I met several lovely chickens yesterday when I was in Oakland, and I am now quite smitten. They are truly engrossing creatures to observe; the animal’s social behavior is very complex, their vocalizations are both soothing and fascinating, to say nothing of the delicious fresh eggs they provide. More and more urban chickens are being raised in cities, as increasing numbers of people are growing their own food and trying to create a more locally-based, sustainable and self-sufficient food supply.

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A fresh new take on the military look is having a very strong moment, as seen on the runways of Paris, Milan, and New York this season. However, Burning Torch has been doing gorgeous recycled military surplus for years now. The white jacket above is made from surplus “snow camo.” It’s from their Spring 2010 collection in stores soon. I think it would look fabulous with the Killspencer bags we featured last month.

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I recently stumbled upon a great recipe for Spaghetti Squash Pancakes from Mollie Katzen’s book, The Vegetable Dishes I Can’t Live Without. It’s a winner. Although the original recipe calls for spaghetti squash (quite delicious) and gives the option of using all-purpose flour or rice flour, the recipe can accommodate any kind of squash and a variety of gluten-free flours. The topping possibilities are also endless, giving you the option to play with flavor combinations. Happy eating!

Recipe for Gluten-free Squash Pancakes (adapted from Mollie Katzen’s The Vegetable Dishes I Can’t Live Without):

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I can appreciate Walt Disney World copyrighting their park.  After all, they’re largely responsible for just about every inch of it, from the sculpted bushes to human-engineered lakes and waterways.  Obviously, it’s well established that biotech companies currently have every right to own and patent new forms of life.

But when I was passing through Pebble Beach on the spectacular Monterey Peninsula of California, a friend mentioned that I could NOT photograph nature should it ever be used for some commercial purpose.  In essence, every inch of the natural area, including the coastal ocean frontage, was owned and copyrighted by the Pebble Beach Company — thus my jarring red line through an otherwise brilliant image of nature’s beauty.  Thousands of happy-camera-clicking tourists — many of whom make deposits to enter the grounds or eat at the upscale restaurants in the area — end up capturing images of the famous “Lone Cypress” tree.  Some of these photos, my guess, will end up on Flickr or in Wikipedia.  At that point, anyone can “borrow” them for their own uses, commercial or otherwise.  Funny, since the Pebble Beach Company brochure actually proclaims that the Lone Cypress is one of “California’s most familiar landmarks…inspir[ing] countless artists, photographers and sightseers.”  Just don’t share them with anyone.

So should a company be able to copyright a view of nature for which it was not directly responsible for planting or otherwise creating?

Perhaps the Pebble Beach Company should consider the California Coastal Commission’s report related to public access for an insight less motivated by greed:

“The California Coast is a place of magnificent vistas and seemingly endless beauty. It seems
to define who we are and what this State is all about. Anyone, no matter who he is and
how much or how little he has, can partake of this beauty. The California coast belongs to
us all. It sustains a remarkable variety and abundance of life. It fires the imagination, inspires
creative expression, and offers sanctuary to body and soul.”

So what’s next, charging us for the air we breathe as we pass by a park or preserve (trees take in carbon dioxide and produce oxygen, which we then breathe)?

What ever happened to the idea of sharing the commons?  Must everything be reduced to dollars and cents?

Canadian duo Nathalie Butterfield and Terra Kushner launched their fabric line when they were frustrated with the limited selection of sustainable fabrics.

Nathalie talks about how their company evolved:

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Michael Mann, the somewhat infamous climate scientist from Penn State, shouldn’t be so infamous after all, we find out yet another time!

“An academic inquiry into the so-called ‘climategate’ email scandal has concluded that a well-known U.S. scientist [Mann] did not directly or indirectly falsify data in his research,” according to Mike De Souza of the National Post.

The investigation made it very clear (as other peer-reviewed analyses have done) that Mann’s “trick,” so horribly taken out of context and demonized by anti-science media and followers, was nothing unscientific, misleading or to be concerned about.

“They were not falsifying data,” said the report. “They were trying to construct an understandable graph for those who were not experts in the field. The so-called ‘trick’ was nothing more than a statistical method used to bring two or more different kinds of data sets together in a legitimate fashion by a technique that has been reviewed by a broad array of peers in the field.”

Furthermore, the report went on to praise Mann for how he dealt with this greatly unfounded skepticism and criticism of his scientific work. “The report praised Dr. Mann for his ‘composure’ and ‘forthright response’ to all questions, finding no evidence that he had attempted to hide or destroy information, emails or data from his research. It also cleared him of allegations of misusing any privileged or confidential information he had access to as an academic scholar.”

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Filed under: News

Wanna send the city of New Orleans an eco-friendly Super Bowl present? What's the environmental impact of playing bumper boats on the high seas? What did you think of those Green Police Super Bowl ads? Today's Eco-Beat has the scoop on all the latest green news and tips.

Make it Right Launches Super Bowl Texting Drive In honor of the Saints' first ever Super Bowl victory, Brad Pitt's Make it Right has begun a text messaging campaign to boost the foundation's sustainable rebuilding efforts. Well-wishers can donate $10 (added to your phone bill) by simply texting "saints" to 25383.

Sea Shepherd Bumper Boats: Round Two Considering the vastness of the planet's oceans, it seems unlikely that ships would collide in the open waters at all, much less routinely -- unless you're talking about ships involved in the "Whale Wars." At least Shepherds fared a little better this time.

The Importance of Audi's Super Bowl Ads Did Audi's Green Police ads signify a cultural shift in the way Americans think about the environmental movement? Umm, I don't really think so ... but if you completely over-analyze these 60-second ads, you may be able to find deeper greener meanings.

What's the Environmental Impact of Tofu? Obviously, tofu represents far fewer greenhouse emissions than factory farmed beef. Still, if you're concerned about the overall impact of your imported soybean addiction, Treehugger's Pablo can help you determine your tofu-print. Just FYI, it's relatively tiny.

What's Your Reusable Shopping Bag Record? With the adoption of D.C.'s plastic bag tax, there's been a surge in people carrying reusable shopping bags (or at least trying to carry an awkward armload of groceries down the sidewalk). How are the rest of us doing? Head over to YumSugar to take part in their poll.

Green in a Flash:

• This iPhone charger uses your bike tire to generate its power.
• Plastic bottles are now banned from landfills in North Carolina.
• The Yes Men are at it again; and this time they're roasting Archer Daniels Midland.

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Unless you've been hiding under a rock for the last week, you probably know that Toyota is having a really freakin' bad 2010, and it's not even Valentine's Day yet. Last week, Toyota announced a recall involving sticky accelerator pedal that will affect somewhere in the neighborhood of 7 million vehicles (some of them Priuii Priuses).

Now, according to AutoblogGreen, the NHTSA is investigating whether Toyota should recall another 311,000 units of their highly popular 2010 Prius. So, for all of the Prius-drivers out there, I'm going to attempt to round up all of the pertinent info to help answer the question: Should I fear my Prius?

Continue reading Should I Be Afraid to Drive My Prius?

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Even if you live in the snow belt you can still compost all through the winter -- I did for 15 years in a homemade three-bin composter west of Boston. A good overview will show you the basics, such as proper materials, layering, air and moisture and, of course, what can and can't be composted. Still, composting in bitter climates requires a few techniques.

Composting will continue, albeit slowly, as long as your piles are above freezing. If your piles are big enough, they will generate their own heat, but usually not enough. My piles certainly worked, so they were generating heat but it wasn't until I moved to the Southwest that I realized how fast the process could occur. So the secret is adding and conserving heat. Use as much solar energy as you can by orienting your bins to the south. Consider covering your bins with translucent plastic to capture the sun's heat, but remember to add some water to the piles and provide some ventilation. You won't be adding as many materials or turning the piles as much as you do in the growing season.

People make compost in Alaska, but in a small glass or plastic-sheeted greenhouse heated by a light bulb. If you have cold frames (hot boxes) consider using one or more for compost; just don't open the top except to add more materials and to ventilate once in a while. I made mine by salvaging old storm windows and scrap plywood. I insulated them with one-inch extruded foam. If you are using worms to speed the process, a cover will keep them dry. Trench composting is another alternative, but not where frost penetrates deeply.

Continue reading How to Compost in Winter

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