This is Earth Week and Arbor Day is on Friday, so it is the perfect time to find ways to improve the health of our lives with plants and eco friendly practices.

My husband watched “Green Fire”, a movie about Aldo Leopold the “father of modern conservation”, and is now reading his book, Sand County Almanac.  Cedar Rapids held a fabulous event last weekend called Eco Fest sponsored by may local organizations.

What are you doing to celebrate Earth Week or Arbor Day?  Is your community doing a ‘clean up project’ or other event to beautify your area?  Have you been able to spend time outdoors appreciating the wonders of Mother nature?

Share your thoughts at the Eco Family Blog http://blogs.extension.iastate.edu/isuecofamily  or our Eco Family Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/pages/ISUEco-Family  !!

Kristi

• Stepping stumps  – develops estimation skills required for math, balance and body awareness
• Log balance beam  – develops awareness of material properties and physics, large muscle strength and self confidence
• Tree cookies (slices of a trunk that can be used as building materials or flooring) -  develops small and large muscles, physical strength, math and science skills, imagination, problem solving, language and social skills!

If you are lucky enough to have a hollow log or even a rotting one, both can provide endless hours of exploration and learning about the natural world.  Talking about decomposition and habitat are much easier when you have real live (or dead) examples!!  Please don’t be afraid of letting the kiddos get dirty.  They need to experience messiness in order to be good scientists, chefs, engineers and pilots, teachers,  fathers and mothers!

If you are thinking about introducing some natural items to your outdoor (or indoor) play spaces, consider the elements of a well designed space to maximize children’s learning.  Nature Explore, a collaboration between the Arbor Day Foundation and Dimensions Educational Research Foundation is a leader in research behind outdoor classrooms. Arrange the outdoor space into well defined activity areas. For example, place the building area near a flat surface and provide lots of standard blocks as well as sticks, tree cookies,  stumps, stones, bricks and other items that children can experiment with.   Choose a separate area for climbing and crawling like a series of stumps of varying heights (keep them under 18″ if you have children under age 5),  a hollow log and a balance beam.

They also have great resources for your family, church or school to use at  www.natureexplore.org.

What experiences have you had with downed trees?

Kristi

After watching the PBS video on happiness, 3 young cousins sorted their toys and gave away a huge pile! Another family went through their clothing, donated some, consigned some and developed an ingenious system to use all year so they would know at a glance what they had worn or not worn in the last year. Everyone talked about what a new economy would look like and what it would take to make the change from a scarcity focused consumer culture to an abundance focused cooperative society.  We pondered what it would be like to localize our energy, food and other goods and services.

Most households are doing many best practices for sustainable living.  We shared what kind of  ‘changemakers’ we thought we were.  It takes connecters and worker bees, teachers and investigators, writers and speakers, and many more talents to create sustainable neghborhoods and communities.  We will look deeper into how to enhance relationships with our neighbors close and far away during May before our June  online gathering.  It was interesting to see how our conversations about the material things we choose are closely related to the relationships we have with others.

This month we are exploring resources about food – what we eat, where it comes from, how we can influence food systems.  Please join us for “FOOD” in the next Eco Family Virtual Conference! We will be looking at how to make sustainable choices about a very tasty topic!!  http://www.extension.iastate.edu/linn/news/live-green-2013

What’s in your pantry?

Kristi

We want to generate enough energy to replace our current electrical use.  We have a couple of options – to install an array (several modules connected to each other) of photo-voltaic (PV) cells on our roof or as a stand alone in our yard.  Jason taught us about the electrical engineering of the system and how it works to bring electricity into our home.  I am excited to watch the meter run backwards on those sunny days!  He helped us consider our shade trees, our roof style, direction, elevation and slope to think about the best possibilities for solar PV installation. 

We looked at 12 months of current electrical use and he calculated the type of system needed to supply our current energy needs.  Our nearly 35 year old roof can easily hold a 4lbs/square foot solar array, however we do need to think about how old our current shingles are and if we want to upgrade before the installation. These babies (PV cells) will last for 30 years! I don’t want to have to take it down to re-do the roof in a few years.

Then we looked at the tax credits, loans, rebates and incentives that could make it more affordable for us.  Although we get our electricity from a local co-op and rebates are not available, there are still some good options that will help shorten the payback time.  You can learn more about solar incentives at www.dsireusa.org  We still have some research, thinking and talking to do before we decide anything, but I am encouraged at the potential to change my power source from coal to solar.

I have been watching the industry for decades and wondering when the technology would become affordable and practical for home owners.  I think it has arrived!  Germany has been doing it for years and has much less solar exposure than Iowa does!   We are choosing to work with a NABCEP (North American Board of Certifed Energy Practitioners) Solar PV installer. You can find one in your area at www.NABCEP.org

Iowa has great solar resources – we trust it to grow our crops, why not trust it to power our homes and businesses?! What bright ideas do YOU have about solar power?

Kristi

We invite you to come and tour our new office space, meet staff, and learn about some of these programs including
♦ Parenting Education Consortium
♦ 4-H (K-12 Youth Outreach)
♦ Eco Family
♦ Master Gardeners
♦ Play and Learn
♦ Nonprofit Management Academy
♦ Family Finance
♦ Expanded Food Nutrition Education Program
♦ and so much more!

Stop by on your way home from work or bring the kids – we’ll have a fun hands-on Science activity for youth to try.  You’ll be be able to visit with a Master Gardener about any of your plant questions, learn tips on how you can live a more eco-friendly life,  gets tips for balancing your finances, hear about many of our upcoming classes and events  and much more! 

Questions?  Email benesh1@iastate.edu  or call Linn County Extension at 319.377.9839. 

Please note: The handicapped entrance is at the back of the building and you may use the lift at the bottom of the stairs to reach the second floor.  If you need any special accommodations to attend or have any questions, please let us know in advance.

Hope to see you live and in person!!

Kristi

10 years ago, my husband and I tried to get rid of a piano that ‘came with our house’. It was no longer “tunable”. It was HUGE and took up sooooo much space in our family room that we  barely avoided hernias each time we moved it to make room for our growing family’s activities.  We tried to sell it, give it away, donate it but NO ONE wanted it.  We did not have the desire or skills to transform it into a useful piece of furniture and freecycle did not exist in our community.  I hate to admit this publicly, but, we pried it apart, heaved it out the back door, dragged it (with the pickup truck - that’s how heavy it was!) and burned it. We both looked at each other and said ‘this is just wrong!’ On one hand, it felt wrong to destroy a musical instrument, but it was equally wrong to have stuff that didn’t bring us joy and took up so much energy and space.  We vowed then, that when we brought anything ‘new’ into the house, something had to go out. We have honored it some times and not others.  But we certainly are better at choosing carefully the belongings we know we have to store and maintain.

This month, participants in the Eco Family Virtual Conference are exploring the story of stuff in their lives. They are taking action to adjust their consumption, simplify and enjoy life MORE! The virtual conference is actually a flipped classroom, meaning you get all the videos and materials and even have cool activities you can do at home all month before we gather online.

Reigster today for only $15 and see what a difference you can make in the Stuff that makes up YOUR life! http://www.extension.iastate.edu/linn/news/live-green-2013 

What’s the story of stuff in your life?

Kristi

Several  families started unplugging electronics to reduce ‘phantom power’ waste and reduce their electric bills. The kids are asking a lot more questions and showing more understanding of sustainable living issues.  A dad said “This class got us talking and thinking more than we have about sustainable living. One mom is planning to look at the last 2 years of electric bills and help the family set goals to reduce electricity consumption each month.  She plans to give the kids allowance bonuses when they reduce their useage! One family has cut their water usage by 23% compared to the same month last year!  Another family is using gray water – saving shower water and using it to pour flush toilets.  Another family said This class has given us an opportunity to find other small changes we can make around our apartment to help the environment.”

AND, they are NOT being quiet about it either! They are telling their co-workers, family members and friends about the changes they are making to live more sustainably!

We are offering you a special deal this month.  You may have missed the first 3 months of the Eco Family Virtual Conference, but now you can’t use the excuse that you can’t afford it.   YOU can attend the last 3 months of our series for only $45.  And that is for all the friends you can gather around your computer!

Register here: http://www.extension.iastate.edu/linn/news/live-green-2013

Join us today!!  Our next topic is STUFF and the materials and videos are waiting for you to explore them before we meet online on April 4.  Get in on STUFF !  Here’s the catch – you have to tell us (and others) what you learn about living sustainably!  What did you discover this month?

Kristi

YOU TOO can get in on the action by signing up for Month 3 of the Eco Family Virtual Conference and start exploring the educational resources we have gathered for you on ENERGY! You can still watch the recorded sessions on Water (January) and Living Green (February) and explore those resources, too!  It is only $70 for your whole neighborhood or extended family, provided you can get them all in the same place – might have to plug in the big screen or rent the movie theater to get all your closest friends there! Better yet, call your local county Extension office and see if they are hosting an Eco Family Virtual Conference there!  You have to bring your own snacks!

As Sara Stikx said “I peeked” at what is coming next month, and it is SO amazing that I can’t wait to try some of the new ideas! Tell us what you are learning about living green in 2013!!

Kristi

Eco Family Virtual Conference Sessions will be held the first Thursday of each month from 6:30-8:00pm:
• January 3- Water (watch the archived session after you register!)
• February 7- Living Green
• March 7- Energy
• April 4- Stuff
• May 2- Food
• June 6- Neighbors

Do the math, if you want all 6 sessions, it is actually less than $12 month. (if you miss a session, you still get the monthly archived on-line gathering and access to all the materials!)  Pick what fits YOUR family’s schedule!

Get all 6 monthly topics for $70 or choose one for $15. Register now!
http://www.extension.iastate.edu/linn/news/live-green-13-eco-family-virtual-conference

How will YOU live green in 2013?

Kristi

You don’t need thousands of red wigglers to do this, we started with just a handful and they reproduced so much that we shared worms to get at least 16 households, a high school ag classroom, a couple of 4-H clubs, my egg farmer and a young agronomist in the composting business.  Well, not really “in business’, but we were able to expand the opportunity for individuals and families to divert food waste all over Iowa and beyond, 20 fold!

We now have two vermi-compost bins in the office.  The Super Snack Lady, our school nutrition educator, snagged a pickle bucket from a local restaurant and it became the  second one now residing in our volunteer coordinator’s office.

People ask if it smells.  No, unless we wait too long to put the scraps in the bin and they have started rot. Then I bury the really ripe pieces a little deeper so the worms will work on it right away.  But, I have to tell you, the harvested compost smells SWEET and FRESH! Our little friends prefer to be ‘incognito’, so we cover them with about 3 inches of shredded office paper and they do their work quietly and quickly each week without fanfare. The perfect environment is 55-75 degrees fairenheit, dark and moist with a 50-50 mix of green and brown goods.  The green goods are high in nitrogen and include things like avocado skins and pulp, banana peels, apple cores, kiwi and broccoli trimmings.  The brown ingredients are carbon based and include coffee grounds, tea bags, paper towels and that sort of thing. There are some things that do not compost well - meat, dairy, salad dressing and other fats.  We do, however, add clean, crushed egg shells about monthly for some calcium to the mix and to keep the pH balanced.

How much food waste does your household throw into the garbage can each week? Would you consider composting it? Tell us about it  at http://blogs.extension.iastate.edu/isuecofamily/

Kristi