EcoHearth: Come Home to the Earth

I am a proud Goodwill shopper. I avoid buying new clothes and dumping my old ones. My one exception is footwear. I purchase one pair of shoes about every two years and wear them every day, so I want something durable and sustainable. Thankfully I have some options that will not only look good and survive my wear and tear, but also jibe with my environmental values. The following companies offer quality Earth-friendly shoes—and make a tidy profit in the process. Read on…

Islands magazine has a new agreement to publish submissions by Green Globe International about hotels and travel businesses that meet the Green Globe certification criteria (and are paying the steep fees for certification). The partnership may be helpful for conscientious travelers navigating the sea of greenwash, but hotels are probably better off tooting their own sustainability horns. Read on…

Web hosting is not an inherently environmental practice. Even eco-conscious websites like EcoHearth require big, hot, electric computer servers. Unlike an iPod, you can’t recharge a server with a miniature solar panel. In 2005, computer servers around the world consumed the equivalent of 14 standard power plants—that’s enough energy for about 14 million homes. The figure has surely increased substantially since 2005. But you don’t have to use trainloads of coal to run your website. Several companies offer Web hosting services powered by renewable energy. Read on…

How did a Colorado brewery land four sets of news stories in one week? By going green.

New Belgium is a Fort Collins, Colorado, microbrewery most famous for Fat Tire, which is becoming nearly as ubiquitous as Sam Adams in bars and liquor stores across the country. Its brewery is one bottle ahead of the rest of the beer industry in sustainability—and that has paid off for the company in spades when it comes to free publicity: Read on…

Every time I visit a national park, I come away with a crush on a park ranger. I just got back from Grand Teton National Park, where Danna gave a fireside chat at my campground about moose. The next day, the same ranger led a hike to Taggart Lake. Danna taught us that moose swim faster than Michael Phelps and that you can tell the difference between a fir and spruce by “shaking the evergreen’s hand.” Smart and a tree hugger. Swoon. Read on…