Dean’s Beans Brews Justice

Fair trade coffee is more visible, possible, and drinkable these days. At the same time, questions remain about how much of the mainstream daily grind is sustainably produced (most big coffee companies are better at marketing their fair trade than actually implementing it). And if you’re like a lot of green advocates, you want your coffee to have a local footprint, too. That’s the best approach, but if it’s not possible, consider creating your own blend from the Kings of [...]

Slow and Indigenous

Slow Food, one of the premiere global green food groups, has evolved over time. Its origins in Italy and the exclusivity of some conviviums have led to charges of food elitism, while others suggest that the emphasis on artisanal traditions ignores the fact that industrial food is still a necessity and draws energy and attention away from reforming the problems with commercial food systems. Tom Philipott, Grist’s wonderful food and agriculture writer, sums it up successfully:

“For all the buzz surrounding [...]

Green Schools for a Greener Future

It’s decidedly still summer, but the first hints of fall are in the air. In a few more weeks it will be time for school to start again. Traditionally, this means an end to kids’ long days of exploring the outdoors, but considering the recent developments in environmental education, this may not be the case for today’s luckier students.More and more communities in the United States are starting to provideenvironmental charter schools as a public education option. These schools generally [...]

The Revolution Will Not Be Microwaved

Sandor Ellix Katz could be called a god, a guru, and a great teacher, but he’s so modest he’d never admit to anything other than being a fermentation fetishist. What Sandor wants you to know, though, is that fermentation is at the heart of human consumption. Consider the simple observation that many common and delicious foods and drinks are probably fermented, including the “ordinary” such as bread, cheese, wine, and beer; the more exciting such as cider, chocolate, coffee, tea, [...]

TED Talks 2009

It’s been a great week for sustainable innovation. That’s because the TEDGlobal 2009 conference took place this week in Oxford, England. TED stands for “technology, entertainment, and design,” but the TED conferences encompass much more than those words might suggest. Since 1990, TED has been bringing together groundbreaking speakers from the worlds of science, art, entertainment, and more, to present and discuss their visions for positive change in the world.

The topics of the TED talks are very diverse, but many [...]

Vast Sky: Enlightenment in Boulder in August

Imagine the opportunity to spend a weekend with three of the most enlightened thinkers of our time.
Imagine that the time was organized with talks, sessions, and multiple opportunities to awaken your full potential and embrace the world’s problems and joys.
Imagine being in Boulder, Colorado in August for this amazing experience.

If you can picture something wonderful along those lines, consider attending Vast Sky’s summer seminar at the Boulder Integral Institute. Some of the most well known experts in the of human [...]

Celebrities as Eco-Spokespeople

Celebrities have the power to make the entire world stop, look and listen. Sifting through the pages of magazines, we take guilty peeks into their lives and absorb their fashion sense, hairstyles, eating habits, and late-night haunts. Today, we will take a look at some of the eco-friendly lifestyle choices and products that some of your favorite actors, actresses and musicians have embraced over the years – proving the rich and famous can ignite not only the entertainment industry, but [...]

Eco-Friendly Vacationing Gets Easier with AAA TourBook

We recently featured several options for eco-friendly hotels and accommodations; we’ve also spotlighted a number of green vacation destinations, including the Yelverton Brook Eco-Spa, the Gaia Napa Valley Hotel, breathtaking eco-island Melody Key, Fiji Island Resort, and LEED-certified Hotel Terra. Next year, the AAA TourBook will add an eco feature to make it easy to find the best green vacation opportunities when you travel.

The AAA TourBook is a convenient travel companion – listing resturants, lodging, and attractions [...]

The Inspired Organic Table

If you want to reduce your environmental impact, the kitchen is a great place to start. Whenever you cook a fresh meal for yourself and your family, you have many different opportunities to shrink your carbon footprint. For example, cooking from scratch allows you to choose more vegetable-based meals, use organic ingredients, and plan menus appropriate to your location and season. Whatever you choose to cook, you will also save power by using more whole ingredients at home and eating [...]

The Green Queen: Eco-Designer Kelly LaPlante

Getting ready to do a fabulous new look in your sitting room, kitchen or the whole house? Fashion conscious homes are important to many, but often times, designers are more about the ‘new’ things they can bring in rather than the things they can recycle.

One eco-designer, Kelly LaPlante, is all about taking used items and recreating them into functional and beautiful pieces. The great thing – when all the pieces come together, the finished look is stylish, luxurious and beautiful.

In [...]