Climate Culture

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  • Fleeced again: How microplastic causes macro problems for the ocean

    On Black Friday, outdoor retailer Patagonia took out a full-page ad in The New York Times asking readers to “buy less and to reflect before you spend a dime.” Beside a photo of their iconic fleece jacket, the headline read: “Don’t Buy This Jacket.” And, while their message about retail consumption undoubtedly made a splash, […]

    Clare Leschin-Hoar Culture

  • My holiday wish? Ixnay on the iPod

    The author’s beloved crap.Photo: Thomas HaydenCross-posted from Last Word on Nothing. Black Friday is behind us, and Cyber Monday too. But those are just start dates: The pressure to buy, buy, buy isn’t going to let up for another month at least. And that has me thinking about one of my favorite gadgets — a […]

    Thomas Hayden Culture

  • Ask Umbra: Which Christmas tree is the greenest?

    Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, Which is greener — real Christmas trees or fake? I know you answered this question in the past, but I wonder if there’s any new data? Ginger C. Littleton, Colo. All this tree needs is a little love.A. Dearest Ginger, Of the many wonderful and cherished traditions […]

    Ask Umbra® Culture

  • The Greenie Pig is on a (carbon) diet

    I’ve become quite the calorie-counter lately. With the holiday season upon us, I’m really tightening my belt, carefully calculating the number of calories I’d consume from all kinds of daily choices and sniffing out ways to trim the buggers from my diet. Like many a calorie-counter before me can attest, it’s frustrating work. Of course, […]

    Elisabeth Kwak-Hefferan Culture

  • Stop crying: Environmental tales don’t have to be ‘The Lorax’

    Cross-posted from the Last Word on Nothing. I’ve spent a lot of time this past year thinking and writing about extinction, which means I’ve also spent a lot of time drinking thinking about the tragic narrative in environmental journalism. There’s a lot of genuine tragedy on the environmental beat, and it doesn’t take a partisan to see […]

    Michelle Nijhuis Culture

  • The wrong way to recycle your fluorescent bulbs: Eating them

    This video is bananas. But fluorescent bulbs are not bananas. So don't eat them, like these guys do, and also don't do any of the other things in this video. Criminey. If you do have mercury-containing fluorescent bulbs that need to be disposed of, the EPA has a guide to what you need to do […]

    Jess Zimmerman Culture

  • A gift guide to bike stuff that people actually want

    Photo: Adams CarrollI’m not going to hate on shot glasses with bikes on them or leather holsters for carrying wine bottles by bicycle, but if you want to give someone a bicycle-related gift this holiday season that is actually useful on a daily basis, this guide is for you. I’ll start small and build from […]

    Elly Blue Culture

  • Wasting energy = blue balls, apparently

    It seems to be a pretty time-honored advertising strategy that when you want your message to really hit, you need to connect it to things men want/don't want to happen to their penises. In this example, found on Tumblr, wasting energy is … blue balls, or maybe priapism? And turning off the light is an […]

    Jess Zimmerman Culture

  • Lululemon goes from new-agey to Ayn Rand

    Lululemon, which makes overpriced yoga clothes, used to give customers the option to purchase sustainable shopping bags printed with the company's "manifesto." (It's not the one above; that's a parody.) That meant they were covered in quotes that were a mix of faux-Buddhism, The Secret, Dove Promises wrappers, and complete nonsense ("children are the orgasm […]

    Jess Zimmerman Culture

  • Ask Umbra: Are cosmetics companies lying to my face?

    Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, I just heard an ad for hair-care products that are allegedly “certified hypoallergenic.” There’s no such thing, is there? And is it illegal to make that claim? Shirley C. Wynnewood, Penn. A. Dearest Shirley, Hark! The holidays are here, and many of us might soon find ourselves […]

    Ask Umbra® Culture