Green Daily

Want some eco-friendly advice from Gwyn and Cameron? Can a golf course ever be truly called sustainable? Are rich people killing the planet? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all the latest green news and tips.

Gwyneth Paltrow and Cameron Diaz Team Up Wanna go green like a movie star? In the latest edition of Gwyneth Paltrow's online green newsletter GOOP, Cameron Diaz gives a shout out to some of her favorite green styles, home furnishings, and media (like the new flick "Food Inc.").

Justin Timberlake's Green Greens Usually, golf course developers hire a PGA legends like Jack Nicklaus to design a course ... not a former boy bander. In the case of the Mirimichi Golf Course, JT was involved in salvaging the doomed course and revamping it to be as sustainable as a golf course can be.

Track Richie Rich's Footprint? Since the "rich" supposedly emit about half of the world's carbon, a new climate change strategy focuses on tracking well-to-do. The new method, unveiled by the National Academy of Sciences, would tailor laws to individuals with hefty bank accounts. Creepy? Cool?

Tips for All the Container Gardeners If you're working with limited space, or you're just renting and don't want to build an entire garden (been there done that), there's always the container gardening option. Gardening in containers can be super successful in all sorts of urban spaces. Check out some tips.

Green Moving Companies Rounding out Grist's look at the exhausting process that is "moving," they've stumbled onto a new phenomenon: green movers. For lazy people with a little extra cash, these companies will pack your stuff in reusable boxes, haul it in biodiesel trucks, and even plant a tree.

Green in a Flash:

• US power plant emissions have dropped dramatically in 2009.
• If sea levels rise, at least we'll have futuristic floating cities like this.
• Vancouver might require electric car charging outlets in new parking lots.

Wanna know all about the real Dr. Temperance Brennan? Need some green moving tips? Which energy bars taste are a cornucopia of deliciousness and which taste like bear scat? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all the latest green news and tips.

Emily Deschanel is Green to the Bone We may know her as Dr. Temperance Brennan on Fox's "Bones," but those who know her best, know her as an environmentalist, animal activist, and green fashionista. Like most of us, she wants solar panels on her roof and a Tesla in the garage. Check out the interview.

Moving Tips: What's the Greenest Way to Pack? Packing up all of your belongings -- only to load them onto a truck for a couple hours and then unload them -- sucks, to say the least. Still, what's the greenest way to move your junk: boxes, plastic containers ... rented plastic crates? Check out Grist's eco-moving tips.

The Energy Bar Taste Test An energy bar (or two) can replace a meal when you're out on the trail, but some of them are severely lacking in the flavor department. The taste of some bars has been compared with "bear scat" and "kitty litter." Compare the Sierra Club's ratings with your personal faves.

Would You Wear Solar Clothing? As we've seen with the solar tie, solar bra, and now the ugly solar (fishing?) vest, clothing that features PV panels can catch a few geeky headlines and charge a few cellphones, but overall they seem way too geeky for mass adoption. I'm still confused by the solar bra.

LaGuardia Birds Attack Again! Even after NYC's controversial move to gas thousands of the Canadian geese around LaGuardia, birds are still terrorizing passenger jets! Maybe they're taking revenge for their fallen comrades, maybe they're protesting high carbon travel. We don't know their demands yet.

Green in a Flash:

• Trader Joe's may not be the best place to pick up your seafood.
• Would you trade in your wheels for an electric shopping cart?
• Germany leads G8 on climate change performance, US is second to last.

Are green babies the next big Hollywood trend? Why is Stephen Colbert talking about huffing smokestacks? Need some tips on how to green your dish washing routine? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all the latest green news and tips.

Pregnant Ana Ortiz Plans Low Emissions Baby Ugly Betty star Ana Ortiz is planning to school her daughter the ways of a low-impact lifestyle. Says Ortiz: "My daughter's just going to be really hip! My goal is to be as eco-conscious as possible. There's so much out there for parents who want to do that."

Stephen Colbert Grills Clean Coal Guru Sure, "clean coal" sounds great, but as Stephen points out, cleanliness is relative. For instance, you can't put your head in a smokestack and huff the clean coal vapors safely. I think that's just good, practical advice for anyone to follow.

You Might Get Pulled Over by One of These If you live in LA County, you may soon see your local Sheriff's deputy cruising around in an all-electric Mini. I'm not sure how the Mini's compact style complements crew cuts or aviator sunglasses, but it doesn't exactly play into the intimidating, tough guy image.

Keeping Your Dishes Green and Spot Free So you got a fabulous new high-efficiency dishwasher, but it requires some kind of weird "rinse aid" potion. Grist has some tips that can help your family skip the mysterious dish-drying chemicals while keeping you glassware deliciously spot free.

The Bicycle Lifestyle Guide So you wanna start riding your bike on short trips, but you need a little pep talk? The Bicycle Lifestyle Guide is a short and sweet biking bible that will help you learn (and review) some biking basics. You can even save paper and read it online.

Green in a Flash:

• Morbid yet eco-friendly shelf doubles as a coffin in death.
• The 'Cash For Clunkers' bill is awaiting President Obama's signature.
• Like the National Debt Clock, there's now a real-time carbon counter in NYC.

(Photo by Getty Images)

You know how being "green" used to have a sort of, well ... wimpy reputation?

Hey, you know it's true. I don't make it up, I just report it!

Well, those days are over. Eco-friendly is so cool it's now badass. Ashley Braun and Katharine Wroth at Grist created a killer list of the 13 most badass greens, and there is not a wussy treehugger (not that there's anything wrong with that, we love treehuggers and Treehugger) to be seen!

The post has a poll for you to vote for your favorite Badass Green, but I seriously could not pick just one. My top picks include:

Who's the biggest, baddest environmentalist of them all? Do you know how much water it took to make that latte you're sipping? What's Jay Leno say about the latest green motorcycling tech? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all the latest green news and tips.

The Top 13 Baddest Enviros From ex-cons who install solar panels, to sexy race car driving eco-activists like Leilani Munter, to the Govenator himself -- there are some environmentalists out there you don't want to mess with. Check out Grist's list of 13 Badass Greens.

Jason Mraz Loves the Sun This week, the folk-influenced songsmith announced that crews have begun construction on his avocado farm's impressive solar array. From Mraz's blog, "our system will allow us to run both the house and studio on sun power alone, even on cloudy days."

The High Line Opens in Manhattan New York has put the finishing touches on the high line -- an abandoned elevated train line that has been recast as a super cool elevated green space complete with walking paths. Awesome.

Your Pantry's Water Footprint You've installed a low flow shower head, you pee outdoors, so what other steps can you take to ease your water footprint? It may not be listed on the food facts label on your prepackaged foods, but it's important to know how much water it takes to produce those tasty treats.

Jay Leno Test Rides the Zero X Historically, Jay Leno's been a huge fan of gas-hogging choppers, but he seems open-minded to eco-motorcycles as well. Says Leno, "[Y]ou could go through the bird preserve and not even bother anybody." Not sure, but I think that's a backhanded compliment.

Green in a Flash:

• The UK is poised to double its 2010 Kyoto targets.
• Are wind speeds actually slowing down east of the Mississippi River?
• A study finds that carbon credits could make Indonesian forests more profitable than palm oil plantations.

Need some advice for how to deal with an ungreen roommate? Looking for ways to decorate on a shoestring budget and with a tiny footprint? Want a justification for peeing outside? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all the latest green news and tips.

Clash of the Roommates You're green, energy-conscious, slightly anal retentive ... and your roommate's not. Negotiating the world of cohabitation is a tricky one with many pitfalls -- even more if you're trying to impose life choices on a roommate. Check out Grist's roommate advice.

There's Hope for Cows Yet How do we save the planet from these delicious, burping, farting greenhouse gas machines? Answer: Put them on a diet. Vermont yogurt producer Stonyfield Farms has reduced its herd's emissions with the Green Mountain Diet (i.e. alfalfa and flaxseed instead of corn).

Thrifting Your Way to a Fabulous Home Thrift stores can be magical treasure dens of eclectic decorating awesomeness. You never know what kind of amazing furniture potential is buried under an ugly coat of lacquer. Plus, it's eco-friendly. Check out some tips on thrift store decor.

The Case for Public Urination Or, maybe I should say "outdoor" urination. If you've ever thought it a shame to waste perfectly good drinking water just to flush down a pee, you're not alone. Apparently, peeing on certain backyard items (plants, compost heaps, etc.) is beneficial.

Fila's Green Workout Gear Looking for sustainable workout wear? Fila has committed to reducing its footprint by teaming up with AmericanForests.org and releasing a lineup of fully biodegradable workout wear made from recycled polyester and tencel (a material made from cellulose).

Green in a Flash:

• Saturday is World Naked Bike Day, whatever that means.
• Australian police worry that carbon trading will be a hotbed for fraud.
• San Franciscans caught throwing recyclables in their trash cans could face a $1,000 fine.

Do you know Tom Hanks' track record when it comes to electric cars? Which celebrity has been crowned the most anti-green for 2009? Need help choosing a healthier way to combat your bodily stink? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all of the latest green news and tips.

Tom Hanks Loves His Green Machine Here's some Tom Hanks trivia for super-fans: did he or didn't he ever own one of GM's all-electric EV1s before they were so cruelly destroyed? For the answer you'll have to check out his letter to The New Yorker.

Rewarding Anti-Greenness There are still 7.5ish months left in 2009, but for some reason, Treehugger has released its hilarious 2009 Anti-Green Awards. Seriously guys, a lot can change in 7.5 months. They must be going by the Mayan calendar.

The Pitfalls of Deodorant Sure, pit stains are embarrassing, but with some antiperspirants, the solution may be worse than the problem. Grist has put together a video that helps you stay stink-free while protecting you pits from nasty little chemical additives.

UK Tests GPS Speed Limiters for Your Car Transport for London is now testing a device that uses GPS tracking to automatically override lead feet and reduce emissions. The technology is not mandatory, but officials hope drivers will opt in. Yeah, right.

Will The EPA Crack Down on Marathon Runners? Marathons do have a tendency to trap unsuspecting drivers in carbon spewing traffic jams on Saturday mornings, but that's not what has congress worried. Rep. Joe Barton fears the EPA may want to regulate large hordes of runners as a source of CO2 pollution.

Green in a Flash:

• Joaquin Phoenix's sister has opened a green store in Florida.
• Warren Buffet is showing off new green pre-fab homes.
• What's it gonna take to make subsidy-free solar competitive cheaper forms of energy?

I live in Texas so the weather changes about every 5 minutes it seems - if you live somewhere that is consistently cold this time of year you may be feeling concerned about your heating or electric bill. The coldest months of the year come right on the heels of Christmas spending so it's important to do whatever you can to reduce that bill.

Reducing your heating bill helps you out, but it also means you're using less of whatever it is that heats your house whether that is electric, gas or something else. Using less is good for the planet. If you need more ideas about reducing your heating bill, the Ask Umbra feature over at Grist has an amusing new video.

It doesn't have any radical new ideas, wear layers, make sure you're not letting cold air in or warm air out, and turn down the temp but, it's still fun to watch. Go ahead, just like your Mom always said, make sure you put on a sweater!

Compare the Candidates

Grist has a great chart of the presidential candidates and where they stand on climate and energy issues. Featured, of course, are Barack Obama and John McCain, but third party candidates are also featured, including Ralph Nader, Cynthia McKinney and Bob Barr.

Climate Change: Obama vs. McCain

The New Scientist also compares McCain and Obama on major climate issues, including reducing U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, agreeing to binding emission limits, investing into alternative and renewable energy, managing rising energy costs, investing in nuclear power and exploiting domestic oil reserves. Catherine Brahic has done the work of combing through the candidates' own materials, debate materials and a report from Nature.

Why Politics Affects the Environment

The Sundance Channel has recently launched a blog all about politics and the environment. Be sure to check out a post by Thomas M. Kostigen, author of "You Are Here, Exposing the Link Between What We Do and What That Does To Our Planet."

The pope installed solar panels on the Vatican, and Grace Cathedral in San Francisco is also in on the solar powered worship. The Sierra Club reports that Reverend Canon Sally Bingham is partnering with Pacific Gas and Electric to install a photovoltaic power system on the roof of the cathedral.

Reverend Bingham is on the 2007 Grist list of the 15 Top Green Religious Leaders, which puts her in some pretty good company. Of course the Pope is on it, and the Dali Lama. Less well known to some of us are the (sorta hot, love the green glasses) Rabbi Warren Stone, and eco-justice theologian Karen Baker-Fletcher who "interprets the Bible from an environmental, African-American, and womanist perspective."

Faith-based green action is a growing trend according to the Sierra Club. In Faith in Action, they report on faith related eco-activiities in each of the 50 states, plus DC and Puerto Rico.

So I guess the question is, does God prefer solar over wind power? Or is the Divine Being just glad to see us doing something to help the planet instead of destroying it?

Since consumers started embracing their inner treehugger (although generally not so much that we're willing to pay a green premium), savvy marketers have been hyping everything from SUVs to patio furniture as if they heralded the dawning of the age of eco-Aquarius. That, in turn, has led to a backlash, with civic-minded bloggers seeking out and slamming organizations perceived as exaggerating their enviro-credentials.

Exposing hypocrisy isn't a bad thing, and false advertising is out and out wrong, moreso when it makes a deceptive appeal to our sense of virtue. However, cynical society that we are, it's easy to throw the baby out with the bathwater by taking more interest in criticizing companies for what they don't do than recognizing them for taking steps in the right direction.

All our actions have an environmental impact, and the only truly benign human is six feet under, peacefully feeding the earthworms and fertilizing the hydrangea. Since we're generally agreed that mass suicide isn't the favoured solution to the current crisis, any steps we take to keep the planet healthy are in some degree going to be half-measures.

In other words, eco-friendly can only exist as a relative concept - no product or process is unequivocally green, but only greener than other products or processes intended to achieve the same goal.