Most people remember Kellie Martin for her portrayl of the daughter on Life Goes On (though there were many devoted fans to both her series Christy on CBS and her stint on ER), so it may be a jump to think of her not as a socially-awkward teen but a woman with a child of her own. But Martin is now the proud parent of a two-year old girl and one of the developments that has come with motherhood is a renewed commitment to going green (a trend we’ve mentioned regarding fellow mom Jessica Alba). Martin is working to one day have everything that fills her daughter’s room or touches her daughter’s skin be free of toxic chemicals, and one of the ways she’s setting to work is by favoring eco-friendly, natural products over conventional alternatives. Martin is dressing daughter Margaret in organic cotton clothing, applying natural baby skin care products and handing over wooden toys for playtime. Click here to read more

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Calling all car girls; we’ve found you a purse that’s right in tune with your love of things road-related. The Littlearth LE Designer True Love Fender Handbag, in fact, is probably the closest a gal can get to carrying a car on her arm. These purses are made from license plates with signature prints, which Littlearth LE points out are more pieces of art than anything else, and recycled rubber straps that are reminiscent of a new pair of wheels, with chrome accents rounding out the hot rod equation. The True Love Fender Handbag gets our recommendation for drag racing aficionados, ladies who feel right at home in tattoo parlors and anyone with a flair for fun fashion. Since the make up of all Littlearth LE handbags is recycled materials, green is not forgotten here, and with cars usually being a big environmental burden–emissions is an ugly word, even to the most die-hard car collector–it’s nice to see some eco-conscious collectibles coming from the auto world.

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Pumping your car full of fuel and the portobello mushrooms at your grocery store, until now, had very little to do with each other. Thanks to a discovery by a Plant Scientist from Montana State University named Gary Strobel, however, the future of fuel could lie in the field of fungi.

Strobel discovered a fungus living inside trees in the Patagonian rain forest that creates a new type of diesel, one with strong similarities to the diesel that we use for fuel in many vehicles. While the diesel-producing aspect of the fungus is important, scientists are especially excited by the way in which this particular fungus can both break down cellulose and synthesize the liquid fuel; meaning, in essence, that a time-draining and chemical-heavy process could be shortened by an entire step, a step that has been an obstacle in creating truly environmentally-friendly sustainable fuel sources from elements like corn. Click here to read more

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Ok, so it’s not that easy unfortunately. If you’ve ever eyed a pair of shoes or article of clothing online and waited until the extra incentive of a 10% off sale to buy them, you understand the benefit of that last little push toward your purchase. It doesn’t have to come in the form of a sale, though; why not something bigger and better? Right now when you buy from Horny Toad or Simple Shoes 10% of your purchase will go to the WE Campaign and solving the worldwide climate crisis. A project of the Alliance for Climate Protection, a nonprofit founded by Al Gore, the WE Campaign works to enlist the the citizens of the world as climate activists who will work on the dire state of our planet, while helping people understand the urgency of the global warming problem and its solutions. Click here to read more

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Daryl Hannah found her way to fame on the silver screen in films like Blade Runner, Splash, Steel Magnolias and Kill Bill, but throughout her career she’s devoted the vast majority of her time to taking care of our planet and those on it. In 2006, she went undercover to document the very disturbing realities of modern-day sex slavery, funding the work from her own finances, and changing the lives of many young girls. She was also arrested in 2006 for trying to prevent the bulldozing of America’s largest urban farm in Los Angeles. More recently, she’s created a website named DHLoveLife to promote sustainability–a cause she strongy advocates. Click here to read more

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If you’re going to be eating Thanksgiving dinner away from home–maybe at a family member or friend’s house–it can be a little tricky figuring out whether or not to bring a gift, and if so, what to bring. In many cases, they’ll have the all those delectable dinner items covered (who really wants cold mashed potatoes that have made the trip from your place anyway?) and a pumpkin pie coming from just about every other guest.

This year instead of showing up with another element to add to the already overwhelming array of Thanksgiving dinner dishes, why not try giving something to your hosts that they can enjoy on the days that follow? We like the organic Fruit & Cheese Sampler Gift Box from Fresh Fruit Baskets, which contains three organic apples and three organic pears, three ounces of tomato basil cheddar cheese and three ounces of green onion cheddar cheese and one box of Bisca organic water crackers; basically, it’s stuffed full of organically-grown goods and delicious flavors that have nothing to do with turkey, which is a good thing on the fourth day of leftovers. Click here to read more

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Stepping out in eco-conscious shoes feels good…it reassures you that you’re going green from the ground up. But for a long time that meant sliding into some Birkenstocks or throwing on pair of casual hemp sliders. They were comfortable, but rarely appropriate for work (unless you had a very lax dress code at your office).

The Patagonia Pau, available from Online Shoes, blends the three components you hope for in work footwear: Comfort, appropriate appearance and environmentally-friendly elements. Since these leather loafers are slip-on they’re well suited to your dash through airport security on business trips, and since they’re wool lined they keep your feet safe from the frigid weather on your commute to work (you’re getting green with your transportation, right?).

On the environmental end, the Pau features latex outsoles made from sustainably harvested hevea milk–harvesting milk from the hevea tree actually benefits the tree– that are stitched together to eliminate the use of toxic glues. Click here to read more

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Thanksgiving is just around the corner. Check out our Thanksgiving Buyer’s Guide to make this year’s Thanksgiving a green one. Click here to read more

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When it comes to what’s on the air, America is tuning in–the average home has more televisions than people and each member is watching more than four hours a day–and we’re seeing it all bigger and brighter thanks to advances like flat-screens and HD. While all this viewing is a boost for the people of prime time, it’s hardly the best thing for the environment. Where we once bought 19-inch sets, we’ve upgraded to 40-something inch screens (and bigger). Not only do these TVs use more resources in their creation, they eat through electricity at a much higher level than older varieties, especially in homes that are “average” by Nielsen Rating Standards and have a television on for more than eight hours a day. One 47-inch television can go through almost 400 kWh in a year if on for four hours a day and that’s excluding other elements like DVD players or cable boxes.

But as of November 1, buyers can opt for televisions that meet the EPA’s new, more comprehensive energy-efficiency specification. These televisions will be up to 30 percent more energy efficient than conventional models and adhere to a higher standard than even the previous energy-efficiency system. What kind of change could made by consumers choosing these eco-friendly models? If everyone who bought a television this year selected an EPA Energy Star model we could save about $1 billion in energy costs annually and the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions would be equal to that of about 1 million cars. Click here to read more

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