Elisa's Green Scene

Food Inc is all the buzz this week

So, I'm assuming as a self-respecting Greenie, you've heard of the new documentary Food, Inc. Following in the footsteps of such media as the documentary SuperSize Me, the book and movie Fast Food Nation and Michael Pollan's recent best seller The Omnivore's Dilemma, Food, Inc. seeks to make sure we're all aware of exactly where our food comes from...and in most cases, how gross it is.

I want to be excited by the film, but check out its About the Film basic description:

In Food, Inc., filmmaker Robert Kenner lifts the veil on our nation's food industry, exposing the highly mechanized underbelly that has been hidden from the American consumer with the consent of our government's regulatory agencies, USDA and FDA. Our nation's food supply is now controlled by a handful of corporations that often put profit ahead of consumer health, the livelihood of the American farmer, the safety of workers and our own environment. We have bigger-breasted chickens, the perfect pork chop, insecticide-resistant soybean seeds, even tomatoes that won't go bad, but we also have new strains of E. coli—the harmful bacteria that causes illness for an estimated 73,000 Americans annually. We are riddled with widespread obesity, particularly among children, and an epidemic level of diabetes among adults.

Or check out their About the Issues page. Valid issues all. A huge page of them. And animal issues comprise one throwaway reference to "inhumane conditions". Two words out of that entire page reference the animal issue.

Still, as this is my green blog, not my vegan blog, I think many of you will find their About page a very powerful argument for a very different approach to food in this country.

Martha Stewart gives a shout-out to Food, Inc on her blog. (Will she do an episode on it, though, I wonder? Her show often addresses both health and green issues, so how can she not!?)

Here are some prominent reviews of the film:

Roger Ebert, in the Chicago Sun-Times, actually does emphasize the animal issues, right from the top. The first two paragraphs of his review are powerful:

The next time you tuck into a nice T-bone, reflect that it probably came from a cow that spent much of its life standing in manure reaching above its ankles. That's true even if you're eating the beef at a pricey steakhouse. Most of the beef in America comes from four suppliers.
The next time you admire a plump chicken breast, consider how it got that way. The egg-to-death life of a chicken is now six weeks. They're grown in cages too small for them to move, in perpetual darkness to make them sleep more and quarrel less. They're fattened so fast they can't stand up or walk. Their entire lives, they are trapped in the dark, worrying.

The review headline in the Atlantic Monthly says it all: Yes, You Have to See Food Inc. (Their site seems to be having problems today, FYI.)

The NY Times feels like there are multiple documentaries nestled inside this one 93-minute attempt to cover the issues. And the Times, too, notes that the movie may expose the animal abuse inherent to our system, but that it focuses much more on the human cost.

One human cost I'm very glad is being covered is how crappy, unhealthy food is way cheaper and more accessible than healthy, fresh food. This is a different kind of divide. May schools and libraries are at least somewhat equipped to address the digital divide. But who is working on overcoming the nutritional divide?

I don't know if I have the stomach (pun intended) to see Food, Inc. But I definitely think all of you should! ;)

Will you?

Kiva now lending in the United States

Innovative micro-lending organization, Kiva, announced a new aspect to their service: You can now make micro-loans to entrepreneurs right here in the UNited States, not just internationally, as they've been doing since since 2005. You can read more about how Kiva works here, but it's hard to argue with the incredibly high repayment rate they've had for their international lending. With the economy in as big a mess here as most of us have seen in our lifetimes, I'm thrilled Kiva is expanding its work to include home-grown entrepreneurs. Not every business calls for VC funding...good thing, that...and Kiva is there to let us help those businesses. Check out more info in these posts at Tech Crunch and BlogHer.

File this under: I had no idea, did you?

In my travels, often speaking to groups about blogging, I meet lots of fine folks...many of whom start blogs and send me the URLs. Inevitably I learn something new just by scanning the first page of their blog. All these different people. All their different inspirations.

This week was no different. After retuning from a very hectic trip to NYC, someone I met sent me her brand spanking new blog: NY Muse.

After perusing just the first page, I learned something entirely new: The Purpose of a Penny

I love tulips. I love that they're a flower that keeps growing after you cut them and put them in water. But they aren't particularly long-lived; they do start to droop.

Well, according to NY Muse, not if you throw a few pennies in the vase!

45 years old, and I am still learning something new every day!

Tonight's Tony Awards...going green (aren't we all?)

In my long, checkered past there is quite a bit of of the starving artist theatre person. I never got to attend the Tony Awards in person, but I try to watch them religiously every year. I used to have the time, inclination, and close family relative in NYC that justified a substantial trip to NYC every year, so most years, long after I moved back to California from NYC, I had seen many of the nominated shows. I, on occasion, even personally knew some of the nominees. I knew them back when, of course, when we were all younger and more struggly.

Over the course of time my trips to NYC have become quick 2-3 day jaunts leaving little time for theatre-going. Even a 6-day trip last week was so packed with business and work functions that I couldn't carve out the time.

Sadly I haven't seen a single nominated show or performer this year. But I'm watching anyway.

Which is why I was glad to get a note from the National Resources Defense Council about them. Seems the NRDC has been trying to help Broadway theatres in general get in on the sustainability act, and this year the Tony Awards got some attention. Being someone who puts on events, I know exactly how challenging it can be, so what does that mean exactly?

Well, here's what the NRDC told me:

First of all, there's a Broadway Green Alliance. The BGA is an "industry-wide initiative to educate, motivate and inspire the theater community and its patrons to adopt environmentally friendlier practices and reduce our carbon footprint."

The Broadway Green site is actually quite detailed, starting with the area where various departments involved in producing a Broadway show are given a list of "better practices" to try to follow. Advice for everyone form the Production Team to the Scenic, Costume, Lighting & Sound folks is simple and includes both baby steps and big ideas.

So, continuing that work and applying it directly to the 2009 Tony Awards seems like a no-brainer, and it gives them a chance to bring their activities to a larger audience. 

According to the BGA and NRDC, the Tony Awards's first-ever greening effort incorporates the use of renewable certificated to offset the electricity of radio City Music Hall, enhanced recycling efforts and wider use of environmentally-friendly materials. Results include (and not how they got corporate sponsorship to help them achieve their goals...it's the modern way to get anything done...appeal to a company Corporate Social Responsibility mission!):

• GDF SUEZ Energy Resources donated Green-e certified wind power Renewable Energy Certificates to support the generation of renewable energy during the week preceding the Tony Awards and for the telecast itself
• Lipton Tea made it possible for the 2009 Tony Awards edition of Playbill to be printed on paper with 30% post-consumer recycled content
• Applica Consumer Products, Inc. donated 500 Clear₂Go reusable water bottles with replaceable filters for event guests
• Goodmart donated 2,200 energy-efficient cold cathode light bulbs for the event gift bags. As part of the BGA’s greening effort, this bulb type is now typical of those being used to light Broadway theatre roof signs and marquees
• Hybrid vehicles are being provided for presenter and performer transportation
• Recycling bins are being provided at Radio City concession stands for plastic bottles and in production offices for plastics and paper waste.
• Radio City Music Hall has taken a number of steps towards reducing environmental impacts at their venue, including: a comprehensive energy analysis of the facility performed by Energy Analytics, resulting in an enhanced energy efficiency plan; recent installation of efficient lighting; and restrooms have been retrofitted with low-flow toilets and faucets and feature post-consumer recycled content tissue products
• The Red Carpet is made from 100% recycled material with 49% post consumer content
• The production/management company for the Tony Awards is using paper with 60% post-consumer recycled content
• The public relations office has posted all press materials online and, when needed, will print out all press materials on 100% recycled content paper
• Banners for the show were printed on non-PVC plastics and will be reused or recycled after event.

I love that they're reporting the post-consumer recycled content % of the red carpet itself!

Broadway is an institution, and one that dates back a century. The buildings in which Broadway plays are mostly old buildings, the traditions are long-time traditions. If Broadway, as an "industry", can step up and go green...what excuse do any of us have?

Tonight I'll be settling down to watch actors I've never seen collect awards for shows I didn't get to attend...and checking out how the new-fangled red carpet looks :) 

Defining natural

Disclosure: This post happens to be about one of our sponsors for BlogHer '09, but I had no intention of writing about them until I happened to read a conversation on BlogHer today.

Here is the conversation, on a basic promotional page for one of our sponsors, Clorox Green Works.

A couple of positive comment, and then a comment challenging the sponsor and their pointing out the lack of consistent definition for terms like "natural", etc.

So, social media step #1: Someone from the brand came to respond to the comment. Good job! Social media, don't forget, empowers not only we, the consumers, but companies too. The power to respond quickly and directly to your customers.

But what caught my eye, and prompted this unsolicited and unpromised post is this:

"When we created Green Works® natural cleaners, there was no standard or official definition for the term “natural” so we defined it using three core principles: the products had to contain plant-based ingredients and biodegradable cleaning ingredients, and could not be tested on animals. We believe we set the bar for natural cleaning very high, and stand by the natural profile and efficacy of our products.*"

* * To learn more about natural and what it means to us, click here. 

As I tweeted: Right on. Especially that last part. I'm not sure I've seen a lot of companies think of the animals when they're defining a "natural" product. Happy to see all three core principles.

Now, here's the question: Do other "natural" cleaners share the same core principles?

I'd try to compare to Method, but their site hasn't loaded over the last 20 minutes as I've been trying to get to their info. Sigh.

Perhaps an update post will be in order. But pipe up if you know!

Recycling electronics: Good and good for you

Consumer Reports has a piece in its June issue about recycling electronics. It's short and to the point.

The money quote:

"Why recycle? The cathode-ray tube in old-style TVs and computer monitors contains 4 to 8 pounds of lead, a neurotoxin. Cell phones and other electronic gadgets can contain mercury, cadmium, arsenic, and brominated flame retardants. Those toxins can leach from landfills into groundwater."

The article also provides some resources for people looking to find a place to recycle electronics in their locality.

I think they could have gone farther in providing resources. For example, why call out Dell's program, but not mention other computer manufacturers, such as Apple...as one obvious choice. They have extensive information on their site.

I have many a dead electronic thing lying abut my house. I guess it's better in my closet than in our dumpster, but still: This Consumer Reports article might inspire me to finally get rid of it...responsibly.