Earth Hour!

"In 2009, Earth Hour is being taken to the next level, with the goal of 1 billion people switching off their lights as part of a global vote. Unlike any election in history, it is not about what country you’re from, but instead, what planet you’re from. VOTE EARTH is a global call to action for every individual, every business, and every community. A call to stand up and take control over the future of our planet. Over 74 countries and territories have pledged their support to VOTE EARTH during Earth Hour 2009, and this number is growing everyday."

Don't forget, Earth Hour is on Saturday, March 28, 2009 from 8:30-9:30pm.


(Text from Earth Hour website)

Eco Canteen

I got to try Eco Canteen, a stainless steel reusable drinking bottle. I like the clip so you can clip it onto your backpack when doing outdoorsy activities and your hands are free. At first I wasn't sure if I liked the wider mouth just because I can be quite clumsy and spill water all over myself. Then I realized I can put ice cubes in there to keep my water cold. Plus the interior of the bottle is easier to clean. There is no metallic taste or smell to the water either.

So two thumbs up for the Eco Canteen!

The Ray: An eco-friendly watch

Surfing apparel company Quiksilver has come out with the world's first eco-friendly watch, The Ray. The Ray is handcrafted from ebony wood from sustainably managed forests, and its steel, aluminum, and mineral crystal are all 100% recyclable, too.

Meet some hot new solar phones

Now THIS is something we all need. LG unveiled their solar-powered mobile phone last week. The phone's battery cover is equipped with a solar panel, and all you need to juice up the phone is to expose it to the sunlight--ten minutes will get you a three-minute call.



Blue Earth is yet another solar phone, this time offered by Samsung. The smartphone is made from recycled PCM plastic, which comes from water bottles. The casing is also free of harmful chemicals and the charger itself is five-star Energy Star-rated. The back of the phone also comes with solar panels.

Christopher de Leon frees a turtle

Filipino actor Christopher de Leon supports the protection of marine life in the Philippines, working with Conservation International Philippines and working to set up a marine sanctuary in the province of Batangas. Earlier this month, he returned a rescued green sea turtle to the waters of Anilao, Batangas; no word yet on what necessitated the turtle's rescue from Hagonoy, Bulacan. It's always nice to see celebrities get involved in environmental matters. One could only hope though that they do practice what they preach.

Green can be the color of romance

Ehehehe. So I'm way behind on the Valentine's Day posting, but whoever said romance and dates should be limited to February 14? Romance is good for any day of the year. And if you can turn every date with your sweetie into an eco-friendly one, then that's even better. This article, "Eco-friendly Valentine’s Day calls for staying home," gives you some good ideas to green up your date. I'm not totally on board with making pasta for dinner, since it does take up a lot of energy, but on second thought, that has to be better than going to a restaurant and ordering it, right?

Say it with Green Flowers

Happy Valentine's Day to all! I read about this on Treehugger. Look for the Veriflora Certified label to ensure that the flowers you're buying were sustainably grown.

Last-minute Valentine gifts from TerraPass

TerraPass.com, a Green Unlimited friend, shared with us their Valentine gifts for those last-minute shoppers out there. Beginning with the Valentine's Day e-card. What's so special about it? "The new $2.95 card includes carbon offsets representing a 500 pound CO2 reduction, which balances out twelve days of manure emissions from a typical dairy cow." Here's what it looks like:


Then there's the Climate Change Chocolate. It might be too late to order it now, but you can always give the chocolates to that special someone anytime, right?

Found: Wind-up clock

We've had this clock in our house for quite a long time and I always thought it was just broken, so I wondered why we still had it around. When my mother finally took it in for repairs a couple of weeks ago, however, I discovered that it's actually a wind-up clock. I was pleased to see that it still works and would never, ever need batteries; it would just count on any one if us to pick it up and wind it up when we feel like it. Which, really, is not a strenuous task. Sure you never have to pay as much attention to battery-operated or electric clocks, but this one at least doesn't use up any power and batteries!

Fish tale

I found this in my grocery store: Premium Sea Choice Selection seasoned wild Alaskan Salmon Burgers. They're pretty good. The product came from a fishery certified by the Marine Stewardship Council as being a sustainable and well-managed fishery.

Keeping it Green

From Environment New York's Anna Aurilio:

This is not the type of "green job" I want to create through President Obama's American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan.

Click here to take action or read on to get the full story.

The big coal companies want to build factories -- factories that can cook coal at nearly 1,300 degrees Fahrenheit, producing black, gunky coal tars that they can process into liquid fuels for war planes.

During the process, they'd release far more climate-changing greenhouse emissions than an oil company would to drill, refine and transport an equivalent amount of petroleum.

And they want you and me to pay for it.

That's right, industry lobbyists have conspired with a few key members of the U.S. Senate to tack on $50 billion in loan guarantees to the president's recovery plan -- $50 billion that, instead of creating green jobs building wind turbines, or installing solar roofs, or weatherizing homes and other buildings, would subsidize things like coal liquefaction and nuclear power plant construction.

What am I missing? Didn't we just work like crazy to elect a pro-environment majority to set a course for the cleaner, greener energy economy of the future? Why on earth would we want to subsidize not-so-clean coal, especially if doing so accelerates global warming?

That's not the green recovery we've been fighting for. And that's why I'm hoping you'll join me and thousands of our friends and supporters in calling on Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to keep President Obama's recovery bill clean and green.

As you might have already guessed, this $50 billion giveaway is buried in the fine print of the Senate's version of the recovery plan, the better to avoid public scrutiny.

Fortunately, our friends on Capitol Hill tipped us off, and now you can help us scrub the recovery bill clean of this dirty provision.

Getaways gone green

If you're planning to go on holiday pretty soon, it's always best to choose eco-friendly destinations and accommodations. The Eco-Lodge Inn at Coyote Mountain in Costa Rica is one such getaway.

The ecolodge carries out reforestation, uses a grey water system to water its fruit orchards, grows its own produce, has a completely spring-fed and gravity-powered water system, and uses alternative electricity generation.

Thailand's luxury resorts are also starting to be more eco-friendly. De-greening projects on the country's Samet Island are underway, with recycling programs being more widely implemented and homemade fertilizers made out of leftovers being used for the resorts' gardens.