Like the glass bottles you toss into your recycling bin each week, you’re pretty smooth. Unfortunately, recycling glass has become rough for several recycling companies - some have started chucking the stuff due to a lack of demand and the tiny profit they make on the stuff. Our tip: When possible, opt for alternatives to glass.

When ordering a beer at restaurants, choose something that’s on tap. Bottles and cans tend to just get tossed into trash cans, but that pint glass will get reused. (Unless they serve it in a plastic cup, in which case, you should start hanging out at classier places.) For beer-drinkers and non-drinkers alike, ask your server to reuse your glass rather than getting a clean one each time. (Same goes for straws.) Wine drinkers: Unless you’re fond of a particularly highfalutin vintage, consider buying box wine. Many connoisseurs agree that it’s getting better all the time. Look for names like Black Box, Banrock Station, and Bota Box.
 
Renee loves root beer and had been buying Jones Soda because it’s natural and delicious, sans all the nasty high fructose corn syrup. When she realized that the glass Jones bottles are not as recyclable, she switched to Hansen’s, still a natural product, that comes in aluminum cans.

What to do with all those glass bottles? Find a second use for the empties. (And we don’t mean building tiny little ships inside them.) Meghan reuses her Martinelli apple juice bottles as bud vases and finds that glass jars filled with tea lights add instant ambience to evening soirees and backyard BBQs.

Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

P.S. Find out how far we’ve come as a city and what more can be done at “Going Green: Is Indianapolis Doing Enough?”, Wednesday, Oct. 1 at noon, at the IUPUI Campus Center, Room 409.

Even if you’ve cut back on your shower time, switched to compact fluorescent bulbs, and installed a programmable thermostat, you still might be wasting energy in one not-so-obvious place: paying for these utilities the traditional way - via a paper bill. Fortunately, several area utility companies accept online payments or can set up an automatic debit from your bank account, most at no extra charge. These include:

Boone REMC

Citizens Gas 

Duke Energy

Indianapolis Power & Light (IPL)

Indianapolis Water

Republic Services - Recycling
(Use the business locator tool to find your local Republic business. You’ll have to call if you want to set up an automatic debit.)

Vectren 

What you save in a year: 12 stamps ($5.04), 12 checks, 12 envelopes, and 12 paper bills, not to mention the gas it takes to transport your bill from the utility company to your house and back to the utility company.

What you get: Peace of mind knowing that you’re helping curb waste and carbon emissions, while getting your payment in on time each month.

Talk about a power trip!

Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

Name: Sassafras

Age: Old enough to brave the great outdoors on my own.

Height: 1 foot, but my friends tell me I have a lot of potential for growth. 

Looking for: A nice big yard to call home. Hugging encouraged, but not essential. Shady characters with shady lawns need not apply - I need lots of sun.

Special qualities: I’m totally adaptable (to almost any soil type, that is).

Likes: Sunshine, water, and being sassy, just like my name.

Dislikes: Woodpeckers, chainsaws, and winter…I feel so naked.

If Sassafras isn’t exactly your type, the Marion County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) offers lots of other options - oak, maple, and dogwood varieties, birch, cypress, and other midsized native trees and shrubs - through their Fall Tree Sale.

Submit your order to SWCD by October 1st by calling 786-1776 or visiting www.marionswcd.org. Container trees and shrubs are available in 1, 3, 5, and 15 gallon sizes and range in price from $18 to $120 (includes sales tax). Bonus: This Fall, Marion County residents can purchase 8-foot tall trees (15 gallon container size) that regularly sell for $120.00 at the reduced price of $60.00 each. 

Help reduce air-conditioning costs, improve the value of your property, and keep our air clean by investing in a tree or two this fall.

And remember: You don’t have to hug ‘em…just plant ‘em.

Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

Not all of our attempts to save the planet have been successful. There was Meghan’s high school science class composting experiment, which attracted more fruit flies than she’d care to admit.Fortunately, it’s never too late to give saving the planet a second try. (Hint: It’s easier when you have a little help from your friends.) Though you’ve probably heard about Keep Indianapolis Beautiful and their mission to beautify the city, improve the environment, and foster pride in the community, you may be less familiar with SOLAR, KIB’s new group for young professionals. SOLAR hosts educational programming, behind-the-scenes site visits, volunteer opportunities, and special events, some of which are open to the public and others exclusively for members. Take a look at their fall lineup - it might just be your big chance to shine.

• Plant Trees!
  Help KIB meet its goal of planting 100,000 trees by 2016 at this special event, taking place at 9 a.m. on October 18. Location: 13th & Meridian streets. 
• “Go Green” with Sara Snow-MEMBER EXCLUSIVE
  Hear from Discovery networks TV host Sara Snow, an Indy resident, at L’Explorateur, 6523 Ferguson Street. October 25, 5:30 p.m. Appetizers provided.  Cash bar.  (Guests welcome for $25.) 
• Megabus Trip to Chicago for “Green + Wired Smart Home Design” and Holiday Shopping-MEMBER EXCLUSIVE
  Join other group members for a trip to the Windy City. You’ll view this exciting exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry, tour the “Greenest Home in Chicago,” and have the chance to do a little shopping. November 15, 8:00 a.m. Cost includes Megabus ticket ($20-varies) and entry into the museum (general admission $13).

Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

Our play-on-words namesake, Greenpeace, celebrated its founding yesterday. Now, we’re not asking you to chain yourself to a tree or start a protest, but there’s no better time than the present to get involved.Get out in your community and meet others who share your desire to make Indiana greener. Not sure where to start? The Hoosier Environmental Council maintains an online calendar of eco-focused events going on around the state.

Our picks: the Indiana Climate Change Summit, taking place October 11th at Butler University, and  Green Goes to Market, an environmental fair at the Indianapolis City Market on Thursday, October 9th, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.  Be there as green businesses and organizations showcase their products and services and HEC celebrates its 25th anniversary and the City Market’s “Going Green” initiative.

Go ahead, get in on your green piece of the action.

Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

Bedwetting, boo-boos, botched haircuts…hey, accidents happen.From fender benders to full-blown collisions, our cars are no exception. Fortunately for the accident-prone, Indy has a couple of great green options for restoring your banged-up set of wheels to its former glory. 

Earlier this year, Church Brothers Collision Repair scored big points with environmental types when it converted its Central Indiana locations to use waterborne basecoat paint, a low-VOC alternative to the product it formerly used.

Another tried-and-true eco-friendly car concept: reusing car parts. At Pull-A-Part - a.k.a. “the best strip joint in town” - they inventory used cars, not the individual parts within them. By doing so, they keep their costs low. Lost a hubcap? Have a busted windshield? Not to worry: You can easily locate the items you need using Pull-A-Part’s computer database, which is updated daily. 

What are you waiting for? It’s crunch time.

Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

We salute you, Mr. Organic Chocolate Milk-Drinking Colts Fan. While others wile away game day chugging $7 domestic beer and hurling obscenities at the referees, you’re sitting pretty with a frothy glass of Traders Point Creamery’s organic chocolate milk, available exclusively to suite ticket holders at Lucas Oil Stadium. Let tailgaters loiter in the parking lot waiting for their next round of cornhole; you’ll be in your suite, awaiting your next wedge of Traders Point’s Fleur De La Terre cheese.Yeah, we know…not everyone has suite tickets. But don’t let that prevent you from getting in on the fun.

Out: Certifiably insane fan behavior.
In: Certified organic milk, cheese, yogurt, and ice cream. TPC products are antibiotic- and hormone-free, which is more than we can say for the defensive line. Get yours at Kroger, Marsh Supermarket, The Fresh Market, Whole Foods Market, and other fine grocers and farmers markets around Indy.

Out: Ogling the cheerleaders’ derrieres.
In: Taking in the creamery’s dairy air. Visit Traders Point Creamery’s Friday green market in Zionsville, where you can enjoy a homemade dinner and a fabulous selection of local produce.

Out: Throwing empty cans at opposing fans.
In: Recycling your cans at one of Lucas Oil Stadium’s many recycling bins, courtesy of Budweiser and Republic Services.

Live green. Believe blue! 

Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

Like a jilted lover that can’t take a hint, phonebooks just keep showing up on your doorstep, totally uninvited.

For most of us, the Yellow Pages and White Pages are about as useful as an encyclopedia in the age of Google. Why leaf through hundreds of pages when a quick Internet search or ChaCha text message does the trick without wasting tons of paper? Because phonebook recycling is not widely available and reusing the books can really stretch one’s creativity (coasters? footrests? booster seats?), we recommend opting out of receiving them altogether.

A good first step: Visit Yellow Pages Goes Green, a site aimed at starting a national movement to solicit the White/Yellow Pages industry to proactively stop the delivery of unwanted phonebooks, similar to the National Do Not Call Registry. When you sign up for their free service, Yellow Pages Goes Green will contact the publishers of White/Yellow Pages and let them know that you have opted out of receiving phonebooks.

It’s your call.

Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

Spending too much time in the pool is one way to end up with green hair. (Meghan has the childhood photos to prove it.) Or, you could spare yourself the Incredible Hulk look and just opt for a planet-conscious salon. Our pick for the most progressive: Aveda.
 
Aveda is the first beauty company to manufacture with renewable energy, offseting the energy from its manufacturing plant, distribution center, and headquarters with 100% certified wind power. They also minimize packaging while maximizing use of post-consumer, recycled, and recyclable materials for packaging. Inside the package you’ll find ethical, sustainable, and organic products that not only smell amazing but are also very effective. Who knew that marshmallow root could smooth frizzy locks? (And who knew there was such a thing as marshmallow root?)  
 
Renee’s favorite place to get her “hair did” is Salon Orange Moon in Fall Creek Place. Since it’s close to home, she walks there, and the salon recycles everything, right down to bottle caps and color foils. In September, Salon Orange Moon is taking their do-gooding one step further by collecting pasta for Second Helpings. Bring a box to your next appointment or just pop in to check out the local green business. Meghan recommends Reeda Todd, which also offers Aveda’s line of Elemental Nature facials, massages, and other indulgent spa treatments in addition to being a full service salon. 
 
With more than 20 locations around the Indy area, finding an Aveda salon near you is easy. You can stop combing the city now.
 
Piece out,
Renee & Meghan