Power in the Wild
As another wonderful Colorado summer recreation season rolls around, who isnt eager to get out of the office and into the great outdoors? But maybe you told the boss youd be working on that report on the laptop, or that youd stay available by phone. Maybe what you really want is to make a video of the kids first 2-week backcountry experience. Battery-powered electronics have a time limit to their charge. Only one real solution exists solar power. Visit http://www.realgoods.com , a division of the Broomfield-based Gaiam, and the largest retailer of renewable energy products in the world. Click on the Renewable Energy Catalog, and select "photovoltaics & acc" under the Power Production heading. Choose the solar energy source that meets your needs and start packing.
A Different Kind of Mall
Never been to a cyber mall? Check out the EcoMall, "a place to help save the earth." Its a good place to start. The "Earths largest environmental shopping center" has over 60 categories of green companies and Earth-friendly products listed, as well as links to the Green Shopping Magazine and numerous in-house resources. By utilizing their local resources database you can seek out regional locations and still shop locally. If youre in need of eco-links, renewable energy, eco-quotes, activism opportunities, eco-restaurants, or eco-investments, leave the car in the garage and navigate on over to http://www.ecomall.com .
Check Out These Checks
Put the power of green in your checkbook. The Check Gallery prints on recycled paper using vegetable-based inks that are biodegradable and free of toxic solvents and residues. If they could just make them bounce-free. With dozens of design choices, this printer can provide checks for any financial institution. Its possible to both purchase checks and financially support a favorite cause with a Classic Design choice. These causes include Ducks Unlimited, the Audubon Society, Defenders of Wildlife, Humane Society, and National Wildlife Federation. Check out these checks at http://www.checkgallery.com .
Gone to the (PDP) Dogs
So
youve got solar panels on the roof, drive a hybrid automobile (or simply ride your bike), eat organic, wear 100% natural cotton and hemp, and compost or recycle everything possible. Congratulations on a lifestyle that approaches true sustainability! But what about Fido? Sure, the four-legged family member eats high quality food with natural ingredients. But what about her philanthropic side? Wouldnt you sleep better at night knowing that you purchased Spots creature comforts from a business that has a return-for-recycling option with some of their chew toys, makes hemp collars and leashes, and sells dog travel towels made from recycled wood chips?
"We live our lives, with our dogs, for our dogs so you can be sure that every product with our name on it has been made for the dogs, by the dogs." If you think Ubu is smiling and wagging his tail at that philosophy, wait until you tell him about PDP Planet Dog Philanthropy. They support Volunteers for Trails as well as therapeutic horseback riding programs and groups who rescue stranded marine mammals. Read all about it at http://www.planetdog.com .
Travel GreenA Great New Alternative to the AAA
Ever get the sense that promoting the use of the gasoline-powered automobile is not consistent with sustainable resource use? The Better World Club, based in Portland, OR, is a new nationwide emergency roadside assistance program that can arrange eco-tour vacations and discounts for renting hybrid and electric cars, and which also offers a roadside bicycle assistance programthe first of its kind in the United States. The well-known American Automobile Association (AAA) has some great services, but not so well-known is their opposition to mass transit funding and their assertion that cars do not cause significant pollution. The Better World Club offers auto or bike memberships from $50 per year, and a combined auto/bike membership for $65 per year. Visit the organizations website at http://www.betterworldclub.com or call 866-304-7540 for more information.
ONION
A Distressing Development: Disney Deliberately Designs DVDs for the Dump
Eco-Cycle regretfully hands Walt Disney the shameful Onion Award for sheer wastefulness. The entertainment giant and animated story-telling mainstay for millions of American children has recently unveiled plans to produce one whopper of an environmentally unsustainable product: the disposable Digital Video Disc. These discs, which look no different from regular DVD's, are ruined by exposure to air soon after they are unpackaged. They are designed for video stores to eliminate the inconvenience of customers having to return their rentals. With the disposable DVD, you play it once and then pitch it.
DVD's are made mainly from plastica non-renewable resourceand contribute to the unstable and toxic waste mix that degrades in our modern landfills. Hundreds of millions of DVD's are rented in the US annually; if even a very small fraction of those were the "disposable" variety, wed have tens of millions of DVD's entering our landfills every year. The Walt Disney Corporation, which takes pride in providing wholesome entertainment for children, should seriously reconsider before it launches such a wasteful product. The disposable DVD will only produce a burdensome environmental legacy for our children and grandchildren. Go to the Activism page at http://www.workingforchange.com to send Disney an email expressing your concern.
