Spotlight on Green Is Sexy: Helping the Environment One Tip at a Time
Admittedly, there are days when it feels like the fight for the environment is a losing battle. Leaps and bounds in the right direction can suddenly amount to nothing when news of more polar bears drowning in the arctic reaches home and earthquakes of epic proportions devastate entire countries. But never fear. Sure it’s easy to feel guilty, but guilt gets us nowhere, and the ladies at Green is Sexy would agree. “That feeling of green guilt can be really inhibiting,” said Rachel McAdams in a 2009 interview with Vogue, adding “It’s about a changing mind-set, remembering to turn off the water when you are brushing your teeth.” Started by three like-minded friends, Green is Sexy is an straightforward website with a straightforward message: tiny changes, big impact. Green is Sexy has previously been mentioned on ChickSpeak, and we were so impressed by their initiative, that we asked to do a profile. We were met with such enthusiasm, that within days, a dialogue had begun. Megan, 1/3 of the green is sexy team, took time out of her busy schedule to have a quick chat with ChickSpeak about all things environmentally friendly (and then some): ChickSpeak: One of things we appreciate about Green is Sexy is it’s not a source of preachy guilt trips. You ladies deal the goods in such a lovely, approachable way that it’s hard not to want to join in on the green effort! Tell us about how Green is Sexy was born. Green is Sexy: Rachel, Didi and I started Green is Sexy almost three years ago as a hobby project. Each one of us has a full-time job. Didi (Bethurum) works in online marketing, Rachel (McAdams) is an actress and I work at an architectural firm. Rachel and I were on the phone one night three years ago trading ideas on how to implement more green initiatives in my office and how she might increase green awareness on her current movie set. Our conversation turned to the unplugging of cell phone chargers, and how we couldn’t believe so many of our friends, who are so smart and politically and socially aware, didn’t know that cell phone chargers plugged into the wall and not the phone are still sucking energy. We decided to do something about that, and the website idea was born! CS: Green is Sexy exists because - you said it yourselves - tiny lifestyle changes make big impacts on lessening our collective environmental footprint. What’s your favorite, too easy to ignore, green tip to live by? GIS: Our favorite tip will always be our benchmark tip, which is to unplug out of use appliances. It’s become a compulsion for each of us! CS: What are some of the bigger initiatives you spotlight on Green is Sexy? GIS: The site is about tiny changes, big impact, but larger initiates are certainly featured. A larger initiative might be to write letters to companies about their wasteful packaging or installing a tank-less water heater in ones house or buying a hybrid vehicle. CS: Can readers contribute tips and information to you by email or through Facebook? GIS: Readers can certainly submit tips to us via email. We love when they do that! CS: What’s the most shocking “green” fact you’ve learned since starting Green is Sexy? GIS: We continue to be scandalized by the wastefulness of toilet flushing. If the average toilet flush is 5 to 7 gallons of water down the drain, and there are 128 ounces in one gallon and the average daily-recommended amount of water people should consume is 64 ounces… The math and the numbers will drive you crazy! Once we became aware of the water stats of flushing, other water stats (amount of water in a bath, amount of water for the average shower, etc.) took on a new relevance. Watering the lawn or washing the car now gets calculated as how many flushes that would be! CS: In other words, reduce flushing as much as possible. That is, we should also re-think what other things we’re flushing down the toilet too, like floss and cigarette butts! Do you have any plans for the future of Green is Sexy? GIS: We re-launched the site with a new design in December, and we continue to be excited about that. CS: We’re curious, in five words or less, what would you say to those people who, for whatever reason, just don’t seem to care? GIS: That’s so difficult! Personally, I’d ask the person to take “green” out of the equation, and would simply ask, “what’s the point of wastefulness?” CS: What was your last iTunes purchase? The last book you read? GIS: We’ve each read and enjoyed Alicia Silverstone’s The Kind Diet recently. My last iTunes purchase was Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah performed by K.D. Lang. I was blown away by her performance of that song during the Olympic Opening Ceremonies and just had to have it! CS: What’s your favorite eco-friendly company/product out there right now? GIS: We have lots of favorites, but we continue to be inspired by and in love with Preserve toothbrushes. They were the first Product of the Month on our site and they continue to be the gold standard for us. Check out their website become a fan on Facebook or contact the ladies at contact@greenissexy.org!
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