Eco-Vlog

Every parent wants to do what’s best for their baby, and making your own baby food is just one of the many considerations toward that goal. If you’ve decided to learn how to make baby food at home, you may feel overwhelmed. Thankfully, with some information and helpful hints, you can begin creating homemade, healthy meals for your little tike. Pros and cons of DIY baby food An important note: commercial baby food must meet high safety and nutritional standards. So, if you choose to go with store-bought baby food, it’s okay! However, the DIY approach offers many advantages. One pro of homemade baby food is that you know exactly what’s in it. This allows you to skip seasonings, sweeteners or other ingredients that may concern you. If your child has food allergies, homemade baby food also allows you to target potential problem foods. Making your own food also limits waste from pre-packaged foods. Additionally, some parents find the DIY technique less expensive. Perhaps one ...

New research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences  has revealed that a super-enzyme engineered in the lab can degrade plastic six times faster than a previous plastic-eating enzyme. The super-enzyme, engineered by a team of scientists from the University of Portsmouth, is expected to help boost efforts to recycle plastics . Many single-use plastics end up in landfills and bodies of water. But the new super-enzyme could help rid of such waste. The super-enzyme was developed in a lab by linking two separate enzymes found in a plastic-eating bug, which was first discovered at a Japanese waste site in 2016. Because the two enzymes could not combine naturally, scientists initiated the process of engineering a super-enzyme by combining the two enzymes. In 2018, the first official plastic-degrading enzyme was engineered to break down plastic within a few days. The scientists say that the super-enzyme breaks down plastics at a rate that is six times faste...

https://youtu.be/MNnyqQWK_zg This is the real process I discovered when creating a video to rebound from burnout and I was toast and after doing this, I felt fresh, revitalized and I have felt that way ever since! In this episode of The Lifehack Show, I'm diving into the 6 strategies you can use to rebound from emotional burnout and get back on it. from Lifehack - Feed https://ift.tt/3n4cM0b via IFTTT

The innovation was supposed to save us water. But now, in shocking commode news, the water-saving organization Waterwise has revealed that dual-flush toilets actually waste water. Waterwise estimates that between 5% and 8% of U.K. toilets are leaking a total of 88 million gallons per day. Dual-flush toilets allow users to select from a small flush for liquids and a larger flush for solid waste , a design intended to save water. This type of toilet usually depends on a drop-valve system. The valve sits underwater and opens for a flush. But debris can catch in the valve, resulting in leaks and constant running. Related: High-tech public toilets proposed for San Francisco can recycle rainwater for reuse “Because we’ve got so many [loos] that continuously flow all through the day, collectively that water loss is now exceeding the amount of water they should be saving nationally,” Andrew Tucker, water efficiency manager at the U.K. sewerage company Thames Water, told the BBC . “The volu...

In a bid to sustainably create more inclusive and connective space in Mexico City, local architecture practice BAAQ’ has rehabilitated Dr. Atl 285 — an industrial structure from the late 1960s — into a mixed-use community hub topped with a productive urban garden. Located in the neighborhood of Santa Maria la Ribera just west of the historic center, the adaptive reuse project responds to the area’s ongoing densification process that has attracted a younger population in recent years. In adapting the building into a community-forward space rather than tearing it down to start anew, the architects have also carefully preserved the cultural and architectural heritage of the the structure while minimizing the project’s environmental impact. Primarily built with reinforced concrete beams and columns, Dr. Atl 285 was originally used for industrial purposes. The architects left the reticular concrete structure exposed in a nod to the building’s past while inserting new cubic elements of w...

In a bid to sustainably create more inclusive and connective space in Mexico City, local architecture practice BAAQ’ has rehabilitated Dr. Atl 285 — an industrial structure from the late 1960s — into a mixed-use community hub topped with a productive urban garden. Located in the neighborhood of Santa Maria la Ribera just west of the historic center, the adaptive reuse project responds to the area’s ongoing densification process that has attracted a younger population in recent years. In adapting the building into a community-forward space rather than tearing it down to start anew, the architects have also carefully preserved the cultural and architectural heritage of the the structure while minimizing the project’s environmental impact. Primarily built with reinforced concrete beams and columns, Dr. Atl 285 was originally used for industrial purposes. The architects left the reticular concrete structure exposed in a nod to the building’s past while inserting new cubic elements of w...

They look so happy. I bet they never fight. Why can’t my relationship be like that... We’ve all been there, thumbs scrolling social media looking at the enchanted lives of our former co-workers, schoolmates, old flames, and total strangers, wishing we could switch places with them for just a moment. We spend time examining their images and captions as we flog ourselves mentally for all the choices made that brought us to the present moment, somehow thinking it's “our fault” that their lives look so great and ours feels so crappy. Psychologists have coined this the comparison trap, and there is no doubt that the invention of social media has made the trap much bigger and harder to get out of.((Psychology Today: The Comparison Trap )) Depending on how many people you are connected with on social media and their frequency of posts, you face a daily onslaught of smiling faces and orchestrated moments designed to show how grateful, happy, positive, focused, and productive they have bee...

Once upon a time, you woke up and decided to become the hero of your own tale. You decided that what you have to say matters. You decided what you had to give could make a difference. And you decided that you could make this world better. There would be a happy ending. That hero is in all of us. Sometimes, you may forget how much you have to offer. Even the smallest good deed has a ripple effect. When you give, you develop a better perspective, peace of mind , and appreciation for life. You stop focusing on all your problems when you go out and help others. You take on tasks that others may not feel like doing. You show kindness in places that need it. You don’t overlook anyone or anything around you. There is always something you can do to help. The key is to start where you are. And once you start helping others, you’ll want to do it again and again. There's a study in 2012 where researchers found that upon reflecting ways one had helped another, it motivated them to want to help...

Hopefully, deodorant is a daily part of your life. You use it after a shower, you buy more when you run out, but you probably don’t think about deodorant much. Well, it’s time to start. Most deodorant comes in a plastic tube with a plastic top, both of which eventually get tossed in the trash. Every time you go through another tube of deodorant, you add to the plastic waste problem that experts predict will soon overwhelm the world. But now you have a new, eco-friendly option: Wellow deodorant. How is Wellow different from other deodorants? This one creates no waste. Wellow contains no plastics, no toxins and no reason to feel guilty. The product’s paper tube uses 95% recycled post-consumer paper , making it biodegradable. In fact, the tube will completely biodegrade in less than three months. Even the print on each tube uses an eco-friendly plant-based ink. This deodorant’s natural formula includes quality ingredients designed to be just as effective as mainstream deodorants. Han...

“If your mind is empty, it is always ready for anything, it is open to everything. In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s mind there are few.” ~Shunryu Suzuki So many of us come to meditation through our suffering. Nearly everyone who has come to walk the spiritual path can spin a tale of sorrow, frustration, and often devastation. Through our life struggles and difficulties, we become conditioned into habitual patternings of mind that seem to offer us no escape, and often turn to meditation to find relief. I always say that anxiety was my first spiritual teacher and it began teaching me at a very young age. I spent a great deal of time and effort attempting to control my experience in order to limit my suffering. I’ve now come to see that the illusion of control is the root of anxiety, as our stresses are exacerbated by our inability to accept “not knowing” what will happen in life. In my early forties life handed me a situation that would event...

Winemaking is one of the world’s oldest arts, spanning thousands of years. This has evolved into an industry that fuels destination travel, wedding venues and lively dinner conversation. Now, we can add sustainable practices to that list of accomplishments with a new line of wines by Proud Pour, whose aim is to inspire the environmentalist in everyone, even those who simply want to enjoy a pleasant glass of wine. Proud Pour began in New York City in 2014 when founder Berlin Kelly realized wine could be an avenue for environmental improvements. “I was living in NYC and drinking almost every night with my friends when I learned that NY Harbor has lost 95% of their wild oysters ,” Kelly explained. “I launched Proud Pour wines to raise money for NYC oyster restoration with the Billion Oyster Project , our first environmental partner.” Related: The differences between organic, natural, biodynamic and sustainable wines It’s easy to be inspired to save oysters and their habitat, becaus...

This week, the California State Fish and Game Commission unanimously voted to protect Western Joshua trees. In a move that is first of its kind, the Joshua trees will be protected for a year under the  California Endangered Species Act . During this year of protection, researchers will analyze threats to the species. The Western Joshua trees are beautiful, tall trees that are native to Southern California. They have become the first plant species in California to be granted protection from climate change. The vote now means that all the Joshua trees in the state will not be harvested for any purpose for a period of one year. In the meantime, a team of researchers will be looking into the state of affairs of the trees. After one year of research, the commission will have to make a decision as to whether the trees will be protected permanently or not. Related: Water pollution inspires the Lake Erie Bill of Rights to improve water quality The petition that has been approved was su...

World leaders are looking toward a post- COVID-19 world and planning to put the planet at the center of recovery plans. More than 60 countries, including France, Germany and the U.K., have pledged to promote sustainable economic systems and slash pollution by 2050. The Leaders’ Pledge for Nature was introduced on Monday with 64 signatories. By signing, leaders promised to address issues such as deforestation , ecosystem degradation, illicit wildlife and timber trafficking, the climate crisis, unsustainable fishing and environmentally harmful subsidies as well as to take steps to transition to a circular economy. Related: UN report shows global warming could pass 1.5°C limit before 2030 “Science clearly shows that biodiversity loss, land and ocean degradation, pollution, resource depletion and climate change are accelerating at an unprecedented rate. This acceleration is causing irreversible harm to our life support systems and aggravating poverty and inequalities as well as hung...

Located at the top of a mountain in Colombia’s Calandaíma River Valley, Casa Volcanes is a stunning home that promotes indoor-outdoor living and natural materials . Martínez Arquitectura kept the project budget low by choosing local and handmade elements in its redesign. Eighty percent of the woodwork for the home was reclaimed from demolition deposits in nearby Bogotá. Dark materials are used both for economic value and to highlight the raw sensation of the building’s relationship with its environmental surroundings. The architects chose handmade chircal brick to continue the home’s theme of blending seamlessly into the forest. Its location in Anapoima, just two hours from Bogotá, provides incredible jungle views and serene scenery that are enhanced by the locally sourced building materials. Related: This Costa Rican treehouse is built entirely out of locally sourced teak wood “Its hot tropical climate is a discovery of sensations and surprises. From time to time, you can fe...