Food & Health

One would think that the Corn Refiners Association would be busy enough right now that they could sit back and relax, but instead they are starting a big marketing campaign to beat back the Michael Pollans, Daniel Imhoffs and Richard Johnsons of the world who complain that high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is making us fat. They are taking it to the public with a big new $30 million ad campaign, saying that the stuff has the "same natural sweeteners as table sugar and honey."

They have the courts behind them; Stacy Holk went after Snapples at the FDA for claiming that their product was "all natural," when it was full of HFCS, noting that there is nothing natural about the process of making the stuff:

Business & Politics

Islanders to Plant 20,000 Fruit and Nut Trees for Security
We’ve already celebrated as the Transition Towns movement reached Australia, but it looks like the people of New Zealand are also getting stuck into preparing for a post-petroleum future. The above video comes from Waiheke Island’s Fabulous Fruit Tree initiative, which is aiming to plant 20,000 fruit and nut trees to act as a buffer for community resilience in case of food shortages. To find out more about other Kiwi Transition initiatives, check out Transition Towns New Zealand Aotearoa. You can also click below the fold for a news report on peak oil and Transition Towns. And do let us know of any community-lead responses to resource depletion or climate change that are taking place in your part of the world.

Video Tips

Craigslist Founder, Craig Newmark on his TreeHugger Habits

Craig Newmark, Founder of Craigslist, was kind enough to send in a short video for our TreeHugger Tips series explaining the small things he does out of concern for the environment. He touches on conserving resources by using less stuff and reusing what he can.

If you can't view the video, there's a transcript after the jump.

Some environmentalists deride small steps such as these as ineffective and even suggest they are counter-productive, but I think small steps can and do make a difference. Craig trying to use less stuff, Gary Vaynerchuk carpooling or Tomm Stanley making his fridge more efficient may not be radical or representative of the swift changes in government policy or consumer behavior some - myself included - would like to see, but wouldn't we rather have people at least trying to do what they can to make a difference, as opposed to not trying at all?

What do you think?

Design & Architecture

Current Configuration has put some thought into the poo-poo problem and has hit upon the solution - hanging the bog roll with the sheets coming over the top wastes less paper. The hand-made diagrams and flowery explanations are priceless, including the one on the oft-tried, seldom-successful one-handed tear.

Interact

Cue up Let's Do the Time Warp Again as Collin takes us back, with his latest Green Basics post, to the age-old question- Paper or Plastic?

Recent Comment by gdub1973 : "It's nice to see a large percentage of respondents indicate they take their own bags! ..." [read]

Science & Technology

Image from Wikimedia Commons

Though it may be a bit premature to heap too much praise upon duckweed (Spirodela polyrhiza) -- after all, relatively little is still known about its properties -- the early signs, at least according to a team of Rutgers scientists, seem very promising. A team of plant biologists from Rutgers' Waksman Institute of Microbiology have convinced the DOE to focus resources on the genomic sequencing of the diminutive aquatic plant, claiming it holds immeasurable potential for feeding the planet and fighting both pollution and climate change.

Recent Comment by Anthony : "Cool. If it lives up to the promise, or even close, it'll be a major opportunity...." [read]

Business & Politics

As Mairi Beautyman pointed out not too long ago, The New School in NYC has been taking significant steps in a greener direction by offering degrees for students in environmental programs taking a holistic approach to design through the Tishman Environment and Design Center.

But now there’s word that they’ve begun a new environmental studies program focused on New York City and the urban environment in a bid to help students prepare to tackle the challenges posed by the reality that experts predict that a majority of the world’s population will live, work and play in large urban areas by 2025.

Fashion & Beauty

It sounds like a common enough story. Freshly minted parent can’t find chemical-free clothing for their new-to-the-world child. What makes this version different from so many of the introductions found on new green apparel websites, is that it happened 32 years ago. Heinz Hess created organic clothing for his son, and in doing so pioneered a corporate ethic, through his firm Hess Natur, that is only now being taken up by the most enlightened of businesses.

A model of responsible enterprise that is soon to be making its presence felt in North America. A German clothing company that pays 40% more than they could for their cotton, one that teaches farmers and their families to read and write, that sources silk from what they believe is the only organic silk farm on the planet. The impressive story after the fold.