With the holiday season is in full swing, it’s time to unleash the creative wizard within us. Yes, we ALL have the ability to be creative! No need to be a Picasso, just have fun!  And, if you add sustainability to your palette, you’ll feel a sense of pride and satisfaction that your festive creation also contributed to the place we all call Home – our planet.  Bigelow Tea has been practicing Sustainabili-TEA for as long as we can remember and we are delighted to share some festive (and sustainable) tips for the holidays.

Let’s talk solar.  Become an environmental leader in your neighborhood by decorating the outside of your house and yard with solar-powered Christmas lights. They come in all colors and types. Most importantly, you’ll be saving energy and money! Even New York City’s Rockefeller Center has a solar-powered Christmas tree… you’ll be in good company!

Image courtesy of Wikihow.com

If you’re in the market for Christmas trees, why not think about getting a living tree? Decorate the planter pot in festive colors, wrap a beautiful ribbon around it, and when the season is over, plant it in your yard.

Image courtesy of Solar-energy-at-home.com

Re-gifting. Now, don’t wince. You’ll be doing a good thing, really! If you have unused gifts collecting dust from years gone by, why not wrap them up and pass them on? While you’re at it, save your holiday wrap and ribbons to reuse next year.

Now, you know, it would be remiss of us not to point out the obvious: Bigelow Teas are beautifully wrapped in a cornucopia of colorful packages, making them the perfect material for a daring designer to create a unique and vibrant holiday display. We’d love to see what you come up with!

Image Courtesy of Trails.com

November 17^th is Take a Hike Day! But do we really need a designated day to tell us that walking is really, really good for us? Or that nature walks are a fabulous way to enjoy and appreciate the beauty of our planet? Well, consider this a gentle reminder.  Too busy to go on a full weekend hiking excursion or a day hike? Instead, try taking just 30 to 60 minutes out of your day for a walk – around the neighborhood, through the park, or along the ocean (for those of you lucky enough to live by the water!)

Walk by yourself or perhaps enjoy an evening stroll with a significant other while we’re still in the in the throes of autumn. Marvel at the stunning canvas of changing leaves, their colors forming a warm palette of gold, red and orange.Collect some leaves and preserve them; place them gently, one by one, between two sheets of wax paper, then press them with the iron turned on low – for about 30 seconds – and you can make greeting cards or artwork for the wall. It’s a great way for families to spend some quality time together!

Image Courtesy of Foilagenetwork.com

Bigelow Tea loves autumn activity! Our annual Community Challenge is a fun way for us to connect with our community, get some exercise and give back to those in need.  As strong advocates for the environment, we know that physical activities like running, hiking, and walking are all fantastic forms of outdoor exercise that help us appreciate nature.  So when the work or school day is over, escape the confines of the office or classroom and get out there and TAKE A HIKE! And, don’t forget to breathe in that gloriously crisp, fresh autumn air!

International Youth Day

(Photograph by Marcus Wheeldon, Courtesy of Shoot Nations 2009 Photo Competition)

To commemorate International Youth Day on August 12, 2009, young people from around the world are submitting photographs and drawings for the Shoot Nations 2009 Photo Competition. A selection of submissions will be presented to the United Nations and displayed at UN Headquarters from August 3-14.

There is no better way to channel the boundless energy of our youth than to encourage them to become active participants in the global effort to sustain our environment, community, and even our economy. Their fresh intelligence, unique perspective and desire to make a difference are just what the planet needs.  International Youth Day, established by the World Conference of Ministers Responsible for Youth, provides the platform for young people to do just that. This year’s theme is “Sustainability: Our Challenge. Our Future” and young participants, from all over the world, are developing programs and finding creative ways to spread the word.

Sustainable living is a standard that Bigelow Tea lives by and lovingly refers to as “Sustainabili…TEA.“ It is reflected by our production, our products and our interaction with each other and the community at large. Our ongoing efforts to protect the environment through recycling programs, waste reduction and energy efficiency, demonstrate our passion and commitment to this global initiative. We encourage children to embrace this cause, to sustain our world for generations to come. After all, they are tomorrow’s leaders, and the future is theirs – to be respected, nurtured and sustained!

Courtesy of Midwestaugustinians.org.

“…Take me to where I am supposed to be, to comprehend the things that I can’t see,
‘coz I need to move, I need to wake up, I need to change, I need to shake up…”
—Melissa Etheridge, “I Need to Wake Up”

“Your planet needs YOU! Unite to combat climate change” is the theme for World Environment Day 2009, established by the United Nations and commemorated yearly on June 5. It’s a global call for action, challenging each of us to take responsibility for nurturing this precious gift of ours — Planet Earth. World Environment Day (WED) is a wonderful forum to inspire and empower people to become actively engaged in sustainable and equitable development so that we may all enjoy a safer future. Mexico will host this year’s WED celebration, reflecting its expanding role in the ongoing effort to deal with the compelling challenges of climate change by participating in the carbon market and UNEP’s Billion Tree Campaign.

The entire Bigelow Tea team of energetic, eco-friendly men and women are committed to protecting and developing the environment. We take sustainability very seriously – it’s become a way of life. Our Sustainabili-TEA program is extensive – from green packaging (biodegradable/recyclable paper teabags) to solar panel installation (on the rooftops of our corporate headquarters/manufacturing plant) and to enrollment in the SmartWaySM program (for fuel-efficient transportation). Our philosophy is “Do the right thing and good things will follow.” We are ardent stewards of this place that we call Earth. What we do TODAY will impact future generations. Our collective efforts, big or small, will contribute to the sustainability of our planet – let’s do it!

Photo courtesy of the White House.

Spring is in the air — and popping out of the ground, with tulips and daffodils in abundance! Flowers are a beautiful gift from the garden — but they are not alone. Vegetable gardens are becoming increasingly popular, from rooftop gardens to the White House!

If you are planting a vegetable garden, don’t forget the tea! Even if you only have a balcony or sunny windowsill, you can grow your own herbs to use for tea. You’ll enjoy the fruits of your labor, and know you are supporting sustainability with your own “Victory Garden”. Bigelow Tea is, of course, committed to reducing the consumption of energy and raw materials; it’s all part of our Sustainabili-TEA program.

People around the world have been creating tea gardens for as long as they have been drinking tea. In our fast-paced modern lives, making time for growing herbs and savoring herbal infusions are a time-tested way to enjoy nature’s bounty. As a tea drinker, what could be better than adding a few fresh herbs from your garden to your tea?

Compliments of Brooklyn Botanical Garden.

And if you are looking for some tea gardening inspiration, perhaps a visit to our Charleston Tea Plantation is the ticket! Be it a rooftop, windowsill, or plantation, just be sure to enjoy all the gifts your garden has to offer this year — the ones you look at, the ones you eat, and the ones you drink!

Today is Earth Day and I want to share with you a very fun visit I recently had by a young group of students. They called their organization EDGE-Environmental Development of Green Energy. They were putting together a video as part of a Connecticut Challenge contest. The students were from Hill Regional Career High School in New Haven. Their documentary was based on companies in this area that are trying to make a difference in relation to energy use. I have to say, the young people of today are truly impressive. When I was in high school I was not visiting local businesses, learning what they are doing to help the environment, creating a video and getting out the good news via a documentary for the internet and TV!

I had such a wonderful time sharing with them all the things we are doing here, both big and small, to reduce packaging, to increase recycling and to reduce our energy needs. They really liked the part that all of our employees are so supportive of the company greening efforts and how our movement is truly being driven from all sides of this organization.

I have to say, I am extremely proud of our efforts but I am even more proud that these young students cared so much to find us and to take the time to learn about what we are doing. I am not sure when the CT Challenge Film Festival will take place, but I am really rooting for EDGE! If I can get a copy of their final film, I will happily put it on our blog for you all to enjoy as well….Happy Earth Day!

Cindi Bigelow