Green

Hamburg Will Extend Bike, Ped Routes & Remove Cars From City Core

Move over, Copenhagen. Hamburg is following you into the 21st century by deemphasizing the role of the car. Almost half of Germany’s second-largest city already consists of green areas, parks, gardens, squares, cemeteries, and sports facilities (see map). Hamburg plans to link two large green areas in the north and south with bicycle routes and pedestrian

Renewables (Bikes!) Power Times Square New Year's Ball

New York “rides in” the New Year as Times Square visitors bike to help power the New Year’s Eve Ball (© Charles Sykes, Invision, for Citi, on Treehugger). You heard it right. When the festive ball drops to usher in 2014, renewable energy will contribute to the flashiness of its cascade. For the past three

What Makes A Town An "EV Town" — Normal & Others Show Leadership

How come Normal, Illinois–about 150 miles south of Chicago–has ten times as many electric vehicles per capita than the U.S. average? (You’re right; it’s not just coincidence.) A coalition of business, industry, nonprofits, all levels of government, and farsighted individuals has converged to transform Normal into an EV town. And it’s not an exclusive community.

"Lousy, Spoilt, and Defiled Planet" Climate Talks Begin In Warsaw

Officials open the 2013 UNFCCC meetings with determination and louder warnings…. (Photo source: http://ow.ly/qL43P) It’s time for the governments of the world to struggle with climate change policy again. Every year, late in November and early in December, representatives of 195 nations gather for two weeks to try to negotiate global responses to the increasingly

Brewers And Wineries Must Brace For Climate Change

Today’s suds are an endangered species, says Willy Blackmore, food editor for TakePart. (Photo: Cafe Bink, Carefree, Arizona.) So are the grapes and wines of the 20th century. Blackmore relates the phenomena to the power of climate change. The geography of earth’s agriculture will shift as global climate alterations disrupt historic weather patterns and raise

Empowering Support for Federal Investment in Bike/Ped Planning

  Princeton Survey The Streetsblog DC recently published a story on a telephone poll of 1,003 Americans, which was commissioned by the advocacy group America Bikes and conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates. The results were “unequivocal: 83 percent said that federal bike-ped funding should increase, or at the very least be maintained.” The car is becoming

Solar Panel and Bike, New Form of Less is More

Biking has become a lifestyle, a way of life. Cyclists who hit their favorite bike paths or bike routes every day are like another cut of the zen surfer who never missed a dawn and a wave. Now, we have the bike-path-gilding travelers that make Kerouac’s On the Road look sedentary. Devotees of biking vary

Earth Day Perspective: U.S. Ranks 49th in Global Environmental Index

  As we approach the quintessential ‘green’ holiday — April 22, Earth Day — one academic study should provide important perspective on the United States role in the world. The Environmental Performance Index (EPI), a project of the Yale University Center for Environmental Law & Policy, this year ranked the United States 49th in overall

Cycling For Everyone — an Expose: Organically Flowing

Seamlessly Integrated Bike Flow “Cycling is part of everyone’s life, because it was made part of everyone’s life.” This film, Cycling for Everyone, is a light, moving record of health and happiness. The film shows Amsterdam as a place where sharing the road is easy and safe. Inhabitants of this city and country value cycling so much that the rich and the

American Bicyclists Celebrate Spontaneity with New Urban Forms of an Old Love

A recent story that celebrates spontaneity, cycling, urban wanderlust, and the wonderful wave of sustainable bike-sharing programs is a welcome happiness to all of us wanting more biking freedoms. From an article found on the League of American Bicyclists (LAB) website: “Bike sharing is like a big advertisement for bicycling,” says Darren Buck, a Virginia Tech (VT) student. “Folks walking by

Greening the Holidays: Green Gift Ideas

The holidays are a time for giving. This season, make the eco-friendly choice, and give gifts that will bring joy to your loved ones and to our planet! Need some inspiration? Check out some of the latest green gifts and gadgets that are ringing in the holiday spirit! Water-Powered Clock Image Source: Bedolwhatsnext A water-powered

Greening your Community Part 2: The First Meeting

Most people don’t have much money at this point in time but that’s ok, by spending a small amount more or even the same amount, we can all benefit by saving energy and in turn reducing our electric bills. Solar panels are expensive, the majority of people won’t be able to afford them, but that doesn’t mean we can’t reduce their electric bill by helping them implement energy saving habits like turning off lights!

How to Green your Community

I have spent hours researching how to turn my community green. I suppose I’m a little too anxious to create change. I went directly for who I should contact locally for changing laws and such. Again, I was reminded that all things take time. One of the first things pretty much every site said about community change was that you should form a group. And it’s true, there is great strength in numbers, so here’s how to go about it.

Upcoming Green Events & Conferences

First and foremost, I would like to mention September 24, 2011 and Moving Planet! It’s time to get away from dirty energy. Join in on an already organized event or start one of your own! More info can be found including the events nearest you, at the Moving Planet website.

5 Green Back-to-School Tips

A representative of used clothing recycler USagain shot me these 5 green back-to-school tips via email. I think they’re good tips, so posting them here. Green your back-to-school preparation with these 5 tips (and more)!

Guilt is Not Green

This is a common belief that because of the numerous environmental problems we’ve created, we need to feel guilty. We don’t need to feel guilty at all, about this or in life in general.

13-Year-Old Creates Breakthrough Solar Technology.. Then Gets Debunked (+ Top Green Living Stories)

One of the biggest green living stories of the past several days is one of a a 13-year-old, Aidan Dwyer, who reportedly created and filed a patent for a groundbreaking, super energy-efficient solar panel array setup based on the Fibonacci sequence of some tree branches. The system was supposedly 20% more efficient than traditional, flat solar panel arrays, in general, and 50% more efficient in winter.

The Adventures of George Global (Book)

I recently ran across a cool children’s book on environmental issues and action, The Adventures of George Global, via a friend on Facebook. I’m a sucker for these — love them. I know that books like this one and information I received as a kid on environmental topics were a big part of what made me such a green freak as an adult. Additionally, such books are fun!

Who or what is George Global?

Daily Green Routine {Infographic}

Here’s a cool little infographic on how you can easily make your daily routine a little greener. There are tons of little things we can do every day do live greener that require little to no effort — it’s just a matter of thinking a little and changing our habits. Here are some ideas:

Inexpensive Ways to Green Your Home

While we all want to do our part to save the planet, some changes require more expense and effort than the average homeowner is willing to commit. Contrary to what you may think, you don’t have to make major changes in your home in order to green-up. Every little change you make will add up over time. Start with the mantra we’ve all heard: reduce, reuse, and recycle. Beyond that, here are a few more ideas that won’t cost you much. Some will even save you money.

4 Tips on Greening Your Business

Whether you are just getting your business started or you have been settled for a while, keeping costs down is becoming increasingly important. Besides hiring quality employees, one of the smartest business investments is the efficiency of the appliances used. With hundreds of options on the market, it can be overwhelming to come to a decision on the right efficient systems for your office.

Glass Straws Help Keep You Green And Refreshed

In an effort to be more green, many of us have started toting reusable plastic or aluminum water bottles around with us instead of buying bottled water on the go. Choosing reusable items over products that have to be recycled is one of the best things we can do for our planet. Recycling is good but not having to recycle at all is even better.

3 Summer Solstice Ideas

Now, following up on my post earlier today on the summer solstice, I’ve been thinking (and writing) a lot more about the matter and have come up with some ideas for how a green-oriented person (or, anyone, really) could enjoy the day.

3 Affordable iPhone Apps for the Gardener on a Budget

There is no way to be a casual gardener. Once you begin you become obsessed, and with good reason. The process of gardening is incredibly cathartic and calming. It eases stress, boosts energy, is good for the body and can help clear the mind. The end results are often beneficial, whether in the look of a flower bed and the sweet smell of its blooms, or the use of vegetables and herbs in your daily cooking. Is it any wonder it is such a popular pass time even in the modern age?

Top Bicycling Tips

Borrowing (or directing you over to) another article by bicycle experts over on BikeRadar, in honor of Bike Month (and one of the greenest forms of transport on the planet (if not the greenest), here’s another great one….

BikeRadar highlighted some top tips from bike enthusiasts in its forum recently, tips on bike choice, riding, and gear. Below are a few of my favorites, but if you want to read all of them (recommended) just click on the link above.

1st Green Party Candidate Elected to Parliament in Canada (US-born Elizabeth May)

I saw the news that the Green Party might win its first seat in Canadian Parliament last week on our sister site, Red, Green, and Blue. I thought, “That’s good news!” but, to be honest, I didn’t think it would happen (call me pessimistic). Turns out it did, though.

While U.S.-born Elizabeth May — an environmentalist, lawyer, writer, activism, leader of the Green Party of Canada, and 17-year executive director of the Sierra Club of Canada — will have more political power than ever, she won’t have a ton of practical influence. She will have to influence through here personality and excellent communication skills, though, Barbara Yaffe of the Vancouver Sun writes….

A Little More about Me, Planetsave, and Green Living

Lynn University recently interviewed me for one of their Earth Day posts on their web magazine, iPulse. They ended up using part of the interview, not the whole thing (apparently, didn’t want it to be too long — understandable). A bit of the interview was actually about Planetsave, and the rest was about environmental issues and green living (a good fit for our site, of course), so I’m sharing the whole thing here with you all. (You can learn a bit more about me as well through this :D)

Need Some Paint, Flooring, or Countertops? Go Green (for Your Health)

Earth Day may be over for some people, but Earth Day is everyday here on Planetsave (of course). This article is focused on a few products that were pitched to me for an Earth Day post — I ended up going a different route for Earth Day, reflecting on Earth Day and green living rather than writing about green products, as I think that’s more what Earth Day is about. But these are some good-looking products that I think deserve a little attention.

Why Tom Shadyac Left His 17,000 sq ft Mansion to Move into a 1000 sq ft Mobile Home

On yesterday’s Oprah show, Tom explained how he was no happier standing in his 17,000 sq ft mansion than when he was paid $1000/week to write jokes for Bob Hope. He explained that North American culture has a very narrow acceptance of what success is, which is heavily dependent on your wealth, job and status. That our whole lives are trapped in this inauthentic competitive nature against each other. And how we should instead be following our natural human nature and cooperating with each other. 

Earth Day Plastic-Free Prize Pack Giveaway {Book & More}

We’ve got another chance for you to win a great new book here on Planetsave, but it’s not only a book you could win. The “plastic-free prize pack” (see the image below) includes a starter kit for living green, a tote bag, food containers, a water bottle and more (see the full list, 10 items in total, and how to enter at the bottom of the page).

Where and How? New Carbon Footprint Study Shows Location, Lifestyle Matter

UC Berkeley Researchers Jones and Kammen, working at the Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory (RAEL) have conducted a landmark GHG emission analysis of U.S. households, and which also provides a tool for more effective consumer and governmental policy decision-making. The “tool” here is the “carbon calculator” made available for free on the Cool Climate Network website.

Huge Environmental Organizations Merge (350.org & 1Sky) — My Thoughts

If you haven’t heard the news yet, two huge environmental organizations just decided to merge — 350.org, which organized what was reportedly the biggest day of global action in October (the 10/10/10 day of global action), and 1Sky, a great organization that has inspired many and accomplished much in recent years.

To be honest, they were already using the same colors, so why not merge?…

But, seriously, this is big news and I’m sure a lot of people are wondering if it’s for better or worse…

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