Improv Everywhere Happy Earth Day to You!!! – CleanTechnica: Cleantech innovation news and views Happy Earth Day to all! This Earth Day, let’s break it all down and see things for what they are. Our world is in a state of climate chaos as a result of our conveniences. This CleanTechnica blog provides an opportunity to see what is being done worldwide in the realm of clean technology (ie. renewable energy, alternative fuels, sustainable products and services, etc…) so that we can keep these conveniences. That’s terrific — I’m glad we are looking for and developing cleaner technology and energy, but this Earth Day I’d like to say: F your conveniences! Here are 22 (since it’s April 22nd) things you can do daily that are inconvenient but that we would all benefit greatly from if everyone did them. Those people are out there in large numbers — and they are probably not reading this blog, so it’s up to you to send it to them because these 22 inconveniences can change the world. This list is pared down from the original 78 I started with. Here we go: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13.
Ten Bigger Steps for Reducing Your Carbon Emissions Living Published on January 5th, 2011 | by Guest Author OK, not those ten commandments… When it comes to chiseling our emissions profile down to a more respectable and streamlined shape, we are all aware of the usual suspects. You know — those tweakings of lifestyle that are regularly wheeled out, just to add a splash of greenwash to a magazine article. Such actions often don’t seem capable of shifting the world much closer to a low emissions nirvana. This isn’t to knock small steps… but it would be nice to throw in a few giant leaps to quicken up the pace. First — thou shalt lean towards being a vegetarian. The fossil fuel inputs to derive protein from animals are eleven times greater than for the equivalent protein from grains; simply put, it is more efficient to get your protein direct, than via an animal as an intermediary. Second — thou shalt give your home an energy efficient make-over. Third — thou shalt look to the rails, not to the skies. Sixth — throw your dollars to the wind.
Artists Recycle Lottery Tickets into Stuff They'd Buy An H3 Hummer built with $39,000 worth of discarded lottery tickets. All photos via Ghost of a Dream. Each year, millions of lottery tickets are sold to people who dream of winning big -- but the vast majority of the time, those tickets end up being just pricey bits of trash. One recycling artistic team, however, has begun transforming all those losing tickets into something with real value -- the stuff a gambler may have purchased had they won the lottery, or better yet, saved the money. Detail from "Dream Car." The artists explain their inspiration to recycle the tickets into art: We started to collect tons and tons and talk about what people dream about when they play the lottery. "Dream Home" was built with $70,000 worth of discarded lottery tickets. With most of their pieces, the artists choose to use the same number of lottery tickets as the item might be worth. "Dream Vacation" was built with $29,000 worth of discarded lottery tickets. Detail of "Dream Vacation."
How – and Why – to Make ‘Green Meeting Packages’ the Norm It’s common place nowadays. When organizing an event you can choose from “normal” packages or choose a “green meeting” or “eco-friendly” meeting package. These packages differentiate themselves with various inclusions that are not commonly offered. While the concept is somewhat opportunistic, these packages do provide some sustainable alternatives. The question is, though, why aren’t all packages green? The inclusions are not only great for the environment, they save hotels, event and MICE organizers crucial costs, adding to the bottom line. The following are some tips for the industry to move towards taking the green out of meetings and making it the norm. Discourage printed marketing, promotional and advertising collateral Promotional, marketing and advertising go hand in hand with running any event. The alternatives: Only provide a reusable USB drive to delegates and participants and/or place marketing and promotional material in the cloud on your conference website for downloading.
Reusable Grocery Bags, Eco-Friendly Promotional Totebags, Lead Free, Green Recycle Bags How to Compost Indoors (Video) Image credit: Praxxtube From NatureMill's high-tech indoor composter, to building your own worm bin, there are plenty of options for the would-be composter who doesn't have a yard, or who would just like to keep composting through the winter. The video below gives a very basic, cheap methodology for building your own compost bin. Apparently you need some thin mints to do it... OK, so the thin mint joke is kinda goofy, but this is a classic example of just how easy composting can be. Using little more than some leaves, some coffee grounds, some dirt and some water, Praxxtube shows us how to make smell-free, almost mess-free compost in a plastic bucket. Anyone tried this at home? More on Composting at HomeBuild Your Own Worm Bin (Video)Compost Conundrum: Backyard Bin, Can-O-Worms or Indoor Composter?
Features and Brands of Earth Friendly Shopping Bags and Reusable Bags By using earth friendly shopping bags, you can avoid putting even more trash into our landfills. Every year over 500 billion plastic shopping bags are used worldwide. The cost to retailers in the United States is over 4 billion dollars. All those plastic shopping bags aren’t really free; the cost is passed on to consumers through increased sales prices. The production of plastic shopping bags requires the use of petroleum, an expensive, non-renewable resource that increases our demand on foreign oil. Dangerous toxins are released through the production of these bags, resulting in global warming. Clearly, earth friendly reusable bags are a greener choice. Choices in Earth Friendly Shopping Bags Most stores now offer their own eco shopping bags, including mass retailers Walmart and Target. Envirosax makes designer reusable shopping bags in many beautiful prints. Envirosax also makes organic shopping bags from: organic cotton bamboo hemp linen Earth Friendly Shopping Bags and Other Accessories