God's Politics Blog » Tracey Bianchi

The Question of Climate Change is Secondary to the Need for Creation Care

Tracey Bianchi — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 15:10:19 +0000

It is still very much winter in Chicago. Sure, the calendar says March, but the piles of snow on the ground look more like mid-January. Everything is brown and crusty. A little bit of warmth is creeping back into the…

Supermarket Moments in the Environmental Conversation

Tracey Bianchi — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 16:30:36 +0000

Last week I was at the grocery store on a Sunday afternoon. I was sans children, and when that happens a trip to the grocery store can feel like spring break. No one nagging me or ripping cans off the…

From Fat Tuesday to a Veggie Lent

Tracey Bianchi — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 16:00:37 +0000

It’s Fat Tuesday. The height of the Mardi Gras celebration. The pinnacle of Carnaval. The time of year when religious and non-religious types alike trek to places like New Orleans and Rio de Janeiro to whoop it up before the…

Greening the Winter Games

Tracey Bianchi — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 20:04:09 +0000

This time of year I find myself humming the Olympic anthem throughout the day. The Vancouver games run Feb. 12-28; it is time to start dreaming of mogul runs and bobsled victories. For some reason I hum the familiar tune…

Wise Local Living — Without Leaving

Tracey Bianchi — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 15:00:28 +0000

Last year I borrowed a copy of Doug Fine’s book Farewell, My Subaru: An Epic Adventure in Local Living. It’s the story of Fine’s decision to live on a ranch in New Mexico without an automobile. A humorous vignette that,…

Christmas is Supposed to Be Crusty

Tracey Bianchi — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 20:00:28 +0000

It’s time to haul out the Christmas lights and stockings, Advent calendars, and odd-shaped Santa pillows from grandparents. Every year I sort of dread dragging all the chaos out of the basement. I wince at how large the bins have…

I’ve Heard It All Before: Consume less. Love more. Give more.

Tracey Bianchi — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:00:51 +0000

Ever heard this one? “Tis better to give than to receive?” Or how about this: “Friends are more important than money”? Maybe, “Remember the real reason for the season?” Whenever someone starts yammering away on the moral attributes of the…

Hark! Halloween Haters and Holiday Hype

Tracey Bianchi — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:15:08 +0000

Halloween is over. I was standing in the kitchen tonight pilfering through the bowl of chewy, crinkly wrapped treats that my children acquired last night. Poor things. They do all the work of running up and down the sidewalks, climbing…

In Defense of the Suburbs

Tracey Bianchi — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 16:56:36 +0000

This past week I was walking home from the school drop-off with a newish friend. Swapping stories about the basics of our lives. Marital status, where we grew up, favorite pastimes. When it came time to exchange the details on…

Recycling Rumors

Tracey Bianchi — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 13:30:16 +0000

Nowadays if you slap the word “green” across any event, industry, or article of clothing it is rumored this will boost sales and recognition. As a nation always in hot pursuit of the latest trend, we’ve managed to make ourselves…

Meat: The Other Greenhouse Gas

Tracey Bianchi — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 14:15:00 +0000

I had a phase in college when I thought that perhaps I would become a vegetarian. I had no real reason for doing so other than thinking that acting sort of hippie-ish seemed like an identity I wanted to try…

Labor Day Weekend Ironies: What Do Child Labor and S’mores Have in Common?

Tracey Bianchi — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 18:07:23 +0000

Last Monday, our family, like millions of other Americans, sat in holiday weekend traffic to get back home after an extra day away. I sat in the passenger seat and watched boats, jet skis, 4X4’s, horse trailers, and any other…

Shopping Green Without Spending in the Red

Tracey Bianchi — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 18:00:37 +0000

Organic strawberries were $5.99 the other day at our local grocer. $5.99! Their more toxic twins, the non-organic variety, were on sale for $3. Darn this pesticide-free living. I stood staring at that clamshell of bruised strawberries and fought with…

Hope from the Next Generation: Hey, There’s Recycling on the Floor

Tracey Bianchi — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 16:00:00 +0000

There’s this place near our home called Kiddie Land. It’s sort of this epic little corner nearish to the city that, for 80 some years, has boasted good times for kiddos. Think wooden roller coasters from the ’30s, a wooden…

Wal-Mart’s Big Green Claim, Part 2

Tracey Bianchi — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 13:55:45 +0000

[continued from part 1] … Here is why I am not about to toss my kids into the car and dash out for cheap juice boxes:

1. Even though Wal-Mart will expect suppliers to label the ecological impact of their products, this…

Wal-Mart’s Big Green Claim

Tracey Bianchi — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 15:15:01 +0000

Well color me happy (as the saying goes): Wal-Mart just released a big claim to be greening up its act. But what does their claim really mean and how do we define what corporate green looks like anyway? Especially since…

Taking the Prairie Path: Seeking Sustainability in the Suburbs

Tracey Bianchi — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 16:02:58 +0000

Just a half-mile or so south of our home is the Illinois Prairie Path. It’s an old rail line that was converted to a walking and biking path in the early 1960s. An electric line actually, that once hauled commuters…