Asheville, Economy, Education, Environment, Film, Green Sustainability, Human Health, Nature, Resources, Videos »

How “Manufactured Demand” pushes what we don’t need and destroys what we need most.

Recently I watched the documentary “FLOW (for love of water)” which unexpectedly at the end of less then two hours shifted my outlook on water and made me vow to never drink bottled water again. I think before I thought as long as I recycle the bottle then, it’s an o.k. thing to do. I mean it’s better then drinking high fructose corn syrup, right?! Well for my body yes water is the better choice, for the environment tap water should be the ONLY choice!  After watching FLOW, I’m thinking bottled water should just be outlawed all together. This whole bottled water thing not only affects other countries negatively (which we’re kind of pros at) but we’re even destroying our own back yard for this one, gasp!   That’s right, Nestle is currently devastating / flat out draining parts of Michigan so that it can pump millions of gallons of water out of the ground to bottle. Then there’s the little tid bit that bottled water is WAY less regulated then tap water and often times more dangerous to drink … and we’re talking seriously dangerous sometimes. So, I’m thinking my palette can withstand the sometimes not so pleasant tap water if it means I’m not contributing to severe devastation of my own country and other countries (ie. earth).

I really think you should watch ‘FLOW’ and come up with your own conclusion. However if you don’t thrive off educational documentaries, I totally understand. So, below is a shorter 8 minute lamens version that you and your 5 year old can understand in under 10 minutes.

If this article is all the time you have then please, just trust me on this … you really, really, really don’t want to drink bottled water unless it’s an absolute emergency! It’s so not cool and I feel pretty bad for not understanding the consequences of my bottled water drinking sooner.  If you want natural clean water in your future then you will stop drinking bottled water immediately.   For, all my office managers out there it’s up for you to educate your employers on how taboo it is and get a water filter and pitchers instead to serve to clients and employees!  You can do it

Animal Kingdom, Blue Ridge Mountains, Environment, Green Sustainability, Nature, Wind Power »

Our official stance – We support Wind Energy in North Carolina.

Back in July we posted NC Don’t Ban Wind Power .   There have been some opposing comments that do to their nature and misinformation we have struggled to approve.  We have approved the comments for view in hopes that the debate surrounding this issue remains open and educated even though we might strongly disagree.

We have responded to each comment and would like to share our most recent response with you.

We stand firm on the comments posted by Kiesha Jean earlier.  We believe a combination of wind and solar is the right way to go. We’re all for seeing wind turbines versus nuclear power plants and the already proven (very close to home) disaster coal plants can bring to both humans and wildlife. The new bird friendly Windspires are what prompted us to write this post, they only stand 30ft tall which is far shorter than the McMansions that pollute the ridges now. We would much rather see a surge in Windspires versus Turbines but we’re more then delighted to see either.

We do have a great love for the raptors and an even greater love for our children. A Wind Turbine will never produce harmful nuclear waste nor will they ever accidentally leak deadly radiation. A Wind Turbine will also never spill ash into rivers, give workers black lung or trap workers underground.

One out of every 50 Americans living near landfills or ponds used to store ash or sludge from coal-fired power plants has a high risk of getting cancer from drinking water contaminated with arsenic.

So, if you really want to do good … help promote Windspires and stop the ludicrous denial of just how dangerous coal and nuclear power plants are versus wind.

Art, Green Design, Green Sustainability, Nature, Uncategorized, fashion »

Artist, Dominic Wilcox creates a field of grass out of 400 eco-friendly shoes for Terra Plana, the ethical shoe company. Inspired by ecological survival, TERRA PLANA believes in a variety of non-generic products supporting ideas of sustainability: lightness, anatomic design, disassembly and durability.

www.TerraPlana.com
www.DominicWilcox.com

Agriculture, Clothing, Economy, Environment, Featured, Green Sustainability, Local Farms, Videos »

This video makes me proud to live in the Carolina’s and grateful to know someone like Eric Henry of TSDesigns.   Local North Carolina companies are working together to develop a positive collaboration that keeps farming, materials, production and jobs local!  It’s a true delight to see companies working locally after so many years of product and jobs being shipped over seas.

At this stage in the game it’s a rare occurrence to find something in your house or in a store that is made in the U.S.A. and not in China.  There’s a lot of ways to be ‘green’ and I’ll be the first to admit I  fail on most of them!   I don’t compost, I don’t drive an electric car, I can’t afford solar panels, I have a full flush toilet, I don’t collect rain water … trust me the list goes on.  Someday I hope to have a self contained off the grid carbon neutral  living arrangement … until then, I do my best to support items and businesses made locally by friends and family and choose MADE IN THE USA whenever possible.

View more information on the Cotton of the Carolinas website.