All photos from Vice Magazine

I’ll admit it, I am an avid Facebook user. Some even may call it chronic. This morning I boldly added a pop cultural question to my current status. Basically I was thinking about “Hipsters” and how mainstream the whole idea of anti-mainstream has become.  What will be the next big cultural fashion overhaul in the dawning age of Obamaism?

I left it open for debate thinking “ah no one will reply it’s not really that important…” and moved on with my day. A little while later I received a few comments, I wrote back and then the conversation just blew up. Read the rest

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I am always on the lookout for simple Read the rest

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Having discovered in early August that the (at least) two year old fridge I’d inherited when I moved into ‘Hotelephant’ was the most inefficient thing in my slowly-greening home, I promptly sold it. Read the rest

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Processed food has a bad reputation, thanks to Twinkies and Spam. So it’s refreshing to see a whole new crop of food bars that are easy and energizing, but also nutritious. Bobo’s Oat Bars walk the middle path on the continuum between cookie (tasty, not so healthy) and powerbar (packed with athletic-inducing nutrients, not so tasty). Small and square, they’re a perfect fit for the side pocket of your Camelback, school lunchboxes, or your car glove compartment. Here’s how Bobo’s rates on the questions most vital to foodbar lovers everywhere: Read the rest

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I went to the Grand Opening VIP party at Ellie’s the other night (full blog coming as soon as I get photos)—saw much of Boulder’s who’s who of natural products and eco entrepreneur world—including my ol’young buddy Davidson Lewis  Read the rest

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I’m hooked on Planet Green’s Alter Eco, but why do they have to drive around in a car.  Yes it’s hybrid, but it is a suburban.  I hold Alter Eco to a higher standard and I don’t feel so good about this.  Actually, it irritates me a lot.  Alter eco rides around in a Chevy Suburban, why?

Does it drive you crazy?  Let me Read the rest

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With thanks for the tip to Alex King.

From today’s Huffington Post:

Neil Young, activist (Bridge School, Farm Aid) rock legend, has assembled a team that is in the process of transforming his gargantuan 1959 Lincoln Continental from a gas guzzler into a showcase for green technology and sustainability. The car will be entered into the Automotive X Prize that offers a $10 Read the rest

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If you bike or walk around West Boulder, you may have noticed this new home built in the past year. Named the Next West House, it is a LEED Platinum, Net Zero Carbon residence. Most of the extreme eco homes of late are very modern aka Dwell Mag style, but this home fits in seamlessly with it’s historic Mapleton Hill neighborhood.  Developed by the Zero Carbon Initiative, this home actually creates more power than it uses and was thoughtfully created to include the best eco options available including: Read the rest

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Just because this holiday revolves around big portions of turkey and stuffing doesn’t mean you have to lose all hope in helping out the environment. Thanksgiving is a celebration of coming together and enjoying what Mother Earth has to offer us.  Start this year by making your holiday special, make it an eco-friendly Thanksgiving. You can feel fat and jolly at the end of your Thanksgiving and also feel Read the rest

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 Remember back in 2006 when Boulder voters approved the Climate Action Plan (CAP) and it’s accompanying carbon tax? Neither do I, but it sounds like something we would do. Well, here is a concrete opportunity to take advantage of our tax dollars at work. Discounted (actually subsidized) prices are available until the funds run out at McGuckins on the following eco products:

• Compact flourescent light bulbs - for as little as a buck each 

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photos courtesy of Miranda Pearl

I was at the Sustainable Style Show in Toronto this past weekend. It was a great turn out and I had a lot of fun meeting all the vendors and hearing their stories. I also got to attend the Green Gala an ultra chic event showcasing (sustainable) couture from some of Canada’s freshest designers but more on that next blog…

I got to talk to Kealan, a charming and very hip Torontonian who owns 69 Vintage, a mini vintage store chain and Sonja from Thieves, the designer of the futuristic fashion luxury brand. The girls from Preloved were cool too (I didn’t get to meet the boy). They showed some cute recycled sweaters this time, one of their most popular items. They deal in hundreds of pounds of old used clothing, cut them up with innovative seasonal patterns and create completely new garments. They now get huge orders from some grand scale boutique clothing chains such as Urban Outfitters and Anthropology. Read the rest

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Just a few days after writing about my experience at Naturally Boulder Days, I had the opportunity to meet one of Boulder, Colorado’s most dazzling entrepreneurs, Ms. Sandja Brügmann. In my article, I had shared how I learned that in the Boulder community, there is always someone to have coffee with, and not three days later, I had an invitation from Sandja, a woman who owns her own public relations, marketing and merchandising company. Read the rest

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FYI, post-yoga the Read the rest

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Faced with headlines announcing another bankruptcy, more foreclosures, images of stockbrokers weeping in the fetal position while they watch the market plunge, it seems implausible that some businesses are actually doing well in this economy. The LOHAS (we’ll give you a piece of tofu if you can guess what it stands for) industry, for the most part, has remained steady, even as Americans reel in their spending. Boulder-based Eco-Products, famous for their corn-based compostable drinking cups, and now their Ellie’s Eco Home Store, is one example of a company that is actually growing, and at an exponential rate. The company’s sales revenues were just (just?) five million in 2006, while projected numbers for 2009 reach over 100 million. In August, Eco-Products earned a spot on Inc. Magazine’s “Inc. 5000,” celebrating the fastest growing companies in America.

It hasn’t always been this way. Back in the ‘90s, when most dot com start-ups were raking in billions overnight, Steve Savage and his father, Kent, slowly grew their company for almost 17 years before experiencing the skyrocketing growth of the last three. It took them five years before Read the rest

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Via Ashley Goodspeed: Read the rest

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In wearing KAYU sunglasses, you don’t need to make an appearance on ecorazzi to feel like an eco-minded star. Designer Jamie Lim’s shades are created with sustainability and social awareness in mind. The bold design makes them sure conversation starters, so be ready to share the benefits of a triple bottom line business, all while looking like you could roll with Adrian Grenier. Read the rest

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In Brooklyn, I lived across the street from a 24-hour natural products bodega (boy was I spoiled). I’d stop by in between regular trips to the Park Slope Food Coop, which banned plastic bags this summer. Everyone who worked at the corner store knew me as their neighbor and that I’d never take a plastic bag, but still as they were ringing me up, almost always their hands, like a reflex, would reach for the bag. And that is so the culture of the city. Read the rest

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My excitement for snow fun increases more and more by every degree the temperature drops.  I have been a snowboarder for years, and I can’t wait to hit the slopes, but it wasn’t until recently that I started to realize the impact my day up to the mountains had on the environment.  Driving from Boulder to the mountains is an easy getaway, but that 400 miles round trip drive, as well as the snow making and energy used by the mountain resorts have a bigger impact than one would think.

Here are some tips to green your weekend getaways in the mountains:

First, it is important to look into your resort choice as well as your snow gear.  You can research a resort that runs all their operations on wind energy.  And check out snowboards and skis designed with sustainable materials.

Lodging: A typical mountain resort uses Read the rest

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Check out Dave Rogers’ take on the same event in a previous post, complete with photo slideshow by Rusty Ralston.

Recently I was living in New York City, where I supported the national product launch of a mission-driven business called Kopali Organics. When I realized it was time to get out of the city and head to a place where I felt like I could have a better quality of life, Boulder was at the top of my list. I wasn’t quite sure if I wanted to work for a natural foods company again, but being at the epicenter of the LOHAS market and around entrepreneurs and neighbors with similar values was enticing. I heard it was quite sunny most days of the year. I had a friend with a dog named Redford. I was sold. Having moved to Boulder just about two months ago, I was excited of the timing of Naturally Boulder Days and learning more about just what makes Boulder such a great climate for innovation. Read the rest

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Now more than ever, it is imperative that we pass down traditions of respect for the environment and other cultures to our children. The Internet is a double-edged sword in that it opens up worlds of possibilities. On one hand, children can be exposed to more mind-opening ideas on sites like elephantjournal.com. On the other, children have a good chance at becoming desensitized to the plight of others through the strange isolation and anonymity that the Internet can bring. Respect is the core of the Fair Trade movement and the effects Read the rest

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