said:
"Where I work, there would be a different person in charge of each layer of packaging...." [read]
Graham said:
""..meaning WHAT? Are they all using Boeing 777s for this if so why does one burn more than the other, what type of plane? How new are the planes (n..." [read]
Gina Buss said:
"I don't think I've ever seen anything more adorable!
I absolutely love pandas. They are such beautiful and gentle creatures. Thanks so mu..." [read]
Nate Nead said:
"Great Statistic. I'm going to share this one for sure. Thanks for the good post. ..." [read]
Expecting to keep about 25,000 pounds of reusable goods out of the landfill, this Saturday’s inaugural "Green Apple Move Out" collection drive being organized to coincide with the annual dorm move-out means students rooming at NYU will have a greener choice when it comes to getting rid of that old futon they just keep meaning to find another use for.
When you’re having a blast going green, it’s not so unusual to find a recycled milk jug on your head! At least that’s what one student found out at the Hope Community Charter School in Washington, D.C., the Go Green Initiative’s school of the week.
They’ve been busy recycling and planting away with spring in full swing; and holding a school wide competition where each class adopts a section to keep clean and help beautify while creating a school banner about going green and recording their classroom recycling progress as well.
This weekend in London the East End is going to be bustling with greenies looking for a bargain. The Fashion Made Fair Sample Sale returns, bigger and better than ever, to the Truman Brewery in Brick Lane. For those fashionistas who would like to invest in some eco-threads, but are too often put off by the price tags, this is an event not to be missed. Many of TreeHugger's favourite ethical labels will be there, including People Tree, Terra Plana, Howies, Katharine Hamnett, Ciel, Green Knickers and many more! Happily for friends and family who don't want to amplify their wardrobes there are plenty of other activities to keep them busy, with talks from some of the labels and screenings of the documentary Black Gold. For the more indulgent there will be reiki and massage on offer as well as an organic bar and cafe. Fun for everyone! Click over the fold to find out where and when...
When I recently had the opportunity to interview Greensburg mother Sharon Schmidt she sounded tired but resolute. Much like you’d expect a mom who has been through a lot in the recent past, putting her own life back together while ensuring her son has the best possible experience as a high school junior despite the fact that their entire town has been rebuilding from a tornado that took it off the map.
Her words give life to what it means to be a mom from Greensburg, and I suspect you’ll enjoy reading what she has to say this Mother’s Day as much as I did listening to her speak a short time ago.
TreeHugger: What’s this school year been like while Greensburg is being rebuilt?
Sharon Schmidt: It’s started out just kind of surreal and at the very first of the school year in late summer and very early fall there were still some very bad storms and we were living in FEMA-ville, and they didn’t have their storm shelters yet so it was just very trying.
I guess when they would hit we would have gotten notice, but they were fast moving storms so it was unsettling I guess… But they do have shelters now (at school) so as a mother I feel better about it.
When you’ve got a brand new music festival you’re putting together it’s really a great opportunity to think outside the box when it comes to greening the event. And this July, organizers of the ROTHBURY Festival in Rothbury, Michigan will do just that; offsetting the carbon footprint of folks enjoying acts like the Dave Matthews Band, Gov’t Mule, Snoop Dogg, and John Mayer in a novel way.
More than £1.2 billion (2.4 billion US dollars) is up for grabs. If your business in the UK or the greater EU wants to go green, this money has your name on it. But how do you find it? Enter the Green Grants Machine: a match-making site made in business heaven may help put you together with your perfect partner funding opportunity.
There are now oodles of guides to buying green gifts for your mom on Mother's Day. Here's our take on this year's fabulous finds. And while the organic flowers-organic chocolate-organic spa basket thing is all well and good, what if your dearest wish is not to just buy green for mom but find ways to get her to be green, or greener? Every mom is different - and some of your moms may be your personal inspiration - but if you want to offer your mom a service rather than just give her a gift, we've collected some TreeHugger ideas for off-beat ways to show your love and support mom on her green path.
1. Start slow, slow, slow. Value shifting is not a short-term process, so don't expect your mom to come around over night. And try not to bombard her with negative eco-facts. Instead, if your mom is a real newbie (or really resistant to your former efforts) choose just a single area to focus you service on - something dear to your mom's heart like her garden, the kitchen, or the bathroom. Danish researchers have found that adopting one environmental behavior usually leads people to adopt another, especially if opportunities are around for further "greening." So basically, if you can find the one green thing that truly resonates with your mom, chances are she'll be started on the road to further greenness. Need inspiration for which area to start with - check our Green Guides.
Material Connexion is "the world's leading knowledge base for information about new and innovative materials." We are looking forward to attending Left/Brain/Right, , where Andrew Dent, VP of Materials and Library Research, will "discuss the sustainable materials and technologies that are transforming design today and the future opportunities that will redefine our built environment."
Li Edelkoort, founder and President of Trend Union, will "discuss the new bridges between Lifestyles and Architecture in the context of Green: the window into our souls that is altering our society, our landscapes, our aspirations, our surroundings, our surfaces and our notion of home and design."
After numerous music bands, such as Radiohead, took on the fight against climate change and decided to go green(er), more and more festival organisers are also keen on the idea to contribute towards sustainability with their events. A great example is the SOS 4.8 festival held in Murcia, Spain, last weekend for the first time. None other than the Chemical Brothers, Rufus Wainwright, Jeff Mills, James, Digitalism and Fangoria (!) performed at the 24-hour event....
Empire State Building to glow green on May 8th in honor of Rainforest Foundation Fund Carnegie Hall Benefit and Rainforest Awareness Month 2008!
It's Rainforest Awareness Month and Jessica is kickin' it telling you about her trip to the Brazilian Amazon and interviewing John Nevado, President of Nevado Roses Ecuador just in time for Mother's Day (*wink* pamper mom and mama earth with our gift guide).
The star-studded Rainforest Foundation Fund Benefit Concert & Gala is tomorrow night and if you weren't fortunate enough to bid your way into winning exclusive access to the event, there is still time to purchase Gala and concert tickets. Billy Joel, James Taylor, Sting, Brian Wilson, Chris Botti, Feist, celebrated French operatic tenor Roberto Alagna, cellist Natalie Clein plus special musical family members including Alexa Ray Joel, CoCo Sumner, Ben Taylor, Sally Taylor, along with many more special guests will perform one night only on behalf of the Rainforest Foundation Fund....
With close to 1500 people casting ballots for the schools they felt solved The Great Copy Machine Epidemic of 2008; it’s amazing that not much more than a handful of votes separated the top contenders.
But it turns out the students at Grace Hill Elementary in Rogers, Arkansas came out on top; solving the crisis by diagnosing their school’s photocopy machine with a severe case of “Carbon Footprint Swollenitis”.
Apparently, symptoms include a severe swelling of the feet; leaving a larger than life impact on the planet and contributing to global warming long after the school day is done.
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Mothers Day is next Sunday (hint, hint). To get you in the mood, TreeHugger gives you our top picks for viral videos of Moms in the wild. This is nature at its most raw, most violent, most competitive. Inspirational. Awesome. Watch it with your mother, you will need a hug when it is over.
The Battle at Kruger, above, rates first place. If evolution is about the survival of the fittest, what does "The Battle at Kruger" say to us? The pride of lions beats out the giant crocodile, but in the end the baby buffalo wins, thanks to cooperation. Just think what we could accomplish if we humans could pull together against the threats to our survival. Certainly not by coincidence, Caught on Safari: The Battle at Kruger, will premiere on the National Geographic Channel on Mother's Day, May 11, 2008, at 9pm EST. ...
In case you’re wondering what one school can do in just the span of a few short months, take a good look at the Go Green Initiative’s school of the week, Milltown Middle School in Milltown, NJ. They’ve actually earned the first year award from the Go Green Initiative for their efforts, and they’ve been making a difference by holding recycling assemblies and working to increase their efficiency at recycling plastics, batteries, ink cartridges, paper, plastic, glass and aluminum while working to start an Elmer’s Glue recycling program as well....
Making a city bicycle-friendly (Portland is a good success story, being the first major city in the US to earn Platinum Level) is not easy. There's a vicious cycle where if the city isn't bike-friendly, fewer people will ride, and if fewer people ride, politicians feel less pressure to make the city bike-friendly.
Bike to Work Day in Seattle (May 16, 2008) aims to make counting bicycle commuters easier with an impressive event that brings together about 11,000 cyclists. Such a big group can't be ignored. Strength in numbers!
The Cascade Bicycle Club, the largest in the US, says: "[Bike to Work Day's] dramatic year-over-year increases show transportation engineers and politicians that facilities like bicycle lanes and parking racks are good investments." If you are in the Seattle area and are a cyclist, we encourage you to join the club. If you want to take part in the Bike to Work Day, details can be found here. Even Lance Armstrong wants you to go!...
From May 1 to 31, the city of Lima is hosting the photo exhibit Climate changes, so does my life, which shows the impact climate change is starting to have in different Peruvian communities.
The images were taken by photographer Thomas Mueller, who travelled through 13 regions in the Peruvian coast, mountains and forest, speaking with countrymen, fishermen, artisans and community leaders in 29 cities. Every picture is accompanied by a testimony, in which the person says what's changing in their everyday life thanks to the shift in seasons, water availability, and alike.
"This journey has allowed me to observe that climate change is a reality in Peru. However, it's important that we learn how natives are learning and starting to adapt their lives to the effects of this phenomenon," said Mueller, according to a press release.
See some of the pics and testimonies after the jump.
::Via Orbita agency...
America is eating up its forests, literally. In addition to a recent report by the non-profit Dogwood Alliance, a new campaign called No Free Refills has been launched to highlight the fast-food industry’s major role in the deforestation of the Southern forests of the US. Their eye-catching and informative website doesn’t go lightly on “DeluxDeforestation” either, stating that: “Packaging symbolizes the disposable society we have become. Nowhere is this more obvious than in the fast food industry.”
With nearly a 100 paper packaging mills in the region and thousands of restaurants worldwide, fast-food giants such as McDonalds, Wendy’s, KFC, Pizza Hut, Arby’s, Quizzno’s and Taco Bell are major consumers of paper products sourced from the area. "Every year millions of pounds of food packaging waste litter our roadways, clog our landfills and spoil our quality of life. Southern forests, the jewel of the American landscape, are being destroyed to bring you fried chicken, burgers and fries, and super-sized convenience in a glut of wrappers, boxes and cups," says Lauren Barnett, the Alliance Media Outreach coordinator. ...
TreeHugger: You actually were not yet mayor when the tornado struck, so what were the first things that went through your mind as an ordinary citizen after the disaster?
Bob Dixson: Well just get stuff cleaned up. Concentrate on your own property and helping your neighbors and just get cleaned up and go from there. We didn’t really get an idea of what we had until we got stuff moved away, with just piles of debris all over.
TH: And what did you believe were the most pressing issues facing Greensburg the day before the tornado?
BD: I think over the years our most valuable resource that we’ve exported is our youth. They’ve been heading elsewhere to find employment. So the question has been, “How do we encourage and get businesses to come and offer employment to our younger generation and keep them in the county and town?”
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In a calorie-burning 3,900-kilometre cycle journey from one end of India to another, a man plans to raise awareness and to gather pledges to plant more trees worldwide. Cycling in the wake of the United Nation Environment Programme’s (UNEP) successful Billion Tree Campaign last year will be Shrenik Rao, creator of the TreeCycle project, CEO of a media company and an avid cyclist....
We just wrote about hypermiling and mentioned that one of the tips to improve gas mileage was making sure your tires are properly inflated. Well, we weren't kidding. A study done by Bridgestone Europe found that 93.5% of cars in the European Union have under-inflated tires. "Softer tires increase rolling resistance, forcing the engine to work harder - and burn more fuel. The U.S. Department of Transportation says being down just 5 to 7 pounds per square inch can decrease fuel economy by two to three miles per gallon."
It all adds up to quite a big waste. Pretty disgusting, in fact, considering that inflating tires is the closest thing you can get to a free lunch. Bridgestone calculated the extra fuel burned to amount to 2.14 billion gallons per year, and 18.4 million tons of extra CO2. Just for Europe. Wired did some back of the envelope math and found that the numbers for the whole planet are "42.32 million tons of carbon dioxide generated by under-inflated tires, or slightly less than Connecticut emitted in 2005." So check your tire pressure, and tell your friends about it! It's also important for your safety (better handling). ::Bridgestone Europe, ::We Can Cut Global CO2 By 42M Tons For Free...
If you're a great, green middle school teacher with an idea to help inspire students to live a greener life there just may be a grant with your name on it coming from GM and Discovery Education.
In fact, they'll be handing out 40 of the $1K grants along with a healthy dose of online professional development and a free digital camera to to the teachers who come up with the best ideas so they can implement and document their projects and share the magic with the rest of us.
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When I called Principal Randy Fulton and asked for an interview he was as busy as any Principal might be on any given school day; particularly if they were in the process of planning the new high school to be built to LEED platinum standards and the President was scheduled to visit in just a few short days to give the commencement address at graduation not so long after the entire town had been swept away by a huge tornado.
But he closed the door and sat down for a few moments to give me his insights into the process of rebuilding Greensburg High School, the effect it’s had on his students, and the simple truth about how he copes with the enormous task of rebuilding not only his own life but that of the school as well.
TreeHugger: Where did the desire to rebuild Greensburg High School in a green fashion come from?
Randy Fulton: Well, once the disaster happened one of the things the governor of Kansas has really stressed is building back in an environmentally sustainable manner, and I think that’s where that came from. And the leaders and commissioners and administrators, all of us got together and said “Let’s do this right. Let’s build back a town that is green and takes care of the environment.”
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“Go easy on me,” Tommy Lee said in a whisper. “You know I’m a green virgin.”
“Sorry Tommy,” I said with a smile. “I like to go deep.”
Earth Day celebration in San Francisco is probably the perfect place to give Tommy Lee and Ludacris the Green 101. The artists, (both who are participants in Planet Green’s Battleground Earth), paid a visit to the Bay Area during the Green Apple Festival. They may have well been on another planet though, because you know how freaky cool San Francisco can get around Earth Day *wink, wink*.
Warning: The video has incredibly annoying popup ads that you have to shoo away throughout.
We love Andrea Zittel and have even called her our role model. We wrote earlier: "she lived six months in one dress; designs remarkable furniture; has created a series of intricate folding living units that challenge every notion about multifunctional furniture; has created living pods and stations on her property that blow away most of our beloved modernist prefabs." Her work from over 16 years is on display at Schaulager in Basel, Switzerland; the video provides good coverage of the contents and her press conference. ::Vernissage via ::Dezain...
Photo courtesy tanakawho via flickr
Ironic that the Japanese originally started making those flimsy, break-apart disposable wooden chopsticks as a good way to deal with wood scraps. Now the nation goes through 24 billion pairs per year - 63 million pairs discarded per day. If you're really thrifty you can glue them together into a chopstick canoe.
Otherwise there's a growing trend in Tokyo and other cities to B.Y.O.C - bring your own pair of personal "hashi" or chopsticks. Now the Marche restaurant group is offering a reward system for people who bring their own - one point for each restaurant visit where you BYOC - 10 points equals a 500 yen ($5) discount on a meal. There's even a "chopstick keep" system where regular customers can store their chopsticks (they'll wash them) at the restaurant. A popular lunch buffet called Yokohama Cruise Cruise is giving a 300 yen discount on their 2100 yen ($20) buffet price for BYOC customers. Of course, you've got to have a pair to carry - here's a pair of rice-based biomass and polypropelene plastic chopsticks. Via CScout Japan
See also: Carry On Eating: Bring Your Own Chopsticksand Bring Your Own Chopstick Movement Gains Traction In Asia...
Laura in Venice, Italy 2004
In his post Fight For Your Right... to Dry, Sean challenged readers to "take artistic photos of outdoor clotheslines that show both beauty and vitality." On National Hanging Out Day we upped the ante by adding a coveted copy of Jim Kunstler's World Made By Hand as a prize.
Our esteemed judges, Graham Hill and Meaghan O'Neill, have chosen Photo Unrest's shot of a clothesline in Venice, Italy as the winner. Send us an email and we will send you the book!
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If you haven’t had the chance to vote yet for the school that you think solved The Great Copy Machine Epidemic of 2008 there’s simply no time left to wait. With just a few days left to cast your ballot and help determine which disease it is that’s been causing school photocopy machines everywhere to chew up trees and contributing to global warming in the process.
For while we all know that the paper industry uses tremendous amounts of energy and causes deforestation as well, few realized until recently that there just may be a strange, contagious disease to blame for the tremendous amount of paper used by school copy machines.
You know those giant, devilish, tree-eating machines that lurk in the bowels of virtually every main office or back room in schools across America?
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Tim Ferriss, author of The Four Hour Workweek, has a really cool idea and TreeHugger is helping to spread the word; it's a contest to help enable more effective electronics recycling, with the help of the big-time companies who design and manufacture the phones, provide cell service, or help both ship these phones around the world. Stay tuned for more; for now, take it away, Tim!
Boba Fett was always my favorite Star Wars character. Here’s your chance to emulate him and become a bounty hunter. Prizes go to the bold.
According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), more than 125 million cell phones are thrown away each year, which amounts to about 65,000 tons of waste. That’s just in the U.S....
He’s a high school student from the town of Greensburg Kansas, and his enthusiasm for the green movement and the amazing things it’s doing for his town after the devastation caused by the tornado that leveled it are an inspiring look at the future of green in America.
After spending close to an hour speaking with him by phone I realized precisely why the rebuilding of Greensburg can become an uplifting model for us all. I trust you’ll enjoy his insight and enthusiasm as much as I did.
TreeHugger: What do you believe made the people of Greensburg decide to rebuild the town in a green fashion?
Taylor Schmidt: Well after at least 96% of the town was destroyed there has obviously been a massive need for rebuilding, and the town has come together as a big family, really, and it’s been one joint effort to rebuild the town better than it was and more sustainable and green than it was. So we’ve really been learning a lot about what we need to do to keep our town from dying again. And we’ve been learning about building and going green and implementing a lot of green into our rebuilding efforts.
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We'll be working on better category archives soon. In the meantime, take a look at the weekly archive if you really want to dig around, or use the search box at the top of the page.
TreeHugger breaks it down for you in a series of in depth how-to articles that will help you green your life. No time like the present!