For those of us who grew up reading the Little House on the Prairie books, those images of independent Laura, the vast beauty of the prairie and butter churning prompted a generation of ten year old girls who wanted to hitch up the covered wagon and homestead. What would Laura think if she knew some of us actually did? As I re-read the books as a forty- something adult - surrounded by my five acre farmstead Inn Serendipity, my abundant gardens, pile of wood for the woodstove and starry open skies above - I realize what an impact those books had on me decades ago. Laura Ingalls went beyond my third grade Halloween costume; her words inspired me, in my own way, to become Laura Ingalls (minus the butter churning. I’ll let Organic Valley handle that).

Books also inspired my fellow farmer friend, Kriss Marion, who traded the Chicago scene in 2005 to launch Circle M Farm in Blanchardville, Wisconsin, running a CSA (community supported agriculture) and a fiber business. “People often ask me how it happened that we uprooted our city family and came to be market farming in southwest Wisconsin,” explains Marion. “The answer, plain and simple, is books.”

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Warning: Reading such literature can prompt you to quit your day job, follow new dreams and move to a farm in southwestern Wisconsin – or other paths of change that may not currently be in your big picture life plan. That’s exactly what happened to my fellow farmer friend, Kriss Marion, who traded the Chicago scene in 2005 to launch Circle M Farm in Blanchardville, Wisconsin, running a CSA (community supported agriculture) and a fiber business. “People often ask me how it happened that we uprooted our city family and came to be market farming in southwest Wisconsin,” explains Marion. “The answer, plain and simple, is books.”

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On June 23, 1988, NASA Scientist James E. Hansen testified on Capitol Hill before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Hansen told the Senate committee that global warming was real – and was happening now.

Other news sources also had articles and coverage of the 20th anniversary of ‘global warming.’ Links to some of those stories can also be found on the Island Press site.

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For the first book on our Top 5 Must-Have DIY Crochet Tomes list, most knitters will recognize Debbie Stoller as the editor-in-chief of Bust Magazine and the writer of all three Stitch ‘N Bitch books. Crafters were both surprised and delighted when she released Stitch ‘N Bitch Crochet: The Happy Hooker in 2006.

Similar to her first Stitch ‘N Bitch book about knitting, The Happy Hooker is an introduction to the history and process of crochet as well as a kick-ass pattern book. Whether you are an experienced knitter or new to fiber crafts all together, The Happy Hooker is the perfect first crochet book for everyone.

Crochet shares some similarities with knitting. One major likeness is that the more you know, the more likely you are to make a mistake. No crocheters’ bookshelf would be complete without The Crochet Answer Book: Solutions to Every Problem You’ll Ever Face; Answers to Every Question You’ll Ever Ask by Edie Eckman.

With line illustration, charts, details on tools, specific techniques, standard crochet abbreviations, common crochet terms and phrases, standard body measurements and sizing, suggested sizes for accessories and household items, and yarn care symbols; this is the only book you will need when your loops and hooks don’t look right.

Answers to detailed questions about all aspects of crochet is the feature element of the book, with chapters on gauge, circles, edges, and finishing. Thanks to Edie’s support, you will feel more confident to progress into more detailed crochet patterns and projects.

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With the first tome based around the element of earth, the second tome is all about water (as the title suggests). Miho’s scientist parents were lost at sea and she now has to move to Japan to live with her uncle. Though she speaks no Japanese and has never met her uncle, she has no other choice but to move in with her only living relative.

While visiting the beach house of her grandparents (who have already passed on), Miho meets the already infamous otter, Gaia. Miho is quickly swept up in the excitement of being able to talk to all the creatures of the sea and makes friends with a large group of dolphins. Of course, her adult uncle thinks she is nuts and simply can’t follow orders when he tells her to be home at a certain time and she continues to come home dripping wet.

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During my last creative brainstorm I relocated a favorite journal of mine (pictured). I acquired my cowboy journal at the last large indie craft fair in my area called Crafty Bastards. The journal, by Ex Libris Anonymous, is made from an old library book. It is hand made and one of a kind. Snippets of text from the original book are sprinkled throughout the blank pages of acid free paper.

I recall that Ex Libris Anonymous’ booth at Crafty Bastards was constantly packed that day. I elbowed my way in to sort through bins and bins of great vintage book covers. After coming back twice, I finally settled on a small journal with the shell of the Spiderweb Trail by Eugene Cunningham.

The vintage books that make up Ex Libris’ journals are cute, charming and have a kitschy vibe. The hard cover is a perfect writing surface and the spiral binding makes it easy to flip to the next blank page and the select passages can make for quick inspiration. I use mine to jot down notes and make quick sketches.

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What would you do if you could hear the Earth asking for help? In the Gaia Girls book series, that is what happens to four girls, each from a different region of the world. They are approached by Gaia, the living organism of the Earth. Each is endowed with powers over one of the four elements: earth, air, fire, and water. They must learn to use their powers to help Gaia survive the effects of modern humanity.

The first book centers around a girl named Elizabeth Angier and one very eventful summer at her family farm in New York state. She and the family’s undeniably lovable dog Maizey take on a big business factory farming operation that is trying to buy up all the farms in her town. On top of that, her best friend is moving not only out of town but out of state to Florida. Just as her troubles start to reach their boiling point, Elizabeth is greeted by an eager otter named Gaia who will change her world forever.

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California Healthy

The book is broken into sections by county, and each includes restaurant listings, wineries, walks and local festivals. By far the best part of this guide are the walks, taking you to beautiful and scenic places, and listing dog parks for healthy fun with Rover. The local events section, although not complete, lists seasonal festivals throughout the region and is a useful tool and one of the book’s strengths.

The restaurant listings are on the other hand are weak at best. Granted, some of my favorite joints are listed, but the descriptions are limited, leaving the reader with little idea of why they should go. Most disappointing is that the list is nowhere near comprehensive. There are thousands of restaurants in SoCal, and the organic and local food movement is thriving, yet California Healthy names only of a handful of the good places out there, and gives the reader no sense of what they have in store.

The book is supplemented with recipes and a cooking guide from Chef Biron of Stanford fame. His additions are thoughtful and delicious, and but slightly out of place. Despite its attempt to be more, California Healthy is a walking book, not a health book. Absent are yoga and pilates studios, bike, skate, and surf rentals, a comprehensive listing of restaurants, holistic health practitioners, masseuses and environmentally friendly spa services, among other truly valuable health information.

Inexpensive. Indispensable. Iconic. A basic t-shirt is the perfect blank canvas-ready for a creative crafter to cut, stitch, bedazzle, bleach, deconstruct, and personalize. Everyone has a drawerful just waiting for the creative touch. What could be a better way to broadcast an artistic manifesto? In Tease: Inspired T-shirt Transformations by Superstars of Art, Craft, & Design take the basic T from ordinary to extraordinary-and sometimes, turn it into something completely different. With fabulous illustrations and easy-to-follow instructions, Tease provides outrageous, inspiring ideas from crafters around the globe.

How many pairs of old jeans do you have in your closet? Everyone from the sewing novice to the fashion guru can appreciate the ingenious projects that will reincarnate your denim has-beens into fashion must-haves in 99 Ways to Cut, Sew & Deck Out Your Denim. The techniques are simple, the supplies are easy-to-find, and every project takes ninety minutes or less, from start to finish.

Sew Subversive is about making fashion your own, whether it’s embellishing or customizing off-the-rack clothing or transforming clothes that have lost that loving feeling. The three twenty-something co-owners of Stitch Lounge, an urban sewing studio in San Francisco, teach you, in plain, fun language, how to do it, whether you’re hand sewing, machine sewing, or, in a few cases, simply wielding a pair of scissors.

It’s time to get subversive, again! The downtown divas of Sew Subversive are back with another happy helping of straightlaced sewing advice for stylish results every time. Transform tacky bridesmaid gowns and pleated pants into picture-perfect tops, skirts and accessories. The two Melissas and a Hope deliver 30 great projects that are achievable for even the new sewer. Subversive Seamster is your secret roadmap to the jewels of thrifting and the ins and outs of refashioning. This book has shortcuts, tips, and secrets to the wide world of inexpensive, individualized fashion. Our clothes make a statement about who we are. What better way to say, "I am an individual!" than to wear one-of-a-kind items made out of other one-of-a-kind items? We derive the most fashionable satisfaction knowing that we are reusing and recycling what already exists in this material world–and looking darn good doing it!

Like knitting before it, sewing is being reclaimed by a new generation: one that is tired of poor quality and bored by homogenous design. Indie fashion designer Wendy Mullin, of Built by Wendy, teaches the creatively inclined and ultra-stylish how to make the perfect skirt, shirt, and pants in Sew U. She gives readers everything they need to know to begin sewing and provides step-by-step instructions and patterns directly from her studio. She explains how to customize everything from the fit to the pockets so readers can create a thousand different looks using the same three basic patterns. These ideas will inspire readers to rethink and revamp their old clothes to make unique, custom fashions. For those who find themselves brimming with ideas, but unable to make everything themselves, Wendy also offers guidance on how to work with a tailor.

Editor’s Note: In this week’s Ecogeek of the week, Hank Green interviews Ron Pernick, author of The Clean Tech Revolution.

Maybe my ears are just pointed in a very specific direction, but it seems rare when a day passes and I don’t hear someone extolling the possibilities of clean technology. But it’s not entirely clear what clean technology encompasses and how this very broad new category of technology is going to benefit our world in the coming decades.

I honestly don’t know…but Ron Pernick does. Ron is the head of the leading clean tech research firm, Clean Edge. His experiences at Clean Edge working with experts from industries ranging from carbon composites to water filtration has made him a leading clean technology expert, and uniquely qualified to write a book entitled “The Clean Tech Revolution.”

We’re very happy to have Ron Pernick as our EcoGeek of the Week.
EcoGeek: The work that Clean Edge does seems extremely important, even though I don’t really have any idea what you do there. Can you tell us about Clean Edge and your work?

Ron Pernick: We do a lot of interesting things at Clean Edge to track and analyze the development of clean technologies. This includes our annual Clean-Tech Investor Summit which we coproduce with IBF; the NASDAQ Clean Edge U.S. index which is a benchmark index tracking U.S.-listed clean energy companies; the publishing of our web site at www.cleanedge.com and our monthly newsletter CLEANWATCH; and a range of research reports including our annual Clean Energy Trends series. We also provide clean-tech related consulting services to investment firms, corporations, start ups, governments, and foundations. Since 2001 our clients have included such organization as Sharp, California Energy Commission, the City of San Francisco, the Solar Catalyst Group, Nth Power, Solaria, Solaicx, Miasole, and the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund.

EG: How do you draw a box around clean tech? It seems to be a category that can includes facets of every industry. So what is clean tech, and how do you know what not to include?

RP: We’re pretty explicit in the book. We define clean technologies as those technologies that reduce or eliminate the need for fossil fuels or limited natural resources; significantly reduce emissions and/or pollutants, and are equivalent or superior to conventional offerings. We group clean technologies into four buckets: energy, transportation, water, and materials. This covers everything from solar power, wind power, and biofuels to advanced lithium ion batteries, plug-in hybrids, and the smart grid.
Two technologies that we don’t consider clean are nuclear and “clean coal.” We spend time in the book explaining why – but with current technology we find the concept of clean coal oxymoronic and we believe that nuclear, with containment, waste, and proliferation issues, doesn’t fit our criteria of reducing waste/pollutants and that it’s just too costly to develop and deploy new nuclear power plants – especially in the United States . As Amory Lovins likes to say reviving the nuclear industry is like trying to defibrillate a corpse.

EG: Your recent book, The Clean Tech Revolution, is somewhat rare in “environmental” non-fiction in that it was entirely solution oriented and dealt very little with the crises we face. We try to have that same attitude at EcoGeek, and I think it makes us happier people. So, needless to say I loved it, but I’m curious why you needed to write it, and what your personal goals are for the book.

RP: We had to do it exactly for the reason that you point out. Nobody had written the business case for clean technologies – and so we set out to do that in a general business book with broad appeal that shined a light not only on the issues but on the solutions.
When we started Clean Edge back in 2001 the concept of clean technology wasn’t on the radar screen of the investment, business, or policy communities. If you did a Google search on the term you’d get just a handful of returns. Today, that same search would yield approximately 1 million results.

So the book’s goal is to paint a picture of how clean tech is shaping up globally and how individuals, businesses, and others can participate.
At the very beginning of the book we use a quote from Thomas Edison in which he says: “I found out what the world needs, then I proceed to invent.” I think that quote helps explain our positive approach to the big issues facing us. I’d rather spend time working on solutions than being paralyzed by impending doom and gloom. We owe it to our collective children (on a personal note my wife and I just had twins) and to future generations to try to figure a way out of today’s challenges of volatile fossil fuel supplies, natural resource constraints, climate change, and the needs of a growing global population.

EG: Revolution is a big word that is a lot of fun to use, often poorly. How do I know that we’re really dealing with a revolution here? What should I be expecting to see revolutionized?

RP: OK, you got us there — revolution is an overused term. But in the case of clean-tech development I do believe that we are experiencing a major shift that is both evolutionary and revolutionary. We call it a revolution because the timing is finally right for the mass emergence of these technologies.
For example, I wanted to get involved in clean energy when I first graduated from University in 1985 – but the timing wasn’t really right. The technologies weren’t mature, the capital markets weren’t behind it, governments weren’t really demanding it at a large scale.

Indeed – clean energy was still “alternative.” It was the domain of Birkenstock-wearing, granola-eating, back-to-the-earth zealots (in full disclosure I ate granola this morning for breakfast and I love wearing my Birkenstocks).
But that’s all changed today. It’s becoming the domain of Wall Street and Main Street. When GE is reporting more than $12 billion last year in revenues from its “Ecomagination” products and services, Toyota has shipped more than 1 million hybrid vehicles, Goldman Sachs is investing billions in clean energy, Denmark is getting around twenty percent of its electricity from wind power, and governments around the globe are competing for their piece of the clean-tech prize – you know things have changed.

Indeed, part of our definition of revolution is that you can not only change the world but make money doing it. That’s what we’re finally seeing today – and it’s a critical piece of the puzzle. MBA grads, engineers, marketers, and others – in Asia, North America, and Europe — are now finding that they can support their families and help develop and deploy next-generation, clean, efficient technologies. They don’t have to wait fifteen years like I did. Now there’s something revolutionary about that!

EG: Some of the subjects in your book (solar, wind, automobiles) are pretty straightforward clean tech industries. But others, like mobile technology and water purification, are less obviously connected to the environment. Can you talk a bit about why you include these subjects in your book?

RP: Our focus isn’t really on the environment per se. It’s on a host of challenges facing the planet from population growth to volatile natural resource supplies. The environment, in particular global warming/climate change, is just one of multiple drivers. In the book we highlight the 6 Cs — a confluence of forces that are driving clean-tech development.
Under this framework everything from water filtration to mobile technology to advanced transportation makes sense.
For example, how will the world supply clean water as water tables are depleted and more people move to areas without sufficient water supplies? There are 2 billion people without access to reliable potable water – and this contributes to massive illness and death. It’s a huge issue that will require new forms of energy-efficient or renewable-energy powered desalination, water conservation technologies, new on-site water filtration, etc.

EG: I think it’s pretty likely we’re going to be surprised a lot in the next couple decades. It’s a bit mean to ask where I should be expecting the unexpected, but I’m curious if you have any thoughts on where those world-changing clean tech surprises may come from?

RP: I believe we will see both incremental advancements in technology as well as disruptive breakthroughs. I think one of the most important things is that we push the boundaries on both incremental and disruptive changes at the same time.
So, for example, how could we make today’s grid more like the Internet – with built in redundancy, two way flow of information and electrons, the ability for people to be both energy consumers and producers? That shift is already underway – but it will require new breakthroughs in energy storage devices, net metering, grid interconnect, etc.

In the book we highlight breakthrough opportunities in each of the eight technology chapters. Some are more obvious and others are more out there – like the possibility that we might be able to cost effectively capture water from the air in remote locations.
So I believe our book highlights many of the surprises you ask about – but our focus was definitely on the near- to mid-term – in other words over the next 3-10 years. Beyond that, truly, is anybody’s guess…

EG: A lot of people I talk to feel that a great deal of good could be accomplished if only economies were more local. This is discussed a bit in The Clean Tech Revolution, but I’m curious what technologies might enable a shift toward local economies and how that might affect our world.

RP: Biofuels are a great example of how you might apply a regional approach to clean-tech development. In fact, there’s likely to be a battle in the marketplace between locally harvested and distilled fuels and biofuels produced in places like the Midwest or Brazil.
There’s certainly a great opportunity for local biofuels production and it does make a lot of sense in some regions. A number of folks are looking at closed-loop systems in which you take the cow manure from a feedlot and gasify it to provide energy to a distillery. You then produce biofuels with locally harvested crops and you sell the biofuels to regional communities (say in a 100 mile radius) and you feed the distiller’s grain (a coproduct of ethanol manufacturing) to the same cows whose poop is powering your plant. It’s an elegant scenario and one that should be pursued.

But I’m a big supporter of both regional and global solutions. So I believe we’re likely to see both taking shape simultaneously with markets and policies impacting how things play out. There’s the old saying: “think globally, act locally.” I’m of the belief that we should think globally and locally, and act in both.

EG: What scares your pants off?

RP: Well, like many people, I’m scared of major collapses – whether that happens from a technological meltdown like a nuclear accident, environmental destruction like climate change, or regional/global terrorism or war. Generally, though, I’m an optimist and don’t like to dwell too much on a “sky is falling” mentality. I consider myself a pragmatic optimist — which means I look for where there are problems and try to uncover solutions. I also always prefer diplomacy and open dialogue over unilateralism and radicalism.
Personally, I’m scared from the usual stuff – public speaking, car crashes, my own mortality, that sort of thing. But I try to be comfortable in my own skin and keep a smile on my face.

EG: The Clean Tech Revolution is an extremely hopeful book. If Climate Change gives you lemons…I suppose you should just, well, make 60 billion dollars a year. What keeps you hopeful in the face of the various apocalyptic crises we’re facing?

RP: Perhaps it’s genetic. Or how I was raised… Two messages that I remember hearing clearly from my parents as a young child is that I could be anything I wanted to be (though I think they harbored hopes I’d be a doctor) and that it was alright to cry. Maybe these sweet messages somehow gave me my sunny disposition.

EG: I notice you use the word “Investment” in your subtitle. I’m taking that as an invitation to ask you what I should do with my billions of dollars after EcoGeek.org’s IPO.

RP: Well, I assumed from your URL that you were a non profit – but I see that I was wrong. So in the event that you do cash out and join the ranks of billionaires – I recommend looking at your own web site for guidance on how to spend that wad of cash. I love what you say, that “Technology can be a force for evil, or for awesome.” Hopefully you’ll use your money to push the boundaries on “awesome.”

EcoGeek of the Week is a syndicated column provided by EcoGeek.org. If you are interested in publishing this column, or participating in the series, please email our editor at editor@ecogeek.org.This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it

The Cleantech Revolution

At heart of it, Clint and Ron’s new book is about the immense financial opportunity that lies in "any product, service, or process that delivers value using limited or zero nonrenewable resources and/or creates significantly less waste than conventional offerings." Following on the computer, Internet, and biotech revolutions, cleantech holds the promise to be the next turbocharged engine for economic growth both here in the US and abroad.

Among the usual suspects (solar, wind, biofuels/biomaterials, smart grid: "making improvements to the stupid grid"), the book includes a chapter that highlights how cities can get involved in the cleantech movement, entitled "create your own Silicon Valley." Each chapter of the book closes with ten important emerging players in the space. In true world-is-flat form, the authors noted emerging cleantech hubs in such diverse areas as Hyderabad, India; Austin, Texas; Shanghai, China; and Copenhagen, Denmark.

A related chapter, which actually didn’t make the final cut for inclusion in the book, was called "leapfrog nations." Herein, the authors describe how huge areas of India, for example, are off-grid - so individual communities and families often generate power onsite using solar, small wind, or biogas. The trend of note is this: rather than traditional grant-enabled work by the World Bank, more and more for-profit companies are now getting into these markets because they make financial sense for the first time.

I recently attended a reading of the book at Stacey’s here in San Francisco. When clean coal and nuclear came up at the end of the talk, Clint was asked to define the blurry line between technologies that can be considered cleantech and those that cannot. His response? "If they called it cleaner coal, I’d be more comfortable with that, but bottom line: they are not clean." He conceded that the efforts are good, but they just can’t be lumped under the same umbrella as solar and wind. Ain’t that the truth.

Below, read my exclusive interview with Danny to find out more about his early days, unique business partnerships, blogging, celebrity clients, and more.

Victoria E: Do you think being born on Earth Day seeded your passion for the planet?

Danny Seo: Well, it is an unusual "holiday" if you really think about it. April 22nd is usually marked with stories about global warming, the rainforests burning down and just overall gloom and doom. So when your birthday is on a day that's about the end of the world, you can't help but take notice. So when I was twelve, I decided I had enough of the scary headlines in the newspaper and decided–right then and there–to do something about it. Who knew I'd still be at it 18 years later!

VE: Where you parents initially hesitant when you told them you want to help people lead green lives?

DS: Not really, as long as it didn't affect their lives. Honestly, my parents not being involved in my activism at a young age was–in hindsight—a good thing. It forced me to be a critical thinker at a young age and to learn from all my mistakes. Nobody was ever there to clean up my messes or do the hard work for me. I think today, my let's-all-roll-up-our-sleeves attitude is a result of their not meddling in my work as a child.

VE: How did you team up with Call2Recycle?

DS: The Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation is a wonderful non-profit program that collects old rechargeable batteries—from cordless phones, cell phones, power tools—and recycles them into new metal products. The program is call Call2Recycle. They are in over 30,000 retail stores—Lowe's, Target, Best Buy, Sony Style—and these collection boxes are free to anyone to drop off their old rechargeable batteries. I'm a big advocate of making green living as simple as possible. They've made it so easy to locate these stores, drop off your recyclables and do all the work for you. Even the stores have it easy; the boxes are postage-paid, so they just seal 'em up when full and ship them off for recycling. So easy and so green!

VE: What has your experience been like filming a TV show for Lime.com ?

DS: LIME is one of the handful of media partners that I've had the good fortune to creating educational and entertaining programming. My first series was called SIMPLY GREEN and it was shot at my real home in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Here, the viewer could see all the green projects and renovations that I did to my own home and come along as I visited stores and factories that were making everything from my kitchen counters to the antiques I bought to decorate with. I just wrapped filming a special for HGTV airing on JUNE 10th called Red, Hot & Green. Tune in on Sunday, June 10th at 8pm (EST) to check it out. I had a great time doing it.

VE: Your work has gotten massive amounts of press. Most recently, you were picked to be a Guest Co-Editor of Elle Magazine's Green Issue - what was that like?

DS: Working with the ELLE magazine staff was a LOT of fun. A lot of people have the misconception that a Guest Co-Editor would mean I just come to the office, share some ideas, and go on my merry way. But in reality, my background is magazine publishing! I was one of the first editors hired by Organic Style and I worked there for five years until they folded. So, when I was approached by ELLE to help them with their annual green issue, I insisted they put my editorial skills to good use. So I put together some fun stories in the issue including a green shopping spree with my pal Kerry Washington and a post-organic baby shower for Jennifer Meyer (aka Mrs. Tobey Maguire). I think this is their best issue yet… and I'm so glad such an influential magazine like ELLE has totally embraced the green message.

VE: More shabby chic than minimal and modern, where do you find the inspiration for your many unique ad crafty projects?

DS: I find inspiration everywhere. One thing that I do is that when I think of something clever or fun to do, I'll email myself the idea on my Blackberry. I have hundreds of must-try projects in my inbox. The resourceful side of my work is the fun part! The hard part is deciding which projects make it onto the TV show, DVDs, books, or magazine columns. I have a hard time deciding the best of the best.

VE: Along with being a writer for magazine and your own book series, TV show host, and overall green living guru, you also work with a number of celebrities, helping to green their wardrobes and homes. Who's life have you overhauled recently? What one celebrity would you love to help go green?

DS: I'm working very closely with a wonderful company called Method. They make a line of environmentally-friendly cleaning products for the home: laundry detergent, dish soap, air care, soy candles, all-purpose cleaners…you name it! So, right now, I'm starting to reach out to my celebrity clients and friends and offer them a Method Detox 101 crash course on keeping their homes sparkling clean the non-toxic way. I don't really have a dream celebrity I'd want to work with. I actually prefer working with folks who are already passionate about green issues and are truly committed to doing the right thing. Then, I know I'll get their full attention on whatever I'm suggesting they do.

VE: With all of your many eco-jobs, how do you find time to write your own blog as well?

DS: The blog was started just for fun, as an online diary of different projects I'm trying at home, things I'm thinking could be great for the home, and sometimes updates here and there about appearances I'll be making on TV or in a city around the country. It's not hard at all to do and I actually enjoy posting different projects. I put up a new post every single day and I love the immediate feedback from people on the different ideas. It's a great way to test new ideas, too…and stay connected to everyone as well.

VE: What do you think is the most common misconception Americans have about green living?

DS: That it's expensive! I keep saying ecological is economical! You can save the environment and save $$ too! Method products are a great example of this. They are biodegradable, non-toxic, not tested on animals and sold in discount stores like Target, Lowe's and Duane Reade. Now, how can you beat that? You just need to be a smart and savvy shopper. Green bargains can be found.

VE: What do you say to the folks that still believe global warming is just a myth?

DS: Well, fortunately, there are less and less skeptics now. I think if you asked someone if they believed in global warming 10 years ago, half would say they believe in it and half would think you're nuts. Today, I would say the majority of people are concerned about it. But whatever cause there is in our country—ecological or not—there will also be doubters. There isn't time to focus on the doubters; I want to teach people to be doers and change their bad eco-habits and help them influence others. The more assimilated good green habits become, the better we'll all be.

VE: Do you have any other nifty, secret/developing projects in the works that you could hint at?

DS: I wish I could say! There is a very exciting project I'm working on right now that will bring my green decorating sensibility to an even bigger audience. That's all I can say for now.

Danny Seo portrait photo by Shelly Strazis

Not everyone can check Green Options' Tip o' the Day everyday, though we hear more and more people are making it part of their daily ritual! For those who can't, you might want to consider giving them some eco-tips in book form.

One book you might want to consider is the newly released True Green : 100 everyday ways you can contribute to a healthier planet by Kim McKay and Jenny Bonnin. It is exactly what it says it is - simple everyday green tips. You'll see a lot of topics that we cover here on Green Options; it is nice and simple read - easy for those new to green to digest. Check out their accompanying website, Be True Green.

Another option would be Philippe Bourseiller's 365 Ways to Save the Earth. In this book, each tip is written for a specific calendar day, providing a daily way that readers can green their lives. It is also a beautiful book, and is ready to display.

So, think about an easy to digest eco-book for your friends and family. They make great coffee table displays or even waiting room reading for your doctor's or dentist's office. If you just want to read them yourself, consider looking for them in your local library (sharing is green, you know!). If you do decide to buy, lend it to others once you are done.

Rebecca says: The concept around this tip is that giving "simple" green books is an easy way to "preach" to your friends without being "preachy". When I'm out with my non-green crowd, I stay away from telling them what they should do, unless it specifically comes up. I guess I hope to show people through my actions what is important to me, and if they want to know more, they can ask!

Want to hear a tip on a certain topic? Have a tip to share? Suggest a tip and you may just see it soon as a Tip o' the Day!

Now, even shopping for books has become a form of entertainment. People pile into the giant bookstores on the weekends, lattes in hand, browsing through pages as they sip.

As this trend has increased, many have forgotten about the public libraries. It seems impossible that so many people no longer visit the place that lets you read all the books you want for free, in the comfort of your own home.

Libraries, and any place that allows you to share instead of buy your own, are great for the environment. We don't all need to own our own copy of Eragon, it would only sit on our bookshelves at home, longing to be read by someone new.

Utilize your public library. It's probably a lot more modern than you think. You can request books and renew online, and search the entire catalog from your own home.

Rebecca says: Libraries aren't just for books anymore. Many public libraries have extensive and current DVD collections, as well. Think of it as a Netflix, only free. Request your favorites online and the library will notify you when it is ready for pick-up!