By Heather Dunham •
August 27, 2009
For some reason, when I think of products that need to ‘go green’, certain types of items tend to top the list. Cleaning products. Plastic children’s toys. Paint and building materials. Baby supplies. Food. Clothing.
Playing cards had not yet entered my mind.
So imagine my amused surprise the other day when, while shopping for a new deck of quality cards for bridge (my husband had even requested a plastic set), I stumbled across Bicycle’s new (launched in 2008) line of Eco Edition Playing Cards.
While there is almost certainly a good level of bandwagon-jumping greenwashing going on here, there is still much good to say about these cards. According to Bicycle:
Our playing cards are crafted from sustainable forest paper, starch-based laminating glue and vegetable-based printing inks. This pack of cards is recyclable.
In the last-minute rush of Earth Day press solicitations yesterday, it was easy to get a bit bogged down, and even let some things slip through the cracks. One email that did catch my eye, however, was web browser Flock’s release of its “Eco-Edition.” I’ve used Flock on and off for over a year now (it was fantastic for uploading a massive collection of stock photos for our writers last year), and was pleased to see that the browser had created a version that allowed for seamless “green” browsing, and tools optimized for green blogging.
I’ve always liked Flock for its focus on integration of social media functions into the browser itself: right now I’ve got one-click access to Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc. The Eco-Edition adds a one-stop shop for green news and blog hounds: the “Green” page that loads when the browser starts features feeds from most of the web’s top destinations for information and opinion on sustainability and environmentalism (including sustainablog — thanks, Flock!). The refresh button even features the ubiquitous recycling symbol — a nice touch! As our friend Michael d’Estries at Ecorazzi noted, this creates a seamless experience: the best of the green web is right at my fingertips. Combined with Flock’s integrated social media and blogging tools, the Eco-Edition provides an efficient interface for all of the steps we green bloggers go through in writing, publishing and promoting our work.
For some reason, when I think of products that need to ‘go green’, certain types of items tend to top the list. Cleaning products. Plastic children’s toys. Paint and building materials. Baby supplies. Food. Clothing. 
