All GAM Articles

Parent Issue Authored on Title Body Relevant Lens
Get Out the Vote, 2024 This year is an important election, with many important issues on the line that Green Americans care about. So make sure you vote and help others vote too! 1. Ensure you're registered to vote at I Will Vote. In some states, you need to be registered 30 days prior to take part in the election so do it now. 2. Encourage others to… Green Living, Social Justice
How to Advance Green Energy Twenty-five years ago, power generated by wind turbines and solar panels was so futuristic that it was called “alternative” energy. But the day is coming soon when green energy won’t be alternative at all because we’ll be getting a major portion of our energy needs met renewably. You can help lead the way by choosing green energy sources,… Climate, Green Living
Your Recycling Quandaries If have questions about recycling, we have answers. Here are some of our most commonly asked questions. Q: If my recycling gets picked up in the same truck as trash, is it really being recycled? A: Probably. In some municipalities, trucks have been retrofitted to collect trash on one side and recycling on the other in separate compartments. In… Climate, Green Living
Make Solar Power Affordable Now Jon Ellenbogen says the best payback for the new solar power system on his house is that he stands taller: "I love watching the meter run backwards during the day because I'm making more clean energy than I'm using. I'm proud to tell people about it—they think it's so cool!"  Many homeowners like Jon and his partner Rebecca Sachs want to help… Green Living
Stop Sweatshops and Child Labor In a globalized economy, it can be difficult for consumers to track the supply chain behind the shoes and other products they buy. Unfortunately, oppressive labor conditions and the problems of sweatshops and child labor still exist. Child Labor at Puma In June of 2008, for example, China Labor Watch reported on poor conditions at a factory… Labor
Follow the Worker-Leaders Above: RMG workers held a protest rally against the retrenchment and forced resignations of workers and firing of pregnant women caused by factory closures during COVID-19 pandemic in Dhaka on June 26, 2020. Photo by Mamunur Rashid. Across the world, workers are standing up for their rights; speaking out against injustice; and fighting for… Labor, Social Justice
31 Ways to Walk or Bicycle More Biking or walking isn’t as scary as it seems—in fact, 40 percent of trips taken in the US are fewer than two miles from home, according to the League of American Bicyclists, so integrating more biking and walking into a daily routine is often convenient and manageable. When starting to bike or walk more, however, you don’t have to quit driving… Climate, Green Living
Four Steps to a Healthy Home Exterior 1. Avoid Vinyl (PVC) Siding  The problem: Home siding can be the single largest use of PVC plastic in a home. Vinyl siding often contains DEHP, an additive and a phthalate. The manufacture and incineration of PVC releases dangerous pollution. May be linked to: endocrine disruption, reproductive toxicity, cancer… Green Living
More Steps to Energy Efficiency Take these actions and save up to 56 percent of your energy use! Replace Your Light Bulbs  Take the step: Replace the incandescent light bulbs in your house, even if they haven’t yet burned out, with compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs). Why: You’ve been hearing about the wonders of CFLs for years now—they last ten times longer and use… Climate
Civility In A Polarized World James Hoggan is a Canadian public-relations expert who is also known for his commitment to ethics and integrity in PR. He is the chair of the David Suzuki Foundation and founder of DeSmogBlog.com, which works to “expose misinformation campaigns polluting the public debate about climate change and the environment.” He’s also the author of Climate… Green Living
A Tale of Two Shirts: Green vs. Conventional This is a tale of two T-shirts, one from the popular mall store Forever 21, and one from Green America Green Business Network member Blue Canoe. The shirts are both blue and made of 100-percent cotton. They both have cap sleeves, slight tapering at the waist, and come in sizes XS-L. But that's where the similarity ends. The Forever 21 shirt… Green Living
Ready Your Finances for a Climate Disaster Personal finance expert Tony Steuer will help you prepare your money for nature’s worst. Caption for header image: Neighborhoods in Houston and its suburbs faced extensive damage from flooding after Hurricane Harvey in 2017. Credit Karl Spencer via iStock. Tony Steuer is a financial preparedness advocate, insurance expert, and author of… Climate, Finance, Green Living
About Green America @media only screen and (max-width: 600px) {.youtube { display:none} } @media only screen and (min-width: 601px) {.youtube1 { display:none} } .field--name-field-photo-credit {display: none !important} .page-header {display:none} What We Do  Economic Action for People and the Planet Clean Energy h4 {margin-top:-25px !… Food
Sustainable Computer Options Two years ago, the computer manufacturer NEC Solutions launched a new product for environmentally conscious computer users. NEC’s PowerMate eco computer was described at the time as “the first all-in-one, fanless ecological PC … specifically [designed] to address the growing environmental problems associated with traditional PCs.” The PowerMate… Green Living
A Beginner's Guide to Buying Stocks Whether it’s the ticker running across the bottom of your screen, or the numbers filling up the business section in the newspaper, the stock market is everywhere. For many of us, buying stocks remains a mysterious, and oftentimes overwhelming, thing. But history has shown that, over the long term (ten years or more), the stock market almost… Green Living
Shrink Your Impact, Offset the Rest When Ethan Merlin, a school teacher and Green America member in Rockville, MD, had an opportunity to take a group of students to visit Moscow, he had just one regret: by flying roundtrip across the Atlantic, he and his students would have no choice but to each cause the emission of more than three tons of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas.… Green Living
Three Steps to a Healthy Bathroom 1. Trash Conventional Body Care Products The Problem: More than one-third of all personal care products contain at least one ingredient linked to cancer, and very few products are tested for safety. Some products contain phthalates, which don't appear in the list of a product's ingredients. Instead, they are covered by the general term… Green Living
Go Vegetarian: Eat Less Meat to Cool the Planet Back to the Vote With Your Dollar Toolkit The average American may not have considered the connection between global warming and a cheeseburger, but the United Nations has. The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) released a report in February of this year, concluding that livestock is responsible for 18 percent of our world global warming… Green Living
Our Interview with Dr. Bernard Lietaer Bernard Lietaer is the author of the forthcoming Of Human Wealth and The Future of Money (London: Random House, 2001), and has been studying monetary systems for over 25 years. While at the Central Bank in Belgium, he co-designed and implemented the convergence mechanism to the Euro, the European single currency system. He is the co-founder… Finance
Food that Nourishes People and Planet—The Next Climate Solution Back to the Vote With Your Dollar Toolkit Bobby and Diann Johnson grow pecans on a small farm in southeastern Georgia. Rajah Banerjee improves his community by tending organic tea gardens in northeastern India. Ofelia Flores harvests wine grapes on a vineyard in California where workers have organized for a voice on the job. And formerly… Green Living
Simple Steps to a Healthy Bedroom 1. Choose Better Bedclothes — The problem: Toxic chemicals that resist flames, water, moths, stains, soil, and wrinkles are sometimes added to textiles like bedclothes. Labels such as "permanent-press," "no-iron," "water repellent," and "flame retardant" may indicate fabric treatments that off-gas chemicals like formaldehyde and… Green Living
Your (Kids') Guide to Staying On Task Working from home has benefits, but the challenges of turning your home into an office while your kids are in the room adds distractions to an already hectic day. Whether your kids are six or sixteen, here are ways that they can keep themselves busy in a green and enriching way so you can get back to work. For Younger Kids Christy Schwengel,… Green Living
Interview with Faith Leader The Rev. Dr. Jim Antal “They’re making profit because we’re letting them destroy God’s Creation.” The Reverend Dr. Jim Antal is a conference minister in the United Church of Christ, responsible for the 375 UCC congregations in Massachusetts. The Massachusetts conference board of directors recently approved his proposal to divest their funds from fossil fuels and… Finance, Social Justice
6 Simple Steps to a Safer, Germ-Free Home The easiest way to create a germ-free home and eliminate toxic chemicals from your life is to not bring them into your home to begin with. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to start fresh with a new build out of the greenest of green materials, buying as little as possible, and then, always green? Unfortunately, problematic chemicals are already in… Green Living
Meet Our Members: Interview with Brady Quirk-Garvan Brady Quirk-Garvan is a business development associate at Money With A Mission [m], a socially responsible investing firm focused on divesting from destructive industries and making money work for progressive causes.  Quirk-Garvan has lived in Charleston, South Carolina for over 15 years and served as Chairman of the Charleston Democratic… Green Living, Social Justice