Greenfeet.com: 2007 People's Choice Award - part 10

Well, ladies and gentlemen, the day has arrived. After two exciting weeks of presenting the creme de la creme of the green businesses, all is left is the last nominee, and what a pleasure it is to close this nominees series with the planet's homestore. Please allow me to present nominee no. 10 on Eco-Libris blog Unofficial Guide to Co-op America's 2007 People's Choice Award for the Green Business of the Year:

Greenfeet.com

Business description: online store that makes it easier to leave smaller, "greener" footprints with over 1200 items in a variety of categories, such as: Apparel, Baby Products, Toys, Appliances, Housekeeping, Books, Bedroom, Bathroom, Personal Care, Kitchen, Pets, Yard & Garden, Eco Gadgets, Reusable Bags and more. They also have a weekly internet radio show - More Hip than Hippie, where Dori and Val tell you everything you wanted to know about living a green lifestyle that is more hip than hippie. Definitely worth listening!

Located at: Chico, CA

Operating Since: 1997

Website: http://www.greenfeet.com/

The questionnaire (responses provided by Val, Ownder of Greenfeet.com):

1. What makes your business a green business?

As inhabitants of this Planet Earth, we leave footprints on the environment based on the resources we consume. Nobody’s perfect (we’re certainly not!), but we can all strive to decrease the size of our footprints on the environment by the behaviors we choose and the products we use.

We have dedicated our business to making it easier for all people to leave smaller, greener footprints. We offer a wide selection of products that are both economical and unique, designed to help all Earth dwellers battle the obstacles in the path of green living.

Our number one priority is to ensure our customers can trust that we will provide only the highest quality natural products. Our philosophy is that small steps can create big change, and we will work to provide products that make taking those first, small steps as easy as possible.

Internally, we have a very green office. All of our energy is powered by wind through 3 phases energy. We are exploring ways to generate our own wind power here at our warehouse. We utilize green shipping supplies including Geami – a wonderfully green packing material that has reduced our use of bubble wrap by over 90%. We are multi year winners of the WRAP award (Waste Reduction Award Program) given by the State of California.

We were also a runner up in the Governors Environmental Award. Lights are turned off, appliances and computers/printers unplugged when not in use. We offer telecommuting for our employees and many ride their bikes. We provide health care for our employees and offer flexible schedules.

Greenfeet also strives to work with our vendors to green our communication (we’ve encouraged email communication as opposed to fax and print and mail) and discuss how products can be made more sustainable.
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2. What is your green characteristic you're most proud of?

The sense of pride shared by the staff here at Greenfeet.com. Integrating “green” into our business is simply a way of life. Are we perfect? No – opting for green choices isn’t always attainable. The difference is that we strive for the greenest option and push for an even better, greener option as resources allow. The commitment of the staff and their enthusiasm is infectious.

3. What is your biggest achievement so far?

The difference we are making in people lives. The feedback we receive from customers is wonderful. We hear how they’re inspired to make the small changes that lead to an even bigger impact. They also push us to go further; they ask questions, they encourage us to be even better. We thrive on that.

4. In what way do you think that you help people to take a green action and make a difference?

We celebrate the small steps they take. If someone takes a step as simple as recycling aluminum cans, then they should be applauded. We recognize that step and provide tools, advice and ideas to encourage them to take the next step.

Two years ago we launched our weekly podcast, More Hip Than Hippie which has gained an international listener base and is a great tool to further educate and inspire our customers. We’ve since launched a listener forum where ideas are shared and discussed.

5. Who is your green hero?

Our customers. Collectively they make a difference. There are a lot of individuals who are doing wonderful things however it’s the everyday people whose small steps create the change we so desperately need.

6. What's your green dream for your business?

To build upon the solid foundation we’ve built over the last 10 years. To continue to be a driving force in the journey towards living in harmony with the planet and current technology. To foster creativity and the will to push for greater achievements. Passion is what fuels us – it’s our heartbeat.

And if you missed the parts of the Unofficial Guide we published so far on Eco-Libris blog, please check them out:

Introduction
Part 1 - Natural Pet Home Store
Part 2- Mountains of the Moon
Part 3 - Yoga Nine
Part 4 - Pizza Fusion
Part 5 - Green Living Now
Part 6 - ReusableBags.com
Part 7 - UsedCardboardBoxes.com
Part 8 - Flexcar

Part 9 - Manitoba Harvest

Yours,
Raz

Eco-Libris: Plant a tree for everybook you read!

Manitoba Harvest: 2007 People's Choice Award - part 9

I am a big fan of hemp. This is an amazing plant that can be used for a diverse number of eco-friendly products. Some of them, including great hemp milk that I tried yesterday at the Green Festival, are made by today's nominee. So please allow me to present nominee no. 9 on Eco-Libris blog Unofficial Guide to Co-op America's 2007 People's Choice Award for the Green Business of the Year:

Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods & Oils

Business description: the largest vertically integrated hemp food manufacturer in the world, offering fresh and high quality staple hemp food products. All Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods & Oils are grown herbicide and pesticide free, using non-genetically modified, 'original source' hemp seeds. No additives or preservatives are used and all products are also gluten free. Among their products you can find: Hemp prtotein powder, Hemp seed nut, Hemp seed oil and Hemp Bliss (the world's first certified organic hempmilk).

Located at: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Operating Since: 1998

Website: http://www.manitobaharvest.com/

The questionnaire (responses provided by Mike Fata, Co-Founder and President of Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods & Oils):

1. What makes your business a green business?

The mission of Manitoba Harvest is to create the healthiest hemp foods, to educate the public about healthy lifestyle choices and to support sustainable agriculture. We refer to hemp seeds as “seeds of change” and since our humble beginnings, we have been inspired by a belief that this natural resource can be a shining example of sustainable agriculture and can drive social change in North America.

Manitoba Harvest makes ‘staple’ hemp food products including cold-pressed Hemp Seed Oil, Shelled Hemp Seed, Hemp Seed Butter, Hemp Protein Powder with Fiber, as well as Hemp Bliss (the first non-dairy organic hemp milk that won the Best New Food Product Award at 2007 Natural Products Expo East in September).

Hemp is one of the most useful and eco-friendly crops in the world. It is naturally pest-resistant, and because hemp plants grow rapidly and close together, they crowd out weeds and don’t need herbicides. Hemp’s only fertilizer requirement is nitrogen, which can be provided by nitrogen fixing cover crops. It is also a soil-building plant that is excellent for crop rotation. Its strong roots anchor the soil to prevent erosion and the leaves return nitrogen to the soil. Hemp cultivation generates virtually no waste and its byproducts are commercially useful.

To ensure a high-quality and plentiful supply of hemp seed, our company partners with more than 2 dozen family farmers in Manitoba. To form a strong bond, Manitoba Harvest provides them with shareholder status and prices above market for their seed. These farmers share our commitment to the eco-friendly benefits of growing hemp. Manitoba Harvest hemp seed contains no Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) and it is grown sustainably without herbicides or pesticides. Our farmers also grow USDA certified organic hemp seed for our expanding line of certified organic products.

In addition to the environmental benefits of hemp agriculture that are at the core of our company mission, we follow sustainable business practices including printing all of our promotional materials on recycled or tree-free paper with vegetable based inks. All of our products are packaged in recyclable or reusable packaging and we display coding and recycling advisements on all of our labels to assist consumers. We actively recycle all paper, glass and plastics in our operations and we support environmentally friendly companies by giving sustainable products as promotional gifts. We continue to make our office and production operation a greener environment and a healthy place to work.

2. What is your green characteristic you're most proud of?

We are most proud of our role promoting sustainable agriculture, and for our role in spurring the return of and growth of hemp farming in North America. Manitoba Harvest has taken a steady, education-oriented approach to expanding organic hemp agriculture in Manitoba, and farmers are really catching on to the benefits. We are proud to be converting conventional farmers to organic agriculture, rather than just moving organic farmers of other crops over to organic hemp.

We’re an active member of the Organic Producers Association of Manitoba, and regularly educate farmer groups in Canada about the many merits of growing organic varieties of hemp seed. We have created a system that educates farmers and empowers those farmers to further educate other farmers - and on it goes.

In the early 1990s, company co-founder Martin Moravcik was importing handcrafted goods from indigenous people around the world for his stores in Winnipeg when he discovered that hemp items were in high demand. He organized the Hemp Awareness Committee at the University of Manitoba in the early 1990’s. The group lobbied the provincial government for assistance with research and development of hemp agriculture and was able to convince Manitoba’s Agriculture Minister of hemp’s great potential. Led by Martin, the group submitted a business plan and the Province responded by providing $25,000 and the services of an agronomist. His group obtained some of the first hemp test plot permits from the Canadian government, and the success of their policy activity and research led to the legalization of hemp agriculture in Canada and the first harvest in 1998.

3. What is your biggest achievement so far?

I think there are two aspects of achievement that are relevant to our company story so far: (1) policy activist success; and (2) economic success. The first policy achievement was our role in the movement that made hemp agriculture legal again in Canada in 1998. The next big achievement in that area was our role in the important hemp industry victory in the U.S. courts in 2004 to clarify that hemp foods are legal.

From a business standpoint, we have demonstrated that eco-friendly hemp can be profitable and successful. We are proud to have survived the early years when there was virtually no awareness or sales of hemp foods. We persevered to the new situation today where hemp foods are gaining accolades and more mainstream popularity as a tasty and nutritious food. Hemp foods are now one of the hottest trends in the organic industry and are poised for even more growth.

4. In what way do you think that you help people to take a green action and make a difference?

We have a grassroots style of marketing our products and our mission. We take it directly to the people, and they appreciate that and are inspired by it. They also align with our activism and strong commitment to hemp and to sustainable agriculture. For example, we played a key role recently in a lawsuit that helped to establish that hemp foods are legal in the US, after years of harassment from a government agency that caused confusion in the minds of consumers and regulatory uncertainty for retailers of hemp foods.

We help people understand sustainable agriculture, as well as the concept that ‘you are what you eat.’ These two things when combined make a difference because they lead to a healthier planet and healthier people.

Educating consumers about the many health benefits and rich flavor of hemp foods has been a top priority of ours from day one. We have focused resources on direct interaction at events and in-store demonstrations that can reach more than 250,000 people annually. Sampling and interaction inspires retailers and customers to spread their hemp food experiences by word-of-mouth to their friends. Once people experience the pleasant flavor of hemp foods and grasp the nutritional value it is an easy sell – so extensive sampling is essential.

Hemp foods are gaining more and more recognition from nutrition experts due to their high and balanced concentration of Omega-3 and Omega-6 Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs), strong digestible protein profile, soluble and insoluble fiber content, and their host of vitamins and minerals. Hemp seed’s overall protein content of 34.6% is comparable to soy beans and is higher than that found in nuts, other seeds, meats, dairy products and fish or poultry. With regard to fats, hemp’s EFA profile is closer to fish oil than any other vegetable oil.

5. Who is your green hero?

We like to recognize a different ‘green hero’ every week as inspiration. This week we are honoring Dr. Seuss. His children’s book the Lorax, also an animated movie, is an entertaining way to educate people about sustainability. We appreciate how Dr. Seuss’ imaginative story is so deep in real life parallels to the economic and environmental challenges that mankind faces every day. He went out on a limb with this project - as the story was controversial when it first came out in the 1970’s due to its anti-forest products and doom-and-gloom content. It taught and inspired a lot of children and is still popular decades after it was published. At the end of the story, while they are in the smog and the water and land are devastated, the Once-ler gives the boy the last seed of the Truffula Tree to plant and nurture, we like to think of that seed as a hemp seed.

6. What's your green dream for your business?

We dream that hemp will become the next booming agricultural sector – like soy except more sustainable and eco-friendly. We want to expand the market for hemp foods, expand hemp acreage and help more farmers. This is what motivated us in the beginning in the late 1990s when we started the company and it still drives us today. Hemp is the most remarkable plant and has so many uses. It is an eco-friendly alternative to so many products that we can’t even begin to list them here. We believe hemp has the ability to change the world, and now that awareness of healthy hemp foods is spreading and farmers are gaining interest we are beginning to see some of that potential being realized.

And if you missed the parts of the Unofficial Guide we published so far on Eco-Libris blog, please check them out:

Introduction
Part 1 - Natural Pet Home Store
Part 2- Mountains of the Moon
Part 3 - Yoga Nine
Part 4 - Pizza Fusion
Part 5 - Green Living Now
Part 6 - ReusableBags.com
Part 7 - UsedCardboardBoxes.com
Part 8 - Flexcar

Yours,
Raz

Eco-Libris: Plant a tree for everybook you read!

Green Festival in Washington DC starts tommorow

Green Festival will begin tomorrow in Washington DC. I have only good memories from last year's green festival in DC and I hope to enjoy it as well this year.

Here are some details on the event:

Where: Convention Center, 801 Mount Vernon Place, NW Washington DC

When: Saturday 10AM - 8PM, Sunday 11AM - 6PM

Schedule: http://www.greenfestivals.org/content/blogcategory/127/225/

Speakers: Ralph Nader – Frances Moore Lappe – Dr. Helen Caldicott - Hunter Lovins - Amy Goodman - Jim Hightower - Vicki Robbin - Thom Hartmann - Bill McKibben -Timberly Whitfield - Medea Benjamin – Kevin Danaher - Alisa Gravitz - Wendy Rieger – Warren Brown – Karen Johns – Michael Dorsey and 100 other visionary leaders....

Tickets: $15 General Admission Festival Pass. $10 Discounted Admission Festival Pass (available at the door) for students, seniors, union memers, bicyclists, etc. Children under 12 -Free

So, come on and enjoy more than 125 visionary speakers and 350 green businesses, great how-to workshops, green films, a fair trade pavilion, yoga and movement classes, organic beer, delicious organic cuisine and live music.

And for all of you book lovers - Better World Books and Green Festival are partnering to offer $5 off Green Festival admission to attendees who bring in 3 or more books. Your donated books will be sold on BetterWorld.com to help fund girls’ scholarships in developing countries in Asia through Room to Read. http://www.roomtoread.org/.

see you there,

Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: plant a tree for every book you read!

Flexcar: 2007 People's Choice Award - part 8

Sharing is a good thing. Car sharing is a great thing! I only wish we had car sharing options here in Newark, DE.. In the meantime, please allow me to present nominee no. 8 on Eco-Libris blog Unofficial Guide to Co-op America's 2007 People's Choice Award for the Green Business of the Year:

Flexcar

Business description: Flexcar is the progressive way to get around town that saves time, money and the environment. Their low-emission, fuel-efficient vehicles are conveniently parked near homes and workplaces. Members use them when they need them, paying just a simple hourly rate that includes gas, insurance and maintenance. It’s far less expensive than owning and operating a car, and much more convenient than renting.

Located at: Seattle, WA (corporate headquarters)

Operating Since: 1999

Website: http://www.flexcar.com/

The questionnaire (thank you to John Williams at Scoville Public Relations):

1. What makes your business a green business?

Flexcar is a car-sharing company that allows members to drive environmentally-friendly cars by the hour. Parked conveniently around many metro areas, it allows people to have access to a car without having to own one. As a result, people sell or avoid buying a car, and rely on walking, biking and transit more.

2. What is your green characteristic you're most proud of?

We’re most proud of the fact that studies show that each shared car takes 15 privately-owned cars off the road. To date, that means we’ve effectively removed nearly 30,000 cars. In addition, by driving less and by using more environmentally-friendly vehicles, we estimate our members decreased fuel consumption by approximately 640,000 gallons (which equates to about 14 million pounds of carbon dioxide) last year alone.

3. What is your biggest achievement so far?

Flexcar has grown from 1 market and 2 cars to 15 markets and 2000 cars in just a few years. It has taken what was originally considered a “fringe” concept and made it mainstream. Today, individuals, companies, governments and major universities all rely on Flexcar.

4. In what way do you think that you help people to take a green action and make a difference?

Most people really want to do the right thing – but it’s hard. But with Flexcar around the corner or across the street, people can really get around without having to own a car. It saves them money and it saves the planet. They feel good about their actions.

5. Who is your green hero?

Yvon Chouinard, the founder of Patagonia for his pioneering efforts to literally weave sustainability into the fiber of the company and its products.

6. What's your green dream for your business?

The American dream used to be a car in every garage and a chicken in every pot. We’re shooting for a Flexcar on every block and maybe some organic pasta in every pot.

The next nominee: Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods & Oils

And if you missed the parts of the Unofficial Guide we published so far on Eco-Libris blog, please check them out:

Introduction
Part 1 - Natural Pet Home Store
Part 2- Mountains of the Moon
Part 3 - Yoga Nine
Part 4 - Pizza Fusion
Part 5 - Green Living Now
Part 6 - ReusableBags.com
Part 7 - UsedCardboardBoxes.com

Yours,
Raz

Eco-Libris: Plant a tree for everybook you read!

UsedCardboardBoxes.com: 2007 People's Choice Award - part 7

Moving? need some boxes? want to do it sustainably? If you answered 'Yes' to all the 2 questions, our nominee today can help you. Please welcome nominee no. 7 on Eco-Libris blog Unofficial Guide to Co-op America's 2007 People's Choice Award for the Green Business of the Year:

UsedCardboardBoxes.com

Business description: collecting used cardboard boxes, packaging them and reselling them at discounted prices. UsedCardboardBoxes.com rescues truckloads of quality used boxes from businesses and also rescues brand new misprints and overruns from box manufacturers that can longer use those boxes. It puts all of these boxes through a rigorous inspection and certification process, prior to allowing them to be used in its inventory.

Located at: Santa Monica, CA

Operating Since: 2006 (Predecessor company, Boomerang Boxes, founded 2002)

Website: http://www.usedcardboardboxes.com/

The questionnaire (thank you to Marty Metro, UsedCardboardBoxes.com's Founder and CEO):

1. What makes your business a green business?

UsedCardboardBoxes.com is changing the moving box industry, in a very simple way. Rather than cutting down trees and using machinery, gasoline, electricity, etc. to make new boxes, we sell quality used boxes that already exist.

With traditional cardboard box recycling, quality used boxes are baled and shipped to Asia, to be made into new products. There is nothing wrong with that type of recycling, especially if the boxes can’t be used again, here in the US. However, UsedCardboardBoxes.com works with companies right here in the US that historically dispose of quality used boxes. We acquire those boxes and we put them back into the marketplace right here, in the US. No need to destroy them. No need to bale them. No need to ship them to Asia.

The great thing about UsedCardboardBoxes.com is that our customers aren’t just buying a “green product” from a “green company”… they are actually saving money, at the same time.

Few more green points:

- Over $120,000,000,000 worth of cardboard boxes are produced around the world, each year.

- Over 90% of all products in the U.S. are shipped in corrugated cardboard boxes.

- Almost one billion trees a year are used for making paper.

- Trees clean our air by absorbing carbon dioxide and releasing clean oxygen back into the air for us to breathe. One tree can filter up to 60 pounds of pollutants from the air each year.

- It takes an estimated 17 trees to create enough cardboard boxes to move one family living in an average three bedroom house.

- Making the pulp from trees for use in corrugated cardboard creates sulfur dioxide pollution. Recycling corrugated cardboard cuts the emissions of sulfur dioxide in half and uses about 25% less energy than making cardboard from virgin pulp. No recycling the box, but simply reusing it emits no sulfur dioxide.

- Saving one ton of cardboard saves over 9 cubic yards of landfill space, saves 390 kWh of energy and saves 1.1 barrels (46 gallons) of oil.

- Nationwide, paper and cardboard account for 41% of all municipal solid waste--that's close to half of all the garbage generated in the US!

- It takes 17 trees to absorb the harmful carbon dioxide emitted from one car every year.

2. What is your green characteristic you're most proud of?

That’s pretty easy. We are very proud of two things, here at UsedCardboardBoxes.com:

- We’ve created a virtually “zero waste” company that not only sells a very “green” product, but sells it for LESS than the competition. So, I’d have to say that we are most proud of the fact that we are showing the world that green does not have to cost more. At UsedCardboardBoxes.com, being green actually saves you money.
- Unlike a lot of “green companies” and other organizations that are popping to do their part to save the planet (which is a great thing), we are actually making money while we do it. Its very difficult to be green and also pay your own bills, let alone grow. UsedCardboardBoxes.com is proud to say that we are a for-profit company that has proven to the world that you can make money AND be green. It doesn’t have to be a choice between the two. We help our customers save money, we pay our employees well, we are making a strong impact on the environment and society, all while making enough profit to keep us growing. Yep, we are proud of that!

3. What is your biggest achievement so far?

UsedCardboardBoxes.com’s biggest achievement so far would have to be the fact that we took a local “retail store concept” in Los Angeles and went nationwide. Two years ago, we were proud to say that we serviced an area from Santa Barbara to San Diego, and we delivered 2 days a week. Today, I’m excited to say that UsedCardboardBoxes.com is NATIONWIDE! And, we ship our moving boxes anywhere in the country, for FREE.

There are lots of traditional box companies that offer 5-7 day shipping and/or charge $14.95 - $49.95 just to ship enough boxes to move a household. But at UsedCardboadBoxes.com, anyone in the country who orders used moving boxes from our website will get their boxes in 1-2 business days, guaranteed. We are the only company in the US that can do this. We’ve come a long way in the last few years and I’d say that’s quite an achievement.

4. In what way do you think that you help people to take a green action and make a difference?

UsedCardboardBoxes.com provides a way for people to buy a “green product” that actually costs less than the traditional product. And, because UsedCardboardBoxes.com has a 100% satisfaction guarantee, we provide a “no risk” way to try us out. Because we take a portion of our proceeds and plant trees through our partner, TreePeople.org, our customers purchasing actions do more than just get them low cost, risk free moving boxes… they contribute to planting trees and educating people about trees, at the same time.

Our customers don’t have to research charities to find out who actually plants trees and how many. We’ve done the research and completely stand behind them. A portion of our proceeds to go plant trees, but our customers can also choose to plant their own from our site, for only $25. Its amazing to see when our customers purchase one of our smallest moving kits for just $36, but then go ahead and donate a tree, for an additional $25. We like to think that because of the money we are saving them, they are able to do such wonderful acts. The reality is our customers are just plain awesome!

5. Who is your green hero?

Well, there are a lot of pioneers in the green movement these days. New people come up with new green concepts everyday. But I have to say that for UsedCardboardBoxes.com, our heroes are our customers. We have built an amazing business with sophisticated processes and world-class technology. However, if its wasn’t for our customers, that made a conscious decision to switch to used boxes, we would be out of business quickly.

However, we have been growing strong. Not only do more and more customers come to UsedCardboardBoxes.com, but one of our top referral sources is word of mouth from our customers. They are helping us spread the word, by telling friends about us, nominating us for Coop America’s “Green Business of the Year” and more. I can’t tell you how many calls we get from people saying “my sister said that I just HAD to use you….” and the like.

We don’t have a single salesperson at UsedCardboardBoxes.com. We are grateful to have a customer base that loves to brag about us. So, whether they have been green for years, or are just experimenting for the first time with UsedCardboardBoxes.com, our customers are our biggest green heroes.

6. What's your green dream for your business?

On one hand, our dreams have come true. We took a simple concept and spent 5 years developing the logistics, technology and business processes to have national company, where anyone in the country could easily purchase used cardboard boxes. We did it! Now, our dream is for EVERYONE in the country to know that “you don’t have to cut down a tree, to make a used cardboard box!” In other words, the dream for UsedCardboardBoxes.com is that every person and company in the country will consider using a used box, before contributing to making new ones!

The next nominee: Flexcar

And if you missed the parts of the Unofficial Guide we published so far on Eco-Libris blog, please check them out:

Introduction
Part 1 - Natural Pet Home Store
Part 2- Mountains of the Moon
Part 3 - Yoga Nine
Part 4 - Pizza Fusion
Part 5 - Green Living Now
Part 6 - ReusableBags.com

Yours,
Raz

Eco-Libris: Plant a tree for everybook you read!

Tamsin Blanchard shows you how to change the world with style

It all started in a confessional booth.

Cyndi Rhoades of Anti-apathy has a mobile fashion confessional booth she takes to workshops and festivals. In the summer of 2006, she took it to a local festival in London. Tamsin Blanchard, the Style Director of Telegraph Magazine and a longtime fashion journalist, who was helping to organize an eco-fashion day at this festival, decided to take advantage of the opportunity and went to confess at the confessional booth.

These moments at the booth were epiphany moments for her. "I went to confess my fashion sins and from then, I really began to seriously consider the issues of pesticides in cotton, fairtrade clothing, clothing dyes, recycling etc." she told me. She acted fast and one year later she launched her new book: Green is the New Black: How to Change the World with Style. The book is a guide to everyone who is looking for ways to green up their lifestyle, without compromising on style, quality, being fashionably, etc.

Nowadays you can find a growing number of books written on different aspects of green consumerism, but this is the first one written by a fashion journalist. Naturally, it focuses on topics such as eco-fashion, eco-style, green weddings, eco-friendly shoes and bags and getting the (green) look.

In addition the book also presents the alternative way to be green and fashionable - DIY. Blanchard, knowing very well the significance of recycling, gives many tips how to make clothes and accessories from materials you can find at your home and your closet, including how to organize swishing (clothes swapping) parties.

I was recently honored with the opportunity to speak with Tamsin Blanchard for an article I made for the web-edition of Maariv, Israel's second-largest newspaper on her book. You are welcome to read on her thoughts on green living and which of her green tips is her favorite.

What brought you to write this book? to whom it is written?

As a fashion journalist, I have seen the high street begin to take note of the issues surrounding eco and fair trade fashion. The consumer is beginning to ask questions and I felt it was the right time to supply them with the information - written in an accessible and unworthy way. The book is aimed at anyone interested in fashion who also has a conscience.

What's the most interesting stuff you have learned about eco-living while working on the book?

That there are so many great alternatives, from fantastic fair trade jewellery (made on the slums of Kibera by the ethical jewellery company Made) to fantastically cool chrome free leather shoes by Terra Plana.

You are described as someone who is bringing eco-living to the masses - do you think the masses really care about eco-living? isn't it still something that only people with financial capabilities can afford?

Even if only 5 % are interested in making a change, then they are worth communicating and engaging with, and hopefully, the message will spread to everyone. We now all have to recycle our rubbish or we get fined so nobody can ignore eco-living completely. 10 years ago, fairtrade bananas and coffee were a niche product bought by a committed few. Now they have become totally mainstream. Change happens quickly.

What's your reply to the critics of green consumerism, like George Monbiot for example, who believe it causes more damage than good by giving us an illusion that we can fix the world with a couple of efficient bulbs and a pair of organic cotton jeans?

Nobody is going to stop buying jeans. Why should we? We are not living in the dark ages and whether we like it or not, we are a society of consumers. Shopping has become one of the most popular forms of entertainment. If we can get people to direct their spending power in the right direction, then perhaps more people will be paid a fair wage.

Sure, we need to cut down on how much and how quickly we are consuming, particularly in fashion. I do think we need to slow down, buy fewer, better quality items, and respect the things we buy - looking after them, mending them, making them last as long as possible - so that we stop throwing things away so readily. Cheap, fast fashion, in particular, is a false economy as it falls apart after a couple of washes.

It seems that the options for men are relatively limited when it comes to eco-fashion. What's your advice for those of us who happen to be men, but still want to be fashionable, cool and green?

There are plenty of organic jeans around now, (including Levi's) and there are labels like Katharine E Hamnett, Loomstate, and Howies that cater for men who want to be green and fashionable. Support those labels and other companies will follow.

How many of the tips you provide in your book you implement in your daily life?

what's the one you like mostly? Washing your clothes at 30 degrees. They still come out just as clean!

What you see as the hottest trends in green living in the next couple of years? is there any area that we should follow in particular?

We will be seeing more alternatives to cotton (even organic cotton - it's so water intensive that it is not sustainable). Fabrics like bamboo, soya, interesting mixes with hemp, washi etc will be more widely available and will filter into designer lines as well as the high street.

What's the most important advice you can give to someone who really wants to change the world and make it greener, but with style?

Don't compromise on style. Be confident in your own style and don't follow trends. Ask questions about where your clothes were made. Slow down.

Your book is about green living. Does it also 'walk the walk', i.e., printed in an environmentally manner (using recycled paper for example)?

The book is made from wood grown in sustainable forests. The hard coverboard is recycled. And I encourage anyone who has a copy to pass it on to a friend once they have finished with it!

The book 'Green is the New Black: Changing the World with Style' can be found on Amazon.com. You can also check out Tamsin Blanchard's blog.

Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: Plant a tree for every book you read!

ReusableBags.com: 2007 People's Choice Award - part 6

Using reusable bags in the supermarket is one of my favorite green actions. It's so simple, but yet so rare.. Our nominee for today works to change the situation. Please welcome nominee no. 6 on Eco-Libris blog Unofficial Guide to Co-op America's 2007 People's Choice Award for the Green Business of the Year:

ReusableBags.com

Business description: Online store featuring a wide range of high-quality, innovative reusable shopping bags and related accessories. ReusableBags.com is also a major force providing facts and news on the global push to reduce plastic and paper bag consumption.

Located at: Chicago, IL

Operating Since: 2003

Website: http://www.reusablebags.com/

The questionnaire (thank you to Allison Kozdron from ReusableBags.com):

1. What makes your business a green business?

We handpick all the products that we carry, and focus on recycled, sustainably grown, fairly traded products and high quality products. We work constantly with our fulfillment warehouse to reduce our eco-impact in shipping and use packaging products with 60% recycled content.

2. What is your green characteristic you're most proud of?

Joining the likes of Patagonia, 1% of sales are donated to the preservation and restoration of the natural environment through our 1% For the Planet affiliation.

3. What is your biggest achievement so far?

For the last five years, we've been fighting hard to spread the word on the massive over-consumption of plastic shopping bags and have made a significant impact -- inspiring hundreds of news stories, empowering individuals with practical tools and supporting grassroots activists. We are proud to have been endorsed by An Inconvenient Truth, and recognized in mainstream publications, such as USA Today, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Vogue magazine and many others.

4. In what way do you think that you help people to take a green action and make a difference?

In addition to being a major catalyst in raising awareness on the plastic bag issue, since 2003 we’ve provided consumers with nearly 350,000 reusable bags and bottles, enabling consumers to reduce their consumption of use-and-toss items by an estimated 190 million units.

5. Who is your green hero?

ReusableBags.com was founded by Vincent Cobb, who after researching the issue, was amazed by the sheer volume of plastic bags and the growing negative impact on our environment. He was inspired by his mother, who had long used reusable shopping bags and was a practical environmentalist. She helped fashion the early prototypes on a home sewing machine for the proprietary Acme bags line, which recently won a “best overall” rating as the best reusable shopping bag by the Wall Street Journal. She still continues to use her reusable shopping bags and spread the word!

6. What's your green dream for your business?

To continue to stand out as providing attractive, high quality reusable shopping bags that consumers actually want to use, especially as more retailers begin virtually giving away cheap shopping bags (which may merely replace one “use and toss” with another!). We hope to expand our offering of bags made of truly sustainable (organic cotton, hemp) and recycled materials (such as recycled PET and recycled cotton).

The next nominee: UsedCardboardBoxes.com

And if you missed the parts of the Unofficial Guide we published so far on Eco-Libris blog, please check them out:

Introduction

Part 1 - Natural Pet Home Store

Part 2- Mountains of the Moon

Part 3 - Yoga Nine

Part 4 - Pizza Fusion

Part 5 - Green Living Now

Yours,

Raz

Eco-Libris: Plant a tree for everybook you read!