Jen's Green Journal

It's still a bit early to be thinking about the holidays, but they really aren't that far away. I personally try to make my holiday dollars do several things: help the planet, promote fair trade and educate people on how to do that, too.

Penny at TaraLuna has joined me and City Hippy in our holiday lights campaign. We're trying to eliminate CO₂ in a big way, by encouraging people to give compact fluorescent lightbulbs as gifts.

TaraLuna is selling CFLs for a big discount ($3 vs the $6 - $12 you find retail) as well as giving free CFLs to those who buy $50 or more of fair trade, earth-friendly and organic items. Looking through the TaraLuna website I'm getting all kinds of great gift giving ideas . . .



TaraLuna

Taraluna's CFL action page

We'll soon have up a gift card PDF that can add the educational element to the gift -- explaining how much money and CO₂ can be saved by this simple product. Stay tuned . . .

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CFL facts:

For each incandescent bulb you replace with a CFL, you can save approximately 1000 to 1250 pounds of CO2 from being added to the atmosphere during the life of the bulb.

Each bulb can save you over $30 or £16 pounds over the life of the bulb in energy costs. That's because CFLs use 75% less energy and produce 90% less heat than incandescent bulbs.

CFLs are a gift that keeps on giving in money saved.

Do you have complicated or hard to reach light fixtures? CFLs can last 10,000 hours – 8 to 10 times longer than incandescent bulbs, which means a lot less labor and time spent on ladders and chairs.

An added bonus is that CFLs are safer than incandescents – they're cool to the touch and are less likely to cause burns or fires – although make sure you buy high watt CFLs to ensure they provide enough light for the person you are buying for. Here are some wattage equivalents for you:

15W CFL = 60W regular bulb
20W CFL = 75W regular
29W CFL = 100W regular
40W CFL = 150W regular
55W CFL = 250-300W regular