Sustainable barbeque party!

By: Shamsa Mangalji
YAC & Virtual Volunteer

No matter what you are celebrating with your barbeque try it with some of these ideas that support local organic farms and go easy on the environment. It will help save energy and promote biodiversity.

The Barbeque:

Buy locally
for all your vegetable and snack needs. Make your own potato chips, get organic eggs for the salad, get free range chicken + beef for the cookout. Did you know that: “Most fruit and vegetable varieties sold in supermarkets are chosen for their ability to withstand industrial harvesting equipment and extended travel not taste.”? (USDA 2002). Find your food locally
here: http://www.localharvest.org/

Eat Healthy
holidays are a great excuse to eat some terrible food, but there are ways to make things taste great without a ton of fat. Check out this sample

Salad: ‘Citrusy Fennel Grapefruit Salad’ (courtesy of my own taste-buds)
Spinach, Fennel, Dried Cranberries, Crushed Almonds, Pine Nuts, grilled stripped chicken. Have with a side of handmade potato fries.

Biodegradable
When shopping avoid those plastic bags by going for paper or bring your own! Buy the biodegradable plates and napkins.

The Fireworks

Don’t Do it yourself
Beyond the obvious safety reasons related with playing with explosives, fireworks carry the risk of causing house or forest fires when they land. This is especially dangerous if your area is experiencing a drought.

Carpool to some Public Fireworks
Leave the fireworks to the professionals, they are way better at it and will always have the fire department standing by. Carpool or public transportation is a great way to save gas and of course the environment by conserving energy.

Make it clean
If you go to a park bring a trash bag and try to make the space you’re in cleaner than when you got there. Often a large crowd will gather for fireworks but leave it a complete mess, not much of a celebration of our country…