Earth911.com's Sustainability In Your Ear

Planet-friendly shopping is a new skill for many consumers. Making the right environmental choice takes information and coaching. Giki, a British mobile app for iPhone and Android, is helping U.K. shoppers make responsible decisions. Earth911 talks with Jo Hand, co-founder of Giki, about the path to a sustainable life. Giki users simply scan a barcode on the product to get a quick environmental and social responsibility report about the product and the company that made it. While the app is available only in the U.K. and European Union today, it's a smart step forward that will eventually reach U.S. consumers.Giki uses badges to explain the environmental qualities of products. "Organic," Free from Additives," and "Low Carbon Footprint" are examples of quick cues provided to the Giki user as they shop. A product with more badges is better. Each badge offers additional details about the impact on the planet, animals, and people, so you can tune your consumption to support your goals for the world.Jo Hand shares how her own shopping is guided by the need to reduce unsustainable palm oil consumption -- palm oil is used in thousands of products, often without clear attribution on the labelling. She also focuses on UK-made products and enjoys finding "Hero Products" that are the most sustainable and healthiest available. Her team at Giki, which she cofounded with her husband, has profiled thousands of products to identify their environmental impact. We discuss the importance of transparency at brands and the power of individuals making informed choices. Giki aims to expand to North America, but this is an app that we think can inspire a better world today.Join the conversation and share your thoughts with the community in our Earthling Forum.

In an important new book about the climate challenges faced by U.S. cities, Alice Hill, Senior Fellow for Climate Change Policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, and Leonardo Martinez-Diaz, the Global Director, Sustainable Finance Center of the World Resources Institute, lay out the issues that will define our lives and public policy for the next century. We talk with Alice Hill about Building A Resilient Tomorrow: How to Prepare for the Coming Climate Disruption.Hill explains how Norfolk, Virginia, the home of the largest naval port in the U.S., is an early example of a city confronting rising seas and sinking land, increased salinity in drinking water, and extreme weather, which can serve as an example for the entire country. The city's conservative government has worked aggressively to prepare for climate warming after seeing sea levels rise by 18 inches over the past several decades. As "climate attribution" science improves, the facts of global warming became undisputable. Pragmatic action replaced skepticism.We also discuss how communities and citizens can motivate local and national action. Hill describes a new reality in which the consequences of CO2 are widely understood and consumers with transparent access to information will have better choices available. It will also produce a wave of liability lawsuits that redefine responsibility for CO2 emissions. Why? Because entire populations may be on the move due to seal water inundating coastal cities. But we can prevent that by acting now. Hill's advice to many communities: Lawyer up.But cities, too, face consequences from their zoning and regulatory decisions. Are cities liable for changes in flood and fire management rules put in place for companies or investors in their communities? These issues will be decided by living generations. Building A Resilient Tomorrow: How to Prepare for the Coming Climate Disruption is a must-read guide for policymakers and citizens who recognize that climate disruption is redefining our lives every day.Join the conversation and share your thoughts with the community in our Earthling Forum.

eevie is a new mobile app for the iPhone and Android that helps people identify their carbon impact when shopping and making daily decisions about travel and diet. Earth911 talks with the founders of eevie, Tono Willms, Lenni Paar, and Raphi Ferretti. eevie suggests personal carbon reduction goals and tracks your location to coach you toward those goals based on an "Impact Score" it calculates as you make choices in your life. It's a smart assistant and mentor for carbon-conscious consumers.The eevie team lives its mission. They work collaboratively across three counties in Europe, minimizing travel and CO2 footprint. They have established a goal of helping people achieve a “4 tonnes CO2 lifestyle” by 2025, starting with themselves. If everyone were to reduce their CO2 output to 8,800 lb.s a year -- four metric tons -- we can stop the rise of excess CO2 in the atmosphere.We also explore the ways eevie tracks users, especially how personal data is used, to help create improvements. Chief Data Officer Raphi Ferretti shares how aggregated anonymous information can be used to help populations of people understand the trade-offs available when buying a product or planning travel. The app does not share any personal information and hopes to build its business through subscriptions or anonymized advertising services.Want to start using eevie today? Visit the Apple App Store or Google Play store.Join the conversation and share your thoughts with the community in our Earthling Forum.

Rockay makes socks from ocean plastic with anti-odor characteristics that reduce the need to wash by five to 10 times. It's a remarkable combination of recycling and water-use reduction that can make a big impact on an athlete's environmental impact. Earth911 talks with Daniel Chabert, founder and CEO of Rockay. The company produces organic wool and other socks, but Chabert's addition of recycled ocean plastics has transformed his perspective on sustainability.Rockay's ocean plastics come mostly from discarded fishing nets, which constitute about 70 percent of all the plastic waste in the Earth's waters. The recovered fibers are tough and hold up to long-term use. By combining an odor-resistant compound invented by Polygiene, a Danish textiles company of the same name, Rockay socks fight odor from sweat and skin trapped in the socks after use. The result is athletic wear that can be washed every five to 10 workouts, which translates into much lower water use. The Polygiene treatment uses a silver salt applied to the material to eliminate odor.Chabert, a runner who wanted to reduce his environmental impact, shares how he started and grew Rockay, which is expanding its offerings into other athletic wear just 18 months after it launched.  If you're looking for a more sustainable sock, check out Rockay.

What's the path to a career in recycling? Sean Daoud, Treasurer of PNW Metal Recycling Inc. in Portland, Oregon, talks with Earth911 about how he got involved recycling, what his job involves, and the work environment. If you want to help to save the world for a living, this episode is for you. Daoud was born into a recycling family, starting out in the scrap yard running equipment after high school. After completing internships and sales and his degree in human resources, he returned to the family business, where his responsibilities now include planning the company's future. The work involves constant communication and traditional business networking, as well as an eye for innovation and efficiency that can be introduced to improve profits.Daoud is an active member of the Institute for Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), where he is vice president of the Pacific Northwest Chapter. Participating in ISRI has proven an effective tool for building recycling industry connections and expertise. Sean shares the advice that recent grads seeking to work in the industry should network and use every opportunity to learn. We also talk about the growing role of communications and sorting technology, which has accelerated the pace of change in the industry. Recycling workers are now connected from the yard to the office and across customer relationships by technology. It is a dynamic industry like any other, with materials flowing across boundaries and through many regulatory regimes around the world, all of which recycling executives must master to succeed. And Daoud has good advice for listeners who want to work in recycling. Check out this episode to learn how to get started in recycling. Whether you start in the yard or back office, there are great futures ahead in recycling for those who network and learn.Join the conversation and share your thoughts with the community in our Earthling Forum.

The Earth911 team sits down to talk about how dumps differ from landfills, how incinerators work, and the limits of landfill expansion. Join Evelyn Fileding-Lopez, Sarah Lozanova, and Mitch Ratcliffe for this week's But first, we explore natural ways to remove stains, including grease, blood, and wine in recent infographic from Tommy John that we published. Do you know how to dispose of plastic bags responsibly? In one of our most popular postings of the last month, Patti Roth explained how disposable plastic bags have become a greater challenge to recycle and, unfortunately, now mostly end up in landfills. Here's an important tip: don't put your recyclables into plastic bags; instead, take plastic and cans out of the bag when you put them in the bin to prevent them from going into the garbage.Where does your garbage go?  We walk through Gemma Alexander's excellent articles about where we send our garbage in the United States, how dumps differ from landfills, how landfills work, and how incinerators have become a more important part of U.S. waste disposal. The construction of a landfill is a complicated long-term commitment to manage it for three decades after it closes -- yet, even that leaves tons of waste in the environment for centuries. Our recent article includes an illustration that explains how Incinerators are now a source of power generation, but produce toxic fly ash that can be reused to make concrete. The solution is to produce less garbage by buying less and recycling more. With a solid understanding of the ins and outs of where your garbage goes, you can make informed decisions about which recycling and waste options you want to use.As always, we answer your Earthling questions about recycling disposable contact lenses with Terracycle, aluminum cat food cans, and acrylic paint.Join the conversation and share your thoughts with the community in our Earthling Forum.

Baru seeds are a sustainable superfood from the Brazilian Cerrado, the highland savannah that feeds South America's major rivers. Harvested by indigenous peoples who previously cut down the Baru (Dupteryx alata), the seeds contain more antioxidants than any domesticated nut -- seven times the amount in peanuts -- and have created good jobs that prevent illegal logging. In this Earth911 Innovator Interview, Ally Mamalider, director of business strategy at Organic Traditions, shares the story of how the company brought the Baru seed to U.S. markets. We explore how the Baru seed is grown and harvested, as well as the many edible uses to which its seed and the seed husk can be put. Nothing needs to go to waste.Baru seeds taste like peanuts but have none of the allergens peanuts carry. They are striking, with skin the color of mahogany and the meat is white, with a light peanut flavor. They can be processed into a peanut butter replacement, nut milk, or used in place of peanuts in curries and salads. Mamalider explains that Baru trees grow with no irrigation and, compared to popular nuts, deliver more protein with fewer calories. You can order your first taste at Organic Traditions.Ally also shared recipes that bring the Baru seeds to life in your diet. Check out this healthy and sustainable alternative to peanuts.

How will climate change impact many people first? Through stress, our response to increasingly uncertain weather conditions and the increasing pace of climate disasters, Dr. Reggie Ferreira, Associate Director of the Traumatology Institute at Tulane University's School of Social Work. Having worked as part of New Orleans' recovery after Hurricane Katrina and in Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria, Dr. Ferreira has advice for cities and citizens who are facing climate change: Prepare by planning for disaster and building a strong social network that can work together in the wake of a hurricane, wildfire, or other weather-related disasters. Dr. Ferreira is also the editor of the American Psychological Association's journal of disaster and trauma, Traumatology, and head of the Society for Social Work Research's Disaster Research Group.In his conversation with Earth911's Mitch Ratcliffe, Dr. Ferreira shares his own experience in disaster zones and advice for the mental health community. Robust social connections are critical to community responses to disasters. Psychologists and other social workers need to rethink the way they organize responses, starting before a storm or fire to build the relationships that can overcome traditional social services models. He also explains how the impact of disasters on the poorest and most disadvantaged people, including the mentally ill, is greater than other segments of society. By preparing these communities, a city can be more resilient in the face of a hurricane's destruction as well as better for everyone on a daily basis. Communication and trust are tested by disasters and establishing a strong social bond before they strike is the keystone for successful responses to climate change-caused misery.Join the conversation and share your thoughts with the community in our Earthling Forum.

Project Repat, founded by Ross Lohr and Nathan Rothstein, has prevented more than 11 million t-shirts from landfills while bringing some sewing work back to the United States. Earth911's Mitch Ratcliffe talks with Rothstein about the inspiration behind Project Repat and the massive changes in U.S. t-shirt manufacturing over the past 30 years. After migrating to Mexico, t-shirt printing jobs have gone overseas and few American companies still make them.Project Repat has a better idea: turn old shirts into keepsake quilts hand-sewn using t-shirts sent by customers. Instead of tossing a t-shirt in the donation bin, it can be turned into a part of a memorable and snug quilt. Love a sports team? Make a quilt of the team t-shirts and jerseys you've purchased over the years. Want to remember a school or a company where you worked? In all likelihood, you have the makings of a Project Repat quilt. Reasonably priced  based on the size, Project Repat takes your order and receives your shirts by mail, then turns them into fleece-backed quilt. Join the conversation and share your thoughts with the community in our Earthling Forum.

A spooky Halloween doesn't have to be a horror show for the planet. Join the Earth911 team as we talk through how to reduce the waste and garbage produced by the scariest holiday of the year. First off, a green Halloween can be a budget Halloween with these ideas about making, renting, and recycling costumes for kids and adults. Cosplay enthusiasts out there can bring the environmental ideal to your fun, too. Making your own Halloween decorations is another way to take the old and make it new this year. We share ideas about how to reuse household items as All Hallow's Eve decorations.Torn over the prospect of handing out processed sugar packaged in single-use bags and boxes? We've got some suggestions for greener alternatives to candy and their wrappers.We also answer your Earthling Questions, too. This week we address how to recycle the #7 plastic bags for birdseed, the best way to replace a private-labeled battery -- many companies, such as ADT provide their own batteries with its products -- and the challenge of recycling pens and markers. Terracycle has a convenient, but somewhat expensive, office zero waste box that can help with marker and pen recycling.Join the conversation and share your thoughts with the community in our Earthling Forum.