Forget Cosmopolitan and Glamour, the real women’s news is in Clover Letter and Teen Vogue.

Over the past few years, news sites and newsletters targeted toward pre-teens and teens have gotten good… Really good.

The start

Rookie, a groundbreaking website made by then teen Tavi Gevinson, started the thoughtful, teen-focused online magazine and book series trend in 2011. Rookie stood out because it covered issues that matter to teens: college prep, school anxiety, and online bullying. It also had a healthy dose of well-written beauty and dating content. The site was and continues to be so good that many adults read its content.

The tradition continues

Since Rookie’s start, other like-minded writers and editors have got wise to the public’s desire to read well-written content with a unique voice. The following two news organizations have replicated Rookie’s ability to produce great content—for teens and adults—by way of two different mediums.

Clover Letter

Clover Letter started as a daily newsletter in 2015. Liza Darwin and Casey Lewis, the newsletter’s founders, knew their stuff before founding the news organization—they were former editors, and worked at publicans such as NYLON, MTV, Teen Vogue, Refinery29, and Vice.

Although Clover does cover many news stories you see on other sites, it has developed a voice that makes these stories more relatable. Its writers do this by writing accessible headlines and keeping story descriptions short and sweet.

In addition to having a unique voice, Clover’s writers and founders have figured out how to make heavy news stories applicable to pre-teens and teens. The writers don’t downplay or dumb down the news, but present it in a way that’s inviting and geared toward the concerns of young people. The newsletter’s ability to find different angles to old stories is delightful.

Teen Vogue

This teen magazine made its revolutionary mark in 2016 when its writers began covering the American presidential election. The magazine has kept up its great news coverage in 2017.

Just this past week, Teen Vogue wrote a helpful piece about presidential impeachment and a story about abortion stigma. In fact, Teen Vogue’s abortion piece got under the skin of the National Review, a right-wing news publication. Now, you know a teen publication is getting something right when it’s able to do that.

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The post The Teen Magazine and Newsletter Women Need to Read, Too appeared first on EcoSalon.

We love beauty, we love magazines, we love organics. But truly, there has been a lack of organic beauty magazines that cover the whole aspect of glamorous healthy living. Brandie Gilliam of Organic Beauty Talk tells us how her new magazine, Thoughtfully, fills that void. 

Green gals everywhere are familiar with online organic beauty hot spot Organic Beauty Talk. Hey, we listed the site as one of the 10 best beauty blogs, so you know it has to be good!

OBT founder Brandie Gilliam knows her clean living stuff. That is what makes her latest venture so exciting. The launch of the brand new lifestyle magazine, Thoughtfully, covers all aspects of healthy living. And it comes in both print and digital formats. Pretty sweet.

Want to know more? Us too. That’s why we interviewed Brandie for all the juicy deets on her new mag.

Liz Thompson: You’ve been offering green beauty advice on Organic Beauty Talk for a few years now. Where did you get the inspiration for a print magazine?

Brandie Gilliam: I always saw the potential and need for a magazine like Thoughtfully. Over the years, I dreamed of going to the newsstands and finding a magazine that not only inspired me informationally but creatively as well. I also longed for a really gorgeous looking magazine where all of the beauty products were non-toxic, and that was more well-rounded in its approach to living. In September of 2014, it just hit one day and I had an AHA moment. The very thing I wanted to see, it occurred to me to just do it myself. And so I did. In a matter of a few months, Thoughtfully Magazine was conceived and born. I’m so grateful to the individuals who were a part of Issue 1 and trusted in my vision.

LT: Where can we get our hands on Thoughtfully?

BG: You can now find Issue 1 of Thoughtfully Magazine at Whole Foods Market stores nationwide as well as some really great boutiques (see our full Stockists list). And of course, you can order Thoughtfully in both print and digital versions directly from our online shop. We should have some other retailer announcements coming soon and we ship internationally too. I’m hoping we can create enough demand for Thoughtfully to be able to add subscriptions by late spring or summer. It’s very important for me to take one step at a time. I want Thoughtfully to be around for a long time.

LT: How often will new issues be published?

BG: Thoughtfully is a quarterly publication with a seasonal approach to living and eating. I want our readers to really get the opportunity to enjoy each issue and savor every page as well as be able to put it down and come back to it without being rushed.

LT: Can you give us any sneaks on what, or who, to expect in coming issues?

BG: While I can’t give you any details (c’mon, that would spoil all the fun), I can tell you that it’s going to be good, really good!! We have some exciting collaborations planned for Thoughtfully and it’s only going to get better.

LT: What is your background in natural beauty?

BG: I’ve been researching ingredients and testing non-toxic products for 14 years, and writing in the natural beauty space for almost four years.

LT: Will you be keeping up with Organic Beauty Talk?

BG: Organic Beauty Talk will remain up. It has a wealth of information and content. My hope is to give upcoming natural beauty bloggers a place to cultivate their voice and creativity. I’ll definitely keep Organic Beauty Talk around.

LT: What is one beauty tip all women should know?

BG: Know what’s in your products. And I’ll add to that: become a student of your skin. These two tips have been the most valuable lessons that I’ve learned along my own beauty journey and are truly the foundation for everything else. My skin is amazing because of it!

LT: And, I always ask, who has influenced your style?

BG: I tend to gravitate towards easy, effortless looking style that’s chic, sophisticated and on-trend with a bit of edge and sensibility. I go for flattering silhouettes and beautiful color with amazing feel, fit and function. I’m constantly pulling style inspiration from different places but I always gravitate towards Jessica Alba, Gwyneth Paltrow, Miranda Kerr, Jennifer Lopez and Jenna Lyons of J Crew. I’m also incredibly drawn to Lupita Nyong’o on the red carpet and Tracee Ellis Ross’s hair these days.

Go to ThoughtfullyMag.com, or follow on Instagram: @thoughtfullymagazine and Twitter: @thoughtfullymag.

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Image courtesy Brandie Gilliam

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A magazine that’s paying attention to what’s good in the world.

The current state of global affairs is overwhelming, and if traditional news and media had their way, we would be convinced that we live in a dismal and dangerous world. Fortunately there are some outlets that are pushing back against the norm. The Intelligent Optimist is one of them.

You might know The Intelligent Optimist under its former name: Ode magazine. Not just a magazine, it’s a community of people who believe that more is going right than wrong in the world.

As Jurriaan Kamp, Editor-in-Chief, puts it:

Intelligent optimism is a way of life. In fact, it is the way of life until we lose it. Many of us do. Somewhere, at some particular point in time, our disappointments and failures become too overwhelming, and we give up. Fear and insecurity arise, and we start surrendering to pessimism. Some will argue that it is wise to be realistic, and they see the optimist as unrealistic. I argue that optimism—intelligent, not mindless, optimism—is the only realistic strategy for life.

With the new name comes a launch party, and if you are in the San Francisco area, you will be sure to want to put it on your calendar.

WHAT: The Intelligent Optimist Launch Party

Headlining the event will be one of the most sought-after speakers in the world, Boston Philharmonic Orchestra conductor Benjamin Zander, whose TED talk has attracted almost 3 million viewers. Zander has given the keynote address at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland, and his latest recording, with London’s Philharmonic Orchestra, was nominated for a Grammy Award.

Zander is also the co-author of The Art of Possibility, hailed as a landmark work on the triumph of human creativity’s potential. “To be an intelligent optimist, you have to master the art of possibility,” he says. But what is the art of possibility? Zander’s answer will have audience members alternately rolling in the aisles and dabbing their eyes.

WHERE: Fort Mason Center

WHEN: Wednesday September 26, 2012, 7-8:30 pm (you can also catch the event live on webcast)

WHY: Because there’s a lot of good going on in the world, and it’s time we started paying attention to it.

You can score a free digital copy of the first digital issue of The Intelligent Optimist here.

The post Celebrate Possibility at The Intelligent Optimist Launch Party in San Francisco, September 26 appeared first on EcoSalon.

It’s no secret that the media tends to focus on the negative instead of the positive, feature problems instead of solutions and evoke despondency instead of motivation. Looking to refresh your optimism?

Ode magazine, ” for intelligent optimists”, offers a healthy dose of inspiration. In each uplifting issue, you’ll find stories regarding active efforts towards a progressive environmental, social and economical revolution, not to mention insightful columns by renowned figures like Paolo Coelho, Amy Domini and David Servan-Shreiber.

Take it from Foreign Policy: “Read Ode, and you may just figure out how to fix this crazy, messed-up world.”

But, that’s not all you’ll gain. Your first issue is free, and, if you subscribe for an annual fee of $19.95, they send you a Thich Nhat Hanh meditation CD and plant a tree in Africa to represent your commitment against global warming.

Plus, recycled paper is used to print every copy and a digital version is available online. (P.S. You can get a good news fix right here, too.)

Image: willsfca

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I love magazines and I love travel but not every travel magazine does it for me. My eyes start to glaze over at the terrible sameness of so many resorts, while my heart sinks at the knowledge that the “paradise” they are selling is all too often actually a former one.

They paved paradise and put up a parking lot, with a pink hotel, a boutique and a swinging hot spot. – Joni Mitchell

You won’t find a bikini model on the front of Wend Magazine. It’s mainly focused on adventure travel – from hiking the Andes to skiing Japan. But it also has a strong environmental theme – one of the articles in the current issue is about a sailing expedition to the site of a marine plastic disaster in the North Pacific Ocean. There’s a section called Greenery devoted to sustainable design and a section called Platform devoted to an environmental non-profit organization.

The print magazine is printed on paper certified by the Forestry Stewardship Council – meaning it comes from sustainably managed forests – with soy-based inks. Subscribers can also opt for a paperless digital subscription – especially green if you live on the other side of the world (it’s a US-based magazine). The website also has a lot of additional content such as podcasts.

I really like the look of Wend but I must confess I found the digital edition hard to read. It would work well on a desktop with a large screen but it was a bit unwieldy on my small laptop screen – I either had to squint at tiny type, or enlarge it and navigate with the browser arrows. Try it out for yourself – maybe you’ll fare better with the digital edition than I did. If not, but you like the content, at least you know the paper product is also ethically sound (though it would be nice to see an upgrade to recycled paper at some point).

The post Wending the Green Way appeared first on EcoSalon.

There’s nothing I like more than checking the mailbox and discovering a magazine or two. But it’s not the greenest read around. So I did a little Googling and discovered there are plenty of digital
magazines available to keep me reading for an eternity. And many are free.

Canada-based Green Living Magazine is a quarterly magazine that offers celebrity profiles, engaging features and departments on natural beauty, eco fashion, fitness and active lifestyles, organic food, earth-friendly green gifts, eco heroes and tips for a healthy home.

Eco for You is a new English consumer magazine that aims to provide a variety of views on all aspects of the environment. The current issue addresses global warming and the ozone layer, green energy, recycling, and
much, much more.

Organic Lifestyle magazine has articles on everything from yoga and organic shaving to eco travel and book reviews. This monthly magazine has four issues online so far but am wondering if it is still publishing as the last issue was September 2008.

Organic Spa Magazine is available in both print and digital editions and offers articles and departments dedicated to exploring the sustainable side of life. Focus is on spa destinations, organic products, and food, fitness, and wellness issues.

So the next time you’re thinking about heading to the nearest bookstore for a magazine fix, why not head for the nearest computer instead?

Of course, you can subscribe to EcoSalon for your free green fix anytime you need it.

Image: dirtymouse

The post Great Green Reading with Digital Magazines appeared first on EcoSalon.