eco

It’s back to school time for most families, which means it’s a great time to think about how your school is doing on the green front — especially when it comes to the basics, like recycling.

If your school doesn’t already have a recycling program in place, consider starting one. Experts say the general steps to follow are:

My daughter loves anything that comes individually wrapped. She adores new clothes. She’s mad about electronics. And has never met a nail polish she doesn’t crave.

She takes 40-minute showers. Hot.

She groans at the prospect of riding her bike to school. Begs to go to the mall with her friends.

In honor of the 40^th Anniversary of Earth Day, I present …  a tomato powered lamp!

OK, this seems a little bit out there … and is one of the reasons, lately, when I hear “green,” I see red!

For a lot of eco-minded vagabonds there is a temptation to dismiss a Hawaiian vacation as too packaged and predictable: tourists in leis and aloha shirts, skyscrapers and beach-goers crowded into Waikiki or chi-chi resorts where the main activity is sitting by the pool sipping mai-tais with a little umbrella poking out of a pineapple slice.

But an alternate Hawaii exists, offering the active nature-lover an idyllic tropical escape from winter’s grip. The Garden Isle of Kauai is lush and laid back, high on beauty and outdoor adventure, low on pretension and crowds. And low on cost, too, with many free and inexpensive ways to explore its natural treasures.

Welcome to the 196th edition of Carnival of the Green, brought to you by Gaiam! Thanks to TreeHugger, this week we bring you the best in Green from around the blogosphere and Twitterverse.

Big thanks to EcoTech Daily for hosting last week’s Carnival and keep an eye out for the next installment at La Marguerite on September 21st. For more information and to submit your site for consideration as a host, read this.

“Eco” as a prefix has gained some potent marketing cachet for all sorts of goods and services in recent years, not least for travel. Nearly every jungle accommodation in Costa Rica seems to bill itself as an “eco-lodge,” for instance, and ecotourism is promoted as an important, even essential, means of protecting species and habitats.

Every week we highlight the best articles, blogs, news, videos and interesting Web tidbits to help you live green, be healthy, and connect with your sense of spirituality. Read our roundup for info that just helps you live better.

Spin Cycle: Real Green Goods or Greenwashed Sales Pitch?