Junk Mail Green Tips from the National Zoo

Junk Mail

Now is the perfect time to cut down on junk mail. Did you know that each year millions of trees and billions of gallons of water are used to create junk mail, most of which never gets recycled? There are several things you can do to reduce how much junk mail you receive.

• Get off of national mailing lists by sending your name, address, and signature to: Mail Preference Service, c/o Direct Marketing Association, P.O. Box 643, Carmel, NY 10512.
• Every time you subscribe to a magazine, buy something from a catalog or online store, or donate money, be sure to say (by phone or email): "Please do not rent or sell my name or address." If you don't want to receive catalogs or solicitations from charitable organizations, ask that your address not be added to any mailing lists.
• Sign up for the free service Catalog Choice to opt out of catalogs.
• Call your credit card companies and banks to make sure your address isn't sold. Say no to credit card offers by calling the credit reporting industry's opt-out number: 888.567.8688.
• Have your address removed from the Valpak and Advo mailing lists.
• Get more junk mail reduction tips.
• When you receive unwanted mail, take a minute to call the company (usually toll-free) to remove your address from its list.
• Some companies will remove you from mailing lists for a fee. You can find them by doing an Internet search for "reduce junk mail."

After using junk mail—and any other paper you don't need to keep—as scrap paper, recycle it. Find out what you can recycle in your neighborhood.

Wildlife Friendly Garden

How to Create a Wildlife-Friendly Garden from the National Wildlife Federation

	Provide Food for Wildlife Everyone needs to eat! Planting native forbs, shrubs and trees is the easiest way to provide the foliage, nectar, pollen, berries, seeds and nuts that many species of wildlife require to survive and thrive. You can also incorporate supplemental feeders and food sources. Learn More...
	Supply Water for Wildlife Wildlife need sources of clean water for many purposes, including drinking, bathing and reproduction. Water sources may include natural features such as ponds, lakes, rivers, springs, oceans and wetlands; or human-made features such as bird baths, puddling areas for butterflies, installed ponds or rain gardens. Learn More...
	Create Cover for Wildlife Wildlife require places to hide in order to feel safe from people, predators and inclement weather. Use things like native vegetation, shrubs, thickets and brush piles or even dead trees. Learn More...
	Give Wildlife a Place to Raise Their Young Wildlife need a sheltered place to raise their offspring. Many places for cover can double as locations where wildlife can raise young, from wildflower meadows and bushes where many butterflies and moths lay their eggs, or caves where bats roost and form colonies. Learn More...
	Let Your Garden Go Green How you maintain your garden or landscape can have an important effect on the health of the soil, air, water and habitat for native wildlife--as well as the human community nearby. Reducing chemical use, composting, mulching and reducing turf grass in your yard are important steps to gardening greener. Learn More...
	Ready...Set...Certify! Once you have provided these essential elements to make a healthy and sustainable wildlife habitat, join the thousands of wildlife enthusiasts across the country who have earned the distinction of being part of NWF's Certified Wildlife Habitat™ program. Learn More...

April 22, 2009 Earth Day

April 22 has been designated as a national day to celebrate the earth, and a day to focus on ways to clean up our environment. At hotchalk.com you'll find a number of resources to help you explore the world's resources with your children in the classroom and the home!

National Geographic, History Education
and NBC