CustomEarthPromos - Eco Blog US

Going green is the way forward for any kind of organization. There are many green options available, which makes it possible for everyone to be environmentally friendly (without having to cut back). You're only being ignorant if you aren't choosing to be environmentally friendly. Cloud computing, one of the biggest recent technological advancements, not just helps you expand your reach but also to be a green company. What Makes Cloud Computing Sustainable? Every company aims to be better than all its competitors. Many factors have to be weighed when companies need to bolster an idea through. Some of them are money – how much to invest and ROI, time – is it executable, will it be an obstruction and practicality – is the idea sustainable. Companies also need to be environmentally-conscious while striving towards their goals. Eco-friendly promotional items can help them attract customer's attention. Cloud computing is a next generation technology that helps augment the productivity of a workplace, reduce the carbon footprint and improve the environmental quality. It allows companies to work faster, with fewer machines. Companies usually only utilize 5 - 10 percent of their servers, and this rate suffers when server is overloaded. With cloud computing they can utilize 60 - 70 of their server capabilities. It also helps by using fewer machines, optimally utilizing them and increasing output. To keep these servers functioning properly, the humidity and temperature levels should be maintained. These are all added costs to support an under-functioning system. Cloud computing eliminates such maintenance cost, encouraging savings. How Can Eco-Friendly Promotional Items and Cloud Computing Help?  It isn't sufficient being a company that makes good products or provides good service. There are hundreds of companies out there and people make choices that reflect themselves. They want to be associated with companies that are green, innovative and work to support and sustain a good life. Offering promotional eco-friendly items shows that you are a forward thinking company. People are more aware and conscious of the choices they are making and they are happy being linked with green companies. If you want to stand apart, you need to work on not just what you provide, but also on the image of your company.

The plastic bag ban has definitely proved to be a costly affair for the Santa Fe City Council. According to the New Mexico Watchdog, Santa Fe has spent nearly $34,000 to implement the ban and almost $10,000 of this amount was utilized for advertising and public relation campaigns. Is the Plastic Bag Ban Worth It? To implement a ban on the use of plastic grocery bags, Santa Fe has spent $33,818.75 and the main question is whether it was worth it. A contract was signed between the city and HK Advertising for $10,818.75 (including gross receipts tax) to develop a logo, a website and graphics, in addition to providing branding ideas. A campaign aimed at reaching out and educating the masses was also a part of the deal. The agency introduced the slogan ‘Bag to Differ' and a logo that is being used on the website of the city to publicize the ban as a measure to reduce litter and encourage the use of reusable cloth bags. Radio spots are also being used to promote the program Residents such as Jolene Lockhart are angered by this expensive move. She rightly put it as being a waste of taxpayer's money. She added that cloth bags were bound to become dirty and would end up as breeding places for bacteria. She also mentioned that washing the bags would mean using more water. The ban on less than 2 ½ mils thick plastic bags was to come into effect by February 27, but this has not happened due to some obstacles. Customers who opted for paper bags instead were to be charged a fee of ten percent on each bag. However, the fee was waived as the Santa Fe City Attorney felt that it could be challenged in court as being an illegal tax. Spreading the Plastic Bag Ban with Promotional Reusable Bags? We cannot deny that reusable bags do have their advantages. They can help reduce the litter and pollution caused by single use plastic grocery bags. In addition, since these bags can be used repeatedly, the raw material required to make bags also decreases. However, awareness regarding the same can be brought about through more reasonable avenues such as tie-ups with companies who can offer promotional reusable bags that will not only help save money but will also act as a means of advertisement for the companies. Source

Over the past few years, debates revolving around bans on plastic bags have been taking centre stage and Texas is not far behind. The current question is whether cities in Texas, such as Austin, have rightly enforced such ordinances. AG to Decide on the Fate of the Ban A ban on plastic bags in Texas has been in question for a while now and the opinion of the Attorney General – Greg Abbott is being sought. In a letter, Dan Flynn, the state representative for R-Canton, raised a question whether the bans in the city were in agreement with the health and safety laws of the state. The letter cited the example of nine cities in Texas that had enacted the plastic bag ban and levied fees on alternate options in the past years. This, however, seemed to be in violation of the state law. According to a segment of the Texas Health and Safety Code, the municipal district wasn't allowed to pass any legislative limitations with regard to containers or package material used for the purpose of management of waste. Neither were they allowed to impose a fee on the usage of the same. Flynn mentioned that a lot of people were inconvenienced by the ban. He also mentioned that there were numerous calls questioning the legitimacy of such bans. A response from the Attorney General's office is expected in 180 days. Even though the opinion of the attorney general was not binding, a negative response could affect the decision made by other cities to enforce the ban. Additionally, the Texas Retailers Association and similar bodies could file lawsuits in the future. Using Custom Printed Canvas Bags Is a Good Idea Irrespective of the Ban Plastic grocery bags are indeed proving to be a menace. With a large number of bags clogging water bodies and littering streets as well as open areas, the need to cut back on their usage is becoming a necessity. The waste caused by single-use plastic bags also adds to the cost of disposal and recycling. Switching to custom printed canvas bags is a good idea irrespective of whether there is a ban in place or not. Besides being a trendy option, the switch can help in curbing litter as well as the excess use of raw materials used to produce disposable bags. This step will also help in minimizing the costs faced by cities to dispose of the bags. Source

A new wave of awareness is taking over the country with more and more people becoming concerned about the use of single-use plastic bags. Custom printed cloth bags and paper bags are being ushered in under a new era of eco-conservation and people are also interested in this effort. A Look at the Custom Printed Cloth Bags Fort Collins had taken a bold step in the fight against the overuse of plastic bags. In 2013, it had raised a bill that would require store merchants to charge a 10-cent fee on the use of plastic bags. The idea was to get people to switch to reusable bags. The 10-cent fee was to be split between the merchant and the city (intended to fund programs to promote eco-friendly habits and educate the masses about the same). However, majority of people seemed to misunderstand the intentions and assumed it to be a money making scheme by the city's law makers. As a result, the new bill states that all money raised from this program will go to the merchant, to alleviate consumer's qualms about where the money is going. Studies show that as many as 340 billion plastic bags are used on a yearly basis in the US alone. Only about 11 percent of these are reused or recycled, which means that they largely end up as waste. The plastic waste usually ends up clogging waterways and causing an eyesore on the landscapes. As custom printed cloth bags biodegrade much easily than plastic bags (which take thousands of years to degrade) they are looked at as a very viable solution. Moreover, the fact that they are made of cloth means that they are much less likely to be discarded after a single use. Flaunt Custom Printed Cloth Bags Instead of Plastic Bags Apart from the ecological use, custom printed cloth bags can also be used as very handy promotional item. For instance, businesses can have their logo's embossed onto these bags. This can help in spreading the word about their business as well as promoting an eco-friendly image. Such kind of brand image can be invaluable for a business and can create a strong sense of good will amongst its customers. Charging a small fee to the customers every time they opt for the store-provided bags can play a significant role in the encouraging the use of reusable bags. Source

Walnut Creek is ready to bid a goodbye to plastic and paper bags. Walnut Creek City Council has now taken the official decision to join the cities and counties that have banned one-time use plastic carry bags in all retail stores, pharmacies as well as restaurants. After the same ban was imposed in cities like Richmond, Pittsburgh, El Cerrito and San Pablo, it was Walnut Creek's turn to take up this green cause for environmental improvement in the country. Plastic bags were found to be the most prevalent form of garbage in the city's waterways, according to a 2010 assessment. This move will enable Walnut Creek to fulfill state requirements for cutting down on litter. According to Cindy Silva, Councilwoman, for the sake of convenience, the city has almost been treating the environment as a trash bin. This has not been intentional but there is a lack of awareness towards environmental protection. New Custom Made Tote Bags Ordinance for Dealing with Plastic Bags The ban will come into effect for stores all over the state in September. In the meanwhile, stores will now be required to charge a fee for providing reusable custom made tote bags (10-25 cents). There are exceptions to this regulation with respect to medicines, dry-cleaning, meat products and prepared foods. Though restaurants were originally excused and were not required to follow the ordinance, the state council has now decided to include them as well. But the ban will come into effect for them in December. Even though the state law makes it mandatory for grocers to undertake recycling of plastic bags, it is quite expensive to do so and it also doesn't serve the purpose of eliminating them completely from the environment. The fine for noncompliance of the ordinance starts from $100 going up to $500 depending on the number of times the rule is violated by the business owner. Council Conflict over Custom Made Tote Bags Though the council was applauded for the eco-friendly ordinance, there were also some who were not in complete agreement with the decision. William Cottrell, for instance, took a stand against the initial decision of the state to excuse low-income groups from paying for paper bags. According to him, low income groups contribute the highest towards plastic bag litter. At the same time, associations of grocer retailers, downtown business groups and other local unions are in support of the ordinance that bans plastic bags in the city. They believe that using custom made tote bags will help St. Croix in reducing plastic bag waste. Source

San Francisco is definitely taking a stand on being at the forefront of the battle to be more eco-friendly. After California became the largest city in the United States to accelerate its ban on single use plastic bags, San Francisco is fighting to be the first city to implement a ban on the sale of single use plastic bottles on city owned or leased land. Banning Plastic Bottles The focus in most parts of the country has been largely on single use plastic bags. As such, the use and sale of plastic bottles has gone largely under the radar. However, the fact remains that plastic bottles are as much to blame for the over-use of plastic as their grocery carrying counterparts. Just as with plastic bags, the discarded plastic bottles are either used in landfills or shipped off into the ocean as waste. However, given the fact that it takes about 1,000 years for a regular sized water bottle to biodegrade, the problems are obvious. Banning the use of single use water bottles might be a little harder to implement than single use plastic bag bans. For instance, the fact that they are usually and most widely used to sell packaged water, there are extenuating factors that play their part and will see the sale of packaged drinking water reduce heavily. The lawmakers are looking at viable ways of retaining the sale of packaged drinking water. One theory is to coax shoppers to bring their own reusable water bottles and place it under a tap to refill as one would at home. However, the water companies put forth the dispute that this will also make the sale of the healthiest packaged beverage at public and athletic events even harder if they don't have their reusable water bottles with them. Ditch Plastic Bottles, Go for Wholesale Reusable Bags Ditching the plastic bag and instead switching to wholesale reusable plastic bags is considered to be a landmark moment in the fight for a more eco-friendly world. Studies have shown that more than four metric tons of waste can be attributed to the discarding of plastic bags while an additional cost is incurred when they need to be gathered and shipped to landfill areas. Switching to wholesale reusable bags will have a significant positive impact on the use of public funds in the years to come. Source

There is an increasing awareness as well as understanding about the fact that we need to take better care of the environment. Single use plastic bags have already been banned in certain parts of the United States with a ban on the use of plastic bags also seemingly starting to take shape. A single plastic bag takes about 1,000 years to decompose, all the while releasing harmful toxins into the earth. The fact that discarded plastic bags, which atone to more than 400 metric tones of waste in even the smallest states, means that there is a huge footprint of toxins being bled into the ground. Eco-Friendly Furniture Is the New Way of Life Being eco-friendly needs to become a way of life for us to sustain the environment. Jessica Alba is a celebrity right at the forefront of a better way of living and is doing her part to encourage more people to think twice about the kind of lifestyle they lead. While banning plastic bags and bottles is merely the tip of the iceberg, she also encourages people to buy eco-friendly furniture. When speaking with Jessica Alba, she pronounces that one of her biggest Achilles heel is what makes her so conscious of the environment. Stating that she loves to buy vintage furniture, she makes a conscious decision to purchase most of her fondest furniture off Craigslist as refurbishing is one of the most eco-friendly things that one can do. Not stopping there, the famous actress also founded The Honest Company which specializes in a non-toxic line of baby products as well as household products. She makes a bold statement that without our health and without our planet we have nothing. Something that we should keep in mind if we want to sustain our planet. Setting Trends with Eco-Friendly Furniture Setting trends with eco-friendly promotional items does not necessarily begin with celebrities as it is up to all of us to do our bit. However, celebrities do bring a certain credibility to any campaign and will help increase awareness much faster than most other avenues. Emma Watson is known to be very eco-friendly as well, what with her eco-friendly line of designer wear. While musician Will.I.Am is the ambassador for Ekocycle (a large recycling conglomerate) while going on record to say that he is an ambassador for a better, healthier and eco-friendly way of living. Source

With an increased number of people becoming conscious of how planet earth is being treated, the fight against the use of plastic bags is becoming larger and larger. More city and state governments are taking an active stance on the banning of plastic bags as custom made totes are becoming the order of the day. How Are the Custom Made Totes Faring? The Rethink Plastic Initiative is founded on the principles of preventing the excessive use of plastic. Single use plastic bags contribute significantly to the eye sore of waste all over the planet. In addition to this, they also tend to buildup and block waterways while seriously harming marine life. As such, custom made tote bags are highly regarded as a more eco-friendly alternative. Custom made totes are usually made of bio-degradable materials that take significantly less time to degrade into the earth. All this without the leeching of toxins into the soil. There are a number of awareness drives being carried out to educate the masses on the ill effects of the use of plastic bags. However, as with any kind of change, there will always be a few groups that oppose the move. While a majority supports the ban on plastic bags, there are a few who oppose it. Most of the opposition comes from people who are directly affected by the ban as they usually work for plastic companies. There is something to be said for the large number of jobs being lost as a result of the ban on plastic bags, but the legislative administration overseeing the ban are doing their best to remedy the fallout. Try Stylish Custom Made Totes Being eco-friendly does not mean that one cannot be stylish. Quite the opposite - incidentally - as there are a number of stylish custom made totes available in the market that are not only thought provoking but can be used as fashion accessories for a number of functions. Custom designs allow people to choose a tote bag that suits their personality and mood, all the while allowing people to know that you care about the environment and the state of the planet we leave for the future generations. Source

Custom made shopping bags are coming to the forefront of the fight against single use plastic bags. While still widely used in almost every part of the globe, California has become the largest city in the United States to begin a large scale phase out of the bags. Although this move is met with some opposition - especially from the lobbyists and inconvenienced shoppers - the ban is widely considered to be a step in the right direction. How Are the Custom Made Shopping Bags Going? The reaction to the ban on single use plastic bags will depend largely on individual preferences. However, a majority definitely sees the ban as a good move to encourage re-usability and recycling to sustain the environment. Single use plastic bags are known to cause a number of issues. Recent studies have shown that more than four million metric tons of garbage are attributed to by plastic bans alone. After collection of these bags, there are additional costs to have them shipped off to landfill areas to dispose them. While custom made shopping bags are still picking up demand, they are definitely doing a good job of bridging the gap between the old ways and the new. Most shoppers appreciate the fact that stores are becoming more environmentally friendly. There are a few disgruntled voices, however. The one off shopper inconvenienced by the bags on a rainy day or the plastic bag manufacturing industry. Sources claim that when the plastic bag ban kicks in, there will be a loss of about 2,000 jobs across the state. Why Custom Made Shopping Bags? Custom made shopping bags are more than just a symbol for a change in the attitude of the people, looking for a more eco-friendly world. They are easier to recycle, and while single use paper bags can still take thousands of years to bio-degrade, the custom made shopping bag variants will take just a few. Further, the fact that paper bags are charged, the focus is primarily on making sure that people start to get more conscious of taking their linen bags along when they go shopping. There is, however, a concern about how one would offset the loss of jobs, but serious discussions are going on to handle the same. Source

You might be carrying a reusable bag while shopping for your groceries but have you tried 'going green' with your house? You just need to make a few changes to turn your house into an eco-friendly one. What's more is that you will even end up saving a lot in the long run, once you switch to the sustainable way of living. Here is how you can do it. Creating an Eco-Friendly Environment in Your House Going eco-friendly with the house usually begins with the living room. Apart from fixing low-energy lights, go for solar powered appliances. You can also change the insulation and install green fibre cocoon which is recyclable and uses natural fibres. Also, try to get sofas and couches made from organic fibre. It is an added advantage if non-toxic glue is used for the furniture. Try to make your house free from any furniture that uses animal hide. Another interesting option is to use fire logs made from recyclable coffee that cuts down on carbon monoxide. Coming to the kitchen, it is important to paint the walls in this area specifically with low VOCs. energy efficient dishwashers, refrigerators and microwaves. Another simple yet effective tip is to go for water aerator which prevents wastage of water. For the dining area, you can place paper mats on the table. Add colourful duvets and curtains made from organic, natural materials in your bedroom. Also, ceiling fans are a better option compared to the energy-consuming cooling options. Apart from these, remember to switch off the all energy using items when not in use. This is not only an eco-friendly habit but will also cut down on your bills drastically. Also, washing your clothes with cold water is better rather than wasting energy in heating it up. Ditching the clothes dryer and using the clothes line to dry your washed clothes is an excellent way to save on bills in the summers. Eco-Friendly Promotional Items Help in Spreading Sustainable Ideas Following an eco-friendly lifestyle yourself is very helpful, but what is even better is making others around you, aware of the same. Many companies too come up with various eco-friendly promotional items to inspire people to go green. Once people use these products, they realise that organic living is not just good for the environment, but is also much simple. Source