Part 3: An Interview with The Green Year author Jodi Helmer

Hi – we have more from The Green Year author Jodi Helmer. In this installment Jodi tells us about things your kids can do all on their own to be greener – so try these out in your family (make sure the kids take part) and let us know how it goes!

This is it everyone! It’s the final installment of my fabulous interview with Jodi Helmer, the author of The Green Year. In this part, Jodi talked with me about her favorite tips that GirlMoguls can do all by themselves. She also gave me a few ideas that moms can do with their families as fun activities while still maintaining a “green” lifestyle. Make sure you scroll down to the end of the article to grab a copy of the book yourself from Amazon.com!

1. GM: Do you have any tips that our GirlMoguls can take on themselves, being young girls?
JH: Yes, there a lot of things you can do around the house! Unplugging appliances is one of them. The other thing is that if they are doing their laundry, or ask their parents, to do their laundry in cold water, because that saves a ton of energy.
Also, It’s so much easier to grow vegetables than most people think. Even if you have an apartment and you have a balcony, you can grow your own vegetables. Tomatoes are the easiest veggies to grow. A package of seeds is $1 or a $1.50 and all it needs is some sun and water. It is way easier than people think. Even strawberries can grow in small pots. It is a great science lesson as well, watching things grow. And there’s also a real sense of accomplishment when you can finally eat something you’ve grown yourself.

2. GM: And do you have suggestions for Moms, like activities they can integrate into family life and participate in with their children?
JH: It depends on the family. If you’re an active family, going camping is a great option and talking about how it affects the environment. If you have a family that is not as active, there are some games and even video games that families can play to teach everyone more about the environment. A great option is always a board game, because it uses no energy, and a family can have a great time playing it!
There are so many opportunities for families to volunteer together. On Earth day, there are so many places to help, such as planting a tree. You could also do beach cleanups or trail maintenance. And families are spending quality time together and teaching kids about the importance of giving back and volunteering.

3. GM: I know The Green Year is geared toward saving the environment. But, in times like these, families also want to save their wallets. Are they tips you like that can save both?
JH: There are so many! Changing the setting on your thermostat- make it a little higher in the summer and lower in the winter- will actually save a lot on your energy bill. You save about 1% on your heating bill for every degree you change it. Then you’re reducing CO2 admissions as well. Turn off the tap while you’re brushing your teeth saves tons on your water bill!

4. GM: As I was reading your book, I noticed the user-friendly layout with spaces to check mark done tips and spaces for me to alter them to fit my lifestyle. What inspired this layout?
JH: The publisher had the idea of the layout and I think it works really well. It makes it less intimidating for people starting out and people are really busy. It’s not too wordy and easy to follow.

5. How important is it to make this lifestyle change, even if only one step at a time?
JH: It’s so important to get people to make small changes because even if you choose to just one thing, if we all choose to do just one thing, the impact is incredible. If we all turned off the tap while we were brushing our teeth, we would save millions of gallons of water a year and that’s huge. And also I think we have a responsibility to stop destroying our environment and it’s not that hard for people to make changes that can steer us in the right direction.
Kids can play a huge role in doing this.

Well, that wraps up our interview with Jodi Helmer. I just wanted to thank for her time, because I enjoyed talking to her about her life and her writing. I hope you enjoyed reading all about her inspirations and tips, and to read more of her eco-friendly and super easy ideas, make sure your purchase your copy of The Green Year. It’s important to preserve our environment and I definitely earned some really convenient ways of doing just that. I hope you did as well!