A weekly roundup of EcoSalon’s top stories.

Before we all have a big love fest for bamboo, let’s get to know it a little bit more. Kelly Drennan, in her article Bamboo, We Hardly Knew Ye, writes: “Bamboo seemed like a miracle fiber – and in a sense, it is. It’s turning it into fabric that’s the more complicated issue.” It’s important to be able to make an informed decision about environmental impact before ruling any fabric out – read up to learn more.

In our weekly Insider’s Guide To Life: Bite Me, Sara Ost dishes out tips on how to deal with female bullies at any age. Ost writes: “If the thought of never seeing your bully again gives you more joy than the thought of a bathtub full of calorie-free sea-salt and caramel chocolate truffles dipped in lottery tickets, fame, a flat stomach and true love, it’s time to walk away.” Enough said.

Unless you’re living on the moon or ride a bike, you’re probably painfully aware of gas prices rising. If you don’t live in a city and have access to public transportation you might even be feeling doomed, damned or find yourself prone to yelling at the sky with a clenched fist. News editor Andrea Newell’s 11 Ways To Save At The Pump gives city and country dwellers the opportunity to become environmentally empowered (and financially enhanced) by being just a bit more conscious.

Has your sustainable path led you to veganism? You’re not alone, but there are also many ex-vegans like EcoSalon writer Abigail Wick who, in The Conscious Case Against Veganism, writes: “Conscientious consumption means eating and living ethically, not religiously. As Slate’s Christopher Cox says, ‘Eating ethically is not a purity pissing contest, and the more vegans or vegetarians pretend that it is, the more their diets start to resemble mere fashion – and thus risk being dismissed as such.'”

As you can imagine, vegans near and far were interested in this topic so we also published a rebuttal from Laura Hooper Beck, a vegan writer, the founding editor of Vegansaurus, Editor-at-Large for VegNews Magazine, and the community manager of VegWeb, to speak on behalf of the vegan community.

While we continue to hear bad news from Japan, how its people are managing in the face of this crisis is deeply inspirational. In Heroism And Hope: 7 Heartwarming Tsunami Stories, Newell finds, “…heroism is not dead, love is a powerful motivator, hope is still alive, and people can be compassionate toward strangers.”

Image: kimubert

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