The spectacular Rheanna Fancypants has been tinkering with a number of new layout designs for my website, but I’m happy to say that we have finally decided on one. You might recognize the apple art from Rubenslp, who is also quite a cool guy. I got the same apple as my fourth tattoo (on the inside of my right forearm) earlier this month. Ruben has been nice enough to allow me to use his creation as the official logo for my business, provided I give him credit, which I will gladly do over and over.

So … what do you think?

It’s happened … again. For the 5th time, a blog post of mine, supported on Hugg.com, is featured in TreeHugger.com’s daily weekday “Most Huggable” post. <3

Aaaaahhhh, she got me! [add in gurgle sound effect] I’ve been tagged by my fellow GLiving fashion buddy, Summer from BTC Elements, to tell six weird and/or unknown things about me. So, here is a small peak into the oddball that is Victoria E:

1) I almost persued a career in architecture. As a kid, I spent many afternoons looking through those magazines that sell floor plans for houses, and drawing my own (crude) designs.

2) Cartoons hold a special place in my life. After school, my dad would come home from work early so we could watch Batman together. I can recite nearly every episode of Invader Zim and Spongebob Squarepants.

3) As kids, my older sister Sara and I used to “modify” barbie dolls, giving them tattoos, mohawks, crazy-colored hair … etc. Who knew we were predicting our own future?

4) If you ever call me and I actually answer the phone, consider yourself special. I’ve avoided the telephone for as long as I can remember!

5) Though I have an affinity for interior decorating, I’ve never actually decorated any of my own apartments. Why? I have no idea … money? time?

6) Countless times, I’ve stopped driving (when I had a car) and helped various animals across the road: deer, rabbits, turtles, dogs, cats, and others.

Ok, so those all seem pretty hokey, but that is what came to my mind first. Now, it is time for me to tag others [dun dun dun]. I tag Matt (my best friend), Logan (my boyfriend), Bev (my mum), Mallory, Stephanie, and Tricia.

Even in the toddler years of our environmentalism 2.0 movement, it has already become clear that no one technology or concept is going to be our saving grace. Each week, we learn of new approaches to our planetary predicaments, but which ones should we embrace? The Nature Conservancy recently posted a collection of six short essays from experts at the organization, each giving their perspective on how we should protect some of the most vital ecosystems we have.

The first essay, by William Ginn, presents an under-represented side of biofuel production. I particularly enjoyed his piece; the fact-based presentation really helped to drive the point home. “Our challenge is to ensure that we don’t create another, equally devastating “solution” in our quest to solve the climate and energy problems.” I find this simple concept is something that we should always keep in mind at this crucial time (see my “How to save the world with pollution” post for a similar concept). The next essay, focusing on marine conservation, is not as good. The piece reads far too much like a press release than an actual contemplative essay. The third essay, by their Chief Scientist Peter Kareiva, is much more captivating. His discussion on expanding past just plain ecosystem conservation is one that I would love to see extended upon into a full-length publishable magazine article. Saving nature is a substantial human undertaking, but if we won’t protect our own health and well-being, the whole planet will continue to suffer. No element stands alone; it’s all connected. How do some keep losing sight of that?

Three down, three to go: essay four by the President and CEO is the most all-encompassing of the six pieces featured in this collection. It’s become clear that Bush is more interested in destroying land than preserving it, unfortunately. Steven makes note of a number of ingenious resource management plans, but does not provide any info on how to make the shift to these resourceful policies. Similar to Peter’s essay, this composition would be a great read in expanded form. The final two essays both end off with a bit too large of a promo for the Nature Conservancy, but they do make intelligent points in their own right. Brian Richter’s essay on dams is enlightened, but also troubling. Dams are often built to solve the problem of getting fresh water to those who need it, especially in developing countries. One question not addressed is simply why focus on dams? Yes, they do have many great qualities, but just like nuclear power, the drawbacks are there as well. Brian is correct is saying that new dams need to be developed to help protect the natural migrations of fish and millennial-held water flow patterns, but he doesn’t suggest anything past that basic concept. The final essay, covering deforestation’s influence on climate change, is a great way to wrap up this digest of ideas. A key aspect not thoroughly hi-lighted in Al Gore’s film, our destruction of forests (for a plethora of projects) has been out of hand for generations. The simple science that plants (especially trees) create the oxygen we need to breath would remind any layman that more trees are better for the Earth.

All in all, this is a great little cluster of eco-ideas. I could have done without the many mentions of The Nature Conservancy’s current projects, but the pieces are worth reading. Considering these are featured on the organization’s own site, I’m not sure why they felt the need to continue to push their own works. Despite this, I enjoyed reading this set and would suggest you do so as well. Even better, you can e-mail your own conservation ideas, so let them know what you think this planet needs!

This morning I was met with a cheery e-mail, informing me that I am one of the hand-picked featured people on StyleHive this week. What? You haven’t heard of StyleHive? Here’s a bit more info, in their own words:

The StyleHive is new kind of website - a collaborative shopping community. It is a place where contributors can work together to share and discover the hottest stores, designers, trends, and must have products. The StyleHive is a collection of all the best products, brands, designers and stores discovered and tagged by the Hive community. Based in San Francisco, the Stylehive brings together the distinct worlds of technology and trendsetting fashion, shopping and online retail.

I found out about the website from an online friend, and have been posting stylish eco-goodies on there for the past few months. Seeing my green work hi-lighted in yet another random way means the word to me. I’ve gotten a number of e-mails that have gotten increased traffic from my postings on the site, which (to put it simply) rocks! Little known fact: the folks at Twice Shy noticed my bookmarking of their items, which lead to my current Official U.S. Spokesperson gig with them.

I think I am running out of words to express how thankfully I am for the attention my work is getting on Hugg.com and TreeHugger.com. For the fourth time, a post of mine has been frequently hugged enough to make into the daily “Most Huggable” post. Lots of green love to everyone who has been supporting my work!

Yup, you heard right - I am featured in “Most Huggable” for the THIRD time today. This post is about Nau (which rocks my socks), originally submitted to the GLiving Fashion blog. After being posted on Hugg.com, folks showed me lots of love and it got featured on TreeHugger.com today.

ANOTHER one of my posts is featured as “Most Huggable” on TreeHugger.com today. This time, it is a bit of breaking news that I posted directly on Hugg.com.

Yes, huggable - I spelled it right! My first post for GroovyGreen.com was posted by someone on hugg.com. In turn, it has become popular on that site and even became worthy of being featured on Treehugger.com - what an honor!

That’s me! My newest gig is supplying the world with eco-fashion info on GroovyGreen.com. Check out my first post here and comment on the entry with any/every question you have about green style … don’t be shy.

Am I the only one who is getting sick of hearing about small, homegrown eco-brands being bought by big corporations and investment groups? By no means am I against the development of a just and planet-friendly company, but this is getting ridiculous. Is it impossible for a company to be profitable without “submitting” to the bigwigs who harvested the problems with our current marketplace?

Odwalla and Tom’s of Maine are two of the most notable acquisitions in recent years. December 2006 brought the announcement of two more: Avalon being bought by Hain Celestial and Van’s Foods being bought by Healthy Food Holdings. Thanks to the linked article, I was also informed that Naked Juice, Jason, and Zia have all been bought by these types of mega-groups; no wonder it is so easy to find them on store shelves!

While these changeovers do help to get natural and organic brands the attention they deserve, are the companies buying them doing it for the right reasons? The wording in the NFM article leads me to believe that they are way off base. The growing eco-market is one that should not be ignored in terms of profits, but there are reasons why it is so popular with consumers: safer, healthier, better for the planet … etc. Making money is vital to a company’s success, but these buyers need to remember why people started these businesses in the first place: to help make a difference for their families and mother Earth. As Avalon and Van’s are marketed to stores and regions they wouldn’t normally have been able to reach on their own, will their values suffer to help them fit in? Being different is what made them stand out in the first place.

In the last 2006 issue of VegNews, a great article was featured on this topic, though with a different spin. From a vegetarian (and concerned citizen) aspect, can you justifying buying items from these brands after they have been acquired? For example, Tom’s of Maine was purchased by Colgate, which is known to do animal testing. As a forward-thinking, eco-concerned individual, would you continue to get your toothpaste and shave cream from Tom’s, knowing that you are also funneling money to a company that does such cruel and needless actions? Or, in turn, how about Odwalla being bought by Coca Cola? Why buy healthy fruit drinks from a company that sells needless sugary beverages to kids and adults, adding to the obesity problem in this country?

Though a number of new opportunities to expand business present themselves upon being purchased by a larger company, the ethical and eco-market implications need to be studied as well. I think I’ll stick to my Dr. Bronner’s, Aubrey Organics, and Amy’s dinners for now

(Image courtesy of Rob Lee)