Best-Lock introduced a set of green and yellow interlocking building blocks made from renewable materials at the 2010 Nuremberg Toy Fair. Best-Lock says its blocks work with the plastic building blocks from Best-Lock, Mega-Bloks and Lego. Best-Lock also introduced a plastic container where the lid forms a base and the bottom can be used as a play table.
"We are doing our part to help the climate but still creating a fantasy play world," says Torsten Geller, CEO of the traditional company. "There is a global trend towards ecological toys and we intend to stay abreast of these changes and focus to an ever greater degree on plant-based materials. Even the packaging made of recycling paper reflects environmental friendliness thanks to its better carbon footprint."
The Climate Dress can signal how much CO2 is in the air. The dress has over a hundred tiny LED lights inserted into the embroidey, a CO2 sensor and an Arduino Lilypad microprocessor. The LEDs visualize the level of CO2 in the nearby surroundings and are powered trough the embroidery. The dress senses the CO2 concentration in the air, then accordingly creates light patterns varying from slow, regular light pulsations to short and hectic. The technology is a collaboration between Copenhagen based design studio diffus, Swiss embroidery company Forster-Rohner, the Danish research-based limited company Alexandra Institute and the Danish School of Design.
Solio makes several models of its sleek looking solar powered chargers. The $69.95 Solio Mono model is pictured above. It can charge thousands of different devices including the iPhone. The solar chargers can be charged from the sun. It can also be charged via USB port or from an optional wall charger. Shira Lazar from CBS News talked to the founder of Solio at the Consumer Electronics Show. Take a look:
The FDA is now investigating health risks from BPA, or bisphenol-A, a commonly used component used to make plastic bottles and food packaging. The FDA declared the substance safe in 2008, but it may now reverse that decision.
BPA is the chemical that has been banned from baby bottles. But it may be dangerous for adults, too.
The New York Times reports:
The agency said Friday that it had "some concern about the potential effects of BPA on the brain, behavior and prostate gland of fetuses, infants and children," and would join other federal health agencies in studying the chemical in both animals and humans.
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Concerns about BPA are based on studies that have found harmful effects in animals, and on the recognition that the chemical seeps into food and baby formula, and that nearly everyone is exposed to it, starting in the womb.
But health officials said there was no proof that BPA was dangerous to humans.
"If we thought it was unsafe, we would be taking strong regulatory action," said Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, the principal deputy commissioner of the drug agency, at a news briefing.
Nonetheless, health officials suggested a number of things people could do to limit their exposure to BPA, like throwing away scratched or worn bottles or cups made with BPA (it can leak from the scratches), not putting very hot liquids into cups or bottles with BPA and checking the labels on containers to make sure they are microwave safe. The drug agency also recommended that mothers breastfeed their infants for at least 12 months; liquid formula contains traces of BPA.
BPA has been used since the 1960s to make hard plastic bottles, sippy cups for toddlers and the linings of food and beverage cans, including the cans used to hold infant formula and soda. Until recently, it was used in baby bottles, but major manufacturers are now making bottles without it. Plastic items containing BPA are generally marked with a 7 on the bottom for recycling purposes.
The chemical can leach into food, and a study of more than 2,000 people found that more than 90 percent of them had BPA in their urine. Traces have also been found in breast milk, the blood of pregnant women and umbilical cord blood.
The FDA is going to spend $30 million in the next two years to do extensive testing on BPA, according to health officials. BPA is banned in Canada, Chicago and parts of New York, but only for products meant for children. Depending on the outcome of the FDA's testing, the substance could end up being banned entirely.
Toyota announced that it will begin selling a plug-in version of the Prius within two years. The cars will run on electricity alone. Toyota showed off the new Prius at the Detroit Auto Show. Take a look:
Green Toys Inc. announced it will introduce a new line of toys for children as young as six months old. The new line, called My First Green Toys, will include seven new products made in California, from 100% recycled milk containers. The toys include the Green Toys Stacker, Green Toys Tugboat, Green Toys Blocks, and Green Toys Feeding Spoons, Spoon and Fork Set, Plate Set and Bowl Set. The company says its toys are made from 100% post-consumer recycled milk jugs, and contain no BPA, phthalates, or PVC. The toys will arrive in stores in Spring, 2010.
"We've been deluged with requests for Green Toys brand products designed for infants and toddlers," said Robert von Goeben, president and co-founder of Green Toys Inc. "Our customers tell us they love Green Toys products because they know where the toys are made and exactly what they are made from. The My First Green Toys line allows us to offer the benefits of safe, environmentally-friendly products to a younger age group, while providing parents with peace of mind."
WTOP reports that stores that carry food and alcoholic beverages in Washington D.C. will start charging a 5 cent bag fee tomorrow. Some D.C. are going to be giving away resusable bags to consumers.
In order to help consumers avoid the fee, a number of stores in the District will be giving away reusable bags starting this Friday.
Giant will give shoppers a reusable bag with every purchase at a District store between Friday and January 7. Safeway will also begin giving them away starting Friday.
For the entire month of January, Harris Teeter will give shoppers a reusable bag with a purchase of 20 dollars.
The plastic bag fee was approved unanimously by the D.C. City Council in June, 2009.
Bottled water sales soared from the early 1980s to 2007. Then sales began to slip. MSNBC reports that bottled water sales slipped in 2008 and are projected to fall gain again in 2009.
After steady expansion that saw U.S. per capita consumption grow from less than two gallons a year to a peak of 29 in 2007, bottled water sales slipped 3.2 percent in 2008 and are projected to dip another 2 percent this year, according to estimates by the Beverage Marketing Corporation, a New York research and consulting firm.
The green movement away from plastic bottles is partly responsible for the reduction in bottled water sales but it doesn't tell the whole story. The recession is also playing a large role. The Beverage Marketing Group says that other bottled drinks, such as soda and energy drinks, have had sales fall more than bottled water. There is also a fierce price war going on between bottled water makers.
Charlize Theron has partnered with Tom's Shoes to raise money for the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project, her charity that helps improve education for high school students in South Africa. Charlize told People, "I'm thrilled to have TOMS Shoes as a partner. We are so grateful for their generous donation of shoes to the students we work with. It's exciting that we're able to come together in such a cool and creative way to bring attention to the needs of many South African youth."
The $54 vegan friendly Baobab shoe features an embroidered tree on the toe and a custom lining with the Africa Outreach Project logo. A portion of the proceeds from each pair will go directly to the Africa Outreach Project. You can find the shoes here on tomsshoes.com. They are currently backordered by Tom's says more shoes are coming.
The construction of a major highway around the city of Rio de Janeiro has been partly stopped due to the discovery of a small frog under threat of extinction. The planned superhighway goes straight through a forest that is home to 30 species of amphibians and numerous other animals. This is the only place on earth that the tiny, rare frog can be found. Conservationists are concerned that if this part of the forest is paved over the frog and many other species will go extinct. No final decision has been made whether to move this part of the planned highway. Take a look:
A giant iceberg is heading towards the coast of Australia. The iceberg broke off from Antarctica's Ross Ice Shelf ten years ago and has been drifting ever since. It is twice the size of Manhattan (approximately 87 square miles) and is threatening shipping lanes in the Pacific. The superberg is called B17B and is around 1,000 miles off the coast right now.
The superberg is not expected to hit the coast of Australia, it will break off into smaller pieces and melt before then. Glaciologist Neal Young told the Telegraph that icebergs of its size have probably not been seen since 19th-century clipper ships traveled between Britain and Australia, but that with climate change they may become more common.
It's an unusual, rare -- and disturbing -- site. Take a look:
Cocoa prices are at a 30 year high, which is putting pressure on confectioners to raise the prices on chocolate products during a recession. Cocoa prices are rising, mostly because the trees are getting too old to produce a quality crop, especially in the Ivory Coast. Cocoa trees must be replaced over time, which is expensive. But new, sustainable, fair trade methods of farming are helping revolutionize the industry.
Nestle has said it plans to provide as many as 12 million stronger, more productive cocoa trees to farmers over the next decade. The company has said it will spend 460 million Swiss francs ($445 million) on cocoa, coffee science and "sustainability" projects over the next decade.
Chocolate makers in the U.K. sold 28 million pounds' worth of Fairtrade chocolate in the country last year. The share of Fairtrade in that market will rise to 10 percent in 2010 because of Nestle and Cadbury's changes from 1 percent in 2008, Eileen Maybin, a spokeswoman for Fairtrade in the U.K. said Dec. 7. The Fairtrade designation requires chocolate makers pay an extra $150 per ton of cocoa and guarantee a minimum price of $1,600 a ton, she said. The extra money is used for development projects.
British chocolate maker Cadbury has led the way in Fairtrade practices. All Dairy Milk Cadbury bars in the UK are now Fairtrade. That caused Nestle to announce that KitKats in the UK will be certified as Fairtrade starting in January, 2010.
A skyscraper being built in China is being billed as the most energy-efficient in the world. CNN's Eunice Yoon visited the construction site of the upcoming sksycraper. SOM, the construction company, is using a concept called net zero energy to build the tower. It will use both wind power and solar energy. However, when it can't get enough energy from wind and solar power it will have to tap into the city's energy grid, which means it won't always be achieving a net zero energy level. CNN says the ambitious green tower has plenty of skeptics. Take a look:
Nestle will begin selling certified Fairtrade Kit Kat bars in the UK and Ireland. Cadbury has been selling mass-market Fairtrade chocolate since earlier this year.
Chocolate makers in the U.K. sold 28 million pounds ($46 million) of Fairtrade chocolate in the U.K. last year. The share of Fairtrade in that market will rise to 10 percent in 2010 because of Nestle and Cadbury's changes from 1 percent in 2008, said Eileen Maybin, a spokeswoman for Fairtrade in the U.K. The Fairtrade designation requires chocolate makers pay an extra $150 per ton of cocoa and guarantee a minimum price of $1,600 a ton, she said. The extra money is used for development projects.
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Nestle plans to provide 12 million stronger, more productive cocoa trees to farmers over the next decade. The company has said it will spend 460 million Swiss francs ($456 million) on cocoa, coffee science and "sustainability" projects over the next decade.
We think this is a great idea. We're ready for our Fairtrade Kit Kat bars here in the U.S.
The Green Car Journal has named the Audi A3 TDI as the Green Car of the Year for 2010. The finalists for Green Car Journal's 2010 Green Car of the Year award also included the Honda Insight, Mercury Milan Hybrid, Toyota Prius, and Volkswagen Golf TDI. This year's winner was unveiled at a press conference at the Los Angeles Auto Show this week.
The Green Car Journalsays the 2010 Audi A3 TDI has a base price of $29,950 and exceptional 42 mpg highway fuel economy.
"The Audi A3 TDI is an exceptional vehicle that 'green car' enthusiasts would be proud to drive," says Ron Cogan, editor and publisher of the Green Car Journal and editor of GreenCar.com. "Without exotic technology or special measures, it achieves lower CO2 greenhouse gas emissions and highway fuel economy of 42 mpg, the best highway fuel efficiency of any vehicle in the luxury segment. Plus, the A3 TDI offers loads of low-end torque and is fun to drive. Its sportiness, luxury overtones, and good looks simply add to this 'green' car's appeal."
Last year's Green Car of the Year award winner was the VW Jetta TDI.
