Sustainable · Eco-Chick

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How Sustainable is Your Favorite Wine? Greenopia Rates 25 Wineries

kaikoura-vineyard

Greenopia has just rated 25 wineries for their environmental impact. Here’s why:

Any oenophile worth her spitting glass has heard the dire stories about how global warming will affect wineries, altering the very microclimates that make it possible to grow champagne in Champagne, France and enable growers to eke out a Pinot Noir under a very precise set of conditions. Wine production is a multibillion dollar-a-year industry in the United States, and wine-growing regions are set to migrate northward (or shrink- by up to 80%- disappear altogether) as warm days with moderating sea breezes shift with the increased temperatures, and general local and worldwide climate disruption alters the conditions and locales where grapes have been growing for hundreds of years.

So it makes sense that the wine industry (and vino lovers) would take action against climate change and environmental degradation.

business, car, carbon, climate change, Eco-Chick, emissions, Food, Global Warming, health, local, Organic, produce, rape, resources, spa, sport, style, sustainability, sustainable, Target, Tea, transportation, treehugger, water, weather, Wildlife, Wine

Six Seasonless Eco Fashion Must-Haves: I've Worn Them!

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by Starre Vartan · 04/14/09

I tried to keep my shopping to a minimum the past six months, but these super-wearable items were the ones I chose to spend a bit of cash on. Each of them is highly versatile, on-trend and most importantly, sustainable. They are also pretty seasonless, and I’ve been wearing them in all kinds of temps, and they all travel particularly beautifully.

Starre Vartan and Arina Vikdorchik at Kaight on the LES

NEVER have I worn a single piece of clothing so much. My organic cotton Prairie Underground Sweatshirt Dress works as a dress (as seen here, my friend Arina has one too!), as a coat over a dress, over jeans, or (admittedly) as ultracozy nightwear. Kate MacGregor at Kaight (where I bought this great piece) says it’s the line’s best seller and they keep making them in different colors. The hood is huge and makes me feel like I’m going to romp in an enchanted wood.

Um, that’s not my butt, but that is the style of my jeans!

Aristocrat Jeans are marketed as “Pure Luxury Denim” and they really nip and tuck in all the right places due to their excellent cuts and lines, which are designed to slimmify. They don’t stretch out in between washings, which always annoys me about denim and means I also need to wash them less (how eco!). They are made with a super eco-friendly dying process and have stayed nice and black. I got these at Kaight and they are still in stock there.

So delicious.

Melissa makes the cutest vegan shoes in all sorts of shapes, from flats (which they are famous for) to heels. Friends Jill Fehrenbacher at Inhabitat and Gloria Dawson at The Daily Green both love their ballet slippers in silver, but I’m a heels devotee, so I chose the Vivienne Westwood Mary Janes and they are comfortable to wear for walking around NYC and feel very Frenchy-chic with black tights.

Melissa’s ARE made of (usually-avoided in my life) plastic which is great for vegans and the factory where they’re made has tight controls on water use (making sure that any effluent is super-clean) and any chemicals used in production of the shoes are not ending up in any kind of waste stream, so I consider them quite sustainable, since the company is so attentive to possible pollution and they are high quality and long-lasting (and waterproof!).

At Greenwich, CT beach in November

I get insane compliments on my Virginia Johnson graphic print shawl made with eco-friendly dyes. It’s got duckies on it! Johnson is known for the quirky, modern and fun prints on her shawl-size neck warmers.

At Mammoth Mountain, Cali in March and the thermal baths in Weisbaden, Germany in December

And when I looked through pix, maybe I actually wear it more than my Prairie Underground sweatshirt dress. It is a huge, soft scarf, perfect for travelling, and she has a number of cotton scarves on offer for summer in her fab prints (you can also just buy her fabrics, and she makes cute clothes too).

Starre Vartan at left in the Fin dress, model in a dress from the Ryann collection by Raina Bleyer (at right).

My Fin Bamboo Little Black Dress is almost too wearable. Though it doesn’t seem to be still on sale anywhere (I found my at Ekovaruhuset), there are a few similar styles at Equita.

My Romp tunic-length t-shirt- and look closely- I’m wearing the Melissa pumps!

Romp (based in the UK, but they have a super-sexy store in Los Angeles) makes some serious ecofriendly leather goods (their story is fascinating), and lucky for me really fabulous organic cotton t-shirts too. This one has a dirty French limeric on the front, and an unusual length and cut. Love the longer-still-short-sleeves.

bamboo, dyeing, ecofashion, Kaight, organic cotton, sustainable

BiCoastal Style Gone Green: Doie's Spring 2009 Collection

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by Starre Vartan · 04/01/09

Sara Kirsner moved her sustainable fashion line, Doie, from NYC to LA last year, and the first collection from her new city (pictured here) is simply called “Los Angeles.” The images here are just some of the fresh, new designs from Sara, who’s positive vibe and optimistic nature surely fits right in her new hometown.

I have quite a few Doie pieces and I wear them all the time, proving that Doie is as easy-to-throw on (and inexplicably comfy) as it is pretty-pretty! Soft fabrics, great lines, and fun prints- love it! Check out the whole Spring ’09 collection here.

ecofashion, organic cotton, silk, sustainable

Dose of Reality: Happy New Year

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by Katie Kish · 01/02/09

“The science is beyond dispute… Delay is no longer an option. Denial is no longer an acceptable response.”

I never thought I’d see the day when the President of the USA would be considered “more green” than the prime minister of Canada. I’m happy to say, that I truly believe Obama is just that. (Although…to be fair – being “more green” then the Canadian government isn’t super hard right now.)

The future looks mostly friendly with Obama on leading the way. Originally there was some skepticism over his support for “clean coal” support – but won the environmentalists back with his incredibly aggressive and undeniably ambitious plan for climate change and renewable energies. This plan focuses on an attempt to reduce 80 % emissions from 1990 levels by 2050 along side auctioning 100 % of the pollution permits. If he holds true to his plan it will also include a $150 billion investment for green jobs and clean energies.

He is calling for 30% of all the government’s electricity to come from renewable energy within the next 11 years, and 25% of ALL U.S.A electricity to come from sustainable/renewable sources by 2025. All “new buildings” would be carbon neutral by 2030 and U.S oil consumption would drop by at least 35%. He opposes oil drilling in the Arctic, supports Nuclear energy (although doesn’t want it stuck under Yucca - but did accept $159 800 in contributions from Exelon) and supports labeling foods for GMOs and country-of-origin.

So it looks as though that America is rolling into a new year with some bright light ahead of them. To the east Spain is putting forth intense efforts to start a competition for the biggest and baddest solar energy device this world can offer. They’re not even going to keep it to themselves, but have said that they will export the technology to places such as Algeria and Morocco.

The 20MW solar tower is also a forerunner for an even more ambitious idea, one that Abascal [Abengoa’s CTO] hopes will become a standard for CSP plants in future — a 50MW version that could generate electricity around the clock. “During the day, you’d use 50% of your electricity to produce electricity and 50% to heat molten salt. During the night you use the molten salt to produce electricity.”
Molten salt technology is in its early stages but Abengoa is testing the idea at a power plant in Granada. So far the company has demonstrated that it is possible to store up to eight hours of solar energy by heating tanks containing 28,000 tonnes of salt to more than 220C. “This will make it possible to have almost constant production or at least it will be able to produce energy for most of the day,” said Abascal.

India is doing it’s part by introducing such technology as the solar rickshaw!

The solar version reaches a pretty impressive speed of about 15 kilometres per hour and, fully-charged, the battery can keep going for 50-70 kilometres. The goal is to develop the current four Soleckshaws into more advanced models in time for the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi.

Hopefully these sorts of technologies will only keep going so that the everyday rickshaw driver can afford one. But for less costly environmental efforts we can turn to Japan where they’re using recycled bottles to save people’s lives.

All over the world there are people devoting their lives, or simply just doing their best to help save the environment. I look forward to this new year, when I suspect that we’ll see many changes in America, Canada and all over the world. Although some of the governments may not have the best plans, at least they’re starting to have plans at all. And it’s going to take the effort, passion and devotion of every single person to see some major changes starting to take place.

So Happy New Year! I hope this coming year brings you lots of green-filled surprises and cool new technologies for us all to try out. Throughout the year I’ll keep you updated on coral reefs, endangered species, deforestation, pollution and the hardships that people are facing because of global warming and other environmental disasters.

“We are not acting as good stewards of God’s Earth when our bottom line puts the size of our profits before the future of our planet.”
— Obama Oct. 14, 2007, in a speech at an interfaith forum on climate change

arctic, car, carbon, climate change, coal, consumption, deforestation, eating, Eco-Chick, electric, electricity, emissions, Energy, Food, Global Warming, green jobs, India, model, models, New Year, nuclear, Obama, oil, Plants, Pollution, produce, recycle, recycled, reduce, rum, spa, sustainable, Technology

Food Democracy Now! Petition Sustainable Choices for the USDA

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by Kimberly Jordan Allen · 12/29/08

Food Democracy Now! is a grassroots campaign comprised of farmers, writers, activists, policy advocates and people who eat. A petition is circulating to bring our attention to the desperate need for sustainable practices regarding food. The Food Democracy Now! petition asks President-elect Barack Obama and newly appointed Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack to consider leaders for the Under Secretary level who understand organic and sustainable agriculture.

While some are more concerned with the appointment of Vilsack, Dave Murphy of FoodDemocracyNow! remains hopeful;

We understand that many in the sustainable agriculture community are disappointed with President-elect Obama’s selection of former Iowan Governor as our next Secretary of Agriculture. Concern over his record regarding genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and the proliferation of confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs) during his time in office have given many in this community pause over the type of change he may be willing to implement as the head of the USDA. The fact is that many in Iowa who have worked with Gov. Vilsack in the past have always appreciated his willingness to listen to the concerns of family farm and rural advocates and believe that he may be able to realize more progressive change at the USDA as he will not be hampered by a Republican House and Senate as he was as governor. We are also encouraged by the fact that President-elect Obama has committed to payment limitations, eliminating subsidies for factory farms and labeling GMOs in the human food chain.

Twelve sustainable choices are listed at the end of the petition. FoodDemocracyNow! is working hard to get 100,000 signatures by January 1st, 2009. To join the likes of Bill McKibben, Michael Pollan, Wendell Berry and Eric Schlosser, just to name a few, SIGN IT!