Green Daily

Why did Morrissey throw a fit at Coachella? Is gaining weight good for the environment? Guess which tiny religious city-state is harvesting power from above? Today's Eco-Beat has got the scoop on all the latest awesome green news and tips.

Erykah Badu, Adrien Grenier Design for Kiehl's In time for Earth Day, Kiehls has released its fairly traded, organic body lotion in a limited edition 100% recycled bottle designed by Adrian Grenier, Erykah Badu, Kelly Slater, and students from Parson's New School of Design.

The Skinny on Obesity and the Environment Thinking about packing on a few pounds just for kicks? Not so fast, obese adults eat more and are less likely to walk rather than drive.

Morrissey Pulls a Britney Spears You heard about Britney walking off stage in Vancouver because she smelled pot smoke in the crowd? Well, Morrissey apparently had the same reaction at last weekend's Coachella festival -- to the smell of meat.

Vatican Constructing Europe's Largest Solar Farm I've always been jealous of the fact that the Pope has his own country and a car named after him (the Popemobile). Soon, he's also going to have Europe's biggest solar power plant too. Sheesh.

California Mandates More Efficient Flat Panel TVs Buying a new flat panel TV for the digital switch? California has proposed standards to make flat panels 50% more efficient by 2013 -- that's hardcore. Until then, look for the Energy Star logo.

Green in a Flash:

• Surprise! The EPA has declared that greenhouse gases are a threat to human health.
• This week is International TV Turnoff Week.
• Bikers: Ride on the road and risk getting run over, or ride on sidewalks and risk slamming into a pregnant celebrity?

(Photo by Getty Images)

President Theodore Roosevelt was colorful. Historian, cowboy, war hero, hunter, one of the dudes on Mount Rushmore -- he sounds more like a cartoon character than a real person. In a way this is fitting, because when it comes to his contributions to the conservation movement, he was a superhero!

It's taken a while for this legacy to emerge. As an outdoorsman and businessman, T.R. (he hated being called Teddy) believed in using land wisely rather than keeping it pristine and untouched by human hands. But he did think about legacies, and the next generation, and how decisions he made would play out in the future.

There is a great article about T.R. in this month's Vanity Fair, which is actually an excerpt from a new book about him, The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America, by Douglas Brinkley.

The story includes some great anecdotes about T.R. One of the most interesting was the trip T.R. took early in his presidency, in April, 1903, with conservationists John Burroughs and John Muir. They toured the West including Yellowstone, Yosemite, the Grand Canyon. Sleeping under the stars, personally experiencing the wonders of these landmarks, and exchanging views with these great naturalists inspired T.R. to use his office to help preserve the wilderness of our country.

T.R. saved those spots, and so many more. He set aside more land for national parks and nature preserves than all of his predecessors combined:

• 150 National Forests - 42 million acres!
• 51 Federal Bird Reservations -including Pelican Island and Key West, Floria, East Timbalier Island, Louisiana, and Salt River in Arizona
• 4 National Game Preserves - including Wichita Forest, Oklahoma, and Fire Island, Alaska
• 5 National Parks - including Crater Lake, Oregon and Mesa Verde in Colorado
• 18 National Monuments - starting with Devil's Tower, Wyoming, Muir Woods, California, and Mount Olympus, Washington
• 24 Reclaimation Projects
• several conservation conferences

T.R. also created the National Bird Preserve, which became the Wildlife Refuge system, co-founded the American Bison Society, and established the United States Forest Service. He also benefited from the Antiquities Act, which gave the President the power to create national monuments without going through Congress. The original idea was to use it to preserve prehistoric sites in the Southwest, but T.R. used it to preserve areas of geologic interest and value, too.

Today the struggle to preserve our green spaces continues, both in the U.S. and around the world. We're lucky be able to build on the solid foundation created by Theodore Roosevelt, one of our Original Conservationists.

(Photo by maalivahti on flickr)

Okay, ecophiles, I know you're gearing up for Earth Day this Wednesday, and rightfully so -- it's an awesome holiday. However, in all of the Earth Day hubbub (bike to work! eat locally! turn off extra lights!), something really important often gets overlooked -- Arbor Day, which falls on Friday of this week.

While Earth Day is relatively new (the first official Earth Day took place in 1970), Arbor Day has been around forever, and therefore, might seem a little less exciting. But if you ask me, the huge amount of history behind the holiday is a big part of its appeal.

The first Arbor Day took place in 1872, in Nebraska City, and it's estimated that more than a million trees were planted on that day. And hey, if they could plant a million trees more than 135 years ago, don't you think we can do a heck of a lot better now?

The Arbor Day Foundation has links to all kinds of Arbor Day events -- just click on your state to see if any tree-planting organizations are sponsoring some nice, dirty fun in your neck of the woods. However, even if your community doesn't have anything planned, you can still celebrate. Plant a tree on your own (find out what kind to plant here), give a tree to someone you love, or organize your own volunteer tree planting event!

Arbor Day and Earth Day really go hand in hand, so use this week to show your appreciation for whatever kinds of trees you have in your neighborhood, even if you can't get around to it until the weekend. Hey, as long as you take action at some point, it really is the thought that counts!

In honor of Earth Day, we have a truly eco-fantastic giveaway this week. It's an amazing eco-friendly bag from the Sak, filled with amazing natural treats for your home from Altru, and gorgeous organic goodies for you from Physicians Formula. Everything in the prize is earth-friendly!

(Photo by The Sak)

The Sak Eco Harmony Dip Drawstring Bag -- You'll love the look of this fabulous and fashionable bag, which is made of 100% Bamboo and Recycled Cotton. As always, you can count on the functional SAK interior, with two pockets and a zippered pocket. It also has some eco-cool bling: a hand carved and painted mandala made of sono-wood, a sustainable wood from Indonesia, attached with traditional Indonesian prayer beads.

The Unity Collection from Altru -- Make your home an oasis with this collection of Altru home frangrance items, in the sensual Unity flavor, a combination of burmese woods and honey. The collection includes a soy blend wax candle in hammered copper, interior fragrance oil with diffusing reeds, and rich exotic incense sticks.

Altru, which was created by Manuela Testolini, is commited to social responsibility through it's support of Perfect World, a non-profit organization that she also created, to help children become "compassionate, socially conscious and responsible leaders."

(Photo by Altru)

Physicians Formula Organic wear® 100% Natural Origin Makeup -- this is an incredible line of natural makeup available at drugstore prices. It's 100% free of harsh chemicals, synthetic preservatives or parabens, comes in eco-conscious packaging, and contains 100% certified organic ingredients. The prize includes a huge set of Organic wear® products, including the yummy Superfruit lipgloss and the mascara with the green leaf applicactor that everyone is talking about!

And even better? We're giving away another whole set of these prizes at sister site, StyleList! So when you're done entering here, you can go and enter there, too, for a second chance to win.

Are you ready to celebrate Earth Day with all of this schwag? Then let's get this giveaway rolling!

Why did Will Ferrell drink his own pee? Want a bendable, fold-able, kinetically-powered cell phone? Which celeb gave their Beverly Hills Mansion a $15m eco-makeover? Today's Eco-Beat has got the scoop on all of the latest awesome green news and tips.

Will Ferrell Learns About Survival with Bear Grylls Drinking (his own) urine, eating reindeer eyeballs ... it's all in a day's work for comedic superstar Will Ferrell -- who is now officially a lot harder to kill. He recently survived an episode of Man vs. Wild in Northern Sweden, where he got "urine drunk."

Kyocera Developing a Kinetic Folding Cell Phone The more you interact with this soft-ish folding phone, the more kinetic energy it harvests from its piezoelectric generators. Open it up for wide screen interaction, then fold it up like a wallet.

Eva Longoria Parker Designs HEB Shopping Bags Eva's teamed up with grocery chain HEB to design cute little bags for Earth Day. What's that? You already have reusable shopping bags? I don't care. Go buy some more. Do whatever this gorgeous woman tells you! Sorry, I just think she's hot.

Jennifer Aniston's House Gets Greenovated Jen's all about shrinking her eco-footprint. Her Malibu mansion recently got $15M worth of energy-conscious updates including solar panels, reflective roofing, and drought-resistant plants. She also traded in the Range Rover for a Prius.

The Cadillac Volt? Maybe? Rumor has it that GM's luxury brand may release a long-range hybrid based on the Volt in 2011. I'm trying to picture just how ugly the Volt would look in Mary Kay pink... ehhh.

Green in a Flash:

• The Obama administration is making the pitch for high speed rail.
• Study finds that only about, say, 98% of products that make eco-claims are greenwashing.
• Golden arches fall from sky and take out an SUV. Crazy.
  

Do you have a pet? A love of natural cleaning products? If so, you'll be crazy about the new TerraCycle line of pet cleaning products.

TerraCycle partnered with PETCO to create a new line of natural and nontoxic pet products. They're even packaged in repurposed plastic bottles -- the first line of pet products ever.

We're giving away a "basket" of these products to one lucky winner, including:

• Yard Odor Remover
• Stain & Odor Remover
• Trash Can Protector Spray
• Skunk Odor Remover -- the pet equivalent of a fire extinguisher – hopefully you never have to use it!
• Bird Feeder

To win, just go to the original post and leave a comment telling us about your funniest pet clean up mishap! You have until 5pm EST today to enter!

Why is Pamela Anderson supporting the beef industry? Need more reasons to hate junk email? Want to spice up your Earth Day? Today's Eco-Beat has got the scoop on all sorts of awesome green news and tips.

Pamela Anderson to Perform at Cabaret/Steakhouse! Pamela's a major PETA supporter and once called Jessica Simpson a whore for wearing a pro-meat shirt. So, I'm wondering how an appearance at a trendy new Upper East Side beef emporium gels with her anti-meat politics?

Spam Sucks ... Tons of Energy In addition to being incredibly annoying, spam emails are now so pervasive that creating, sending, and deleting all of these messages gobbled up as much energy as 2.4M American homes last year.

Want to Meet Leonardo DiCaprio? It'll probably cost you an arm and a leg, but Global Green is holding a charity auction and one of the items up on the block is a the "Experience with Leo" -- a glorified photo op at the premiere of his next flick.

Have an Ecorotic Earth Day A sex shop called Good Vibrations is giving away a collection of sustainable sex toys for Earth Day. Don't get me wrong, Earth Day's a great holiday, but it could definitely benefit from more sex appeal.

Kelly Ripa Launches Eco-Friendly Washer and Dryer Electrolux and Kelly have teamed up to release a set of "Kelly Green" energy-saving washers and dryers for Earth Day. Don't know if it works with your laundry room motif, but they're literally bright green.

Green in a Flash:

• Toronto may require buildings be retrofitted with a green roof.
  
• It's moving season, so is it greener to rent a truck or use your car?
• Yamaha is testing golf carts that run on cow dung -- because that's practical, right?

It's a tough time to be a turtle. Their oceanic habitats are getting more acidic, their numbers are dwindling, and there are so many of those plastic bags -- the ones that look just like delicious jellyfish, but seriously screw up turtle innards -- floating around.

Lucky for the turtles, they have an advocate and ambassador: Mr. Leatherback, a.k.a. "The James Bond of the animal kingdom."

Mr. Leatherback is a character who travels around the world -- he's been to 43 countries so far -- helping to raise awareness for his gentle and critically-endangered brethren.

In addition to his in-person educational appearances, Mr. Leatherback is big on the internet. He has a brand new website, plus he's on twitter, Facebook, MySpace, and YouTube! Definitely check out the photo gallery -- it's pretty funny to see a giant turtle in front of the Coliseum and Great Pyramids!

Also, as you can see in the video, he's quite an accomplished dancer. Especially for an oversized reptile.

He and Olympic swimmer Rowdy Gaines are sharing announcing duties for the Great Turtle Race, which starts today in Nova Scotia.

The race follows 11 turtles on their annual migration from the cold waters of Canada to the Caribbean and South America. You can visit the Conservation International site to meet the racers, who all have names and distinct personalities. Mr. Leatherback, along with cool race sponsors like R.E.M. and Pearl Jam, hope the race will spread the word about the plight of the turtles, but in a fun, non-doom and gloom way.

With friends like Mr. Leatherback looking out for them, I'm feeling a little more optimistic for the turtles!

Dolphins all over are catching the spirit of Flipper, Michael Bloomberg may be hiding something controversial about his personal life, and I've got bad news for you Web 2.0 addicts. Check out today's Eco-Beat for the scoop on all of the day's green news.

Dolphins Block Pirate Attack! This is the coolest thing ever! Thousands of dolphins literally blocked a Somalian pirate raid on some Chinese merchant ships. Go out and buy a few cans of dolphin-safe anything!

Bill Gates is Now a Green Car Inventor? Apparently, Gates' name appeared as the principal applicant on a patent for an electromagnetic hybrid engine. I won't pretend to understand how it works, but I'm relieved to know that Gates is on the job.

Twitter is an Energy Hog Uh, I don't know how to break this to you ... but web 2.0 is apparently a giant energy guzzler -- especially mobile apps like Twitter. There, I said it. Now go tweet it. Or don't. What do we do?

Neil Young Wants You to Make his Next Music Video Young's latest record, Fork in the Road, is reported to be one big green car anthem. So far, the videos haven't been too impressive. If you make Neil a better video for "Johnny Magic," you get a Linc Volt jacket. That's a lot of work for a freakin' jacket!

Mayor Bloomberg is a Secret Vegetarian? Rumor has it that eco-minded NYC mayor Michael Bloomberg has not been entirely forthcoming with his personal preferences. He apparently went to a steak house and ordered nothing but veggies. Is Michael a closet vegetarian? PETA's gonna love this.

Green in a Flash:

• Iowa takes the #2 spot in wind power capacity according to AWEA, Texas holds the lead.
  
• The Chrysler Peapod will be available for order on Earth Day, so get your money ready.
• Sarah Palin acknowledged climate change and hopes more natural gas can slow it down.

Here at GreenDaily, we sure love animals. It makes sense -- caring for the environment and caring about animals seems to go hand in hand. Erm, paw.

Anyway, when we're not getting the scoop on the latest, greatest green news for you, we're reading up on animal news, and we have a new favorite place to get it -- our new sister site, Paw Nation!

Paw Nation just launched, and already it's full of great photos and information. You'll find tips on training, the scoop on the newest pet products, as well as photos of ridiculously cute (and occasionally crazy-looking) animals. Trust us -- if you're looking for an excuse to put off finishing your work (and you're already up to date with us here at GreenDaily), you won't be disappointed in Paw Nation!

(And hey! If you have pets, make sure you enter our Terracycle Green Pet Products Giveaway!)

(Photo by Payless)

A series of sunny days has given me a powerful craving for fresh springtime shoes. Since I'm trying to control my carbon-footprint -- especially with Earth Day next week -- I decided to dig up some eco-friendly shoe choices. It turned out to be easy to find cute, environmentally responsible choices!

zoe&zac at Payless -- I'm dying for the purple zoe&zac Tigerlily Espadrille. Besides all of the shoes in the collection being super cute, you'll like:

• Payless will contribute $1 to The Nature Conservancy's Plant a Billion Trees Campaign when you buy any zoe&zac item
• recycled rubber soles
• organic cotton uppers
• amazing under $30 price tag

Keds Green Label - I totally want these green kicks in black! Good things about the collection include:

• 100% organic cotton uppers
  
• dyes made with non-toxic inks
• shoe laces made from 100% water bottles
• eyelets are nickel-free and the insoles are recycled

For years I've been into Simple for eco-friendly shoes, even though some of their styles have run to a sort of, um, more earth mother aesthetic than I usually wear. Lately they've come up with some more fashion forward looks, like the women's Teetoe in organic cotton, a rocking gladiator sandal. It also comes in a preppy-cute striped silk that screams summer at the beach.

So many fun shoes! Now I just need to take a quick trip to Goodwill to drop off last spring's impulse buys to make some room for all of my new shoes!

If you wanna learn more about shrinking your lawn's footprint, a bike that pedals for you, or why Robert Redford is laying the smack down on a new eco-suburb, today's Eco-Beat has got the scoop on all sorts of awesome green news and tips.

California Homes Could be Energy Independent by 2020 It's a crazy long shot, but California lawmakers want all homes built after 2020 to be energy self-sufficient. While that would be amazing, it would pretty much require that your entire roof be covered with solar panels.

Robert Redford Campaigns Against Eco-Village You read that right, Robert Redford has joined a campaign to shut down a 380 home eco-development in Napa Valley. If you're like him, you're wondering: what could be 'eco' about a new 380 home development in Napa?

Spring is Here, Time to Cut Your Lawn's Emissions Emissions-free push mowers are getting way easier to deal with. The latest models weigh less than 20 lbs. and the blades never need to be sharpened. They'll still give you a good (408 calories/hr) workout, though.

The Moped Goes Electric It's greener than driving and a lot more fun. This little motorbike does 20mph for 20 miles, then it is on you to provide the pedal power.

Is Bo a Rescue Dog At All? The overwhelming consensus seems to be: not really. Some say there's a "gray area," but it seems pretty clear that Bo was not a true shelter puppy. Hence, the Obamas settled for making a donation to the HSUS.

Green in a Flash:

• Good news! US power plants will burn 2.6% less coal this year.
  
• Two major sports arenas have received LEED certification this week.
• Are recent pirate attacks linked to over-fishing?

There's been a lot of talk about shelters since the Obamas got their adorable new dog, Bo. Whether you agree with the decision to get the First Dog from a breeder or not, you're probably pro-shelters. Everyone is pro-shelters, right?

Zootoo is an online community dedicated to pets and petlovers, and they are definitely fans of shelters. So much so, that they're holding "elections" to pick the shelter that will get a a million dollar makeover. Nineteen other shelters will also receive prizes ranging from $5,000 to $50,000. And this is the second year that they're holding this contest!

This week is the third and final phase of the contest, when America gets to pick the winning shelter from the top 10. Want to have a say in which one wins a million bucks? Visit the Zootoo Shelter Makeover II site, register (it's free, but they insist that you upload a photo) and you can vote up to ten times every day, between now and Friday.

I grew up volunteering at the local "Animal League," walking dogs on Saturday mornings. I remember my mom helping to organize bake sales and flea markets to help raise money for the basics. Small, local shelters depend on the kindness of neighbors to survive. Fifty dollars is a big deal to most of them, so even that $5k prize will make a huge difference somewhere!

Really, all of the shelters deserve your love and assistance. Since I'm a big believer in acting locally, I'm giving my votes to my (sort of) local choice, the Butte Humane Society in Chico, CA. Above is a video explaining why Butte is the most deserving of the top 10, and I hope you vote for them, too!

The Humane Society of the United States and Pedigree are partners in Shelter Makeover II, and co-sponsors include PETCO Foundation, HomeAgain, and more. Check out the page of organizations supporting this great contest and give them a little reciprocal love in return for helping so many pets who are still waiting for their forever homes.

The nation's "first dog" has been selected, polar bears and humans don't mix, and Kanye's launching a green beverage. Today's Eco-Beat has got the scoop on all sorts of awesome green news.

Obamas Disappoint with Kennel Puppy Most animal activists were expecting the Obamas to pick out a rescue puppy for the "first dog." Instead, it looks like they've decided not to recycle. Are you feeling betrayed right now, or are you OK with dogs from breeders?

Woman Bitten by Polar Bear at Berlin Zoo Yet another great example of why not to jump into a polar bear enclosure. Police haven't revealed why the woman thought it was a good idea to jump in. FYI, it was an older, grumpier bear -- not Knut.

Kanye: The Guru of Organic Energy Drinks? We knew Kanye had a flair for hip-hop, fashion, and moody blogging -- but did you know he was an energy drink connoisseur? He's teaming up with GURU to release his own line of natural, organic energy drinks. Get ready to guzzle some "Clean Energy for Dirty Minds."

Eco-Tourism Takes Off With the Airplane Hotel Wanna get away from it all in your own private jet? Book a night in the Airplane Hotel, near Quepos, Costa Rica. This awesome hotel (looks more like a B&B) was built in the fuselage of a retired 1965 Boeing 727 -- no need for carbon offsets.

America's Shrinking Weedprint Along with a rising interest in gardening across the board, many in the cannabis industry are switching to homegrown pot rather than importing it from Mexico. Does that mean the locavore movement has spread into the drug culture?

Green in a Flash:

• The Obama administration is going to buy 17,600 of the most fuel-efficient cars from the Big 3.
• Today's container ships are now traveling slower than yesteryear's sailing freighters to save gas money. Hmm.
• Watch Woody Harrelson talking about the end of the world as part of the hype-building for his upcoming flick 2012.

(Photo by Energy Star)

It's countdown to tax day! Maybe you're one of those "organized" people who filed back in February and are chuckling at the rest of us with our piles of receipts covering the dining room table. Or maybe you're (normal and) scrambling to file your extension by April 15th.

Either way, as long as we're all thinking about taxes and saving money, here's some interesting information from the Energy Star website about tax credits created by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which will give you tax breaks for making energy efficient choices.

If you upgrade your home in 2009 and 2010, you can get a credit of 30% of the cost, up to $1,500 for installing new:

• windows and doors
• insulation
• roofs
• HVAC systems
• water heaters (non-solar)
• biomass stoves

Even better, through 2016, you can get a credit for 30% of the cost -- with no upper limit -- when you add these energy efficient systems to new and existing homes:

• geothermal heat pumps
• solar panels
• solar water heaters
• small wind energy systems
• fuel cells

Thinking about getting a new car? You can find a tax advantaged solution there, too! Even though credits for Toyota and Honda hybrid cars have been phased out, you can still get tax credit for gas-electric hybrids from Ford, GM and Nissan. Also, the first 250,000 plug-in hybrid electric vehicles sold will earn the buyer a tax credit.

We're all glad when we don't have to think about taxes, but it's always good to hear that you will be rewarded for making the right choice for the planet!