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Most plastic bags rot in landfills, but a few lucky ones met LA-based multi-media artist Dianna Cohen, got chopped up, then framed into works of art.
So I went to see these on display at the opening reception for Dianna's solo show -- titled "Cycle" -- at the epOxybOx last Friday.
 I milled about nibbling on a juicy local nectarine -- all the reception food came courtesy of the Venice Farmers' Market -- and sipping wine while contemplating the aesthetics of plastic --
The art? A couple pieces imaginatively used the print on re-loved plastic bags, creating both a visual and textual collage -- but most of the exhibit left me wondering if the pieces would be interesting without the eco, re-use element that captivates environmentalists....
In fact I instead found myself mesmerized by the gorgeous, amorphous floaty lamps in the epOxybOx Gallery. I guess I like things that glow softly, kind of like a computer screen?
Luckily for me, the exhibit also showcased a few of Dianne's non-plastic works -- including a few lamps, crafted from reclaimed materials into a sort of mechanical beauty --
De-car-ing: Walked a couple blocks, got on a surprisingly crowded but on-time Big Blue Bus 2, got off in Venice at Abbot Kinney / California and walked 5 or so blocks to the show. Reverse on the way back, with a slightly less crowded bus.
Photos by Siel
San Francisco's doing it, why can't we? In the footsteps of Lights Out San Francisco -- a project to turn out all non-essential lights for an hour, between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Oct. 20 -- LA County's looking to do the same.
Lights Out LA will be a public education effort linking personal action to global warming issues. Supervisor Yvonne Burke and City Councilwoman Wendy Greuel are leading the effort to get the city involved; local officials are expected to vote on the project next week.
If approved, a number of city landmarks -- from the City Hall to LACMA to those color-changing tubes decorating LAX -- could go black. As a sidenote, the City Hall's going through a lot of light-related makeovers these days; back in July, in conjunction with Live Earth, City Hall glowed green.
But pitch black's the new green, at least for this October hour. Wanna join the dark movement? Spend an hour taking in the natural starlight by signing up at Lights Out LA.
image courtesy of Lights Out LA
Bad news is funnier read all in a row --
>> Beware your in-home ozone air purifiers. The California Air Resources Board bans these "purifiers" because they worsen asthma and other respiratory diseases. 2% of Californians own one of these machines; the ban goes into effect in 2009.
>> Beware our LA County beaches. They're still dirty, with 17% getting Fs from Heal The Bay. The rest of the state's looking cleaner though, mainly due to the dry spell that's prevented urban runoff.
>> Beware the polar bears' new tricks. Warmer climates have polar bears fishing instead of hunting for seals. Poor polar bears --
This is the first year that sustainable fashion's really gotten popular, according to Linda Loudermilk, luxury eco-fashion designer. And popular it is now, judging by the big crowd that turned out for the Sustainable Business Council's event last night at Livingreen in Culver City, where Linda -- along with four other eco-conscious people in the fashion industry -- discussed green fashion.
About a 100 people crowded in to drink organic beer and liquor (the wine wasn't organic), nibble on organic yummies, and to hear Linda, Patagonia's Violeta Villacorta, designer Deborah Lindquist, Stewart + Brown CEO Howard Brown and Quiksilver SVP Eric Joule talk fashion.
What is eco-fashion? At the moment, it's mostly organic cotton, bamboo, and hemp clothing, as well as fashions made from reclaimed or reused materials -- though new materials are coming onto the market too.
The eco-fashion market's in fact pretty diverse, as represented in the panel. Linda, for example, does "luxury eco" -- very high-end couture popular with Hollywood stars; she has outfitted Robert Downey Jr., for example. Deborah's also a high-end designer, but is more geared toward recycled fashions. Stewart + Brown focuses on high quality, fashionable daily wear, while Patagonia and Quiksilver target the active lifestyle market -- though Patagonia's long been a sustainable business pioneer while Quiksilver now has just over 20% sustainable products.
The panelists, moderated by Barbara Kramer, founder of Designers & Agents, discussed everything from their reasons for going green to the difficulties of sourcing eco-friendly materials to the challenges of breaking into the conventional retail market.
One of the most interesting discussions: Consumerism. Since overconsumption's brought us many of the environmental ills we now face, how does marketing and selling additional products -- even if better than conventional products -- fit into environmentalism? Linda spoke about creating beautiful, high-quality pieces that are meant to be kept and preserved, perhaps passed down for generations, emphasizing high-quality clothing as opposed to cheaply made, disposable fashion. Debra for her part uses reclaimed materials, making fashions out of clothes that would otherwise have gone to the landfills.
Less convincing was Howard's contention that curbing consumption would be devastating to cotton farmers in third world countries -- mainly because the claim's a rather large hyperbole as American consumerism isn't going to halt overnight. In fact, a bigger concern among the panelists was the possibility of an organic cotton shortage, especially if big players, such as Walmart, suddenly decide to buy up existing supplies.
During the Q&A, many of the questions had to do with very basic information, i.e. "What IS organic?" Which makes me think that perhaps I should write an eco-fashion series, focusing on one material at a time.
More importantly, a number of people rued that, while they know eco-friendly fashion's out there, it's tough to find in Los Angeles. I'll have to put together a handy list for fun eco-shopping in LA --
Photos by Siel
In case you haven't heard, biking's the new hot urban thing. Wired enthuses about the "rise of the urban biker" in its story covering Interbike 2007 today. And LA's right in the middle of it: Bicycle Kitchen and LA County Bicycle Coalition both get a mention.
Which is to say that Clif Bar's 2 Mile Challenge might be just the challenge for all Angelenos take. The main idea: Make all trips under 2 miles by bike. But the challenge is customizable: Pick from one or all of 5 pre-set challenges -- starting with "Get a bike" if you've still been putting it off -- or create your own. Then set a deadline and start biking!
And bike down to the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica on Oct. 6, when the 2 Mile Challenge rolls into town on a biodiesel bus. No explanation as to why the expedition isn't bike-powered -- though I'm guessing the freebies Clif Bar's giving out might be too heavy for bike transport. 
Show up to check out some cool bikes and enter to win everything from Dahon folding bikes and Xtracycle SUB trailers to Solio chargers and Prana clothes. There'll be music too, by two bands I've never heard of but have fun names: Ginger Ninjas and Fossil Fool. And of course, there'll be Clif Bar samples galore --
Afraid a biking habit will mess up your 'do? My friend Summer has a nice guide to looking hot while biking on BTC blog -- from the side-parted low hairstyle to bamboo denim trousers -- complete with diagram (right). Read and learn.
Top image courtesy of 2 Mile Challenge; bottom photo by Summer Bowen
Everyone seems to have a favorite food TV show these days. Me, I read foodie blogs, my favorite being Vegan Lunch Box by Jennifershmoo. No, I'm not vegan -- I just wouldn't mind a cute, gourmet lunch box made for me everyday. To the right's what Jennifershmoo's lucky kid got for St. Patrick's Day.
That said, many working parents have to rely on school lunches -- which are often made entirely of over-processed, chemical-infused "foods." (For a brief overview of why school lunches suck so bad, read Tim Philpott's primer at Grist)
Now, a movement's afoot to change the way lunch is done in school cafeterias -- and you're invited to join in. In fact, two separate actions targeting school lunches are happening during School Nutrition Association's annual National School Lunch Week, Oct. 15 - 19, 2007.
First, Two Angry Moms, who made a film documenting their angry crusade against lunches that consist of "neon green slushies, greasy fries and supersize cookies," want you to join their National Lunch In (PDF). All you have to do is simply follow the USDA guideline that suggests parents go to school and have lunch with their child -- but "to do it with their eyes open and to ask a lot of questions."
Then, document your visit by writing in to producers@angrymoms.org, and sending school food photos to photos@angrymoms.org. Two Angry Moms will put your contribution up on the site, building up the momentum to get healthy lunches in schools.
Second, Anne Cooper, Director of Nutrition Services for the Berkeley school system, wants schools, families, and advocates to take the National School Food Challenge. Families and advocates are challenged to help kids make nutritious meal choices and to speak with local administrators about the foods served in school lunches. Schools are challenged to seek out local, fresh foods and to examine the nutrition messages being distributed to their students
Sign up to take the National School Food Challenge here, and share the invite (PDF) to get your friends to join in. I'm not sure our school lunches will ever have the aesthetic merits of the Vegan Lunch Box fare, but hopefully we can adopt some of the nutritional values.
Photo courtesy of Vegan Lunch Box
Because bad news is funnier read all in a row --
>> Officials dump poison in Sierra lake to combat northern pike. The move's a sad last-ditch effort to exterminate these invading fish, which could threaten salmon runs and water exports.
>> The deniers are winning the war of words: Climate-skeptic books abound on Amazon's top sellers list. Bjorn Lomborg, who recently spoke at the LA Public Library, tops the list.
>> Tactics questioned in emissions lobbying. EPA administration officials "have worked to rally members of Congress and governors from vehicle-producing states to oppose California's efforts" to impose its own standards on vehicle greenhouse-gas emissions, charges my Rep. Henry Waxman.
Biking in LA can seem lonely sometimes, with cars whooshing around you, sometimes honking for being on "their" road. "Nobody walks in LA" is the popularized phrase, but I think the truer phrase is "Nobody bikes in LA." After all, you have to walk to get from the house to the car....
Of course, in reality lots of people bike in LA -- including me! And bikers are a friendly crowd, as evidenced by the numerous group rides around town: Critical Mass, Midnight Ridazz, Ride-Arc, etc. Some reasons you should join in the cycling fun:
Never fight or pay for parking again. No more of this first going to the ATM to get money for parking then
circling around burning gas and getting frustrated for 15 minutes
because you don't want to pay $20 then having to valet anyway because you can't
find a spot. This has to be the single biggest reason why I heart biking.
When I meet friends at Monsoon Cafe, I don't have to circle around Santa Monica Mall looking for a spot before walking 4 blocks up to get to the restaurant; I'm just THERE. I When I get to the post office or library, I just walk in. Biking saves me a lot time, hassles, and money, especially when running errands around the neighborhood.
Know when you'll get there. If you take away the traffic and parking variables, travel time gets pretty consistent. You'll get to know your biking speed and become an expert at timing your arrival exactly, whether that's actually on time or fashionably late.
Save money. A lot of money. One Santa Ana family got rid of their ailing Volvo and bought bikes. Now, they’re saving over a third of their income: “It’s as if your boss came in … and asked if you wanted a 35 percent raise.” So give yourself a raise -- by getting a bike.
Get a workout. I always bike really slowly -- partly because I think it's safer and partly because I'm just lazy. Still, I'm getting more activity than the people driving by --
Some bikers will really bike everywhere, but the farthest I've biked in LA is to Culver City and back for Green Drinks. My bike's a heavy townie -- very cute, but not exactly made for distance biking. Mainly, I bike within Santa Monica, which has great bike lanes and paths -- and lots of other fellow bikers.
As of today, my pink townie boasts a cute white basket I got at Helen's Cycles. If I ever
forget to take a reusable bag, I can just snap the basket off to use as
a shopping tote! I'm so ready for the farmers' market tomorrow -- Right now I'm down to peanut butter and scallions --
Photo by Siel
You've likely seen the Million Trees LA ads about town, at bus stops and billboards and, more controversially, on Shrek posters. Yes, Villaraigosa's pushing Los Angeles to plant a million more trees in our city as part of his environmental initiatives, and we're already 110,000 trees closer to meeting this proud goal -- except we're counting trees that aren't planted!
As David Zahniser's article today points out, the city's giving away little trees and counting them as planted -- and freebie-loving treehuggers are snapping these up, some with no intention of planting them.
Worse, I've inadvertently become one of these treehugging tree killers!
It started innocently enough. On my way out from a pre-emmys party a couple weeks ago, I saw a bunch of little seedlings for the taking and nabbed one for myself. I'm not quite sure what I thought it was -- a house plant, I guess.
Turns out, this seedling's a would-be tree! If I'd known this at the time, I wouldn't have taken one -- but in my defense, I didn't even know these were little trees -- though perhaps I should have asked -- and I certainly didn't have to had to fill out a "pledge to plant" form like a woman quoted in the article did.
On the upside, I've lavished a lot of attention on this cute seedling, keeping it on the ledge above my kitchen sink and watering it daily. However, I noticed a couple days ago that it seems to be drying up, its top leaves curling into itself.
I guess trees don't like being confined to 1-inch plastic cube. After reading the article this morning and realizing what I have is a tree, I replanted it -- into a slightly larger container on my balcony. Okay -- I realize this isn't the ideal situation, but I live in a small apartment in Santa Monica without a plot of land to call my own.
What to do? I'm now desperately seeking a tree adopter, but the prognosis is dire -- Larry Smith of North East Trees is quoted saying only 1 in 4 seedlings are expected to survive -- which is why more hardcore environmental and tree activists like TreePeople advise a more slow and steady, less numbers-driven approach to tree planting.
Anyone else get a freebie tree from the city at one of the 187 tree adoption events? What's happened to your tree since?
Photos by Siel
Tour a platinum LEED certified house -- and help out an enviro-charity while you're at it.
project7ten, a new environmentally-designed home, is opening its doors to the public to educate builders and homeowners about green design.
When: From October 11 - 28, Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 10 am - 6 pm, and Sunday from 12 pm - 6 pm.
Where: project7ten, 710 Milwood Ave., Venice.
Cost: $20, all donated to Healthy Child, Healthy World, a charity that is dedicated to protecting children from harmful environmental exposures.
It'd be nice if the tour was free so more people could go, but then Healthy Child, Healthy World really is a great nonprofit. Buy your tickets here.
Image courtesy of project7ten
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I milled about nibbling on a juicy local nectarine -- all the reception food came courtesy of the Venice Farmers' Market -- and sipping wine while contemplating the aesthetics of plastic --
In fact I instead found myself mesmerized by the gorgeous, amorphous floaty lamps in the epOxybOx Gallery. I guess I like things that glow softly, kind of like a computer screen? 
Emerald City calendar