For example, I could swap a stay in my home, which is just outside Washington, D.C., with someone who lives in London (or with this gorgeous house in Bali, pictured above). I would stay in their house, and they would stay in mine.  Usually, the stays last about the same amount of time, but they don’t have to occur simultaneously. I have friends who regularly swap houses with people all over the world. If their guests want to visit at a time when they’re not traveling, they decamp to their kids’ house or to a neighbor’s or friend’s. It has worked so well for them, they have managed it in Maryland, San Francisco, Seattle, Paris, the Dordogne region in France, Italy, Belgium…you get the picture.

Though you may pay a small fee to list your house on a swapping site, generally, if you swap with another homeowner, neither of you pays the other any rental fee. So first and foremost, house (or apartment) swapping is a terrific way to save hundreds of dollars (or pounds).

But beyond the economic value of house swapping, what appeals to me about it is the opportunity to lower my “environmental footprint” by staying in a house or flat that matches my lifestyle, rather than in a hotel that takes a bigger environmental toll. That means no sheets and towels being changed every day (which saves lots of energy and water), non-toxic soaps and personal care products I can supply myself (rather than rely on the conventional products most hotels use), fewer electricity demands (you won’t find elevators in most houses!), and the opportunity to recycle on the premises (most hotels don’t offer guests in-room recycling). Plus, I love having access to a kitchen when I travel so that I don’t need to rely on restaurants and fast food joints for meals. I can skip the carry-out trash in favor of buying locally grown food I can prepare with minimum impact myself.

Most home swap sites actually offer a few different options. For example, at Love Home Swap, homeowners can either swap with each other, rent a home they see on the site, or earn points they can apply to different houses (for example, I could “swap” my house to a couple from Scotland, but instead of going to their home, I could use swap points to go to Australia).

Another advantage of home swapping is that it allows you to share your green lifestyle with others who may be new to eco living.  By giving visitors the opportunity to see what you have done to save energy and water and minimize waste, you’re providing your guests with a first-hand opportunity to see how rewarding it is to live green.

It only takes a few minutes to join a home swapping site. Many of them offer a free trial period to test it out and see how you like it. Whether you’re planning an extended vacation or a short-holiday, home swapping can be a terrific way to enjoy your destination while minimizing your environmental impact. What do you have to lose?

Have you tried home swapping before? How did it work for you? Let us know!

DISCLAIMER: Sponsors like LoveHomeSwap.com pay a small fee for a guest post like this one. Those fees helps us bring you expert content, but at no cost to you. All sponsors meet our strict criteria for environmental accuracy and in no way affect our editorial judgement. Thanks!

The post Swap Houses for the Holidays to Help You Stay Green appeared first on Big Green Purse.

Happy Earth Day!

To honor this day of environmental action and awareness, we’re highlighting some of our most popular Earth Day posts. We’d also love to hear how you’re celebrating this day devoted to Nature, the environment, and how we humans interact with both. Please share your suggestions and tips, and have a great day.

PETS

Earth Day Countdown: Make the Earth Friendly for Pets, Too! Research has shown that our beloved cats and dogs (I have two cats, and one wonderful dog) may be just as susceptible to pollution as we people are. Here’s what you can do to keep your pets happy and health.

Spoil Your Pup and Protect the Environment

PARTIES

Planning a party to celebrate Mother Nature? Here are our “green” suggestions. Please share yours.

Going on a picnic? Here’s how we do it.

BEAUTY

Earth Day Health & Beauty Countdown: Switch Your Liquid Shampoo to a Bar

Cosmetic How-Tos

Beauty…or the Beast? Depends on the Safe Chemicals Act

BUDGET

One of the biggest obstacles to “going green” can be the perception that it’s too expensive. You may change your mind after you read these money-saving suggestions for ways to lead a more environmentally-friendly lifestyle without breaking the bank.

This Earth Day, Save the Planet and Save $4,000 a Year, Too!

Ten Low-Cost, High Impact Ways to Celebrate Earth Day

More Money-Saving Eco Tips

And just for fun…

DON”T Do This on Earth Day!

and…

Earth Day Countdown Begins…With Sex!

The post Are You Ready for Earth Day? Best Tips for Pets, Parties, Beauty & Your Budget! appeared first on Big Green Purse.

The stay-at-home mother of three young boys lives with her family in Raleigh, North Carolina. She writes The Conscious Shopper blog, where her motto is “Go Green. Live Better. Save Money.” She’s also the newest member of our One in a Million campaign, joining almost 5,000 other folks who have shifted at least $1,000 of their household budgets to the greenest products and services available.

One thousand dollars sounds like a lot of money. But since we’re talking about shifting our spending, rather than adding to what we already spend, it’s something most of us can afford. Plus, if a million people do it, we could send a message worth a billion dollars to manufacturers that we want them to make our health and the environment a priority.  Here’s how Erin made the shift:

Every month I spend about $600 on local and/or organic groceries for my family of five. Over the past year, I’ve also spent:

$400 on a winter CSA membership
$60 on Charlie’s Soap laundry detergent
$54 on Seventh Generation dishwasher detergent and dish soap
$16 on recycled paper towels
$10 on trash bags made with recycled content
$45 on recycled toilet paper
$72 on Tom’s of Maine toothpaste
$30 on Preserve toothbrushes
$60 on organic make-up
$7 on Crystal deodorant
$173 on thrift store clothing and Simple Shoes
$27 to set up a worm bin
$52 on recycled printer paper

$1606 – Total

Erin’s shifts did not happen overnight.

“For a long time, I had a misconception that living green was expensive and therefore out of reach for my family,” she said. “Then one day, I got frustrated with the feeling that I was buying inferior and unhealthy products and that I wasn’t spending my money in accordance with my values. I decided just to go for it and see if I could buy organic, non-toxic, and fair trade products without blowing my family’s budget.

“At that time, our budget was extremely tight, but I found that by living more frugally and doing the green things that save money, I was able to shift our savings to our food and clothing budget. Without affecting our overall budget at all, I was able to go green!”

Erin said some shifts were pretty easy. “I love buying fresh foods from the farmer’s market and through our CSA. I love that my family is eating healthier, but I also enjoy meeting the farmers and hearing their passion. Knowing where our food comes from is such a wonderful feeling,” she says.

But there are still some challenges – like clothing. “In my past life,” Erin admits, “I was a Target-clothing addict. I’ve learned to enjoy thrift store shopping, but there are some items (like shoes) that I prefer to buy new and the price difference of eco-friendly clothing versus Target clothing is a hard one for me. Mostly, I get over that hurdle by not going to Target. Out of sight, out of mind.”

Erin is taking what she’s learned as a green budget shifter and launched a campaign to encourage others  to make small behavior changes, too. It’s called The Conscious Shopper Challenge, and it provides weekly goals to help people go green in a year without spending a lot of money. “We start with “trimming your waste-line” (reducing your trash production), then we work on energy, water, transportation, shopping, food, and finally looking “beyond your front door,” explains Erin.

“I think a lot of people have the same misconception that I used to have: that going green means big expensive changes like buying a new car or putting solar panels on the roof. But I’ve learned that there are so many small things each individual can do, and those small things add up to make a big difference.

“I hope The Conscious Shopper Challenge will show people how easy and affordable it can be to go green while providing a strong supportive community to go green with. But beyond that, I hope people will feel inspired to be conscious shoppers, aware of how their decisions in the marketplace affect other people and the planet.”

Feeling inspired? Check out even more inspiring One in a Million stories here. Why don’t you join us? It’s easy. Start here.

The post Stay-At-Home Mom Shifts $1,600 of Household Budget to Protect the Environment and Her Family appeared first on Big Green Purse.

Fran is the newest member of the One in a Million campaign, a feat she achieved by switching more than $1,000 of her household budget to products and services that offer the greatest environmental benefit. The campaign doesn’t ask people to spend MORE money. Instead, it encourages consumers to throw their marketplace clout behind non-toxic, eco-friendly alternatives that often end up saving people more money in the long run.

Who is Fran?

Fran, who is married, 67, and the mother of grown children, has lived in Butler, PA for the past 43 years. Her husband trains and breeds Labrador retrievers; “We have two,” she says. Fran is retired, but works part-time conducting food demonstrations where “I really push the organic products whether it is my demo of the day or not.”

“At home I am an avid cook – everything from scratch,” says the One in a Million devotee.  “After the Women for a Healthy Environment conference last year, and after reading Omnivore’s Dilemma, I extended my organic garden and got two hens so I could have organic eggs.  I erected a hoop house in October to have a winter garden which proved to be quite successful.  The only red meat we eat is venison, and I can and freeze everything possible.”

“I also made homemade mouthwash and fabric softner,” she said.

How did she shift $1,000?

Here are the actual eco budget shifts Fran made between October 2008 and December 2009:

Organic Grains, Beans – $40
Organic Coffee – $208
Organic Dairy – $155
Organic Nuts –  $52
Organic Pasta – $21
Household Products (like eco-safe laundry detergent, dish soap, and cleaning soap) – $115
Nontoxic Health/Beauty Products – $66
Organic Chicken Feed – $26
Beverages – $23
Soymilk (2 cases) – $25
Meats/Fish – $123
Snacks – $8
Veg/Fruit – $90
Organic garden fertilizer and soil amendments: $75
Stopped using clothes dryer almost completely: undetermined energy savings

Total: at least $1,025

Why?

When I asked Fran why she made the shifts, here’s what she said:

* What inspired you to join the One in a Million campaign? I attended the Women’s Health and the Environment Conference in Pittsburg and heard you describe the difference we can make based on how we spend our money. I thought, “I can do that.”

* What change was unexpectedly easy to make? Keeping track of my purchases!

* What proved to be most challenging? Finding the best prices (ed. Note: This is true for many people, but a little bargain shopping can make organic food and recycled products very affordable)’

* What’s your next step? Continue to purchase present organic products and add new ones as I find them.

Great job, Fran! Thanks for sharing your success with us.

Join Us!

And for all of you who are inspired to make your own spending shifts, get started here.

The post She shifted $1,000 of her budget to eco-friendly goods…and chickens! appeared first on Big Green Purse.

Do less.  Do it better.

This will probably be harder than it sounds.

We face more “opportunities” than ever before – more ways to social network, more green stuff to buy, more blogs to read and write, more work to do, more programs to watch, more groups to support…

And yet how much “more” is truly meaningful?

In my case anyway, it seems that the more I do, the more fractured my life actually becomes. I spend a lot of time catching up and keeping up, rather than determinedly building on a foundation that, over time, amounts to tru, meaningful change.

I can’t help but wonder, if I chose quality over quantity, would I actually make a bigger difference in the world?

2010 will be the year I give that notion a try.

Here’s the list of “less” I’m going to aim for:

Professionally

* Less causes, more results-oriented campaigns.

* Less “multiple streams of income,” more effective consulting for clients that make a difference.

* Less social “gadabout-ing,” more quality comments and posts.

Personally

* Less consumption, more eco-friendly goods when I do buy.

* Less processed foods, more food I grow myself (well…except when it comes to chocolate).

* Less electronic entertainment, more quality time outdoors.

* Less driving, more mass transit, biking and walking (even if it means I go fewer places).

* Less charities to support, more support for those I endorse.

None of these changes are destined to gain me more time, the commodity that is perhaps in shortest supply in our “do more, have it all” world. They do promise to make the time I spend more worthwhile. At a minimum, doing less should help me simplify my life, a worthy goal in and of itself. Will it?  Stay tuned.  And let me know what’s on your “less list.”

For more resolutions, don’t miss these posts from the Green Moms Carnival, hosted this month at NonToxic Kids.

The post Environmental Resolution for 2010? Do Less. Do It Better. appeared first on Big Green Purse.

Then keep this handy guide on your desk or in your purse, backpack or briefcase — anywhere you might find yourself in need of some to-the-point guidance on what to do or buy.

After a short introduction, the book breaks out into six chapters: Eating, Living, Cleaning, Caring, Wearing and Conserving. Each section brims with “how to” tips, product reviews, and suggestions that will save you money. Keeping you and your family healthy is also top of mind for Micaela, who writes the delightful Mindful Momma blog and has two boys to try her many ideas out on!

You’ll particularly like Practically Green if you’re the do-it-yourself type. Got any old sweaters lying around? Check out Micaela’s “recipe” for felted wool coasters made from recycled sweaters. Want to make your own body care products? Start with Micaela’s “luscious lip balm” – a yummy concoction of beeswax, almond oil, shea butter, and your choice of peppermint, lime or grapefruit oil.

Don’t miss the book’s “copy and clip” pages, either. I particularly like the clippable guide called “Where can I recycle that?”  Ever wonder how you can properly dispose of carpeting, medicine, or drink pouches (let alone compact fluorescent light bulbs and clothes hangers)? See page 196!

The post “Practically Green” Offers Simple Steps to an Environmental Lifestyle appeared first on Big Green Purse.