The month of November is just about here, and that means a whole new list of November awareness events are beginning. If you or your company has been active in promoting charitable causes throughout the year, then you definitely deserve all the credit that you can get. But now there new causes that need your support, so continue using your positive energy and influence by getting involved this month. Let’s take a look at several of the most popular November awareness events that you can really help to make a difference with.

1. Great American Smokeout

To start, the Great American Smokeout is one of the most important events that occurs throughout the year. As most people know, smoking is a major contributor to the two leading causes of death in the United States: heart disease and cancer. While the facts are printed on every cigarette box and on every advertisement, people are still addicted to cigarettes and will continue to smoke. Something needs to be done about this major issue, and it starts with educating and banding together.

This year marks the 35th anniversary of the Great American Smokeout sponsored by the American Cancer Society. The idea is to get people to stop smoking by quitting on November 18, or making a date to quit. Everyone has family members, co-workers, and friends that are smokers. If you want to help save their lives, get involved with the Great American Smokeout this November.

2. Alzheimer’s Awareness

According to current year statistics from the Alzheimer’s Assocation, 5.3 million Americans are affected by Alzheimer’s Disease. This is clearly a major problem running rampant in our country today, and there is still no cure for the disorder. All across the country, companies and communities will join together this November to raise money to go towards the research for a cure. During your upcoming event, you can provide participants with loads of facts on the prevalence of the disease, and a guide to Knowing the 10 Signs of Alzheimer’s Disease.

3. American Education Week

The future of this country lies within our ability to keep children learning every day. It is no secret that we have fallen behind the rest of the world in the subjects of science and math. Now while the government is working to revamp the education system, there is still plenty that you can do on the local level. One of the most influential organizations in your community is the Parent Teacher Association. By working with the PTA, you can work towards a goal that would bring students up-to-date in 21st century education.

Teachers need to prove that they are capable of effectively educating their students, while parents should learn the importance of reinforcing education in the home. During the week of November 14-20, do everything you can to encourage people in your community to focus on the continued education of the children, so they realize that it is the key to their future at an early age.

October isn’t over yet, so you still have time to get involved with one of the most important awareness events that there is. While energy awareness should really be a daily practice in people’s lives, the concept has been reserved for the month of October.

Every October, the Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) provides the public with a ton of ideas and materials for how to practice energy conservation in their homes and at work. FEMP always promotes energy awareness through the use of a central theme or message which helps people to be more receptive to the idea of energy awareness. This year, the theme is POWERING AMERICA: We’re On Target. The theme concentrates on highlighting the efforts that government agencies are continuing to make by focusing on energy targets to stimulate the economy, reduce costs of operating, lowering greenhouse gas emissions, and stabilizing long-term clean energy.

The “We’re On Target” slogan is meant to inform the citizens of this country that America is on pace to get off our dependency on coal and oil. Studies are showing that business investments in clean energy technologies are growing at a rapid pace, alternative fuel vehicles are replacing those with high carbon emissions and changing the automotive industry completely, and the construction of new buildings is focusing on how to incorporate green energy into its plans, thus creating the maximum amount of efficiency possible.

The great thing about energy awareness is that there is so much you as an individual can do to make a lasting change. Some simple alterations in your daily habits can drastically lower your carbon footprint, and help to do your part in keeping the country on target with establishing the practice of clean energy usage. Let’s take a look at several of the things you can do TODAY, and then we will also go over some helpful tips for making the gradual change to clean energy over the next year.

Heating

• Turn down the temperature on the water heater in your home to about 120°F. Most water heaters are set way above this temperature, yet no one needs to bathe or wash their hands with water this hot. By lowering your water heater to its warm setting you can save plenty of energy.
• Purchase an insulating blanket for your water heater. The blanket helps to maintain the temperature of the hot water in your home, so that the water heater does not have to use as much energy to work hard. The insulating blanket is cheap and can be found in any hardware store. It pretty much pays for itself.
• Have a professional perform annual maintenance on your furnace or heat pump. Heating your home accounts for about half the energy your family will use during the winter. With the cold months coming up very soon, it is important that you get this taken care of as soon as possible.

Lighting & Electricity

• When a room in your home in unoccupied, make sure that you shut off the lights. Plenty of electricity is being used to power the lights in your home, so there is no use in wasting energy if no one is there.
• Turn off both your computer monitor and tower if you are not going to be using it for more than a few hours. It is a common misconception that leaving your computer in sleep mode saves energy compared to turning it off and on again.
• When you aren’t using your appliances (toaster, coffee machine) and cell phone chargers, make sure to unplug them from the wall.

Now that we have noted some of the changes you can practice in your home on a daily basis, let’s quickly go over a few of the other changes that should be implemented over the next year. While these things might take some more time and a small investment, they will save your family a tremendous amount of money in the long-run – not to mention you will be making great strides towards the advancement of making this planet green again. Here are a few of the most important ones:

Insulate.

Insulating your home is one of the most important contributors in helping to lower your energy bill. Most people either overlook the concept of insulation in their home, or they choose not to do it because it proves to be too costly. However, by insulating everything in your home you can really help to make a difference. This includes insulating the hot water pipes, heating ducts in unheated areas, and the walls. If you aren’t sure how this is done, a contractor can do it by blowing cellulose into the walls and attic.

Seal Up Leaks.

One of the biggest culprits in your home is leaky areas. These leaks create drafts and air flow throughout your house during the winter that prevents your heating system from performing its best. Some of the most common leaks exist in plumbing penetrations, gaps around the chimney, and the unfinished spaces behind your closets and cupboards. The windows in your home are also another major contributor in leaking the heat out of your home. There are now energy-efficient storm windows that you can install in your home. These windows have weatherstripping, which will save up to 25% of the energy lost in your home.

By incorporating these practices into your home, you are practicing good energy awareness. You can go as far as to tell your neighbor about all the money you have saved, and then they will start green energy practices as well. Before you know it, this will be the standard with oil and coal energy being the exception.

Awareness comes in many different forms, and can be used to focus on a variety of causes. While most of the awareness events that are touched upon on this blog have to do with the physical health of you and your loved ones, not every awareness cause has to do with this facet of life. Some awareness events may be devoted to things like environmentalism, helping animals, or teaching kids how to read. Today, we are going to concentrate on an awareness event that dedicates itself to the protection of your finances and identity.Cyber Security Awareness Month takes place every October, and its main focus is to keep you safe online. The concept of cyber security is something that is relatively new to our society. For this reason, not many people are aware of just how vulnerable you can be when you log on to the Internet. In present day, all of your important financial and identity information is posted online for one reason or another. Whether you are checking your bank information or paying a credit card bill, several institutions are receiving your private data through means of an internet connection. While the medium for this information to pass through is considered “secure”, the connection is always susceptible to attack by computer hackers and people looking to commit identity theft.

In order to prevent yourself from being a victim of identity theft and similar crimes, there are several precautionary measures that you can take. Anything you can do to spread awareness for this cause will be greatly appreciated towards advancing the effectiveness of cyber security on the whole.Organizations like the Department of Homeland Security and the National Cyber Security Alliance deliver a comprehensive list of these safety measures that should be regularly practiced. The rules change somewhat depending on whether you are a home computer user or running a business, but the main principles are the same:

• Use a combination of automatically updating security software that includes anti-virus, anti-spyware, and firewall protection.
• Make sure that your web browser and operating system are set to automatically update their protection.
• Always create long passwords for any computer or online account, as well as for your network router. These passwords should incorporate letters, numbers, and symbols, and should be changed periodically.
• Turn your computer off when it is not in use.
• Keep a watchful eye for signs that your computer may be infected with a virus. These warning signs include slow processing time, excess pop-up ads, and the involuntary sending of spam messages to your e-mail contacts.
• Monitor the website that your children are visiting to ensure that they are not putting your computer at risk.
• *Regularly back-up all of your important personal data and files.*

All of the above tips will greatly reduce your chances of falling prey to a cyber crime. In the case of businesses, there is even more risk of cyber crime to occur. Since the main purpose of a business is to generate profit, there is lots of money surrounding your company in a variety of ways. That is why cyber criminals are very focused on bringing businesses down in any way that they can. Here are a few more cyber security tips that businesses can employ to protect themselves:

• Develop a wide range of internet security policies for your business, and train your staff to put them into practice immediately.
• Since you are dealing with a large network of computers which have the potential to infect each other, communication in the workplace is key. Make sure to regularly publish cyber security tips in a company newsletter, and e-mail them to every employee.
• Ensure that your IT department is committed to a schedule of timely updating for all virus and protection software

In order to do your part during this Cyber Security Awareness month, try to spread this new knowledge to your co-workers, family members, and people in your community. The more people that you can educate about cyber security, the better chance that the world has of fighting cyber crime in the 21st century.

One of the most important awareness events that takes place in October is Fire Prevention Week. During the week of October 3-9, schools and communities will come together to educate people about the dangers of fire, and how to avoid them. Not many people realize just how prevalent the hazards of fire are in the home. Plenty of injuries and fire related deaths could have been avoided if people took some time to learn the best techniques for testing their smoke alarms and planning an escape route from their home. When you decide to get involved with Fire Prevention Week, you are making the conscious decision to spread the knowledge that will help people survive if they are ever faced with these dangerous circumstances. To highlight just how imperative it is that everyone learns the facts about fire prevention, let’s take a look at a few pertinent facts that you may not know:

• Cooking is the #1 cause of home fires and injuries
• Smoking is the leading cause of fire deaths
• Electrical failures or malfunctions are factors in roughly 50,000 reported fires each year
• In 2008, U.S. fire departments responded to 386,500 home fires
• About 8 people die in home fires every day

These are some startling statistics that most people have never heard before. You never really think that your home could be subject to a fire, as long as you don’t make any careless mistakes. But what people do not realize is that every home has a ton of different cables and cords, as well as electric sockets and heating pipes that can experience malfunctions. So even if you make sure to shut the stove when you’re done cooking, or not to smoke in bed, you can never be fully sure that your home is completely fire proof. Therefore, the best thing you can do is take all the proper precautions and safety measures to put you and your family in the best position for survival if such a situation ever occurs.

What Can You Do?

Now that we know just how common and dangerous house fires really are, we can begin to explore some of the best safety measures that you can implement. Proper execution of these tips will lower a lot of the risk factors associated with this threat.

Install a Smoke Alarm. This is probably the single most important preventive measure you can take against fires in the home. While smoke alarms are now common in households across the country, you would be surprised as to how many homes still do not have this very important device attached to their ceiling or wall.

Smoke alarms need to be mounted as high as possible in your home, since smoke rises. Just the installation of a smoke alarm alone will cut your risk of dying in a fire in half. If you do have a smoke alarm in your home, it is important that you check it on a monthly basis. Each of these smoke alarms has a button which can be pressed to make sure that the smoke alarm is working properly. If the alarm beeps, then you know that is it still in working order. As long as you are focused on testing your smoke alarm, make sure to check your carbon monoxide detector as well. As a short side note, carbon monoxide is even more dangerous than the smoke from a fire because it is neither visible nor odorous.Plan An Exit Route. This is something that most families across America don’t do. The importance of having a mapped out escape route in your home cannot be understated. People think that since they live in their own home, they know the way to the exits like the back of their hand. What they don’t consider is that the circumstances are very different once your house is filled with smoke and fire.

In the event that a fire is spreading through the home, you will not be able to see anything. Some of the exits that you are trying to get to may be blocked. Therefore, it is important that you have a plan for several ways to get out of the home. The best way to do this is by mapping out every room in your home, and the quickest way to exit. You also need to note a specific meeting point that is located outside of the home. This way, you can account for everyone in your family immediately. Plenty of families mistakenly believe that they should wait for the other members of their family to leave the house. Meeting somewhere inside the house will only decrease your chances of getting out unscathed. So, however counter-intuitive it may feel, you should not wait for other people in the house before exiting.

Finally, never pass an exit. If you see an open exit that is not in your plan, take the quickest route to getting out of the home. Learn From Your Local Fire Department. Most fire departments will be able to provide you with plenty of related literature and even safety classes that you can take to learn more about how to protect yourself from a possible fire in the home. These firefighters have the unique first-hand experience of dealing with these instances. Therefore, they know the best tips and strategies for dealing with a home fire that you may not be able to find in any educational materials online.After learning about the best ways to protect your family from fire, you can now get involved with Fire Prevention Week. There are plenty of events held in schools and in the workplace which promote fire safety, so that we can limit the amount of incidents that occur in the future. By doing your part with this important awareness event you have a chance to educate people, and ultimately save their lives.