ecological footprint

Bras give energy efficiency a sexy boost in Italy

An Italian lingerie company is offering to help women shrink their waste while supporting their busts (and the planet) with a bra recycling program that finally gives energy efficiency that sexy push-up it's been lacking.

The Incredible Shrinking Man project wants to shrink your footprint–and you

People have a lot of ideas about how to reduce the effects of humans on the planet. But one group thinks the best way to shrink the human ecological footprint is literally to shrink humans' feet -- and the rest of us too. Meet The Incredible Shrinking Man project.

Is the ‘climate debt’ discussion helpful?

I’m intrigued by this notion of “climate debt,” but before I get into it I want to make one thing clear: the transfer of substantial resources from rich to poor countries is necessary for a successful international treaty. It’s necessary for a successful attempt to address global climate change. Nothing below is meant to suggest […]

Ask Umbra on holiday donations, green magazines, and more

Dearest Readers, I write to you from Copenhagen, where I have come to witness the big climate conference. O the life of a Grist columnist gets more glamorous by the day! Be sure to check out our coverage, and follow my adventures on Twitter. Yes, dear readers, I’ve finally succumbed to the tweet hereafter — […]

This year, have a Slow Christmas

This post originally appeared on SlowChristmas.org. Recently I have begun to wonder. Just when did Christmas go from this:         to this? USB Warmer Seat Cushion           The world is a fast place, filled with stuff, so I guess it makes sense that Christmas would reflect that. The […]

Study says green shoppers more likely to later cheat, steal

Dearests, I know this won’t apply to any of you, but it is a curious phenomenon: according to a piece in Slate, a recent psychological study shows that a small group of shoppers who bought green products later acted badly in constructed situations — in one case, sharing less money with those in need, and […]

Ask Umbra on globetrotting friends, thorium reactors, and more

Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, I have greatly cut back on my airplane trips because of my concern about global warming. However, I have groups of friends whose main conversation is about the overseas trips they have been on. When I don’t have an exotic place to talk about it seems like […]

This Friday, don’t just Buy Nothing — use nothing!

Courtesy AdbustersFor twenty years, the people behind Buy Nothing Day have been pleading with consumers to avoid the frenzy inherent in “Black Friday,” the no-holds-barred shop-o-rama that comes the day after Thanksgiving. This year, they’re ramping things up and calling for an all-out Wildcat Strike against the “capitalist consumption machine.” Socialists, you say? No, just […]

You never get a second chance to make No Impact — oh wait, yes you do

Dearest readers, Colin Beavan, aka No Impact Man.You’ve perhaps No-ticed the No Impact swirl of late: there’s been lots of buzz about No Impact Man, the New Yorker who committed his young family to a year of zero-waste living, and his eponymous film. In late October, five thousand people participated in the first-ever No Impact […]