NRDC Meets Celebrity

Celebrities have all come together to pass a legislation bill that will make American history if passed. They are featured in a video made by the Natural Resource Defense Council Action Fund that directly talks to voters about getting off their tush and contacting their state Senator. Anything from a letter to a video sent to them is what they are asking. Stars such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Justin Long and Emmy Rossum are amongst the celebrities that make an appearance.

NRDC Action Fund: Who are they and what are they doing?

The Natural Resource Defense Council or NRDC has created an Action Fund that will hopefully assist in the passage of legislation that will jump start clean energy economy. It will also support legislation that supports the reduction of pollution. Both of these factors are key in the battle of climate change. As we all may know that in a nationwide dispute, problems are solved through legislation, and that many great movements have started first with policy. Now is that time.

The overall goal of the NRDC is the passage of a comprehensive clean energy policy that will re-power the economy and lead a way to non-dependence on foreign oil. The main goal right now that involves all is to mobilize us and the rest of the community to vote for clean energy legislation. The action fund recently assisted in the passing of the American Clean Energy and Security Act. A main part of their efforts relied on social media and overall web based news, feeds and conversations. The Action Fund is working with NRDC and other partners to implement steps and strategies to pass ACES in the Senate this year. The strategy recently used was a “Hero’s and Villains” themed web page that identified how members in strategic states voted and asked that activists be on the side of the Hero’s.

The NRDC understands that the environmental movement is not everyone’s belief or understanding, which is why they work to build coalitions with strategic partners to make sure that those who are worth listening to get a worthy and large audience. This component is very important to their passing of the bill, which is why they have created the video–to virally enter the homes of millions of Americans that hopefully will give this a second look, pass it on and possibly even write or send a video to their Senator.

Ok, now you have the information and you may ask: so what? Well for your information, this is a country that is ultimately determined by its citizens and demands that you care for it for the good of the people. Make sure that if environmentalism is on your list of importance in life, that you take action in situations such as this. This provides an incredible opportunity for both you and your fellow Americans to make a difference with the way we handle our energy and dependence on foreign oil. The passing of this bill is reminiscent of the old phrase “one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”.

To learn more check out this video -

Sheryl Crow, Green Rocker Mama Extraordinaire!

With a new album on the way, rockstar Sheryl Crow is the epitome of a green celebrity living the true sustainable life (for a rockstar).  Not only is the green mother of two committed to mother earth, but also is committed to rocking our socks off year after year. In honor of a music legend releasing yet another (now here 7th) album, 100 Miles From Memphis, this is a little something recognizing her efforts.

●     From flights to ground transportation, the entirety of the carbon footprint of her tour is neutralized with the support of renewable energy source.

●     All food provided is organic, locally sourced and packaged in biodegradable/compostable containers.

●     Ms. Crow is a founding member of the Green Music Group, a group committed to rallying the music community to take environmental action.

●     Water stations with reusable water bottles have replaced plastic bottles,  for crew members and band.

●     Non-toxic supplies clean Crow’s tour buses and bathrooms are furnished with post-consumer recycled bathroom tissue.

●     The carbon footprint of Crow’s touring vehicles are nearly non-existent–they all use B20 biodiesel.

●     All of Sheryl’s concerts feature a Reverb Eco-Village offering attendees the opportunity to meet with local non-profit groups and access an on-line carpooling service.

●     A comprehensive recycling/waste reduction system has been implemented backstage and on her touring vehicles.

●     Concert programs printed on, Forest Stewardship Council paper — an eco-friendly, responsible resource that uses soy inks.

Thank you to Sheryl Crow for showing all of them out there in the music land how living responsibly and kindly to the environment is done! Check out her video to learn more about her efforts.

Father’s Day Special: Top 10 Celebrity Eco-Dads

1. Kevin Costner – Although the number one spot is usually taken by long time Eco Warrior Ed Begley Jr., our choice for the number one spot is being given to by Mr. Costner because of his exceptional contributions in the recent BP oil spill, also known as the worst this world has ever experienced.  Costner helped fund the development of this machine 15 years ago. The researchers were headed by Costner’s brother, a scientist. Currently there are 5 different models of the extractor, from 5 gallons/minute to 200 gallons/minute. The actor and environmental activist just demonstrated a machine that extracts 97% of the oil from water.

It appears that the machine contains a centrifuge inside that helps it separate the oil from the water, due to the density differences of the two. One of the problems to overcome is containing the oil so it can be extracted from the water. If the oil is dispersed over a vast area, it will be virtually impossible to filter all that water and capture the oil.

Back when the Exxon disaster occurred, Costner was inspired to invest $20 million of his own money into an oil cleanup machine. He was quoted as saying: “If 20 of my V20s [machines] would have been at the Exxon Valdez, 90 percent of that oil would have been cleaned up within the week.”

After much testing, BP has purchased 32 of Costner’s machines to help clean up the spill. Now, we wait.

Other stellar Eco-Dads of the Green Revolution:

2. Ed Begley Jr – The comedic actor composts his garbage and relies on solar and thermal power to run his home. He also created a line of Eco-friendly cleaning products called Begley’s Best. Not to mention his green program on Planet Green, namely called “Living with Ed.”

3. Robert Redford – Robert Redford has taken his cinematic talent green by producing and narrating a documentary about Yosemite National Park to help protect the sacred lands and parks in the US.

4. Brad Pitt – He has been an incredibly important player in the post-Katrina green building movement. He contributed $5 million of his own dollars to help fund the project.

5. Al Gore – As most of us have seen, An Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore devotes his talents to the fight against climate change and has won an Emmy, an Oscar and the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts.

6. Will Ferrell – As an active supporter of the Natural Resources Defense Council, Will Ferrell will soon be driving his electric car into the driveway of his green home.

7. Tom Hanks – He has been driving electric vehicles for some time now and his production company operates from a solar-powered building.

8. Sting – The superstar and his wife created The Rainforest Foundation back in 1989. They now make a difference in 15 counties to protect precious habitat. The Foundation to date has saved over 70,000 square miles of land.

9. Willie Nelson As a pillar of the alternative fuel movement, he encourages the public to become less dependent on foreign oil and started producing biodiesel at a Texas truck stop in 2004.

10. Chris Martin An advocate of fair trade, the vegetarian is an Eco-Warrior on stage and in his everyday life.

Change You Can Bite Into

In 1971 Frances Moor Lappe released her now-classic book, “Diet For A Small Planet”. This groundbreaking book helped millions of readers understand the root causes for hunger and her core message was that food remains the central issue through which to understand world politics. As a continuation of her message of how the food system is broken and what needs to happen to fix it, her daughter Anna Lappe recently wrote a powerful book focusing on a different cause but the same solution.

Anna Lappe’s new book, “Diet for a Hot Planet: The Climate Crisis at the End of Your Fork, and What You Can Do About It”, falls into the category as being one of the most important books of the year. The book acts as a reality check from specific situations that support the notion that climate change is having substantial effects on our planet right now.

Lappe exposes the truth, based on well-documented science, on how agriculture can be part of the answer to fix a broken food system. In this book, Lappe lays out 7 principles for a climate friendly diet. The dietary advice found in the book gives insight as to what foods to choose for good health; not only trim down your waistline, but also what foods to pick to help reduce carbon footprint. Lappe heavily argues that the key factor to understanding how to help your health while also helping the planet is to understand where your food comes from.

If you take interest in knowing more about how to reduce carbon footprint by adopting a planet friendly diet, join the live discussion on Alternet with Anna Lappe tonight 8pm EST/5pm PST tonight, Monday, April 5.

Music Scene Goes Green

By nature, the touring industry has a negative impact on the environment because of the combined carbon footprint of tours, concerts, videos and albums. We are left to wonder, is there anything really green about the music scene? There wasn’t until Guster’s vocalist/guitarist Adam Gardner and his wife, Lauren Sullivan, founded Reverb- an environmental organization devoted to greening the music industry. Since its start-up in 2004, Reverb cut more than 67,000 tons of carbon from the music industry and greened 81 tours by creating outreach displays at concerts, partnering up with environmentalist groups, offering bio diesel fuel for vehicles, and encouraging recycling and waste reduction. Taking Reverb one step further, the couple started the Green Music Group, a project created to inspire environmental change. The GMG launched on January 30, 2010 and is founded by a team of musicians, fans, record labels, and music industry leaders who seek to inspire environmental change through powerful music performances that spread awareness of global issues. With the support of founding members (including Dave Mathews Band, Linkin Park, The Roots, Sheryl Crow, Barenaked Ladies, Bonnie Raitt and Maroon 5), GMG wants to “make big changes by targeting small tasks to use the collective power of the music community to take action and bring about universal environmental change”.

So what does the future look like for GMG and the music industry? We can expect to see new eco-friendly standards for venues, labels and tours, green grants given to up- and-coming artists, environmental challenges aimed at members and prizes donated to groups.

If you want to support positive environmental action within the music industry you can sign up to become a part of the GMG crew. To show their appreciation, you are automatically entered to win an autographed eco-friendly guitar and you will even receive a free song from the launch session. Not a bad gig, eh?

Stay up to date by following the Green Music Group on Twitter!

Become a fan of the Green Music Group on Facebook

Check out this video from the Launch Event!

Single Stream Recycling

Single-stream recycling makes recycling SO easy, almost as easy as using the trash can. And, it’s getting us closer to having zero waste communities.

How it works: Through single stream recycling, all of your recyclables are collected in one bin. That means throwing paper, plastics, glass, etc., into one container instead of separating them. Another bin can be used for composting food scraps and yard waste and your third bin is the trash can (but you’ll be taking out the trash a lot less if you’re using single stream recycling).

Now, there’s no excuse. Many American’s don’t recycle because they are confused on what can and cannot go in certain bins. They also feel like it takes too much time and effort (laziness!). Now, you can throw everything together (as long as it is recyclable) and let the recycling center take care of the rest! Many communities are using single stream recycling to help them meet their goals of becoming a Zero Waste community and incorporating the three bin method talked about above.

Conservatree has interviewed participants using sign stream recycling for the past three years and have found there are different points of view about the system. Some systems are good, some are bad, however from each they are learning and tweaking to create what is needed to make single stream recycling the best it can be. Read more about this specific topic at Conservatree.

Blog Action Day, 2009

I’ve taken a little bit of a different approach to this year’s Blog Action Day than other bloggers I’ve read. They all have amazing points and I encourage you to read as many as you can! I wanted a very positive post and talk about something very simple, but often forgotten, love.

Loving our planet means many things to many people. It could be cleaning up trash in our oceans at a meet-up, clean-up group, it could be setting up recycling bins in your homes or offices, it could be educating students and consumers about alternative energy, or it could just be taking in a deep breath of fresh airwhile spending time with nature and appreciating every step, every tree, every smell, every feeling.

When you love something you want to give your all to it. If you’ve ever been in love with someone, you know the feeling I’m talking about. What if we started loving the planet as much as we love one another, and start proving our love? What if we walked a little more lightly, a little more consciously, a little more graciously, on our beautiful mother nature?

On Blog Action Day, I want to tell the world to open our hearts to the environment and look at ways we can show some love. There are many organizations to get involved with, petitions to sign, people to educate, laws to learn and know about, and probably many things that you could easily incorporate into your own life. Take that step, ask questions, research online, and try to do something nice for our environment.

Cheers to today and to our beautiful planet, the one I love and hope you will too!

Leonardo DeCaprio’s “The 11th Hour” Documentary

Spreading the word about hope and viable solutions for a sustainable future is right up my alley so when I saw Leonardo DeCarpio’s documentary, The 11th Hour, is now out on DVD I had to tell the world! Check out the trailer below then go to Netflix and order it up today!

 

Featuring over fifty of the world’s most prominent thinkers and activists including physicist Stephen Hawking, Nobel Prize winner Wangari Maathai and reformer Mikhail Gorbachev, this captivating film documents the severity of a planet in crisis. Deforestation, global warming, mass species extinction, depletion of oceanic habitats~all signs that point to a not-so-rosy future for humanity (aka: you, your kids and grandkids)!

The 11th Hour is dramatic in its forecasting of what the onset of global warming and other catastrophic environmental events mean to us as citizens of the planet. It calls for restorative action through a reshaping of human activity, reminding us that we already possess some of the most important tools to effect real change~our right to vote and our purchasing power. The opportunity to make ecology a top priority is right at our fingertips!

You will experience the  enthusiasm of prominent scientists and environmental advocates as they paint a portrait of a radically new and exciting future in which humanity seeks to mimic nature and coexist in a healthy and sustainable environment.

Directed by sisters Leila Conners Petersen and Nadia Conners, the film was made as a call to action. And they didn’t stop there! The duo established a website called 11th Hour Action, where you can interact with other members and learn what people are doing to reshape the future.