who don't know what that term is, it is basically the security of our food supply. This encompasses three main things:

Availability: Is there food? Can we feed our community with the food we have?

Accessibility: Can we get to the food? Can I pick it up at the local grocers? Is it affordable?

Utility: Is it nutritional? Am I eating more than just dyes and chemicals?

Believe it or not, Americans can be food insecure, and it's not just those living on the streets that face food insecurity. Americans living in urban areas are often in food deserts. (Wipe that smile of your faces guys, DESERTS not DESSERTS.) Think about availability: how much fresh food can you get? Accessibility: Is it affordable? Utility: That poptart you just ate? That hot pocket? How much nutritional value are you getting out of it? This is why urban farming is on the rise: protect the food, protect the people.

There are some great resources out there for people looking to learn more about gardening and farming. From magazines to newsletters to websites and documentaries. Go explore the world of urban farming and gardening!

Green Your Back to School : Terracycle!

Perhaps you've never heard of this amazing company called TerraCycle. TerraCycle collects trash sent in to them by collecting squads and turns the trash into treasure! They are so good at upcycling that they are even getting their own show called Garbage Moghuls premiering on National Geographic this Saturday at 7.

Not only does TerraCycle save thousands of tons of trash from hitting landfills (not today, Frito Lay!), but they also donate to charity! To date they've raised over 1.2 million dollars for charity.

You can help TerraCycle by becoming one of their trash collectors and get money in donations for it, too! They collect things from candy wrappers to drink pouches, yogurt cups to cookie wrappers, cellphones to Aveeno Bottles, gum wrappers to pens! Click here to find out what they collect and how to get in on the upcycling!

TerraCycle has a page dedicated to upcycled school products. Here are my picks:

Homework Folder : Drink Pouches

One-inch Three Ring Binder : Chip Bags -currently not available-

Mini Back-pack : Starburst Wrappers -currently not available-

Sketchbook : Candy Wrappers -currently not available-

Spiral Notebook : Candy Wrappers -currently not available-

Messenger Bag : Old Billboard

Purses : Candy Wrappers

They also sell toys, gardening equipment, home products and more!

carbon neutral!

I've been doing a lot of work around Adventures in Freshness and my other blog, A Dandelion Day. I've been tuning up the looks and the widgets and all other sorts of madness. One thing I'm really proud of is that I am making them both carbon neutral! All the emissions from my blogging are going to be cancelled out by a tree planted in honor of my little blogs.

Want to make your blog or website carbon neutral too? Or maybe you'd just like to read more about this initiative.

Click the link above!

Now I get to put this cute little badge on my blog. Check out the leaf in the sidebar!

Back To School Shopping!

With a new school year coming up and almost zero funds for new clothes, I have a mission for myself! This year I will try to gain all my clothes at second-hand stores or handmade.

Why secondhand?

Think of all the clothes that get thrown away every year. Tons of it. Literally hundreds of tons of clothing that is perfectly wearable! By getting clothes second-hand you are freeing up that space and reducing your waste. People have this mentality that if it isn't new, it's ew, but that's absolutely not true.

Try going to a thrift store-- although you have to dig through a lot of hideous old lady clothes and christmas sweaters, you can find some real gems. For example my $12 prom dress! Or you can find things that only need slight alterations, or maybe if you're creative you can do a whole decon-recon effort on it. You'll find that a lot of vintage clothes are built better than the stuff you get at American Eagle or Forever 21 that practically dissolves in the washing machine. They're stronger and will therefore last you longer.

There's also consignment. Consignment stores sell old clothes for other people at a fixed return rate. It's pricier than thrift stores but things are usually in better condition and more expensive -- designer dresses usually end up here.

Then there are yard/garage sales which can be iffy, but you can haggle which is pretty sweet. These can be hit or miss.

Finally, swap-meets! Have a clothing swap party with a bunch of your friends! Invite your friends to your house to trade clothes. Ask them to bring ten items of clothing that they don't wear anymore -- maybe they don't fit right anymore, may they're trying to go for a new look, or maybe they're just sick of wearing it. Have tables set up to lay clothes on and let the swapping begin. Have somewhere available to try clothes on. You can to the same with accessories too!

Buy handmade/local

When you buy from a local seller you are supporting a real person, not a giant corporation exploiting massive amounts of resources. The materials come from closer, you can be sure that people are working for the money they deserve, and you develop an actual relationship with the people you're buying from. It's quite exciting. Buying handmade is great too. You can buy through sites like etsy.com and get some really unique stuff that isn't mass produced. You're supporting talent and skills that are in danger of being outmoded by soulless machines!

Need more ideas on where/how to get your eco-friendlier wardrobe?

Thrifty Chicks Thrifting Guide

MNN: 10 Places To Get Back To School Clothes On The Cheap