Stop offending us.

We’re all different, right? Right! So it’s no surprise that there are lots of different reactions to climate change. But here’s a new one: offense. Imagine saying it. “I’m offended by climate change.” What does that even mean? Imagine being offended by science. That’s like being offended by chairs, or zippers or sticking plasters. Oh well, there’s no legislating for idiots. The only thing you can really do is laugh. So have a giggle: here are four people who are so offended by the facts of science, and a little helping hand from two people who are not.

Senator Jeff Sessions is offended by climate change.

Senator Barbara Boxer: “…97 to 98 percent of the scientists do not agree with the one to two percent that you’re citing. You know, it’s fine, there’s still probably one to two percent of scientists who don’t believe that lung cancer is associated with smoking.”

Senator Jeff Sessions: “Madam Chairman, I am offended by that.”

John Coleman, founder of The Weather Channel, is offended by climate change.

“It is the greatest scam in history. I am amazed, appalled and highly offended by it. Global Warming; It is a SCAM.
Some dastardly scientists with environmental and political motives manipulated long term scientific data back in the late 1990’s to create an allusion of rapid global warming.”

Rush Limbaugh is offended by everything, including climate change.

“The militant environmental movement since the early nineties is simply the new repository for displaced communists after the Berlin Wall fell and the Soviet Union went bye-bye. Anti-capitalist, it’s all they are, just like the feminists, just another anti-capitalist movement, pro-socialist, pro-Marxist, pro-big government, that’s all they are.”

Senator James Inhofe is offended by climate change.

“God’s still up there. The arrogance of people to think that we, human beings, would be able to change what He is doing in the climate is to me outrageous.”

Stephen Fry is not offended by climate change.

“It’s now very common to hear people say, “I’m rather offended by that,” as if that gives them certain rights. It’s no more than a whine. It has no meaning, it has no purpose, it has no reason to be respected as a phrase. ‘I’m offended by that.’ Well, so fucking what?”

Charlie Brooker is not offended by climate change.

“I hate offended people. They come in two flavours – huffy and whiny – and it’s hard to know which is worst. The huffy ones are self-important, narcissistic authoritarians in love with the sound of their own booming disapproval, while the whiny, sparrowlike ones are so annoying and sickly and ill-equipped for life on Earth you just want to smack them round the head until they stop crying and grow up. Combined, they’re the very worst people on the planet – 20 times worse than child molesters, and I say that not because it’s true (it isn’t), but because it’ll upset them unnecessarily, and these readers deserve to be upset unnecessarily, morning, noon and night, every sodding day, for the rest of their wheedling lives.”

Image: NASA

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 appeared first on EcoSalon.

EcoSalon joins the first SXSW Eco as a media partner.

What do you get when you bring an ocean conservationist, the president of a major environmental nonprofit and a progressive author together in a city known for its food, flair and funk? South by Southwest (SXSW) Eco, of course.

This year, the organizers of SXSW, which every year brings musicians, artists and the technocrati to converge upon Austin, Texas, are taking the festival to a new level and launching an exclusive green-focused conference.

EcoSalon is excited to be an official media sponsor of the event, which will feature keynote speakers Philippe Cousteau, Jr, CEO of EarthEcho International, Mark Tercek, the President and CEO of The Nature Conservancy and Alex Steffen, author and planetary futurist.

SXSW Eco will provide an open and creative space for experienced, passionate and pragmatic professionals to network with a diverse group of influential organizations and individuals, while contributing to cutting-edge discussion. The conference will feature a mix of sessions, including panels and core-conversations.

“The foundational concept of SXSW – dynamic, diverse minds coming together to discuss innovation and creativity – is exactly the kind of exciting and holistic approach that appeals to us at EcoSalon. The addition of a green conference is an encouraging marker of the sustainability movement’s progress, and couldn’t be more timely. We’re thrilled to be taking part and engaging in the conversations that are really going to push for creative progress in the sustainability movement and share those conversations with a larger audience,” says Sara Ost, Editor in Chief of EcoSalon.

We couldn’t be more pleased to be taking part! And we’re in good green company, as fellow new media leaders Treehugger and Triple Pundit are also SXSW Eco partners. Here’s what they had to say about taking part.

“Having been a long time attendee of SXSW interactive, which otherwise rocks, I’ve always felt that a conversation on sustainability was a major theme that seemed to be underrepresented. SXSW has such huge influence in new media the opportunity is ripe to use their power to advance green thinking in the popular culture. We’re thrilled to be a part of the first ever SXSW Eco and I hope to see a lot of new voices lending their input on sustainable solutions to the world’s problems, right from the heart of Texas,” says Nicholas Aster of Triple Pundit.

“Often when thinking about the challenge of sustainability, I’ll think, ‘if only we could get everyone together in a room to work this out!’ Maybe SXSW Eco can be that room! Of course, stopping climate change or solving the myriad other issues related to sustainability won’t be that easy, but we think by bringing together thought-leaders and the technology- and business-savvy attendees already familiar with SXSW, events like SXSW Eco can serve a role in moving the discussion forward. We’re excited to be a media partner so we can be on the scene and bring the most interesting and inspiring ideas to our readers around the world that won’t be able to attend in-person!” says Chris Tackett of Treehugger.

Stay tuned for live updates from SXSW Eco next week!

The post Announcing EcoSalon’s Official Media Partnership with SXSW Eco appeared first on EcoSalon.

The Boomer generation isn’t used to being inconvenienced after all these years.

There’s a curious thing that you sometimes see in certain parts of America – signs at gas stations advertising their fuel as “100% GASOLINE! NO ETHANOL!” If you’re wondering exactly what kind of seal-clubbing, earth-befouling hillbillies these signs are meant to attract, I’d like to introduce you to my parents.

They drive giant SUVs any time they have to travel farther than two driveways away. Everything they buy is either single-serving or disposable, to assure maximum trash. They print their emails, double–bag their groceries in plastic, and run the A/C with the windows open. And, they believe that ethanol is bad for their cars because someone once forwarded them an email saying so.

I, their tomato-canning, bus-riding, cloth-napkin-using pinko commie daughter, am a constant source of mild puzzlement to them, and whenever I visit, I always try to drop a few hints.  Judgmental, yes, but I can’t help it. “You know,” I say, “you guys go through so many soda cans, it’s a shame you don’t recycle.” I even point out that their town offers free unlimited curbside pickup as well as free bins. But to them, it’s just not worth the hassle. I once asked my dad if he’d ever consider switching to grass-fed beef, explaining all the problems with factory farming. “But Allison,” he said between bites of steak, “That’s what makes it so tasty.”

We recently had a conversation in which he claimed new research is proving that oil doesn’t really come from dinosaurs, and is actually a renewable resource. I am not making this up. He was totally convinced that once the data came in, the world could forget about all this wind and solar stuff and just drill baby, drill. (I actually looked into this theory, and it’s a fairly popular topic on World Net Daily, on the home page between birther conspiracies and ads for Goldline.)

Although my parents’ tendency to throw garbage from moving cars probably puts them slightly further on the spectrum of environmental disdain than the average American, there are sadly, millions of people like them. People who will only accept green living when it becomes cheaper, easier, and more convenient than the way they live now.

It’s not that they haven’t noticed what’s happened over the past 30 years – it’s that their generation, aside from that tiny vanguard who gave us the first Earth Day, doesn’t want to be put out. They care, just not enough to do anything about it.

This difference in philosophy isn’t about Democrat versus Republican, science versus religion, or coastal versus heartland. It’s a generational thing. My parents and everyone before them grew up believing that the environment and all its bounty were simply theirs for the taking. They came of age in a time when land was plentiful, oil was cheap, America was the greatest country on earth, and God put the fish and the trees there for us to consume.

To them, slow food, reusable bags, and riding bicycles is undoing decades of technology and innovation that made life easier and more convenient. When they play golf in Las Vegas, they don’t look at lush, green desert fairways and see an abomination, they see a triumphant example of man’s ability to harness nature.

The problem isn’t just convincing people like my parents to acknowledge scientific facts or making green technology affordable and available. The problem is convincing them to endure a little inconvenience. It’s convincing them to eat a little less beef, hitch a ride to work, and leave some cake for the rest of us. It’s also convincing them of the scariest thing of all – that much of that magical progress they and their generation made wasn’t really progress at all.

I don’t know what the solution is, besides waiting for them all to die out (doesn’t that seem like the answer to all Boomer-related problems?). For now, I try to nudge my parents in the right direction when I can. They’ll never install solar panels or think about food miles, but I’ve already convinced my mom to start buying vegetables at the wonderful farm stands that populate the Midwest during the summer and fall. That’s a start. The next step, when she gets home with a dozen ears of sweet country corn, will be getting her to recycle the damn bag.

Image: Dominic’s Pics

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Victoria Klein is a green mover and shaker who knows just about all there is to know about going green – and in her new book 48 Things To Know About Sustainable Living, she proves that.

Written as an open introduction to an audience just ready to start getting greened up, Klein paints the sustainable picture to be a comfortable place where we can all, most certainly improve.

I caught up with her recently on her blog tour where today, EcoSalon was slotted to host.

Here’s what she had to say.

Why 48? If you had to throw out 47, what would be your top tip for sustainable living?

The 48 number of things is arbitrary, it doesn’t have any sort of special eco-meaning. 48 is simply how many things the publisher wanted. If I had to throw out 47 Things from the book, my #1 tip would be the very first tip in the book: learning the difference between a “want” and a “need.” There are so few things that we need, and when given the opportunity to live with littler more than we truly need, our lives are not only more sustainable, but also more enjoyable.

Talk about moving around so much since the age of 9 and how that helped cultivate an appreciation for planet.

Oh wow – all that moving had a major impact! In fact, the moving isn’t over; my husband joined the Marine Corps this year & we’ll be moving around for the next 20 years while he is in the service. If you’ve ever moved even once, you know how much of a huge affair it can be and how quickly you realize just how much junk you have (shocker). Moving every year or two has not only forced me to live with less (both materially and financially), but I’ve come to have a great appreciation for the few things that I do have. Own less, live more.

What do you think is the hardest challenge for most people when it comes to living sustainably?

One word: change. In our culture, change is the ultimate fear. In terms of sustainable living, many people fear that they are going to have to significantly alter their entire lifestyle – which is total bull-honky. Big changes are great, but small changes matter too. Drinking tap water & turning down your thermostat (among the many other simple, small changes) have a noteworthy impact over time. It’s akin to simply living a healthier lifestyle. Some folks try to change their entire diet & work out every day. Instead, start by drinking more water, eating fruit after every meal and taking a walk after dinner. Starting small can help you gain confidence and a new found comfort in not only benefiting your family, but also the entire planet.

Your first book was about yoga and concentrating on self. Do you feel like after a person takes care of themselves emotionally and physically then they can be ready for what real sustainability means in their lives?

Exactly – I couldn’t have said it better myself. When you take control of your own emotional and physical health, you are learning to truly appreciate the amazing experience of being human. This is the body and the soul you have, make the best of it. Many people are often introduced to sustainable living through their food choices, which have not only an overall environmental impact but also a direct impact on your individual health. Could I walk to Washington D.C. and force the government to make 50 MPG the minimum standard for all automobiles? No, but I can do my part as an individual by eating local and organic foods, eating less meat, drinking more tap water – and that’s just the beginning! As you improve your own health (emotionally, physically), you naturally influence others via your conscious actions.

In your book you offer tips for everything from energy efficient appliances to clothing to make people’s lives easier while making the transition but people will still make excuses why this change will be too hard to do. What do you think the tipping point is to make people think differently of themselves and their role on our planet?

It’s financial, money is the tipping point. People have the strongest reaction when they are impacted financially. Why pay more when I can get the “same” product for less money? There has to be a monetary benefit to living a sustainable life, whether it is saving money on utilities, tax breaks, or simply spending less at the grocery store. Of course, since the sustainable “market” is still young (compared to the rest of the industrial-driven world), some things cost more. Convincing people to spend more money for a long-term positive impact (instead of instant benefits/savings) is a tough sell in our culture.

The post Do You Know 48 Things About Sustainable Living? appeared first on EcoSalon.

I’ve rarely been accused of being ‘at a loss for words,’ except when it comes to small talk. Inane chit-chat serves a purpose, I understand, but I’d rather just hear the silence in between. Call me anti-social, aloof or just plain boring, but my shutting up leaves plenty of room for observing, which has made me a better writer. So be it.

Many things are better in black and white than spoken out loud. For one, they last longer. A message worthy of repetition should stay around for a while so it will spread and grow.

Literally.

In this case, the black and white is green as in growing vegetation. The artist, Anna Garforth, creates her messages with moss growing out of concrete walls or leaves constructed together on fences. She’s been called “urban land artist, guerrilla gardener and green graffiti extraordinaire.” All of them seem to fit fabulously.

“My interest in integrating my creative practice with urban ecology and sustainability has led me into a world of moss collecting, wild city foraging and hunting down all the undomesticated areas of our urban forest.”

The new eco-nomics moss art (images above) was commissioned by a magazine to introduce an article about “going green and being more economical.” Garforth often collaborates with other artists or organizations that share her desire to communicate creatively and affect change both environmentally and socially.

“I feel the best place for some of my creations is in the public eye. I aim for my work to spark intrigue and questioning as it melds into our transitory daily landscape. My work needs to make an immediate impact given its ephemeral nature. I don’t wish to preserve it, it lives, it dies, and new growth ensues.”

And then there are her leaves. This typography (image above) was also site specific and completely sustainable. Garforth used thorns and fallen leaves (image below) to construct the words RETHINK and THINK.

“This piece was located in front of two main resources we heavily depend upon, gas and water. The word communicates a need to rethink about what we consume and how we consume it.”

For another outdoor piece, Gartforth created the word CHANGE in leaf typography. And in yet another, she spelled Nourish with moss (image below).

Look up nourish in the diction…I mean, Google “nourish definition” and it reads: “To provide with the substances necessary for growth, health and good condition. From Latin nutrire, ‘feed, cherish’. To provide for, sustain, encourage, nurture, cultivate, strengthen, enrich.”

Nourish, indeed.

Images via artist’s website

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Help women and you help the world. It’s a philosophy gaining traction among international development gurus who say women in the global south are the best providers for their families and communities. According to a New York Times Magazine article by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn published last August, women in the developing world are often more responsible than men when it comes to managing money in the home, making them prime beneficiaries for microfinance loans.

“In general, aid appears to work best when it is focused on health, education and microfinance (although microfinance has been somewhat less successful in Africa than in Asia),” write Kristof and WuDunn. “And in each case, crucially, aid has often been most effective when aimed at women and girls; when policy wonks do the math, they often find that these investments have a net economic return. Only a small proportion of aid specifically targets women or girls, but increasingly donors are recognizing that that is where they often get the most bang for the buck.”

In their book Half the Sky, named for a Chinese saying that “Women hold up half the sky,” Kristof and WuDunn argue for an increased focus on women and girls when it comes to international aid, maintaining that countries with pitiful track records on women’s rights are also the countries most mired in poverty and extremism. Fix the former and you fix the latter, they say.

Kristof and WuDunn provide a compelling argument. But their philosophy should go one further: in addition to reducing poverty, helping women also helps the environment. According to a recent article in The Jakarta Post, the Indonesian Environmental Ministry has begun offering classes to women in Yogyakarta and Central Java about water conservation. Since women provide food for their families, they’re also the ones who acquire water each day. “In almost every village, it is a woman’s responsibility to provide water, whether as a mother or daughter,” says Linda Amalia Sari Gumelar, the Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Minister. Public works agencies that build water projects ignore the needs of women at their own peril. “Planners should be aware of the different conditions: women on foot and men on motorcycles. In housework, water is closely-related to domestic work. Distances between water sources and settlements should be calculated carefully.”

Since women transport water, and then use it to cook and clean for their families, they make natural gatekeepers for water sources, the first-line-of-defense conservationists who can teach their peers how to make their daily water portion go further. Though the true impact of the Environmental Ministry water protection classes in Indonesia has yet to be realized, focusing on the environment by focusing on women is smart policy. Women hold up half the sky – it’s true. And if we let them, it’ll be a cleaner sky at that.

Image: ESP Indonesia

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Our series on Dumbing Down American Design, has afforded us opportunities to catch up with some really interesting people. Our final installment is no less attractive, interviewing both Howard Brown of Stewart+Brown and Davora Lindner, co-designer of Prairie Underground.

For the last time we revisit the driving question: Has our quest for convenience and rock bottom prices forever altered fashion and is American design becoming a thing of the past?

When it comes to American design, two top designers in the sustainable design field, Davora Lindner of Prairie Underground and Howard Brown of Stewart+Brown both stand out.

Brown, whose mother owned a boutique in Missoula, Montana for 30+ years says she taught him that fit was everything.

“It took us a couple times to get our sizing right but now we know exactly who we’re designing for,” says Brown, whose being raised around people trying on clothing has only helped Stewart+Brown when it comes to a base customer fit.

Today, 93 percent of Stewart+Brown is U.S. manufactured in L.A. facilities while the other seven percent – including knits – is outsourced to China, (what Brown calls our own ignorance in letting the knitwear industry fade away stateside).

But why China? “Why not?” Brown says. “People need to be very careful with their preconceptions of China. I think it all comes down to racial stereotyping and elements of ignorance based on headlines and media,” he adds. “In China, people are protesting over environmental degradation and unfair labor practices and getting shot and killed for it. We need to be supporting those people,” he says.

Brown is pretty outspoken about his line and manufacturing practices and with good reason. “When we first started out, there was no way to track the supply chain, it was uncharted territory. The easy solution would’ve been to just go the conventional route but we thought we’d use the opportunity to raise the bar on sustainable production and design,” Brown says, adding that thanks to today’s “conscious consumer,” who buys from lines like Stewart+Brown and Prairie Underground, they can do more than exist, they can thrive.

Davora Lindner co-designer of Prairie Underground says her label’s “hardscrabble approach to getting things done through hard work and keeping our hands busy,” has enabled Prairie to stay afloat just fine in the U.S. and almost completely in Seattle, WA.

“Local production is an extension of our work ethic and pragmatism, but it was also a choice and a political stance. Aside from the fact that we had no experience producing overseas, we wanted to produce our collection locally and were willing to work within that vernacular to make it a possibility,” she says, adding that it seems “bewildering and out of touch” to have production take place so far away.

Though disturbing to her and design partner Camilla Eckersley that fewer things are made in the United States, owning their own business also meant conscious choices to manufacture as well as design domestically. “Our responsibility now is to sustain the momentum and we feel an obligation to provide meaningful work for our subcontractors,” says Lindner.

Like a lot of independent designers Stewart+Brown and Prairie Underground’s business template was influenced by previous work experience.

Prairie co-designer Camilla Eckersley’s experience working for companies in San Francisco as a production sewer later evolved into a position of a production manager and after additional training she became a designer and pattern maker. “The companies she worked for all produced domestically so this was what she knew and became the basis for our company,” says Lindner. “I come from a background of a fine artist who made things by hand and learned new techniques at community art centers, networking at supply stores or in dialogue with other artists,” she adds.

Lindner’s grassroots approach has paid off and like in Brown’s L.A., there is a lot of micro-manufacturing happening all over Seattle for her to tap into.

“Our contractors work within 20 minutes of one another and some know each other or have employed the same sewers. They appear as pioneers in their neighborhoods and they operate more like small businesses than huge factories,” says Lindner.

While Prairie Underground and Stewart+Brown hold tight to their supply chains and do their best to keep all design in the U.S., Brown offers his best advice to an overlooked part of this whole series: the consumer. “Educate yourself. Dig deeper and look at the big picture all around you. Being a conscious consumer and supporting brands that support sustainability is the only way we’re going to win this battle.”

Top image from Rob Lee

The post Dumbing Down American Design, Part 4 appeared first on EcoSalon.

Karen Stewart and Howard Brown have long pioneered eco-fashion into something classic and beautiful and distinctively their own.

And it’s not just all the best eco-fashion blogs and magazines that love them; they have real fans who support them and want to wear their line.

Launching their ethical fashion brand Stewart + Brown in 2002 from Los Angeles, the two say they were “inspired by their love and respect for nature and a passion for design.”

Karen, a trained painter and New York native, and Howard, a graphic artist and Montana native, oversee every aspect of the product and brand themselves which translates to inspired style from concept to creation.

We salute them for their hands-on involvement in their line and donations over the years to various environmental groups.

This Antheia Tunic is a great representation of what happens when function and style get the Stewart + Brown stamp and exudes femininity.

Want some sustainable love? Want to be the girl on the street wearing this? Then leave a comment below expressing how much you love Karen Stewart and Howard Brown’s line and you might just win.

See our giveaway rules and FTC compliance for all of the fine print.

Good luck!

The post Feminine ‘n Fab Stewart + Brown Dress Giveaway appeared first on EcoSalon.

I recently attended the Ethical Sourcing Forum in NYC to gain a deeper understanding of what big businesses are doing in terms of corporate social responsibility (CSR), particularly as it relates to their supply chain.

During the forum, I participated in panels and workshops with the likes of Wal-Mart, L’Oreal, Hudson Bay Company, Eileen Fisher, Jones Apparel, Ralph Lauren, and Nordstrom to name a few. These are all companies who for many years have been manufacturing goods – some domestically, some overseas, and some use both methods. And when it comes to labor rights and ethical sourcing, most of them don’t have the best track record. We all remember when the curtain was pulled back on Nike in the late “˜90s.

Regardless, I admit there was something special about the event, like witnessing collaborative efforts by activist groups like the Maquila Solidarity Network, and government bodies such as the U.S. Department of Labor working with large corporations to solve their really big problems.

You may have gathered from my writing thus far, that there are some things I feel troubled about. Although my attempt to get closer to the truth around ethical sourcing was not in vain, a whole new set of questions came up for me during the forum.

1. Should I applaud these companies for finally getting around to cleaning up the very messes they created?
2. Do their efforts now absolve them of past actions?
3. Can I (and others) truly forgive and forget their history?

It is clear these companies aren’t doing enough. Not when you consider how much power they actually have to affect real change. On the other hand, they are the first to admit that they can be doing more. They just think this is a good place to start. Do you agree?

I would like to see more discussion around environmental impacts.

Let’s talk about deforestation and pollution, waste, the use of toxic chemicals, destruction of entire ecosystems and communities. When is that conversation going to take place? And what about that third, and lesser known “R” called reduce? Obviously this is not a word or topic of discussion at forums like the ESF, because at the end of the day, these corporations want us to do the exact opposite. They want us to consume more and more of their products.

I remember reading, “You can’t have a sustainable world without a sustainable Wal-Mart”. And while I totally get this statement, I’m not entirely convinced. A big part of me dislikes the fact that the Wal-Mart’s of the world exist in the first place.  But the reality is they do. And unfortunately, millions of people shop there every year.

Images: Mountain Top Removal Mining and kevindooley

The post A Sustainable World = A Sustainable Wal-Mart? appeared first on EcoSalon.

Anvil CSR

The t-shirt. How many are crammed in your drawers?

You may not think of this everyday fashion staple as making a big eco dent, but if you trace the tee you’ll quickly see how it can work as an effective instrument for change.

Anvil Knitwear, sponsor of Track My T, is a new interactive web site that chronicles the journey and environmental impact of a t-shirt, from cottonseed to consumer. The site aims to show you the impact, but in a creative way.

The company recently added the educational program to compliment their mission and CSR bottom line, adding to an already impressive effort to make as small a carbon footprint as possible for a large company.

The experiential site, which specifically tracks t-shirts for youths aged 2-12, allows users to explore cotton farms, a gin and spinners, as well as Anvil’s textile mill, cut and sew plants and distribution facility – all by inputting a unique tracking number printed on their very own shirt.

Anthony Corsano, Chief Executive Officer of Anvil says: “Our goal in creating this site was not only to comply with industry requirements, but to turn it into an educational experience and teach about our footprint and ecological impact.”

Anvil, a leader in the sustainable apparel industry is also the sixth-largest organic program in the world.

The post Track My T Please appeared first on EcoSalon.