Healthy Living

Although I don’t think the Girl Scouts are going to be selling boxes of CFL lightbulbs instead of cookies any time soon—why change a good and delicious thing?--groups of other stripes are always looking for creative ways to raise money for their organizations. Now your group can choose to sell recycled paper goods, green home cleaners, energy-efficient showerheads, and yes, low-energy lightbulbs through several Web-based green fundraising organizations. You register your group on the Web site, tell your prospective buyers to visit it and make their purchases, and your group gets a check in the mail.

LetsGoGreen.biz and Greenraising.comoffer groups the opportunity to earn between 25% and 40% of the price on each eco-conscious product their friends and relatives buy. This percentage is not as high as on traditional fundraising items—typically 50% to 75%--because traditional items are mass-produced, often overseas, thus cheaper to produce, making it easier to pass on a greater percentage of the profit. But green fundraising contains an educational and pro-environmental aspect—for both buyers and sellers--that can make up for the lower profit.

And if consumers like the products, they can keep on buying through the fundraising websites, generating additional income for the group after the initial drive is over. So if your group can operate with a steady stream of income instead of a one-time payment as in the traditional model, green fundraising may be something to think about.

Now if only there were a way to keep on buying Girl Scout cookies…

Dr. Alan Greene, a pediatrician on the faculty of Stanford University’s School of Medicine and on the board of directors of The Organic Center, Boulder, Colorado, has developed an “organic prescription” of ten foods and crops you can buy that, in a single dose, can purify both your body and the planet: milk, potatoes, peanut butter, baby foods, ketchup, cotton, apples, beef, soy, and corn.

Dr. Greene bases his guide on his assessment of which pesticides are most harmful to humans, along with the negative effects of antibiotics, synthetic hormones, and chemical fertilizers. His choices are also based on how growing these crops organically reduces greenhouse gas emissions and toxic chemicals in air and water, and stems the depletion of non-renewable resources and the uncontrolled spread of genetically modified organisms.

“Many people first exploring organic foods begin with fruits and vegetables in hopes of reducing their exposure to harmful pesticides,” Dr. Greene says. “Choosing strategic organic foods can indeed quickly and dramatically decrease your family’s exposure to worrisome pesticides. While this is very useful, fruits and vegetables are only part of the diet, and pesticides on the plate are only one part of the health story.”

To read more about Organic Rx and view videos about each of these crops, visit www.drgreen.com.

Photo by svanes.

Conscious Lifestyle was founded on the idea that we don't have to wait for elections to make a change. Everyday we have an opportunity for vote for kind of world we want through ordinary actions: eating food, investing our time, choosing how to dress, talk, etc. In this globalized world even small, sometimes overlooked actions, can have a ripple effect that can be felt around the world. In a word, it's about living a lifestyle in which we are aware of how our decisions affect other people and the environment.

Whole Foods' Whole Body campaign reflects the philosophy behind Conscious Lifestyle. Consumers who are already eating organic and local foods may want more, say, cosmetics, herbal supplements, or toothpaste that's all natural. Whole Body provides information and products on those "beyond food" topics. There's even a podcast for the really ambitious.

Some may see Whole Body as an expensive business move that goes one step too far. Nonetheless, it is a step in the right decision. Whole foods led the way in making local and organic foods mainstream. Perhaps it will do the same with the other products we buy.