Something near and dear to my heart

If you've never heard of menstrual cups, they're the best thing since sliced bread. Really. No, I don't work for one of the cup companies. I own a cup, and I wished somebody had told me about them when I first got my period. Not only would I have saved a lot of plastic from going into the landfill, but I would have also saved a lot of money, and wouldn't have had to deal with that diaper-rash like thing that you get after using disposable pads for a week or so. (They really are like wearing a diaper).
And they're a lot more comfortable to wear than pads or even tampons.
There seem to be more and more companies popping up every day. A couple of years ago, there were only The Divacup (Canada), Mooncup (UK), and The Keeper (US), but now there are the Lunette (Finland), Femmecup (UK), and Moon cup US (Made by the same people as The Keeper).

There also cloth menstrual pads that you wash and reuse. It's really not as gross as it first sounds. I've been using them for over 2 years. They're much more comfortable than disposable pads, and don't create any waste.
As I'm sure you already know, plastic is horrible for the environment. It takes approximately 1,000 years to degrade.
Not to mention the chemicals that they put into tampons.
There are a few companies that make cloth menstrual pads, (Gladrags, Lunapads) and there are also lots of patterns online if you want to try making your own. I would recommend using PUL as a backing if you're going to make your own, so that they don't leak through to your panties.

The Story of Stuff. This is a great short movie.

Ottawa proposing new car efficiency standards

Transport Minister Lawrence Cannon said Thursday the government is working towards a “made-in-Canada” solution to reduce the fuel consumption of new cars and light trucks by 2020.

On Thursday it announced that it will launch a consultation process that will help create new rules for fuel economy.

As promised last year, Cannon said Ottawa will begin in 2011 to regulate the fuel consumption of new vehicles. The aim is to at least match U.S. standards by 2020.

“By 2020, the average new vehicle sold in Canada will have a fuel consumption better than some of today’s hybrid cars, and produce fewer GHG emissions, than approximately 93 per cent of all vehicle entries listed in the 2008 Fuel Consumption Guide,” said Cannon.

In 2006, the combined new vehicle fleet (car and light trucks) average fuel consumption was approximately 8.6 litres per 100 km in Canada.

“The U.S. Congress has recently set an ambitious target of 35 miles per gallon, or 6.7 litres per 100 kilometres, for the average fuel economy of new vehicles sold in 2020,” said Cannon.
Link

Starting in 2011? They’re hardly even trying, are they?

Hybrids are good, but they still emit pollution. We need to move away from oil products, and greenhouse gas emissions aren’t the only reason. The world’s supply of oil isn’t going to last forever, and what are people going to do when it runs out? Alternative fuels aren’t being developed quickly enough. With estimates that the world will run out of oil as soon as 4 years, we’ll all be left out in the cold, literally and figuratively.

New year’s resolutions

One of my resolutions for this year is to use fewer plastic bags. People used to look at me strangely when I’d say “that’s ok, I don’t need a bag”, but people are starting to get used to it, which is a good sign.