Imagine a small German village inhabited by a young shoemaker named Johann Birkenstock. Birkenstock creates comfy shoes for villagers, launching (though he’ll never know it) a new approach to footwear and a label that will be  recognized by millions around the world.

Generations of the Birkenstock family have been designing and crafting footwear since 1774, but in the 1890s, Konrad Birkenstock (Johann’s descendant and a custom shoemaker himself) got the idea of creating a curved shoe reflecting the true shape of the human foot with …

Tags: biodegradable , Birkenstock , footbed supports , Gizeh Birkentstock , Madrid Birkenstock , post-consumer waste , renewable

Add Comment |

Link to this post |

|

Bookmark

As hungry workers nationwide kiss moral-boosting bonuses and office parties goodbye, at least one Minnesota employer is adding rather than subtracting a perk for his people: an organic vegetable garden for enjoying the fruits of their labor.

The Dude Ranch in Delano, Minn. (30 minutes outside downtown Minneapolis) is the brainchild of Fred and Sarah Haberman, Co-Founders of Haberman Public Relations. Based on a community-supported agriculture (CSA) model, the plot is a working garden that has replaced the water cooler as the employee gathering place. But …

Tags: biodynamic farming , eco , employees , food , green , growing , health , organic gardening , planting , public relations , relaxation , renewable , sustainable , vegetables

12 Comments |

Link to this post |

|

Bookmark

If you’re thinking about shifting to biomass-fuelled appliances, beware – they might not be as clean as you think.

It’s true that biomass is a renewable, and therefore technically green, fuel. It’s also part of the carbon cycle, as burning wood and any other plant matter releases carbon dioxide into the air.

The main ecological advantage between such fuels and fossil fuels is that with biomass, the carbon is continually cycling – it hasn’t been locked away underground, and it can theoretically be tracked, offset and generally kept going round without adding …

Tags: biofuel , biomass , renewable , sustainable , technology , wood

1 Comment |

Link to this post |

|

Bookmark

First up – free stuff! We’ve rhapsodized about the joys of Freecycle before, and no doubt we’ll do so again – it’s that good. But it’s also an opportunity for people to offload the craziest possessions – take these 18 items at The Daily Green.

Sustainable power is the way to tackle the imminent energy crisis head-on, but a few ground rules need to be laid down first. First, if it’s still using non-renewable resources behind …

Tags: energy , environment , green , green links , politics , renewable , salt , science , shopping , sustainable , technology , wood

Add Comment |

Link to this post |

|

Bookmark

As we’ve mentioned before, there’s a growing trend for municipal authorities taking matters in the own hands when it comes to the environment. And why not? When their own governments get it wrong or take too long to implement innovative new measures, it’s local government that misses out on the benefits, such as substantial savings on power and waste management.

This article from the Wall Street Journal (via Kottke) looks at nine such examples, including:

rooftops …

Tags: Community , energy , local , local government , Obama , politics , renewable , sustainable

2 Comments |

Link to this post |

|

Bookmark

At the other end of Britain to wild and wonderful Cornwall is one of my favorite places in the world – Orkney, a windblown, wind-sculpted scatter of islands off the brink of Scotland. Orkney is a beautiful and welcoming place to live and work in…but first you have to get there. The last hurdle in the formidable land journey up from England is the Pentland Firth.

“The Pentland Firth is well-known by seamen as one of the worst stretches of water

…

Tags: britain , energy , environment , renewable , sustainable , travel

1 Comment |

Link to this post |

|

Bookmark

If plastic is such a one-way ecological nightmare of a substance, why do we keep using it?

Like it or not, the world currently needs plastic. Its versatility is incredible – because it’s so tough, flexible and nonreactive we can even use it to replace our own internal organs (even in its most everyday form). If plastic was universally banned tomorrow, the modern world would immediately start to fall apart. And if we keep using it? A littered, poisoned environment. Not to mention it’s …

Tags: news , plastic , renewable , sustainable , technology , wood

1 Comment |

Link to this post |

|

Bookmark