Wed, 16 Sep 2026 16:04:06 -0600WeeblyWed, 16 Sep 2026 20:32:39 GMThttps://www.3percentsustainability.com/three-percent-sustainability-challenge/vote-2026​If you live somewhere that has free and open elections, you have not only a privilege and a right to vote, but also a duty to be an informed voter.  Don’t throw away your opportunity to express your values to the officials that will control many things about your life.  Your vote does matter, even if you think it will be overcome by a large number of opposition voters.  Strange things happen when large numbers of voters vote differently than what the polls think might happen.  In the US, the 2026 midterm elections are hugely important for our country and our relationships with the rest of the world.  Make sure you’re registered to vote (check even if you think you are already registered) and then research the issues and candidates and parties.  Don’t just rely on your favorite social media feed for information – check many sources including those that present viewpoints different from yours.  And remember that sometimes you have to vote “against” rather than “for”.  Don’t ignore the local elections, as they also have a big impact.  As just one example, a local school board can sway curriculum choices to promote a specific ideology.  So, please register to vote, do your homework, and then VOTE!
]]>Wed, 02 Sep 2026 01:22:09 GMThttps://www.3percentsustainability.com/three-percent-sustainability-challenge/tips-for-traveling-more-sustainablyMany of us travel multiple times a year for work, fun, or to visit family and friends who live far away.  When you travel, try to take your sustainability mindset with you and, when possible, make choices that are more sustainable.  A few are easy.  Unless you are going to an area where the local drinking water is not safe or easily found, take your own refillable water bottle instead of buying water in single-use disposable bottles.  Leave areas as you found them – don’t litter, deface buildings or objects, or collect local plants, wildflowers, or wildlife.  Remember that the places you are visiting are someone’s neighborhood and respect it as you would want them to respect your neighborhood.  The attached link has a lot of other good tips to consider. 
https://sustainabletravel.org/top-10-tips-for-sustainable-travel/
​]]>Fri, 21 Aug 2026 22:08:08 GMThttps://www.3percentsustainability.com/three-percent-sustainability-challenge/hidden-environmental-cost-of-electronic-devices​Here is a good article on environmental costs of electronic devices and how to reduce the cost.  Recycling your devices is an important step that many still skip.  A few other ideas that were not mentioned in the article:

• Keep your devices longer before you replace them. 
• Choose the device that is right for you, not the biggest one with the most features.  However, a bit of planning ahead also helps.  Both my phone and laptop (both have been around awhile) are running into issues with the operating systems and apps taking a huge percentage of the available memory.  At the time I bought them, I thought the available memory storage would be more than I’d ever need.  Oops.  I got an external hard drive for the laptop so have staved off the need for a new laptop for a few more years. 
• Look for places that recycle e-waste.  The materials in your old devices are valuable for manufacturing the next generation of devices. 

https://earth.org/the-hidden-environmental-cost-of-your-devices-and-actionable-steps-to-reduce-it/
 
]]>Wed, 12 Aug 2026 21:44:54 GMThttps://www.3percentsustainability.com/three-percent-sustainability-challenge/soil-restoration-is-the-fastest-way-to-cool-the-planet​This is quite an interesting article on how healthy soil contributes to the overall health of the planet – and how mankind is generally not implementing land management practices that maintain or restore healthy soil.  Many farmers and ranchers are beginning to integrate regenerative farming and ranching practices, but many more are not.  Even if you don’t have a farm, ranch, or large plot of land, there are things you can do to help maintain soil health in your little corner of the world. 

• If you have a yard or a small plot of land, you can work to make your soil healthier.  Check out regenerative farming techniques and learn about native plants.  Use the least toxic pest management methods and use them as seldom as possible.  Encourage native insects, birds, animals, and reptiles, and do your research before you bring in a “beneficial” species that may actually do more harm than good.  Control non-native invasive species so they don’t crowd out the natives.
• Be aware of what you pour down the drains in your house or workplace.  Some of these chemicals will make it into the environment where they can cause mischief. 
• Pick up litter.  It’s never beneficial. 
• If you don’t own or manage land, consider joining a habitat restoration organization or similar group.
• Cut your carbon and methane emissions to help slow associated climate changes that also degrade soil health.

https://earth.org/soil-restoration-is-the-fastest-way-to-cool-the-planet/
 
]]>Tue, 04 Aug 2026 02:49:06 GMThttps://www.3percentsustainability.com/three-percent-sustainability-challenge/ask-lots-of-questions​When you’re looking for information on sustainable practices (or anything else) it’s important to look for reputable sources of information but it’s also important to ask lots of questions.  I was recently looking for information on an ecologically sound way to get rid of a serious flea beetle infestation that was killing my evening primrose flowers but nothing else in my yard.  The evening primrose flowers support a wide variety of night-feeding moths and other interesting insects that I want to keep around.  I started by looking for natural ways to get rid of pests and got several listings of ideas that included neem oil, soapy water, and nematodes.  However, then I asked a second question.  Will these natural methods also harm the insects I am trying to support?  Well, yes.  Neem oil will kill a wide variety of insects, not just flea beetles.   Soapy water will also kill a wide variety of insects, including the ladybugs that were eating the spider mites that were also attacking the primroses.  And the soap residue on the plant leaves will keep indiscriminately killing insects until it’s washed off.  Nematodes are also non-selective, and some varieties can migrate fairly long distances through the ground to places you don’t want them.  So, on to more questions.  How can I selectively kill the flea beetles and nothing else?  Oh, and also slow down the spider mites so they don’t get out of hand.  Don’t laugh, but I finally ended up listening to a great audiobook and picking the flea beetle caterpillars off by hand so they couldn’t hatch into adults that would lay more eggs.  I also used the hose to blast adult beetles off the plants.  As of this writing, there do not appear to be flea beetles on my well-munched primrose plants and they did bloom enough to feed the night insects and produce seeds for next year’s crop (they’re a biannual plant).  Fingers crossed for next spring.  If I had not continued to ask questions, I would have eliminated the flea beetles, but also all of the beneficial insects I want to keep.  
]]>Sat, 18 Jul 2026 19:28:45 GMThttps://www.3percentsustainability.com/three-percent-sustainability-challenge/the-other-side-of-recycling​Many of us work at making sure empty bottles, cans, and paper get into the recycling bin.   However, putting things into the recycling bin is only the first step in recycling.  The recycled materials need a market.  Many factors are included in the marketing side of recycling, including how pure (meaning uncontaminated by other materials) the reclaimed materials are and how the materials can be used.   However, if no one buys items made from recycled materials, the entire system falls apart.  When you are shopping, compare items to see if some are made from recycled materials.  Post-consumer recycled materials include items put into recycling bins by people like us.  However, materials recycled as part of a manufacturing process are important, too, so that these materials are not wasted at the factory.  Once you start checking labels, you will see that many things can be made from recycled materials, including packaging, paper products, and some kinds of plastic items.  Aluminum in particular is valuable as a reclaimed material and has a ready market.    
]]>Sun, 12 Jul 2026 22:53:58 GMThttps://www.3percentsustainability.com/three-percent-sustainability-challenge/sustainable-fabricsBuying clothing that uses high quality fabric and construction is important to sustainability, as is careful laundering to increase the useful lifetime of the clothing.  However, the type of fabric is also important for sustainability.  Some fabrics easily shed synthetic fibers that can get into water, soil, and the creatures that share our planet.  Other fabrics, such as many acrylics, do not hold up to wear and laundering.  As the attached article discusses, the origin of the materials in the fabric is also important, because some textile materials have a significantly smaller impact on the environment. 
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https://theorganizedeclectic.wordpress.com/2025/06/20/fabric-matters-the-truth-about-what-we-wear/
]]>Fri, 26 Jun 2026 02:04:12 GMThttps://www.3percentsustainability.com/three-percent-sustainability-challenge/another-article-on-reducing-food-wasteThis article on reducing food waste includes a table that gives you definitions of the various kinds of dates on food packaging so you can decide when food is truly past its “eat by” date and when it is still good to eat.  While food safety comes always first, a lot of perfectly good food is thrown away because consumers are confused by the dates on the packages.  In addition to tips for individual households, the article discusses things that businesses and larger organizations can do to reduce food waste.  As the article states, reducing food waste can make a big difference in your sustainability footprint. 
https://earth.org/solutions-for-food-waste/]]>Sat, 13 Jun 2026 19:47:18 GMThttps://www.3percentsustainability.com/three-percent-sustainability-challenge/safety-firstWhen you’re making choices about how to live more sustainably, remember that your safety is more important.  Don’t put yourself in a dangerous position just to make a tiny difference in sustainability.  Think about what could go wrong, and check at least one other reputable source when you’re looking at tips and hacks online.  Here are a few thoughts to get you started. 

• If the stairs are in a place that is unsafe, take the elevator if there is one and it appears to be the safer option. 
• Don’t use essential oils in the dryer and be careful not to use the dryer for rags that were oil-soaked before they were washed.  There is a potential for fire. 
• Never vent the exhaust air from a gas-powered clothes dryer into the house. 
• If you bicycle or walk to work or school, choose a route that is safe (traffic or otherwise) or pick another option such as a bus or car. 
• Don’t drive below the speed limit or slower than the flow of traffic.  Yes, you use less gas when you drive slower, but it’s dangerous for you and the other drivers around you when you impede the flow of traffic. 
• Check gently used items before you use them to make sure they’re safe.  Look for things like frayed electrical wires, missing safety guards, broken latches, or unguarded pinch points.  Safety standards have changed significantly for baby and child items, so make sure these used items meet safety requirements.  

]]>Thu, 04 Jun 2026 15:31:37 GMThttps://www.3percentsustainability.com/three-percent-sustainability-challenge/xeriscape-vs-zeroscapeI really like this article on xeriscape.  As the article states, many people think of xeriscape as a barren field of rocks; however, the barren field of rocks is actually zeroscape.  I have never liked the idea of zeroscape for all the reasons stated in the article (bad for the environment, creates heat islands, and is generally ugly) but am very much in favor of xeriscape.  Xeriscape uses native plants and careful watering strategies to create areas that support the environment, use much less water, and generally are much prettier.  I am currently planning a project to turn another area of lawn into a xeriscape area.  So, if you are considering xeriscape to reduce outdoor water use, think about the difference between xeriscape and zeroscape.  Xeriscape takes more planning and care, but is worth it. 
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https://landscapeunite.com/zeroscape-vs-xeriscape/
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