Have you ever stopped to wonder what the biggest problem facing the world is? Climate change? Political warfare? Finding parking during the holidays? Ugh, take your pick, right? Those are the branches of the tree, but what’s the root of them all?

According to John Marshall Roberts, it’s empathy. Empathy? Yes, in a world with deeply embedded cynicism, our lack of understanding others, or feeling understood, leads people, communities, companies, and governments to dig in our heels, or just give up that a different reality is possible.

In doing this, progress …

Of all the things I’ve come across as we near an increasingly greenwashy Earth Day, one stands out because of its simplicity and transparency. The founders of Energy Circle, a home-energy efficiency ally whose staff all test and use the products they sell in their own homes, will make their home energy use public, broadcasting it both through their website and live on Twitter at EnergyCircleKW.

They’ve hacked their best-selling device, The Energy Detective, a “real-time home electricity monitor that is the equivalent of a …

When you think of eco friendly plates and bowls, what comes to mind? Pale, pasty, meek little things, that melt at the slightest hint of heat, and never mind going anywhere near an oven. And have you tried to actually compost or biodegrade one?

Generally there’s a disconnect between the green dream and the reality, since they often require special conditions/facilities to properly do the job, and even then, they take a fair amount of time.

What to do?

Verterra seems to have gone down the list of how to make the …

I’m all for living la vida verde and being a good global citizen, but I have to say, most of the eco friendly plates I’ve come across are just so…homely. And they don’t stand up to anything beyond a light
salad without wilting, for the most part.

That is, until I came across the plates made by Verterra. They’re made from palm leaves, in intriguing shapes, and look like wood. And they’re no compromise: you can cook with them! Halibut without a problem, on a platter that impresses. What else do you need? Compostability, yes. That’s …