SUSTAINABLE LIVING:

SMALL CHANGES, BIG IMPACT

Transportation Coordinator Association (TCA) Webinar

August 27, 2014

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• Webinar will be recorded & a link posted

on valleymetro.org

Overview

• Welcome and introductions

• Discussion: Living gently – Small changes for big impacts

• Transportation Coordinator updates

• Upcoming meetings

Today’s Speakers

Greg Peterson

Owner

The Urban Farm

www.UrbanFarm.org

Stacey Champion

Owner

Champion PR + Consulting

www.champion-pr.com

Sustainability Defined

Sustainability, N:

1. The ability to be sustained, supported, upheld, or confirmed

2. The quality of not being harmful to the environment or depleting natural resources

Source: Dictionary.com

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

We’re drowning in stuff!

More than a million tons of solid waste is taken to the City of Phoenix’s

SR85 landfill each year. This could fill Chase Field top to bottom at

least seven times each year. Source: http://echris.phoenix.gov/publicworks/recycling/howmuchtrash.html

Have you thought about…

• Where all that stuff came from?

• How it was made?

• Who made it?

• What ingredients/chemicals were used in making it?

You just need one of these.

Chemicals

• At any given time, there are 3.36 million tons of household hazardous waste to contend with in our country.

• Of chemicals commonly found in homes, at least 150 have been linked to allergies, birth defects, cancer, and psychological abnormalities.

• Cancer rates have increased since 1901 from only 1 in 8,000 Americans, to 1 in 2 today.

Toxin Statistics

51 = the number of known water contaminants

the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

(EPA) does not regulate

Toxin Statistics

7-8 = the number of years formaldehyde is emitted from furniture & cabinets built using glue containing formaldehyde

Toxin Statistics

287 = the number of industrial chemicals found

in newborn babies, determined by the

Environmental Working Group, 2005

Toxin Statistics

100 = the average number of pharmaceutical

medicines (including narcotics & birth control

pills) in public drinking water, in “significant

concentrations,” according to the U.S.

Geological Survey & the Associated Press

Toxin Statistics

35% = the percentage of children’s products

sold containing toxic lead (as tested by

HealthyToys.org)

Toxin Statistics

53,000,000 = the number of pounds of

pesticides applied every year to cotton fields in

the USA

Be sure to check out…

The Story of Stuff – www.thestoryofstuff.org

Remember Grandma

If you can’t pronounce it, you probably shouldn’t

put it in or on your body.

How do You Help?

“I choose to live half a mile from school so I can

ride my bike. Carmel M., via Facebook

“One of my favorite is simple. Stop using Ziploc bags. I

use Lunchskins. Way cooler, way safer, way cheaper

and they don’t contribute to this. Jeff F., via email

We use a human powered lawn mower (taking it Old

School) on our 1/3 acre property. No easy feat in the

summer. Lillian D., via Facebook

I’ve gotten adorable folders, backpacks, and pencil bags from

http://www.terracycle.com/en-US/. My kids’ schools have also

benefitted by collecting and selling used items to Terracycle. It’s

a win-win! Suzanne D., via email

Remember Grandma

Don’t buy stuff you don’t need, give away what you

don’t want and reuse what you can.

How do You Help?

“I chose to go car free. It forces more creativity at

critical junctures, is kinder to the environment and

tests the theory that an Urban lifestyle is possible in

the highly sprawled City available to me.

Flannery D., via Facebook

“We buy local as often as we can, from locally grown foods to

handmade decor items. This contributes to less transportation costs

of these goods, and less pollution.” CJ S., via Facebook

“Buying and selling re-usable items like lamps, books, dining room

tables, etc to/from other people via Craigslist, thrift stores, My

Sister's Attic, etc.” Anthony A., via Facebook

“I stopped using paper napkins and switched to cloth. I'm reducing waste

and saving money. Plus, it's fun trolling second hand shops for napkins to

match my vintage tablecloths. That's recycling, right?” Suzanne D., via

Facebook

Remember Grandma

Grow your own food when possible, eat your

veggies, buy organic & GMO-free and help plant a

community garden.

Remember Grandma

• Adjust your thermostat, use fans for air flow

• Keep vents open and clean

• Launder less, later

• Consider clotheslines

• Turn off heated dry dishwasher cycles

Electrifying Reader Tips

“I turn off my entertainment center power strip

when I'm not watching TV or playing video

games …I unplug anything I'm not actively

using: Toaster, phone charger, stand mixer,

etc. I changed every single one of my light

bulbs to CFL.”

Anthony A., via Facebook

“I time my programmable thermostat to be a couple degrees

warmer in the summer and a couple degrees cooler in the

winter during working hours, and start with a higher "base"...

My normal temp in the summer in AZ was 81 when we're

home and 86 during the day, knowing I can always turn it

down some more if we're too hot and a fan doesn't help.”

Anthony A., Facebook

Pictures Worth 1,000 Words

Takeaways

Don’t be a sloth.

Takeaways

Think about your food.

Takeaways

Remember, even arsenic is “natural.”

Takeaways

Promote working with nature.

Takeaways

Don’t use or bring poison into your house.

Takeaways

Use common sense.

Further Reading

• http://grist.org/

• http://urbanfarm.org/blog

• http://www.thiscouldbephx.com/

• http://epa.gov/

• http://www.treehugger.com/

• http://inhabitat.com/

• https://www.phoenix.gov/sustainability

• http://www.bloomberg.com/sustainability/

• http://www.greenbiz.com/

• http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/earth_climate/sustainability/

Resources • Valley Metro Commute

Solutions

• ShareTheRide.com

• EPA.gov/sustainability

– Info for organizations, individuals, government

– Topics include sustainable communities, smart growth, materials management

• Today’s speakers

Transportation Coordinator News

Cool Transit STUFF Art Contest

• 10th annual competition for Valley third graders

• 13 winning designs will become Valley Metro’s 2015 Transit Education calendar

• 2015 theme: Valley Metro – It’s How We Roll!

• Deadline: Friday, October 3

• Details and entry form at valleymetro.org

Phoenix Seeks Input

• Topics include transit, road

infrastructure, and “complete

streets” elements

• Feedback helps select future

light rail extensions and

identify funding for

transportation improvements

• Comments will be accepted at

public meetings, outreach

events, and at

talktransportation.org

Clean Air Awards Luncheon

• Thursday, October 30

• JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort and Spa

• 11:30 am – 1:30 pm

• Early bird - $35 per person/ $325 table for 10, purchased before 9/30

• After 9/30, $45 per person/ $425 table for 10

• Nominations due by 5 pm TODAY! Clockwise from top: Emcee Sean McLaughlin,

keynote speaker Park Howard, entertainer Michael

Lington.

New Transit Pass Designs Roll Out

• Green: Local

• Red: Reduced

• Blue: Rapid/Express

• Yellow: Purchased at farebox or fare vending machine

• Platinum Pass is not affected

Old passes are good until activated/used

July Telework Contest Results

• There were 7,961 telework commutes tracked in

sharetheride.com between July 1 - 31

• Teleworkers avoided 156,089 miles of driving; saved

$36,949 and 143,760 prevented pounds of

greenhouse gases

• Congrats to Diana L., who won a $100 gift card for

home office supplies

Rideshare Month – October 1-31

• National event highlights alternatives to driving alone

• Kickoff event Friday, September 26, 11 am – 1 pm at CityScape in downtown Phoenix

• Employer Challenge October 5 – 11

• Log commutes at ShareTheRide.com

• Details in this month’s Transportation Coordinator kit

40

High Pollution Advisory Update

Summer high pollution advisories to date (April 1 -

September 30, 2014)

July 23 - Ozone

July 4 – Ozone

July 3 – Ozone and Particulate Matter -10

June 6 – Ozone

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Review

• Discussion: Sustainable Living – Small changes for big impacts

• Transportation Coordinator updates

• Upcoming Webinars

– September 24: Rideshare Month planning, vanpooling

• In-person Transportation Coordinator Association meetings resume in September; dates and locations at ValleyMetro.org