Category News & Culture
Prix Pictet 2011: More than Just Pretty Pictures
An annual photography competition dedicated to sustainability. “Many photographers are concerned about our world and are producing work that, while often beautiful, still has a very powerful message for us: This is not art for art’s sake, it is art for our own sake.” – Joerg Colberg, photographer, critic and Prix Pictet nominator. The Prix […]
Things We Thought We Knew About the World, That are Wrong
I’m a cynic. I trust no one and no thing until, well until I’m good and ready. Especially when facts and figures about green and government, poverty and hunger, and other woes of the world get thrown around. I’m the first to stand back and wait. I don’t jump because I know that hype sells. […]
Top 11 Hottest Topics of 2010 from EcoSalon
If you are well acquainted with EcoSalon, you know we don’t shy away from controversial issues. In fact, we welcome them. Rarely is there one right answer, and remaining open-minded in the face of difficult discussions is what EcoSalon strives to achieve. And 2010 was no exception. It was indeed a stellar year for serious […]
Anatomy of a Food Stamp: 5 Facts You Didn’t Know
You know when your friends tell you, “Don’t worry, it will get better, just give it some time?” Well, that’s good and kind and well-intentioned, but actually, and I’m sorry to be the one to burst the bubble, a lot of things don’t get better. In fact, sometimes things get worse – certainly right […]
Year in Review: Top 10 Environmental Stories of 2010
This, the first year of a brand new decade, whizzed by in a flurry and a flash but not without plenty of environmental activity. We had floods and food recalls, earthquakes and Academy Awards, plus plenty of strange weather. 2010 was a busy year for the environment. But was it a year that planet loving […]
Diamonds Aren’t a Girl’s Best Friend
Who am I to argue with the Madison Avenue suits who coined the phrase “diamonds are a girl’s best friend”? If only diamonds were all we believe them to be. The violence resulting from the diamond mining and trading industry is, in a word, tragic. And, as it turns out, diamonds aren’t even as valuable […]
Reclaimed Tree Ring Paintings by Tracy Melton at Etsy
Art is an intensely personal experience. What whets your appetite might leave me longing for something slightly different. Or the piece I prize and display in my home could inspire in you nothing more than a really bad headache. But something tells me that Tracy Melton’s Tree Ring Paintings will strike almost anyone’s fancy. I […]
Another Chair? No, Not Really…
Before you accuse me of being a tad too fond of a certain seat-like piece of furniture, let me explain. This chair isn’t exactly that, and although it looks and acts like one, I swear”¦it’s not really a chair. At least I wouldn’t want to sit on it. Ouch. Tokujin Yoshioka, the designer of Venus […]
Little Orphan Trudy Recycled Plates
Poor little plates, unwanted, unloved and discarded. That is, until Daddy Warbucks, or rather Christopher Jagmin gets hold of them. Then the magic happens. Jagmin finds his “orphans” at estate and garage sales and flea markets. Any shape, size or pattern will do. A complete “makeover” follows that involves cleaning, polishing and the application of […]
A Purpose for Plastic: the RD Legs Chair
Like it or not, our planet is stuck with leftover plastic from years of oblivious consumption and waste. But rather than complain about the pile up, why not take the matter into your own hands? Richard Liddle, of UK-based Cohda Design, did just that. He found a way to use trash to create something new […]
All in the Ball
I’m not a parent…yet, but I am an aunt and at times I can still act like a kid, which is why I know the importance of snack time. No one in their right mind should ever consider messing with snack time. A crucial part of any kid’s day, not to mention a necessary distraction […]
A Green Mower for Any-Colored Thumb
Certain songs, smells, foods, city streets – they tend to conjure up memories from years past, and usually without permission or even a warning. The smell of freshly cut grass reminds me of my backyard, and my dad. He spent hours every weekend working, sweating and usually drinking a Budweiser, out of the can. His […]
How to Choose the Right Shade Tree to Reduce Energy Costs and Beautify Your Home
Certain things in life I admit I take for granted. Trees are not one of them. When I sit in the park, under the lush branches of a tree to enjoy a break from the blazing hot sun, I am truly grateful. Trees provide us with shade on a hot day or cover on a […]
Eco Poo Bags: Worth Their Weight in Clever, Clean and Green?
I admit it – I used to buy those brand-new blue bags in a roll to pick up my dog’s poop. Not the greenest item, actually not green at all, but very convenient and clean. Then I switched to re-using the plastic bags from my trips to the grocery store, but having one too many […]
Stella McCartney Vegan Bag: Eco-Friendly or Eco-Wannabe?
I enjoy the occasional controversy. Not the “throw one below the belt” emotionally-charged controversy, but the intelligent discussion chock full of thoughtful comments and ideas even-in-the-throes-of-opposing-views controversy. And I especially enjoy them when they’re eco-related. So, here goes. Yes, I covet the new faux leather bag by Stella McCartney. (And word has it a certain […]
Lavender Eye Candy
In the last five years or so I’ve become a firm believer in naps. (A fact that baffles my parents who vividly remember pleading with their 3-year-old daughter to come inside for “quiet time”, so-called because the word nap sent me into a fit.) Maybe it’s my busy schedule or dare I say my age, […]
