Putting Meat back in it's Place

I wish I wrote this article, but alas, Mark Bittman, The Minimalist, gets the credit. His tips on reducing meat consumption are not based on ethics, carbon awareness, buying locally, or anything...they're just practical. Below is a summary, but I really suggest reading the whole thing by clicking

Putting Meat Back in Its Place
By MARK BITTMAN

1. Forget the protein thing (you'll get enough from beans, nuts, dairy, veggies, and whatever meat you do decide to take in)
2. Buy less meat.
3. Get it out of the center of the plate.
4. Buy more vegetables, and learn new ways to cook them.
5. Make nonmeat items as convenient as meat (by pre-cooking beans, grains, and veggies and storing them in the freezer or fridge for quick dinners mid-week).
6. Make some rules. Depending on your habits, it may be no bacon at breakfast; it may be no burgers at lunch; it may be no fast food, ever...
7. Look at restaurant menus differently.

Edible Landscapes

So planting season is over for this year, and, while some of you may be still enjoying the fruits of the harvest from your gardens and CSAs, most of us are turning our attention to rest...or to planning next year's garden? Here is a good article from Edible Front Range on edible landscapes. While some folks have turned to digging up their lawn entirely for a garden patch, this article talks more about incorporating edible plants into the landscape you are already working with. I would also recommend checking the book Perenniel Vegetables out of the library, so that you can begin to think about some no hassle plantings that will return year after year to provide you and your family with food!

Pick Some Apples with Earthworks Boston

Benjamin Crouch, City Fruit Program Director, sends the following request for volunteers in the Boston area:
"The Roxubry Russet apples at the Shirley Eustis House in Roxbury, MA are ready to be picked. Discovered in 1649 in our hometown, this is the oldest known variety of apple grown in the Americas! It is an all-purpose apple with crisp, tart flesh and a refreshing taste.
 
We need your help tomorrow (Monday, the 29th) from 4:30-7:00pm! Please email to sign up or call at 617-442-1059 if you have any questions. We will send you directions and instructions. Most of the harvest will be used for charitable purposes, but each volunteer is welcome to take home a small individual share (5-8 large apples per person). This event is open to all ages.
Thank you!"

World of Good's Smart Cart Quiz

World of Good just launched a "Smart Cart Quiz," that provides you with some sobering statistics. You should check it out, and email it to your friends to spread the word. Our dollars really can make a difference; even in these tighter economic times, we have a lot more dollars to go around than people in other parts of the world.

Lester Brown's Plan B

Here is an excerpt from Lester Brown's book Plan B 2.0: Rescuing a Planet Under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble:

It is decision time. Like earlier civilizations that got into environmental trouble, we can decide to stay with business as usual and watch our modern economy decline and eventually collapse, or we can consciously move onto a new path, one that will sustain economic progress. In this situation, no action is actually a decision to stay on the decline-and-collapse path.

It is hard to find the words to convey the gravity of our situation and the momentous nature of the decision we are about to make. How can we convey the urgency of this moment in history? Will tomorrow be too late? Do enough of us care deeply enough to turn the tide now?

I know you care deeply enough about it because you are reading this blog. But what are you DOING? To read more of Lester Brown's Plan B 2.0, visit the Earth Policy Institute's website, or get it from your local library. His new book, Plan B 3.0, is available for purchase at the same web site.

San Francisco plants organic garden at City Hall

So this post isn't necessarily timely in terms of when the story published (August), but it's pretty timely in terms of planning/lobbying/setting up an organizing committee for your own "town hall" victory garden for next summer. In anticipation of the first ever Slow Food Nation event in the US over Labor Day weekend 2008, organizers in San Francisco planted an organic vegetable garden in place of the lawn at City Hall. Read the whole article here.

Last year I read a book about Alice Waters, founder of famed Chez Panisse and organic food visionary, and it detailed her efforts to convince President and Mrs. Clinton to plant an organic garden at the White House during his term. Her idea was rejected, but maybe the next president will enjoy riding the current wave of growing and showcasing local and organic produce. From City Hall to the White House Lawn anyone? Or at least, to your town's common space?

Green Office goes PVC free

If you work in an office, you know it's very hard to avoid products made with PVC. They are in everything from binders, plastic document covers, tape, computer monitors, mouse pads, and paper clips. A company in the Bay Area called TheGreenOffice.com will be removing ALL polyvinyl chloride (PVC) – based products from its inventory in response to growing concerns about its harmful effects to health and the environment. PVC uses and releases highly hazardous chemicals including vinyl chloride, dioxins, mercury, phthalates, and other chemicals that have been linked to deterioration of the central nervous system, liver damage, reproductive harm, and certain cancers. This is a big step for The Green Office, as this represents more than 1,500 products in their inventory. We believe it’s the right thing to do and need your help making the PVC-Free Workplace Campaign a success. If you work in an office, please talk with whomever does your ordering and ask them to consider ordering from The Green Office. I'm not sure how their prices compare, but even if they are slightly higher (like when we buy organic food versus conventional food), the benefits to our planet and our personal health are worth it; we have to support leaders in the green economy.

WHAT IS PVC?
PVC is a commonly used plastic used to make many different building, office and consumer products such as vinyl binders. Health and environmental organizations have been raising concerns about the dangers of PVC for many years. In response, major retailers such as Wal-Mart and Target are phasing out certain PVC products in favor of safer alternatives.
According to the EPA, “Most vinyl chloride is used to make polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic and vinyl products. Acute (short-term) exposure to high levels of vinyl chloride in air has resulted in central nervous system effects (CNS), such as dizziness, drowsiness, and headaches in humans. Chronic (long-term) exposure to vinyl chloride through inhalation and oral exposure in humans has resulted in liver damage. Cancer is a major concern from exposure to vinyl chloride via inhalation, as vinyl chloride exposure has been shown to increase the risk of a rare form of liver cancer in humans. EPA has classified vinyl chloride as a Group A, human carcinogen.”
For more information, please visit the EPA website.
To learn more about the dangers of PVC, visit the Center for Health, Environment and Justice’s PVC Campaign website.

WHAT IS THEGREENOFFICE.COM?
TheGreenOffice.com is the only one-stop-shop for office supplies emphasizing sustainable, green products. We offer a full selection of competitively-priced products—each comprehensively ranked by “greenness” using our innovative Green Screen system and shipped via free, next-day, carbon-neutral shipping. TheGreenOffice.com helps businesses become greener by providing practical office greening tips and resources, a Webinar series, sustainability consulting, and Green Office Offsets™ that meet Kyoto Protocol standards. We are a certified B Corporation and Bay Area Green Business and are proud to be an ENERGY STAR Partner and Co-op America Green Business.

Vermont family launches GreenFoot car magnets

A homeschooling family in Vermont has launched Go Greenfoot, a campaign to build awareness around reducing one's carbon footprint. They have designed car magnets, available for $6 each or 2 for $10, that announce to the world that you are working to reduce your "footprint."

What started out as a school project to raise environmental awareness has turned into a business for the Emmons family, who created the "Greenfoot" car magnet. David Emmons, his wife Janet, and their three children, Maxson, 19, Katie, 13, and Abbie, 11, are using this project to spread the message of the importance of living “Green”.

As a school project that applied hands-on practical application, the girls were asked to think of a way to raise awareness on the impact an individual's lifestyle can have on the environment and to let people know how easy it can be to reduce a person's carbon footprint. After considering billboards and other ideas, the family decided to work together on creating car magnets. "We all figured it would be something you could see all the time," Janet Emmons said.

The family went right to work. “Our daily life became all about artwork, trademarks, copyrights, packaging, displays, and more artwork, we each had a part to play in this creative process,” David said.

“We determined from the start that we would have everything made locally so that the children would see first hand the positive impact you can have on our own community,” their mother said. With the help of a local print shop to print the package the magnet is sold with and a Hubbardton blacksmith to make displays out of recycled products, the children were able to watch every step of the process.

Through the process the family incorporated school and life lessons in art, marketing, advertising and much more, but what the family learned most was the importance of living green and the impact individuals can have on the world.

"I learned that by doing little things in your daily life, little things like recycling and turning off lights when you leave a room, can really help," Katie said. “I’ve always tried to recycle … but now I really think about things like ‘I should probably turn this off,’” she said. “I’m definitely more aware of it now.”

Maxson said one thing he learned was the effect anyone, including families in small-town Vermont, can have on their world. “It’s been exciting to watch this whole thing take off,” he added.

The lessons learned were exactly what their mother said she had hoped for at the beginning of the project.
”The main thing I wanted them to learn is that they can make a difference. So many times people feel powerless in the world and I think they learned that everybody doing a little can affect the world,” she said.

Since hitting store shelves in June, the “Greenfoot” magnets’ popularity is growing. The family routinely spots the magnets as they travel around Vermont, David Emmons said. Although he said it is exciting to see magnets on what he calls “vehicles of awareness,” the family sees this as the beginning wave of people committing to a lifestyle of living “green”. “Our dream is to raise awareness all across the country,” their father said.

To help make this dream come true, the family has constructed a Web site at www.gogreenfoot.com. The site allows people to share what they are doing to live a “greener” life, get tips on what they can do to help and learn more about the project. You can buy your Greenfoot magnet on the site and storeowners will find information on how to order them for their stores.

We Can Solve It's Green Jobs Now events Sept 27th

This is courtesy of Matt, Lauren, Melissa and the rest of the online team at We Can Solve It:
Join tens of thousands of Americans of all backgrounds for an unprecedented National Day of Action calling for Green Jobs Now to Build the New Economy.

On Saturday, September 27th, the We Campaign, 1Sky, and Green for All will hold events across the country to send the message that it is time to Repower America with 100% clean electricity within 10 years and lift people out of poverty.
September 27th is only one week away, so sign up to host or attend an event today! It's easy and it'll be fun.

The solutions to our climate crisis are simple. Make the switch to clean, renewable energy, end our dependence on fossil fuels, and revitalize our economy. With energy costs and utility bills increasing unchecked, and millions of green collar jobs at stake, there is no time to waste.

We'll be there on September 27th to say it's time to Repower America with Green Jobs Now. Sign up today and join us!

Greenzer: New Green Goods in One Place, and Rated, too!

Greenzer is a new online guide that helps consumers shop for “green” products from online retailers selling eco-friendly items, including Patagonia, Zappos, eBags and GAIAM. 
 
The site also offers green lifestyle content, such as the Daily Greenz blog highlighting green products, services and ideas; buyer's guides to help shoppers find products that are good for them and the environment; and green face-offs, comparing conventional products with a greener alternative.
 
There are 10,000+ products currently offered on the site across ten categories, including apparel and accessories, beauty, pets, babies and kids, electronics, home and garden and travel.  Everything offered on Greenzer.com must meet a minimum green requirement, with select products listing a “Greenzer Score” number. 
 
The “Greenzer Score” uses a proprietary, patent-pending technology to aggregate and weigh a number of factors to determine a product’s “greenness” and give select products a “greenness number” (from 0-10).  The technology uses information generated by Greenzer, third parties like Climate Counts, and manufacturer-supplied information, and looks at a product's overall impact on the environment (i.e. Does it run on rechargeable batteries?), its green attributes (Is it made from recycled materials?  Does it use organically grown materials?), green labels/certifications and the manufacturer's overall green practices.

Next time you buy new (after you've exhausted the second-hand shops, Craigslist and Freecycle, mind you), try out Greenzer.

Dig N Swap: on-line clothes swapping

Dig N Swap is up and running! I get all kinds of emails from companies promoting their sustainable fashion lines, believe it or not. Usually I just delete them because I don't think spending $149 for a new hemp shirt is really in line with the "living simply" part of Conscious Consuming. If you want to spend that kind of money on one shirt because it's really what you value, have at it; just don't ask me to promote it for you, you know? The Dig N Swap concept is something different. It builds on the increasing popularity of the clothes swapping phenomenon and takes it to the next level--online. Clothes swapping parties have become all the rage as women look to renew their wardrobe without breaking the bank, but it's not that likely that your friends will have exactly what you're looking for in the size you'll need.

Dig N Swap looks to complement the real-world parties, which are as much about social interaction as they are about clothes, by creating an online community where fashion-conscious women can communicate, share insights, and trade clothes and accessories. Users list items they are looking to trade and accept or decline trade offers from other users. The founder, Li Qiu, has spent the last year talking to women about the features they would like to see in the website, and implementing the insights they have provided in an easy-to-use website which you can visit at www.dignswap.com.

Li Qui is extremely dedicated to sustainable development and to an eco-friendly lifestyle, and she is confident that Dig N Swap contributes modestly to alleviate the pressure on our planet's resources by recycling items that would otherwise be discarded, and by allowing users to acquire new items in an eco-friendly way that encourages reuse and discourages waste.

Green Service Provider Directory

The next time you are looking to remodel or renovate in the Boston area, visit the NEXUS Green Service Provider Directory (GSPD). This free resource enables building owners and renters, homeowners, or individuals to quickly find professional services related to green building, green living or sustainable development.

According to the NEXUS website, "The GSPD is not meant to certify or endorse green professionals. Rather, the purpose of the GSPD is to consolidate and publicize information about a service provider's background, such that the consumer is empowered to make an informed decision when selecting a service provider. The intent is to create a resource whereby consumers can evaluate a variety of companies across a range of experience and credentials."

Sounds like conscious consumerism to me!

News from the Green Roundtable

Many of you requested access to the resources from the event and so we posted the Walk Lightly presentation and a few additional resources on the NEXUS website. There are plenty more resources and some good places to look are:

The Low Impact Living Carbon Calculator to get you started: www.lowimpactliving.com/pages/getting-started/getting-started

The MA Climate Action Network and their Low Carbon Diet Program: www.massclimateaction.org

The Consumer’s Guide to Effective Environmental Choices written by Michael Brower & Warren Leon

For Green Building tips, materials and more visit Building Green: www.buildinggreen.com or

The Green Roundtable’s NEXUS Green Building Resource Center – www.nexusboston.com

For Massachusetts Renewable Energy Trust for solar, wind, hydro rebates – www.masstech.org

A list of all the state’s energy efficiency and renewable incentives/rebates available to you: http://www.dsireusa.org

We will be hosting another Walk Lightly – Low Impact Living presentation on October 23^rd at 6pm – spread the word.

Please note that NEXUS is now open for weekend hours on the second Saturday of each month. Please keep these events in mind as an opportunity to bring your family, colleagues and/or friends to learn more and spread the energy of all of our green efforts!

Green your home, green your life.

10 ^am Gain tools to green your home and life,

11 ^am Attend a class on greening your home,

12 ^pm Ask a green expert about greening your home, and

1 ^pm Tour our green office at NEXUS

When Second Saturday of every month, 10 am–2 pm

Where NEXUS, 38 Chauncy St., 7th Floor, Boston, MA 02111

How RSVP at www.nexusboston.com/space/events

Thanks again and please don’t hesitate to contact us with interesting information, comments and suggestions or stories about your greening successes and challenges.

Best,

Phoebe

Phoebe Beierle

Buy It Like You Mean It

Clay Ward from Buy It Like You Mean It sent along this guest blog post: ( Thanks, Clay...we love what you're doing!)

We are ready for a more personal civic engagement than has ever before been possible. We buy organic more than any other generation has and we are starting to buy local. We collaborate with strangers to make software, music, and wikipedia and we share the results freely. If we have not been present at protests or meetings, it is because we have been waiting for a more efficient, personal, and virtually supported civic engagement. In Buy It Like You Mean It we have created just such a tool for real systemic change that responds to and empowers the specific concerns of its users.

The daily process of spending money is the most fundamentally untapped means for individuals in our culture to act on their values. As socially responsible spending carves out newly profitable market shares, advertising is now more "green" than the products it promotes. Convenient access to centralized, trusted, and customized information will be required before consumers can realize the potential for civic engagement that the free market has only promised. Buy It Like You Mean It is beginning to provide that access in a user-centered format.

Buy It Like You Mean It now enables us to collaboratively describe the real world impacts of consumer products. We are starting by focusing on the chocolate industry, reviewing and rate the performance of the manufacturers, packagers, shippers, and retailers that produce chocolate products. Each company's performance is further broken down so that reviews are linked to consumer interest categories like climate change contribution, human rights, or free market policies.

Soon shoppers will be able to send us text messages and emails containing a chocolate product's bar code. Our system will use the stated interests of the shopper to assign the product a score between 1 (very bad) to 9 (very good). Within seconds the shoppers will receive a reply listing the product's score and a list of suggested alternatives.

In this way we hope to:

1. Allow consumers to buy products that support their own unique values.

2. Assist companies in tracking the practices and reputations of links in their supply chain.

3. Reward positive incremental change as companies experiment with socially responsible product lines and subsidiaries.

Buying from an independent business just got easier

Well I know a lot of you already support locally owned, independent businesses. But what if you travel somewhere and want to find an independent coffee shop? Or if you have moved and aren't sure where to find an independent bookseller? Delocator.net was launched with the intention of helping people locate precisely these locally owned, independent businesses across the country (and in Canada and the UK, thanks to the web-meme component of Delocator). There are over 5000 entries in the database so far, and anyone can submit their favorite local and indpendent book stores, coffee houses, and movie theaters in any US zip code. I checked out Boulder and found a list of 25 locally owned coffee houses in my area.

Become active on Delocator.net or Delocator.Mapyourcity.Net and help promote independent businesses across the country!

Green Patriot Posters

If you are an artist or designer, why not try your hand at developing a "Green Patriot" poster to help build awareness about what ordinary people can do to help fight climate change? The Canary Project and its partners are running a campaign to commission poster designs from leading firms and designers and also to solicit other designs through a national competition, beginning in September. You can enter on-line and also vote on the submissions of other artists and designers. Visit the Green Patriot Poster website for more details about the poster competition, or to take action in your community.

Women’s Garden Cycles Bike Tour

Woah! Check out these three awesome women who biked from D.C. to Montreal to raise awareness about local foods. Their story is being turned into a movie as we speak. For now, check out their blog:
Women’s Garden Cycles Bike Tour

FLOW - Our Water Crisis on the Big Screen

From the Center for a New American Dream:

"FLOW: For the Love of Water", a feature-length documentary directed by Irena Salina, will give you even more reasons to Break the Bottled Water Habit as it traces the story behind mankind's most precious resource: water.

Featuring interviews with scientists and activists who reveal the building global water crisis, the film, a Special Selection at the 2008 Film Festival, introduces many of the governmental and corporate forces behind the use of water resources that are quietly drying up. By making the connections between the corporate structure that has come to control humanity's water supply around the world the film begs the question "Can anyone really own water?"

This documentary and its unforgettable message are coming to locations around the country over the next several months.

Tracey Smith's "The Book of Rubbish Ideas"

Our friend and collaborator Tracey Smith, founder of the UK's National Downshifting Week (renamed International Downshifting Week in 2008), has recently published a book called The Book of Rubbish Ideas. Congratulations, Tracey!!! She also has a great website dedicated to the ideas in the book. Here is a word from her publicist:

Tracey Smith takes you through each and every room in your house and outdoor spaces in this easy reference guide to reducing household waste. From bedroom to bathroom and study to shed, The Book of Rubbish Ideas has a host of tried, tested and inexpensive ideas for cutting through the clutter to reveal a greener and simpler way of life.

Whether you donate your read magazines to the local surgery or start washing your clothes with eco balls, set up a neighbourhood car share for the weekly trip to the shops or make your own natural yoghurt, the book is packed with small changes to make a big difference; to your lifestyle and the environment.

By positively embracing the idea of living with less you can slow down, green up and save money along the way.

Eco-friendly celebs including BBC presenters Penney Poyzer and Brigit Strawbridge (It’s Not Easy Being Green), pop star turned gardener Kim Wilde and top designer Wayne Hemingway give their top green tips. The book is interspersed with sample letters that readers can use to get active with local authorities, nearby shops, the village school and enthuse friends and neighbours.

Tracey Smith is the founder of International Downshifting Week which encourages people to slow down and embrace a simpler and greener way of life (www.downshiftingweek.com). She is a writer and broadcaster on the subject and presents the radio show Slow Down and Green Up. Her goal is to normalise sustainable living and take the freaky out of eco; she was shortlisted for the ITV Eco Hero Award. Tracey is a Trustee for the National Association for Children of Alcoholics.

Backyard Chickens

I have been toying with the idea of backyard chickens for a while now, and found this great article on EcoSpace about building a chicken trailer. The concept reminds me of Joel Salatin's method of rotating chickens through his property as described in The Omnivore's Dilemma. My cousin has chickens and just self-harvested them for the first time this summer...ewww!!! Luckily I don't eat meat so I wouldn't have to butcher my chickens; even though the thought of doing it makes my stomach turn, I applaud her for dealing with her own meat consumption. If more people did this there would be far fewer meat eaters, and those that did eat meat would eat it less often. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recently called for a reduction of personal meat consumption as one of the top things people can do to affect climate change. While we've known that for a while, it's even more powerful coming from such a well respected group of scientists.

If raising backyard chickens isn't your idea of a good time, perhaps you'd consider having an "all-vegetarian" potluck with your friends or family in honor of World Vegetarian Day in October? You can show people that vegetarian food is delicious, and talk about climate change as one of the big reasons to reduce meat consumption. Maybe you could even inspire yourself or your guests to take the 30 Day Veg Pledge!

International Coastal Clean Up

Check out this video about The Ocean Conservancy's International Coastal Clean Up on September 20th. If you have been meaning to make some time for volunteering but can't commit to a regular gig, this is a fantastic one-day opportunity to organize some friends or family members to make a difference:

Wikipedia founder starts Wikia Green

Wikia Green brings together volunteers, experts, existing authorities and content to provide a fresh perspective on environmental issues and sustainable practices

Wikia, Inc., the leading provider of community resources for building and organizing free information on every topic, today announced the formal launch of Wikia Green— a project to build a community generated online resource that is home to the best information about green topics and issues. Based on the wiki platform, Wikia Green is an ever-evolving, community-focused repository of content that can be instantly molded or changed by anyone to reflect the most current topics of interest and latest information in the green arena.

"Today we are formally inviting anyone who is interested and knowledgeable about ecological issues to join us in creating something that we hope will become a valuable resource for society," said Jimmy Wales, Co-founder and Chairman of the board, Wikia, Inc. "As the whole notion of 'going green' has exploded, so too has the volume of related information floating around out there on the Internet. It has come to a point where, for the average person looking for tips on how to lead a more sustainable lifestyle, it can be somewhat difficult to know where to start and Wikia Green is looking to be just that place."

Wikia Green strives to make important ecological information accessible to everyone who seeks it and the site will initially focus on six main content areas, including:
• How To guides, which provide step-by-step details on how to implement greener practices into your life or business
• Go Local, where towns, cities and states can share details on how acting local can contribute to reduce global carbon emissions
• The Green Movement, where all the individuals and organizations involved in efforts to protect the environment are being identified—including organizations, campaigns, activist's, celebrities, political parties and more
• Sustainable Living, where articles are being written about how to reduce your carbon footprint, how to reuse and recycle, etc.
• Environmental issues such as current emissions problems, global warming, local and global environmental politics
• Green science and technology, where users are discussing and documenting information about renewable energy sources, hybrid vehicles, green computing, and other technical things that can contribute to reduce fossil fuel dependence and carbon emissions

To learn more or to become a member of the Wikia Green community, please visit: http://green.wikia.com.

About Wikia, Inc.
Since Wikia's launch in November 2004, more than 1 million articles on 6,000 topics have been created and edited by over 350,000 registered users in 70 languages and attracts over 18mm unique visitors a month.

Wikia enables groups to share information, news, stories, media and opinions that fall outside the scope of an encyclopedia. Jimmy Wales and Angela Beesley launched Wikia to provide community-based wikis inspired by the model of Wikipedia -- the free, open source encyclopedia founded by Jimmy Wales. Please note, however, that Wikia is an independently operated company and therefore Wikia and all of Wikia's subsequent projects, including the Wikia Search project, are in no way related to Wikipedia.org or The Wikimedia Foundation.

Wikia is committed to openness, inviting anyone to contribute web content. Authors retain their own copyrights and allow others to freely reuse their content under a variety of GNU and Creative Commons Licenses, allowing widespread distribution of knowledge and ideas.

Boston event: The Global Food Crisis: A Rural Roundtable

The Global Food Crisis: A Rural Roundtable
Friday, September 12
10 am-1 pm

Mezzanine Conference Room, Johnson Building
Boston Public Library at 700 Boylston St

The Rural Development Leadership Network (RDLN), a national multicultural social change organization that supports leadership development in poor rural areas, will gather in Boston for a "Rural Roundtable" on the world food crisis and how the work of U.S. grassroots leaders in the food system relates to the global situation.

Dr. Daniel Gustafson, Director of the Liaison Office for North America of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), will open with a presentation on the scope of the current world food crisis. He has worked in Brazil, Bhutan, Mozambique, Kenya, India and other countries. Members of the RDLN Network, who include small farmers, farmworkers, fishers, entrepreneurs, and those concerned with diet and health, will speak from the community point of view.

UNA-GB serves as a resource for the citizens of the Greater Boston area on the broad agenda of critical global issues addressed by the United Nations, including peacekeeping, human rights, humanitarian relief, economic development, and education. A membership organization founded more than 50 years ago, UNA-GB is a leading chapter of UNA-USA, the largest grassroots foreign policy organization in the United States.

Purchisil -- buy it today!

Here's a great video from one of my friends at the Yale Forestry School. It's a fun way to talk about consumerism while getting the point across too. Enjoy!

The Green Guide

The digital edition of National Geographic's Green Guide is now available. Visit their website for great articles on greening your child's school, buying eco friendly school supplies, how to make the most of late season peaches, and food storage solutions that work in the microwave.

World of Good opens partnership with eBay

Courtesy of Lauren Stower at WorldofGood.com Outreach:

I’m very excited to let you in on some exciting news: we have unveiled WorldofGood.com by eBay, the brand new ethical marketplace that brings thousands of ethical products from hundreds of sellers together — all on onetrusted platform!

http://www.world-of-good.com/marketplace

At last, consumers who care can easily align their purchases with their values, casting each dollar like a vote for change— whether they’re buying sweatshop-free, animal friendly, or environmentally sustainable products.

So share the good news with conscious consumers like your readership—and help us inspire millions more across the country to put their purchasing power where their heart is!

And an aside from yours truly: The best purchase for the environment is not to buy at all, and the second best is to buy used. If you need something, first check out Freecycle, Craig's List, yard sales, or your local second-hand shop. There are things we must buy new from time to time, and World of Good is a nice rescource for this second tier of shopping.