Here are 5 steps every eco-friendly person should have under their belt, are significant starting points for those getting into it, and can have the biggest impact on reducing your individual impact on the environment. 1. Reusable Water bottle All of the plastic, paper and disposable cups you will save with 1 reusable bottle you take everywhere. Not just for …
Green nPower Personal Energy Generator
Now you can be your own recharging station to all of your USB enabled devices. Cell phones, iPods, Kindles, GPS units, and just about any other hand-held electronic device can be charged by this renewable energy source. A kinetic energy generator based on a wave energy converter, the nPower PEG (Personal Energy Generator) can go with you anywhere and will …
Sustainable and Eco-Friendly Finds
Here are some of my recent favorite finds, reader suggestions and sustainable or eco-friendly finds. Enjoy! Grain, a local (Seattle) design consultancy and studio has developed a really cool Eco-friendly DIY shower curtain. Based on their popular Ty recyclable shower curtain, the Ty D.I.Y. Edition includes a choice of blue, green or black permanent marker for your own personalized design. …
Stylish Sustainable Furniture in Tel Aviv – Ubico Design Studio
With so much trash and waste in the world, it’s great to see individuals like Ori Ben-Zvi turning into something beautiful and useful. With stylish and thought provoking designs, Ubico Design Studio has been converting reclaimed materials into works of functional art since February of 2008. Materials are collected from dumpsters, renovations works and the streets of Tel Aviv, Israel …
Design Within Reach Eco Design Water Filter
I do despise bottled water, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to drink artesian spring water. Lucky I came across this beautiful and elegant water pitcher by Design Within Reach (DWR). I do own a Pur water filter pitcher, but I have never liked all that plastic (and large disposable plastic water filters). DWR fills this need beautifully with …
Shoes that Biodegrade, even in a Landfill?
I was shocked, just as you might be after my last article on how long things take to biodegrade. It seems to be biodegrade month here on The Chic Ecologist, so I am very happy to be reporting on a company that has developed a way to allow their product to biodegrade in a non-compost environment – particularly a landfill. …
Verterra Sustainable Disposable Dinnerware Plates
I know it sounds like a complete oxymoron, but these picnic plates are both disposable and truly sustainable. Best when composted (as things don’t biodegrade in a landfill) to be truly sustainable cradle to cradle compliant, these sturdy plates are as much at home on your fancy dining room table as they are in the backyard. They feel as if …
How Long Does it Take to Biodegrade?
I talk a lot about biodegradable items, biodegradable soaps, and even biodegradable diaper services, but what does ‘biodegrade’ even mean? In our effort to keep from burying ourselves in trash and waste since we are still very much a ‘disposable’ society, how can we reduce our impacts (other than the obvious re-use of materials?) By making everything biodegradable! Bio-degradation happens …
Eco-Friendly Friday – Sustainable Sushi n Rice + Tshirts
If you are following me on Twitter, you probably already have seen many of these, so start following @chicecologist for up-to-the-minute eco-friendly updates from The Chic Ecologist. Hope you are having a great Friday, and hopefully this will make it even better! Sustainable Sushi If you love sushi like I do, then you should check out Seafood Watch’s sustainable seafood …
5 Seemingly Gross Ways to Go Green
1. Don’t use toilet seat covers Strange as it may sound, but these wafer-thin little pieces of paper do nothing for your touche. While they give you a feel-good barrier between you and a public toilet, it is basically only that. According to Dr. Sherry Marts, scientific director of the Society for Women’s Health Research, “It’s OK to sit down. …