Services that let people rent textbooks and movies form an important part of the collaborative consumption trend, according to the Huffington Post. It also comprises the repeated resale of used items, like clothing for children. Many young children can use such clothes before they wear out. Some companies rent items to people, while others facilitate the renting or sharing of items among individuals.

Agence France-Presse recently reported that many new companies have applied business models based upon collaborative consumption. Businesses can generate income by helping people exchange labor or rent out possessions. They earn money through commissions, fees or advertising revenue. Some of these companies have become very successful in a relatively short time.

Institutions and businesses are even saving money by utilizing their own form of collaborative consumption, according to the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. Many internet companies share the same computer servers, for example. Such practices even benefit competitors; it’s not uncommon for the same airplane to carry packages for both FedEx and the U.S. Postal Service.

The concept of collaborative consumption offers a variety of benefits. It generally reduces costs for the renter or borrower and helps the owner of an item pay for its maintenance. Fewer people must shoulder the burden of individually paying for, maintaining and storing a possession. In addition,it reduces the need for individuals to clutter their homes and garages with countless items that they seldom use.

In contrast to overconsumption, collaborative consumption also fosters a sense of community while reducing the number of items that enter incinerators and landfills. Vehicle sharing reduces the congestion of roads and parking lots. Collaborative consumption also decreases the need for environmentally harmful mining and logging.

People are often led to believe that the economy can only benefit from rapid consumption of new products. However, many major corporations have achieved success by renting items to the public. This business model generates long-term income from each item, rather than one-time earnings that rely upon frequent sales. It proves more sustainable than overconsumption built on debt and marketing hype.

One sample of collaborative consumption involves a group of several neighbors who share a lawn mower. Each person contributes to the cost of maintenance and fuel. This saves money while reducing the amount of storage space they need. It’s possible to apply this on a for-profit basis; one company recently started using Internet-based reservations to rent rowboats by the hour.

The economic recession and the rise of the internet have helped to promote a revival of sharing practices, both for personal convenience and monetary gain. This concept involves activities ranging from traveling by bus to using a toy library. Collaborative consumption may offer the best way for people to meet their needs without indebting themselves or pillaging the environment.

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Elaine Hirsch is currently working as a writer for various education-related sites and writing about topics ranging from history to medicine and videogames.

Our global society thinks of THE environment. THE environment frames our supportive life systems as an IT, a THING. THE environment is something separate from ourselves. References to THE environment can be something one care’s about on par with caring about THE schools, THE health care system and other progressive issues.

But what if we were to change that little article THE to OUR? Our environment is a more powerful, more intimate connection. Our environment is in trouble, it is our soil, our air, our fresh water which we depend on. In that context everyone is an environmentalist, because it is ours and no one is exempt from caring for what sustains us.

Once we attach ourselves psychologically to OUR earth, we are more likely to envision an active role in acts of sustainability.

When we change this small word we create the possibility that people can hear our messages. The other word we need to use is frequently is LIMITED. We live in a place of LIMITED resources. When we understand that we have a limited world, with finite amounts of fossil fuels, rubber, water etc, we will understand that the worse thing we can do is permit an unlimited demand on them. Growth will become the buzz word for disaster, instead of the buzz word for good news.

When we overgrow, we overspend our limited resource “accounts”. The concept of “Overpopulation” still lives under the shadow of age old taboos, but it could come out of the closet and stand tall as a story that is real and in need of our attention.

When “limited” becomes the adjective attached to the vocabulary of our resources, we just might begin to see the foolishness of worshiping growth on a limited earth. When we can understand the suffering that can be prevented by limiting our numbers on a limited earth we will be able to truly make a positive difference on OUR planet.

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Reaching adult audiences with environmental education is one of my favorite challenges as a Naturalist at Wood Lake Nature Center. Adults are often a fickle audience who are pulled in many directions, so wrangling them in for an environmental education program can be tough but not impossible. Seven years ago I created an environmental book club and after reading over 60 books it is still going strong! Each month a group of adults get together for an engaging discussion that focuses on environmental issues, nature, and outdoor adventures.

The book club model has worked because it provides an opportunity for adults to use critical thinking skills in discussing what are often complex and timely environmental issues. Frequently, presentations, guest speakers, videos, and photos enhance our discussions. Participants also have the opportunity to share their opinions, stories, and questions. The book club model has also allowed for a wide variety of issues to be explored.

Communication with participants is done through a monthly email. All books are available through the library and are regularly suggested by the group. We have read many of the classics as well as recently published books to better understand where we have been and where we are going in understanding the natural world around us.

The following are our most recent reads:

• Animal, Vegetable, Miracle By Barbara Kingsolver
• Under a Flaming Sky By Daniel James Brown
• Four Fish By Paul Greenberg
• The Wild Muir By Lee Stetson

We are starting the New Year with an older classic, Cadillac Desert by Marc Reisner. For a complete list of books that have been read or questions please email Amy Markle.

Amy Markle is a Naturalist at Wood Lake Nature Center in Richfield, MN, a suburb of Minneapolis.

By Guest Author Christine Manger

There are many products in today’s marketplace that claim to be healthy, safe and green, including products for our pets. Recently, I was given a bag of World’s Best Cat Litter (WBCL), a 100% all natural litter made from whole kernel corn, for my cat Peaches to test and “review”. At 10 years old, Peaches is somewhat set in her ways so I wasn’t sure she would adapt to a new brand of litter, especially one with a different texture, larger pellets and a corn-like smell. Initially (as suggested on the package), I gradually mixed in WBCL with her current brand and there was no negative reaction. After a couple of days I was using just the new litter. Peaches’ first reaction was to sniff and walk away but after doing this three times in a half hour, she decided to give it a try and used WBCL without hesitation.

World’s Best Cat Litter has several positives. It clumps extremely well and is easy to scoop and I really liked the fact there was less sticking to the sides of the litter box. Odor control is very good, with less ammonia smell. I noticed less dust in the air also; no silica dust (like clay litters) for your pet or you to breathe. WBCL is biodegradable and claims to be septic safe and flushable but I did not test this aspect of the product.

Cost could be a negative for some in using this product. The initial cost is higher than most litter brands (more than twice the cost per pound of Peaches’ current litter). But, one 7 pound bag claims to last up to 30 days for one cat, much longer than most other clumping litters. Clumping on contact helps keep the rest of the litter dryer for a longer period of time.

So, if you are looking for a pet, people, and planet safe product, made from all-natural ingredients and renewable whole-kernel corn, give World’s Best Cat Litter a try. Check out their website, www.worldsbestcatlitter.com for more information and coupons. Tell them Peaches sent you.

*Another coupon – for $3 off any size bag of Scented Multiple Cat Clumping formula – is available on their Facebook page under the “Scented Formula Coupon” tab on the left underneath their profile.

Corporations that outsource jobs to lower production costs are often disregarding environmental concerns. Of course, hiring cheap labor abroad costs less than paying domestic workers with master’s degrees and higher living costs, but one other reason developing countries have lower production costs is that their environmental standards are not as stringent. Companies that outsource without enforcing environmental standards are contributing mightily to world pollution. Many companies that are environmentally conscientious with their operations in the United States may still be guilty of contributing to global pollution abroad.

Recently, a ranking of the most environmentally responsible companies in the US. Making seventh place on the list, Adobe is committed to operating their office buildings in a green manner of their office buildings. Up to 97 percent of their solid waste is recycled. The packaging of their software is designed with environmental principles in mind for production and disposal.

Hewlett Packard was ranked number two. HP’s founders “believed technology can improve society.” It follows they would have a particularly strong concern for environmental policy. Similarly, the number one company, Dell, has taken it upon itself to be environmentally responsible. Since 2008, Dell has significantly reduced the power needs of its equipment, used millions of pounds of recycled plastic in manufacturing new computers, and will recycle used Dell equipment without charge.

On the other hand, the electric power industry is responsible for a majority of sulfur dioxide and carbon emissions responsible for smog, acid rain, and climate change. Electrical generation companies still rely mainly on burning coal, oil, and natural gas, fuels that release large amounts of pollution. Reduction of these pollutants requires considerably expensive measures, yet environmentally conscientious choice, and the most sustainable one in the long term.

The high-tech companies with outstanding environmental policies are companies that have been successful and can afford to support potentially costly environmental policies. Some environmentally friendly measures, like more efficient power consumption, do improve the bottom line as well. The favorable public image also is advantageous business-wise. However, companies struggling financially may not be able to afford the initial investment necessary to commit to such green practices.

The worst polluters, such as the coal-fired power industry, require a much greater investment to meet stricter environmental standards, and they’re less likely to voluntarily invest the resources needed to make those changes. Some electric utilities haven’t had their rate structure deregulated and aren’t confident their investment could be recovered through rate increases.

The ultimate issue is perhaps that executive officers of many corporations receive compensation based on net profits of the company. That is, the success or failure of management is usually measured only by monetary gain. There’s often little investment in research and long-range planning because those pursuits temporarily cut into the bottom line. Environmental investment tends to fall into this category. Because of this ultimate concern for profit before all else, companies cannot be relied upon to invest voluntarily to develop the environmental practices necessary for our survival. Though some companies demonstrate an admirable sense of corporate responsibility beyond the bottom line, that ideal is clearly not yet strong enough across the board.

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Elaine Hirsch is currently working as a writer for various education-related sites and writing about topics ranging from history to medicine and videogames.