Green Daily

It's a big week in New York City! Yesterday we had Hugh Jackman kicking off Climate Week NY°C. Today marks the start of the fifth annual Clinton Global Initiative meeting, which will focus on urgent global issues. Finance and climate will be at the top of the focus list, which also includes education and health.

The meeting is a who's-who of global leaders. President Obama is addressing the opening session, and more than 60 current and former Heads of State will attend alongside Hilary Clinton, Kofi Annan and Al Gore. The CEOs of major corporations like General Electric, Dow Chemical, ExxonMobil, and JP Morgan Chase will also be there.

And what green-global-minded gathering is complete without celebrities like Demi Moore, Matt Damon and Barbra Streisand? Oddly enough, Pam Anderson and PETA are not on the invitee list, but you know Angelina Jolie totally plans to crash -- she wouldn't miss an event like this!

Did Gisele just become the sexiest climate crusader on the planet? Could rebel forces have defeated the Empire forces if they relied on hippie tactics? How is global warming helping the world's secret agents? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all the latest green news and tips.

Gisele Uses Hotness to Fight Global Warming The expectant mother (and part-time cartoon eco-superhero) became an official Goodwill Ambassador for the environment today in NYC. Gisele will be exploiting her star power to make sure the planet is safe for her and Tom Brady's super baby.

What if Star Wars Was Written by Eco-Hippies? This awesome video imagines a not-so-thrilling "Star Wars: A New Hope" in which the rebels use non-violent civil disobedience to thwart the emperor's plans to destroy planets haphazardly. Can boycotts, hunger strikes, and pie throwing vanquish Vader?

Advice on Finding Green Advice Perhaps the greatest challenge for anyone who wants an eco-friendly lifestyle is finding reliable, accurate information on what techniques are actually worth their carbon savings. Grist's advice guru gives you some tips on mining through the green "data."

Melting Icecaps Expose Dr. Evil's Secret Lair If you're the type who always looks for the silver lining, you'll be happy to know that the fictitious hideouts of fictitious evil masterminds are being exposed by melting ice sheets, according to The Onion. Even evil geniuses didn't anticipate how quickly their ice lairs would thaw.

Peeing On Your Tomato Plants: Yea or Nay? Although researchers in Finland have found that urine is an excellent fertilizer for tomato plants, (and that said tomatoes are both high in protein and fit for consumption) peeing on something you plan to eat just seems wrong ... it's like eating in the bathroom.

Green in a Flash:

• What's the most efficient use of solar power?
• Did you catch Drew Barrymore in Jay Leno's Green Car Challenge?
• Neon-colored solar panels need no direct sunlight and will make your roof look like 1992 threw up on it.

The UN Climate Conference in Copenhagen (COP15) is less than three months away. This week in New York City, government and business leaders from around the world are gathering for meetings and events to demonstrate their support for strong action on climate change at COP15: Climate Week NY°C.

2008 Sexiest Man Alive and Global Ambassador for humanitarian organization World Vision Hugh Jackman will be in attendance to kick off Climate Week NY°C and "speak on behalf of the billion people in developing countries who will be the hardest hit by changing weather patterns, by the droughts and floods that destroy their crops and threaten their food security."

I think seeing Hugh Jackman is reason enough to show up, but for the more strictly climate-issue-minded, there will be a dizzying array of NY°C events from which to choose, including:

Do First Ladies get a discount at the White House Farmers Market? Are you going to the inaugural NYC Climate Week? Why are people always doing dramatic stuff to the electric car? Give it a little time to recover, sheesh. Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all the latest green news and tips.

White House Farmers Market: Day One The farmers market on Vermont Ave. (right across from the White House) opened its gates yesterday and the first customer was, quite appropriately, was the First Lady Michelle Obama. Despite rainy and cool conditions, the market was packed for the grand opening.

Hugh Jackman Gives a Boost to NYC Climate Week Monday marks the launch of NYC Climate Week, and to make sure the event is well-attended (by throngs of swooning women), organizers have booked People Magazine's "Sexiest Man Alive" -- who just also happens to be an eco-warrior.

Do You Strive to Green Your Gadget Print? Last week marked the launch of a newer, more eco-friendly iPod Nano. Last month it was Samsung's Reclaim. Are you rushing out to upgrade to a handier, energy-efficient model? Or are you trying to squeeze all the life out of your old gadgets?

Uh, Oh: Someone Stole the Electric Car Yup, the legacy of "Who Killed the Electric Car" is so gargantuan that it's inspired its own satiric B-movie. "Who Stole the Electric Car" isn't a documentary, or a mockumentary, it's a straight up comedy about a dude who steals an electric car to impress his hippie girlfriend.

BBC Global Warming Skeptic Gets Steamy Surprise Oh crap! The host of BBC Two's "Top Gear" was greeted by a steamy pile of horse manure when he arrived home yesterday. It was left there by environmental activists, protesting his jaded attitude towards climate change. How persuasive! That oughta change his mind ...

Green in a Flash:

• SF is considering a soda tax. But what about organic soda?
  
• Check out this house made from reused shipping containers.
• Critics say the First Lady's visit to the farmers market left a huge carbon footprint.

Summer is over, vacations finished, and it's back to the daily drudgery of working long weeks -- but PETA has a little something special to get your weekend off to a bangin' start: Pam Anderson as a sexy TSA agent!

Yeah. Like at the airport! Only instead of keeping people from sneaking on bombs, or box cutters, Pammie keeps them from bringing fur or leather on board.

The campaign is called "Cruelty Doesn't Fly", and wow, it took some serious nerve to launch it so close to the anniversary of September 11th. But PETA is nothing if not shockingly inappropriate -- hey, they're trying to save bunnies! And goats! This is frickin' serious, folks.

Does David Duchovny seem like a guy who knows what's up in the garden? Is compostable plastic all it's greenwashed up to be? Do you scoop your dog's poop religiously, rain or shine? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on poop scooping, as well as all the latest green news and tips.

David Duchovny: Organic Gardener Extraodinaire The "Californication" star is putting his skills to the test on a completely unrelated show this weekend: "Extreme Home Makeover." Duchovny is helping the EHM team put the finishing touches on a green home makeover by lending a hand in the organic garden.

Compostable Plastic: Yea or Nay? Sure, it makes you feel all warm inside when that cup you're sipping from is stamped "compostable," but what does that really mean? Are you going to take it home and throw it in your hydrolyzing compost bin? If not, might be better to go recyclable.

SF Airport Gets Carbon Offset Kiosks Buying carbon offsets has never been easier for those flying out of SFO ... or if you have a layover there. As of today, San Francisco International Airport is home to the world's first carbon offset kiosks. Buy a paper, offset your travel, and then board your flight. It's that easy.

Is Your Pet's Poop Killing Orcas? A bag of fresh dog poop may not qualify as a fashion accessory, but it does express something about you: You care about other people's shoes and also about whales. A coalition in Seattle is raising awareness about the glut of dog crap that washes into Puget Sound.

A Website Dedicated to Sustainable Beer! For those of us who like sustainably brewed beer (which I'm assuming is a lot of us) there's a whole website dedicated to the delicious, green suds. SustainaBrew keeps tabs on all sorts of sustainable micro breweries, so you can kick back and enjoy the brews.

Green in a Flash:

• Good news! The ozone hole shrank in 2009.
• "The Cove" is going to hit festivals, maybe even theaters, in Japan.
• According to the White House, cap and trade would cost US households $1,761 a year. Ouch.
  

One of my favorite things is when big companies finally see the "Green Light" (and by green I mean eco-friendly and potential money-makers) of environmentally responsible products. Sponge king 3M, though its Scotch Brite brand, has clearly picked up on the whole, "Oh, people want sustainably-produced versions of this stuff!" concept. Hooray!

Like all good Green Warriors, when I first heard about the Greener Clean line I was suitably skeptical and suspicious of 3M greenwashing, just because their products use so many chemicals. I mean, there's a picture of a guy with a blow torch and a protective gas mask on their products page!

Very intelligently, they got the new line of Scotch Brite Greener Clean into the hands of bloggers at the BlogHer Conference, by way of the Room 704 gift bags. I got several samples, including scrubbers, sponges and wipes, all made from natural, sustainable, recycled and recyclable materials.

Wanna watch the only safe-for-work porno on the internet? Who would win in a battle royale: The Muppets or Big Oil? Would you pay 40 times as much for a bulb that lasts 40 times as long? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all the latest green news and tips.

Rossellini's Green Porno 3 Launches Online For those of you with an insatiable urge to learn about how other animals do it, you're in luck. Isabella Rossellini's "Green Porno: Season 3" is now available to copulate with your web browser on the Sundance Channel's website.

The Muppets Take on Big Oil Word on the street has it that the next Muppets movie will pit Kermit and the gang against an oil tycoon in a battle over the fate of a cherished old theater that sits on a large pocket of oil. What kind of dirty tricks will the tycoon pull? Haven't they ever heard of slant drilling?

A LEED Certified White House? Small steps have been made to green the White House over the years (e.g. George W. Bush installed a photovoltaic system and solar powered water heaters). Now, the Obamas want to take it a step further -- LEED Certification. It's going to be a major undertaking.

How to Break the Ice with Climate Change Deniers Considering that certain regions of the US are calling 2009 "the year without a summer" (though not where I live),the cooler-than-average summer has invigorated climate change naysayers. Here's some info to help explain the difference between climate and weather.

A Light Bulb That Lasts Two Decades Would you pay more (a lot more) for an LED bulb that's not only super efficient, but you only have to change it every 20 years? Panasonic hopes so. Their new EverLed bulbs go on sale in Japan next month for $40 a pop. The do have 40x the lifespan of an incandescent, however.

Green in a Flash:

• Pamela Anderson's green fashion launch has been pushed back.
• The new CAFE standards have been unveiled: 35.5 mpg by 2016.
• Burger King treated customers to a drive-thru light show powered by their own gas-guzzlers.

My friend Annie Scott wrote a great post for our sister site Gadling about the many eco-initiatives of luxury hotel titan, Ritz-Carlton. It was serendipitous timing. I had just done a review of the Ritz-Carlton property in Half Moon Bay and heard about their "Green Initiative" in this ecologically fragile area. Just days later, my GreenDaily colleague Kristin Seymour sent me information about the Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach receiving bronze-level Green Seal Certification.

Ritz-Carlton, with a name already synonymous with luxury and service, is officially becoming an eco-leader in the hotel industry!

While in Jamaica to learn more about event services offered by the Ritz-Carlton, Annie discovered, almost by chance, several green packages, including Giveback Getaways, Meaningful Meetings, A Vow to Help Others and VolunTeaming. She also heard about, and then researched Community Footprints, which is the Ritz-Carlton's admirable and successful local community involvement program.

Need a new tune to add to your global warming playlist? Who are the greatest per capita polluters on the planet? Is your cell phone trying to kill you? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all the latest green news and tips.

Rock Stars of the World Unite to Fight Global Warming Thanks to the Global Humanitarian Forum, 55 rockers including Duran Duran and Scorpions have all thrown together to rock a Band Aid-ish version of Midnight Oil's "Beds'r Burning." Look for a cheesy in-studio music video of each artist laying down their tracks.

All Liquids Now Come in a Box First, it was juice. Then came wine. Now a companies like Tetra Pak are boxing up everything from soup to water to even shelf stable milk -- based on the fact that the box is both cheaper to ship and reduces landfill waste. Are you on board with boxed water? Boxed beer?

The Top 5 Most Polluting Countries Congratulations, America, we're not #1. Australia has overtaken us as the largest per capita polluter on planet earth. Americans are second overall, with Canada, the Netherlands and Saudi Arabia rounding out the Top 5 (or Bottom 5, depending on how you look at it).

Is Your Cell Phone Frying Your Brain? For those of use who live life with a mobile device glued to our heads, microwaving our gray matter is an ever-present lifestyle risk. Are you talking on a radiation-spewing phone of death? The Environmental Working Group has ranked 1,000 cell phones by radiation levels.

It's Bike Buying Season Not only is the cooler fall weather going to make it possible to ride to the store without getting drenched in sweat, but it's also model year closeout time. Bike shops may not run those obnoxious dealership commercials, but they do make some hot deals on last year's wheels.

Green in a Flash:

• Japan wants US forces stationed in their country to clean up their act.
• Michael Pollan says health care reform is useless without food reform.
• What's an appropriate memorial for the King of Pop? A dance floor powered by a gold-plated wind turbine, maybe?

Last week I encouraged you to go see "No Impact Man", the documentary about environmentalist Colin Beavan's efforts, with his family, to live for a year impact-free, in New York City. In the film and companion book, "No Impact Man," Colin shares the story of the experiment that he, his wife Michelle and their two-year-old daughter, Isabella, conducted over the course of a year.

They reduced their trash to zero, ate only food grown within 250 miles of their home, (which meant giving up coffee -- eek!), and stopped using electricity, which meant dealing with nine flights of stairs to get in or out of their 9th floor apartment every day (double eek!). Their story is funny, and thought-provoking, and manages to make the idea of giving up toilet paper and electricity, in the middle of New York City, see accessible -- even possible.

I had a chance to meet Colin on the press tour for "No Impact Man," along with Beth Terry from Fake Plastic Fish. We got to ask some follow up questions about the No Impact Man experiment, plus get Colin's first-hand advice on living impact-free.

Patrick Swayze died today at the age of 57 after a 20 month battle with pancreatic cancer.

Maybe you knew him best as the misunderstood dancer Johnny Castle in "Dirty Dancing." Or perhaps your favorite memories of him are from the amazing fight scenes in "Road House." We all have our favorite Swayze moments, and it's with a heavy heart that we say good-bye to the screen icon and one-time "Sexiest Man Alive".

Not only did he have a major impact on cinema, but he was a conservationist as well. While filming "King Solomon's Mines" in South Africa, he was moved by the people and animals in the African bush.

"Out of this experience was born an idea for a global conservation documentary series that is turning huge," Swayze told the LA Times in 2004. "I've got some of the leading paleoanthropological scientists in the world coming on my team, and award-winning wildlife documentarians."

Looking for a farmer's market somewhere in the vicinity of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.? How is Edward Norton going to save the Kenyan wilderness in running shorts? Are your eco-friendly cleaning products really making a difference? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all the latest green news and tips.

White House Farmer's Market: Go for Launch! A few months ago, who'd have that the White House would get involved with a local food movement. A group called Fresh Farm Markets won approval for a farmer's market on Vermont Ave. The administration's role appears to be pretty limited (bigger fish to fry).

Edward Norton Runs for Conservation The latest celebrity to tackle the grueling NYC Marathon for the planet, Ed is running to benefit the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust -- a group that protects the grasslands of western Kenya. Is he up to it? He's up to about 15 miles so far.

A Clock That Harnesses Dirt Power Clocks that utilize renewable energy are not exactly new (remember those watches you have to wind?). Still, not too many tickers can use your houseplants as batteries. This eco-chic timepiece is made from sustainable bamboo and gets its power from moist soil.

Chicken Sex: What You Need to Know Is eating an egg the same thing as killing a chicken? For vegetarians out there who are simply averse to the thought of killing animals for food, the question remains: Is a carton of eggs really a carton of potential baby chicks? Grist has the answer.

How Green Are Method Cleaning Supplies? Afraid that you've been taken by advertising campaigns that convinced you to buy a bunch of greenwashed cleaning supplies. Well, if you stocked your cupboard with Method products, pat yourself on the back. They've earned their street cred.

Green in a Flash:

• It ain't paint; it's zero-VOC color liquid by Bungaloo.
• The breakdown of all the energy we waste in the US.
• The EPA says pending mountaintop-removal permits would violate the Clean Water Act.

The internets have been abuzz with outrage at stainless steel aluminum* waterbottle manufacturer Sigg. In an effort to avoid the BPA present in plastic bottles, many people picked the metal Sigg water bottle. Now we know that the liner of some those bottles contained "trace amounts" of BPA, which totally defeats the purpose of using a Sigg in the first place.

Steve Wasik, CEO of Sigg, has been abject in his apologies, including two letters posted on the Sigg site. They're also offering to voluntarily exchange bottles with the BPA liner, although the consumer has to pay shipping costs.

Meanwhile, competitor Camelbak is looking pretty good. They offer several versions of BPA-free bottles, including a stainless steel option that just came out this summer. Talk about good timing!

How does Jason Mraz stay dedicated to his super-strict, raw food diet? Is your need for speed negating your green driving efforts? In your expert opinion, are Fudgesicles a "smart" food choice? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all the lastest green news and tips.

Jason Mraz is on a Raw Vegan Diet, His Chef... A raw food vegan since last April, Jason Mraz is promoting his eco-diet and his current Cafe Gratitude Tour in a series of funny online videos. After watching Mraz's latest installment, I get the sense that some of his assistants are placating him. Don't know why.

Insight Not as Insightful on the Highway Most cars get their worst mileage in the city and their best on the highway. For hybrids, the opposite is true. In fact, a recent test by Consumer Reports showed that the Honda Insight lost as much as 15mpg at speeds between 55-75mph -- so watch the lead foot.

Fruit Loops Now a Health Food! Fruit Loops were recently labeled a "smart choice" by manufacturers as part of an effort to make it easier to eat healthy, allegedly. Not to be confused with "organic," "natural," or any of the other dubious labels given to our foods, "smart choice" simply means that it won't kill you.

Treasure Island: The Jewel of Eco Developments Developers are planning a LEED gold neighborhood on the other famous island in SF Bay (not Alcatraz), complete with urban farms, condos mid-rises, and a green wastewater treatment plant surrounded by wetlands. When complete, all eco-pirates will be jealous.

Would You Ride This to Work? Though I find old school pedal power completely adequate, electric bikes seem to be getting a pretty solid foothold in urban transit. Some e-bikes are, however, a little sexier than others. The YikeBike cost $5,500, tops out at 12mph and looks like part of a circus act.

Green in a Flash:

• This has been the 34th coolest summer on record. What!?
  
• France is levying a new tax on oil, gas and coal consumption.
• Maruka honey is effective in fighting off MRSA, a scary antibiotic-resistant strain of staph infection.