﻿<?xml version='1.0' ?>


<rss version="2.0">
					<channel>
						<title>your guide to green</title>
						<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com</link>
						<description>yg2g desc</description>
						<language>english</language>
						<image>
							<title></title>
							<url>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/images/parts/logo_new.gif</url>
							<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com</link>
							<width>944</width>
							<height>146</height>
						</image><item>
				<title>Stainless Steel 411</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/stainless-steel-411</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Eco-Living expert for beYOUmag, online magazine, Michelle Barge, said it best in a March 25, 2008 article titled. &ldquo;Lose the Plastic Water Bottle &mdash; Our Health is Paying for the Convenience.&rdquo; She concluded, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll take mine in stainless or glass, thank you.&rdquo;]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Made in China ... Now What</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/made-in-china-now-what</link>
				<description><![CDATA[I can&rsquo;t tell you how many times I get emails from people that ask what I was thinking when I began selling a bottle or other products made in China.&nbsp; They would say, &ldquo;How green can a product be that is shipped half way around the world from a country known for its shoddy workmanship?&rdquo;&nbsp;]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Organic Bedding</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Organic-Bedding</link>
				<description><![CDATA[According to an old Irish Proverb, &ldquo;A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctor's book.&rdquo; But today, the doctors might be singing a different song&hellip;I recently discovered something that absolutely shocked me.&nbsp;]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Energy Efficient Rebates for the Homeowner</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Energy-Efficient-Rebates-for-the-Homeowner</link>
				<description><![CDATA[As homeowners work hard to make their homes more energy efficient, many are surprised to discover the length and breadth of available resources for recouping a portion of the costs for energy efficient upgrades. I think you will be surprised at all of the possibilities, especially for small upgrades that may not seem like they warrant any attention.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Everyday Food From My Yard</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Everyday-Food-From-My-Yard</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Farming the city spaces around us presents a whole new paradigm for growing our own food and reigniting our connection to nature.
&nbsp;]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Greg's Favorite Tree</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Urban-Orchard</link>
				<description><![CDATA[My favorite plant to nurture at the Urban Farm is the fruit tree, as it appeals to the lazy gardener in me: I can plant a tree once and reap the bounty for many years to come.&nbsp; The selection of fruit trees that grows in the Valley is vast -- peaches, apples, apricots, plums, pears and citrus -- and discovering just what works here and how to pick the perfect fruit trees for your yard can be perplexing.&nbsp;&nbsp;]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Growing to Market</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Growing-to-Market</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Start with the love of gardening, sprinkle in a desire to grow food and add the persistence to get your &ldquo;groceries&rdquo; picked at their peak and you will find yourself well on your way to becoming a successful urban farmer. Step out and share the bounty beyond your family, friends and neighbors. Go ahead, take the plunge &ndash; grow to market!]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Bugs - We all got em</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Bugs---We-all-got-em</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Garden pests &hellip; we all got &rsquo;em. The question is, what do we do about them?
Over and over I have found two things that make the whole bugaboo less of a concern: soil and balance.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Urbanite for Suburbanites</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Urbanite-for-Suburbanites</link>
				<description><![CDATA[When you see a pile of broken concrete lying around, do you think hip new building material or something to haul to the dump?  If you yearn to give new life to your old concrete driveway, count yourself as a trendsetter.  Urbanite is gaining great respect as a 21st century building material]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Greywater:  Dont Let it Go Down the Drain</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Greywater---Dont-Let-it-Go-Down-the-Drain</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Every day we are letting a valuable resource flow right down our drains.&nbsp; Greywater is defined as any water that runs down the drain of your sinks, showers and washer, but does not include &lsquo;blackwater&rsquo; from your toilet or kitchen sink.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Your (Garbage)-Free Lunch</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Garbage-Free-Lunch</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Wait &ndash; maybe there is such a thing as a &ldquo;Free Lunch&rdquo; after all&hellip;pesticide-free, waste-free and guilt-free!]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Sweet Smell of Victory</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Sweet-Smell-of-Victory</link>
				<description><![CDATA[I smell the sweet success of victory on the horizon and the timing is perfect.  The victory garden concept was born in World War II to nurture home gardens, build community, and to feed our families.  It appears that we are on the verge of planting seeds once again.  Recently I was chatting with Bonnie Baker of Baker&rsquo;s Nursery here in Phoenix and she told me that they are having trouble keeping seeds in stock.  Well you can imagine my excitement in hearing that.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Parri's Instant Garden</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Parris-Instant-Garden</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Parri lives in the typical desert landscaped home her in Phoenix Arizona. In the spring of 2008 she decided that she would like to start gardening. The problem was that there was really no place to garden in her yard as the yard is primarily made up of a 2 inch layer of a magical desert landscape cover called decomposed granite. Think rough pebbles the size of small marbles.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Traveling on the Green</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Traveling-on-the-Green</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Just like eco this&hellip; and green living that&hellip; the travel industry is embracing the green movement with Ecotourism.&nbsp; This makes perfect sense considering that when we travel, we consume.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Drowning in Junk Mail?</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Drowning-in-Junk-Mail</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Ever feel like you&rsquo;re drowning in paper and wondered if the piles of catalogs, credit card applications, coupon books, flyers and other junk mail are spontaneously multiplying when you&rsquo;re not looking?

Well it&rsquo;s not your imagination. Nearly four million tons of junk mail is delivered each year in America according to ProQuo, a free service for stopping junk mail. Some days it feels like it all landed at my house.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Plastic is Forever</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Plastic-is-Forever</link>
				<description><![CDATA[After 25+ years of studying and living a &ldquo;green&rdquo; lifestyle (not exactly common back then) you can imagine my excitement as people around the world are now enthusiastically embracing awareness of our environment and how it relates to our personal health.

However, I know it can seem overwhelming with theories and choices ranging from heightened recycling efforts and the use of compact fluorescent bulbs, to green construction and developing community gardens.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Greening your Office</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Greening-your-Office</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Working from home is a bonus for both our pocket books and the environment.&nbsp; By not driving our cars, we reduce the amount of pollutants that come out of our tail pipe, not to mention the amount of gas we buy&mdash;a real bonus in these times of high gas prices.&nbsp; One of my favorite commutes of the past was the commute from the breakfast table across the Arizona room to my office&hellip;a nice little building that sits at the house end of my driveway.&nbsp; And the biggest bonus was the dogs were with me at the office every day.&nbsp; But what else can you do to run a green-minded office?]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Production vs. Efficiency</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Production-vs--Efficiency</link>
				<description><![CDATA[I have an electrical power plant on my roof. The technical term for the plant is Photovoltaics or PV. My system here at my Urban Farm home, was installed in April 2006 and originally was designed to offset 40% of my electric bill. I was already conserving and kept my average cost of electricity for my 2,000 square-foot-home and office to $1200 per year.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Community Preservation</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Community-Preservation</link>
				<description><![CDATA[I had an epiphany of sorts back in 1978 when we had a tree full of ripe peaches. I was only 17 at the time but my love of fresh fruit generated a deep desire to preserve the abundant peach harvest we were enjoying. As you might imagine, I had no idea where to begin. I mentioned to a friend&rsquo;s mom that I was interested in learning how to can peaches and she immediately offered to &ldquo;teach&rdquo; me.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Don't Give a Holiday Doorstop</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Don-t-Give-a-Holiday-Doorstop</link>
				<description><![CDATA[The holidays are a perfect time to start reducing, reusing and maybe we can recycle a little less. Think about it: we can reuse old newspaper into gift-wrap, use last year&rsquo;s holiday cards as this year&rsquo;s gift tags and every so often, we can turn unwanted holiday gifts into something useful.&nbsp; Call them doorstops or snow globes, so many of the gifts we give land as dust collectors or worse yet get filed in the trash, sometimes without a second thought.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>I Have a Secret!</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/I-Have-a-Secret-</link>
				<description><![CDATA[I have a secret&hellip;I can&rsquo;t park my car in my garage.&nbsp; I mean it&rsquo;s not like I don&rsquo;t have the driving skills, but in my new two-car garage, there just isn&rsquo;t room for an automobile.&nbsp; Between my husband and me, we have accumulated so much stuff in our four years together that it has now taken over the garage.&nbsp; And I swore it would never be that way.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Living Sustainably?</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Living-Sustainably</link>
				<description><![CDATA[It seems that explaining sustainability is more challenging than actually living it.&nbsp; Sustainability is broadly defined as living and conducting business and commerce in a resource-conservative and resource-efficient manner to meet present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. Although it sounds a bit abstract, it turns out that putting sustainability into practice is pretty straightforward.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Abundant Skies: 8 Principles for Successful Rainwater Harvesting - Part Two</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Abundant-Skies--8-Principles-for-Successful-Rainwater-Harvesting---Part-Two</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Last week author Brad Lancaster gave us the background on his journey to expertise in rainwater harvesting. This week he gives us the specifics on his eight principles for successful rainwater harvesting.


]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Abundant Skies: 8 Principles for Successful Rainwater Harvesting - Part One</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Abundant-Skies--8-Principles-for-Successful-Rainwater-Harvesting---Part-One</link>
				<description><![CDATA[My interest in water harvesting arose from a desire both to reduce my cost of living and to be part of the solution rather than the problem in my desert city of Tucson, Arizona. One of Tucson&rsquo;s biggest problems is its mismanagement of water resources, pulling more each year from the water table than nature can replace. This is a practice that has dried out the Santa Cruz River, killed countless springs and wells, and severely depleted available groundwater resources.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Aromatherapy: Healing to the Body, Mind and Soul</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Aromatherapy--Healing-to-the-Body--Mind-and-Soul</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Aromatherapy is both an ancient art and a modern science. It has been  practiced for thousands of years in China, India, and Greece and is based upon the essential oils coming from plants, shrubs, leaves, trees, and flowers. So, as you can see, it is so much more than just the scented candles that we see everywhere.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>A Book Review of Food Not Lawns: A Community Handbook</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/A-Book-Review-of-Food-Not-Lawns--A-Community-Handbook</link>
				<description><![CDATA[&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; In my yard, known as the Urban Farm, there is little distinction between the edges of the property and the edible delights that spill into my neighbors&rsquo; yards. In large part this is because gardening is not a solitary venture for me, but more of an invitation to the community to join in, maybe get their hands dirty and then share in the bounty as it arrives.
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Every visitor who ventures into my edible landscape leaves with a bag of fresh delicacies and a smile on their face from having learned something like, &ldquo;Oh, that&rsquo;s how broccoli looks when it grows!&rdquo;]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Fighting the Economic Blues? Here are 8 Ways to Save Your Green</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Fighting-the-Economic-Blues-Here-are-8-Ways-to-Save-Your-Green</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Economic concerns have us all cutting corners, but did you know that staying green may be one of the most effective cost-cutters today? Here are eight fool-proof ways to stay green while saving you money.

1. Banish the bottles. You may not realize it, but the plastic bottle water craze is costing us some pretty pennies. According to Bottom Line Personal, the average bottled water user spends $1,400 a year to feed their plastic water bottle habit&hellip;and 95% of those bottles are not being recycled.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Is Hair Dye Safe?</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Is-Hair-Dye-Safe</link>
				<description><![CDATA[&ldquo;Does she &hellip; or doesn&rsquo;t she?&rdquo; asked one of the 20th century&rsquo;s most iconic hair-care ads. Now, of course, the answer almost goes without saying: Nearly 7 out of every 10 American women color their hair to hide gray roots, explore whether blondes have more fun, or just try something new. But given that the ingredients lists on hair dyes typically read like chemistry textbooks, we have to wonder: Are dyes actually safe to put on our heads?]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Organic food: Is it worth the extra money?</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Organic-food--Is-it-worth-the-extra-money</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Organic food is one of the fastest-growing categories in the food industry, despite the fact that it can cost more than double the price of conventional foods. But is it worth spending more when it comes to buying organic? Nutritionist Joy Bauer was invited on The Today Show  to tell us what organic and organic labels really means and what organic food we should buy.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Beauty Basics: Label Lowdown</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Beauty-Basics--Label-Lowdown</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Scan the offerings in the beauty aisle and you'll see plenty of virtuous-sounding labels. &quot;Vegan- friendly&quot; shampoo, &quot;cruelty-free&quot; face cream, &quot;natural&quot; moisturizer, &quot;biodegradable&quot; toothpaste -- but what do they really mean? Still more confusing -- some products have &quot;certified&quot; seals, while others sport symbols that don't quite look official. So how do you choose products that are good for both you and the planet? With the help of our experts we get to the bottom of the most common declarations and sort out the truth versus empty promises.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Top 10 things Schools can do to Go Green</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/10-things-Schools-can-do-to-Go-Green</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Educate students! This is a school's number one role in going green: change the mindset and behavior of the next generation. Schools should teach students about global warming, climate change, renewable resources and all of the exciting technologies utilizing these, about recycling of solid wastes and water, and about green building.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Cloth Diapers Do Double Duty</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Cloth-Diapers-Do-Double-Duty</link>
				<description><![CDATA[When my husband and I learned we were expecting our first child, our minds reeled with the seemingly huge amount of preparation that was needed for our little bundle of joy.  I was consumed by books on breastfeeding and parenting styles and spent hours picking out paint colors and crib bedding.  However we neglected to consider, until it was almost an afterthought, the decision that would have the single largest effect on our family's environmental impact]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>The Seed is Hope, the Flower is Joy</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/The-Seed-is-Hope--the-Flower-is-Joy</link>
				<description><![CDATA[&quot;We really don't know how long seeds can last, &quot; explains seed expert Bill McDorman. &quot;But we know for sure that they can last many decades. There are actually reports that a handful of Kamut (a grain) seeds found in a Pyramid in Egypt from 3,000 years ago were planted and now are growing gluten-free kamut. And blue corn seeds discovered in an old clay bowl, thought to be hundreds of years old, grew a good crop of blue corn&quot;]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Green Nurseries</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Green-Nurseries</link>
				<description><![CDATA[An unknown author once quipped, &quot;The trouble with being a parent is that by the time you are experienced, you are unemployed.&quot;
And so it goes&hellip; we just keep trying to learn along the way.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>The Super Food That Gives Back</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/The-Super-Food-That-Gives-Back</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Scientists at NASA theorize that some 3 1/2 billion years ago, the world was changed forever. The appearance of tiny organisms with the ability to convert sunlight, warmth, water and minerals into protein, carbohydrates, vitamins and amino acids marked the beginning of life. These single-cell plants, marine phytoplankton, are the basis of all other life forms on planet earth; they are the 'vegetation' of the ocean.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Too Wired to Sleep?</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Too-Wired-to-Sleep</link>
				<description><![CDATA[What REALLY happens while we sleep? We can wish our child &quot;Sweet Dreams&quot;, but we all know what it's like when someone is too &quot;wired&quot; to sleep. Today that term may be a great deal more literal than we ever realized.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Solar Inspiration</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Solar-Inspiration</link>
				<description><![CDATA[I've used a solar oven now for two decades, and there was one year of my life when a solar oven was the only real way I had to cook my food. I could  use my fireplace, but even in the winter, the fireplace wasn't nearly as easy. It needed constant tending, and it coated my shiny steel cookware solid black with soot.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Have a Big Fat Green Wedding!</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Have-a-Big-Fat-Green-Wedding-</link>
				<description><![CDATA[There are an estimated 2.5 million weddings celebrated in the United States each year which translates to a $70 to $125 billion industry depending on the wedding marketing sources you use. But whatever the actual figure may be, these sources agree that they are seeing more and more signs of eco-friendliness taking root in the wedding industry.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>High Tech Trash</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/High-Tech-Trash</link>
				<description><![CDATA[The technology boom has changed our way of life forever. As with most things this creates positives and negatives...]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Get That Stuff Outta My Water</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Get-That-Stuff-Outta-My-Water</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Recently, the Associated Press (AP) released a report detailing its findings of an investigation into pharmaceuticals and contaminants detected in our drinking water supply. The report states that 41 million Americans are exposed to contaminated drinking water supplies.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Google Goes Greener</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Google-Goes-Greener</link>
				<description><![CDATA[One of the better-known benefits of working for Google is the excellent, free food. At the corporate headquarters and a few other large facilities around the world, there are full time chefs, modern kitchens, and the directive to produce restaurant quality entrees -- including vegan and omnivorous options. In a smaller office, such as ours in Tempe, Arizona, we don't have the full time chef, but Google makes sure we are well provided for via a contract with a local food management company. ]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Living Green In Your Own Skin</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Living-Green-In-Your-Own-Skin</link>
				<description><![CDATA[What you touch and what you breathe ends up in your blood stream. So just for a challenge, pick a day and count how many things in your home touch your skin from the time you get up until the time you go to bed. Then multiply that by 365 days a year!]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Spring Chicks Yield Fall Harvest</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Spring-Chicks-Yield-Fall-Harvest</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Chickens...I believe that EVERYONE who has even a postage-stamp-size yard can easily raise chickens. Yes you heard me right, they are easy to keep, quieter than your neighborhood dog, live as long as dogs, eat your food scraps and give you something to eat just about every day.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>A Healthy Living Environment</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/A-Healthy-Living-Environment</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Did you know that allergists claim that up to 50 percent of illness is caused (or worsened) by indoor pollution? 
Did you also know that the federal Environmental Protection Agency states that 65 percent of our homes or buildings are polluted &ndash; sometimes six to ten times higher than city air pollution?]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Going Green with your Pets</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Going-Green-with-your-Pets</link>
				<description><![CDATA[As we move into the 21st Century, society is embracing the idea of using natural and organic products for our bodies and in our homes. Living a more holistic lifestyle is taking center stage in many people's lives across the nation -- including caring for pets!]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>One City-Dweller's Story of </title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/One-City-Dwellers-Story-of-Getting-a-Garden</link>
				<description><![CDATA[I live in a condo and like to walk through my neighborhood looking for edible treasures as the alleys in Phoenix are loaded with figs and citrus. As a way to meet my neighbors I always ask their permission to pick. I have found that they love to share their abundance and have someone else help &lsquo;harvest&rsquo; and enjoy their fruit. This is also how I stumbled into my own garden.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>What's in Your Valentines Day Roses???</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Whats-in-Your-Valentines-Day-Roses</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Love is in the air as Valentine&rsquo;s Day approaches and rose growers everywhere have geared up once again to help Cupid&rsquo;s arrow fly. So let&rsquo;s take a look at the pesticide content of conventional roses and see if they are really providing the kind of &lsquo;I Love You&rsquo; message we are sending or receiving.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Top Ten Green Car Care Tips</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Top-10-Green-Car-Care-Tips</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Your Guide to Green has made a New Year's resolution to provide you with more brief and practical tips for living &quot;the green life&quot;. We are looking to the experts for solid green tips on every topic from food, the body, kids, pets, and bedding to the home, office and car. This week, Howard J. Fleischmann, Majority Partner and Manager of Community Tire &amp; Auto Service Specialists, provides the Top 10 things we can do to reduce our vehicle's impact on the environment.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Energy Vampires Surround Us - Cut them off and save!</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Energy-Vampires-Surround-Us-</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Energy Vampires are those electronic devices that we leave in the standby mode. In order to be ready to operate at all times, the electronic device, gadget or appliance maintains a slow, reduced draw of electricity. This is where the reference to vampire  is rooted: it still sucks energy when turned &lsquo;off.&rsquo; Even though the device&rsquo;s draw is reduced, you are still paying for energy you aren&rsquo;t using. The bills can add up, particularly now with the rising cost of energy.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Winter Green</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Winter-Green</link>
				<description><![CDATA[We've got the best eco-friendly ways to clear snow, heat your house, defrost your windows, and much more this season!]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>21 Things You Didn't Know You Could Recycle</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/21-Things-You-Didnt-Know-You-Could-Recycle</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Garbage.  Americans produce more and more of it every year, when we need to be producing less.  Even the most waste-conscious among us can feel overwhelmed by the amount of household, restaurant and consumer waste that goes beyond what municipal recyclers and compost bins can handle.
That&rsquo;s why the editors at Coop America spent the summer investigating the state of waste management in our country, and putting together this information for you, explaining how we can get serious about the three R&rsquo;s - reducing, reusing, and recycling. 
]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>The Low Down on Plastic Numbers</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/The-Low-Down-on-Plastic-Numbers</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Have you ever wondered what the different numbers mean on plastic items? The YourGuidetoGreen.com Team has, and this is what our researchers learned:]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Green Living and Giving</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Green-Living-and-Giving</link>
				<description><![CDATA[On Thanksgiving we eat. The day after we shop and we eat some more. 

The malls are packed and the restaurants are full. We live in a culture of consumption and, from a free-market perspective, we have earned the right to consume which we seem to do voraciously.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>40 Simple Steps to a Better World</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/simple_steps</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Do you feel resigned and overwhelmed when you learn about the state of the environment? With problems so big, it's hard to imagine that one person can make a dent in any of them.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Easy Ways to Minimize Your Exposure to Pollutants amp; Toxins</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Minimize-Your-Exposure-to-Pollutants</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Most people know that pollution comes from many different sources and that it lowers the quality of life for those subjected to it. What we often don't realize is that the sources of pollution are right under our noses; nor are we aware of the relative ease with which we can minimize or remove these sources. Here are some practical recommendations for minimizing household pollution.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>We Can All Help Clear the Air</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/clear-the-air</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Many of us enjoy our vehicles, and we often cherish them just as much as we do our loved ones. But the internal-combustion, or gasoline-powered, engine has many downsides. Consider the following steps to help minimize these harmful side-effects.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Putting Some Domestic Green into Your Gasoline</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Domestic-Green-into-Your-Gasoline</link>
				<description><![CDATA[With the financial and environmental  &quot;price&quot;  of gas, not to mention America 's dependence on foreign oil, why not purchase a vehicle that runs on domestic, alternative fuels derived from crops? Ethanol-85 (E-85) and biofuel vehicles are a sustainable and practical solution to the gas crisis and are readily available in your community. (Be careful not to confuse electric-gasoline hybrids, such as the Toyota  Prius, with an E-85 or biofuel vehicle). ]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Offsetting Emissions - So Easy!</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Offsetting-Emissions</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Lately I have been hearing more and more about neutralizing carbon emissions, emissions trading and offsetting emissions. In essence, they are all about the same thing--giving back in direct relationship to what you are &lsquo;taking.&rsquo; Let me explain a little better...]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Creating Our Environment Healthy</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Creating-Our-Environment</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Most people know that pollution comes from many different sources and that it lowers the quality of life for those subjected to it. What we often don't realize is that the sources of pollution are right under our noses; nor are we aware of the relative ease with which we can minimize or remove these sources. Here are some practical recommendations for minimizing household pollution.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Plastic Primer Part Two</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/plastic-primer-part-two</link>
				<description><![CDATA[The global community produces sixty billion tons of plastic each year, primarily in the form of one-time-use goods such as disposable silverware, containers and bags. Where does all of this go? Sadly, as shared in our previous article, Plastic Primer Part I,  much of the disposed plastic ends up in our oceans, parks and city water, causing hazards to human, animal and environmental health. In the Pacific Gyre found by Captain Charles Moore, a dead bird was found to have contained 1600 pieces of plastic in its digestive system and a turtle was shaped like an hourglass after swimming through a plastic six-pack holder.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Plastic Primer Part One</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/plastic-primer-part-one</link>
				<description><![CDATA[&quot;Except for the small amount that&rsquo;s been incinerated - and it&rsquo;s a very small amount - every bit of plastic ever made still exists,&quot; says Charles Moore, captain of a 50-foot catamaran named Alguita.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Reduce the Use</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Reduce-the-Use</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Did you know that Americans use an average of 1267 plastic bags per person per year? That&rsquo;s just bags... What about all the bottles, cups, straws, lids, etc. that we use for less than an hour and toss? Fast food restaurants buy these items by the gross for customers who toss them in the trash. Then the restaurant wraps them all up in a bigger plastic bag and hauls them to the dumpster.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Wary of Your Water?</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Wary-of-Your-Water</link>
				<description><![CDATA[When doctors recommend drinking eight glasses of water a day, they certainly don't expect us to put our health at risk in the process! You see, our water is far from pure. In fact, sometimes it contains many different toxins, chemicals, pesticides and organic material that may jeopardize our health, even if it is just absorbed by our skin in the shower.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>There really is a monster in your kids rooms.</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/A-MONSTER-IN-YOUR-KIDS-ROOMS</link>
				<description><![CDATA[You may not know it, but lurking behind the happy colors and cute images in your kids rooms are toxic avengers doing their dirty deeds. That just painted smell. That new carpet odor. They're signals that chemicals are invading your space. This is especially important in the spaces our children occupy because their smaller bodies can't fend off pollutants the way an adult body can.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Hurray for Clay!</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Hurray-for-Clay</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Clay is one of the oldest, healthiest and most sustainable building materials on earth. It pre-dates recorded history and has been used by indigenous peoples for millennia, all across the globe.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>The Big GREEN School Bus</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/The-Big-Green-School-Bus</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Summer always comes and goes too quickly. Once again, it's time for Back to School shopping and figuring out what to make for lunches. Preparing for the Back to School agenda and managing a busy work schedule can seem a bit challenging. Thankfully, it is not that difficult and many of the products and tips are available here.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Sun-kissed cooking</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Sun_kissed_cooking</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Imagine, not having to heat up the kitchen or consume fuels to make a great meal -- simple, safe and convenient solar cooking can do the trick. Sun-baked foods stay moist; the natural internal juices do not bake out, resulting in a superior, moist taste and much less shrinkage.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Penelope Goes Green</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Penelope_Goes_Green</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Our friend, colleague and Green Landscaper extraordinaire, Kristen Battafarano, responded to &lsquo;Yahoo Answers&rsquo; when Penelope Cruz asked, &lsquo;What are some inexpensive tips to turn my house green?  Her response was so well done we requested permission to share it with you!]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Dirty Work: Earth Floors</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/earth_floors</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Earthen flooring, also known as dirt floors, is quickly gaining popularity among environmentally conscious homeowners who are opting to forgo traditional flooring such as hardwood or carpeting. Made from dirt, lime, sand, clay and paper pulp and sealed with linseed oil and beeswax, this flooring is inexpensive, quick to install and unique.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Red, White, Blue amp; Green Served Up as the 4th of July Approaches</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Red_White_Blue</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Summer in America conjures up images of outdoor fun and patriotic celebrations. Now we can add &quot;Green&quot; to the Red, White and Blue memories we make.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Getting the quot;Big Picturequot; is vital to truly making a quot;Greenquot; difference</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Getting-the-Big-Picture-is-vital-to-truly-making-a-Green-difference</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Learn what it takes to lighten your
ecological footprint

Just a small percentage of people changing the way they shop and the way they live can be a powerful force to persuade politicians, move markets, and inspire fellow citizens to change.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Recycle useless items into new garden tools</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Recycle_useless_items_into_new_garden_tools</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Dreaming about buying that new &quot;perfect&quot; tool?  Let me suggest that you first consider recycling and inventing new uses for household items, which often proves to be more productive and certainly less expensive.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>BackYard Orchard Culture</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/BackYard_Orchard_Culture</link>
				<description><![CDATA[When you think of an orchard, do you envision acres of perfectly spaced apple trees and workers on ladders picking the fruit with harvest colors in the background? Are you then discouraged because you realize you don&rsquo;t have the property to produce a bountiful harvest to delight your family&rsquo;s taste buds? No so any more!]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>What's the </title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/What_is_the_right_stuff</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Whether our pets are heroes or just beloved members of our family, we want them to be happy and live long healthy lives. Nutrition plays such a crucial role in the collective health of our pets that it is no wonder we find ourselves looking for alternatives in the wake of the pet-food contamination scare that happened in mid-March 2007.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Community Supported Agriculture</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/community_supported_agriculture</link>
				<description><![CDATA[One way to find locally grown organic produce is to visit your weekly farmers market, but there is another way - your local CSA.  What is a CSA? CSA is an acronym for Community Supported Agriculture, a system through which individuals and families subscribe, in advance, to receive weekly produce directly from their local farm.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Greywater Turned Green!</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/Greywater-Turned-Green-</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Chances are you have heard the term &quot;greywater&quot; but never been quite sure what it means.  Greywater is all the water in your home that goes down a drain, excluding your toilet and kitchen sink water.  Picture a color scale with white on the left and black on the right:  if white represents fresh drinking water and black represents dirty waste water (toilet water or black water), greywater is in the middle because it&rsquo;s not clean enough to drink, but it certainly isn&rsquo;t polluted enough to flush down the drain.  Because of its unique make-up greywater offers many versatile options for use in outdoor landscaping.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Biocompatible Soaps</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/biocompatible_soaps</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Essential to life, our water is a precious resource and we often forget how important it is to use it wisely.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>10 SIMPLE Things You Can Do For Earth Day</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/10_simple_things</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Earth is the &quot;third rock&quot; from the sun and the only planet in the solar system known to harbor life. Our planet's rapid spin and molten nickel-iron core give rise to an extensive magnetic field, which, along with the atmosphere, dose us the favor of shielding us from nearly all of the harmful radiation coming from the sun and other stars.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Give the Earth a Great Big Hug!</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/great_big_hug</link>
				<description><![CDATA[The Earth gives us so many gifts, so how about we return the favor?              From the earth we receive the natural resources to sustain our population,              beautiful flora and fauna to tickle our senses, and wonderful land              on which to live. Having given us so many fabulous things, it is time              to give back and pamper the earth every day, but especially on April              22 - Earth Day. This international day is devoted to celebrating and              honoring the planet on which we live.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Looking Through 'Green' Colored Glass(es)</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/green_colored_glass</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Hundreds of thousands of glass bottles are being &lsquo;saved&rsquo; each year from recycling centers and trash dumps and transformed into uniquely stunning 				 glassware by Green Glass Inc. Simultaneously cleaning and beautifying the environment, 				  Green Glass uses a patented process to help the world look at life through &lsquo;green&rsquo; colored glasses!]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Zap the Bugs, Not Your Health!</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/zap_the_bugs</link>
				<description><![CDATA[It&rsquo;s only natural to want to repel those pesky bugs that buzz around your head on a warm, sunny day outdoors; munch your tomatoes; or sneak around the darkest corners of your dwelling.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Why Heat the Outdoors?</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/why_heat</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Sooner or later all the heat you produce inside your house will end up outside. The way houses are being built today, you need a supersized furnace to keep replacing the heat that is quietly sneaking out to play. How do you avoid this?]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Tubular Skylights</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/tubular</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Let the Sun Shine In! Looking for a way to bring natural daylight into your home, basement, or office?]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Tomatoes in December</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/tomatoes</link>
				<description><![CDATA[There is an easy way and a hard way to get ripe tomatoes in December. 
The easy way is to head to your local supermarket and buy them. The hard way is to raise them, pick them green in early November, put them in a box in the basement, cover them with a newspaper, and then be patient.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>The Green Building Pipe</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/the_green_building</link>
				<description><![CDATA[They used to say it was a pipe dream. 
Now it&rsquo;s on the cover of Time Magazine, Vanity Fair, Newsweek, USA Today, BizAz, and all over the Internet. It has garnered its own dedicated eight-page section in the New York Times, and it&rsquo;s even covered in The Economist and Fortune.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Permaculture: Pathways to Sustainable Communities</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/permaculture</link>
				<description><![CDATA[A society is defined, in large part, by how it grows and transports food from the farm to the kitchen.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Natural Cleaning Products</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/natural_cleaning</link>
				<description><![CDATA[There is a plethora of household cleaning products available in the marketplace, but few people are aware that many of them contain toxins and chemicals that are damaging to the health of people, pets and the environment.  Conventional cleaning products often contain bleach, phosphate and formaldehyde, which when released into the environment, can cause harmful effects to ecosystems and human health.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Move Over, Martha!</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/move_over</link>
				<description><![CDATA[If you&rsquo;re not recycling, you&rsquo;re throwing it all away. Most everyone is familiar with the prevailing approach to avoiding waste: reduce, reuse, and recycle. But few know how to apply it in everyday life.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Mesquite: It's Not Just for Barbeque Anymore</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/mesquite</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Charcoal made from mesquite wood gives grilled meats a unique, rather western flavor, but the seedpods from this common Arizona tree are a culinary treat as well.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Go Solar!</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/go_solar</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Photovoltaic (PV) systems use solar cells to capture electrons from the sun and direct them into electrical wiring, forming a direct current (DC). This is the same kind of current that flows from a regular battery. It can be used to power a variety of devices as-is, or it can be converted to alternating current (AC) for standard household use.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>To Compost or to Non-Compost?  That is the Question</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/To-Compost-or-to-Non-Compost-That-is-the-Question</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Have you ever wanted to start composting but the prospect of building your compost pile stopped you in your tracks?]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>The Community Garden</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/community_garden</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Everyone likes to win. Everyone wants to live in a neighborhood that is clean and green. Everyone benefits from eating fresh, naturally grown food.  And most everyone likes a sense of community with the people who live around them.]]></description>
			</item><item>
				<title>Compact Fluorescent Lightbulbs</title>
				<link>http://www.yourguidetogreen.com/learn/articles/cfl</link>
				<description><![CDATA[Lighting accounts for about 20 percent of all electricity use in the U.S. and about 25 percent of electricity use in U.S. homes according to Eartheasy. It is estimated that the typical household spends about $110 per year on lighting and most of this cost is lost in the form of waste from inefficient incandescent light bulbs. These bulbs are essentially heaters in disguise, converting about 90 percent of the electricity to heat and only about 10 percent to visible light.]]></description>
			</item></channel>
				</rss>

