With Go Lightly, her green living store on South Fullerton Avenue, Chaky aims to prove this philosophy to the public. Living green is not only more accessible than people think, she asserts, but also easy and fun.

The main theme of the products Chaky carries in the store is “live less wastefully.” But at Go Lightly, it’s not all work and no play: While you can search for things you need for everyday use, such as eco-friendly lunch containers, you can also shop for kitschy, yet earth-friendly gifts like hand-made candlesticks made from recycled wine bottles.

“It’s true that a lot of our customers are parents and grandparents who are concerned over the world we are leaving our children,” she says. “But I also get young teens who love to come in and pick up fun things like recycled guitar string bracelets and things like that.”

This is not just a business for Chaky, but it’s her lifestyle, too. In fact, she was practicing and preaching “green” long before it became trendy.

It all began in fourth grade, Chaky recalls, when she saw a movie about nuclear war. “Watching this film completely changed the way I looked at how humans are treating our planet,” she says.

“Since then, every issue has always come back to the environment for me —  whether it’s overpopulation, immigration, health, diet, economy — I always had a deep sense that the basis of everything is dependent on what our physical earth can endure,” she says. “Without clean air, water, and land, we have nothing.”

A lot of what Chaky adapted, she says, came from growing up in a family who respected nature and was mindful of waste. “We never had a garbage can in our house. Everything was composted or recycled, and what wasn’t fit into small product packages that my mother would leave on the curb.”

Chaky, now 37, went to high school in Montclair, and when her daughter Prairie, 11, became school-age, she knew this is where she wanted to raise her. “I like that this town is progressive and cosmopolitan while also retaining the small-town feel of a tight-knit community,” she says. “And for those same reasons I opened my store here plus I love that my business is within walking and biking distance from our home, and my daughter’s school.”

Chaky is trying to pass on the values she grew up with to her daughter. The two, who live with one rescued dog and four rescued cats, are strict vegans. Chaky firmly believes in the connection between an earth-friendly lifestyle and eating (or choosing not to eat) meat. “Eating animals and their by-products is simply not sustainable for all human life,” she says. “Especially as our world population is exploding.”

“My goal is to raise my daughter while I support the green economy and the health of all life on this planet,” she says. “So even though this way of thinking has always been with me, my green journey is constantly evolving. A few years ago I started making my own house cleaners from vinegar and essential oils. I found more ways to save energy and water in my home, and I grow some vegetables in my backyard. As green as I am, there is always more I can do, and I actually feel accomplished and energized by every earth-saving habit I adopt.”

One way to do this is to choose a basic, timeless style for major things like cabinetry and flooring. That way, when we get the urge to redesign, small things like hardware and decor can be changed without having to undergo a major overhaul.

But when a major overhaul is absolutely necessary, there are some resources you should check out to either purchase rescued fixtures and supplies, or donate useful items from your project. Two places in New Jersey that are wonderful spots to do this are Green Demolitions in Riverdale and the Habitat for Humanity Restores throughout the state. Not only will you be supporting the planet by salvaging useful things, but you will save yourself greenbacks too, all the while contributing to charitable causes.

Now that I am committed to not using A/C and keeping my heat low in the winter, I’m finding that I am developing a tolerance to heat and cold that I never had before. And this year in particular I discovered how my metabolism and my wellbeing adjusted to this deeper experience of the seasons.

Last winter I kept the heat at 58 degrees. I wore sweaters and hats in the house and frankly I wasn’t miserable (and I am NOT a winter person). But my body adjusted, and instead of craving warmth, I craved fats. We are a vegan household so our fats come in the form of nuts and oils, and boy, did I crave them last winter. Talk about being in tune with nature! The weather was actually directing what my body needed. And while everyone around us was falling ill to the dreaded flu, we managed to stay completely healthy all season.

And now this summer, since I am experiencing the heat without the aid of air conditioning, my appetite has dramatically decreased and I only crave fresh fruits and vegetables. That diet, plus the fact that I’m biking and walking more, have resulted in getting more toned than I have been in years. I feel great!

I have learned to cope with extreme temperatures by controlling my body temperature instead of controlling the air temperature around me. Here are the ways I keep cool naturally:

# 1: Drinking tons of ice water. My insulated stainless steel water bottle has become my best friend and I sip from it all day long.

# 2: Keep the air moving. Human beings have a natural cooling mechanism called sweat. We sweat, air moves over our skin, the moisture evaporates, and we are cooled. You can enhance this process by spraying yourself with a mist of water and using fans and open windows. Put a bowl of ice, or a bowl with frozen water bottles that you can refreeze, in front of a fan directed at you if you are doing something stationery like working on the computer or watching TV. You may actually get cold.

# 3: Do a mini-cooling with ice water on the back of your neck, wrists, and feet. The body radiates heat from the hands, feet, face, and ears, so cooling any of these will efficiently cool the body.

# 4: Keep the sun out. Close blinds or drapes so the heat of the sun does not reach inside.

#5: If you still need to use the A/C, setting it to a high temperature like 80 degrees will cut the humidity and a ceiling fan will create a nice cool breeze. There is no sense in cranking an A/C so much that it is actually frigid. It is very inefficient and the planet just can’t withstand that kind of waste. And by all means, cool just the rooms you are using, not the whole house of empty rooms! And of course, turn the A/C off when you leave the house!

#6: Don’t forget to leave ice water and open windows for pets. They know what to do when it gets hot—they drink and lay still, usually finding a nice tile floor.

Her vet proceeded to tell her about a study in the Veterinarian’s Journal concerning the air freshener. The study showed they found small traces of cyanide in the freshener that, after long-term exposure, could cause a breakdown in an animal’s nervous system. If this was happening to her dogs, what could it be doing to her…and her then unborn child? That’s when Jennifer decided to not trust chemical companies about the saftey of their products, and to question EVERYTHING!

Here are some thinking points about cleaning products, and some pointers on alternatives to use in your home from Jennifer, the professional green cleaning expert:

• Clean does not have a smell. Chemical-laden scents are not really “clean.”
• Chemical companies that made deadly warfare agents during WWII needed a market to sell their products when the war was over. That’s when they decided to market their poisons to individuals, creating the new perceived “enemy” of dirt, grime, and germs!
• A study showed that women who used Pledge actually showed signs of depression after exposure to the chemicals.
• There are a lot of companies greenwashing their products (saying they are green when in fact, they aren’t at all.) Clorox, SC Johnson Wax, Arm & Hammer, Proctor Gamble and Method are BIG greenwashers. Avoid products from these companies.
• Seventh Generation is actually one of the good companies and  is working to push the government to make all cleaning product companies adhere to REAL standards. Mrs. Meyers is another good company. Support these companies when you can.
• Using chemical cleaning products in your home is what adds to poor indoor air quality (not to mention outdoor air and water pollution.)

Alternatives:

• If you are around 40 years old, do what your grandmother did, NOT what your mother did. (In general, our grandparents were of the pre-chemical generation and our parents post.)
• White Vinegar kills 99% of germs, 89% of viruses, and 88% of molds and is completely safe. Especially because it is not “overkill.” We have gotten too “clean” in this country and it is leading to antibiotic resistant diseases and allergies!
• Mix vinegar and water in a spray bottle for use on countertops, bathrooms, and windows (1pt. vinegar :1 part water ratio), and floors (1pt. vinegar :3 parts water ratio). Use straight up in laundry room to treat stains.
• Bon Ami cleanser is a great product made from enzymes from the earth. It is inexpensive, can be found in the regular grocery store, and works great on pots and pans, stovetops, toilets, or anywhere you need to scour.
• Good old steel wool and elbow grease can be used too for tough jobs without chemicals.
• Castille soap and vinegar (1part : 1 part) can be used in your dishwasher and to clean your iron.
• If you choose to buy commercially-made green cleaning products instead of making your own, make sure it is a truly green company. There is tons of great information on companies and ingredients on the website Woman Voices For the Earth
• And remember, green products go a long way. They use less product to get the job done so get used to thinking “less is more!”

Now, it seems to me counter-productive to stave off cancer from the sun using chemicals that may also cause cancer. Thankfully there are some small, natural companies providing safe sun protection using mineral barriers as the effective ingredient. My favorite is Justin sunblock, which has zinc oxide as the protectant. It comes in Unscented Baby, or Yakima Mint  and it is super light and nongreasy. But I especially love that it is made locally in New Jersey!

Imagine my excitement when I found these stainless steel water bottles by Ecousable with a built-in Ionic-Adsorption Micro-Filtration System that actually removes up to 99.99% of pollutants in water. You can fill up at the hotel, a water fountain, a stream, even a pool! Anywhere there is fresh (not salt) water.

At $40.00 (for filter and bottle), and $25 for replacement filters, the Ecousable ECH2O bottle is a great investment that will pay for itself when you consider the price of commercially bottled water. The filter is effective for up to 100 gallons of great tasting filtered water and the bottles come in 18 and 25 ounce sizes. Think of the amount of plastic water bottles that can be avoided! Happy Travels!

But this challenge has been about more than just sharing specific tips. It has been about changing consciousness. Once you become aware of some things you can do better, the sentiment spreads through more areas of your life. You started composting, and using the back of paper and it feels good. Now maybe you will decide you don’t need new shoes, or that a veggie meal is better than an energy-intensive meat meal. Who knows? The point is, it is more than just adopting tips. It is a holistic change that takes place- and before you know it- you are moving up the scale to a darker shade of Green!

No matter where you are on the green-scale, there is always room to grow. Like a seed. So go, be a good seed and grow!… and spread… and nurture! And that is how change is made!