earth day events from just food

In keeping with the Earth Day theme today, here are some more ways to get involved - through education - from local food advocacy group Just Food.

Garden Maintenance, Planting Techniques and Growing for Market: April 22, 6-8pm, East New York Farms! 613 New Lots Ave corner of Schenck Ave, Brooklyn

Cooking demonstrations and legalize beekeeping outreach at the Earth Fair 2009: April 24-25, Grand Central Terminal, Vanderbilt Hall (inside) and 42nd Street and Vanderbilt Avenue (outside)

McKinley's Children's Garden Earth Day Celebrations' Seed Saving Workshop: April 25, 12-1pm McKinley's Children's Garden, 108-56 Union Hall Street at 109th Avenue, Jamaica, Queens

Garden Planning: April 25, 1-3pm Hattie Carthan Community Garden 654 Lafayette Ave at Clifton, Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn And check out Just Food board member and La Familia Verde Garden Coalition member Karen Washington talk about turning a vacant lot into a thriving community garden at Mayor Bloomberg's new volunteerism project, NYC Service. What step will you take this Earth Day for food justice?! Share your commitments/ideas.

earth day ideas from the brooklyn green team

Some more ways to get involved this Earth Day (and every other day of the year) from the Brooklyn Green Team:

In honor of Earth Day 2009, the Brooklyn Green Team would like to suggest some ways to ring in the event...

Volunteer with us this Saturday, APRIL 25 at Prospect Park. 10am-2pm @ Prospect Park Grand Army Plaza entrance (2/3 to grand army plaza). Join us in fulfilling the YES WE CAN Volunteer Challenge as part of Hands-on New York Day! Bring your closed-toe shoes and long pants and do some weeding, path edging, sweeping, and general clean-up. RSVP by emailing brooklyngreen@gmail.com and let us know the number of people you plan on bringing.

Greenmarket Head to the Union Square Greenmarket (or another one in your hood that's open on Wednesday) and get all your ingredients and make a local dinner. Click here to see all NYC Greenmarkets.

Search on Goodsearch.com. If you can't resist combing the internet for the latest developments of Miley Cyrus' career, try using this Yahoo-powered search engine that donates a penny per search to your favorite environmental cause.

Support Local (and sustainable) if you're a BK resident. Pop into 3rliving and help them celebrate their 5-year anniversary and make a $1 donation to their recycling services they provide the community. Or pick your favorite mom and pop (sister or brother) in your neighborhood and support them.

Go Outside and sit in the park.

Give to your favorite local charity. There are so many great green groups in NYC. Our YES WE CAN VOLUNTEER Challenge post has a list of organizations worthy of your support.

Plastic-free for the day. Don't purchase or take anything new that's plastic, from the produce bag you grab for at the grocery store to a bottle of Vitamin water.

Check Out the myriad of Earth Day events in NYC. Check the Earth Day NY site or visit our partners at GreenEdge Collaborative NYC for event listings.

Turn Off either your computer, your ipod, your TV, or all of the above for the day.

Spread the News to others and remind them it's Earth Day and to do one good green thing. You could even forward them this email.

We agree with Grist that Earth Day is everyday, but don't quite agree with their Screw Earth Day concept. One has to start someplace. Just do one thing and have a great day.

Stay tuned for the next challenge. . .

POW. YOU'VE BEEN GREENED.

BROOKLYN GREEN TEAM.

www.brooklyngreenteam.blogspot.com

grand opening: green in brooklyn

Live in Brooklyn and not sure where to get things like biodegradable trash bags or organic linens? Now there's one shop that carries it all, Green in BKLYN and they're having an Earth Day grand opening today. I wish I could make it, 'cause it looks like a great place to connect with other green-minded Brooklynites.



I'll be sure to bike on down there soon to check out their eco-friendly merch and chat with the Clinton Hill locals about their new biz.

tomorrow's earth day

(If the sun hugged a tree you could kiss that tree goodbye... sizzle sizzle. Ok, maybe I'm being too literal.)

Yeah, big deal, tomorrow's Earth Day. I kind of agree with the sentiment expressed by environmental mag Grist: "Screw Earth Day." By now we should all be doing our part, or at least trying to take small steps daily toward cultivating a healthier planet (and selves). I guess it's easy for me to have this attitude since I'm one of those people who's trying her darndest to lighten her impact on the planet. But there are plenty of people and policies that haven't been infected by the green bug that's been sweeping the nation over the last few years. It's really for them that we still need Earth Day.

Not sure how to honor Earth Day #39? Here are a few ideas:

get outside!
Been cooped up inside so long you've forgotten how? Listen to the Nature Conservancy's urging to Spring Outside! and learn about ways to find nature near you.


bid on Leo's stuff
Leonardo DiCaprio is auctioning off some of his goods, and his time, on eBay to benefit Global Green USA.

Global Green USA is greening America's schools, affordable housing, and cities to combat global warming, lower energy bills, and create green jobs. Global Green is the US affiliate of Mikhail Gorbachev's Green Cross International, and is leading the green rebuilding of New Orleans.


volunteer
A few great ways to do so, via Grist (with a few edits):

• EarthDay.gov
• Volunteer Match
• Serve.gov
• Earth Day Network
• Student Conservation Association
• Sierra Club
• National Park Service
• World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF)

get on the bus - to Albany
Join the Audubon Society of NY for a big environmental lobbying event, Tuesday, May 5th from 9:30am to 4pm.

Earth Day Lobby Day is New York's largest annual environmental event, bringing together people from all over New York to hear from government and environment leaders, learn about current legislation, and lobby elected officials on environmental issues that are important to you. We'll be focusing on global warming, e-waste recycling, wetlands protection, and SEQRA standing (aka the "environmental access to justice act").

The all-day event is free and open to all, but you must pre-register by Friday, May 1st.

Please put "Audubon New York" in the organization line when filling out the form. We will send out directions and more detailed information to all registrants in advance of the event. Sign up for Earth Day Lobby Day today by clicking here!


clean out the closets and recycle your e-waste
Two events in NYC are coming up -

Sunday, April 26th, 10AM - 4PM, Central Park, Manhattan
W 67th Street and Central Park West

Saturday, May 2nd, 10AM - 4PM, at Tekserve, Manhattan
119 W 23rd Street (btwn 6th and 7th Aves)

Not in NYC, not to worry. Check out Earth 911 for electronics recycling in your area.


support local recycling efforts (Park Slope, Brooklyn)
The Park Slope 5th Avenue BID has partnered with the Park Slope Chamber of Commerce to launch a new recycling campaign. Green Grows in Brooklyn, will take place from April 20th-April 22nd — right in time for Earth Day. For more info on this initiative, check out Green Brooklyn.

rainy day, bright idea

We're having a string of rainy days here in NYC. Of course we need the rain - the street trees need it, the urban gardens need it, the reservoirs upstate need it. But there's a phenomenon that occurs every time it rains here. And I'm not talking about the trashy run-off that pollutes the waterways. I'm talking about the broken umbrella pandemic.



I'd guess that for every rainy day we have, there are hundreds of umbrellas abandoned. They litter the sidewalks and streets, they fill the trash cans, they even end up in the gutter. All I can do is shake my head as I pass all of that wasted metal, nylon, polyester, and even wood.

Or can I do something about it?

Every time it rains here, an opportunity is overlooked.

After the storm, couldn't someone (or a bunch of someones) go around collecting all of this neglected material and do something with it?

I know of a shop that once lived in Park Slope (ai ai gasa) that makes clothing out of old umbrella material. Here's a recipe for making an umbrella skirt from RePlayGround (via Treehugger and ReadyMade).

How about the metal parts? Maybe someone could make a chandelier with the frame, string some LEDs (like Kenzan Tsutakawa-Chinn) or wire up some bulbs a la Rody Graumans.

Any other bright ideas for ol' broken umbrellas?

cosmetics consumption and conflict

There was a time in my life when I wasn't a terribly conscious consumer. I would compulsively buy things like inexpensive clothing and makeup without really thinking about where it came from or what it was made of. Those days have long since passed, but I still hold onto some small reminders of that less mindful time. What were these little reminders? A crapload of makeup sitting in bags in my closet.

I don't even really wear makeup. Maybe a little mascara every once in a blue moon. That's about it. So why was I still holding onto these whispers of habits past collecting dust, taking up physical and mental space? Because I simply didn't know what to do with them. I have a really hard time throwing things out that will just end up in a landfill.

Until... I got a tip-off from a fellow twitterer (thanks, Melissa!) about a place I could recycle these wastes of space.

An Origins store.

So inspired was I by this news (and by the book I'm currently reading Throw Out 50 Things - more on that in a later post) that I collected all of this old makeup and brought it to the Origins store on West Broadway and Spring Street. Before I made my way over there, I had to clean out all of the lipstick tubes, eyeshadow palettes, and blush compacts. When I was through, my hands were covered in nasty makeup and the trash can looked like a fairy threw up into it - all pastel and glittery.

When I got to the store, the sales woman was so enthusiastic about my decision to turn in these old conveyances. She rewarded me with the news that this weekend, the store was holding an Earth Day event offering free mini facials to its customers. She also gave me a couple of samples of products from their Perfect World line.

I didn't think much about the exchange, other than feeling good about ridding myself of that old makeup and not having to resort to just tossing it all in the trash.

When I sat back down in front of my computer however, I had to look up the new samples I had acquired to see what their contents really held (ingredients lists don't fit on those tiny tubes of product). Much to my dismay, they're full of all the no-nos in beauty products today: parabens, petroleum, and some other nasty fillers. Check out the full list of what Origins uses at CosmeticsDatabase.com. Not such a Perfect World after all.

So I'm left with mixed feelings. I'm glad that Origins accepted all of my old cosmetics vessels for recycling, but can't really support their products because of the dubious contents. I've even taken down the banner I used to have promoting them (in the right-hand column).

What are your thoughts on this beauty product paradox?

what do you know for sure?

by Bob Hicok

Some people, told of witness trees,
pause in chopping a carrot
or loosening a lug nut and ask,
witness to what? So while salad
is made, or getting from A to B
is repaired, these people
listen to the story
of the Burnside Bridge sycamore,
alive at Antietam, bloodiest day
of the war, or the Appomattox Court House
honey locust, just coming to leaf
as Lee surrendered, and say, at the end,
Cool. Then the chopping
continues with its two sounds,
the slight snap to the separation
of carrot from carrot, the harder crack
of knife against cutting board,
or the sigh, also slight, of a lug nut
as it's tightened against a wheel. In time,
these people put their hands
under water and say, not so much to you
but to the window in front of the sink,
Think of all the things
trees have seen. Then it's time
for dinner, or to leave, and a month passes,
or a year, before two fawns
cross in front of the car, or the man
you've just given a dollar to
lifts his shirt to the start
of the 23rd psalm tattooed
to his chest, "The Lord is my shepherd,
I shall not want," when some people
say, I feel like one of those trees,
you know? And you do know.
You make a good salad, change
a wicked tire, you're one of those people,
watching, listening, a witness
to whatever this is,
for as long as it is
amazing, isn't it, that I could call you
right now and say, They still
can't talk to dolphins
but are closer, as I still
can't say everything I want to
but am closer, for trying, to God,
if you must, to spirit, if you will,
to what's never easy for people
like us: life, breath, the sheer volume
of wonder.

Bob Hicok is the author of This Clumsy Living (University of Pittsburgh Press) and associate professor of English at Virginia Tech.

great scott, some good environmental advertising!

Brought to you by Greenpeace

After watching this I decided to take a look at Kimberley Clark's website to see if they've done any cleaning up with regard to their environmental image.

It looks like they're greening up their act, albeit a little half-heartedly. They've launched Scott Naturals line of paper products, "green Done Right." They think "done right" is a "sensible" blend of sometimes up to 80% of recycled content. Some might think this is a step in the right direction, but I'm not sold. There are plenty of high quality 100% recycled paper products out there that, excuse the pun, wipe out Kimberley Clark's attempts at greening.

Here they are:

• Marcal
• Seventh Generation
• Green Forest
• Natural Value

listen to this man

Van Jones on Focus the Nation

pier observations

Two boys kiss
Muscleheads sun
Dogs get relief

Girl sips lemonade
Strollers align
Moms picnic on the lawn

A pick-up spot
A tanning salon
A dog run
A lunchtime refuge
A gym

A place for watching
A place to rest your eyes
A place for grass to grow

Sparrows perched under the bench
They see that I see them,
They flee

Hello sea gull
Hello water fowl

JC to the west
HH to the east
WTC was south
Chopper overhead

Tip of the ESB over my shoulder

A plane descends for Newark
Sky meets land

Bicycles, rollerblades, scooters
Sailboats, ferries, yachts
Man-made land meets river meets sea

Men in skirts or no shirts
Tank tops, flip flops, boots, coats
Winter meets summer

Labs, poms, mutts, a Chinese crested
Tourists, locals, straight, and gay

All colors and stripes meet here
At Christopher Street Pier


(Not my shot... image via NewYorkDailyPhoto)

afternoon thrift shop find

On my way back from lunch at the Christopher Street pier, I decided to pop up into St Luke's Thrift Shop on Hudson St (South of Christopher) when I saw the sign out front announcing "dresses on sale, 50% off."

I walked through the door and the first thing I saw was this adorable early 60s style red dress with white polka dots. I took a look at the back and that's what got me.



"Try it on," said the lady working there. "It's so cute, and look, it's new." The tags were still on it. Such is the way of ladies of means - buying dresses, never wearing them, then donating them to a thrift shop. I can't say I'm not completely innocent of this. At least one pair of shoes in my closet have met the sidewalk only once or twice.

I tried it on and it fit perfectly. The tag said $40, but I got it for $20. Thrifty is nifty.

big sale on edun duds @ greenloop

Now at Greenloop, get 50 to 75% off ethically and ecologically minded clothing line Edun - the brainchild of Ali Hewson and Bono (with some help from New York clothing designer Rogan Gregory).

Por ejemplo:

Men's Eclipse jeans were $175, you can get 'em for $79.99 (save $95.01, hey every penny counts!)


Ladies' Calliope dress was $325, now $169.99 (that's $155.01 off, yeow!)



Get 'em @ Greenloop while the gettin' is good.

making earrings with bonbon oiseau

I've always had the desire to work with my hands, though I hadn't really given myself the opportunity until recently. Partly inspired by the resurgence of DIY, and partly by the budding craft movement, I've begun to pick up a range of new skills.

Over the last year, I reintroduced myself to the sewing machine, taught myself crochet, learned block printing, got into baking & soupmaking, and got acquainted with street tree bed gardening.

Tonight, I added a new skill - jewelry making. Through make workshop (run by sewing guru Diana Rupp), I learned the art of earring assemblage from Deb Stein of Bonbon Oiseau. Deb is super down to earth and seriously encouraging of her students. She'll be teaching another class in memento assemblage with bracelets and necklaces next month (details).


(Focusing on tiny beads and delicate chains. Deb Stein at right.)

Deb makes it a point to use ethically sourced materials -- like antique beads -- in her jewelry line, which is made at her studio in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Her beautiful baubles are available in the US, Europe, and Japan (she's especially popular there). Deb will also be at the Brooklyn Flea for its Spring re-opening this weekend. She's also designing jewelry for the Brooklyn Botanic Garden's Cherry Blossom Festival.

I walked away from class with two pairs of dangly earrings and a new skill to add to my DIY bag of tricks.