Today's tip is pulled from an amazing organization across the pond called We Are What We Do. In the land of the tea-drinkers, kettles are electric, and they say: "Only fill your kettle with the water you need. If everybody did we could save enough electricity to run all the street lighting in the whole country."

It's true. And it relates to more than just tea! Boiling water for pasta or potatoes? Why fill that pot all the way up? It's only going to take longer to boil, and you'll probably have your bowties floating around in way too much water. The longer it takes, the more energy you use!

Also make sure that when you put a pot on the stove to put a lid on it! It will help the water heat even faster. Finally, you never want to sit and watch the pot - for if you do, it will never boil!

Rebecca says: When I used to live in Monterrey, Mexico, I don't know if the gas stove wasn't set up right (the flame didn't even get close to the pot), or if the altitude also affected it, but it took me over 30 minutes to get water to boil. The only cure was to zap it in the microwave first. I guess I should have had someone come and fix it…what a waste!

We'd never thought of it this way, and maybe you hadn't either. Once again, it's a simple tip: chop your veggies small. The smaller the piece, the faster it cooks. That's right, it's another energy saver!

We couldn't help think of Dana Carvey & Chopping Broccoli on this tip. He could have delivered it so much better! The times when it makes absolute sense to implement this is when you are preparing something that will eventually be pureed.

For vegetables that you will actually eat, you'll have to figure out what size works best for you. Size and shape somehow affect our taste buds. If they didn't, there would be only one kind of pasta! It will save you time on the cooking end, however, if you take a few extra moments to chop your veggies smaller in the first place.

Rebecca says: In order to make sure that you chop as fast and as efficient as possible, use a good knife. Until I had decent knives, I had no idea how much time I was wasting in the kitchen. A good knife can slice a tomato and a carrot with ease.

Put a lid on it! No, we don't want you to shut up. You should know by now that you have to take us quite literally! Today we're talking cooking, stove tops, and of course, lids. Read on for the simplest tip on how to cook faster, and with less energy!

When cooking on your stove, use lids as much as possible. It will help you boil water faster, cook foods quicker, and save energy. Of course, you'll want to use the lid that matches with your pot or pan whenever possible. If the lid fits, it's much less likely that you'll be letting out precious steam.

You'll probably even find that something that you cooked on high heat without a lid can cook on medium heat with a lid, and in less time! Now that's what we call efficient. This site tells us that a "saucepan covered with a well fitting lid uses a quarter less energy when boiling than a saucepan without a lid." Plus, they make another great point: steam in the pot = steam not in the kitchen.

So don't forget, next time you cook, and especially boil - don't forget to put a lid on it!

Rebecca says: The quickest win on this is when boiling water - what time you save!

We do it for business, we do it for pleasure - when travelling, a hotel stay is usually a must. Often, we have many choices to choose from, and we make our decision based on cost and assumed quality. There is, of course, a new factor coming into the picture, and it's green-ness. Today we'll tell you how you can green your hotel stays.

As Jess Sand recently covered here on Green Options, there are ways to green your travel. When considering hotels for your next trip, you might want to jump online and visit the Green Hotels Association site to check out their list of member hotels. You might also want to swing by Environmentally Friendly Hotels, a site that rates the green-ness of a hotel based on user submitted information. (That means that some of the info might need to be verified by you before accepting it as correct.) Some states even have their own certification programs.

But let's face it - you just might not be able to stay in one of these hotels, be it for price, location, or availability. So what else can you do? Most hotels these days have implemented some sort of green policies such as not washing the towels and sheets everyday for guests staying multiple days. We recommend that you test them on whatever policies they have committed themselves to.

If the hotel tells you that if you hang up your towel to dry, they will not wash it - try it. Hang up that towel and see what happens. We've seen it work, and we've seen it fail horribly. If the hotel isn't even following the very basic water & energy saving practices that they have posted in the rooms, call them on it. Complain to the manager, write letters, make a stink. You might also want to send them some recommended guidelines on how to go green. Of course, one option would be to keep that "Privacy Please" sign on your door - maybe that would save even more energy.

Finally, don't forget to be green in your actions, as well. Make sure to shut off all of the lights and a/c (or raise the temperature, at least) when you leave the room. Keep your showers short, just as you would at home. Don't over use just because you won't get the utility bill!

Rebecca says: I stayed in a hotel this weekend and tried the ol' hang up the towels trick. It worked! I shouldn't sound so surprised, but I had a bad experience last year where my towels were washed. A month an a half after sending in my complaint I received a call from the hotel telling me that I was the first person they'd ever spoken to that was mad because my room was cleaned. They told me, however, that they would review the green policies with their cleaning staff and hope that it wouldn't happen again.

Have you heard this one before? "A light bulb walks into a bar…" Wait, that's not right. Let's try it again, "What's bright and light and white all over?" Okay, we're not the best joke tellers in the world, but we do know the punchline: CFL.

Switching over to compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) is one of those solutions that is so simple and so effective, we all just need to do it. Says EnergyStar.gov, if we all change just one incandescent bulb to a CFL, "we would save enough energy to light more than 2.5 million homes for a year and prevent greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions of nearly 800,000 cars."

Sometimes there is a solution so simple, that we've just got to do it. Yes, CFL bulbs cost a little more, but they also last much longer and use a quarter of the energy. This means that you will save money on your electricity bill - around $30/year per bulb.

If you haven't made the switch yet, use today as your opportunity to do so. Some hints:

• Since CFLs last so long, they are great for hard to reach places. Imagine not having to change the bulb for 5 years!
• CFLs don't generate heat like incandescents do, so they won't make you cool the room any more than is absolutely necessary.
• CFLs do take a minute to warm up, so they are not as useful in closets or areas that a light is usually on for just a few seconds.
• You'll receive the biggest impact on your energy bill by replacing the lights you use the most often and for the longest period of time.

Rebecca says: I never wanted to switch because I remembered the CFLs from years ago in my grandparent's house. It felt like a fluorescent bulb with a very cold tone to the color of the light. Now, it is almost impossible to tell the difference. Plus, when else can you have the light on and think, "I'm saving energy right now?"

CFL Resources:

EnergyStar.gov

Wikipedia: CFL

Brrr! Winter seems to be coming and going this year in a way that is scaring some of us greenies to the bone. But if it's cold, it's cold - what can we do? Dressing appropriately is a big first step - and that advice holds true even when we are indoors.

Treehugger reminded us last year about Jimmy Carter's famous February 2, 1977 speech: Report to the American People on Energy, and we've been waiting for a good moment to bring it up. On that day almost 30 years ago, Jimmy Carter had been in office for 2 weeks, and was broadcast on television in a cardigan.

His advice then remains to be good advice today. Here is an excerpt from his speech:

We must face the fact that the energy shortage is permanent. There is no way we can solve it quickly. But if we all cooperate and make modest sacrifices, if we learn to live thriftily and remember the importance of helping our neighbors, then we can find ways to adjust and to make our society more efficient and our own lives more enjoyable and productive. Utility companies must promote conservation and not consumption. Oil and natural gas companies must be honest with all of us about their reserves and profits. We will find out the difference between real shortages and artificial ones. We will ask private companies to sacrifice, just as private citizens must do.

All of us must learn to waste less energy. Simply by keeping our thermostats, for instance, at 65 degrees in the daytime and 55 degrees at night we could save half the current shortage of natural gas.

There is no way that I, or anyone else in the Government, can solve our energy problems if you are not willing to help. I know that we can meet this energy challenge if the burden is borne fairly among all our people–and if we realize that in order to solve our energy problems we need not sacrifice the quality of our lives.

We encourage everyone to wear sweaters and slipper socks when indoors this winter, in hopes that we all can lower our thermostat a little, even if it is just one degree.

Rebecca says: Here in Miami we've had a very warm winter, just two weeks ago I was kayaking in my bathing suit. However last night we experienced one of our chilliest nights all season. I'm proud to say that by sleeping with 3 shirts, pants, and 2 pairs of socks I was able to avoid putting on the heat. Living without heat is unreasonable in most of the country, but each degree less does make a difference.

Transcript, Jimmy Carter Speech 2/2/1977

Energy conservation is an easy solution, especially when it doesn't affect your day-to-day life. Often we waste electricity, but we don't even benefit from that usage. A perfect example of this is leaving the lights on when you leave the room.

The US Department of Energy gives us some guidelines on when to turn off those lights. If you are using regular incandescent bulbs, it's always best to shut the light off when you aren't in the room or using it.

However, with fluorescent lighting, you'll need to estimate when you'll need the light again. Switching these types of bulbs on and off every minute will actually make them less efficient. However, if you won't be using the light within the next 15 minutes, it's best to shut it off.

The easiest way to switch off lights is to plug them into an outlet that is controlled by a switch. Easy off, easy on. And the biggest way you can make an impact? Teach your kids to shut those lights (and TV) off when they are not in the room.

We love what Energy Hawk has to say, "Your father was right, you don't own the electric company so TURN THE LIGHTS OFF." And of course, we recommend the switch to CFL (compact fluorescent light) bulbs whenever possible.

Rebecca says: I grew up in a very well lit house. At night, all of the lights were on in every room. However, after moving in with my husband I quickly learned to just have lights on in one room at a time! It takes some serious getting used to, but it's worth it.

When to Turn Off Your Lights: US Dept of Energy

We can't keep from using energy completely, but it is important to make sure everything is running as efficiently as possible. Today what we're referring to is your refrigerator.

Always plugged in, it's one of those appliances that you can never shut off. That makes it even more important an item to make sure it is pulling as little electricity as possible.

In order to see if you are letting money flow right out the door of that refrigerator, you'll need to stick some money in that door. Close the fridge on a dollar bill. If the bill is held tight by the door, your seal is intact. If you can easily pull the money out, you need a tighter seal.

According to Money, fixing this can save you $15 a year. We say, the 15 bucks is great, but even better is not to throw all of that precious energy out the door.

Rebecca says: Do the test with a $100 bill and you'll feel like you're saving even more money. And yes, I did the test. And yes, our fridge passed with flying colors!

Money Magazine: Global Warming: What's in It for You