Ok I am really excited about bringing this to you all. Not only because Seventh Generation is a fabulous company that gives me hope, and I'll be giving away a Seventh Gen prize pack just in time for Spring Cleaning, but because I got to do a Q&A with the very well thought author of "The Conscious Kitchen" - Alexandra Zissu."The Conscious Kitchen" is a plethora of information to guide you to a deeper green lifestyle - promoting health for you, your family, and our Earth. I carry it in my purse and have it full of tabs so I can pull it out and reference while I'm shopping. I'm surprised at how much I gleaned from this book. A true resource.
So let's get to the mini interview. I tried to think of questions that both interested me and would be practical for you my readers.
1) Reading your book I'm learning that I am a very basic green. What is the single most important lifestyle change that someone can make to positively affect health? The environment?
Everyone has to start somewhere. And starting is the single most important thing you can do. Stop and take a conscious pause to decide what green changes you can and want to make and go from there. There are so many things you can easily do that will drastically help with your health and the environment -- this includes eating meat from well-raised pastured animals and less of it, drinking filtered tap water from a reusable bottle instead of drinking bottled water, choosing local seasonal organic fruits and vegetables, switching your cleaning products to conventional cleaners, cooking in tried and true materials like cast iron instead of non-stick, and storing in glass instead of plastic. There are many more suggestions in The Conscious Kitchen.
2) In what area of eco-consciousness do you see the most need for public education?
I think a lot of people just overall find it too complicated and too expensive -- What plastics are safe? What does "natural" mean on a product? What's wrong with a whole chicken that isn't made into nuggets? There needs to be general awareness that the regulations we all seem to think are in place aren't really there. Labels found on most food products aren't being actively controlled by government agencies and therefore are really meaningless. There needs to be a basic education about our current industrial food production system. There needs to be better awareness about what we're eating many times a day. Before you eat, cook, or store your food, think about it. This is what I mean by the word "conscious" in The Conscious Kitchen. Really think about your apple: who grew it, where is it from, how was it grown, how is it packaged? And your pan: is this a tried and true material, and, if not, how safe is it if you scratch it, or put it under the broiler, can it be recycled at the end of its useful life. For storage: what is it, what chemicals does it contain that might be getting into your food and so on. And educated eater can easily access the purest, most conscious foods, cookware, and appliances around. And an educated eater can find ways to shift their budget so that all things local, organic, and tasty are within financial reach. Start by dropping the amount of packaged goods you buy during a supermarket run and replacing them with fresh, non-packaged items.
3) What have you learned is the best way to inspire those who show no interest in living consciously?
We tend to get very inspired by our children. Some people are inspired even by pregnancy, or grandchildren. I have seen many parents who feed their children conscious food but still eat what they've always eaten themselves! If children aren't inspiration enough, or your household doesn't have children, pets can be very inspiring. So can stories of animal cruelty and aquatic creatures that have been totally altered by the contaminants in our waterways -- I'm talking feminized male fish that produce eggs. Fear is a great motivator. Obviously I'd prefer people be inspired to go green rather than scared into doing it, but hold tight to whatever gets you going, and let it help motivate your green journey.
4) And finally a question just to satisfy my own opinion in a little ongoing debate - how long do you think it will be before plastic shopping bags are eliminated?
Ha. That's a good one. I honestly don't know. I'd love to see that happen as soon as possible and am actually now getting alarmed by the number of reusable bags I seem to have! How will I recycle these? I think companies charging for bags is far more likely than eliminating them entirely. And that has already begun.
See - enlightening. I'm am grateful that I had the opportunity and grateful for Alexandra's book.
One thing I learned from her responses, is that I am conscious, and that I think is the most important part of becoming green, or eco- friendly - being conscious. Once you start , that consciousness continues to grow.
Like my cleaning products, there is nothing in my home that is toxic at all. Thanks to companies like Seventh Generation. The products I got to try out are amazing - the active ingredient? Thyme oil!! Yes Thyme, like you cook with :) Smells so fresh and clean - not perfumed and chemically. I used to keep a spray bottle of water & oil of oregano around to spray on surfaces as a disinfectant. Same result - super healthy , natural & clean. It doesn't get any better than that.
Companies like Seventh Generation give us an option to take a conscious step forward with every purchase we make. Demand controls supply. When we all make a effort to live consciously, we are in turn demanding that the market does too. We-you & me, can change the world :)
But for now, lets change our lives, for the better of our families. Lets be conscious.
BUY IT:
You can purchase Seventh Generation nation wide at your local supermarkets & department stores - nearly everywhere now - find your location here. You can purchase Alexandra Zissu's book " The Conscious Kitchen" at Amazon , Barnes & Noble , Borders , & IndieBound. Go buy it!
WIN IT!!!
One SUPER lucky winner will receive the Seventh Generation Prize Pack which includes :a disinfecting multi-surface cleaner, bathroom cleaner, wipes , a copy of The Conscious Kitchen, a cleaning caddy made from recycled plastic, and two rolls of 100% recycled, unbleached paper towels.
MAIN ENTRY:
Visit either Alexandra Zissu online , or Seventh Generation and tell me something that you learned that effects you and your eco conscious status - either where you are, or where you want to be.
EXTRAS:
* follow Wishing Penny blog ( 2 bonus entries)
* Subscribe to Wishing Penny by email
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* blog this post & leave a link ( 3 bonus entries )
* grab my button
* follow me at Networked Blogs (right side)
* follow me @ Twitter & tweet this contest - RT @jamaise {GIVEAWAY} #WIN a @SeventhGen & @alexandrazissu Seventh Generation Spring Cleaning Prize Pack http://bit.ly/b8Dwd5 Ends 4/23( 2 bonus entries)
* Re-Tweet daily for an extra entry each tweet
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*become a fan of Seventh Generation at Facebook
*become a fan of Alexandra Zissu at Facebook
- That's 13 possible entries with a chance for unlimited possible entry points!!
Giveaway will end on April 23th at 11 :59 am EST. Winner will be selected using Random .org. I will email the winner & you will have 48 hours to reply back before I draw a new winner . Please remember to leave me your email address if it is not visible on your profile so that I can contact you if you win. Good luck to everyone :)
Disclaimer: My Blog Spark & Seventh Generation provided me with the prize pack you see above for review and the same prize pack for one winner. These views are my own.
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