A battle for the Boreal forest is finally over. Greenpeace, along with an army of activists, launched the Kleercut campaign in 2004 to ask Kimberly-Clark to help save ancient forests like the North American Boreal Forest. In the southern frontier of the forest, which is home to grizzly bears, wolverines, woodland caribou, lynx and over 1 billion migratory song birds, over 90% of the forest is being clearcut. One of these highly-destructive logging companies ex-customers? Kimberly-Clark, of course.

While popular brands like Kleenex, Scott and Cottonelle used to come from trees clearcut from the Boreal, the company announced a new policy that brings success to the Kleercut campaign and a new leader in sustainability in the paper products industry. Watch out Procter & Gamble and Georgia Pacific!

Kimberly-Clark’s new goal is to obtain 100% of the wood fiber used in its products from environmentally responsible sources, not ancient forests. By 2011, the company will stop using pulp from the Boreal unless its FSC-certified and will increase use of FSC-certified fiber and recycled fiber. Good stuff, but if you want 100% recycled fiber you’ll need to look to green brands like Seventh Generation.

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Sunflower season is just around the corner and you’ll need a tall vase to accommodate their size. This unique Recycled Bottle is just right. Rio de Janeiro based crafter Sylvia Magalhaes, recycles a champagne bottle, wrapping it with different colored cotton. The result is a gorgeous Mediteranean inspired vase.

Sunflowers are a great choice for summer bouquets since they are in season. Just like fruits and vegetables, choosing flowers that are in season and locally grown is the eco-friendly way to go. You’ll support local flower farmers and cut down on the carbon cost needed to ship out-of-season flowers from another climate.

While the yellow, brown and green of sunflowers matches perfectly with this bottle, brighter blooms can offer a fun accent. Lilies, another tall summer bloom, would also work well in this recycled bottle vase.

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The state of our oceans, beaches and waves is close to surfers’ hearts and crucial for their sport. That’s why seven of the top surf brands have come together to create limited edition project BLUE lines that will help support the Surfrider Foundation, a non-profit organization that focuses on beach preservation, coastal water restoration and other projects that help ensure you’ll still be hanging ten decades from now.

If you’re looking for a new backpack to tote your stuff to the beach Dakine’s project BLUE Recon Pack can help support your favorite spot. Not only will part of the proceeds go to the Surfrider Foundation, but it’s also made from recycled PET fabric, which helps keep plastic bottles from floating out to the giant swirl of trash in the Pacific Ocean. Click here to read more

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Bringing a baby into the world also means buying a lot of new stuff. And a lot of new stuff means more plastic being created and more pesticides being used to grow crops and so on and so forth. So the more eco-friendly baby gear you can buy the better. Jeep Consumer Products recently launched a green baby line that can help.

The Jeep Wrangler gEdition Umbrella Stroller has a canopy and seating area made from PET recycled fabric. The stroller gives new life to 45 16-ounce water bottles. And this eco ride has all the features you’d want in an umbrella stroller including a cup holder, reclining seat, removeable cargo bag and sun canopy. It even has an all-weather feature that allows you to roll up sections to reveal mesh fabric for better air circulation.

If you like toting your baby as well as pushing her around, Jeep also introduced a 2-in-1 All-Weather gEdition Baby Carrier. The outside of the carrier is made from PET fabric like the stroller, saving 15 16-ounce bottles. The inside is made from a blend of cotton and bamboo, which is both eco-friendly and anti-microbial, a smart choice for drooling babies.

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Where do golf clubs go to die after they’ve been swung for the last time? Green designer Ward Wallau helps them live on for the 19th hole. His Golf Club Bottle Openers are made from salvaged golf clubs that won’t see another tee off. Not only is it nice to see reclaimed clubs getting put to good use, but also, since each one is handcrafted a pollution-causing factory isn’t responsible for the manufacture.

You won’t have to spend time mulling over which club to use (or call in your caddy) since you only have the choice between the wood or iron style. Each product will be unique due to the handmade nature, so you never know exactly what you’ll get. Click here to read more

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