The Organic View

Biodiversity is something that clearly affects all species. Everything is connected to each other regardless of whether or not it is on a large or small scale. Sometimes the way we garden can actually improve our landscape and at times, can be disastrous. Such is the case with the introduction of invasive species such as Kudzu, Purple loosestrife, etc. Nevertheless, there are choices we can make that can positively impact our landscape according to the plants we select and what we introduce into the landscape. Our choices not only affect our view of the land but can also impact animals, insects and microorganisms that are dependent upon the role of such plants. In essence, human beings have the power to sustain life or destroy it because of these choices. In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak to Dr. Douglas Tallamy about his magnificent book, Bringing Nature Home which explores the impact of our choices and what we can do to sustain wildlife in our own back yard!

During the hot summer months, as the temperature rises, homeowners can expect their electric bills to soar if their home is not properly maintained and weatherized. In order to reduce energy consumption, there are many things you can do to conserve energy, save money and still keep your home environment cool and comfortable. In this segment of The Clean Energy View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer talks to Jessica Kellner, editor of Natural Home & Garden magazine, about what you can do to make your home energy efficient. Stay tuned!

Jessica Kellner is committed to the values of making one’s lifestyle healthier and more environmentally sound, Kellner’s years of editorial work have given her a broad base of knowledge on practical, easy and inexpensive ways for anyone to create a more sustainable, healthful and delightful life for themselves and their families. In choosing Natural Home & Garden’s content, Kellner seeks to find the overlap between what’s healthy for people and healthy for the environment. She loves to discover how the technology of today and the commonsense wisdom of the past can work together to create a model of modern healthy living.  

Kellner’s blogs often include tips on avoiding toxic chemicals, saving money, making your own household cleaners, whole-food recipes, gardening ideas and products and more. Author of the book Housing Reclaimed: Salvaged Homes for Next to Nothing, Kellner is also a huge enthusiast of smart reuse and salvaged building and renovating materials. A graduate of the University of Kansas William Allen White School of Journalism and Mass Communications, Kellner has worked with Ogden Publications in a wide variety of editorial roles since joining the publisher in October of 2004.  Kellner was awarded the Topeka Association for Women in Communications Headliner Award for Media in 2012.

In a press release issued on April 6, 2012, “Diamond Pet Foods voluntarily recalled a limited number of dry dog food bags due to a potential health risk.   Recall is limited to one formula of Diamond Naturals distributed to 12 states; no illnesses reported.”

The situation became more intense as more details were revealed and more products were added. Pet food activist and expert, Susan Thixton has been investigating this recall, trying to help petsumers find out what they really need to know and which products to avoid.

“The original recalls were for dog food only, cat food was not mentioned.  But somewhere along this process, cat food began being recalled too - without much public warnings.  The information still isn't clear about cat foods.  The Diamond Recall Information website states "certain batches of several brands of dog and cat food produced in its Gaston, South Carolina plant" have been recalled.  However as of this posting, none of the notices on the Diamond Recall Information website provides the specific information which brands of cat food are included”-Susan Thixton

Tune in to this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, as host, June Stoyer is joined by special guest, Susan Thixton, Founder of Truth About Pet Food about what you need to know about this recall!Stay tuned!

Every four minutes an American woman enters menopause and with an ever-increasing life expectancy rate, that woman can spend as much as one third of her life going through “the change.” However, despite the inevitability and importance of menopause in a woman’s life, the discussion of this challenging transitional period is often riddled with myths, uncertainties, and trepidation. In Eat to Defeat Menopause: The Essential Nutrition Guide for a Healthy Midlife—with 130 Recipes, Karen Giblin and Mache Seibel, MD, two of the nation’s top menopause experts, break down the most important, need-to-know facts about menopause, offer tips and advice for combating its symptoms, and provide healthy and enticing recipes guaranteed to satisfy every craving (or mood swing). Combining the latest research on menopause, traditions from their Italian and Jewish families, and recipes from chefs across the United States, Giblin and Seibel show that making simple changes to one’s lifestyle can, in many cases, be just as effective as combating menopausal symptoms with the latest drugs and surgeries. Some of these simple changes can include: Eating foods that contain phytoestrogens, such as soy and garlic, to combat hot flashes and insomnia Stabilizing mood swings by eating omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin B Cooking with avocados, chocolate, asparagus, or chile peppers to improve a decreased sex drive Reducing alcohol intake to ward off headaches, hot flashes, insomnia, and mood swings Whether readers are personally experiencing the “change” or just want to arm themselves with information and healthful eating habits for the road ahead, Eat to Defeat Menopause provides an easy and delicious guide for achieving a healthy (and hot-flash-free) midlife. Stay tuned!

Are you ready to slash your home energy costs while dramatically reducing your carbon footprint? In The Homeowner’s Guide To Renewable Energy, Achieving Energy Independence Through Solar, Wind, Biomass and Hydropower by Dan Chiras you will find the most practical and affordable methods to significantly improve your home’s energy efficiency.

Focusing on the latest technological advances (and never losing sight of the economic bottom line), this comprehensive manual demystifies:

Solar hot water and solar hot air systems Space heat: Passive and active solar retrofits and heat pumps Wood heat Passive Cooling Electricity from solar, wind and microhydro.

 

This well-illustrated and accessible guide is an essential resource for those wanting to enter the renewable energy field. Packed with practical tips and guidelines, it gives readers sufficient knowledge to hire and communicate effectively with contractors and is a must-read for anyone interested in saving money and achieving energy independence. If you are ready to save tens of thousands of dollars over the coming decades, this is one show you don’t want to miss!

In this segment of The Clean Energy View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer talks to Dan Chiras, who is a respected educator and the author of 29 books on residential renewable energy and green building including Power from the Sun and Power from the Wind. He has studied and worked with renewable energy and energy efficiency for over 30 years. Dan is the director of and lead instructor at The Evergreen Institute's Center for Renewable Energy and Green Building, where he teaches workshops on energy efficiency, solar electricity, solar hot water, small wind energy, green building, natural plasters, and natural building. Stay tuned!

Thanks to decades of clever mass marketing campaigns, the average person has become completely disconnected with how our food is grown and also what real food should look like. With the agro-chemical companies chiming away that “there is going to be a food shortage if we don’t produce more food and decrease the world population in order for everyone to survive,” the reality is most people do not have a clue as to how their food is produced, where it is grown or how it is grown. 

 

Processed foods, initially created with the intention to save time, are simply not a healthy choice.  Some of these processed, ready to “heat and serve” products made with “real chicken” are breaded, seasoned and disguised in all sorts of geometrical shapes so that children will be encouraged to eat them. Meanwhile, the average child who primarily consumes this type of food has no idea what a chicken looks like, sounds like or the fact that chickens are smart, loving beings.

It takes a true organic farmer to really get the point across about the benefits of growing organics and eating organics. Joel Salatin is an organic farmer from Virginia who talks about the problems he sees not only as an organic farmer but as a consumer of organic foods. In hisbest-selling book, Folks, This Ain't Normal: A Farmer's Advice for Happier Hens, Healthier People, and a Better World he takes us into his world as he talks about how our food is produced and why we ought to take a closer look at where and how our food is produced.

Tune in to this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, as host, June Stoyer is joined by special guest Joel Salatin!

Across the US, thousands of people, most of them in low-income or minority communities, live next to heavily polluting industrial sites. Many of them reach a point at which they say "enough is enough." After living for years with poisoned air and water, contaminated soil, and pollution-related health problems, they start to take action--organizing, speaking up, documenting the effects of pollution on their neighborhoods. In Sacrifice Zones, author, Steve Lerner tells the stories of twelve communities, from Brooklyn to Pensacola, that rose up to fight the industries and military bases causing disproportionately high levels of chemical pollution. He calls these low-income neighborhoods "sacrifice zones." And he argues that residents of these sacrifice zones, tainted with chemical pollutants, need additional regulatory protections.

Sacrifice Zones goes beyond the disheartening statistics and gives us the voices of the residents themselves, offering compelling portraits of accidental activists who have become grassroots leaders in the struggle for environmental justice and details the successful tactics they have used on the fence line with heavy industry.

 

Tune in to this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, as host, June Stoyer is joined by Steve Lerner. Stay Tuned!

In lieu of the recent events in the state of CT, regarding HB 5117 which would have required the labeling of foods containing GMO's was downgraded ( removing a key provision requiring the labeling of all foods containing GMO's) it is clear that the battle for consumers to rightfully know whether or not food contains genetically modified ingredients is going to be intense.    With biotech stocks remaining strong combined with all of the elaborate advertising promoting GMO’s as “being able to feed the rapidly growing overpopulated world” the question still remains, why won’t the biotech industry label something they are so proud of?    If farmers can look forward to a lucrative and sustainable future, why are there so many law suits popping up against the biotech giants filed by farmers who won’t fall in line? Has biotech monopolized agriculture in such a way that farmers have no choice but to succumb to the rules set by these corporations with deep pockets prohibiting the possibilities for a future in organic farming?    Tune in to this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, as host, June Stoyer is joined by Jeffrey Smith to discuss this battle!  Smith, who has been praised as, “the best science communicator alive today” is the leading consumer advocate promoting healthier non-GMO choices. His first nonfiction book, Seeds of Deception, quickly became the world’s bestselling and #1 rated book on the subject. His second book, Genetic Roulette, demystifies the 65 health risks of GM foods with simple tables and sidebars. Jeffrey is the Executive Director of the Institute for Responsible Technology, a world leader in GMO education, and publisher of the Non-GMO Shopping Guide. Stay Tuned!

The paradigm has shifted and the days of relying upon mature energy are numbered. While the race is on to find what seems to be a “one-size-fits-all” solution for sustainable energy that will eliminate our dependence upon fossil fuels, perhaps we should be looking at more than one source. Can diversity be the key to the future of sustainable clean energy?

In this segment of The Clean Energy View, host, June Stoyer talks to Tom Drolet, President of Drolet and Associates Energy Services, Inc. Mr. Drolet has worked in the energy industry and technology innovation industries for over 42 years. He brought a wealth of experience at the senior management level to the electrical utility industry at Ontario Hydro, the fourth largest electrical utility in the world (Nuclear, Coal, Natural Gas, Hydroelectric), American Electric Power (Canada) and DTE Energy.  He has worked on BOD and in the oil and natural gas industries in North America and on Renewable Energies in North and South America, Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines. He has also worked with several new technology industries in the areas of energy (fusion energy, distributed generation, fuel cells, and innovative geothermal processes), as well as in the area of medical pharmaceutical breakthrough applications in cancer treatments.  In the last 25 years Mr. Drolet has worked internationally in 44 countries, predominantly in North America, South America, Australia, China, Russia, South Korea, Japan, Africa and Europe. He has spoken at over 175 major conferences on issues in energy and the effects of new technologies on the economies of the western world.

Summer is just around the corner! As we increase our activity, especially during these warm summer months, proper hydration is key. By making better food choices, we can get the natural vitamins and minerals that we need. One way we can properly hydrate our bodies is by juicing.  Properly formulated juicing recipes can help us bathe our cells with vital nutrients and enzymes with each glass!

Rawpreneur, Marie-Claire Hermans started her company Ravishing Raw after she cured herself of chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia with raw food. She outsmarted doctors who told her she could never be cured. Firm in her belief, she studied the body, mind and spirit, their connection to each other. Marie-Claire is a specialist in raw food who works with people who are struggling with chronic fatigue syndrome/fibromyalgia, empowering them to strengthen their body so it can heal itself. She offers proven and specific step-by-step coaching programs with personalized guidance on how exactly you can improve your health and lifestyle. As a result, those who work with her can feel the difference in only a short time and are able to build a new lifestyle or find a healthy balance within a busy profession.

Tune in to this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, as host, June Stoyer is joined by Marie-Claire Hermans to discuss how you can kick off your summer season with a