Ok, maybe not the funniest EVER, but pretty darn funny. I love Saturday Night Live and their take on direct mail marketers is hilarious. Sometimes tree huggers need a little comic relief too.

See the video - A Message from the Alliance of Direct Mail Marketers

Laughs aside, this is a funny take on an actual real issue. Junk mail is not as funny when it comes to your door and truly does have an environmental impact. The Center for a New American Dream has some comprehensive facts and figures posted about junk mail, among them.

• More than 100 million trees’ worth of bulk mail accumulates in U.S. mail boxes each year – which is the equivalent of deforesting the entire Rocky Mountain National Park every four months. Gulp right?
• In 2001 alone, 5.4 million tons of catalogs and other direct mailings ended up in the U.S. municipal solid waste stream.
• Only 32% of all bulk mail was recycled in 2001.
• The country needs about 290,000 garbage trucks to haul all the unrecycled Junk mail to landfills and incinerators each year. That’s not just materials and energy used that’s also a load of emissions let go just to cart junk mail around. And that’s without factoring in mail trucks.

AND if you don’t give a care about the environment, maybe the costs will get you…

• It costs more than $370 million per year to collect and dispose of all the bulk mail that doesn’t get recycled. Consumers and government pay for this.
• Sponsors of California’s ‘Return to Sender’ bill estimate that California’s state and local governments spend $500,000 each year just to collect and dispose of AOL disks.

See all the junk mail facts - and when you look, keep in mind these are older stats, as the years go by junk mail actually has gotten worse, which seems funny considering we’re supposed to be the digital age.

HOW TO STOP JUNK MAIL COLD:

• Contact companies who send you junk mail. Tell them to take you off their list. If they don’t listen, gather up a nice big bundle and send it back to them - I know sort of passive and not a great use of emissions, but it feels good.
• Join Tonic Mailstopper.
• Register at Mail Preference Service.
• Try the Stop the Junk Mail Kit.
• You can also learn how to Cancel Your Random Catalogs.
• If you’d like to put the junk mail you already have to work, save it up for holiday wrap.

Does junk mail make you nuts or what?

[image via stock.xchng]

At the end of June, the U.S. Department of Education and its National Research Center for Career and Technical Education (NRCCTE) announced that five states will receive technical assistance from the center to develop green-focused “programs of study” in career and technical education.

The chosen states: Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, Ohio, and Oregon.

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan notes, “Green means healthier learning environments for students and adults, plus lower energy costs and a stronger economy… green programs of study support the administration’s goal of expanding a green workforce by preparing students for high-skill, high-wage jobs in a clean energy economy.”

I wasn’t too shocked to see Oregon on the list - but it still made front page news here in Portland, OR, where I’m located. The other states I don’t follow as closely when it comes to green issues, but green career training program development is good deal no matter which state it starts in. According to the NRCCTE, the states chosen have proposed the following areas of study and development…

• Georgia - energy, construction and transportation.
• Illinois - energy, utilities and waste management.
• New Jersey - various industries. (huh)
• Ohio - energy, biotech and agriculture.
• Oregon - wind, solar and construction.

All five participating states will be participating in a 14-month process to develop “green-focused” programs. Also, each state will work with a facilitator who will provide ongoing assistance and consultation from content experts.

With all the ongoing pushing by the current administration to use green careers as a vehicle to help the country, it’s good to know that some new  training and courses of study are being developed. It makes it seem less like just talk, and more significant.

[image via stock.xchng]

Super awesome house!

In case you’re thinking that 600,000 lbs of recycled junk is good for not much more than saving our landfills, the house above is a great example of an alternative. This 3,400sf house is made, in part, of steel and concrete discarded from Boston’s Big Dig and saved 600,000 lbs of salvaged materials from being trashed. Not only did this project turn one one amazingly bling house, but the home demonstrates a huge untapped resource for deconstructed buildings and other infrastructures. This is a great way to save money and go green at the same time.

To learn more visit Inhabitat - they’ve got the whole scoop on this green home, the architects and theory behind it, plus an amazing image gallery. If recycled building sounds like it’s right up your alley, visit the following links to learn more. Who knows, maybe you’ll have the next amazing recycled home!

• Maison IDEKIT Container Home
• Reclaimed & Salvaged Home Building Material Use
• 11 Recycled Homes
• The Ultimate in Recycled Homes

[image via SINGLE speed DESIGN]

In the previous post, Greenpeace & Trader Joe’s Throw Down, we looked at what’s been happening related to Greenpeace, Trader Joe’s, and our oceans and fish.

The post got sort of long so I didn’t give my opinion, which is…

I do like Trader Joe’s and I really like Greenpeace. One thing making me uneasy about this whole situation though is the fact that Greenpeace notes, “Of the 20 largest supermarket chains in the United States, nine have made no visible effort to increase the sustainability of their seafood operations and continue to ignore scientific warnings about the crisis facing global fisheries and the marine environment. These include: Aldi, Costco, Giant Eagle, H.E.B., Meijer, Price Chopper, Publix, Trader Joe’s, and Winn Dixie.” So other major supermarkets also aren’t doing well on the fishy front, but the attack seems to be mainly been focused on Trader Joe’s.

Partially I get this because Trader Joe’s, unlike some other stores on the list, tends to spout off about the advantages of better food at their stores and on their website - i.e. organics, genetically engineered crops, cage-free eggs, and so on. That makes you think they’d take this whole sustainable fish issue more seriously than other stores on the list.

Another reason Greenpeace may be focusing so much attention on Trader Joe’s is because they’ve done so before (regarding genetically modified foods) with positive results. This is actually a score for Trader Joe’s because it shows they’re listening to the issues and are willing at least to make changes. The same can’t be said for all other stores.

We’ll see how this all pans out - maybe Trader Joe’s will cave to the pressure and only offer sustainable seafood (good for humans, the oceans, and the store). I’m hoping so, because I like them overall, and would like to continue shopping there. Maybe Greenpeace will focus their attention on another store for a while, I mean there are lots of baddies on the new scorecard not just Trader Joe’s.

If you’re looking to buy sustainable fish without a big old hassle read: How to choose eco-friendly seafood

If you want to learn more about why saving our oceans and protecting our fish matter visit the Greenpeace oceans issues section of their website.

You tell me, will you dump Trader Joe’s if they don’t ban unsustainable seafood?

[image courtesy of ©Greenpeace]

In case you’ve missed the recent eco-fish controversy between Greenpeace and Trader Joe’s, here’s the scoop…

• Greenpeace recently released their latest version of their seafood sustainability scorecard, Carting Away the Oceans, and once again ranked Trader Joe’s as the worst of the national supermarket chains surveyed (three regional stores were below Trader Joe’s).
• Two days after the release of the seafood scorecard Greenpeace visited Trader Joe’s stores in San Francisco where activists protested the company’s lack of sustainable seafood policies and purchasing practices.
• Greenpeace has also launched a fake website - Traitor Joe’s in order to inform consumers about this problem.

Trader Joe’s posted a response to the fish situation at their website, which reads… Read more

If you’re planning a green wedding, you can use the Green Wedding Stamp from Artistic Postage. I heard about this stamp recently in a release, and I like the idea of letting people know that your wedding is green. Plus the stamp is pretty sweet:

Green Wedding Stamp

The downside - the Artistic Postage website is a total nightmare. The site is tough to navigate, there’s no search, and it’s super hard to find this stamp. To see it…

• Go to their website and find the link for wedding stamps in the left sidebar. Click it.
• Once you’re on the wedding page, scroll down until you see, “Spring Wedding Stamps & Summer Wedding Stamps” and this green wedding stamp is below that heading.
• OR skip that nonsense and click here: Green Wedding Stamp

However, if you’re looking for a nice green wedding stamp, it’s worth a trip to the site. Actually, because I was so frustrated with this site, it got me thinking; maybe there are other green wedding stamps or just greener-made stamps in general. I’ll look into it, and when I find out, I’ll let you know.

If you’re looking for help planning your perfect green wedding visit the Green Wedding Guide.

Your hair is exposed to the elements year-round, but during the summer hair problems can be even worse. The heat, the chlorine at the pool or salt water at the beach, the dryness, and the sun shining down on your head all day long can all take their tole on your hair.  However, you don’t need to buy expensive and chock full of chemical products at the store. Try these natural fixes for healthy and shiny summer locks…

To make brittle hair stronger try mashing one banana with two tablespoons of olive oil. Then apply the whole mess to your hair. Leave it on for 30 mins then shampoo and condition. The only bad thing about this masque is the ultra banana scent. I usually add some lemon or orange organic essential oil to cut than scent a bit.

To clear build-up and add lots of shine try an apple cider vinegar rinse. Pour 2-3 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar into a small cup. Place it in the corner of your shower (it’ll warm up some as you scrub down). After shampooing and conditioning, pour the vinegar into your hair with the final rinse. Because this rinse leaves a slight vinegar scent in your hair (ugh) I’d use the conditioning spray below after.

Homemade Organic Herbal Hair Conditioning Spray - this spray smells amazing and can be used up to many times a day. A summer benefit is that it’s kept in the fridge, so it feels nice and cool when sprayed on your hair.

Two Healthy Hair Masques - One of cucumber, which can fight off chlorine damage, and the other is a cool avocado masque that’s perfect for bringing dry hair back to life.

Club soda can neutralize the chemicals left in your hair by chlorine so after a dip in the pool always rinse with club soda.

Sea salt rinse for adding volume and shine - NOTE: This is one thing I have not personally tried, because frankly if my hair had any more volume, we’d need a second home, but a pal of mine swears by it. She dissolves 2 tablespoons of sea salt in warm water then she uses it as a five-ten minute leave in. Pour it on your hair, let it sit, then rinse and follow with shampoo and conditioner. Additional note: I read somewhere once that salt in excess can dry your scalp, so you shouldn’t use this treatment all the time. My friend only does this every three weeks.

[image via stock.xchng]

Fetchstix, a new company, will sell you sticks for your dog for cold hard cash. A good plan… or not so much?

This new ‘eco’ company is selling Vermont Maple saplings in sets of three to dog owners everywhere. I wasn’t planning on posting this at all (more on why in a sec) but then today I ran across this piece: Guide to the bleeding obvious, which made me laugh, and I wanted to share. The bleeding guide is a hilarious look at Fetchstix. It’s totally worth a read, but that might be where the funny stops; at least for green-minded dog owners.

Here’s the scoop. I get a promo email about 12 days ago about said Fetchstixs. I head to the site, because natural dog toys seem pretty green to me, and what am I greeted with? The image below.

I find it funny when people send me emails about products for my green blogs then send me to a site with a forest that’s there one minute and gone the next. I also see that the sticks are made with saplings, which excuse me if I misunderstand, but aren’t saplings baby trees! I think to myself, maybe they’re getting these sticks from scraps, so I look around the website and nothing.

I email back noting one, I don’t write about pets, and two, I might if the pet product is eco-friendly but that I’m not seeing the eco-connection here. It’s been 12 days and I haven’t heard back so I’m guessing there is no eco-connection.

If you top off this product with emissions made by the shipping process, this becomes an even less suitable ‘eco’ dog toy. That said if you bookmark their page you’ll see they’ve tagged it with “Funny eco gifts for dog lovers” so… I don’t know, maybe they think it’s an eco gift.

Around the eco-blogosphere folks are on the fence as well.

• Treehugger is ambivalent. BUT read the comments to see what their readers think (not so on board).
• Alternative Consumer (a favorite green blog of mine) seems ok with them.
• My friend Peggy, also a green blogger is fine with them on her pet blog. (I still adore her).

There are also folks who aren’t so on the fence. Some of us think this is a lame idea. Like Pet Show Blog and this person who I randomly found on Facebook - BTW - I’m not on board, I wouldn’t buy them. I can’t sign on with these as a green product. Sorry folks.

What do you think?

So, does the title above sound like a phrase from a Dr. Seuss book or what?! That’s about all it’s good for though. If you were looking to be perfectly green for real, you’ve come to the wrong place. What I’m here to tell you is that no one is perfectly green. Not the authors of the green living books you read, not the folks handing out green advice at popular green hot spots like Treehugger or Grist (although I love them both), and most certainly not me.

I mention this because every so often I’ll run into what I call an Green-Nazi. In Humboldt it happened a lot. In Portland it happens less, but it still happens. Green Nazis think they’re greener than everyone else and criticize you on lots of lame little things. You use a reusable water bottle, live in a small house, use reusable grocery bags, and make all homemade cleaners - it still isn’t enough for the Green Nazis, they’ll just whine about the fact that they found one piece of plastic in your fridge or a clothing item in your closet made from conventional cotton.  If you have kids it can be even worse because the crunchier than you parents descend in and attack.

To be fair, Green Nazis types are good in a way because they do remind you of what you could be doing to be greener. But on the far bigger cons side, these folks use shame and guilt to make you feel like you should be greener, not education and support. Personally, I hate that these folks turn some people off to green living and make other green-happy people look bad. Lastly, as noted above, the Green Nazis are just plain wrong; they aren’t perfect. It’s totally impossible; well, maybe not totally, but in today’s society, being perfectly green and leaving zero footprints would be a huge feat.

If you’ve run into folks like this, or if green living is frustrating you because you’ve made mistakes, take heart and keep on trucking. To make you feel better I’ve made a list of ten anti-green things I did this week. Read more

Last week I posted a review of Xen-Ten Self Tanner. If you liked the looks of this product you can score a deal right now. Today Xen-Ten launched a brand new website. The new site is a HUGE improvement over their last one and to celebrate, they’re offering a special deal for readers…

Perks of the new site:

• It looks amazing compared to the old site; very chic now and much easier to navigate.
• A new chart that will help you to choose the best sunless tanning products for your skin type.
• Complete ingredient lists for products (yay!).
• New important information on healthy skin care and sun dangers.
• Fabulous self-tanning tips from creator Dera Enochson.

The deal: Visit Xen-Tan and get 15% off purchases with coupon code VACATION09 - good for all orders place before August 30, 2009.

[image courtesy of Xen-Ten]