If you’ve ever found yourself in a conversation with a climate change skeptic, you’ve most likely experienced the intense frustration of being unable to disprove their illogical reasoning. Often, the perfect answer will come to you much later. Ever wish you had all the top climate information at your fingertips?

Well, if you’re the owner of a smart phone, you do. The “Skeptical Science” app, developed by physicist John Cook of SkepticalScience.com, is now available (for free!) for iphones, Android phones, and Nokia phones.

The app lets you browse arguments by Top 10 most used or 3 main categories — “It’s not happening,” “It’s not us,” and “It’s not that bad.”

Says Cook, “The app looks at many arguments from climate skeptics and identifies a common pattern – that skeptics focus on small pieces of the puzzle while neglecting the full body of evidence…[it] aims to give you the full picture, with all the evidence, scientific context and links to peer-reviewed research. It has another useful function – users can send me reports on which skeptical arguments they encounter.”

Thanks to Cook, and the app developers, smart phone users now have a terrific resource “that puts the science at your fingertips, along with the most commonly used arguments by the disinformers and doubters and how to answer them.” Shine Technologies developed both the iphone and Android apps; and Jean-François Barsoum created the Nokia app using the Ovi App Wizard.

We here at Goodlifer usually don’t reblog, but felt that this app is something you all should know about. [via Worldchanging & Climate Progress]

Download the app for your iPhone, Android phone or Nokia phone.

Related posts:

1. Diet for a Hot Planet: The Climate Crisis at the End of Your Fork and What You Can Do About It
2. Change Connections — Crowdsourcing Social Innovation
3. Max – Climate Conscious Burgers

Initiated by human-rights organization The Blind Project, Be A Biographer calls on people with design skills to help tell the stories of the survivors of the multi-billion dollar commercial sex trade, an industry currently enslaving and exploiting millions of women and children. “We want to connect your talents with her needs. For freedom, love, hope, dignity and protection. Our role is simple. To tell her story. To be her biographer,” said Anthony Dodero, co-founder of The Blind Project.

The crowdsourcing design challenge will eventually give birth to a new sustainable style brand called Biographe. “In a system that treats human lives like meaningless commodities, the greater mission of Biographe is to restore and reveal the true value of those victimized. Because when every life has equal value, all stories, all hopes and all dreams are worthy,” said Jessica Sturman, The Blind Project’s lead fashion designer.

The project promotes the holistic restoration of women exploited from the commercial sex trade in Southeast Asia by actually employing them to make the winning designs. They will learn valuable job skills in fashion design and production, and be employed in a positive work environment while earning a sustainable living wage. Proceeds from sales are then reinvested back into the women’s lives via The Blind Project’s partner organizations in Southeast Asia, creating a virtuous sustainable cycle. This kind of business model, combining non-profit social good with for-profit enterprise is becoming increasingly common. In my opinion, it is how every business should — and hopefully will eventually — be run.

Submissions by Laura Pennington & Kelsey Turner.

“Biographe matters not solely because of what we are creating, but how we are creating it,” said Kyle Westaway, The Blind Project’s business development lead. “What makes Biographe truly unique, is the creation of a more personal one-to-one connection between two distinct populations — victims and consumers — and moving them both toward a better tomorrow.”

Submissions by Aaron Bromirski (both).

The winning designs will be incorporated into fashion items, printed for gallery exhibitions and shown in advertising campaigns. If you want to submit a design, you should start by reading the stories of three survivors on the project site. Designers may submit designs for one, two or all of the stories and have until September 15th to do so. The 15 semi-finalists (5 for each of the 3 stories) will be determined by public voting. On October 21st three Grand Finalists will be selected by a panel of notable judges, among them Alex Bogusky, most recently Co-Chairman of Crispin Porter + Bogusky and Chief Creative Insurgent of MDC Partners, Somaly Mam, Anti-Human Trafficking Activist and Founder of AFESIP, and AnnaLynne McCord, actress and The Blind Project Ambassador.

Submissions by Ryan Clark (both).

“The power of problem-solving creativity, the survivor’s voice for victims, and the influence of youth activism is what makes collaboration with Alex, Somaly and AnnaLynne so amazing,” said Kevin Kim, The Blind Project’s marketing lead. “Every person has that something special — a talent, a gift — to make this cause stronger, more influential, and more personal. Join us.”

Top photo, left side, submission by Cindy Panyanouvong.

Related posts:

1. Kahina Giving Beauty
2. British Design Classics Stamps
3. The Ethical Fashion Forum

This past week, Nokia and The Feast launched a very interesting collaborative project called Change Connections. The goal of the project is “to contribute to strengthening innovation ecosystems and our understanding of the world at the base-of-the-pyramid, create a forum for sharing research and learning and to better understand what a company like Nokia can do to support creation of innovative and self-empowered societies.”

Change Connections identifies a few categories of major problems that are meant to present us with opportunities for “solutions to major societal issues that build on the massive power and potential of communication technology to do good in the world.” We are all invited to submit solutions to issues in any of these areas and contribute to the discussion. I caught up with Ville Tikka, Senior Futures Specialist at Nokia and one of the main driving forces behind the project to find out a bit more.

GL: How was the idea for Change Connections conceived?
VT: As we know, we are constantly bombarded with dark news of environmental disaster, climate change, political unrest, and poverty. And one thing is for sure, we are likely to continue to witness unprecedented change and immense challenges also in the future. But regardless of the current difficulties, uncertainty, and potentially grim outlook, many around the world remain full of hope.

With Nokia, I’m exploring the forefront of the socio-cultural transformation—how we are shaping and shaped by the global and local forces—to identify, analyze and translate these changes into strategies and actions for a better future. With Change Connections we wanted to explore the potential of ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) as a platform to overcome some the world’s most pressing issues.

We already have witnessed how during the past decade, mobile communications have played a big role in bringing hope and higher living standards to literally billions of people, and how the mobile device has become a necessity for upward mobility and a platform for many inspiring bottom-up solutions. Now we wanted to look beyond the current and understand the future possibilities for collaborative groundbreaking social innovation to drive positive change.

In Kenya health workers are using mHealth programs to track and contain outbreaks of disease, manage vaccine and medical supplies, and monitor childhood immunization campaigns. Photo via DataDyne.org.

Field teams synchronize their mobile devices before traveling to clinics and households to gather vital health data. The mobile health program is organized by the UN Foundation and Vodafone Foundation, DataDyne.org, the UN World Health Organization and national Ministries of Health. Photo via DataDyne.org.

GL: It’s great, I’m very excited about the potential of mobile technology, especially in the developing world. The project will be open for another 18 days, why the limited time frame?
VT: Change Connections is part of a wider initiative and it will continue to stay open after the initial Engage & Respond phase and provide opportunities for people to connect with other people, current work and new ideas. But we needed to create some urgency and thrust for the community to encourage people to participate, hence the initial limited time frame (and also, why wait too long, now is the time for action!). We’ll also launch new features that help people navigate the ideas and combine them, literally creating new connections between them.

GL: I like that, less talk, more action! The site has a simple, sort of playful interface, and the idea of “serious play” seems to be central. Is having fun while trying to solve major global issues an appropriate approach? Will it create different results?
VT: I believe “serious play” is not about having fun, but really emphasizes the approach and the process of first identifying and empathizing with the problems through ethnographic and societal research and then turning to creative human potential and catalyzing it with new tools to come up with novel ideas. If we really want to rethink the problems and the solutions, we also have to rethink our methods.

GL: Yes, I think the most interesting part, to me, is that you are asking people to connect ideas, find synergies and ways of collaboration. Was that a big part of the original idea? Nokia’s tagline is “Connecting People,” right?
VT: Yes! One of the premises for the whole project was to find and create connections with people, places, information and ideas to improve the quality of lives, globally. Social innovation—just like any innovation—has more potential when it is collaborative, open, and focused on systemic and scalable innovation.

On change-connections.com, users can submit, comment on and connect ideas for solutions to some of our global issues.

GL: You state that, in this project, “cross-disciplinary creativity lies at the core of the process.” How did you select your experts? Can there ever be a good enough mix of people to solve these kinds of global issues?
VT: The key to understand the global issues and develop better solutions is to connect with experts, lead practitioners and ordinary people throughout the globe. Because we acknowledge that we are dealing with highly complex and systemic issues, we wanted to connect in our expert workshops with bright minds working in the vanguard of change within various disciplines, including social entrepreneurs, researchers, technologists, designers, and provocateurs. I believe we can’t ever include all the possible viewpoints, but I hope we can be as increasingly inclusive with the new open platforms, such as Change Connections.

GL: It’s interesting that you include hackers as part of your experts/influencers group. What was the idea behind that decision? Is there a trend for hackers to turn their technical knowledge towards doing good?
VT: The reason for pointing out this “hacker mentality” is to underline the fact that often that’s in a key role when people are pushing the limits and thinking differently what the future might hold.

GL: The focus points are advocacy, health, learning, livelihood and resilience. Why are these issues the most important?
VT: We’ve carried out rigorous expert and ethnographic research in the developing regions in Africa, China, India, and Latin America to identify the focus points, as well as further filtered them through analyzing and understanding the role of the global macro forces in shaping the focus points now and in the years to come. These five focus points are some of the areas where communications technology could play an important role to improve the quality of lives.

GL: The project starts in New York and then moves to Nairobi, Africa for the final part. What is the significance of that?
VT: As we emphasize the importance of collaboration in our approach we wanted to make sure that it will happen also across time and there is continuation for our efforts. New York, being one of the great multicultural hubs for social entrepreneurs, thinkers and doers, was a good starting point for the work. But no project is an island, and as we say, ideas are nothing without context. That’s why Nokia is continuing the conversation started with the Change Connections by convening over 200 critical minds and change makers at an Open Innovation Africa Summit to create a forum for sharing research and learning.

Ville Tikka, Senior Futures Specialist at Nokia and one of the driving forces behind Change Connections.

GL: Have you seen Design For the First World? I think it’s quite a poignant commentary on many “save-the-developing-world” projects going on around the world. Is Change Connections geared towards solving problems in the developing world or the entire world?
VT: I’ve seen that! It’s a brilliant idea and witty commentary, no doubt. We’ve seen a big socio-cultural shift in global awareness of our interconnectedness and how individual and collective action can create change in the world. I think this increase of both “save-the-developing-world” and “save-the-developed-world” initiatives is only a good thing as more people in more places are now weaned on democratized media and instigating change in their communities and countries. But of course, there are certain things you need to keep in mind when you aim for social innovation. For example, no research should be done and no solutions developed only from north to south or east to west, but always in collaboration with local people and communities, by understanding the local context.

Change Connections is focusing initially on the issues within the developing world and people who can benefit most from the better solutions. But it has also become apparent throughout our work that these issues are highly systemic and truly global. And that’s why we require this holistic approach where we identify the factors that shape contexts and generate solutions both bottom-up and top-down. Only this will enable us to to foster new thinking and come up with systemic solutions to the world’s systemic issues.

GL: There is a lot of possibilities there, I can’t wait to see what comes out of this! Thanks so much Ville.

In the end, it’s all about communication, whether it happens around a campfire or using advanced ICT. We all have something to bring to the table and the more we talk about global issues, the better we can connect and solve the problems in our world.

“The economic theory of the last 300 hundred years was based on a two dimensional conception of a human known as ‘economic man’ who seeks to maximize personal wealth. Well, this has been shown to be a false idea. And today you see so many people choosing to start businesses that are clearly not about maximizing wealth but about maximizing some combination of business success and social impact. The theory no longer explains the data. So we need a new theory. – David Bornstein, Author of “How to Change the World: Social Entrepreneurs and the Power of New Ideas”

Related posts:

1. Project M: Pizza Farm
2. Earth Hour
3. What’s your Foodprint?

Remember when you were a kid and your parents told you to “think about the poor starving children in Biafra/Somalia/Darfur!” when you didn’t want to finish the food on your plate? That one always worked on me. Then, there was the one about keeping your room clean to show respect for those who had nowhere to live (that didn’t work as well on me).

Do you ever think the same way about the people in the world who have no shoes? Most of us probably have more shoes than we like to admit to (I’m definitely guilty of that one).

One Day Without Shoes encourages us to think about the challenges suffered by those who cannot afford shoes. Their reality is far less pleasant than this. Photo by Xavier Encinas, Creative Commons.

Today, TOMS shoes wants the people of the world to walk barefoot in solidarity with children and adults in the developing world who cannot afford to buy shoes. These people frequently suffer cuts and sores on their feet that can lead to serious infection. In Ethiopia, approximately one million people are suffering from Podoconiosis, a debilitating and disfiguring disease caused by walking barefoot in volcanic soil; it is 100% preventable with basic foot hygiene and shoe-wearing. In some developing nations, children must walk for miles to find clean water,  seek medical help and get to school (which often they cannot attend without proper shoes).

A Nepalese porter's foot. Photo by Peter Byrne (ca 1958), Creative Commons.

The One Day Without Shoes initiative encourages us to imagine a life without shoes; constantly aware of the ground in front of you, suffering regular cuts and scrapes, tending to infection after each walk, and enduring not only terrain, but heat and cold.

The problem is large, but the solution is simple. Wearing shoes and practicing basic hygiene can prevent both infection and disease due to unsafe roads and contaminated soil. By imagining a life barefoot, we can all contribute to the awareness of these conditions.

Go barefoot to the store (just stay out of the sticky soda aisle). Photo by colorblindPICASO, Creative Commons.

Kick your shoes off at work, just make sure to tell the boss why... Photo by slworking2, Creative Commons.

Join the communities, campuses, organizations, and individuals who are banding together today, to walk barefoot for One Day Without Shoes. Find a barefoot event near you, or kick your shoes off at work, bare your soles in the store (and prepare to give the security people a lecture in humanity when they try to kick you out for not wearing shoes), go to the park, the street or the beach and just let your toes be free. For most of us who have no issues with access to shoes, it will feel quite liberating.

Let your toes be free today! Photo by frigginacky, Creative Commons.

Part of the emerging BOGO (Buy One Give One) movement, TOMS donates one pair of shoes for every pair you buy to a child in need.

Top photo by dhammza, Creative Commons.

Related posts:

1. olsen Haus: Vegan Shoes
2. Carrotmobbing
3. Chocolatiers in America: Antoine Amrani

As the old saying goes, there are two ways to make a donkey walk forward: offer a delicious carrot in front of it, or hit its behind with a stick. Bad behavior should be punished but, more importantly, good behavior should be rewarded. This is the guiding principle of carrotmobbing. It’s very simple: a group of people gather (using social media tools like Facebook and Twitter) at a retail or service establishment that has agreed to put a set percentage of the day’s proceeds toward environmental improvements and buy their wares.

There’s an old saying that there are two ways to make a donkey walk forward: Either offer a delicious carrot out in front of it, or hit its behind with a stick. Think of businesses as the donkeys. Traditional consumer activism uses a lot of sticks, such as protests, lawsuits, boycotts, and so on. We want to use the carrot instead. We believe that we can get businesses to make big positive changes by offering them profits in return. It’s a positive model where there are no enemies and everyone wins. So that’s what the Carrot means. The mob refers to the large group of consumers who come together to achieve this common goal.

A carrot is always better than a stick. A young carrotmobber in Bremen, Germany. Photo by carrotmobbremen, Creative Commons.

Neither I nor the people behind Carrotmob suggest that we should try to shop our way out of the mess we have created. However, by putting collective purchasing power behind a company that aligns with our values, we can use our dollars to vote for the kind of change we would like to see in the world. Carrotmobbers only buy stuff they would ordinarily purchase, like toothpaste and beer, just in a deliberate location.

Carrotmob at Queen Street Grocery in Charleston, SC. Photo by Charleston's TheDigitel, Creative Commons.

Carrotmob was founded by Brent Schulkin, who believes that rather than protests and boycotting, what can really make a difference is harnessing consumer buying power for good causes. “Who else besides the government is powerful enough to help save the world? Business! The problem is, corporations will do anything for money. But, what if the solution is, corporations will do ANYTHING for money? If we start organizing what we’re going to buy, then suddenly we can combine all our money and get this huge amount, that we can use to negotiate with.”

To organize the first carrotmobbing, Schulkin went to 23 liquor stores in his San Francisco neighborhood and told them that he would assemble a group of people that would come and spend a lot of money in one of these shops — the one that agreed to put the highest percentage of profits toward energy efficiency improvements. The highest bid, 22%, came from K & D Market. Experts from the San Francisco Energy Watch Program visited the store in advance to determine what improvements could be made. Then, Schulkin set a date and told people to come shop. The worries about whether anyone would show up were quickly put aside as a long line formed outside K & D Market, around the corner of the block. Hundreds of people came and together spent $9276.50 (compared to the usual daily average of $1800-3000), double the owners’ prediction. This was enough for to completely retrofit the store for optimal energy efficiency.

A large crowd formed outside K & D Market in San Francisco, for the first-ever Carrotmob. Photo by meganpru, Creative Commons.

A recent Carrotmob in New York brought supporters out to the improv comedy club The Pit, with 100% of the $1,038 revenue going toward green improvements at the popular Chelsea Club. The first UK Carrotmob took place at the Redchurch, a bar in east London that promised to put 20% of the day’s sales toward on-premise environmental upgrades. Carrotmob.org does not have any data of how much money the bar made on that night, but data for many past carrotmobbings can be found on the website.

Carrotmobbers outside Guse Hardware in Minneapolis, MN. Photo by 350.org, Creative Commons.

Because of the grassroots nature of carrotmobbing there are no written contracts, it’s all done via verbal agreements. So what about enforcement? What if a participating business wouldn’t follow through on their commitment? “They are participating because they believe that Carrotmob has the power to give [the business] a good reputation, so it should be obvious that Carrotmob has the power to hurt their reputation as well. If Carrotmob members were to discover that they had been deceived, that business’ reputation would instantly go from an A+ to an F. That sort of reputational damage would cut deep. That fact should be enough of a deterrent to make sure promises get kept.”

Schulkin envisions eventually being able to take this concept directly to manufacturers, offering huge sale volume in return for environmental improvements. Sales would pay for (all or part of) the improvements, and people get what they want. “There’s never anything negative about it. We never attack anyone — because we don’t need to — it’s positive cooperation. The best company wins, the consumer wins and the planet wins.”

As in all popular movements, it’s all about the numbers. If enough people show up in support, change is inevitable. Says Schulkin: “We are the economy, and we decide who gets rich. It’s consumer power, and we have to respect it.”

Top: Recent Carrotmob at Que Pasa Amigos in Bremen, Germany. Photo by carrotmobbremen, Creative Commons.

Related posts:

1. One Day Without Shoes
2. Chocolatiers in America: Antoine Amrani
3. PARK(ing) Day

Public Gardens seem to be on everyone’s mind since Michelle Obama planted her organic garden at The White House. The idea, however, may not have been hers. TheWhoFarm (The White House Organic Farm Project) began as a “non-partisan, petition-based initiative to respectfully request that our 44th President oversee the planting of an organic farm on the grounds of The White House, our nation’s First Home, at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave, Washington, DC.”

Daniel Bowman Simon and Casey Gustowarow traveled the country in “TheWhoFarmMobile” aka the Topsy Turvy, a vehicle made from two school buses fused together, originally designed by Stefan Sagmeister and Ben Cohen from Ben & Jerry’s. Bowman Simon and Gustowarow ripped the roof off and put an organic edible garden (what else?) on in its place. They visited schools, farms, food pantries, farmers’ markets, and festivals in 25 states and the District of Columbia in an effort to inform the nation of TheWhoFarm and gather signatures for the petition.

First Lady Michelle Obama and White House Chef Sam Kass show students from the Bancroft Elementary how to plant a garden. Photo: The White House.

The effort proved successful, and on March 20, 2009, First Lady Michelle Obama broke ground on the White House lawn, with the help of over twenty 5th graders from a local school.

The outside of City Hall in its current state — a bleak stone landscape.

Now, Bowman Simon has his heart set on the bleak stone landscape outside City Hall in NYC. Why wouldn’t we make better use of this prime public space? There have been trees and flowers in planters outside City Hall before. However, the most recent were removed during the Giuliani administration. Bowman Simon believes we should turn this space into an organic edible garden — People’s Garden NYC.

This garden will represent New Yorkers’ commitment to education, public service, healthy eating, and environmental stewardship. This garden will be tended by NYC public school students, in collaboration with the NYC Department of Parks & Recreation and our region’s talented gardeners and farmers. The harvest will be donated to a nearby food pantry to feed the hungry.

This garden will represent the vision of a more sustainable, livable City for all New Yorkers, and will contribute to achieving the intents of PLANYC by 2030.

Mayor Sam Adams planting a garden outside City Hall in Portland, OR.

A temporary victory garden outside City Hall in San Francisco, CA and a permanent one outside City Hall in Baltimore, MD.

Besides The White House garden, there are organic gardens planted outside several City Halls, including Baltimore, MD, Portland, OR, Kingston, NY, as well as a temporary one in San Francisco, CA. On February 12 of this year, the bicentennial of Lincoln’s birthday, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, broke ground on the first People’s Garden at USDA Headquarters. The reason for the People’s Garden, according to USDA: “When Abraham Lincoln founded USDA in 1862, he referred to it as ‘The People’s Department.’ It is a description that is as true today as it was then. USDA touches the lives of Americans every day.”

The name People’s Garden is a tribute to President Abraham Lincoln, and to the good work of the USDA, who planted the first People's Garden outside their headquarters on February 12.

Nearly eight hundred people have already signed the petition since its launch last week. Spread the word! Maybe a few lucky school children will get to enjoy City Hall tomatoes this summer. For you non-New Yorkers, why not start a petition for a public garden to be planted outside City Hall in your town?

Top rendering by Amy Seek.

Related posts:

1. My very own edible container garden.
2. My Lost City
3. The Edible Garden

“I wish for your help to create a strong, sustainable movement to educate every child about food, inspire families to cook again and empower people everywhere to fight obesity.” I find it hard to refrain from nodding my head in agreement when hearing celebrity chef Jamie Oliver’s plea, a wish that awarded him the TED Prize, given annually to an exceptional individual who receives $100,000 and, much more important, “One Wish to Change the World.”

After enjoying tremendous success with his Naked Chef television series and through his off-beat laid-back cooking style becoming a major celebrity throughout Europe in the early aughties, Jaime Oliver has taken up the battle to change the way we feed our children. “It’s all about making radical changes to the school meals system and challenging the junk food culture by showing schools they can serve fresh nutritious meals that kids enjoy eating.” When listening to Oliver’s talk, I recall one episode of his show where he went to a poor village in Italy and visited a school where they, with the smallest means, made delicious, nutritious meals for the children every day. The lunch ladies cooked everything from scratch and one dish was offered every day (none of the kids seemed to mind the lack of choice or frown at their plates). What really struck me, though, was when he quizzed a classroom of children who cannot have been older than eight, on vegetables. He stood at the front of the classroom and held up one obscure veggie after another, and the kids were all screaming the names of the veggies in response. Most American or British school children probably could not even name a turnip. This needs to change, and Jamie Oliver is making that happen.

Jamie Oliver is trying to get families back into the kitchen and teach children about the fun of cooking. Photo via The Guardian.

The plan is to “set up an organization to create a popular movement that will inspire people to change the way they eat. The movement will do this by establishing a network of community kitchens; launching a travelling food theater that will teach kids practical food and cooking skills in an entertaining way and provide basic training for parents and professionals; and bringing millions of people together through an online community to drive the fight against obesity. The grassroots movement must also challenge corporate America to support meaningful programs that will change the culture of junk food.”

With the obesity epidemic growing globally, Oliver is using his notoriety to bring attention to the changes Englanders and now Americans need to make in their lifestyles and diet. Campaigns such as School Dinners, Ministry of Food and Food Revolution USA combine Oliver’s culinary tools, cookbooks and television with more standard activism and community organizing to create change on both the individual and governmental level.

Watch Jamie Oliver’s heart-wrenching TED talk (above). The next generation is the first expected to live shorter lives than their parents, by as much as ten years! The main reason for this is our unhealthy diets, and the fact that many people no longer cook or eat together. Says Oliver: “My hope is that millions more people will learn, as so many have already, that it is a happier, healthier life that is built around eating good food, together with family and friends.”

You can help make this happen by helping out any way you can (a list of needs is posted here), or by just signing the petition to show your support. Let’s make Jaime’s Food Revolution OUR Food Revolution. America’s health needs you!

Related posts:

1. NYC Food Charter
2. Saturday, February 7
3. Crafting a New Food System

The speed at which stock exchanges and money markets move these days is astonishing; trillions of dollars are zipping around the world each day, faster than any of us can truly fathom. The big crash and subsequent economic downturn has not done much to slow things down — trading is still very much based on short-term thinking, with little regard to anything but financial yield. Responsible investing pioneer Woody Tasch thinks we should take a cue from the Slow Food movement, which was started in Italy by Carlo Petrini and has grown into powerful force in the global food justice movement. In his book Inquiries into the Nature of Slow Money: Investing as if Food, Farms, and Fertility Mattered Tasch argues that we should invest in local small food enterprises and food systems in order to promote long-term economic growth. Keeping money local allows investors to experience first-hand the positive effects of their contributions. Access to a healthy food system, healthy land and a healthy local economy is imperative to financial restoration and development.

What would the world be like if we invested 50% of our assets within 50 miles of where we live? What if there were a new generation of companies that gave away 50% of their profits? What if there were 50% more organic matter in our soil 50 years from now? By asking questions like those, the founders of Slow Money are hoping to obtain one million signatories to the Slow Money Principles. Donate the amount of your choice (starting at $25), and become a member of the Slow Money Alliance. The Alliance’s Founding Members include many recognized leaders in organic food, sustainable agriculture, philanthropy and social investing.

Tasch writes that “it would have taken an oracle of Delphic capabilities to have foreseen that as the whole planet geared up and heated up and sped up in the twentieth century, responding to the triple-threat explosions of population growth, technological innovation, and financial markets, the future would hinge in such significant measure on a very different triple threat: the small, the local, and the slow.”

The financial returns can not be compared with those of traditional investing, but investors know where their money goes and can personally track (and taste) its long-term yield. Says Tasch: “The real challenge for us as a culture is to steer meaningful amounts of philanthropy, venture capital and other forms of capital to support local food systems, small-scale, diverse — truly diverse — agriculture in this country.” That, my friends with money, is truly sustainable investing.

Related posts:

1. Liberating Sustainable Beef Producers in the Northeast
2. What’s your Foodprint?
3. Fresh

The holidays are all about gathering with loved ones to enjoy a bountiful meal. Many of our most cherished memories evolve around food. But, we all tend to cook too much and a lot of that delicious holiday food tends to go to waste. Over the course of a year, half (half!) of the food in the U.S. is wasted, and although much of that waste happens during transportation and retail, 14% occurs in households. Our holiday gift tips are all about how we can keep food — such a precious resource— from being wasted.

By now, everyone has (hopefully) learned to bring reusable totes when going to the grocery store. But, many still use the plastic bags for produce. I know I did for a long time, not thinking that I had a choice. Duh! These reusable ones from Etsy will make you truly plastic-free!

Islandprovisions1: Organic Cotton Produce and Bulk Goods Grocery Bag:
This one is for the hardcore environmentalist, made from USA grown and milled organic cotton fabric, the bag can hold about 8 cups of wholesome goodness, a head or two of broccoli, 5 medium sized apples or just about anything else you would normally put in a plastic bag at the grocery store. The drawstring on this bag is also from USA grown and milled organic cotton. The seams are double stitched with heavy duty cotton thread in order to keep the bag sturdy (for those heavy bulk purchases).
$7 for one bag

WindsparrowStudio: Organic Cotton Produce/Bulk Food Bag SPROUT design:
This bag is hand-printed with a design of a sprouting seed with the words “Eat, Grow, Live, Live” in non-toxic, fade proof black ink. It’s big (17″ x 13″) and will fit a lot of veggies, grains and other bulk products. It’s also cute enough to be used as a gift bag or used to store things on open shelves.
$9 for one bag

Fabrik: Reusable produce bags
These are a bit of a compromise, they are made from heavyweight nylon tulle (not organic), but the see-through material means the cashier can read the produce number, a must in some stores. The material is also very lightweight, which means it doesn’t add to the scale. The bags can easily be washed and reused, so if you get a lot of wear out of them, the nylon could be justified.
$6 for three bags (small, medium, large)

Wonderthunder: Happy Vegetable Reusable Vegetable Bags in Red
Just looking at these bags makes me happy. They are drawn and screen-printed at the designers’ home using water-based ink on preshrunk and recycled cotton muslin, and also have an organic cotton drawstring. The fun design make them a great gift for anyone on your list.
$20 for four bags (small, medium, large, herb)

Use-It-Up Cookbook: Creative Recipes for the Frugal Cook
This book by Catherine Kitcho contains more than 125 recipes using ingredients that are frequently left over from other dishes and often go to waste. Each chapter focuses on a single ingredient like tomato paste, cheese, applesauce and cooked rice, to name just a few. There are recipe styles to suit every taste, including comfort foods, light and healthy alternatives, and creative gourmet combinations.
$12.71

So, let’s focus on the waste created around eating. No matter how conscious we are at home, a lot of us live by different standards at work. Why? With the right tools any of us can eliminate waste created by the likes of paper plates and utensils.

To-Go Ware: Stainless Steel Food Carrier
This stainless Steel Tiffin Set is a clever lunch box system that hails from India. It is reusable, lightweight, and has a lid that doubles as a plate. It’s easy to carry and clean, and works for both cold and hot food. The tiers (there are 2-tier and 3-tier ones available) enable you to bring, say, salad and an Indian dal in one container without having to risk the two getting mixed.
$22.95

ECO-TAV: Cotton and Hemp Sandwich Bag
Get rid of disposable plastic cling-wraps or ziplocs! This sandwich bag is made from an organic cotton and hemp blend, it is large enough for a sandwich of any size (and can also accommodate a croissant, a muffin, some cookies, even cut vegetables) and can be easily cleaned in the washer and dryer. It is designed and made in Canada by a belly-dancer named Tracey.
$8 for one bag

To-Go Ware: RePEaT Utensil Set
This handy bamboo utensil set comes packed in a case with a carabiner on the back, making you able to carry your eating utensils wherever you go (even restaurants). The holders are made out of RPET (recycled PET plastic), and the bamboo flatware and chopsticks are lightweight, heat and stain resistant, hand finished with top grade natural, food-safe wood oil, and won’t impart or absorb flavors.
$11.95 (includes bamboo fork, knife, spoon & chopsticks)

PeopleTowels
The average person uses 2,400 – 3,000 paper towels at work, in a given year. This may be a stretch to some, but these reusable hand towels are a great green alternative to paper towels. They are quick-drying, made of lightweight, 100% organic, fair trade cotton, and cute enough to make great gifts.
$8 for one, $21 for three or $35 for five

DIY Bonus: Make your own cloth napkins. Five minutes, no sewing!
Handmade gifts are always nice, and with a fabulous eco-friendly fabric, these will be a hit with anyone from your 22-year-old sister to 80-year-old grandma.
Free (plus cost of materials)

While we struggle not to eat too much for the holidays, many people around the world struggle to find enough food. Give the gift of hope to those most in need of it. Nobody will wish that you had bought them a reindeer sweater instead.

Pack of Seeds
Give a pack of seeds to a struggling farmer in a developing country. A unique investment in rural communities, this gift helps ensure that there are plenty for the next planting season and that traditional seed varieties are not lost. Protect endangered foods and native crops and feed the hungry. Because helping others is the true spirit of the holidays.
$18

A school meal program for one child
What’s more important than feeding our children? It’s hard to nourish the mind if the belly’s empty. This gift ensures that children in poor communities get a nutritious meal at school. With proper fuel, there’s no stopping the potential of young minds.
$25

Happy conscious holiday shopping! To keep the low-impact theme going, wrap your gifts as minimally as possible; I find that newspaper with a nice personalized label always does the trick. Finally, remember that re-gifting is only tacky if you give the gift back to the person who gave it to you.

Related posts:

1. 90 Days of Organic Raw Vegan-ness: week 10
2. Fiddyment Farms
3. Friday, December 26

Problems associated with obesity have reached epidemic proportions in the United States, and at such an alarming pace that the Surgeon General has urged communities to address the problems through a formal ‘call to action.’ The centralization of the food system has contributed to the lack of food security and access in regions such as New York (and New England at large), that were traditionally self-sustaining producers of food.

The view is killer, but the produce healthy and organic. Rooftop Farms at Eagle Street in Greenpoint set out to prove that it is possible to grow food in New York City.

New York City is outpacing the nation in obesity and its related health issues. Both obesity and diabetes rates rose by 17% between 2002 and 2004 among city residents. It is estimated that New Yorkers gained more than 10 million pounds collectively during this same period. A rise in the risk of heart disease, hypertension, depression, type II diabetes, among other health problems, often accompanies a rise in obesity. Residents of low-income neighborhoods and Black and Latino adults are disproportionately affected, thus overburdened by the related health, social, and economic problems.

The New York Botanical Garden's Edible Garden exhibit this past summer showed many different ways that edible plants can be grown on every scale. Here, Martha Stewart's herb garden.

My own Edible Garden-inspired windowbox garden.

The causes for this trend are generally oversimplified, often described as the result of changing lifestyles or overeating. The scope of the problem, however, is much more complicated. Highly processed, fatty, and sugary foods are easily accessible, both by proximity and price, whereas fresh produce is not. This is particularly true in many low-income neighborhoods and communities of color. The Department of City Planning recently found that three-quarters of a million New Yorkers live in areas sometimes referred to as Food Deserts because of their lack of access to fresh fruits and vegetables. Many of these same neighborhoods have an overabundance of fast food options: one in six restaurants in East and Central Harlem serves fast food compared to one in 25 on the more affluent Upper East Side. These unhealthy options often cost less calorie-to-calorie, but the true cost once health problems are figured in far exceed that of healthy food. It is a vicious circle, but public health advocates believe the trend may be reversed through increased availability of healthy food, nutrition education, physical exercise, and healthcare.

The Queens County Farm Museum's history dates back to 1697; it occupies New York City's largest remaining tract of undisturbed farmland and is the only working historical farm in the City.

Traditionally, food policy has largely been determined by decision-makers in the federal government and private sector. Yet, the food system – the continuum of activities ranging from production, processing, distribution, consumption, and disposal – is in the middle of an attempt at decentralizing. Local government  leadership is needed in order to create a paradigm shift that will empowering each and every city.

The Fort Greene farmers market caters to a wide variety of socioeconomic groups and, like most other NYC farmers markets, accepts food stamps.

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer’s Office released the New York City Food Pledge and Food Charter and signing campaign on Friday, December 4th, coinciding with the NYC Food and Climate Change Summit. Over the past year, a committee of food advocates from around the City has worked closely with the Borough President’s Food Policy team to draft a framework for this City-wide food sustainability plan. The Charter addresses food access, health, economic and environmental issues, and defines the values and principles from which the City government and individual City Agencies can draft their long-term food sustainability plans. Read the NYC Food Charter (pdf download), sign the NYC Food Pledge, and ask your friends and family to do the same.

I hope this will turn into a movement, encouraging other cities to draft their own food charters and encouraging the creation of local food sheds. New Your City is a great place to start; the city schools feed more people than any other school system in the nation, and the city is also know for it’s abundance of restaurants. There is also a budding urban farming movement, the growth of which will enable New Yorkers to eat food that was grown right in our midst.

Top photo: You can choose to pay the farmer and buy healthy food, or but cheap food and pay the guy across the street (the pharmacy). The second option is always more expensive, any way you look at it. We need to design our food system to reflect that.

Related posts:

1. What’s your Foodprint?
2. Charter for Compassion
3. Who wants a garden at City Hall?