Skip to content
Grist home
All donations DOUBLED

Articles by Ask Umbra®

The New York Times calls Umbra Fisk "a trailblazer in the field of eco-advice columnists" and "the arch online sage of the new green age." Her latest passion: kale smoothies ... no, sorry, civic engagement, because getting political is the only way we'll get a planet that doesn't burn and a future that doesn't suck. Ask Umbra a question here.

All Articles

  • Ask Umbra’s Book Club: Time to take action

    Dearest readers, Photo: GreenpeaceThanks so much for all your foodie insights this week related to Anna Lappé’s Diet for a Hot Planet (if you missed the live chat with her, catch the replay). One more big question to tackle today. Let’s brainstorm some ideas about how to put the pressure on agribusiness offenders. In the […]

  • Ask Umbra’s Book Club: Local or organic?

    Dearest readers, Great discussion yesterday in the comments section and on Grist’s Facebook page about meat-eating environmentalists and gross corporate greenwashing campaigns (apparently, kids who are hopped up on sugary cereals in the morning do better in school than kids who have no breakfast at all!). Here’s another batch of questions inspired by Anna Lappé’s […]

  • Ask Umbra’s Book Club: WTFood?

    Dearest readers, Thank you to all who attended yesterday’s live chat with author Anna Lappé, who doled out informative answers to your most vexing food–climate change questions. (If you missed it, you can catch the replay.) But now it’s time to offer up some of your own insights on Lappé’s tome Diet for a Hot […]

  • Ask Umbra’s DIY shampoo and conditioner video

    Shampoo and conditioner are things you’ve likely never questioned. But did you know they weren’t used until the 20th century? These packaged products are often expensive and contain toxins that are dangerous to our health. You can be well coiffed and conscientious. Umbra shows you how to make DIY shampoo and conditioner with baking soda, […]