Our latest newsletter kicked off an eco-chic Memorial Day weekend by remembering what the holiday is really all about (you can sign up here if you haven’t yet).

But let’s face it: Many of us are looking forward to cutting loose and enjoying an adult beverage or two with friends and family. It’s an American tradition and the unofficial start of summer.

Be the party’s organic mixologist this weekend and give a go to one of the organic cocktail recipes below (with booze and without).  My birthday happens to fall on Memorial Day this year, so suffice it to say I’ll be clinking glasses with these healthy drinks in my hand. Enjoy.

Summer Daydream- Booze

• 1 1/2 oz. Square One or organic vodka
• 3 sweet, fresh watermelon chunks
• 3/4 oz. fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 3/4 oz. organic simple syrup
• 1/2 oz. Campari

1. Muddle the watermelon in a tall Collins glass until the fruit has turned into a juice.

2. Then add the rest of the ingredients, fill up with large, cold ice and cover with a small shaker top.

3. Shake briefly, remove the shaker, garnish with a piece of Watermelon rind and serve with a straw.

Organic Blackberry Mojito- Booze

• 4 blackberries
• 4 mint sprigs
• 3 lime wedges
• 1 1/2 ounces silver rum
• 1 Lime wedge
• 1 Mint sprig
• Lemon lime soda

1. Muddle blackberries, mint sprigs and lime wedges in a highball glass.
2. Add silver rum.
3. Fill with ice.
4. Top with lemon lime soda.
5. Garnish with lime wedge and mint sprig.

Healthy Fruit Punch - No Booze

• 4 cups frozen strawberries, thawed
• 1 cup fresh pineapple
• 1 cup fresh pitted cherries
• 2 fresh peaches
• 32 oz. real fruit juice (R.W. Knudsen is recommended)
• 4 liters club soda
• stevia to taste

Each Spring, I am inspired anew when I attend the Audubon Society’s Women in Conservation luncheon at The Plaza in midtown Manhattan. Which is really important, since as a woman working independently in the environmental field, it’s not always easy to see the impact (long- or short-term) of my actions and work. To be in the same room with hundreds of women making change – and the people who support them – always gives me renewed vigor and focus for the warmer season (when all I want to do is going outside and play!).

This year’s honorees included The Rev. Canon Sally Bingham, President of The Regeneration Project / Interfaith Power and Light, L. Hunter Lovins, President of Natural Capitalism Solutions, and Janette Sadik-Khan, Commissioner of New York City Department of Transportation. It was so interesting to hear them speak about their work, from bringing people of faith together for the environment (Bingham), to how we can use economics to make the case for the Planet (Lovins), to how a visionary team can come together in a city as complex and political as NYC and yes – make it a truly greener, healthier place to live (Sadik-Khan).

Look for more coverage of each of these leaders in upcoming Eco Chick features.

I was especially heartened by the “Women Greening the City” recipients, a group of additional women who were honored en masse at the luncheon with a round of applause:

“The distinguished “Women Greening the City” represents the many women who have worked and continue to work tirelessly to transform and green the physical landscape of New York City’s urban habitat.

These individuals have made spectacular contributions to New York City’s greening effort through volunteering, grassroots outreach, education programs, faith-based organizing, goverment departments, media outreach, local business support, and non-profit work.”

Here are just a few examples of the amazing women working in NYC today:

Audubon’s Women in Conservation Program recognizes and salutes the unwavering commitment of these exceptional women in conservation.

Annie Novak is founder and director of Growing Chefs, field-to-fork food education non-profit; the Assistant Manager of the Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden at the New York Botanical Gardens, and co-founder and farmer of the nation’s first greenroof vegetable farm, the Eagle Street Rooftop Farm in Brooklyn, New York. A lifelong vegetarian, Annie is a passionate advocate for ecology within good agriculture.

Britta is helping more than 35,000 urban residents grow their own fresh food ingredients at home. While participants learn new high tech organic veggie growing techniques, their experience contributes to agricultural biodiversity conservation. Her company, Windowfarms, both sponsors an open citizen research project online and locally manufactures vertical hydroponic indoor food gardens. Her participatory environmental work has been featured at MoMA, the Whitney, the Museum of Science & Industry and the Smithsonian. Her newest project launches in New York this Fall.

As Director of Adopt-a-Highway for the NYC Department of Transportation, Ms. Ferreira is involved in recruiting sponsors to fund the greening of 362 miles of arterial highway. Currently, 240 or 66 percent of the 362 adoptable miles are adopted by sponsors. She maintains an inspection statistics to ensure a high level of performance and quality of cleaning. Her dedication and efforts has made a tremendous difference in the cleanliness throughout the city.

Keep up with this amazing organization on the group’s Facebook page and the Women in Conservation Twitter feed.

Photos courtesy of Audubon Society except where indicated.

Imagine a bag full of fresh juicy cucumbers, luscious tomatoes, vibrant leafy greens, robust onions, and some beautiful broccoli! Joining a CSA is a great way to be experience a variety of local foods and be introduced to new vegetables. Suddenly you’ll be expanding your palate, and embarking on new culinary adventures. With no choice but to explore whole new worlds of food, your creativity will be inspired. In your exploration, you will discover a whole new way to nourish your body and soul.

My good friends have been developing a special place called Growing Heart Farm for the past few years, located in Pawling, NY. They offer an awesome summer CSA and are registering people now!

CSA’s often have a drop-off location in the city, making local, fresh vegetables easily accessible to us urban dwellers. This model nourishes the farmer and the earth, and delivers vegetables of a much higher quality than what we buy in the store. CSA produce passes through far less hands, and carries much fewer food miles, making it a sustainable option for the future.

Often the farms providing CSAs refrain from using chemicals and pesticides. Even if the produce is not “certified organic,” (the certification is extremely expensive and unrealistic for these small sustainable local farms) the produce is of a much better quality than those stamped “organic” at Whole Foods. Vegetables grown with love, coming straight from the source, have a special quality that is impossible to get from any agribusiness produce.

When you receive your first CSA package, aside from the vibrancy and freshness of the veggies, you may notice that they look more “earthy” or real, as they have not grown in a monoculture system. Monoculture, the system used by big agribusiness, is designed to create uniform, plastic looking vegetables. CSA veggies are designed by nature, and will carry this beauty and intelligence in their form. Embrace the differences! Learn to love the diversity of nature!

CSA’s and other sustainable food system models are a key element to a healthy thriving collective future. CSA’s build community, connect us to the land and to those who grow our food. The beloved farmers are super courageous to put their hands in the dirt and fully commit to loving this earth and her people. CSA’s are an evolutionary way of nourishing our bodies, our communities and the planet.

The more local farms supplying NYC’s food needs, the healthier New Yorkers will become. To make these models viable, we must step outside of our usual pattern of going to Whole Foods where we buy produce that has come all the way from California, and try something new, something local, something revolutionary!

I’ve been visiting Growing Heart Farm for years, and I’m always rejuvenated by walking on the land, cooking and eating the amazing produce grown there. As a CSA member, you are invited to visit the farm, connect with the land, and participate in the growing of your food. Visiting Growing Heart Farm is a great way to take a break from the craziness of the city, walk barefoot on the earth, and be nourished by food that you can pull out of the ground yourself!

Aside from nourishing city people with the highest quatliy produce possible, Growing Heart Farm also hosts events and retreats, such as Farm-To-Table Yoga Dinners. I will be working my culinary magic in the Growing Heart kitchen for the June 30th dinner! Come practice, eat and play with us!

Being a part of this community is both an inspiration and an invitation to a more conscious way of living.

See their website to stay connected with the upcoming events!

Also check out the Growing Heart Farm facebook page

Last night, I put away my winter knits; my fave black wool sweater, my grandma’s green button-down with the giant collar that still smells vaguely like her perfume, the head-warming hats and the rotating cadre of scarves I wear from October-April were all packed away and stored until next Autumn.

At the same time, I pulled out my summer knits. Knits in summer? Yes! Maybe it was because I wrote about Ambika’s gorgeous handknit bikinis yesterday, but I love the juxtaposition of what is usually thought of as a ‘winter’ material or texture when temps are hanging in the 70′s and 80′s. Still not convinced? Check out some of the pretty fab (and always sustainable) knitted wonders I found while doing some online window shopping.

What about a knit necklace? This one from Etsy seller Erica Hogenbirk is made from beach stones and neutral yarn.

These handmade knit shorts are just totally unexpected and fun. Via Robot Recenze on Etsy.

Or how about these handknit bangles from Knits by Vara on Etsy – work the summer neon trend in your own way!

This beautiful summer sweater by Eileen Fisher is a luxurious hemp knit. Perfect for layering over a swimsuit or sleeveless dress.

Wool and the Gang is a Peruvian knitwear collaborative that provides fair wages to women in South America. I love this Tassel top!

This Organic by John Patrick sweater is ideal for too-cold offices blasting with A/C.

We’ve written about Ambika before (check out the handmade angora legwarmers here) and these hand-knit bikinis are another project by the talented and visionary Ambika Conroy. This is a woman who knows bikinis – one of her pieces was even featured in a Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue, as well as other major fashion mags.

Obviously, knits are her thing – in fall and winter the angora (which comes from her own rabbits she lovingly raises), and for summer the perfectly crafted cotton swimsuits that she crochets up to order.

The cross-knot top in red is a stunner, paired with the bikini bottoms (with sweet doll tassels!) to match.

If you are worried about whether you can really swim in these suits, the answer is yes! I asked Ambika about that right off the bat as an avid lake and ocean swimmer myself. She said the knit holds up beautifully in the water and since she loves to jump in the water herself (and wears her own designs) the fact that the suits are totally wearable/usable/swimmable – and would stand the test of time – was important to her.

The sliding triangle top is decorated with (removable) Peruvian bamboo and turquoise embellishment.

Needless to say, I love these gorgeous pieces, and Ambika is even looking into natural dyes (and how to make them keep their color over multiple dippings and sunnings) to make her process even greener than it already is.

As written on her site, “Each Bikini is custom made, so please allow 2-4 weeks for it to be hand crocheted and mailed to you.” Some suits have jewelry elements, and others wooden beads. But you can order them as simple or embellished as you like.

The Ridged Cross Top is my absolute fave – not only to wear while swimming, but even better, layered under sheer or low-cut tops. It can be adjusted several different ways, including to make it a cleavage-booster.

I love my Prancing Leopard Toulouse jumpsuit. Here I am, practicing a bit on my front lawn. I look a bit goofy, but I’m definitely happy. Goofy = Happy, don’tcha know?

Sevda and Bert Holland couldn’t find what they wanted in yogawear, so of course (don’t you do this?) they made their own. Prancing Leopard was born out of the couple’s need for genuinely stylish, but still functional yoga wear. And they would only make it superethically, of course. That means organic cotton (but not just any organic cotton…read below), a program to benefit animals in need, connections with local artisans, and more do-gooderness. Yay! We love a company that thinks beyond the obvious and into HOW they can truly make a positive impact while filling a niche.

Reversible Rhineu tank top

Prancing Leopard is all about the details – from attention to fit (I have both the jumpsuit shown above and a reversible top, and let me tell you, they feel GOOD), to looking quirky-great to being truly functional in a yoga-doing situation. The details extend to a proprietary super-soft quick-drying high-performance “peached” Turkish organic cotton jersey with a four-way stretch fabric. It’s called Zeugma® and it is as awesome as it sounds. (By quick-dry I’m talking about sweaty fabric drying while in savasana, so you walk out of class feeling – but not looking – like you just kicked your own butt).

The Carmague one-piece is perfect for layering, as seen here, or solo for a hot yoga class.

Besides being made from organic material, Prancing Leopard, which is sold via yoga studios (and their online store), has its eye on other ways to benefit the world. According to the site, “Locally, a percentage of online sales goes to the buyer’s studio of choice. On a global scale, we offer handmade artisan pieces, in addition to our core line, to benefit underserved women’s communities who make them. To support our shared environment and community, a percentage of our profit goes to the Snow Leopard Trust, dedicated to saving the rare and beautiful snow leopard from extinction.”

The cropped Harem Pant is one of Prancing Leopard’s perennial best sellers, and you can probably see why. Supercomfy, stylish and original.

And they make men’s yoga clothes too! My boyfriend has their supersoft Instanbul pant, and they are gorgeously flowy, cut perfectly and he has worn them to death!

The Kuray High/Low Sweatshirt is a great layering piece for post-yoga class or would work with a great pair of jean shorts and sandals for a summer evening at the beach.

If you are a regular Eco Chick reader, you know that I have long been a huge critic of both diamonds and the “Wedding Industrial Complex” and as such, love to provide my readers with great alternatives to the traditional wedding ideas and products.

Brilliant Earth has long been providing ‘conflict-free’ new diamonds, and now the company is offering a selection of even Earth- and people-friendlier vintage diamond rings.

The lovely art deco “Florence” ring features step-cut emeralds.

According to the company’s site, “Most rings in the Brilliant Earth antique collection originate in the 1900-1940, with some pieces over a century old! At any given point, Brilliant Earth has over a hundred antique pieces on hand – and new pieces are constantly being added in response to the high demand.”

The Snowflake ring features vintage European-cut diamonds.

A ring whose carbon footprint and impact occurred a hundred years ago or more is always going to be less impactful than anything new, with the added bonus that your ring will be superunique and certainly won’t look like everybody else’s solitaire diamond engagement rings, since as you can see, the styles run the gamut, and are much more interesting and detailed than modern rings.

If you want to go even more eco-friendly with your engagement, skip the ring altogether (after all, it is a very modern invention, and a sexist one at that.)

The square, pave Lorena ring is graphic and timeless.

Future Weather centers on 13-year-old Lauduree, who fears the collapse of both her family and the planet. Writer/Director/Producer Jenny Deller chose to explore the complex issues of climate change through “the lens of a family drama,” as she put it, as opposed to a documentary. I had the opportunity to see the film and get to know Jenny, and I was moved by this powerful drama and the woman behind it.

Lindsay: It must have been thrilling to premiere Future Weather at the Tribeca Film Festival. What was that experience like?

Jenny: This is my first feature film, so to have it debut at a world-class festival like Tribeca was a dream come true. And of course, to walk into a New York City movie theater and see your movie on the screen is just an incredible feeling—a little surreal.

Jenny Deller

Lindsay: Can you tell me about the article you read which inspired Future Weather?

Jenny: It’s called “The Climate of Man” and was written by Elizabeth Kolbert for the New Yorker in 2005. My mom gave it to me in 2006, and I was immediately absorbed. It chronicles an incredible amount of scientific evidence from around the world that points to signs of warming due to anthropogenic rises in CO2. I’ve always had an emotional connection to the environment, so I found this to be overwhelming. It made me question my whole way of life and my future. I felt very scared and alone and completely powerless. This was before Al Gore’s movie came out, and no one was talking about the issue.

Lindsay: Lauduree’s character mirrors the fragility of the environment she’s so fixated on. Why did you decide to approach global warming through the lens of a 13-year-old girl?

Jenny:  To be honest, when I first decided to write a script that I would also direct, the 13-year-old girl came first. I was inspired by the young adult novels I’d read as a kid and wanted to tell an honest story about a girl who survives abandonment. What does it take to pull through a potentially damaging experience with your soul intact? I knew Lauduree spent a lot of time outdoors and had a math and science bent, so when I learned (soon after starting the script) how urgent global warming had become, it made perfect sense to pull this issue into Lauduree’s awareness. Particularly when her story of abandonment was the perfect metaphor for what we’re doing to future generations if we continue to live as we do.

Lauduree played by actress Perla Haney-Jardine

Lindsay: Why do you feel climate change is under-reported in mainstream media? And do you hope Future Weather will not just entertain, but change, the public’s perception of the realities of our environment’s health? 

Jenny:  There’s a lot of information coming out now about major campaigns sponsored by corporate interests to generate doubt about the validity of climate science and to suggest that global warming is just an opinion—and a highly politicized one at that. This strategy has been extremely effective in mixing people up, and creating a skepticism and mistrust around the issue. I also think global warming is a very difficult situation for people to grapple with. It’s a danger that’s hard to see and quantify, particularly because it involves something that’s typically volatile—weather—so it doesn’t trigger our emergency response. It seems too far in the future to affect us. Another problem is that the cultural position of scientists is very tricky; it’s a profession founded on rationalism. Scientists are just supposed to present evidence, not become involved in social causes—even though they’re the canaries in the mine-shaft and policy-makers are not heeding their warnings. Scientists like James Hansen have gotten a lot of flack for turning to activism. And lastly, global warming is tagged as an environmental issue vs. a human issue. My hope is that the three generations of women who come of age in Future Weather will move people to begin to confront their own worst fears of a warming planet—the anxiety and anger and helplessness, the conflict between responsibility and self-fulfillment. Until we evolve emotionally, I don’t think we’ll be able to change. Another hope is that Lauduree renews young people’s interest in science, which I think will play a critical role in adapting to climate change. I also really hope that Future Weather helps people understand that our lives are inextricably connected to our habitats, our environments. If they go, we go.

Lindsay: You actually used the money you made from an acting gig to begin developing Future Weather back in 2006. What was the most challenging aspect of creating this independent film? And how were you able to raise the necessary funds?

Jenny:  The biggest challenge was, and still is, pulling the funding together. It took several years of writing and rewriting for the script to break into a sphere where it could attract the right cast and collaborators. But that did not translate into enough funding to fully finance the film. The project did win several grants from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and Women in Film, and we also secured several equity investors. But Kristin Fairweather, my producing partner, and I have had to get really creative with funding and take a lot of risks to keep the project moving forward. We’ve done everything from selling recycled tote bags on our website to fundraising house-parties. We always joke that we’re like traveling salesman. Even now, we’re in the middle of a Kickstarter campaign to raise finishing and sales funds. It could just be that this piecemeal approach is part of the new paradigm of independent filmmaking.

Lindsay: How were you and your team able to translate the environmental message of the film into the choices made during the shooting?

Jenny: We tried to keep our goals basic and realistic since we were working on a shoestring and didn’t have the manpower to dedicate one crew-member to overseeing our sustainability efforts. After reading about how much plastic is floating around our planet, I decided I didn’t want plastic water bottles on set. We replaced them with metal canteens that our PA’s refilled with iced tap water. Our actors stayed at the only LEED-certified hotel in Philadelphia. We were able to get an excellent deal with a caterer who cooks with local and organic ingredients and uses compostable serviceware. An amazing Philly bakery, Betty’s Speakeasy, donated their homemade locally-sourced treats a few days of the shoot. And we partnered with an incredible company called Philly Compost who provided us with composting bins and daily pick-up service for our food scraps. Local green business are forging new paths, so they’re incredibly entrepreneurial—a great match for scrappy independent filmmakers!

Lindsay: What are three things you hope viewers will take away from Future Weather?

Jenny:  The healing power of being able to let go, trust and love.

Lindsay: If you’re so inclined, please help Jenny and team reach their goal on their Kickstarter campaign.

The fact that I am writing this post from an actual hammock should demonstrate to you my dedication to the art and craft of hammocking (yes, it’s a verb, at least in my world – as it should be). Growing up, I availed myself of the large hammock in my backyard on a pretty regular basis – after mowing our acre of lawn, when I needed a mid-Summer’s nap, or when I needed to get away from my grandma’s pretty demanding routine.

Looks like a bit of bliss, no?

Yellow Leaf Hammocks make the variety of hammocks you see below, which includes a number of colors, patterns and styles (love the chair version – perfect for reading!) and they also have impressive social and sustainable cred, including economic health, environmental stewardship, social equity and cultural stewardship.

A hammock on a boat! Genius!

The company calls themselves a ‘social enterprise, not a charity’:

In Southeast Asia, hill tribes such as the Mlabri are among the most disadvantaged and vulnerable groups of society. Hammocks have been the means to securing civil rights, combating deforestation, creating basic infrastructure and achieving financial security for hill tribe villages in this region of Northern Thailand.

As a hunter-gatherer society with no concept of land ownership or relationship with the outside world, the Mlabri way of life was devastated when the land around them was claimed and deforested. Impoverished, without citizenship, and enslaved by opportunists, their future appeared bleak.

Yellow Leaf aims to engineer a turnaround in which marginalized ethnic groups such as the Mlabri apply their artisan talents towards creating a micro-economy that will elevate them from their former state and maintain their cultural identity, with the added benefit of eradicating toxic farming methods within the communities we partner with.

Love the ‘hammock chairs’ that are shaped to provide a bit of support.

Get your hammock on AND support people in need with honest work. How much more awesome can it get?

All photos courtesy of Yellow Leaf Hammocks except where indicated.

I don’t know about you, but when I’m packing for a warm-weather vaca, I’m most concerned with three things: swimsuits, sunscreen, and sunglasses. Aside from a non-expired passport, they’re my essentials for any tropical escape, since I know I can improve on everything else.

I’m heading to Costa Rica tomorrow with my best friend Steph, a corporate lawyer by day who’s studying to become a yoga teacher by night — perhaps her life’s greatest irony — and who deserves this trip way more than I do. Thanks to Costa Rica’s Tourism board, we’ll soon be hanging with sloths, gliding through treetops, and experiencing the country’s beauty and rich biodiversity.

Eco Babe by Eco Swim. I’ll be reducing my carbon footprint in Costa Rica’s sand with this sustainable two-piece in Khaki. Made entirely in the U.S. with post-consumer recycled fabric linings, 50 percent recycled elastics and recycled nylon.