Green Daily

Are you hardcore enough to drive the Cupcake Car? Do you know your celebrity vegetarians? Should you do your business traveling on a scooter? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all the latest green news and tips.

Nice Driving, Cupcake! Usually, when the word "cupcake" is used on a roadway, it's followed by a rude hand gesture. With the new all-electric Cupcake Car -- available in the Neiman Marcus Christmas catalog for a recession-friendly $25k -- the meaning of the word could be forever changed.

Greenpeace Activists Camp Out on Parliament Protesters spent a chilly night in their sleeping bags on the roof of the Palace of Westminster yesterday, pushing for more aggressive climate legislation. If nothing else, they might have convinced politicos to beef up security. The protesters scaled parliament in about 10 minutes.

The Who's Who of Celebrity Vegetarians Seeing as October is National Vegetarian month, YumSugar has put together this awesome little quiz to help you waste time at work. It'll also put your knowledge of celebrity eating habits to the test, if you're into that type of thing.

How to Offset Business Trips? So, your job requires more than a little bit of travel; you can't change that, and it's not like jobs are just growing on trees these days. What's the best way to offset your work-print? Is it better to buy offsets? Or should you spend that money on some green lifestyle upgrades?

Pamela Anderson's Eco-Clothing Benefits PETA Pam's new clothing line may have been panned by critics as Borat-inspired, but at least she's found a way to use the launch to benefit our favorite naked animal rights protesters. Pamela's hosting pricey charity fashion shows in Miami and Toronto to benefit PETA.

Green in a Flash:

• LG has developed a solar powered e-reader!
• George Soros will invest $1B towards green tech.
• Al Gore says he's optimistic about the climate bill, others aren't quite so confident.

Did Pamela flash the Fashion Week crowd to deflect attention away from her green clothing designs? Wanna grow a garden that even you can't mess up? Why is Toyota raising the price of the Prius during a recession? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all the latest green news and tips.

Pamela Anderson Unveils Eco-Clothing, Her Butt Skipping fashion weeks in NYC and London, Pamela waited to debut her clothing line at the most prestigious of all: New Zealand Fashion Week. Reviews were pretty harsh. On the bright side, due to a costume malfunction, the audience did get a peek at Pam's backside.

Five Sprouts for Kitchen Farmers If you're looking for a way to reduce your foodprint, there's no better way that to grow a garden right where you cook. Turn your food miles into food feet (or inches) by growing sprouts on your counter. Apparently, sprouts are one of the easiest things to grow next to weeds.

Can Your Home be Sealed Too Tightly? Sealing up drafty spaces around doors and windows can save you some major cha-ching on heating and cooling costs, but is it a good idea to be hermetically sealed in your home? While it's next to impossible to make a leaky home airtight, some ventilation is necessary.

Prius Price Tag Takes a Hike Now that the 3rd generation Prius seems to be thoroughly kicking the lower-priced Insight's butt, Toyota has decided to readjust the price to meet demand. From now on, Toyota will no longer offer the base-model and will jack up the price on all models by $400.

Is Nuclear Power Really Carbon Neutral? Politicians often like to refer to nuclear energy as if it were carbon neutral. In reality, all energy production outputs some greenhouse gases. Despite the many downsides of nuclear, greenhouse emissions from nuclear energy are very low -- but not carbon neutral.

Green in a Flash:

• A new species of bird-eating, fanged frogs has been discovered!
• In the future, we may grow our meat in a counter top cooker thingy.
• The moose population in Minnesota is being stressed due to climate change.

Why is Pamela Anderson ripping the clothes off of air travelers' backs? Are you ready to bury the hatchet with SIGG? Should you have fewer babies for the environment? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all the latest green news and tips.

PETA's Airport Security Commercial Doesn't Fly Pamela Anderson teamed up with PETA once again to use her uh ... assets to campaign against animal products. She plays a scantily-clad airport security officer who literally strips passengers of their fur and leather clothing. Needless to say, it's been rejected by airports.

SIGG Wants to Make it Right Following a tidal wave of critical press, SIGG's CEO made a formal apology yesterday saying that he made a mistake by not announcing that SIGG's liners contained trace amounts of BPA. To win back your trust, SIGG is making it easy for you to trade in your old SIGG.

Should the Environment be Part of Family Planning? I don't think I'm alone in saying that if there's one thing that instantly gets under my skin, it's someone who's trying to lecture me about how many children I should or shouldn't have. If you're trying to have the family-print discussion with someone, I suggest reading this first.

Should We Ban the Coat and Tie? Hoping to conserve some electricity during an energy crisis, the government of Bangladesh has banned employees from wearing suits and ties. That's right, they banned suits and ties. That way, they can turn up thermostats in government buildings.

The Giants' Laundry Team Hits a Grand Slam As the Giants battle for a playoff berth, the team's laundry services have already clinched the pennant. Along with other green efforts at Candlestick, the team's uniforms are now being washed in phosphate-free, botanical suds from locally-based VASKA.

Green in a Flash:

• The UK is considering a tax hike to keep more passengers grounded.
• Yesterday, Boulder became the first fully functioning smart grid city.
  
• The world's largest solar plant will be build by an Arizona-base company, in China.

Why is Paul preaching vegetarianism to Pamela Anderson? Want to support Steve Irwin's posthumous wildlife conservation efforts? Is your city's air filling your lungs with junk? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all of the latest green news and tips.

Paul McCartney Drops Pam a Line Sir Paul sent an educational-type letter to Pamela Anderson about vegetarianism. Considering that Pam's been an outspoken veg for years, I'm at a loss. Is this related to Pam's recent transgressions, i.e. appearing at a steakhouse/gentleman's club?

Finally, a Toilet Paper that Measures CO2 by the Wipe UK retailer Tesco has announced that its house brand will now come equipped with carbon labeling. One sheet equals 1.1g of CO2. Question: will that help you reduce your potty print?

Russell Crowe Campaigns to Save 'Steve's Place' After Steve Irwin's death in 2006, Australian politicians created a 320,000-acre nature preserve in his honor. Already, these politicos are trying to open it up to strip mining, and Russell Crowe is pissed. He's got a petition and everything.

Is Your City Breathing Easy? The American Lung Association released its annual State of the Air report, ranking US cities by air quality. Unsurprisingly, the nation's most prodigious smog factories are, well ... still smog factories. Did your city make the grade?

Cardboard Furniture Strong as Wood Hungarian couple Edith and Andras Szilvasy spent the last three years perfecting an ingeniously simple cardboard construction system. Armed with ordinary paper clips, you can assemble their flat-packed, recycled cardboard furniture. Reportedly, it's incredibly sturdy.

Green in a Flash:

• Is swine flu really related to factory farming?
  
• Leviathan Energy found a way to boost wind turbine output by 30%.
• Toyota and Honda are making a $3,100 profit on their hybrids. Not too shabby.

What pop star/fashion designer is taking up the sport of mountain climbing? Why is a family going public with their power struggle? Is there such a thing as Vegan BBQ? Today's Eco-Beat has got the scoop on all of the latest awesome green news and tips.

JT is a Mountain Climber for Clean Water Justin Timberlake is hardcore! He's agreed to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro with Lupe Fiasco and singer Kenna to raise money for clean water charities. Are these guys up to the task? Will they yodel? We'll just have to wait and see.

Maine Family Tweets Their Energy Consumption Using a cool kW measuring gadget, an energy-conscious family in Maine has decided to go public with their home's energy usage ... for the betterment of mankind. Awesome!

Pamela Wants Her Own Bikini Vegan BBQ Show After last week's very un-vegetarian public appearance at a steakhouse, it appears that Pam wants to atone by showing off her bod as she teaches us the ins and outs of Vegan BBQ (an oxymoron?).

Air Pollution is Good for Plants? Uh huh... Apparently, the "global dimming" caused by clouds of pollution has actually increased plant production 25% since the 1960s. There's got to be a practical urban gardening tip in there somewhere.

Wal-Mart Shopping Now More Guilt-Free It's no secret that Wal-Mart is kicking butt in this recession. So, it's pretty convenient that they also happen to be writing the book on how to green the mega-retail industry. Yesterday they announced that they will double their solar initiative in California.

Green in a Flash:

• Study finds that the entire state of Texas could be solar-powered.
• Eat more blueberries. It's cheaper than diabetes or heart disease.
• Going to San Francisco? Be sure to book your stay at the Orchard Hotel -- the 4th hotel in the world to get LEED-EB certified.

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?

Yeah, it's April Fools' Day, so most of the green media is focused on coming up with a suitably clever yet ridiculous fake headline stories rather than field real news. Still, there are some green news gems out there today.

Pamela Does Eco Fashion Pamela Anderson has teamed up with Richie Rich for an eco-fashion line. Says Anderson: "I really don't like to wear clothes. I would rather go naked. But I love Richie's designs, so I agreed to be part of Muse." Read more

Offsetting Vancouver It's only going to cost $3.6M to offset all of the carbon emissions created by the 2010 games. These days, that seems like pocket change. Read more

The Fish Diet Scientist have found that feeding cows fish oil can drastically reduce their greenhouse gas emissions (flatulence). Read more

Vegan Al Gore McNuggets The Nobel Prize winning climate crusader is ready to cash in with a new line of microwave vegan nuggets. Marketers are kicking around names like "Al Gore's Soy Poppers." Before you get too excited, consult a calendar. Read more

Bathroom Water Recycler is a Whiz The Sloan Valve Company has come up with a contraption that let's you reuse toilet water in your sink. Wait, it's the other way around. Read more

Green in a Flash:

• CFL bulbs reduce your carbon footprint, but not when they're faulty.
• Don't have a green thumb? A new kit lets houseplants Twitter when they're thirsty.
• According to experts, Earth Hour resulted in less electricity generation. At least, it did in Canada.
  

For the last few years, Dubai has become the land of retardedly opulent dreams, some that seem designed to single-handedly kill the planet (ahem, Ski Dubai) and even some supposedly green celebrity pet projects. Man made islands, record smashing sky scrapers, and sprawling developments have sprung up like a playground for the super rich in an environmentalists worst nightmare -- all in the vastness of the Arabian desert. Not exactly the most sustainable place to put a 21st century Las Vegas. Of course Las Vegas isn't exactly a great place to put a Las Vegas either.

Hunter, fur coat enthusiast, and mediocre at best rap-rock-country crooner Kid Rock has says he's willing to "go to war" with PETA should they try dousing one of his fur coats with red paint or any other foreign substance. In an interview with the Daily Mail last week, Rock stated that "I want to go to war with PETA. My biggest extravagance is fur coats -- I've got every kind of animal in my wardrobe." Personally, I doubt that -- he can't really have woolly mammoth fur.

Rock also claims that his closet -- chock full o' fur -- was one of the major reasons his marriage with hardcore animal rights activist Pamela Anderson busted up in 2006. Did she think that she could change him? If it weren't for Ted Nugent, Kid Rock could possibly be the entertainment industry's most anti-PETA celeb:

"I understand people's problems with it but to throw paint on someone is just wrong. They do it to little Hollywood actresses who can't defend themselves."

Do you think Kid Rock's actually got a point here, speaking out as one of fur's only advocates? Or should he be silenced with a can of eco-friendly water based paint? One way or the other, I'm pretty interested to see how this confrontation might go down.

When most people think of a PETA celebrity, Pamela Anderson is the first one that comes to mind. She's done some admirable work on behalf of animal rights, and certainly raised the profile of vegetarianism.

She was not, however, the original Lettuce Lady. That honor goes to actress Elizabeth Berkeley, not to be confused with Shannon Elizabeth, a different actress with a penchant for roles that require nudity and a love of animals.

Elizabeth Berkeley has been a strict vegetarian her entire life. She kicked off the Lettuce Lady -- movement? campaign? revolution? -- by sending a postcard to all of the restaurants in the 10 fattest cities in America, encouraging them to expand their vegetarian offerings.

In the photo Elizabeth wears a dress made of cabbage leaves. Compared to the leafy bikinis the Lettuce Ladies wear these days, it's down right respectable. Not to mention the outfits Elizabeth has worn!

So just remember, the next time anyone is handing out "More Vegetarian Than Thou" props, Elizabeth Berkeley has done the lettuce thing!

Pamela Anderson may be a woman of many talents, but eloquence is not one of them. In an interview with the E! network, the blond bombshell used some rather choice phrases to describe her feelings about Republican nominee for Vice President -- Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin. After being told that governor Palin has a large bearskin rug in her office, Pam's response was: "I can't stand her... she can suck it."

Coming from someone who starred in a homemade sex tape with Tommy Lee doing just that, it's a pretty tall order order for the governor. The questions that Pamela's comments so articulately address are those surrounding her environmental policies. Not so much her level of experience with 'sucking it' -- since that's not widely considered an important criteria for someone seeking office as a top executive in the US.

The E! reporter obviously knew that Pamela is a die hard animal rights activist -- so much so that she won't act with trained dogs. Pam took the bait and gave us her juicy and tasteless political commentary, which in turn inspired me to come up with this all-important environmental question: Who would win in a fight, Pamela Anderson or Sarah Palin?

[via Ecorazzi]

Julia Roberts can come across as a bit humorless, at least until she flashes that smile with enough wattage to power a small town. But you have to admit, she does her part to support green causes.

She uses flushable diapers and composts, She went on Oprah to support her green guru friend Sophie Uliano, a passionate environmentalist and yoga instructor. Sophie literally wrote the book being stylish and earth-friendly: Gorgeously Green. And do you remember, all the way back in 1998 when Julia went to Borneo to raise awareness of the plight of orangutans, which was documented in the PBS film In the Wild?

Add to all of this, now Julia is designing a T-shirt for Giorgio Armani's (RED) label. The proceeds will benefit The Global Fund to help fight against AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.

I'm not sure, but Julia might have wings. Beautiful, green, do-gooder, angel wings. No wonder she looks so cranky sometimes. I bet those things are itchy hell under a t-shirt. She should totally trade up for a cruelty-free halo like Pamela Anderson wears. It's a pain to clean, but way more comfortable.

Seriously, she might not have a reality show about her efforts, but Julia has consistently and earnestly been working for good causes for a long time. Just goes to show that she's pretty on the inside, too.

Dubai is continuing to expand the luxury green options available to visitors. First you get to pick between Brad Pitt's "eco-hotel", or the one Pamela Anderson is building with the royal family, which is also advertised as eco-friendly.

Now they're building a shopping mall to LEEDs certification, which you can't exactly fake. There will be bike racks to encourage leaving the car at home, the roof will be made of reflective materials to reduce the energy required to keep the building cool, and landscaping will include plants that need less water. And of course, there will be on-site recycling for glass, paper, metal and plastic. All very good!

Then again, there is that ski resort they built in the desert, which will always be a blight on their "green destination" rating.

Dubai. It's a conundrum. Are their green efforts really great, or is all of this development in the desert another case of wasteful green-washing?

Say what you will about her giant implants, fake blond hair and fake tan, but there's one thing about Pamela Anderson that's not artificial -- her love for animals and the environment.

Pamela recent visited the United Arab Emirates during a trip for the Make a Wish Foundation and was convinced by the royal family that she needs to become a hotelier in the country.

The former Baywatch babe talks about her ideas saying, "I'm building a hotel there. It's environmentally friendly. I went there with the Make a Wish Foundation and met some great people there, and the royal family was really friendly. It's built with no fossil fuel at all....in Abu Dhabi - where they have all that oil."

Tofu scramble shacks all over West Hollywood must be in a tizzy this morning, as vegan waitresses primp in the bathroom, each hoping that she will be the next lucky lady Anthony Kiedis sweeps her off her Birkenstocks.

Yes, PETA's reigning Sexiest Vegetarian Dude is back in the mix! People reports that Kiedis and his his 22 year old "former model" girlfriend have "split."

The 45 year old front man for the Red Hot Chili Peppers had no comment on the break up, but Heather Christie, who is also baby momma to their 9 month old son, Everly Bear, went on record that she "hope(s) he finds what he's looking for."

So which flavor of vegetarian will be his next green queen? Someone perky and stylish, like vegan sweetie Natalie Portman? Or perhaps he'll keep it in the PETA family and make a move on overblown tootsie Pamela Anderson (cripes, what's the carbon footprint on those breasts? Not to mention her lips!)

Look out Tommy Lee, you might have some some vegetarian man Californicating your way!