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Ecoist Accessories Make Eco-Friendly Egoists Look Good

Karen Chernick
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Ecoist Accessories Make Eco-Friendly Egoists Look Good

"recycled coke label bag"Ecoist: an individual that lives a modern, eco-minded lifestyle.  (Don’t forget chic.)

When it comes to upcycling discarded products or industrial scraps, designers often turn to making fashion or home accessories.  They are fun to make, and allow people to feel creative and less wasteful in their accessory choices.  Here on Green Prophet we’ve already seen handbags made out of tire inner tubes, Infobags made from pages of old maps and encyclopedias, and even purses make from furniture fabric samples.  While we’ve also seen wallets made out of upcycled product wrappers, we have not yet seen handbags made out of that material and so the Ecoist line of handbags and jewelry caught our attention.

A fashion line started by two Israeli brothers, Jonathan and Yair Marcoschamer, Ecoist handbags, jewelry, and home accessories are all made from misprinted and obsolete packaging generated by junk-food companies such as the Coca-Cola Company, Frito-Lay, and Mars (to name a few).

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Land Rover Revs Up Omani Leopard Conservation Program

Tafline Laylin
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Land Rover Revs Up Omani Leopard Conservation Program

leopard wildlife conservationLand Rover has demonstrated its commitment to Arabian Leopard Conservation for the sixth year by supporting the Biosphere Expeditions research project.

Wildlife conservation is rife with challenges, yet concerned organizations often battle to overcome them as a result of underfunding. Corporate assistance goes a long way to filling those financial gaps. In the Middle East, Egypt’s wild cats are in peril, Iran’s are faring no better, but Oman may just have a population of Arabian leopards that can thrive in the Dhofar mountain region.

For the sixth consecutive year, the 4×4 auto manufacture Land Rover has lent valuable support to the Biosphere Expeditions research project, which tracks leopard populations in order to best inform conservation initiatives.

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Connect your children to the seasons

Varda Epstein
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lilac flowers bunch holding pictureMake your children earth conscious by collecting the special flora of the seasons.

Every so often, the air is so pure you just have to go out and take a walk with your children. It’s not something we plan for, it just happens. We are lured to the outdoors like children that must follow the Pied Piper of Hamlin, even to their own destruction. Of course, the only destruction in this case is housework and homework left undone.

But sometimes, you have to blow it all off. A nature walk with Mom, or in the mom’s case, a nature walk with the kids, on a rare and wonderful day, far outweighs all other tasks. Carpe Diem! Seize the day.

Now I don’t know about you, but I’m all about making the world tangible to my kids. They know that when we pass a lavender bush, we will slide our hands over the branches and the scent will cling to our skin. I will explain that the Romans used lavender to scent their baths and called the plant “lavandarius” from the words “lavanda” (things to be washed) and “lavare” (to wash).

We pass a sprawling patch of mint and we each pick leaves and thoughtfully chaw on the fresh greenery. We see patches of caterpillar eggs that look like foam. But it all depends on the season. And maybe that’s the whole point.

We live in a world where seasonal fruits and vegetables can be bought year round and have lost their seasonal connection. So have we. We’re always busy fulfilling obligations. But we must also stop and smell the flowers, and make sure our children do so, too: if we expect our children to save the planet, they had better come to love it, first.

Whenever the kids and I take a walk, we bring a basket. The kids look for things to gather: acorns, twigs, a beautiful autumn leaf, or a small gray stone that is remarkable by dint of its smoothness. At first, the kids are a bit hesitant about choosing items to put in the basket. I free them by saying, “I’ll hold the basket. You look around for things to gather,” and they begin to hunt in earnest.

When we come home, we are exhilarated and exuberant from fresh air and togetherness. We arrange the items we’ve collected to make an artistic centerpiece that is both touchable and something to speak about for many days to come.

Read more about making green children:
A Mother’s Voice Can Make Greener Children
Make Greener Children With A Patch of Dirt
Egyptian Kids Find Pollution With Disposable Cameras

Put Your Money Where Your “Like” Is

Eliezer Yaari
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Put Your Money Where Your “Like” Is

facebook like stampPhilanthropic heavyweight to green and social organizations, Eliezer explains why pressing “Like” doesn’t convert support into donor dollars.

It is time to say it loud and clear: I don’t like the “Lik”e. Did you hear me? I Do Not Like The Like. Don’t misunderstand me: I love when people love me, and I like it when people like what I write and get their thumb up when they read my opinions about the world. This is the fuel that runs the writing of any blogger. I really like it, but I don’t like the Like.

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Earthquake Damage to Japanese Nuclear Power Plants Should be Warning to Mideast Planners

Maurice Picow
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Earthquake Damage to Japanese Nuclear Power Plants Should be Warning to Mideast Planners

Another Chernobyl in the making? Does the Middle East need this risk?

Friday’s devastating earthquake and tsunami waves in Japan have left that entire country in a state of shock, and power outages – even in the country’s capital, Tokyo. The 8.9 magnitude quake, the most massive Japan has ever experienced and the 7th largest in world recorded history, has not only caused a disastrous amount of property damage as well as well as loss of life, it has also resulted in some damage to a few of the country’s 52 nuclear power plants. The most serious effected are those nearer to the epicenter of the quake, especially the power plant at Fukushima I, located by the city of Okuma, 260 km from Tokyo. When the quake struck on Friday afternoon, March 11, the Japanese government ordered an immediate shutdown of this plant, and several others, including the newer Fukushima II plant located only about 11.5 km to the south.

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After Four Years, Dubai’s “Holey” O-14 Tower Finally Opens

Tafline Laylin
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After Four Years, Dubai’s “Holey” O-14 Tower Finally Opens

o-14 tower dubai

After four years, the O-14 is finally complete, and is as righteous as it is “holey.”

Dubai has been eclipsed recently by a host of exciting developments in Abu Dhabi and Qatar, the first Middle Eastern country to host the World Cup. In part, this is because the splashy Emirate was forced to adopt a low profile following crippling economic collapse while other Gulf economies have rested comfortably on their oily laurels. Slowly slowly, however, debts are being paid and project development is inching forward. The O-14 Tower designed by Jesse Resiser and Nanoko Umemoto of RUR Architecture first broke ground in 2007 and is finally ready for occupancy. The doily appearance, albeit interesting to look at, does comprise beneficial environmental and structural elements, while simultaneously allowing for an unusual freedom on the inside.  

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“Anatolia Won’t Be Blackened” Declare Turkish Anti-Fossil Fuel Groups

Julia Harte
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“Anatolia Won’t Be Blackened” Declare Turkish Anti-Fossil Fuel Groups

Not in my backyard: groups across Turkey unite against pollution from fossil fuel power plants.

Over the past few decades, dozens of local environmental groups have sprouted across Turkey, united by a single goal: dissuading the government from allowing energy companies to build fossil-fuel-fired power plants near their homes. In the Marmara Sea resort region of Yalova, for example, the Yalova Environmental Platform held a press conference to protest the construction of a local coal-fired plant — and was promptly sued by the company who wanted to build it. In the Black Sea town of Gerze, the Green Gerze Environmental Platform held a “Meeting for Climate Justice” last November, to raise awareness about the coal-fired plant that may soon be built near the town, and the threat that dirty fuels pose to the climate.

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Middle Eastern Strife Takes A Heavy Toll On Tourism

Tafline Laylin
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Middle Eastern Strife Takes A Heavy Toll On Tourism

middle east mosqueThe Middle East has become one of the most popular tourist destinations, and is expected to become even more so, but the current unrest has taken its toll.

Even though Dubai has been spared the awful drama that has gripped many countries in the Middle East – most dramatically Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya – the Emirate won’t be spared the subsequent loss to its tourism industry. Prince Harry, for example, has cancelled his intention to participate in a charity polo tournament.

Other countries in the region will suffer even greater losses as international tourists and businesspeople cancel their trips amidst unrest and rising oil prices, the Media Line reports. Concerted efforts by Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE to drive tourism traffic in order to diversify their economies will be hampered until peace is restored. In the meantime, the environmental boon (less air traffic = fewer carbon emissions) comes with unhappy socio-economic consequences, emphasizing the need to boost regional resilience in the event of future environmental and political instability.

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This Year’s US/Israel Venture Summit: Where Capital Lifts Innovation Off The Ground

Tafline Laylin
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This Year’s US/Israel Venture Summit: Where Capital Lifts Innovation Off The Ground

us/israel 2011 venture summitGreat ideas are just that without the capital to get them off the ground. The 5th annual US/Israel Venture Summit provides opportunities for cash-strapped but deserving businesses to take their ideas to the next level.

Soon after Massachussets Governor Deval Patrick completes his cleantech tour of Israel and the UK, Israel’s latest and greatest innovators will have an opportunity to present their savvy to a host of investors seeking dynamic opportunities. Presented by youngStartup Ventures, the 5th annual US/Israel Venture Summit will take place March 29-30th at the Digital Sandbox in New York City.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gvBNYPnMyY[/youtube]

Cutting edge Israeli companies will be able to network with top tier venture capitalists, angel investors, corporate venture capitalists and investment bankers in one of the most important annual meetings for Israelis interested in lifting their ideas off the ground. The 40 companies chosen to participate will represent the best startups and emergent businesses in the fields of technology, life sciences, and cleantech.

The summit will also feature 35 influential VC speakers and five VC panel discussions. Among the VCs confirmed to speak are WAVE Equity Partners, Canaan partners, Comcast Interactive Capital, and Millennium Technology Ventures. And finally, both emergent CEOs and investors will have the chance to discuss challenges facing either side of the startup fence and enjoy industry exposure in an exclusive, invitation-only setting. For more information, visit the 2011 US/Israel Venture website.

More on Israeli Cleantech:

Israel Cleantech Ventures Raising $100 Million For Energy Innovation

Israel Cleantech Intelligence: Clean Air And Six More Headlines

Massachusetts Governor Firms Up Ties With Israel’s Cleantech Superpowers

Plastic Bag Shoes From Israel at Milan Design Week

Karen Chernick
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Plastic Bag Shoes From Israel at Milan Design Week

plastic bag shoes made from orange peelsGalit Begas’ plastic bag shoes

Well known for its innovative and high level of forward-thinking in the arts and design, Jerusalem’s Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design can be proud of its creative students.

Proud enough to show their designs off to the world, which is what they will be doing in April when they send the work of 37 undergraduate and post-graduate students to Italy for Milan Design Week.  The show, titled Thinking Hands, will showcase a wide range of design products that experiment with new material combinations and technological processes.

Ezri Tazari, one of the show’s curators and the head of the Master of Design program at Bezalel, said that “the philosophical background of the theme of the exhibition, ‘Thinking Hands’, comes from the new integration and combination possibilities in design today, enabled by the post-industrial radical change.”

The designs are not only visually fascinating, but some of them are eco-friendly as well.

Above, designer Galit Begas’ plastic bag shoes are made from what she calls “the perfect raw material” due to its colorful, cheap and readily available nature.

Custom-made soles attach to the various molded plastic bag shoe forms (similar to Israeli-designed Skins Footware), making them colorful, versatile, and relatively low on resources.

kitchen utensils made from orange peels
Ori Sonnenschein’s citrus peel bowl and cups

Ori Sonnenschein also decided to make use of a material that is often discarded, and found a way to reuse citrus fruit peels.  Using microwave technology, Sonnenschein molded and hardened the peels, shaping them into beautiful ceramic-like shapes that he calls ‘Solskin Peels’.

"vegetable peel jewelry"
Yael Friedman’s jewellery made from citrus peels

Similarly, Yael Friedman found a use for vegetable peels (image on the left), braiding and shaping them into funky jewelry.  (Just don’t forget to take those rings off before washing your hands.)"raw wood chair design"

Adi Zaffran Weisler (above) went a little bit larger in her adaptation of raw organic materials, and gathered unprocessed branches of wood to create stools.  Her ‘RAWtation’ chairs fuse plastic rotation molding with raw wood.

:: Design Boom

Read more about sustainable design in Israel:

Elanit Neutra upcycles old inner tubes into handbags
Beauty Increases Sustainability, According to Designer Gadi Amit
Ten Sustainable Israeli Designers Who Reduce, Reuse & Recycle
Jan Eric Visser Experiments with Post Fossil Fuel Design

Fears that Gaddafi May Sabotage Oil Facilities

Arwa Aburawa
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Would Gaddafi risk an environmental disaster by sabotaging oil pipelines to the Mediterranean to regain his control over Libya?

According to an article in Time Magazine, sources close to Gaddafi have warned that the situation in Libya will escalate into further chaos as the eccentric leader has ordered security services to sabotage oil facilities.

This comes after a month of protests and confrontations in Libya which have led to the estimated death of 1,000 people according to human rights activists. Although the Time’s article was quick to point out that reliable information coming out of Tripoli is scarce, this is not a completely unlikely move.

Back in 1991, Saddam Hussein ordered engineers to burn oil field and blow up wells in Kuwait during the first Gulf War. This act of wanton destruction led to an ecological catastrophe which not only burned one billion barrels of crude oil but also killed vegetation and wildlife, and polluted groundwater which led to the poisoning of the local human population.

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Eat The Whole Animal: Lamb’s testicles and hog balls

Walid Dajani
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Eat The Whole Animal: Lamb’s testicles and hog balls

image-lamb's-testicles

One testicle or two? Waste not, want not. It’s all good meat.

Affluent societies view an animal as so many fillets. But meat-eaters in traditional (read: less privileged) societies don’t turn their noses up at offal – kidneys, liver, head meat, tripe, sweetbreads, ears, and trotters. Testicles and penis meat too.  Those bumpy, funky bits are just as healthy and delicious as as any other part of the animal.

What’s the difference between a lamb’s ribs and, say, his testicles? No reason to throw good meat out. Think whole-animal cooking and sustainable food and read about home animal slaughter on Green Prophet.

In the Middle East, turkey testicles are commonly grilled and served in a pitta along with other grilled meats. Try a “me’urav yerushalmi” in any Israeli shwarma joint – the little dark round pieces are turkey testicles. With the Middle Eastern love of lamb and goat meat, the tasty reproductive organs naturally appear on plates as kabob.

Thousands attend annual testicle festivals in Idaho, Montana, and Illinois, starring turkey, hog, bull, and lamb testicles – usually breaded and fried.  Lamb fries are lunch in New Zealand when lambs are castrated on the farm. In fact, wherever people love meat and hate waste, testicles are on the menu.

A couple of Americans fry hog testicles in plenty of hot sauce – mountain oysters

 

Curious to try testicles yourself? Your local supermarket is unlikely to carry them. Look for them at Halal butchers. Make sure the glands are firm and pink. If fresh, cook them within 48 hours. Frozen ones should be cooked immediately after thawing. Plan on half to one testicle per serving.

If the tough outer membrane hasn’t been removed, you will have to slit it through and remove the meat inside. Grilling the testicles whole, it’s not necessary to remove the membrane. Many people like to soak the skinned glands in cold salty water to leech the blood out first.

Dip them in batter  and fry in deep oil, or cover them in flour seasoned with salt, pepper, and crushed garlic and fry in butter. Or soak them in your favorite marinade as you would for any other BBQ and cut them up to grill on skewers. Any way you choose to cook testicles, squeeze some fresh lemon juice over them before serving. Delicious.

Middle-Eastern Recipes from Green Prophet:

Kibbeh

Baba Ganoush

Eggplant Soup

Photo of lamb testicles for kabob by Shahrokh Dabiri via Flickr.

Massachusetts Governor Firms Up Ties With Israel’s Cleantech Superpowers

Tafline Laylin
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Massachusetts Governor Firms Up Ties With Israel’s Cleantech Superpowers

massachussets governor deval patrick

Governor Deval Patrick tour through Israel and the UK is aimed at fostering stronger “green” partnerships.

During a ten day trip that commenced in Israel on March 7th, delegates of The Massachusetts Innovation Economy Partnership Mission 2011 are meeting with Israeli and UK business leaders and government officials.

The focus of these meetings will be on expanding cleantech businesses, jobs, and collaboration. Governor Deval Patrick kicked off the tour with a forum held this past Tuesday at the Interdisciplinary Center in Herziliya, where he expressed his hopes to strengthen an already solid relationship between Israel and Massachusetts.

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“If I Die” Lets Facebook Prepare A Video Clip Launched At Death

Tafline Laylin
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“If I Die” Lets Facebook Prepare A Video Clip Launched At Death

willook ifidie appIf you had one last thing to say to your Facebook friends, what would it be?

Adding to Christmas lists and New Year’s resolutions, we now we have an option to use our favorite social networking site to publish our final green wishes. Willook has developed a Facebook application that allows environmentalists to be green to the grave. For those people not obsessed with all things eco, the app is an interesting new take on the last word. The Israeli startup – Jews are neither squeamish nor flighty about death – has built their application to include certain protocols that ensure respect to the end, while allowing a fast and meaningful way to spread love with the recently deceased’s network of friends.

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Ride the Electric Abu Dhabi Stretch Limo SuperBus

Maurice Picow
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Ride the Electric Abu Dhabi Stretch Limo SuperBus

The midnight blue “electric” Superbus comes fully loaded. Backed by Dow Chemicals, is this another example of westerners catering to the whimsy of oil rich sheikhdoms?

Commuting time between the United Arad Emirates super cities of Dubai and Abu Dhabi could be cut in half in a newly invented electric Superbus able to ply the 124 km distance in only 30 minutes, according to The National. The new electric stretch limo, or sleek super bus,  is 15 meters long, 2.5 meters wide and 1.65 meters high,  has eight gull wing-style doors on each side, and can accommodate up to 23 passengers in “limousine style” comfort at speeds of 250 km per hour. A dream car for Batman or another example of the bad taste of ostentatious wealth?

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