How Can I Help?
How can I do good?
One of the easiest ways to start doing good is to buy organic. Not just cereal—although of course we think that’s a good place to start. Buying organic food and clothing whenever possible will help the environment and reduce global warming, and ultimately change the world. Those are some very big eco-friendly shoes to fill!
Want to know what doing good does?
Each year, for every acre of land that is converted from non-organic to organic:
- 5.4 pounds/acre of the active ingredient in pesticides is kept out of the soil and away from water, wildlife and farm workers.
- 408.55 pounds/acre of synthetic fertilizers (produced with fossil fuel) are no longer needed as organic relies on nature’s own fertilization methods.
In 2006 alone, Nature’s Path—with your help—prevented approximately 166,000 pounds of pesticides, and 12,453,000 pounds of synthetic fossil fuel fertilizer from being used. Together we’re saving the earth, one acre at a time.
Support a Hero Farmer
Nature’s Path and Organic Valley are working with the Rodale Institute to support farmers making the switch to organic farming. By sending in proofs of purchase from our products, you’ll be supporting training programs that help farmers protect us from global warming, drought and famine. Learn more.
Take the One Tonne Challenge:
The Government of Canada is asking its citizens to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by one tonne annually (that’s one ton for those of you non-Canadians out there). Their site contains practical solutions presented in a fun and informative way: http://www.climatechange.gc.ca/onetonne/english/
Take the Nature Challenge:
The David Suzuki Foundation has researched the 10 most effective ways we can help conserve nature and improve our quality of life: http://www.davidsuzuki.org/WOL/Challenge/
Find out what your Environmental Footprint is:
This Ecological Footprint Quiz estimates how much productive land and water you need to support what you use and what you discard: http://www.myfootprint.org/
Discover the best and worst produce choices for pesticides and download the handy wallet guide for pesticides in produce: http://foodnews.org/
The O’MAMA Report is an on-line resource for consumers interested in organic food and textiles. The site contains recipes, articles, activities for children, and inspiration http://www.theorganicreport.org/
Recycle your old cell phone:
The Call2Recycle program collects used cellular phones and rechargeable batteries to benefit the environment and charitable organizations. Click on the following link for more information: http://www.call2recycle.org/pages/us_or_canada.html
Read up on Environmental Issues:
There are several great web resources that do an excellent job of educating the public on environmental issues. The following BBC website is one of our favorites: http://newswww.bbc.net.uk/1/hi/in_depth/sci_tech/2004/planet/default.stm
We also love this site on 100 Ways to Conserve Water: http://wateruseitwisely.com/100-ways-to-conserve/index.php
Sources for pesticide usage:
- For US: May 2001 Agricultural Chemical Usage 2000 Field Crops Summary, National Agricultural Statistics Service.
- For Canada: Fact-sheet Pesticides Alberta Department of Environment, Oct 2001
- For US: National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA, 2000
- For Canada: Table 30 A of International Fertilizer Development Center’s report, North America Fertilizer Situation, November 2001.
