Green Girl

Via GreenUpgrader

I love this idea, found and explained through the video above from GreenUpgrader . These traditional Japanese carrying cloths, “Mottinai Furoshiki,” can be worn as hair wraps, shawls, or any other interesting cloth-garment, and torn off, sexy-secretary style, to become a bag for your groceries, your books, your cases of beer, or whatever you might need. These would be great for city-living or students, and they keep you from feeling compelled to hang on to plastic grocery bags in case you might need them around the house. Are you as excited as I am to put your scarf collection to work?

Check out GreenUpgrader for many more exciting tips on how to upgrade your lifestyle to clean and green.

Check out these beautiful, green goodies from Ann-Made Art ! Using recycled pop-tops from soda cans (the kinds we used to give each other in Middle School to indicate whether or not we “liked” one another), she creates these gorgeous, green baubles.

We caught up with Ann herself to find out more about her project, and here’s what she told us:

1. Where did you come up with the idea of making these bracelets?
The idea started out as a potential lesson plan for my students. I teach art to emotionally disturbed teens at an alternative school. One thing my students don’t have is a lot of patience. I quickly realized that I’d need another lesson plan to start our jewelry unit. This one would be way too frustrating for them.

I loved the idea, though, and started making them for the other teachers and my two teenage daughters. They all loved them and wanted more. A local gallery/store started carrying them and to date has sold over 150 of my “Bracelets with a Conscience”.

When I saw this incredible reaction, I decided to expand and offer them to other stores. I also started my website, http://www.annmadeart.com/. The bracelets are now in 12 stores in 3 states, and we keep on adding to that. I also exhibit at juried craft and art shows many weekends. In addition, I try to exhibit at as many Environmental Fairs as I can. Educating people about how “junk” can be upcycled into something pretty and useful is very important to me and to the planet.
2. In addition to the soda pop-tops, what other materials do you use?

I love working with paper, especially newspaper. It’s an incredible resource and extremely versatile. I’m always looking at ordinary materials and wondering what I can create with it.

3. Tell us about the people who help you make the bracelets.

Because I teach during the week, exhibit at shows on weekends, and market the business, I need some help assembling the bracelets. I have three wonderful women that are heaven-sent. I’m a bit of a perfectionist and want each bracelet to be just so. They have all risen to the occasion and deliver just what I’m looking for. They each have different reasons for needing to do this work, but they all seem to really love it too. If they’re happy, I’m happy. At some point I’d also like to work with women in shelters.

4. How did you decide on the charities you donate proceeds to?

That was easy. I’m very environmentally conscious and know how important it is to do whatever I can to help our precious planet. I chose the Alliance for Climate Protection headed by Al Gore and its educating affiliate, The Climate Project. They are making huge inroads into educating the public about what needs to be done. I can’t think of a more apt cause to support. We recently made our first $250 donation and plan on making many more.

I also donate to a variety of charities in an indirect way. We purchase our tabs from a non-profit organization that collects the tabs from local schools and municipalities. They normally receive 60 cents a pound from the recycler. We pay them over 4 times that plus donate back all the tabs we can’t use. (Sometimes that’s 50%…you wouldn’t believe how many yucky tabs are roaming around out there!) This organization, in turn, donates the money we pay them to a variety of charities.
5. Feel free to tell us anything else you’d like us to know about you or your bracelets.

The most important thing I can do with this business is to make a difference. I look at each aspect of the business to see how I can make as much of a positive impact on the world as possible. Businesses have the great opportunity to “do good” for society and the planet and I am trying to do just that.

See more of her beautiful bracelets and get your own at Anne-Made’s website !

When the band Radiohead was invited to attend Conan O’Brien’s show to perform live, they decided that the best way to continue their commitment to no-impact living was to phone the performance in via satellite. The Oxford, UK-based group has long been active on green issues, so their latest move comes as no surprise, especially in conjunction with NBC’s Green Week campaign. When the band is touring, they make efforts to minimize their carbon footprints, and the frontman Thom Yorke says that their decision not to travel to the US to perform will avoid leaving a carbon footprint equivalent to driving a car for a year by performing in London.

See more on BBC Radio .

In a rather strange move to promote his passion for the environment, actor Harrison Ford has demonstrated the pain of deforestation by having his chest waxed. Before the event, he said, “I’m going to have an acre of chest hair removed!”

The event was attended by Mel of the Spice Girls, who shares Ford’s passion for environmental activism. It was filmed by Access Hollywood, and you can watch the video here . Each year, 30 million acres of forest are destroyed, and Ford hoped to draw attention to the deforestation problem by drawing a connection to the pain of waxing with the pain of lost forest. It’s kind of cheesy, yes, but his heart’s in the right place, right?

Ford is the vice-chair of the international environmental action group Conservation International , which is presently spearheading a campaign against climate change.

Looking for fresh ways to freshen up your household this spring? AnnaElisabeth’s Etsy store offers environmentally friendly laundry detergent.  Using all natural, non-toxic ingredients, she promotes her products as excellent for diapers and other baby goodies, as well as being great for anyone who cares about keeping their impact on the environment minimal. We caught up with her to find out about her products and her commitment to the green way, and here’s what she had to say:

1. Where did you get your inspiration to begin making environmentally friendly products?
When I was pregnant with my daughter I started to explore the non-toxic world and I fell in love. Things happened one step at a time. Our family became vegetarian, I began to make natural cleaners for us at home (laundry soap included), we decided to start phasing out of plastic in our home, etc. I began to realize with her birth how important it was for me to take care of myself, my family, and our world. It’s blossomed into a sort of spiritual work for me now.

2. What is special about your soaps? How are they greener than others?

My soap is uniquely greener than others in part because it is unscented. I don’t use any scents at all, not even essential oils. I think this deters a lot of customers, but it’s important that I don’t jeopardize the earth for more sales. It seems a little radical, and even offensive to some people when I say that essential oils are really no better than artificial aromas. In lab studies essential oils have shown to be quite dangerous indeed to our earth, specifically when they are heated. They release harmful chemicals just as artificial aromas do. Essential oils have become identified with the “natural” life, but that shouldn’t stop us from moving away from them if they are bad for the environment.

All of the soap I use in the laundry powder is also hand made by other Etsy sellers. It’s oil and lye, nothing more. My mineral powder is extra green in that it has no soap at all. It’s great for delicates and for anyone with extra sensitive skin.

3. In addition to making soaps, do you do other crafty or environmentally-friendly work?
I try to keep the environment in mind in all my decisions. It’s not easy to say no to every plastic toy my daughter wants, or to explain to my cattle raising parents why I choose not to eat meat, but it’s worth it. Our family is taking all the steps possible in our tiny apartment in the city to be self-sustaining and eco-conscious. I spin bamboo yarn, I knit our sweaters, I sew, I make many of my daughter’s toys, I bake our bread. . . basically I’m a Jane of all trades. It’s not just about the environment, though. It’s about keeping our money out of sweat shop owner’s pockets, and moving away from big corporations in hopes that peoples’ lives will be changed. We all have to do our part even when it seems insignificant. Humanitarianism and environmentalism go hand in hand. You cannot practice one and not the other.

4. Feel free to include any other information you’d like us to know about you, your work, and your thoughts on the environment.

I feel it’s important for people to know you can live this way without being a hippie, or frumpy. If you don’t make things yourself, buy handmade instead of buying from large corporations. There are some seriously stylish things out there, and Etsy is a great place to start. Taking up the task of becoming eco-savvy seems incredibly daunting when beginning, but once you start doing things - one at a time - everything else starts to make more sense.

Go see the Humane Society’s ideas for animal- and environmentally-friendly gifts for your mom.  From an organic bouquet of beautiful Crown Majesty roses with a complimentary vase to a dog lovers’ wine club membership with available custom-made pet labels featuring your mom’s favorite pet’s picture, you’ll find something for your animal-loving mom. I was really fond of their t-shirts, which come in pretty pinks and browns and bear animal-positive messages. Some proceeds from all of the products go to benefit the Humane Society, so you’ll be giving twice! Pick something up for all the moms in your life and feel good about helping some animals while you’re doing it.

EBSCO is one of the nation’s leading databases of online scholarly files. Generally to get access to their information, you need to buy rights or have access through a university or other library; however, in an attempt to promote environmental awareness, they are offering access to GreenFile to everyone for free.

Here is their description of the resource:

In keeping with our commitment to environmental consciousness, EBSCO proudly offers GreenFILE, a freely accessible research database focusing on the relationship between human beings and the environment, with well-researched but accessible information on topics ranging from global warming to recycling to alternate fuel sources and beyond. Comprised of scholarly and general interest titles, as well as government documents and reports, GreenFILE offers a unique perspective on the positive and negative ways humans affect the ecology.

The resource is great for students, scholars, journalists, and the general interest reader looking for reliable sources on environmental issues. You can click a box to make sure that the results of your searches have full-text articles available or to make sure that they are peer-reviewed.

Happy hunting, and let us know how you use this site!

There are few pleasant side effects to the rising gas prices. I went to fill up yesterday, and I had to cut the pump off at $60, and I wasn’t full yet. It’s frustrating…but there are a few ways that the increasing prices are actually helping the environment. In addition to encouraging many of us to be more thoughtful when we are planning to drive of the amount of fuel we will use and encouraging those of us who can to invest in greener means of transportation, a few green products have seen a boost as rising fuel costs make traditional products more expensive.

Rosemary Parker of MLive reports:

The Fertilizer Institute in Washington, D.C., reports that rising fuel prices, dependency on imports, increased world demand and the weakening U.S. dollar have contributed to the recent spike in cost of the components of fertilizer. And the priciest component is phosphorus. It costs nearly three times what it did in the 1990s and half again as much as it did just a year or two ago.

Fertilizer containing phosphorous can have disastrous effects on surrounding creeks, rivers, and lakes, as excess phosphorous runs off and feeds weeds and algae, causing oxygen levels to drop and fish and other sea life to die.

So while it’s putting a painful dent in our pocketbooks, we might be a little grateful that the impact of the higher gas prices is actually good for our neighborhood’s fish!

Eliminate your idle threats! CarbonRally has issued a challenge to encourage all of us to turn off our cars while we are idling at stop lights or while waiting for a passenger to run a quick errand. By cutting down on your idle time in the car by just 5 minutes a day, you can reduce your monthly Carbon Dioxide emissions by 27 pounds.

When you’re shopping next time, keep an eye out for packaging that you can reuse in your home. This weekend, I picked up a sugar container from Domino Sugar that has a great lid. I’ll use it in the future to store my sugar or other household items. Glass jars that hold spaghetti sauce make great storage as well for kitchen items, and they can also be used as sturdy storage for household goods such as nails or other fasteners.

I heard a commercial this morning where Ellen DeGeneres said that she recycles the tin foil that she uses for baked potatoes. Her suggestion was to save them and use them when you frost your hair, but they can also be used again in the kitchen. Rinse the tin foil well and let it dry, and you’d be surprised how many times you can re-use it. It’s remarkably sturdy stuff.

The film begins by analyzing the consequences of our coal-powered economy, exploring America’s current policies and analyzing the effects of coal mining on the regions where it is common and on the nation at large. In addition to analyzing the problems, Barrie offers practical, hands-on solution on how we can increase our own energy efficiency and save ourselves money along the say.

The website for the film offers many of the tips that are included in the documentary, including how to save up to $600 a year in energy costs. You can see their money-saving, energy-saving, planet-saving tips here . This Nashville Scene article also gives you a little insight into the man behind the film.

If you’d really like to get involved, consider organizing a screening of the film in your community.