Climate Culture

From One Day to One Night

Bauer beware He’s survived 20 months of torture in a Chinese prison, thwarted presidential assassination attempts, disarmed nuclear bombs, and saved Kiefer Sutherland’s career. Did you doubt he’d eventually take on global warming? Clearly, you don’t know Jack. Bottled rage We heard it through the grapevine that Brangelina may be purchasing an eco-friendly winery in […]

The Big Green Bus rides again

Witness the Big Green Bus. Hard to miss, even amid the glaring sun and smog at Bonnaroo. I happened upon the crew of Dartmouth students at the festival last year and got just a few minutes to chat with them. This year, I sought them out on the festival grounds and then met up with […]

Paris bike rental scheme takes off

But wait, I thought bikes were impractical! Taxi drivers and other critics said that it would never work, but three weeks after Paris was sprinkled with 10,000 self-service bicycles, the scheme is proving a triumph and a new pedalling army appears to be taming the city’s famously fierce traffic. Bertrand Delanoë, the city’s mayor, and […]

15 Green Fashion Finds

Does your summer need a little sartorial splendor? Of corset does! We’ve put together a head-to-toe eco-ensemble that proves innovative designers are giving green a new look. (Of course, the greenest route is to shop secondhand, and those fashion finds you’ll have to dig up yourself.) Shaun Deller Wheely cap Cyclist — or rather, recyclist […]

This store takes its green role seriously

Last month, we reported on a few regional grocery chains that are earning organic certification. I went to one of them, a Hannaford, the other night, and have been meaning to publicly praise them ever since. Not only do they have huge, clearly marked organic sections (none of this shy, tucked-away business), they also had […]

TV watching inhibits learning

Neil Postman and Jerry Mander have said that educational TV is a fraud for decades -- what you learn watching television is how to watch television. Period.

The conceit of "educational TV" is the same one that sells "eat all you like" diet books and "think yourself rich" plans to fools: the idea of something for nothing (someone else, smarter than you, will handle raising your kids -- just pop in the video).

You learn to be human by interacting with humans, not appliances.

15 Green Fashionistas

These fashionistas aren’t just talking the talk, they’re walking the catwalk. See who’s shining a spotlight on clothing with a conscience, then join our comment thread below. Tierra Del Forte Just call her Ms. Green Jeans. This designer and founder of Del Forte Denim has created a line of premium organic denim for women. And […]

NYT dating advice: Eat more flesh

This makes me want to barf, on so many levels: Martha Flach mentioned meat twice in her Match.com profile: “I love architecture, The New Yorker, dogs … steak for two and the Sunday puzzle.” She was seeking, she added, “a smart, funny, kind man who owns a suit (but isn’t one) … and loves red […]

On blueberries, zucchini, and dragon slime

A few years ago, a friend served me some blueberry-studded gingerbread that she had bought at a local bakery. It was fine, but the spices in the gingerbread really obscured the flavor of the blueberries. On the other hand, I find plain blueberry muffins boring and bland. While I’ve had delicious lime-blueberry muffins and lemon-blueberry […]

Can it happen here?

From CNNMoney.com:

It may seem strange that the emirate of Abu Dhabi, one of the planet's largest suppliers of oil, is planning to build the world's first carbon-neutral city.

But in fact, it makes a lot of financial sense. The 3.7-square-mile city, called Masdar, will cut its electricity bill by harnessing wind, solar, and geothermal energy, while a total ban on cars within city walls should reduce the long-term health costs associated with smog.

Masdar will be filled with shaded streets to encourage walking. A solar-powered transit system will take you to the airport.

Masdar is still on the drawing board -- construction begins in January, with a very tentative completion date of 2009 -- but the result will be watched closely around the world.

Maybe they read Car Free Cities by J.H. Crawford.