environment

Yes, I said tree planting — not tree throwing, or tree kicking. It looks like supermodel Naomi Campbell is making an effort to clean up her cell phone-hurling image by taking part in The Abuja Green Society’s tree planting campaign.

The goal of the campaign, based in Abuja, Nigeria, is to plant a tree for each baby born in the region’s hospital. Not only do they hope to give these children a better future by doing so, but also to promote awareness of environmental issues the region faces, specifically the need to find sustainable energy solutions.

The supermodel not only managed to keep her temper in check — she also managed to stay completely clean, and that’s not easy for someone who comes to a tree-planting dressed in white!

Photo courtesy of askmen.com

Yesterday, Indiana Jones star Harrison Ford, along with Bo Derek and Robert Duval, hit up an event to show their support of “a new global initiative by the World Bank to save tigers from extinction.”

The event took place at Washington’s Smithsonian National Zoo and introduced the Tiger Conservation Initiative, which aims to halt the killing and illegal trade of tiger skins, meat, and other body parts that some traditional Asian medicines still use. It will bring scientists and governments together to fight for these big cats, whose numbers have shrunk from over 100,000 a century ago to their current number of under 4,000.

Harrison’s goal in being there was to celebrate and lend support to the World Bank’s plan, saying, “By committing to help wild tigers, the World Bank is sounding its intention to be a global leader in biodiversity conservation.” Robert’s reason for coming was similar — he had always thought that tigers “might be the single most beautiful animal in the world,” and it boggled his mind that people just continue killing them as their numbers dwindle.

Bo Derek, Condoleezza Rice’s Special Envoy for Wildlife Trafficking, intends to focus on public awareness of the problem, starting with herself, saying “It was very embarrassing for me to find out that the U.S. is number two in consuming endangered wildlife.”

The initiative will work to end poaching in 13 countries: Cambodia, Laos, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Malaysia, China, Thailand, Myanmar (Burma), Indonesia, Russia and Vietnam. President of World Bank, Robert Zoellick said,”This is a problem that cannot be handled by individual nations alone. It requires an alliance of strong local commitment backed by deep international support.” Kudos to the actors (and everyone else who attended the launch) for getting involved for these beautiful animals.

Photo courtesy of askmen.com

I have yet to meet anyone, male or female, who doesn’t think Pierce Brosnan is a dashing, handsome man. And, I always feel a little less guilty about my gawking when the celebrity I’m daydreaming about is also a really good person, and let me tell you — I daydream about Pierce Brosnan without any pangs of guilt.

The former 007 has been a proponent of environmental action for over 10 years, and he and his wife have set up a trust to donate to environmental organizations. Not only has he done this and encouraged the public to donate what they can, but he has been a pretty hefty contributer himself, personally reaching the one million dollar donation mark. You’ve got to love a man who has no problem supporting the causes he’s passionate about by digging into his own pockets.

Pierce encourages his fans and fellow environmental activists to donate their money to causes that will offset carbon emissions by planting trees as well as paying carbon tax when traveling in environmentally sensitive areas. But the environment isn’t the only cause that gets this leading man to take action. He’s been a supporter of breast cancer research and replaced a playground near his home in Hawaii — a good guy through and through.

Photo courtesy of askmen.com

Harrison Ford has been an environmentalist since his childhood days — a National Geographic interview reveals how the action hero made friends with a fox as a kid and gained an understanding of the impact that humans have on animals and the environment every day. The actor has lived for years in Jackson, Wyoming, and is vice chair for the environmental group Conservation International, which works in over 40 countries to fight climate change, protect plants and animals, and to assist communities that are indigenous to the area.

Recently, Harrison made a move that surprised many — the tough, gruff, manly man took off his shirt on Access Hollywood and got his chest waxed to highlight deforestation. By stripping down and getting his chest waxed on TV, he hoped to shock people into realizing the pain involved in deforestation.

The 65-year-old is certainly bringing attention to the problem of deforestation as well as to all the other good works he does, including flying on search and rescue missions to find stranded tourists in Jackson. If he hadn’t already been my hero before, he would be now!

Photo courtesy of askmen.com

Last week, Blythe Danner got trashy, but in a really good way — she was on hand to unveil New York City’s new natural gas powered garbage trucks.

Garbage trucks are major polluters, but there’s no way we can take them off the road. According to Energy Vision, which is the non-profit behind the new trucks, if half the garbage trucks in NYC were switched to natural gas, “more than 16,000 tons of pollutants would be eliminated a year, while reliance on a clean domestic fuel would eliminate the need for 23 million gallons a year of petroleum-based diesel fuel, which is getting more expensive by the day and relies on imported oil.”

So, what does Blythe have to do with this? Well, the stunning actress and mother of Gwyneth Paltrow has long taken an interest in environmental causes, promoting recycling and conservation for the past 30 years. So, while garbage trucks might not be as sexy as, say, designing a reusable water bottle, Blythe knows that her appearance at their unveiling will bring much needed media exposure to the cause.

I know I gave you a bunch of stats about the fuel saved and pollution eliminated by the use of the new trucks, but you might be wondering exactly what that means for New Yorkers. Eliminating (or reducing) the pollution emitted into the air by replacing just 38 garbage trucks with the new natural gas powered trucks will “spare New Yorkers the health risks, involving asthma, other respiratory illnesses and cancers associated with more than 124 tons a year of airborne particulates (soot) and smog-forming nitrogen oxides.” Just 38 natural gas trucks can do that much? Let’s hope that other cities take a cue and get their own natural gas powered garbage trucks.

Photo courtesy of greendaily.com

Emmy award-winning scientist, engineer, comedian, author, inventor, and host, Bill Nye The Science Guy is coming back to television to host a new show on Discovery’s Planet Green called Stuff Happens.

Nye’s new program will focus on showing people “what happens to everyday things before and after we consume them.” This will reveal the generally unknown and unintended consequences of many items we all take for granted, and as Nye investigates the life cycle of these products, he’ll also show us some simple changes we can all make to help reduce these consequences and benefit the environment.

The Science Guy still rides his bike to work and encourages young scientists to always clean up after themselves. His motto is “Leave the world better than you found it. Sometimes you gotta pick up somebody else’s trash.”

It seems to me that this new show is a great way for him to encourage people all over, young and old, to follow his example and work to make the world a better place, one cool science experiment at a time.

Photo courtesy of billnye.com

George Clooney and Renee Zellweger are busy promoting their newest film, Leatherheads. It’s a period piece about football and romance (at least, as far as I can tell from the previews), set back in the 1920’s (you know, the days before everybody and their mother drove cars everywhere, and when smog wasn’t even a “thing” yet).

To go along with the period theme, Clooney and Zellweger opted to take a promotional whistle-stop train tour. Dressed in period clothing (and looking fabulous, of course), the actors got “all aboard” in Maysville, Kentucky (near Gorgeous George’s hometown) and have plans to hit premieres in Salisbury, North Carolina, and Greenville, South Carolina.

The pair also made a stop in Duluth, Minnesota, where the movie is set (but wasn’t filmed). They “arrived” by train, but something tells me they didn’t take the train all the way from Duluth to Maysville. I doubt they’ll actually be traveling by train to all their locations in the South, either.

Even though I know their real point is to be authentic to the period, I can’t help but love the fact that they’re arriving by a mass transportation system. Trains might not be the romantic traveler’s choice as it was in days gone by, but it’s still certainly functional, and in many cases a more eco-friendly alternative. Perhaps seeing Clooney and Zellweger will inspire some travelers this summer to hop aboard their local locomotive.

Photo courtesy of USA Today/Jim Mone, AP

By now, unfortunately, we’re used to tales of Britney Spears and her clothing, but normally it’s nothing we really want to hear. The singer is making news again, but this time for a good cause.

Britney recently guest starred on the show How I Met Your Mother — a move that garnered a lot of attention (not that Britney does anything these days that doesn’t cause a media frenzy). The world was ready to see the erstwhile pop star take a positive step in her life. Not only did she play her part on the show and receive glowing praise from her co-stars, who said she was “professional” and “funny,” but she put six pieces of clothing she wore on the set up for auction following Monday night’s airing.

Proceeds from the sale of the items will go to the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental advocacy group based out of New York City. If your interested in placing a bid (or just curious to see what’s there), you can check out the auction here, but hurry — the auction ends March 31!

Photo courtesy of askmen.com

Jeremy Piven is trying to convince as many people as possible to join him on the dark side. No, he’s not starring as Darth Vader’s pushy agent in Star Wars: Who’s the Bigger Star Now? — he’s raising awareness of Earth Hour.

Earth Hour will occur on March 29 from 8 p.m. until 9 p.m., during which time you’re asked to turn off your lights. The first Earth Hour occurred last year in Sydney, Australia, and this year it’s going worldwide. The World Wildlife Fund is behind this global movement, encouraging businesses, restaurants, and individuals to turn their lights off for one hour and to use that hour to replace standard light bulbs with energy-efficient compact fluorescent ones.

Currently, cities including Denver, Honolulu, Chicago, Atlanta, Phoenix, San Francisco, Toronto, Montreal, Copenhagen, Dublin, Tel Aviv, Brisbane, and Sydney have all pledged to participate. Chicago is the U.S. flagship city this year, and Toronto the flagship city for Canada.

Speaking of Toronto, there’s some star power there joining Piven in his support of Earth Hour — Nellie Furtado will perform a free, acoustic concert there during Earth Hour. If you’re in the area, check it out! Just make sure to turn all your lights off before you leave.

Photo courtesy of askmen.com

Britain’s Prince Charles and his wife Camilla are making an effort to bring some eco-consciousness to the use of their uber-fabulous yacht. The toothsome twosome plan to tour the Caribbean in a yacht that has been deemed as “eco-friendly.” Granted, that’s not to say that it’s good for the environment, but it’s better than the other option.

However, Camilla’s hat might take away a little of the eco-friendlines of the yacht trip — it looks like she’s wearing an owl in her hair. But still, since this power-couple has the power to make such an impact, I’m going to go ahead and give them both props for putting the idea of more eco-friendly travel out there for others contemplating a vacay-by-yacht.

According to Charles’s office, sailing instead of flying would reduce the trip’s carbon footprint. And so, even though I’m sure it doesn’t do the same good as staying at home, thank you to Charles and Camilla for making the best choice they can.

Photo courtesy of ecorazzi.com

I feel kind of silly writing this post. I have a concern that someone is going to show up at my house one morning and discover that I am a fake. I have wonderful ideas for inventive and healthy school lunches, but the sad fact is that my daughter could care less. What does she want every day? Peanut butter & jelly sandwiches, goldfish crackers, a Sigg bottle of filtered water and dessert (preferably chocolate).

I am not sure where she got inherited this desire to eat the same (boring) thing everyday, but it certainly wasn’t from me. I crave variety! I hate cold sandwiches! Bring on the gourmet salads, the luscious and creamy soups, and the crispy falafel. One day, I am sure, my kid will wise up and welcome my creative lunch overtures. Until then, I must be content to write about these fabulous resources and live vicariously through you, my readers. (It also helps to remember that if your kids don’t want variety, that is OK. The important thing is that they are eating something nutritious. No one ever died from eating PB&J every single day. Well, I might, but that would be an anomaly.)

Vegan Lunch Box: This phenomenon started as a blog, but has now become a book, chock-full of delicious, healthy recipes, all intended to be packed up in re-usable bento box-style containers for an environmentally friendly lunch option.

ParentHacks School Lunch Post: Do you read this site? No? Boy, are you missing out. This is the be-all-end-all site for everything you ever needed to know about raising a child. The school lunch post is nearly 18 months old, but the tips in the comment section are still good.

AskMoxie: This is another fabulous online parenting resource, and her post on school lunches generated some terrific suggestions within the comments.

Laptop Lunches: Want to pack your kids’ lunches in a cool container? This is the place to go for your supplies. Warning: These lunchboxes do not feature licensed characters, so if your kid insists on Disney princess decorations, be prepared to do it yourself with stickers and Sharpie markers.

Lock & Lock: Due to my child’s unique lunch demands and her desire for a PowerPuff Girls lunch box, the laptop lunchbox isn’t the best choice for our household, but we do like avoiding plastic wrap and other non-environmentally friendly lunch wrappers. We are big fans of the Lock & Lock containers, which can be found online via the link provided, or at your local Target. Note: The picture above is of one of our Lock&Lock containers. It shows one of the more creative lunches I sent to school with my daughter. (She didn’t eat it.)

Many celebrities have overhauled their homes to make them more eco-friendly — Julia Roberts, Adrian Grenier, and of course, Ed Begley, Jr., have all sunk their hearts and dollars into making their homes green. Joining them are Eva Longoria Parker and her star basketball player husband, Tony Parker, who are building an environmentally conscious home in San Antonio, Texas.

But being green isn’t easy, even for celebrities.

The Desperate Housewives star is determined to make her new home as green as possible, and that has caused a number of setbacks in the building of the home. Apparently it’s been tough for the Parkers to find builders who know how to build with the environment in mind. But, when all is said and done, their home will be made out of recycled wood and installed with solar panels.

That’s a great reminder to the rest of us that, even if it doesn’t come easy, we can make the extra effort to make good choices for ourselves, our families, and our environment. If that doesn’t bring joy to your heart, I can’t imagine what will. Thanks for the inspiration, Eva!

Photo courtesy of AskMen.com

Michael Jordan and Nike have worked together on about a billion different products, but one of the very best known is the Air Jordan sneaker. Jordan wore the number 23 as a professional basketball player, and is now set to release the 23rd version of his trademark shoe. Using the notoriety of the number, Jordan has chosen to use this version as a platform for change.

The new Air Jordan XX3 shoe will be the first designed to reduce waste and use eco-friendly materials. For instance, instead of using toxic glue, the shoe will incorporate interlocking panels which will cause a LOT less environmental damage.

Apparently, this really upset a lot of people at the factory because it created a need for all new procedures as well as entirely new machines. However, I imagine before too long, we’ll see other shoe companies trying to be like Mike. You can get your pair by going to one of the 23 retailers who will receive 23 pairs on January 25. Or, you can wait until February 23 when the shoe is released to all retailers. Either way, make sure you’ve got $230 to spend on them. Do you see a theme?

Photo courtesy of SI.com

Kim Cattrall’s character on Sex and the City, Samantha Jones, isn’t exactly known for being a classy role model, nor is the character a friend to animals (the rumor is that she wears fur and gets splashed with red paint in the upcoming Sex and the City movie). However, in real life, Cattrall does a number of things that are worthy of positive attention.

Most recently, she was seen picking up trash during a trip to the beach. The bikini-clad actress wasn’t doing any promotional work and hadn’t asked the paparazzi to document her good work — she just did it to keep her beach clean.

She’s also garnered attention for donating the fur coats her character wore in Sex and the City to PETA, which has a program in place to donate fur coats to the homeless. Additionally, she took part in the Heart Truth Red Dress fashion show, which was part of the National Wear Red Day event bringing awareness to heart disease in women.

Maybe Cattrall will inspire some other hot bodies to pull beach-cleaning bikini duty — I’m sure where the beautiful bodies go, others will follow, so I think this is a great way to influence folks to clean their local beaches. Just don’t forget the sunscreen!

Photo courtesy of AskMen.com