Harry Barker Organic Dog Bed

I love the stripes on this!!! The cover is made with thick organic hemp and can be easily removed for washing. It’s pre-washed & made with earth-friendly, non-toxic dyes. The hypo-allergenic insert is made of a green fiber made out of recycled plastic. Feel good knowing your pet is sleeping safe & sound. 

Wagatha’s Organic Dog Treats

For starters I just love their name…it makes me smile.  They are USDA Certified Organic, made in Vermont and don’t include any animal by-products, nasty fake flavors, or corn (not good for dogs) or preservatives. The only thing you find in these is organic whole-wheat flour, organic extra virgin olive oil, organic eggs, organic milk, organic wheat bran, organic garlic, organic honey, and sea salt. What a great treat for your furry friend!

Natural Hemp Adjustable Collar

Made with hemp webbing with release hardware, these come in bright colors and are naturally hypo-allergenic. Unlike nylon and other synthetics, hemp softens with wear making these collars extremely comfortable for your dog.  

It’s no secret that purchasing reusable containers will help reduce the amount thrown into a landfill.  Whether you’re the one who’s going back to school or the one packing the lunches (or both) with a few cool tools, you can save time and money.    

To-Go Ware Stainless Steel Food Carrier

Great for hot or cold foods, this comes with a removable plate and 2-tiers so you can separate foods.  Stainless steel is highly durable, won’t leach toxins like plastics can and is very easy to clean. 

Plastic Bag Dryer

I never knew these existed until very recently.  Way back in Elementary school I had a friend who would save all her Ziplocs she used for snacks & lunch in a day and bring them home with her after school and gave them to her mother who would wash, dry and reuse them as many times as she could.  Back then I  thought it very strange (because no one else I knew was doing it).  Little did I know back then that it would be considered “eco-friendly” today. 

SIGG Water Bottle

According to Fast Company, Americans use 50 billion water bottles each year.  Most are not recycled.  Find a reusable water bottle that looks good (so you’ll be more inclined to use it) and help keep your share of water bottle waste out of the trash.  They come in an assortment of colors and sizes for kids and adults alike. 

Not officially or medically-speaking, but Jack Johnson seems to have a way of lowering ones blood pressure (if you happen to like mellow, yet upbeat folksy/surfer tunes).  As a Hawaiian native, and surfer-turned-songwriter, much of his melodic imagery is inspired by nature and his tropical surroundings.  This year Jack Johnson & his crew are taking steps to reduce their environmental impact on their world tour. 

Greening Actions Include:

-Providing onsite water stations, waste management and recycling services.

-Reducing waste with the use of biodegradable food service items and reusable water bottles that can be refilled onsite.

-Fueling tour vehicles and/or generators with sustainable biodiesel (where available) to help reduce CO2 emmisions by up to 78% percent. 

-Offering eco-friendly tour merchandise including organic cotton clothing, reusable water bottles and tote bags.

-Minimizing distribution of paper at shows and using 100% recycled paper and soy-based inks for all printed materials.

-Selecting environmentally-conscious travel and hotel options.

-Procuring locally grown and organic foods for backstage catering

-Offsetting all remaining CO2 emissions from the tour and for each night’s show.

If you’re a fan (or want to be), check for tour dates here.  To learn more about Jack Johnson’s All At Once campaign, click here.  To buy his latest Sleep Through The Static CD, click here. 

With a national movement underway to bring organic food to college dining halls, Colgate University senior, Nina Merrill discovered that there was very little online documenting and discussing it.  She gives college students a voice and a platform to discuss what’s happening on their own campuses.  Her goal is to encourage the development of organic good programs on college campuses nationwide.  Her theory is that by facilitating a round-table discussion where students can share their successes and pitfalls of their organic campus initiatives, others will be empowered to take proactive steps in improving the quality of their campus dining.  Her blog, titled Organic on the Green, gives students the opportunity to network with others from around the country who have similar goals and concerns.  It features essays from students on the front lines of making college dining more sustainable. 
 
She’s also working on a “How To” dining guide for students who hope to bring more organic food to their university or college.  This guide will call upon the topics discussed on the blog as well as highlight the initiatives of some of the most influential students on the sustainable campus circuit.

Additional organic food resources:

How To Go Organic

Slow Food USA

Prep your dorm room desk with items you love to look at and ones you feel good about, because you’ll likely be spending a lot of time there.  Stay organized in the midst of a crammed class load to help keep you on track.  Check out these essentials for your in-room study area: 

Foray 5-Subject Recycled Notebook  

It’s unavoidable, you’ll be using lots of paper to take lots of notes so why not use recycled paper to reduce your contribution to cutting down trees.  Make a statement with this notebook made completely from used paper.   

Pendaflex Recycled Multi-Color File Folders 

Forego the standard (and boring) manilla folders!  Spice up your desk with some color and a touch of organization with these recycled folders. 

‘We Are Happy To Serve You’ Mug

Whether you a NYC native, admirer or transplant, you know that ‘We Are Happy To Serve You’ cups are everywhere.  This ceramic version is the brain-child of TreeHugger founder Graham Hill who wanted people to realize just how many paper cups they were throwing away each day/week/month and who is also a New York resident.  Rest (not) assured that you will be cramming for finals and staying up all night, so be sure to keep this cup filled with some fair-trade organic coffee! 

 Made with only pure organic oils and wildcrafted trimmings from California trees, these soaps really do remind me of the coast of California where the merging of salty ocean air and sweet pine is refreshingly crisp and familiar. With scents like Coastal Sage, California Bay Laurel and Sierra Cedar, how can they not?

“Wildcrafting” is the harvesting of plants growing out in the wilderness, not farmed or tended too. Juniper Ridge is careful to obtain tree trimmings (with permission) from the deserts and mountains in California, in a way that does no harm to the tree and they donate 10% of their profits to defend Western wilderness.

Great for both men and women alike, you’ll find no floral or fruity scents in the bunch; just woodsy, grassy, piney aromas that will remind you of that trip to Big Sur (or the one you’d like to take).

More and more consumers are becoming aware of the toxins in conventional cleaning products that can affect human and environmental health.  If you’re conscious of what you use in your home, around your children and pets, what you breathe in and put on your body this is for you.  A wonderful way to ensure you know exactly what is in your cleaning products….make them yourself! This Eco-Me Home Kit  supplies all the containers & instructions you need to clean the house.  You supply the ingredients like baking soda, vinegar and olive oil.   The plastic bottles are #1 PET….recyclable, but you’ll use this over and over avoiding the need to keep throwing out empty cleaning bottles. 

A word on PET plastic:

Most convenience-size bottles sold in the United States are made from polyethylene terephthalate (PET). PET has become the material
of choice for bottled beverages because it is lightweight and shatter resistant, and PET has been extensively tested for safety. Bottles
made with PET are widely used for everything from water and fruit juice to soft drinks and even beer.  Like all materials intended for food contact, PET is subject to FDA review and regulations and is approved for safety.

A word on recycling:

PET bottle recycling is more practical than many other plastic applications. The primary reason is that plastic carbonated soft drink bottles and water bottles are almost exclusively PET which makes them more easily identifiable in a recycle stream.  One of the uses for a recycled PET bottle is for the manufacture of polar fleece material. It can also make fiber for polyester products.

Next time your recipe calls for oil opt for a healthier option whether baking, sautéing, marinating or frying. Organic Macadamia Nut oil is a good fat and a terrific replacement for any oil that a recipe may call for. It contains a perfect 1:1 ratio of Omega-3 and Omega-6 oils and an impressive level of heart-healthy monounsaturated fats and antioxidants. Dietary trials in Australia and Hawaii demonstrated that macadamia nut consumption lowered risk indicators for heart disease. While Olive Oil is also a highly beneficial oil, it has a much lower smoke point (high heat threshold) and when it reaches really high temps it begins to burn diminishing it’s nutritional value. Flax & fish oils are also amazingly beneficial, but should be consumed cold or at room temp.

The fat-free craze has many on a full force carb binge-out and look where that’s landed us; with the highest obesity rate of any country in the world. Companies are still labeling foods “Fat Free” as if it’s an incentive to buy, to which I’d like to ask…what’s the sugar and simple carb content (the things that really pack on the pounds)?! Instead of being scared of fat, we should embrace the good ones and skip the bad (i.e. trans-fat and partially hydrogenated). Good oils can help you feel full longer (so you have less of a tendency to keep eating), leave your skin beautiful; help improve memory, balance hormones and even help speed up weight loss efforts. 

Whether organic or not, Macadamia Nut oil can be difficult to find in stores. More often than not store clerks look at me with raised eyebrows or squinted eyes as if I’m making this product up, so I order mine online.   This makes a wonderful hostess gift and I highly recommend adding this to your own cupboard!

Whether you’re heading back to school or this is your first year away, I’ve discovered some great  “green” essentials that will help you create your home away from home:  

 Pottery Barn Tile Organic Sheet Set

Add a touch of Morocco with these graphical sheets that are a welcome surprise when pulling back the covers (and they’re 100% organic cotton too!).  

 West Elm Organic Pin-tuck Duvet Cover + Shams

Certified organic, undyed cotton in it’s purest state with a beautiful pintucked design. Cotton grown without herbicides or pesticides is better for you, the people who farm it and the planet.

Brookstone Organic Cotton Towels

Ultra-absorbent and super cozy towels made of 100% organic cotton.  Made without chemical fertizers and herbicides that are used on conventionally grown cotton.  These have received rave reviews! 

Reports from clothing designers and fashion editors are that jewel tones are it this Fall.  Evident by unveilings at New York’s infamous Fashion Week, take your cue from rich colors like ruby, sapphire, emerald, amethyst and topaz this season.  This is especially hot for evening wear.  Think luxe fabrics and rich colors.  Accessorize with another big trend this year…flashy and bold metallics.