Green Thinking Blog

As Laurel mentioned, we will be doing a variety of articles from now through the beginning of the year to help greenify your holidays, and my first contribution has to do with STOCKINGS. 

Warning:  This is another article about foot products.  You might think I have a foot fetish by the way I have plugged Simple Shoes so many times, and now I am going to plug socks.  While feet are important, not only for standing, a mode of transportation, toes as cute decorations, create your own unique scent, I do not have a foot fetish.  At least I don’t think so.  If you have one, glad I can help!

The stocking tradition started way back when little children would hang their snow drenched, wet stockings from the fireplace hearth to dry & someone got a clever idea to fill them with goodies.  Stockings can now be as simple as a sock with a hole in it, or as ornate as a homemade quilted sock the size of my leg that has embellishments of gold and diamonds. 

What I would recommend is checking out the eco-friendly variety on SockDreams.com.  This female owned company out of Portland has every kind of sock that you can imagine!  Long ones, short ones, striped ones, lace ones, hemp ones, organic fiber ones, and socks that use 80-85% recycled cotton! 

This year, go for the stocking you can wear and wear and wear & will do just as much good on your feet as on your hearth.  I think Santa has a soft spot for sustainable fiber socks - you are sure to get a spot on the Nice List this year.

PepsiCo has graciously provided volunteers to assist in installing over $200,000 worth of donated materials to the San Francisco Green “X-Ray” House.  This house was a dilapitated ruin that is turning into a green gem that will act as a showcase for affordable green options to homeowners.  Green Building Exchange, Building Quality Communities, and PepsiCo are installing such fabulous features such as:

• Energy efficient windows
• Solar panels
• Tankless water heater
• Drought tolerant landscaping

Better yet, the house will have cut away walls to show the difference between a green home and traditionally built homes.

Their website isn’t fully updated yet, but check it out for further information & check back in the future for more pics… I am dying to see this diamond in the rough!  I will keep you posted too…

According to Eco-Wordly, South Africa recently debuted their first electric car at the Paris Motor Show.  The country’s Joule, an MPV (Multi-Purpose Vehicle) was created for $6.2 million, $4.5 million of which was contributed by their Department of Science and Technology.

This vehicle can run up to 400 km on 2 battery packs, using a variety of battery styles.  Optimal Energy created the car to create 0 emissions, however, they did not count for the emissions that would be created at a power station.  This vehicle is designed to recharge between the hours of 11pm and 6 am when there is a surplus of energy available.

Not only that, but energy is recovered from the regenerative brake system, providing an extra charge.  For all extra technical mumbo-jumbo, check out Optimal Energy’s home page.

The electric car is going to be quite the phenomenon in the coming years, Zap, Zero Air Pollution, out of Santa Rosa, California has been operating electric vehicle technology since 1994, include trucks, scooters, and sedans.  While three wheels may not be completely practical for cross road trips, if you have the extra $11,000 to spend for your local commute - HECK YEA!  And they come in such cute colors! I pick the green one!

Another excellent resource to further research electric, hybrid, and plug-in vehicles is EV World.  Recently celebrating their 10th anniversary, they feature the most up to date articles & information on the electric & hybrid world.

Granted, no one wants to spend money on gas, but more importantly, we have to consider the pollution and the carbon emissions we are releasing into the world at each given moment.  If you are now in the market to look for a new vehicle, consider researching your alternatives further - in the long run, it could prove to be the more economical & wise decision.

Do you drive an electric, hybrid, or plug-in vehicle?  Leave a comment!  We wanna know what the real deal is!

Footwear News recently reported that Payless is teaming up with Summer Rayne Oakes on a line of sustainble shoes. Summer Rayne Oakes is a fashion model and eco-consultant. She is also the fashion and beauty expert for the Discovery Channel’s Planet Green TV network.

I am so excited to hear that affordable, eco-friendly shoes will be available to the masses. One unfortunate thing about many sustainable products is that they can be expensive. As we all know, you can count on Payless to have seriously low prices. Plus, I’ve noticed that they’ve offered more trendy and stylish shoes over the past couple of years.

The collection will initially consist of 8-12 sustainable shoes and handbags for women, but will eventually include shoes for men and children too. Payless plans to purchase certified-organic, recycled, and local materials to produce the eco-friendly line.

The sustainable footwear will hit 500 Payless stores in April 2009, but the line doesn’t have an official name yet. I’ll be sure to give you an update once more info is released. Maybe we’ll get a few sneak peek pictures too!

Well, the news has been a bunch of economic gloom and doom lately, so I wanted to feature a green company that’s doing something right and looking toward the future. Bring on Solazyme!

According to the company website, Solazyme “is a synthetic biology company that unleashes the power of marine microbes to create clean and scalable solutions for the renewable energy, industrial chemical, and specialty ingredient markets.” One of its most publicized accomplishments is its production of the first algal-based jet fuel that’s passed all ASTM specification tests for aviation fuel (freezing point, stability, density, etc).

Solazyme stores algae in large tanks where it produces oil “quickly, efficiently and without sunlight.” (MarketWatch). It’s not ready for mass production quite yet, but test batches show great promise. Solazyme says its algal oil will likely be cheaper than crude oil which currently costs over $100/barrel. Solazyme hopes its production costs will fall between $40 and $80/barrel in the next couple of years. I can only imagine how big of an impact renewable jet fuel could have on an economic and environmental basis.

I’ve been researching biofuels for about two years, and algae biofuels seem to hold the most promise as a truly sustainable fuel. I’m excited for the possiblity of algae-based fuels becoming a serious competitor in the jet-fuel market over the next couple of years.

I mean…Pollution Prevention Week! (that’s better)

As always, we are fashionably late and tongue tied…

This week, September 15-21, has been recognized as National Pollution Prevention week by the EPA!

This year’s theme is “Pollution Prevention - Where Sustainable Practices Begin.” So, who is doing what & what are you doing?

Each EPA Regional office runs their own grant programs and prevention activities to reduce pollutants.  To see specifics on your home region, click here.  Specifically, Florida’s theme is “Greening Florida’s Future,” and focused on “green cleaning.”   Local business provided hazardous material drop-offs, if you participated you received a free microfiber cloth.  Other stores provided a green cleaning kit and educational events to stop pollution at the source.

Currently, Florida has three voluntary programs that allow for residents to be conscious of their environment:  Clean Marina Program, the Green Lodging Program, and the Florida Pollution Prevention Program more info here & updates on a later post.

If you have more information about things happening in your region we want to know!  Write us immediately! 

Remember, just because September 21st marks the end of Pollution Prevention Week officially, it is really just the beginning. 

Stonyfield Farm began this wonderful non-profit organization called Climate Counts in collaboration with Clean Air-Cool Planet. The main goal of the organization is to bring consumers and companies together to fight climate change on Planet Earth.

In a stroke of genius, Climate Counts created a scorecard to compare companies on their commitment to fighting global warming. Companies were given a score based on 22 criteria that measure climate footprint, efforts to reduce climate impact, support (or lack of support) for progressive climate policies, and publicity of their green efforts.

Check out the 2008 company scores here. Just click on a sector and you’ll find links to the rated companies and a breakdown of their climate scores. I’ve listed a few superstar companies below that topped the list (they received the green “striding” stamp of approval for eco-friendliness)

• Proctor & Gamble (household products) - score: 69
• General Electric (media) - score: 71
• Nike (apparel and accessories) - score: 82
• Stonyfield Farm (food products) - score: 78
• Unilever (food products) - score: 75
• IBM (electronics) - score: 77
• Canon (electronics) - score: 74
• Google (internet/software) - score: 55

Climate Counts also provides a copy of the blank scorecard, so you can see how these companies earned their chops.

Personally, I really appreciate a non-profit agency making this information available to the public. Companies need to be accountable for the effect they have on the climate. Make a mental note of the companies that earned the highest scores, and try to support them the next time you make a purchase.

Click picture to enlarge.

I subscribe to Simple Shoes email updates, and I recommend you do too.  Today I received an interesting food for thought - about fish.  According to the email, an article in the journal, Science, has researchers predicting that fish will be obsolete by 2048. 

If you are anything like Laurel & I, we LOVE our seafood.  If we had a choice we would eat seafood everyday, but apparently, the idea of that happening is being threatened by unsustainable fishing practices. 

The Blue Ocean Institute has listed a guide of what fish are the most abundant and recommended for eating by the Marine Stewardship Council. 

The guide lists that Alaskan Salmon, Walleye Pollack, Sablefish, and Western Rock Lobster are among those certified as the best environmental choice.  These species are abundant and their fishing methods have little impact on their habitat or the environment.

On the other hand, farmed Atlantic Salmon, Snappers, Atlantic Halibut, Grouper, and Chilean Sea Bass are listed as having a variety of problems.  These species are either overfished, have poor management, or their farming methods cause a serious environmental impact.

Visit the MSC website to find out which fisheries are certified with safe practices, where to buy, and what to cook.  They also list delicious recipes, check out this one for MSC certified Halibut by Frosta (mmm):

Halibut fillets with Japanese mountain pepper and mango on rhubarb chutney

Serves 4

Ingredients

So, next time you go to the fish market, or the seafood counter, or out to dinner, do your research.  It could be one of your last delicious meals that has fish if practices don’t improve-and QUICK!

Apollo Alliance sent me a worthwhile petition in my email yesterday. It’s no surprise that the oil companies are banking on record profits right now, and they are currently teaming up with their allies in Congress to propose more offshore oil drilling. Apollo has cooked up a new petition to tell Congress that we do NOT want them to drill on coastal protected areas. Instead, we want the money to go towards clean, renewable, and homegrown energy and more green jobs for Americans.

Here’s what Apollo Alliance had to say in their email:

“Every day, Americans pay more and more at the pump, while oil companies bring in record profits. Now, those same oil companies and their congressional allies are proposing more drilling - even though nearly every energy expert agrees this is one problem America can’t drill its way out of. The oil companies say they’re doing it to help lower the cost of gas. But scratch the surface, and you’ll find it’s the oil companies that truly benefit from new offshore drilling. Don’t let them continue to make money off of high gas prices while working Americans remain dependent on the energy of the past. Instead, tell Congress we need a real, comprehensive solution to America’s energy crisis. Let’s invest in clean, renewable energy and homegrown fuels, that will create millions of high-quality, green-collar jobs and reduce our dependence on oil. “

Are you fired up? I know I was. If so, you can sign the petition here.

What is Apollo Alliance? It’s a coalition that promotes clean/renewable energy, green collar jobs, and independence from foreign oil. Check out the Apollo Alliance website, and sign up for their email list. You can read more about the Apollo mission and how the alliance got started on their About page.

The Fourth of July took us to a little place called Pensacola Beach, a completely beautiful land that promoted healthy bike rides, some vitamin C to the skin (protected by UVB & UVA sunscreen), some entertainment, and an awesome fresh fish market. The short time we were there we were fortunate enough to partake in each of these activities while celebrating the birth of our country’s freedom.

Little did I expect, silly me, that I might take an adventure that was completely spontaneous, a downright accident actually, that would lead me to a mystery. This mystery I speak of is still unsolved, and if you should have any information, please please please contact us immediately!

Our last day in Pensacola Beach our host suggested we take a bike ride to visit Fort Pickens to gain some history on our vacation. We agreed to go, thinking it might take us all of an hour to tour and then get on the ride home. So, we ride and ride, what a beautiful ride! Sugar sand beaches, clear blue green seas, fresh air in our hair and faces, and we didn’t even recognize how long we had been riding until the Fort never seemed to come. We turned around and could no longer see civilization. To make a long story short, we took a 4 hour cruise, a dip in the Gulf, a walk through 2 miles of sand pushing our bikes where the road had been washed away, introduce ourselves to Tropical Storm Bertha (she was relatively friendly considering she only threw sand in our faces and refused to rain on us) and we came across this:

Please notice the four solar panels on the roof. This house is an old Campers’ Registration/Visitor Center for when the Fort was up and running regularly before Hurricane Ivan came over in 2004. The solar panels seem to be running a set of fans that are under the awning, but I couldn’t be too sure.

So, I’ve checked with the Gulf Islands National Seashore, I’ve checked with Pensacola’s Greatest, and Google to no avail. My curiosity has been piqued as to the history behind this house, those solar panels, and what future reconstruction could bring to Fort Pickens on the Gulf Beaches of Florida.

If you have any insight to this mystery, please please please contact us!

Until then…Happy Trails!