Vital Technologies, Inc.

We're having trouble keeping up with these guys. Seems like just as we get finished writing about them, they roll out some new eco-endeavour. REI’s most current initiative is to bung photovoltaic panels on 11 of their stores, in California, Oregon and Texas during 2008 (see store list after the fold). REI (Recreational Equipment, Inc) figures that this is “one of the largest solar investments for a specialty retailer in the country.” In some instances the solar panels will provide 35% of a stores energy. Collectively they’ll generate 1.1 million kilowatt hours of electricity. This is said to be equal to power 117 homes all year or cutting 80 metric tons of carbon dioxide emission...

When we recently pointed out the potential effects of a weakening economy on the growing green movement, people took notice. And it seems the pinch can already be felt in school districts as limited funds must often be spread across a variety of worthy projects, both environmentally and educationally focused. Unfortunately, “The bottom line is, the greener it is the more expensive it is,” according to Joe Hoffman, director of maintenance and operations with Irvine Unified Schools in California. But that's not the only problem schools face... ...

:: Whip up a batch of Kelly's yogurt biscuits. :: Don't trash your old, favorite jeans. :: Stock up on organic, socially responsible tees. :: Test your tap water and then drink up. :: Live like Ed Begley, Jr. with these tips to green your ho...

200 -- amount of terawatt-hours saved annually by the gradual switch to more efficient refrigerators in the USA (see chart above). 80 -- roughly the number of extra power plants that the USA would need without these efficiency improvements. 7 -- that's the percentage of GDP that is spent on energy in the USA. Energy intensity per unit of GDP has been decreasing about about 2% per year in the USA, and about 1.5% per year overall on the planet. The source of these numbers and more can be found in this very interesting article about energy efficiency:

photo by Dan Crosbie of Canadian Ice Service May 16th is Endangered Species Day, created by a resolution introduced by Maine Senator Susan Collins and California Senator Dianne Feinstein. Treehugger chose some of our favorite threatened, endangered, and ext...

It doesn't look real, but as far as we can tell, it is. The different layers are formed by algae (green) and sediments (yellow, brown), or by a rapid melting and freezing (dark blue). This photos were taken by Oyvind Tangen, 62, a sailor on board the research ship G.O. Sars in the Antarctic ocean, and by Leif Nøttestad. ::The colored iceberg - the beauty of the Antarctic, ::A marbled iceberg, ::Rainbow iceberg in the Antarctic More photos below....

Eco-Scandal or Clerical Mistake? Well, well. The cat's out of the bag: "The Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound [...] filed a federal document last month reporting that its work is partially funded and shaped by an international energy conglomerate. [...] The disclosure represents the first documented financial connection between the group opposing the wind farm and Oxbow Corp., which mines and markets energy and commodities, including coal, natural gas, and petroleum." Of course, the Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound immediately said that the filing of the document was "a mistake". What is the mistake, we wonder. Is it a mistake in the sense th...

Some very good news was announced in California last week, the kind of news that gives you hope and helps get you through other environmental struggles that might not be going so well. At a press conference on a sunny hillside 60 miles north of Los Angeles, the Sierra Club and others unveiled a deal to protect the largest contiguous parcel of land designated for conservation in California history -- 240,000 acres of stunningly diverse landscapes on the privately-owned Tejon Ranch south of Bakersfield. (Think about that: This is 2008 and we're still preserving massive hunks of land -- in Southern California no less!) At 375 square miles...

A 1975 GMC truck fuels up on coffee grounds. Facebook creates a green application to educate members about sustainable products. Youth in northern Malawi learn how to build solar lanterns. Huddler calculates the lifetime costs of light bulbs. San Francisco’s Maker Faire showcases eco-crafts. Most Huggable is a regular roundup of some of Hugg's top green news stories. Why not submit your own green news?...

Though that potato snuck in there, thus far there isn't a pure organic potato vodka It's always been a bit of a mystery - though organic beer and wines have steadily multiplied in the last few years, the number of green labels in the hard liquor aisle hasn't seemed to. One reason that spirits producers lagged in organic, according to our resident spirits specialist (he who shall not be named) is that chemically there's no difference between an alcohol distilled from organic grains or fruits and one made from conventional garden-variety grains (which in the U.S. is corn, followed by wheat and rye). However, organic spirits choices have come slowly come onto the market...

Image courtesy of grendelkhan via flickr You know the feeling: You're sitting in front of a traffic light for what seems like an eternity -- yet there's no cross traffic. And, as luck would have it, the light immediately reverts back to red after only allowing barely a handful of cars in front of you to pass. Surely, you wonder, there must be a better way of doing this? Well, it turns out that you'd be right -- and that tweaking just a few controls on those accursed traffic signals would be enough to significantly reduce road congestion and air pollution -- by up to 10% and 20%, respectively...

I have found bicycling in New York City surprisingly easy and less stressful than expected; there are even well-marked bike lanes that for the most part were not blocked. This post office van was unusual, and particularly arrogant, considering that the parking spaces to its left are empty. How much more effort would it have been to actually pull into the spaces? The real problem for cyclists in New York are the pedestrians; they are nuts. Red lights mean less than nothing, they are a challenge. Want to hail a cab? Stand in the bike lane. ...

President Sanzo Okada of Hida Sangyo at Enzo Mori's Giulie table For a thousand years, the craftsmen in the Hida-Takayama region of Japan have been working with Sugi, building temples and shrines of this soft, light wood. Most of the Sugi forests were destroyed in World War II, and it took 50 years for the replanted forests to reach maturity. Now 13% of Japan is covered in Sugi forests, and it has to be managed. Sanzo Okada, President of Hida Sangyo, a 90 year old furniture maker, looked at this supply of Sugi and tried to put this local resource to use. They figured out a way to compress the wood, which made it harder and increased its durability. To eliminate waste ...

Image courtesy of Lee Carson via flickr Given the enormity of the problem -- millions of hectares of forest being converted for agricultural use every year -- the thought of using bats to spur reforestation efforts might seem a tad preposterous, if not downright silly. And yet, if a new study published online in Conservation Biology is to be believed, setting ...

Here is Carlos Ghosn, the celebrity CEO of Renault and Nissan: "Nothing can stop the car being the most coveted product that comes with development, and more efficient conventional engines are not the answer. We must have zero-emission vehicles. Nothing else will prevent the world from exploding.” Global Exploding? That has a nice ring to it. Hyperbole aside, congrats to Mr. Ghosn for his commitment to have Renault and Nissan "invest massively" into developing and commercializing parallel hybrid (like the Prius), series hybrid (like the

As Collin mentioned, Tommy Lee and Ludacris took on the challenge to green their tours in Planet Green’s Battleground Earth (airing in August). The backdrop of the show’s final episode also happens to be a benefit concert, celebrating Planet Green’s June 4th on-air launch. If you live in the Los Angeles area, buy tickets and head over to The Greek Theatre on Wednesday, May 28 to rock out VIP-style with ...

Susty.tv» Stephen Colbert Reports Energy Crisis Solved by Ethanol WATCH>> 15 Second VIDEO | Susty.tv» Stephen Colbert Reports Obama and Hillary Share Secret Solution to Climate Change WATCH>> 15 Second VIDEO | On

We’ve already reported on moves by the Australian arm of TNT to incorporate biodiesel hybrid trucks into their fleet, and now we hear that not only does the company's British arm already have 50 electric vans on its fleet, but is adding a further 100. The new feet, which will apparently be the largest zero emissions fleet in the world (and yes, we know 'zero emissions' depends very much on the energy source used to charge them), will be replacing diesel vehicles over t...

Beautiful and bicycle helmet seems like an oxymoron but here's proof that it doesn't have to be. With Bike to Work Days being celebrated, pretty cycling hats likes these prove there is no excuse not to wear one with pride in front of your fellow workers and bikers. They are designed by an eco-conscious Japanese-born designer who got fed up with looking terrible on her bike so she created her own collection of helmets that are funky and still meet all the safety requirements. They are all hand-painted in carefully chosen feminine, delicate colours and have "diamond" trimmed chin...

Wolf Trap president and CEO Terrence D. Jones
With the performing arts, a good showing is when the fall of the curtain leaves you shuffling off into the night a bit dazed, a bit dazzled, and perhaps, just a bit thoughtful. This media, like no other, has the power to make you laugh, cry, and cringe. It has the power to captivate and influence. So tapping the performing arts to raise environmental awareness and educate audiences about climate change sounds pretty savvy to us. A pioneer and major player in this field is the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts, the only National Park for t...