When the folks at Treehugger called and asked me to help produce a video series for their Green Holiday Gift Guide, I chugged some organic yerba mate and jumped on a plane to DC to get cracking. I’ve always been a big fan of Treehugger. I love their irreverent tone and sense of play.  To me they strike the perfect balance between taking the environment very seriously but not always themselves. Their team digs up the most fascinating and cutting edge stories, the writing is smart and entertaining and the aesthetic clean and modern.  So with all that in mind, we created companion videos for the gift guide so folks could see the products in action and I could pretend to be an eco fashion model.

This video features gifts for the Fashion Buff & Pop Culture Fanatic:

Deborah Lindquist

Marmol Radziner

Stewart + Brown

Avatar DVD

When the folks at Treehugger called and asked me to help produce a video series for their Green Holiday Gift Guide, I chugged some organic yerba mate and jumped on a plane to DC to get cracking. I’ve always been a big fan of Treehugger. I love their irreverent tone and sense of play.  To me they strike the perfect balance between taking the environment very seriously but not always themselves. Their team digs up the most fascinating and cutting edge stories, the writing is smart and entertaining and the aesthetic clean and modern.  So with all that in mind, we created companion videos for the gift guide so folks could see the products in action and I could stuff my face full of organic popcorn.

This video features gifts for The Foodie and The Health & Wellness Guru:

GreenGourmet by Cuinsart

Organic Popcorn set by Eden Foods

Raw Food Essentials by Ani Phyo

Ecosystem Notebooks

When the folks at Treehugger called and asked me to help produce a video series for their Green Holiday Gift Guide, I chugged some organic yerba mate and jumped on a plane to DC to get cracking. I’ve always been a big fan of Treehugger. I love their irreverent tone and sense of play.  To me they strike the perfect balance between taking the environment very seriously but not always themselves. Their team digs up the most fascinating and cutting edge stories, the writing is smart and entertaining and the aesthetic clean and modern.  So with all that in mind, we created companion videos for the gift guide so folks could see the products in action and I could play with sock puppets and get paid for it.

This video features gifts for The Animal Lover and The Kids:

Doggy Rain Coat by Recycling Zychal

Life by Discovery Channel

Cate & Levi puppets

Species Adoption from World Wildlife Fund

When the folks at Treehugger called and asked me to help produce a video series for their Green Holiday Gift Guide, I chugged some organic yerba mate and jumped on a plane to DC to get cracking. I’ve always been a big fan of Treehugger. I love their irreverent tone and sense of play.  To me they strike the perfect balance between taking the environment very seriously but not always themselves. Their team digs up the most fascinating and cutting edge stories, the writing is smart and entertaining and the aesthetic clean and modern.  So with all that in mind, we created companion videos for the gift guide so folks could see the products in action and I could live out my dream of powering a TV with a bike generator.

This video features gifts for the Green Geek and Do-It-Your-Self’er:

Voltaic Systems Solar Amp Charger

eMonitor by Powerhouse Dynamics

Windstream Bike Power Generator

It’s National Farmers Market Week so I’d like to take a moment to thank farmers everywhere for doing what I haven’t been able to do: grow enough vegetables for an entire meal. If you’re like me you spend alot of time and money and maybe ended up with a cucumber or two. My final tally is something like 1 cherry tomato, 3 strawberries and a couple green beans. That’s taking “small plates” to the extreme. Turns out this whole organic gardening thing is much tougher than it seems especially if you want to actually eat.  I don’t know if I’m giving up gardening yet but I’ll ponder the pros and cons over an organic carrot from the farmers market.

The Deepwater oil spill disaster is over (we hope) but is it too soon to ask, where should I buy gas?  I’m all for a clean energy future but I still have to buy gas today…where should I go and does it matter? Are any oil companies “greener” than others? Watch the video and see what I find out and then let me know where you buy your gas or if you’ve made any changes to your fuel consumption since the spill.

Resources:

Greenopia’s Green Oil Guide

Lisa Margonelli’s Oil on The Brain: Petroleum’s Long, Strange Trip to your Tank.

Earth Day turned 40 this year which made me wonder, is it Over the Hill?

Birthdays are a time for presents, margaritas and hopefully reflection (try to reflect before the margaritas) so on Earth Day’s 40th it seemed natural to reflect on it’s history and it’s current relevance.  Earth Day was born before me so I’ve always known a world with it and was pretty unaware of it’s significance. I  had no idea that the public support of Earth Day and its organizers helped usher in the Clean Air Act, The Clean Water Act and the formation of the Environmental Protection Agency.  For more info about it’s history check out the documentary, “Earth Days.” But in my lifetime I haven’t associated Earth Day with having much influence over policy or environmental issues so it really made me question it’s relevance today. I attended Earth Day Network’s Climate Rally in DC to find the answer and what I realized is that while it would be great to see a strong climate bill passed, Earth Day’s relevance isn’t necessarily tangible.  It’s just what happens when a billion people come together.

The mission: to find the green at SXSWi 2010.  The discovery: It was there but it was subtle.  SXSW does list their green efforts on their sustainability page but no one I talked to had seen it.  I was happy to fill my reusable water bottle every day from a water station in the convention center but I only ever saw that one station.  Steven Mandzik’s panel on “Zero Waste” was packed with info and people and sparked really interesting conversations.  The panel on “Social Change Through Social Media” was so packed, an impromptu panel formed outside with attendance from NPR, Greenpeace, Heifer International, Oxfam, NetSquared.org and The Hub. Don’t know what went on in the official panel but we had an awesome discussion. The Valerie Casey keynote was a wonderful surprise. A designer who works with organizations to create positive social and environmental impact, she addressed the fact that the interactive community has been absent in the conversation on sustainability but suggests they are precisely the community best suited to take the lead. The point is there’s a desire for more green/social change at SXSW so bring it on.

While most people I spoke with said they’d love for SXSW to incorporate more official green initiatives, panels and sponsors, half the fun of South By is everything that’s unofficial. It’s the last minute tweet-ups, free organic juice samples on the street, DIY recycling websites and happy hours with like-minded folks. But that doesn’t mean we wouldn’t support a bigger green presence next year. If you’d like to see that happen, leave a comment below! It will help in our presentation to SXSW for 2011. Thanks!

As part of Bloggie Boot Camp, my friends at Sony Electronics gave me a new bloggie to record what I discovered. Thanks Sony! Here’s what I found:

Shared Earth

Solar Pump by Sol Design Lab (which is a collaborative SXSW project)

Recycle Match

A Clean Life

Eat Well Guide

Ifixit.com

Applied Materials

Cree

Triple Pundit

TheEcoLuxeLife

Hail Merry

Joyful Bath Co.

FilterForGood

Honest Tea

Herbalogic

Bolthouse Farms

Hands down, the coolest greenest thing at SXSW 2010 was the “Solar Pump” by Sol Design Lab in Austin.  Designed by Beth Ferguson, the “pump” is really a solar powered charging station for electric bikes, laptops and cell phones. I was delighted to discover the station right as my iphone was dying cuz you can’t go two minutes at South By without tweeting–shit, you’d be forced to talk to people! The design of the station inspires you to rethink fueling.  Seeing 1950s gas pumps attached to solar panels &  you can’t help by look twice.  LED lighting illuminates a seating area made from recycled street signs.  I actually wanted to hang out and just chill there–which I’ve never wanted to do at a gas station. Anyway, you’ll be happy to know I re-charged in no time and made it to a green meet-up where I talked to lots of people and only tweeted once.

I just returned from another year at SXSW and remembered how last year I ran into some reps from Keen footwear there and almost kissed them I was so happy (they were a little scared). Anyway, months earlier I had made this video at Seesmic about my love for Keen.  I focus on my frustration over a discontinued shoe but the core of my message is love and still holds true today:  If I’m not walking in a Keen boot, I’m not walking.