Preventing Rape in the Congo Fights Deforestation—Here’s How
Tackling sexual violence against women in the Congo is a direct way to fight deforestation. And stop rape. But our smartphone addiction is exacerbating conflict.
Why Congo Soldiers Use Rape As a War Tactic (and What Your Smartphone Has to Do With It)
When the Second Congo War erupted in 1998, Chouchou noticed a new phenomenon. Women were being raped in public by rebel groups. But nobody wanted to talk about it.
Groovetastic Headphones That Look Great and Give Back: UrbanEars Re:Plattan
Since I write and think about ways to minimize my impact, I was excited to find these supercolorful Urbanears Re:Plattan headphones.
Crude, the Film, Shows Real Price of America's Oil Addiction (Hint: It's Not Just the Environment)
Crude is the story of a community of 30,000 tribal members in the Amazonian jungle of Ecuador who hold a corporation to bear for its crimes against their land, their livelihood, and most importantly, their lives. The film follows the intricacies of what has been called the “Amazon Chernobyl.” The…
Brainforest: How Does Community Sustain Us?
Brainforest is a Chicago-based creative agency that has integrated an ethos of social service (people) and sustainability (planet) into the workplace (profit). The Triple Bottom Line seems to come effortlessly to a company that volunteers at the Greater Chicago Food Depository, dedicates pro bono service per annum to a specially selected…
We Add Up
Last month I attended a green expo in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. It was fun and there were a lot of interesting people to share stories, peddle eco-wares, and wax prolific on everything organic, local, and carbon neutral. One of the booths at the event was We Add Up. We Add…
Help Fight Chocolate Extinction!
First the honeybees (and duh, the honey) and now chocolate is on the decline? Say it ain’t so!! According to this CNN article on the subject of chocolate extinction, “Yields are declining all across the cocoa plantations of West Africa, where two thirds of the world’s supply is grown, as…
Greener Gadgets Redux and Harrison Ford Clearcuts (His Chest Hair)
Witnessing a Rape
This image of razed rainforest in Brazil’s Mato Grasso that’s now planted with soybeans (from which to make fuel) is my definition of a travesty. That’s a bit of transitional forest in the foreground, nature hemmed into a tidy square so the developer can claim ‘conservation’ not doubt. Time Magazine’s…
Global War by Dawn Maxey
I was introduced to Dawn Maxey’s spoken word poetry at the recent AIGA Compost Modern event. Here’s some excerpts from her very spirited poem, “Global War” about eco-hype: But then/ just the other day, I began to notice people at Whole Foods with entire shopping carts full of ‘organic’ and…
