This week, Bolivia is set to pass the world’s first laws giving all nature equal rights to humans. It’s Awards Season for environmentalists and camping season is right around the corner, find out how to make it eco-friendly. Spring also means fresh veggies, find out how to get the most out of them. Also, sustainable fashion at Urban Outfitters, the benefits of super micro-plants, urban gardening 101, and an Underground Night Market.
HEALTHY HABITAT: Bolivia set to pass world first laws giving all nature equal rights to humans
Bolivia’s Government has been attracting alot of attention lately and as it gets set to pass the world’s first laws granting all nature equal rights to humans it will attract a lot more. The Law of Mother Earth, now agreed by politicians and social groups in Bolivia is a massive redefinition of rights. It redefines the country’s rich mineral deposits as “blessings”, and it is expected to lead to a major shift in conservation and social measures to reduce pollution and control industry in a country that has been ravaged for its resources for years.
Bolivia set to pass world first laws giving all nature equal rights to humans, Celsiasº
SUSTAINABILITY: It’s Awards Season for Environmentalists
Ursula Sladek seems an unlikely revolutionary — just the kind of person the Goldman awards staff is trained to find. The annual Goldman Environmental Prizes, to be presented on Monday to Ms. Sladek and five others at a ceremony in San Francisco, go to grass-roots activists who shake up the powers that be while enhancing or defending the environment. Each carries a $150,0000 stipend.
Awards Season for Environmentalists, by Felicity Barringer, The New York Times’ Green Blog
FOOD & WELLNESS: The Underground Night Market—civil disobedience on a paper plate
Along with big-wave surfing and high-altitude ultramarathons, eating is an extreme sport here. Which explains why, on a recent Saturday night, Tipay Corpuz, 21, a technology specialist for Apple, took a break from blogging about her obsession with fried chicken and waffles to join 2,500 fellow food geeks at the Underground Night Market.
They Gather Secretly at Night, and Then They (Shhh!) Eat, by Patricia Leigh Brown, The New York Times
EXPLORATION: 12 ways to make your camping trip eco-friendly
You might be a regular camper who escapes to the wild weekly. Maybe you just can’t afford a vacation so a tent and a campfire make for the cheapest getaway. Maybe your friends dared you to spend just one night away from your comfortable, pampered lifestyle. Whatever your reason for camping, you don’t owe any less to the nature you’re going to come in close contact with than the next guy. And it’s true—camping is about as eco-friendly as it gets when it comes to traveling. You and your gear are pretty much the only signs of civilization around. Here are some tips to keep it that way.
12 Ways To Have a Fun, Guilt-Free Camping Trip, by Julia Austin, Planet Green
FOOD & WELLNESS: Urban Gardening 101
The number one excuse that apartment dwellers have when it comes to growing their own vegetables is that they have no space. They also believe that growing one or two things is a complete waste. These are just excuses. Lots of space isn’t required. What is required is a bit of creativity. It’s worth the time and effort if you grow even one herb or vegetable. It will make a difference.
No Excuses, Just Vegetables, by Leigha Oaks, EcoSalon
HEALTHY YOU: 5 Super Micro-Plants to Include in Your Diet
There are a few plants in Nature that are extremely concentrated with vitamins and minerals surpassing even kale and broccoli. Although micro-plants are related to dark leafy vegetables, they provide a higher level of nutrients than other foods. These micro-plants consist of blue-green algae, chlorella, spirulina, wheat grass, and barley grass. They were the very beginning source of life for this planet and they continue to nourish us well into the future.
5 Super Micro-Plants to Include in Your Diet, by Delia Quigley, Planet Green
SUSTAINABLE STYLE: Goodlifer fave Bright Young Things launches sustainable capsule collection at Urban Outfitters
The Bright Young Things first season collection is debuting at Urban Outfitters with a four-piece capsule collection. The versatile collection can be worn in multiple ways and includes: The Converter Pant, The Everything Halter, The Wrap Skirt-Dress, and The Coat-Dress. Designer Eliza Starbuck says the collection was inspired by the idea of updating American classics in an effort to offer basics that are multifunctional.
Bright Young Things Debuts At Urban Outfitters, by Amy DuFault, EcoSalon
HEALTHY YOU: Tips for getting the most out of spring vegetables
After a winter of eating roots, tubers, and sturdy greens, the reward of spring is about to hit your table. Seize the season with five of The Green Plate’s favorite spring shoots.
5 Spring Vegetables to Love Right Now, by Vanessa Barrington, EcoSalon
HEALTHY YOU: Is sugar much worse for us than we ever thought?
Not Good News, agreed, but important for all of us to read/watch. On May 26, 2009, Robert Lustig gave a lecture called “Sugar: The Bitter Truth,” which was posted on YouTube the following July. Since then, it has been viewed well over 800,000 times, gaining new viewers at a rate of about 50,000 per month, fairly remarkable numbers for a 90-minute discussion of the nuances of fructose biochemistry and human physiology.
Is Sugar Toxic?, by Gary Taubes, The New York Times Magazine