I live next door to the House of 10,000 Lights. And round the corner is the House of 1,000,000 Lights. It's scary. There are globes, and trains, and reindeer. *Sob*. Someone needs to tell these people about solar power... apart from the environmental considerations, their electricity bill ought to look a lot slimmer!
These solar powered fairy lights are $29.95 (£15) for a string of 50, which is actually cheaper than the non-solar LEDs we have wrapped around artfully arranged twigs in the living room at the moment (you try living with a designer; sparkly twigs is the least of it). They charge automatically during the day to give you eight or nine hours of pretty glowing light during the night. Sparkly fun with a conscience; how wonderfully Christmassy is that?
Alexandra Roumbas is Deputy Editor of Shiny Shiny, where a version of this post first appeared. Remember kids, everything - including gadgetry - in moderation!
A couple of days ago I was lucky enough to be one of several hundred green activists, academics and hangers on (that’ll be me then) who caught the first Eurostar train out of the new gleaming and incredibly beautiful St Pancras station.
Not only was it the first train to depart from north London as opposed to Waterloo, it also marks a new era for Eurostar in that the company claims the train was the first ever to be carbon neutral. So what does this mean in practice?
When most companies claims to be carbon-neutral there isn't really a huge amount the likes of you and I can do to check up on them. It is slightly different for Eurostar in that while much of their claim has to be taken on trust, there are a few things passengers can do to check the green creds for themselves.
Firstly the trip was really little more than a PR stunt. Eurostar has been trying to green its service for many months now. What happened on Wednesday was that it used the high profile launch of its new service to underline its current green credentials and suggest where it is going in the future.
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Today is a big day for green travel: Eurostar's first ever fully carbon-neutral journey across the to Paris has just left St Pancras station in London, and Ashley Norris is blogging the trip for us, live from the train. Read on to find out what's happening...
"The brand new station concourse is filling up, the punters are jostling towards the platform and the first Eurostar train to Paris is set to rocket out of St Pancras station in about twenty minutes time. Yet on board isn’t the usual mixture of local dignitaries, politicians in search of a photo opp and railway enthusiasts. Many of the, ahem, VIP crew for the first journey are green activists, campaigners and of course bloggers (which is where I sneaked in) here to judge for themselves the environmental credentials of Eurostar's new cross channel carbon-neutral service.
It has widely accepted for some time now that the journey between London and Paris by train produces a tenth of the carbon dioxide as one using a plane (11kg as opposed to 122 by plane). But Eurostar claims that thanks to some core changes in its service passengers can enjoy a completely carbon neutral trip."
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Tofutti has brought out yet another flavour of Creamy Smooth - the soft cheese substitute is now available with delicious hints of Country Vegetable. I can safely say my vague attempts at shedding the few pounds I've accumulated as the weather's got colder are now completely doomed. I am literally incapable of allowing a tub of Creamy Smooth to sit in my fridge for more than half an hour. I love the stuff - and this new flavour is rapidly becoming my favourite.
If you want to get hold of some, check your local health food shops (I found some in my local Holland and Barrett), or get online and order some from Goodness.co.uk.
Related: Dairy free cheese is getting better all the time...
They're more attractive than plastic trees, they don't shed like cut trees, you can reuse them, and they help the environment too. Gone are the days of destroying Norwegian forests in order to get hold of trees - you can buy them from sustainable plantations in England, with every tree taken replaced. The Christmas tree "farms" themselves protect eco-systems by acting as a buffer against erosion and contamination from nearby waterways, as well as absorbing C02 emissions. When the tree finally dies, it becomes useful compost - rather than just ending up as landfill like a plastic tree. Visit The British Christmas Tree Growers Association for more information.
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In a bid to offset the carbon emissions generated by her jet set lifestyle, the Queen is said to be sending £3 million worth of our taxes abroad for use in eco friendly projects - including the production of power using pig waste in Thailand. Er-hem. Much as my somewhat anarchic sensibilities mean that my head is literally filled with cheap cracks at this precise moment in time, I shall resist the urge to publish any of them.
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As Eurostar moves its HQ from Waterloo to St. Pancras, and shaves off 20 minutes' journey time to the continent, another milestone is being somewhat overlooked: it's about to complete its first ever carbon neutral journey.
The greenest Eurostar trip yet will leave London for Paris on at 11.03 on Wednesday November 14th. All journey on Eurostar from then on will be carbon neutral, at no extra cost to passengers.
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