Category: Environmental Impacts

Don't dispose of medicine in the toilet

9/12/2025

It’s easy to properly dispose of unused medicine--police stations throughout Delaware County, including Swarthmore’s, have permanent medicine drop boxes that are accessible 24 hours a day. Do not flush medicines down the toilet.

Unused or expired prescription medications are a public safety issue, leading to potential accidental poisoning, misuse, and overdose. Proper disposal of unused drugs saves lives and protects the environment.

Read more at PA.gov

Photo of Medicine drop box at Swarthmore police station by Susan O'Donnell

Gardening is healthy

6/13/2025

The physical and mental health benefits of gardening are fully backed by science, including decreased dementia risk and cortisol levels.

Robust evidence exists for the significant positive effects of gardening on a wide range of health outcomes, beyond other forms of physical activity.

Read more at TreeHugger.com

Give the gift of wildlife preservation

12/20/2024

For the animal lover on your gift list (and all children are animal lovers), adopt a wild animal this holiday season.

Protect wild animals and habitat through the Sierra Club’s Adopt a Wild Animal. The recipient will receive an adorable plush version of the animal. World Wildlife Fund also offers Symbolic Species Adoptions, with an optional “adoption kit.”

Read more at Earth911.com

Photo by Susan O'Donnell

Find an app to ID plants

12/5/2024

Leafsnap is an app that identifies plant species of all kinds, including flowers, fruit, and trees. It's a collaboration between Columbia University, the University of Maryland, and the Smithsonian Institution and it’s free on the App Store.

Go on a walk, take a photo of a leaf, and Leafsnap will identify it and give you all kinds of additional information, including guidance for care. Its creators describe it as “the most high-tech, comprehensive, and accurate plant identification app ever created.”

Read more on Treehugger.com

Photo by Susan O'Donnell

Choose cosmetics that don't use shark products

6/13/2024

More than 50 shark species are overfished for their liver oil by the cosmetics industry, even while olives and other crops provide an excellent alternative. Look for 100% plant-based cosmetics.

Shark livers contain an oil called squalene that is prized for its moisturizing properties and a prominent ingredient in cosmetics. 2.7 million sharks are captured and killed for their livers each year. Fortunately, this ingredient can be sourced from plants.

Read more here

Photo by Susan O'Donnell

Find alternatives to balloons

5/3/2024

Balloons have a high environmental cost—they can suffocate or starve wildlife, are not biodegradable, and if helium is used inside them, it’s important to know that helium is not a renewable natural resource. Luckily, there are balloon alternatives, such as tissue paper pompoms and bubbles.

Balloons have a celebratory allure but we can easily adapt to less harmful festive traditions. Balloons may seem like a fun addition to birthday parties or weddings, but once they are released, they pose a great danger to wildlife. Land animals like bighorn sheep and owls as well as marine animals such as dolphins, turtles and birds mistake them for food or get tangled in the plastic string with deadly consequences. There are plenty of ways to celebrate while avoiding releasing balloons into the environment. Lara O’Brien with Blue Planet Global Impact at the University of Michigan suggests to instead “plant native trees or flowers (in designated areas), fly kites, wave flags or banners, light candles, blow bubbles, create chalk drawings, paint murals, organize a community walk, run, or bike ride, or even do trail or river cleanups."

Read more here.

Photo by ricky_banner, Flickr

Watch nature documentaries on plants

2/9/2024

Here’s a wild reason to watch TV--Annals of Botany reports that watching nature documentaries makes children and adults more interested in plants. While humans are generally concerned with endangered animals, threats to plants are harder to recognize.

A new paper in Annals of Botany indicates that watching nature documentaries makes people more interested in plants. Some 40% of plant species are under threat of extinction. Plants that are not directly useful to humans are particularly vulnerable. In the United States, for example, plants receive less than 4% of federal funding for endangered species, despite comprising 57% of the endangered species list.
Read more here.

Photo by Susan O'Donnell

Use the power of your purchases to support sustainable products

11/10/2023

Your money is your vote, so spend or choose not to spend in accordance with your values.

Whenever we spend money, we’re making a vote with that choice. A vote tells that brand, that corporation, that conglomerate that we’re okay with their current practices. While saving money where you can is laudable, aligning how you spend your money with your values is more important than ever.

Read more here:

https://www.thewalletmoth.com/eco-friendly-and-frugal/

The many names of palm oil, driver of deforestation

9/15/2023

Palm oil appears on labels under many names, including palmate, glyceryl, stearic acid, and sodium lauryl sulfate.

Palm oil, a major driver of deforestation and climate change, is the most popularly used vegetable oil in the world, used in everything from snack food to shampoo to biofuel.

Palmate, glyceryl, stearic acid, sodium lauryl sulfate—these are just a few of the dozens of names palm oil and its derivatives appear as on products. For certified sustainable palm oil, look for labels from the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) or the Rainforest Alliance.

Read more here.

Photo by Susan O'Donnell

Pressing flowers and plants can be a lovely family tradition that keeps us looking closely at nature. Choose from four easy methods

3/17/2023

Pressing flowers and plants dates back to ancient times as a form of collecting and preserving species. In the 16th century, Japanese artists began incorporating them into artwork. It can be a lovely tradition to do with children, one that keeps them looking closely at nature. Choose from four easy techniques: using a book, a wooden press, ironing, or microwaving.

Read more here:

--https://www.firstdayofhome.com/how-to-press-flowers/

--https://www.wrhs.org/blog/pressed-flowers-history-and-tutorial/

Photo by Susan O'Donnell

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