With bike weddings, bike parades, hundreds of naked bicyclists, bike fashion shows, popular & interesting cargo bikes, and travelling bike pubs, Portland is #3 on this great bicycle city photo tours list.

Portland has great bicycle facilities (colored bike lanes, bike boxes at intersections, great bike signs, off-road bicycle paths, etc.), a large number of people using the bicycle for transportation, and a bike culture that brings the fun of bicycling to another level.

As a result of these factors and more, Portland was the first large city in the US to achieve the Platinum level Bike Friendly award from the League of American Bicyclists (LAB) — the Platinum level being the highest level possible (above Gold, Silver and Bronze). It is truly a world-class bicycle city now, and the amazing photos in this photo tour help to show that.

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From bicycle lovers to lovers on bikes, bike art to art on bikes, the largest bicycle sharing program in the world to some of the smallest bikers, enjoy this bicycle city photo tour of Paris, France!

Paris doesn’t have a long history as one of the best bicycle cities, but with the introduction of the largest bicycle sharing program in the world, bicycling in Paris has boomed and the city is becoming commonly associated with the bicycle now. Its whole culture is changing due to the bicycle’s increasing relevance in the city’s daily life.

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Like many color cosmetics, face paints can contain parabens, phthalates, synthetic colors, fragrances and other potential toxins or allergens — even lead — and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) doesn’t have the power to regulate them.

Earlier this year 43 Girl Scouts at an event in Ohio were left with red, bumpy rashes after using Shanghai Color Art Stationery Co. Ltd. face paint. This Halloween the FDA is cautioning parents. “Most of these products are completely safe, but there have been reports of adverse events and allergic reactions,” Linda Katz, director of the FDA’s Office of Cosmetics and Color told USA Today.

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According to the study published in the October issue of Environmental Health Perspectives, the higher a mother’s BPA levels were during the first 16 weeks of pregnancy, the more likely kids were to exhibit the behavior changes. Girls were more aggressive and hyperactive than the norm while boys were more anxious and withdrawn.

The study also examined the effects of a mom’s exposure to lead and cigarettes, oddly enough neither one was linked to toddler behavior changes.

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The first runner-up is Tina Bossy for Bossy Baby and the second runner-up is Rachel Hart for Miss Sugar Pops. Be sure to read the related posts below to discover all the terrific nominations.

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What’s really fun about taking nominations is to read favorable comments. Carrie’s got a fan club. Read on for testimonies.

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Even if your child knows that milk comes from a cow, does she know that there is more than one variety of cow? A hands on approach at the farm could also help kids understand which foods are real and which ones are processed. They won’t see any Pop Tarts or red, blue and green grains that could make up their Fruit Loops on the farm. Showing your kids where food comes from could set them up for a lifelong, healthier lifestyle. And actually being able to reach out and touch a cow is invaluable compared to watching a farm DVD or playing a video game.

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GreenTalk Radio host Sean Daily talks with green blogger, publisher, and supermom Jill Fehrenbacher, founder of green design blog Inhabitat.com and its new eco-parenting sister site Inhabitots.com.

Click Play Below,or

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Largest Bike Sharing Program in the World — Vélib’

Vélib’ started on July 15, 2007. Initially, it included 10,000 bikes and 750 stations. By the beginning of 2008, it had about 20,000 bicycles at about 1,500 stations. In the first 100 days, the program had 10 million rentals, an average of about 100,000 rentals a day! Each bike would turn over about 5-15 times a day. In about 6 months, the number of bicyclists in Paris nearly doubled!

You can use a bike for less than half an hour for free, or, after that, it costs €1 for another half-hour before rising more steeply. I love the first half-hour being free because many trips aren’t that long and it encourages more people who wouldn’t bike to try the program.

With about 25 million rentals in one year, replacing 10% of car traffic alone, an amazing transformation of the transportation system in one of the world’s most famous global cities has occurred. The British newspaper The Independent reports: “Describing Vélib’ as a ‘form of utopia’, Libération newspaper said that the presence of thousands of slow-moving, stately bikes has also had a soothing effect on Paris’ frenetic pace. ‘At the speed of a bicycle, an idea is gaining ground: one of a less arrogant and more human city,’ it said.”

I saw someone at a rail/transit conference in Miami make the point that the program creates a sort of individualized public transit — I thought that was a novel and very accurate description of the program. And, actually, a person gets a “smartcard” to use the program when they sign up for a transit card. This smartcard accounted for about 60% of the rentals in the first 100 days. You can also get yearly (€29), weekly (€5), or daily (€1) memberships in order to be able to check out the bikes.

With the great health benefits of cycling, I have heard another person say that Paris is creating “a city of athletes” with this bicycle sharing program. Maybe a bit of an exaggeration, but many people are benefiting from cycling around Paris and the health benefits are countless, for sure.

How popular is the program? After 1 year, 94% of Parisians support the program.

If you want to see more about the other best bike sharing program in the world or read a brief history of different bike-sharing programs, check out page 2 of the Barcelona bicycle city photo tour.

As The Independent reports, and hopefully you got a little flavor of it from the pictures below: “In the space of one year the vélib’ has become a Parisian institution, giving the streets and boulevards of the French capital a vague air of Amsterdam or Cambridge.”

On the flickr page of this last photo, there are notes showing how to check out and return a vélib’ bicycle.

For an amazing video on vélib’, visit Streetfilms.org

Image Credit 1: carlosfpardo via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: Feuillu via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 3: the noggin_nogged via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 4: austinevan via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 5: [phil h] via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 6: Marcia_Salviato via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 7: reinn via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 8: Feuillu via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 9: Feuillu via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 10: austinevan via flickr under a CC license

Street Artists Transport Pictures on Bikes

Other Street Artists Stand on Bikes

Street Art Can Include Bikes

Image Credit 1: franck94 via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: franck94 via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 3: °•●Mr Ro●•° via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 4: c-reel.com via flickr under a CC license

Biking for All Ages & All Styles

The bicycle is just as good company as most husbands and, when it gets old and shabby, a woman can dispose of it and get a new one without shocking the entire community. ~Ann Strong

The hardest part of raising a child is teaching them to ride bicycles. A shaky child on a bicycle for the first time needs both support and freedom. The realization that this is what the child will always need can hit hard. ~Sloan Wilson

Hope you got a good glimpse of kids on bikes here. For pictures of babies on bikes, visit the Groningen photo tour

.

Image Credit 1: iulian nistea via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: iulian nistea via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 3: [auro] via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 4: Feuillu via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 5: Abdou.W via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 6: [phil h_] via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 7: broken glass via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 8: THEfunkyman via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 9: Vinvin F via flickr under a CC license

Biking is for Friends & Lovers

Melancholy is incompatible with bicycling. ~James E. Starrs

Image Credit 1: Alain Bachellier via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: Joe Shlabotnik via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 3: Feuillu via flickr under CC license
Image Credit 4: Julien Hery via flickr under a CC license

Hope He Wasn’t Riding that Bike

(The guy on the right, that is. The guy on the left is using a Vélib’ bike.)

Image Credit: iulian nistea via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Bike Taxis

As in Barcelona and Berlin, you can find these cool bicycle taxis in Paris.

If you missed the others, check out the #10 Basel, #9 Bogota, #8 Barcelona, #7 Berlin, and #6 Groningen great bicycle city photo tours.

To keep yourself updated on the next four photo tours, keep your eye on EcoWorldly or even subscribe to its feed or email list. Have something extra to add? Comment below!

Image Credit: Mohsan via flickr under a Creative Commons license

In the study, children and breastfeeding moms ate organic milk, cheese and yogurt. The study author said the connection between choosing organic dairy and less incidence of eczema was clear. The risk for other allergies and asthma also decreased.

So why is organic better? It’s hard to say for sure at this point, but researchers believe it may, in part, be due to the higher concentrations of conjugated linoleic acids that are found in organic milk. Studies have shown that organic milk has 71 percent more omega-3 fatty acids, too, another important nutrient for growth and development.

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Since many Americans spend up to 80% of the day indoors, it’s no surprise that bringing nature inside is a good thing. Previous studies have shown houseplants can help clean indoor air, reduce tension, improve coping mechanisms, boost work productivity and help increase concentration and attention.

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I’m a firm believer in getting lots of nature time - anything, as long as it includes plenty of fresh air, surrounded by trees and plants and dirt. The National Wildlife Federation’s campaign, “Be Out There” has a list of 10 ways to get outside, even after school starts.

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Since having a child I’ve made breakfast important. I mostly make meals from scratch and make the best attempt to stay away from anything packaged. The chickens have been such a blessing. We’re able to cook eggs most days any which way you can think of and have them for breakfast or “breakie” (what we call it here).

Pancakes are the biggest hit for breakie…just ask my son, he’ll tell you he wants *pancakes*! Before I knew about this recipe I’m going to share; I’d always thought I was making pancakes from scratch.

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Catherine Gund, filmmaker and co-founder of the feminist Third Wave Foundation, chronicles Sadie and Safiyah’s journey as they talk to chefs, farmers and food activists, as well as their own friends, about all manner of food policy and health issues. The girls educate themselves and the audience as they start asking very intelligent and probing questions about their own school lunches, how their food is grown, how far it has traveled, how it is packaged and prepared, food access, farmers markets and what healthy, sustainable options exist where they live. Director Catherine Gund explains that helping to teach her daughter Sadie how to make healthy food choices and to feel a connection to her food was part of her motivation for making the film:

Kids need to know the full benefits of local food: more energy-efficient production, more prosperous farmers, healthier communities, longer lasting and better tasting fruits and veggies. Kids need to know that their food doesn’t only come from the supermarket or the factory, but from nearby farms, trees and the ground.

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Click here to find an upcoming screening of the film near you.

It was an amazing experience to hear kids talking about these issues. This movie can have a real impact on the way we think about what we’re eating.

—Alice Waters, chef, author and founder of the Edible Schoolyard

Largest Bike Sharing Program in the World — Vélib’

Vélib’ started on July 15, 2007. Initially, it included 10,000 bikes and 750 stations. By the beginning of 2008, it had about 20,000 bicycles at about 1,500 stations. In the first 100 days, the program had 10 million rentals, an average of about 100,000 rentals a day! Each bike would turn over about 5-15 times a day. In about 6 months, the number of bicyclists in Paris nearly doubled!

You can use a bike for less than half an hour for free, or, after that, it costs €1 for another half-hour before rising more steeply. I love the first half-hour being free because many trips aren’t that long and it encourages more people who wouldn’t bike to try the program.

With about 25 million rentals in one year, replacing 10% of car traffic alone, an amazing transformation of the transportation system in one of the world’s most famous global cities has occurred. The British newspaper The Independent reports: “Describing Vélib’ as a ‘form of utopia’, Libération newspaper said that the presence of thousands of slow-moving, stately bikes has also had a soothing effect on Paris’ frenetic pace. ‘At the speed of a bicycle, an idea is gaining ground: one of a less arrogant and more human city,’ it said.”

I saw someone at a rail/transit conference in Miami make the point that the program creates a sort of individualized public transit — I thought that was a novel and very accurate description of the program. And, actually, a person gets a “smartcard” to use the program when they sign up for a transit card. This smartcard accounted for about 60% of the rentals in the first 100 days. You can also get yearly (€29), weekly (€5), or daily (€1) memberships in order to be able to check out the bikes.

With the great health benefits of cycling, I have heard another person say that Paris is creating “a city of athletes” with this bicycle sharing program. Maybe a bit of an exaggeration, but many people are benefiting from cycling around Paris and the health benefits are countless, for sure.

How popular is the program? After 1 year, 94% of Parisians support the program.

If you want to see more about the other best bike sharing program in the world or read a brief history of different bike-sharing programs, check out page 2 of the Barcelona bicycle city photo tour.

As The Independent reports, and hopefully you got a little flavor of it from the pictures below: “In the space of one year the vélib’ has become a Parisian institution, giving the streets and boulevards of the French capital a vague air of Amsterdam or Cambridge.”

On the flickr page of this last photo, there are notes showing how to check out and return a vélib’ bicycle.

For an amazing video on vélib’, visit Streetfilms.org

Image Credit 1: carlosfpardo via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: Feuillu via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 3: the noggin_nogged via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 4: austinevan via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 5: [phil h] via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 6: Marcia_Salviato via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 7: reinn via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 8: Feuillu via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 9: Feuillu via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 10: austinevan via flickr under a CC license

Street Artists Transport Pictures on Bikes

Other Street Artists Stand on Bikes

Street Art Can Include Bikes

Image Credit 1: franck94 via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: franck94 via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 3: °•●Mr Ro●•° via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 4: c-reel.com via flickr under a CC license

Biking for All Ages & All Styles

The bicycle is just as good company as most husbands and, when it gets old and shabby, a woman can dispose of it and get a new one without shocking the entire community. ~Ann Strong

The hardest part of raising a child is teaching them to ride bicycles. A shaky child on a bicycle for the first time needs both support and freedom. The realization that this is what the child will always need can hit hard. ~Sloan Wilson

Hope you got a good glimpse of kids on bikes here. For pictures of babies on bikes, visit the Groningen photo tour

.

Image Credit 1: iulian nistea via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: iulian nistea via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 3: [auro] via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 4: Feuillu via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 5: Abdou.W via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 6: [phil h_] via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 7: broken glass via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 8: THEfunkyman via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 9: Vinvin F via flickr under a CC license

Biking is for Friends & Lovers

Melancholy is incompatible with bicycling. ~James E. Starrs

Image Credit 1: Alain Bachellier via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: Joe Shlabotnik via flickr under a CC license
Image Credit 3: Feuillu via flickr under CC license
Image Credit 4: Julien Hery via flickr under a CC license

Hope He Wasn’t Riding that Bike

(The guy on the right, that is. The guy on the left is using a Vélib’ bike.)

Image Credit: iulian nistea via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Bike Taxis

As in Barcelona and Berlin, you can find these cool bicycle taxis in Paris.

If you missed the others, check out the #10 Basel, #9 Bogota, #8 Barcelona, #7 Berlin, and #6 Groningen great bicycle city photo tours.

To keep yourself updated on the next four photo tours, keep your eye on EcoWorldly or even subscribe to its feed or email list. Have something extra to add? Comment below!

Image Credit: Mohsan via flickr under a Creative Commons license

That’s what happened to Rachel. So she decided to create exclusive and unique hand sewn or stitched garments with plenty of spunk and pizzaz. Her passion started and continues from vintage treasures. Durability was also important to Rachel, so each item is made to last.

Vintage pieces are incorporated into designs that bring a little from the past into the present. Her favorite materials to work with are tulle, velvet, speciality ribbons, laces and  good quality silk flowers. That’s recycling fun!

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What a perfect time for a shoe sale.  Simple Shoes is currently offering many of their popular styles at special clearance prices – and we are talking dirt cheap here!  Boys Innertube shoes and the adorable GT Janie for girls are each marked at $8.99 and Skippies are just $7.90.  And while you are at it, grab a pair for yourself and baby. 

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Wool is the most hydrophilic of all fibers and wicks away excess moisture, drying quickly. It’s a natural fire retardant that can resist flame without chemical treatment and wool is a renewable resource that regrows on the sheep after shearing. It is biodegradable and kinder to the environment than oil-based synthetics that contribute to global pollution. Wool is durable, remarkably elastic for growing children, and is free of dust mites.

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Texas Teen Buys Car Off eBay, Makes It Electric

Luke Laborde turned a 32 mpg gas-burning Bradley GT II kit car into a fully electric ride for just about $10,000. The ride, which was purchased off eBay, has eight 80-pound batteries throughout including where the gas tank used to be. The car gets 40 miles on a full charge.

Student Built Race Car Is Powered By Soybeans

Five kids from West Philly’s high school auto shop class, ex-gang members and high school dropouts built this soybean-powered race car. The car gets 50+ mpg and goes from 0 to 60 in just 4 seconds! But the real win here is how the experience impacted these kids. One of the few still in high school, Kosi Harmon, went from getting D’s to being a straight-A student.

8th Grader Builds Solar-Powered Bike With GPS, iPod Dock

Eighth-grader David S. Dixon built this street-legal quadricycle powered by a solar-charged electric motor. The bike not only carries his dog and three friends, but it has also has an iPod dock and GPS. Ya, it’s that cool!

16 Year Old Converts 1988 Mazda Truck To A Plugin EV

Andrew Angelloti, after saving up $6,000 as a part time lifeguard, converted his very own truck to be a plug-in. Using 20 flooded lead acid batteries to create 120 volts and a 60 HP electric motor, the truck hits a top speed of 55 mph and has range of 40 miles. Best part, he blogs about it so others can mod their cars. You can check out his blog here.

15 Year Old Builds Air-Powered Ride Back In 1989

This air-powered car was covered by KODE Channel 12 of Joplin, MO back in 1989. You can tell by VHS-to-YouTube quality of the video. The idea was pitched to car companies but largely ignored.

Alaskan Teen Converts 1971 VW Super Beetle To Electric Car

While some VW enthusiasts are still waiting for the car company to tap the electric car market (one of those being me), senior Bart Grabman has beat them to the punch. Whether or not Bart can see Russia from his house, he has my vote! Though…can I get mine in one of these?

Home of modern eco picnic and baby blankets, quilts, toys, kids’ hip bags, toddler dresses & more using all natural, organic and rescued upcycled fibers. We believe it’s possible to create something beautiful while making the world a little better at the same time. Sustainable and original design with great care in craftswomanship.

We were recently sent a kids eco messenger bag.  This bag is made from organic cotton and vintage cotton fabric and is handmade in Ontario Canada. They are playful and delightful and sure to charm any child (and parent).  Each bag is one-of-a-kind.

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The Demeter Egyptian cotton is super-soft, absorbent and breathable. Plus it’s the rarest, most luxurious fabric in the world. Both individuals and retailers are invited to shop online for baby clothes, toys, diapers, and women’s menstrual pads.

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