The Red, White, and Green

Photo via Flickr: KitAy

Tree huggers actually need to see trees once in a while, so I’m off for a week’s worth of woods-fueled recharging with my husband and baby daughter. Other than our twice-weekly hikes, this will be her first time fully immersed in nature. (Poor thing — I don’t think she’s ever slept without a fire engine driving by. I’m really curious to see if I notice a difference in her behavior. Or sleeping habits. Please!!!)

As I often do on these trips, I’ll be unplugging, so forgive me if I fail to cover any breaking environmental news this week; posts will still be published, though, thanks to (this is where technology does come in handy) advance scheduling.

I’ll be thinking of all of our men and women in uniform, past and present — as well as their family members — as we drive to our destination this Memorial Day. Not a day goes by that I don’t feel blessed to live in our beautiful country, and it’s wholly because of their sacrifice that I’m able to do so.

–Jennifer Grayson

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Photo via bricoshoppe.com

This was first published on June 22, 2010; but yesterday, I got to visit Common Studio, meet Greenaid founders Kim Karlsrud and Daniel Phillips, and see how seedbombs are made. Karlsrud and Phillips are such an inspiring pair that I had to re-post. Stay tuned to see the video of my visit; in the meantime, look for me flinging seedbombs (the latest: edible arugula!) around my Los Angeles neighborhood this weekend.

Almost every morning, I go for a four-plus mile walk around my neighborhood. It’s my time to just connect a bit with nature (however sparse it may be in the middle of urban Los Angeles), before commencing my day of blogging, news surfing, tweeting and the like. But over the past several months, I’ve been growing disheartened at just how — how shall I say this? — ugly everything looks.

It seems like since the economy tanked, urban beautification has been the first to go. Abandoned lots overgrown and strewn with garbage, water-parched lawns lined with brown, streets overrun with potholes — individually, these things may not seem important, but in sum total, the lack of green (literally) can have a profoundly negative impact: Science has shown, for example, that violence is highest in urban areas without trees and grass.

Wouldn’t it be great if I could just wave a magic wand and make all the flowers come back?

Enter Greenaid seedbombs, from the urban ecology-minded folks at CommonStudio. Made from a mixture of clay, compost, and seeds, they make guerilla gardening easy: You can anonymously throw the little balls of plant power into sidewalk cracks, abandoned lots, parking medians — you name it. And how cool is this? They’re dispensed from adorable, strategically placed “gumball” machines.

Seedbombs may not change the world, but it’s a brilliant idea to help raise public awareness about the need for nature in urban environments. And they’re a heck of a lot healthier than gumballs.

–Jennifer Grayson

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[Click here to watch video on YouTube]

No one would ever accuse me of being a spendthrift, but I am an easy sell for those in-store demos at Whole Foods. Or when folks invite you over to their stalls at the farmers market to taste samples. There’s just something about meeting the actual person behind the product — hearing his or her story, seeing the passion that went into creating it — I can never say no.

Clearly the folks at Abe’s Market are hip to the power of that format, which is why they recently launched Abe’s LIVE — an interactive online show where the sellers of the amazingly cool and boutiquey natural products on the site can demonstrate their wares, and where viewers can send questions to the on-air guests. Think Etsy meets Whole Foods meets Home Shopping Network.

And it’s addictively entertaining: I tuned in a few weeks ago on a morning when I had about 100 emails to answer and a feature deadline that afternoon. Not the wisest idea. (But I did “discover” a fabulous new chemical-free sunscreen called eco FACE that doesn’t leave you looking like Casper.)

The show also regularly features natural living experts; last week, it was yours truly. (Spoiler alert: There may be opera singing involved.) Watch, above, and then set your reminders for Abe’s LIVE tomorrow at 2pm EST — you won’t want to miss the fun!

–Jennifer Grayson

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I’m still buzzing from the amazing time I had this past weekend at the second annual Women of the Green Generation Conference, at beautiful Marrakesh House in Los Angeles (owned by Who Killed the Electric Car director Chris Paine).

I especially enjoyed the green lifestyle session packed with power panelists Rachelle Carson Begley, actress Izabella Miko, No More Dirty Looks author Alexandra Spunt, Stewart+Brown designer Karen Stewart, and raw food chef Ani Phyo — as well as the “future of sustainability” panel I sat on that was moderated by Planet 100 host Sarah Backhouse (introduced by WOTGG founder Kris Willey, below):

The photo was taken by the ever-engaging Tamara Henry of Green T With Tamara fame. I had the chance to connect with her briefly before the flurry of the day took over (more photos available via her Facebook page):

The day was made all the more fabulous by the eco-designer duds I was outfitted in by Karen Stewart (below, center; at left is Healthy Bitch Daily co-founder Carly Harrill) — I’ll definitely be turning to Stewart+Brown to round out my summer wardrobe, considering that my closet right now consists of a single pair of jeans and some maternity tank tops.

How fantastic are these leggings I’m wearing, by the way? You can’t really tell from this picture, but they’re actually in a really cool safari print, and are adorably cinched at the bottom. (More photos of WOTGG ladies in Stewart+Brown via their Facebook page.)

But of course, my favorite part of the day was the “green motherhood” panel I moderated, featuring cookbook author and Pregnancy Awareness Month founder Anna Getty, green home and lifestyle consultant Caroline Howell, and California Baby founder Jessica Iclisoy (photo also via Tamara Henry).

Since I’ve been pretty obsessed with the new book Spit That Out! The Overly Informed Parent’s Guide to Raising Children in the Age of Environmental Guilt (by author Paige Wolf), I was especially interested to find out how my eco moms were dealing with all the green guilt in their lives, but their answer — amazingly — was that they don’t have any!

Want to hear more about the book and our no-BS panel? Check out my Huffington Post column.

–Jennifer Grayson

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Will this alfalfa field be contaminated with GM seed? Photo via Flickr: Sam Beebe

We Americans are consumers. Despite being a mere 5 percent of the world’s population, we eat up about 30 percent of its resources. Yet with that consumption also comes tremendous power: We can change truly change the world by the products we choose to buy — or not buy.

The organic market is the perfect example of this. US sales of organic food and beverages have grown from $1 billion a year in 1990 to nearly $25 billion in 2009, meaning that we are literally changing the face of agriculture for the better — removing toxic pesticides and fertilizers from the environment — with every carton of organic milk or grass-fed steak we buy.

But — and here’s the big but — as Gaius Publius over at Americablog reported last week, our power of choice is about to be destroyed forever, thanks to the recent decision by the Obama administration to allow the planting of genetically modified alfalfa. (The gist of it is this: Cows graze on alfalfa, so if GM alfalfa is allowed to be planted, it will likely spread and contaminate other farmers’ fields — including the farmers who raise organic dairy cows and grass-fed beef. Without an organic food source for these livestock, organic as we know it will cease to exist.)

So where does that leave the future of organic farming? Well, in the hands of our last stop in checks and balances: our legal system. On March 18, Center for Food Safety and Earthjustice filed suit against USDA, arguing that the agency’s deregulation of GM alfalfa was unlawful.

For those wondering about the status of the lawsuit, it is still pending; but according to True Food Network (CFS’ grassroots arm) Director Heather Whitehead, it is “progressing a pace.” Here’s hoping that a winning decision comes down soon, before those first soiled seeds are sown.

Click here to donate to Center for Food Safety’s legal fund.

–Jennifer Grayson

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Photo via Flickr: Brownpau

Quick quiz: How much did each of the Big Five oil companies pay in federal taxes last year? I’ll give you a hint: It rhymes with Nero.

Nero, as in the infamous emperor who fiddled while Rome burned. Who took sadistic pleasure in the suffering of others. I think the comparison is apt, considering the giant corporations in this country (like ExxonMobil, Shell, BP, ConcocoPhillips, and Chevron) that are reaping record profits at a time when a lot of Americans can’t even put food on the table. At a time when Republicans want to cut funding for schools and disabled veterans in the name of reducing the federal deficit.

Want to reduce the federal deficit? Take away the $4 billion a year that Big Oil receives in subsidies.

That’s what the Democrats are proposing, anyway, which is why today the Senate Finance Committee is holding a hearing with the Big Five executives, who I’m guessing will use every move in their fear-mongering playbook to convince our elected representatives (our elected representatives, as in We, the People) why they deserve a helping hand against the backdrop of more than $35 billion in profits in the first quarter of 2011 alone.

My only question is: Why is it the Democrats who are proposing an end to these subsidies? Isn’t supporting capitalism at its essence (i.e., no subsidies) a core value of the Republican party?

If the Republicans (i.e., the Tea Party Patriots) don’t support repealing oil subsidies, then they don’t have a leg to stand on.

–Jennifer Grayson

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There are two words that I’ve been hearing a lot of these days: Collaborative Consumption. If you haven’t, and this sounds like the beginning of a sociology lecture, then hold your horses — while the concept sounds brainy, it’s something you’ve likely already done and didn’t even realize there was a term for it. WATCH:

Rachel Botman and Roo Rogers, co-authors of the book What’s Mine Is Yours: The Rise of Collaborative Consumption and sharers of all things related to the movement at CollaborativeConsumption.com, are on to something really big here: Time Magazine recently named it one of the “10 Ideas That Will Change the World.”

In the not-so-distant future, we may be collaboratively consuming out of necessity — the reality of a world with as many as 16 billion people is that there simply will not be enough resources to go around — but it’s nice to know that we at least may be willing partners in the process.

–Jennifer Grayson

Want to hear more about collaborative consumption and other exciting eco trends? Don’t miss Sarah Backhouse‘s panel (“Sustainability: Where Is It Heading? What’s Next?”) at the Women of the Green Generation Conference this Saturday.

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The second annual Women of the Green Generation Conference is exactly one week from tomorrow, and I’m super excited for my early Mother’s Day present: The “green motherhood” panel I’ll be moderating, featuring four incredibly inspiring eco-moms – Anna Getty (PureStyle Living), Jessica Iclisoy (California Baby), Caroline Howell (GreenBeanie), and Kimberly Danek Pinkson (Ecomom).

Lest you think the event is a green mommy gathering, though, let me just say: My panel is just one of more than a dozen exciting sessions happening that day — not to mention the green celeb sightings, eco spa treatments, yummy organic food and beverages, and giveaways from more than 40 sustainable sponsors. Just to hang at beautiful Marrakesh House (home of Who Killed the Electric Car? director Chris Paine) is worth the trip alone.

Being as it is Mother’s Day this Sunday, though, let me just give one more shout-out to another amazing green mom. Or mom-to-be, I should say. Check out my Huffington Post interview with Blue Legacy founder and National Geographic Emerging Explorer Alexandra Cousteau. She couldn’t make it to the conference this year, but she’ll be introducing the fourth generation to the famous Cousteau family this July!

Congrats to Alexandra and Happy Mother’s Day to all your eco-minded moms out there — especially my own!

–Jennifer Grayson

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This is the beginning of a new era. If there were ever a time to break free from our dependence on Middle East oil, to move toward our clean energy future, the time is now. As our President said so eloquently last night,

…Let us think back to the sense of unity that prevailed on 9/11. I know that it has, at times, frayed. Yet today’s achievement is a testament to the greatness of our country and the determination of the American people.

We are capable of anything. Long live the Red, White, and Green — the Red, White, and Blue.

–Jennifer Grayson

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