Green Options

In an age of conspicuous consumption, one thing I don’t feel guilty about is buying books. I love books: used, new, antique, paperbacks, hardcovers. You name it, I’ll probably read it, and if I like it, I’ll buy it. I love having a house full of books. And yes, I know: books are made of paper. Paper comes from trees, and I love trees, too. Live ones. So [...]

A few weeks ago I wrote an article alerting you to an international activity that took place on September 21 called Park(ing) Day. As predicted, the event, in its third year, was an overall hit. From a little over a dozen parks last year, this year’s international event tallied up 180 parks in 47 cities worldwide. San Francisco, Park(ing) Day’s hometown, accomplished 53 parks and 5 sidewalk

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For those of you who do not live in Michigan, or keep up on its politics, it may come as a surprise to find out that our economy is pretty much in the gutter. Our unemployment rate is the highest it has been in nearly six months, and it seems the bad news keeps rolling in. With large cuts in the automotive industry, coupled with the dissapearence of jobs from such powerhouses

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When you think of a modern "sub-division," what comes to mind? Treeless cul-de-sacs? Expansive golf courses and expensive country clubs? Brand new homes with over-manicured lawns? Well, EcoVillage Ithaca (EVI) and others like it are attempting to redefine what it means to live in a small neighborhood outside of the city.

While many say the trend began with the communes of the 1960s, the eco-village movement within the United States gained most

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I’ve heard of many things being "the new black" but now the question seems to be, "Is green the new gold?"

At least that’’ the question posed by the organizers of the upcoming Opportunity Green Conference. Developed through a partnership with UCLA’s Sustainable Resource Center, the conference is also sponsored by many well-known names, including Clif Bar and Treehugger.

The conference will bring

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When Amy wrote about green magazines, she mentioned GOOD as being one of her favorites. I, too, a self-described magazine junkie, am a big fan of GOOD since it’s inception last year. With all the depressing news out there on any given day, GOOD always reaffirms my faith in humanity. Its focus is, like its name implies, good stuff: those things that are

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This week the world mourns the loss of an inspired activist and entrepreneur: Anita Roddick, founder of The Body Shop. Sadly, Roddick passed away Monday at the age of 64. Known for her passion for the environment and her commitment to fighting social injustice, the passing of Anita Roddick reminds each of us of how far she was willing to go for what she believed.

Beginning in the world of business with absolutely no

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Designer Scott Amron has created a catalogue of conceptual products designed to persuade people to use less energy, or at least think about how many things are plugged into sockets in their homes. The experiment is called "Die Electric," named after the insulating properties of a dielectric material. A dielectric is a substance that is highly resistant to the flow of an electric current. The experiment is about

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Can your search engine offset your carbon footprint? How about funding breast cancer research, environmental conservation, or pubic schools? Calling all web surfers: don’t miss these easy opportunities for everyday activism.

How it works

In 2006, an estimated $24.4 billion was spent on Internet advertising. (CBS, ZenithMedia) Some of this advertising money is spent placing ads on Internet search engines like Google and Yahoo. Each time we search the web, we see ads that fund

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No manager or owner with even the best of intentions can successfully green a business without the cooperation and participation of their employees. Given that employees have a host of other things to deal with while at work, motivating them to work towards environmental sustainability can sometimes be a task. Because of this, I have come up with a few techniques to help any business get their employees excited about going green.

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With more and more people graduating from college every year, the pool of potential employees is growing at a breakneck pace. Not surprisingly, these new additions to the workforce have very different values than those that arrived on the scene some 20 years ago. More and more, potential employees are looking to work for companies whose views are aligned with their own.

Given that environmental issues top the list of concerns for generation

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