Actually Earth Day was yesterday, 22nd April, and I must say I had a pretty good one.

I actually spent the morning at Pasir Ris Park walking through the mangroves on a boardwalk. Yes, who would have thought that our very own “pristine” little park in Pasir Ris has a mangrove. I was pretty surprised too. I mean I’ve of course heard of Sungei Buloh but never thought there was another one closer to home. We spent time with the Handicapped Welfare Association and NParks volunteers who walked with us through the Kitchen Garden and the mangroves.

With Stella (3rd Runner up) and Amira (1st Runner up)

I got a chance to flex my muscles that morning and pushed a wheelchair the entire way through in the sweltering heat while listening to the tour. The various plants of Kitchen Garden are commonly used in culinary cooking and the garden that grows them is, hence, affectionately named Kitchen Garden. The mangroves were full of various biodiversity but probably not as much as I remember seeing in Cek Jawa.

Coincidentally in line with the Earth Day theme, it’s also the time of the month where I feature a green beauty and her eco-friendly tip from the Miss Earth calendar. What better month to feature my dear and close friend Miss Earth Philippines, Sandra as she was here just last month. I had a good time showing her around and doing all sorts of girly stuff together. Also, this month is when the Miss Earth Philippines pageant comes to a close! This means Sandra will be handing over her crown to her successor.

In fact, I’m going to her Coronation in Manila tomorrow and I’ll see the crowning of the new Miss Earth Philippines 2010 first hand! Whoooohoooooooo!

So as part of her farewell routine, I will help her share her green tip featured in our green calendar.

Iron clothes twice-a-month mass to save electricity.

Instead of ironing one shirt a day, why not be economical and efficient and iron your clothes mass?

When it comes to old plastic and glass bottles, we generally use them as vases. But what can you really do with these bottles that will make a big difference to our environment?

How about using them to build cheap and stable houses? Sounds impossible?

Oh yes you can.

Someone in Mexico has done it. I was realllly impressed when I saw these photos so I thought I’d share it with you guys.

Isnt this amazing?!! The bottles are filled with sand and they provide great insulation. After all the painting, you really can’t tell it’s a house made out of plastic bottles! Definitely a very good idea if you ever need a house. Haha.

Share with me! What other eco-friendly things do you do with your plastic bottles?

Image source

If you’re intending to prune your trees, plants or even mow your lawn this Saturday (why you would do that on a Saturday I have no idea), gorgeous Miss Earth Venezuela, Jessica Barboza, has a tip for you. Not only is this girl a looker, she is also smart. Jessica is a lawyer and was one to look out for during the entire Miss Earth pageant. I remember seeing her for the first time and wondering how such a beauty could exist. She reminded me of Victoria Secret Angel Alessandra Ambrosio! But this beauty has an important green message to spread, and I’m sure she’ll do it well as 2nd Runner up of the Miss Earth pageant. Here’s her green tip from the Miss Earth calendar.

Instead of bagging cut grass, they can be left on the lawn to rot. These will decompose and contribute to soil enrichment.

We can do the same for our plants. If leaves dry up and fall off their branches, instead of throwing them away, sweep them up and put them back in the pot as fertiliser! You save money, save your plants and save Mother Earth.

During Earth Hour today, if you’re afraid of not knowing what you can do to entertain yourself, here are some fun things you can do while the lights are out and STILL reduce your carbon footprint!

1. Have a green dance party!
In the blackout hour today, call a few friends over to your place, get them all dressed in green, turn on the radio, pop in a feel-good CD and just dance your night away in the dark! One track I would recommend is Whitney Houston’s I Wanna Dance with Somebody. Such a classic feel-good song! While you’re at it, use a fan instead of the air-conditioner because air-conditioners are not environmentally friendly. Or just have your party outdoors!

2. Tell ghost stories in the dark
Turn off your lights, draw the blinds and curtains, light a solitary candle and huddle round in a room with lotsa pillows. Start by sharing your spooky stories and soon enough you find time has gone by in an instant! Even better if you could have your story-telling in the dark forest with tall looming trees in the background. Sets the ambiance don’t you think?

3. Go out for a romantic walk by the beach or in a park.
Air conditioners produce a LOT of CO2, more specifically 3605kg of it. But spending your night outside in the fresh air? 0kg. So why not take your loved ones out to the East Coast Park for a leisurely stroll and enjoy the beautiful sea breeze. You can also sit in one of our lovely parks and have a quiet tête-à-tête.

4. Star light, star bright.
Because of light pollution, it’s generally quite hard to star-gaze in our little island. But because tonight, we’ll have our lights off during 8.30pm to 9.30pm. Take this time to and act out the scene from Twilight. Go to a meadow, lie down and sparkle, watch the stars. No sunlight for you to sparkle in though. The stars, however, will twinkle in the dark night sky because it’s their time to shine.

5. Take a cold shower.
A hot shower will produce 110kg of carbon dioxide (CO2) but a cold one produces NONE at all! Some energy is used to deliver the water to the house but you can always try to reduce it by having two people in the shower. Hahaha!

Any other ideas for something fun you can do during Earth Hour in the dark?

If you haven’t heard of the terms Earth Hour, climate change or carbon footprints, you possibly have been living under a rock. With the Copenhagen climate change summit happening in the past couple of months, and talks of renewing the Kyoto Protocol, all eyes and ears have been alerted to the issue of environmental degeneration.

Carbon is the main culprit in the destruction of Mother Earth. Regardless of our activities, we leave carbon footprints. The Singapore Environment Council’s Carbon Calculator (www.climate-change.sg) calculates that the average Singaporean household produces 9200kg of carbon dioxide a year. If this continues, our carbon emissions may heat up the planet by 4 degrees by 2100. The recent heat wave here in Singapore was a massive testament to erratic weather patterns caused by climate change.

Yes, I am a firm believer that the weather patterns have changed owing to the increased carbon emissions us humans have released into the atmosphere. The ozone layer has thickened, trapping more heat and thus Earth’s temperatures are rising. Our planet is sick because we have polluted it. The bad news is, if Mother Earth dies, we die along with her.

*cue ominous music and the screaming of people*

Just kidding. It’s not that bleak a picture. There is good news: we can start NOW. Every little change we make at this current time will help in the long run. I know it seems like a monumental task for one person to “save the earth”, but tis really simple if you contribute what little effort we can. You dont need to make life-changing decisions to be part of this project, all you really need is baby steps, one day at a time.

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. ~ Lao Tzu

Other than the green tips I’ve been dishing out once a month, another baby step you can take begins with Earth Hour.

What is Earth Hour you ask? Earth Hour conceptualised in 2007, started in Sydney, Australia when 2.2 million homes and businesses turned their lights off for one hour to make their stand against climate change. Only a year later and Earth Hour had become a global sustainability movement with more than 50 million people across 35 countries participating. The movement symbolizes that by working together, each of us can make a positive impact in this fight, protecting our future and that of future generations.

In March 2009, hundreds of millions of people took part in the third Earth Hour. Over 4000 cities in 88 countries officially switched off to pledge their support for the planet, making Earth Hour 2009 the world’s largest global climate change initiative.

The idea is simple: For one hour on the 27th of March 2010, households and organisations around the world will turn off all non-essential lights. You can do your part to help fight global warming by pledging your support at the Earth Hour Singapore site.

The WWF estimates that 1.6 million Singaporeans took part in the event last year. Despite the event being a week away, so far more than 3000 individuals and 300 organisations have signed up for Earth Hour in Singapore. Will you be joining in the event this year? I know I will.

This week, I’ll also post a list of simple things you can do for Earth Hour this year!

What cool or fun things can you do in conjunction with Earth Hour? Share your ideas!

This month and the following others, I’ll be featuring the Top 4 winners of the Miss Earth contest! They’ll share with you their environmental tip; the little things we can do to help save the our planet.

Starting with the 3rd Runner Up, Miss Earth Fire: Miss Spain, Alejandra Echevarria Pedrajas.

Green tip: Use a bike when going on short distances. One less car on the the road means lower carbon emissions and cleaner air.

Increased carbon emissions in the ozone layer trap more heat and increase the greenhouse effect. This causes global temperatures to rise, damaging crops, changing weather patterns and melting icecaps. By reducing carbon emissions, we can slow down the greenhouse effect and prevent global temperatures from rising.

From the Helping Animals website:
What does ABC stand for? Animal birth control, of course! PETA’s new ABC campaign tackles the issue of companion animal overpopulation and urges people to do their part by taking simple steps to help end this crisis.

In her ad, Dita urges fans to “bone up” on their ABCs and, if they are considering adding a dog or a cat to the family, to adopt from a local animal shelter and be sure to get their new family member spayed or neutered.

Good advice from the sexpert, I must say. I am a HUGE animal lover and seeing abandoned animals on the streets breaks my heart, much less thinking about the animals that have to be put down.

A pet is for life. If you’re intending to adopt one, be sure you will take responsibility to care for it, feed it and love it; an animal’s life, is still a life nonetheless.

Okay. Well, sort of. The recent Miss Earth competition put all the girls competing in a calendar.

A green calendar, of course. We were all given a green tip and had to model the tip. It’s pretty fun to look at the calendar and the tips cause it reminds me of all the amazing girls I met and our strong messages for the environment. But that aside, they are helpful green tips that you can use everyday! It’s the small little things we can do for our environment that will make the bigger change.

Because not everyone can lay their hands on this limited edition calendar, Ima be nice and feature one tip a month with one hot girl of course. Haha. Who doesnt like to look at calendar girls right? I’m obviously starting off with me: Miss Earth Singapore, Valerie Lim. Picture self directed and shot outside my own house. Haha!

Green tip: Save energy by loading your washing machine to its full capacity.

Instead of washing a little laundry each time, load your washing machine to its maximum capacity and cut down the number times you have to do laundry.