It's not just Hollywood A-Listers that are zooming around in eco-friendly luxury at the moment - London fashionistas are at it too. I've ganked this video of Shiny Shiny's Zara test driving the latest Smart Car model, the Smart ForTwo; a big hit at London Fashion Week. Being tiny, Smarts are all pretty hot on fuel consumption, but they've improved it even further now. This model's been given a 'very good' overall rating by environmental research unit the Oko Trend Institute. Whizzy!
We got such a great response to our summer dresses roundup in the spring, that I decided to invite Adili back, this time with a selection of green and ethical outfits for Autumn. In this roundup, we've taken some of the more everyday wearable items, including a fantastic trench coat and merino cardi, all made under stringently ethical conditions.
Did you know that energy saving (CFL) light bulbs could be dimmed with a normal dimmer switch? that they can also be brightened, and used to create a soft a glow as a standard light bulb? Well, neither did I until I saw the Light Garden by Jason Bruges in collaboration with Greenpeace.
These new, adjustable lightbulbs are available online now from Varialight, and prove that there is now no excuse to use the old traditional bulbs, which waste the equivalent of two power stations' worth of electricity each year.
Last week, we mentioned Oscar and Lilli, the world's first Faitrade webcam kit (shaped like sea creatures). And since then, Shiny Shiny's Susi Weaser got to meet them. Here she is with the attractive green gadgets from United Pepper, a British company that's pioneering some really exciting developments in fairly traded gadgetry. They're currently available online, but will be coming soon to John Lewis.
Please excuse the fancy dress: the video was shot on International Talk Like a Pirate Day, so Susi did.
I love a coffee in the morning (actually, I can't function without one) and it's good to know that my dependency is helping someone in a poorer part of the world make a good living. Fairtrade coffee is, therefore, my friend!
Cafedirect were one of the first fairtrade companies to become a real household name, and have been in business for 15 years. Their range has grown massively since then, and it now includes some really zingy, luxury fresh blends, and half the fun is detecting the subtle flavours. I roped in fellow Shiny girls Cate Sevilla and Isabelle O'Carroll to get their views on Cafedirect's gourmet range.
If you're going to drive anyway, a good way to cut down on CO2 emissions is to know how to get to where you're going. It saves on petrol and pollution not to get lost, and one of the best ways to find your way is using a GPS sat nav. We tested the ViaMichelin X-970T, with its special additional features. Have a look at what we thought.
I’m not sure how fair it is that we keep blaming the Americans for global warming, gas guzzling and other naughty eco sins beginning with ‘g’. Have a look at this YouTube video. Mike Tidwell takes us on a 20 minute tour of his eco-home. He powers almost his entire house by renewable sources – solar panels on the roof and a corn burning stove for heating. Corn?! He’s got to be some country redneck living in the middle of Timbuktu? Well, he lives in Maryland in what looks like a built up area, but got a corn farm to set up a 20 tonne silo for free by offering them free advertising. The silo provides a community supply of corn, and his stove is electronically controlled. Also check out his retro electricity metre that runs backwards.
He claims to have made all of these changes for $1 a day using state grants and tax cuts on eco-friendly appliances. It’s a bit of an inspiration and makes us Brits look a little daft and old-fashioned, although I’m sure we could pull off something like this ourselves.
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