Climate Culture
All Stories
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Kipchoge Spencer of Xtracycle and Worldbike answers questions
Kipchoge Spencer. What work do you do? I’m president of Xtracycle Inc. and cofounder of Worldbike. I’m also lead singer of the Ginger Ninjas. What does your organization do? Xtracycle invented and makes car-trip-replacing, life-enhancing, sport-utility bicycles, long bikes, and the FreeRadical Hitchless Trailer — for toting your kids to school, loading up with groceries, […]
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Umbra on recycling condoms
For the sake of argument, how does one recycle condoms? Unused they are plastic of some sort? I know it’s a bit silly, but don’t you just hate to have to flush them and all the water that goes with? Flavia S.Milan, Italy Dearest Flavia, In brief: condoms are generally made of latex and are […]
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New Year’s Resolutions 2006
Stop drooling over concept cars we’ll never own That is, as soon as we’re done gawking at this stackable, shareable, electric two-seater dreamt up by MIT’s Smart Cities team. It’s inspired by corralled shopping-carts, powered by four “wheel robots” with 360-degree movement, and fully customizable. Drool. Photo: Franco Vairani. Be as eco-conscious as Britney Spears […]
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A preview of this year’s green-tinted movies
Last year was a banner one for nature movies, kicking off with The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill and ending up with the wild cowboys of Brokeback Mountain (c’mon, Jake wasn’t the only gorgeous scenery). In the middle, there were record-grossing Penguins, a trip to Syriana, and the horrors of The Island. So what does […]
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You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Home Builder
Demand up for eco-friendly home-building supplies Consumers have turned on to the benefits of eco-timber, sustainably harvested cork flooring, and low-VOC paint, moving green home-building supplies out of the fringe and into the mainstream. “There’s no question where this is going; it’s hot,” says Timothy Taylor. His company, Environmental Home Center, started up in an […]
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Umbra on replacing appliances
Dear Umbra, I’ve done the research, and I’m ready to buy my first front-loading washing machine. And then a pesky friend starts asking the tough questions. “Does your existing machine work?” Yes. “Are you going to sell it to someone else who will keep using it?” Yes. “So, two machines where there used to be […]
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The Twelve Days of Gristmahanukwanzakah
On the first day … … the Grist staff gave to me: the notion that Kwanzaa, Christmas, and Hanukkah are eco-holidays. Kwanzaa (“first fruits” in Swahili) has its roots in African harvest festivals. Christmas involves serious tree-hugging (thank the pagans for that). And Hanukkah celebrates squeezing every last drop from a tiny bit of oil. […]
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Population activist David Nova took his message to the trail
David Nova. While camping alone in the Mojave Desert three years ago, David Nova was suddenly struck by the lack of human influence — no buildings, no streetlights, no cars, all the way to the horizon. It wasn’t the first time the avid hiker had thought about the effects of population on the environment, but […]
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When it comes to having kids, this global citizen can’t bear it
This old earth has spun ’round the sun 40 times since my founding egg and sperm got cozy with each other, and yet I’m still a solo act: no wife, no family, no tribe. While a life partner and tribe can be left to happen whenever they happen — if they happen — I’m at […]
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Umbra on ecological footprints, again
Dear Umbra, I have a couple of questions that relate to how I live and ask others to live. First, my guess is that many of your readers are above average in terms of income and education; who is the average American that we need ultimately to create a sustainable life for? Second, as we […]
