Art of Recycling Returns to Coachella

TRASHed celebrates it’s 6 year anniversary at Coachella in 2009.  We’ve enjoyed hundreds of great artists over the past years. Some famous, some almost famous, and some who were charity cases. We invite you to submit your artwork and be considered to design one of the 24 recycling bins featured at Coachella.

What’s even better is that Read more

California Couple Creates A Tool for Positive Change

Los Angeles - PeaceLoveEarth is an eco jewelry line that has created the Seven Wishes Bracelet, which is used as a tool for positive change.

With the groundbreaking grassroots involvement of millions of Americans in the 2008 Presidential Election, America has reached a tipping point - standing on the sidelines waiting for change to happen is no longer an option. Barack Obama has made Gandhi’s words mainstream, “be the change you seek in the world”, as well as the Native American statement “we are the ones we’ve been waiting for”. Hillary Clinton is talking about “positive change” and Oprah Winfrey has been cultivating the masses by teaching that “thoughts are things” and that change is possible through changing our thoughts. PeaceLoveEarth’s founders Anna Mkhitarian and Daniel Leighton have been building a business based on this paradigm since 2001, and they see a major shift in people’s awareness these past few years.

“People, more than ever, understand that they have a significant role in the world, in society, in their relationships, and even more significantly, with their own selves.” says Leighton. Mkhitarian believes it is evident, with the election of Barack Obama, the worldwide embrace of the eco movement and more awareness about human rights and animal rights, that the positive change movement is here. She says, “we, as the human race, are more open to expanding our ideas to encompass what we have learned through history, as well as what we’ve learned in recent times. We are standing on the shoulders of our ancestors, not just the ones we are directly related to, but all of the leaders that have inspired us with their courage and wisdom. We are also at a point in time where light has shined so brightly on so many inadequacies in human existence, that people can no longer justify living in the same manner.”

The creation of the Seven Wishes Bracelet is a melding of the couple’s convictions and vision of a stylish product that is eco friendly, is an interactive tool to assist in the not so simple task of making positive changes, and one that benefits the people making them, the wearer, as well as various social causes.

Since he was a young boy, Leighton’s mother (Carolyn Leighton, founder of Women In Technology International-WITI) taught him that one of the goals of a business that many organizations ignored was to create as many “win-win” situations as possible. “All of our products are designed with this in mind,” says Leighton, “The Seven Wishes Bracelet benefits the person who wears it, the environment and people around the world through organizations focused on creating positive change. And, of course, everyone whose life is a little better or has a little more hope creates a ripple effect of positive change throughout the world.”

Mkhitarian’s background (her parents are Armenian immigrants) was also a large factor in the creation of the bracelet, “one of my favorite Armenian traditions has always been the string bracelet because of the hope and the possibilities and the idea that at any point you can choose to create a better life for yourself and the world around you. Since we created this product, we have discovered through our customers, that there are similar traditions in many other cultures including Ireland, Brazil, Spain, India, and many others.”

Mkhitarian describes how it works, “you tie seven knots in the string of the bracelet each representing a resolution, intention, affirmation, prayer, -goal or wish. As you tie the knots, you write down what each knot represents. This way you can go back and read them and even memorize what each knot stands for. You wear it until it falls off on its own. Until it falls off, you have a constant reminder of all the things you are working toward every time you look at the knots. It also comes in handy when negative thoughts or habits come up and when you want that extra boost. When it does fall off, tradition says that your wishes will manifest and you are ready for your next phase in positive growth.” People have been wearing the bracelets for setting personal resolutions, as well as in wedding ceremonies, team sports, and business building among coworkers. Kids love them as well. “They are a great way to teach children about setting and attaining their goals,” Mkhitarian says.

For its newest bracelet, PeaceLoveEarth has partnered with CARE International, a non-profit organization founded in 1945, that helps women in poverty around the world. The special edition CARE bracelet, features a hand charm with a heart in the center and the word “CARE” on the back. The charm symbolizes the importance woman’s work around the world, and the love that each individual can give. 25% of the $30 retail price goes to CARE. Other Seven Wishes charms include a peace sign, a heart, the earth and a flower. Double charms are also available, like “World Peace” which features an earth charm and peace charm. Each comes in a peace sealed recycled paper box. Made locally in Los Angeles California. PeaceLoveEarth jewelry has been featured on The View, The Style Network, ABC Chicago, NBC LA, The LA Times, Miami Herald, Marie Claire and many other media outlets. It is available for purchase on the PeaceLoveEarth.com Web site and in various boutiques around the US.

Sustainability Designers Going Green

Saturday April 25, 2009
8:30am – 4:00pm
Skirball Cultural Center

In the second of AIGA LA’s SEEing Green program, we continue framing Sustainable, Environmental and Ecological concerns for the communications industry. While our first event provided designers and marketers with a broad spectrum of informa­tion on the impacts of climate change, this install­ment creates actionable and accessible content and working principles to take away. The line up of speakers and content include:  

• Al Gore’s prolific Climate Project speaker, Kevin O’Donnell presenting “Green Design – Thinking Beyond Deliverables”
• Duke Stump, Principal & Chief Architect of The Northstar Manifesto, former CMO Seventh Generation and VP Nike on “Purpose-Driven Brands”
• Aaris Sherin, author of Sustainable: A Handbook of Materials and Applications for Graphic Designers and Their Clients (Rockport Publishers) will discuss “Sustainable Problem Solving”
• Client Case Study presentation: announcement to come
• 2 hours of recast content from CompostModern, AIGA’s Center for Sustainable Design annual conference in San Francisco 

Content in the morning will explore the idea of moving beyond green-creating… Read more

Ultimate Boarder™ announces Team Competition

Santa Barbara, CA … Ultimate Boarder spices up this year’s snow, surf, and skate triathlon style competition by adding both a male and female TEAM element. Friends, coworkers, professionals, and amateurs will join forces to compete for bragging rights and the first place team prize of $5,000 alongside solo athletes competing for the Ultimate Boarder championship title and a first place prize of $30,000 / $67,000 total purse.

“With the vibe of the event being so positive last year, the team element just felt like the next logical step to get more athletes involved.”

said founder Tim Hoover.

“I want to be the first 3 board sport pro. Being the Ultimate Boarder Champion is my dream.”

said 14 yearold competitor Nathan Groff. Registration for both the solo and team elements is live now
at www.ultimateboarder.com

Notable confirmed teams include Read more

First Ever White House Playground Uses Recycled Playsafer Rubber Mulch and Rubber Curbs from Rubberecycle, As seen on 60 Minutes

New playground surface used at the White House playground, chosen for its safety and environmental factors. Rubberecycle.com honored to be part of keeping the first family safe.

When the white house recently had a playground installed, they chose recycled Playsafer Rubber Mulch and Rubber Curbs from Rubberecycle.com of Lakewood New Jersey in lieu of the many other options.

“Like many first families, the Obama’s have added their personal touch to the White House. From the vegetable garden to the new playground, they have been very conscientious and involved in these decisions. They chose Rubberecycle’s Rubber Mulch and Rubber Curbs for their new Read more

ROBOT FISH to Study Harbor Waters

A school of mechanical, battery-powered robots in the shape of fish will be released into a Spanish port to help monitor pollution there, scientists said Friday.

The 5-foot-long (1.5-meter-long) robots work by mimicking the swishing movements of a fish’s tail, according to University of Essex robotics expert Huosheng Hu, whose team is manufacturing the machines.

He said the robo-fish would be equipped with sensors to monitor oxygen levels in the water, detect oil slicks spilled from ships or contaminants pumped into the water from underground pipes.

The robotic fish will patrol the harbor of Gijon, in northern Spain under a 2.5-million-pound ($3.6 million) grant from the European Union. Hu said Gijon was chosen because port authorities there had expressed an interest in the technology.

The plan might seem “like Read more

Making it Right in Ward 9: Brad Pitt House

Brad Pitt convened a group of experts in New Orleans to brainstorm about building green affordable housing on a large scale to help victims of Hurricane Katrina. Having spent time with community leaders and displaced residents determined to return home, Pitt realized that an opportunity existed to build houses that were not only stronger and healthier, but that had less impact on the environment.

 

Previously, Pitt sponsored an architecture competition organized by Global Green with the goal of generating ideas about how to rebuild sustainably. Several of those designs are currently under the first six homes from Brad Pitt’s foundation have been completed. In total, 150 homes of this nature are expected to be finished on the Lower 9th in the coming years.

After discussing the hurdles associated with rebuilding in a devastated area, the group determined that a large-scale redevelopment project focused on green affordable housing and incorporating innovative design was indeed possible.

The group settled on the goal of constructing 150 homes (one of the larger rebuilding projects in the city), with an emphasis on developing an affordable system that could be replicated.

To demonstrate replicability, Pitt determined to locate the project in the Lower 9th Ward, one of the most devastated areas of New Orleans, to prove that safe homes could and should be rebuilt. Pitt hopes that this project will be a catalyst for recovery and redevelopment throughout the Lower 9th Ward and across the city of New Orleans.

Having listened to one former resident’s plea to help “make this right,” Pitt was inspired to name the project “Make It Right” (MIR).

 

via http://www.ecorazzi.com/category/cars-houses/

SBTV.com Green Business

Excellent video content from www.sbtv.com, a small business / entrepreneurial website,: 

Walking the Talk: Being True Blue Green

Marketing your sustainable business practices is a great way to gain customers. But in order to keep their loyalty you need to be “on top of your game” when it comes to “going green”.  Find out how two small businesses are “walking the talk” when it comes to being green.

http://www.sbtv.com/?segid=3257

Read more

Jeff Schweitzer Ph.D

The first country to master green technology and renewable energy will be the next economic superpower.  We sit at the threshold of the next industrial revolution.  The mantle of global leader is ours to lose, but that appears what we may well do unless we recognize the imperative of green technology.  We need leadership at the national level to shift from fossil fuels to renewables, to evolve rapidly to a hydrogen economy, to turn trash to cash, to instill efficiency at all levels of production and minimize materials consumption and waste in homes, farms and factories, to encourage green construction in houses and offices, to leap-frog to the next generation of battery and energy storage technology and to develop the technologies that will be needed to mitigate the impacts of climate change.

Read more

Dr. Jeff Schweitzer

 

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