The holiday season always provides ad agencies and design firms a chance to exhibit their irreverent side. Creativity- if you don’t read it, bookmark now!- has collected some of the best ‘Christmas cards’ from the creative community. Our favorite is the above music video from SF-based Goodby, Silverstein & Partners. Other highlights from their list include Droga5, from Down Under, putting junior creative Baldrick in charge of writing his first creative brief, the agency’s Christmas card. Like an advent calendar, Baldrick posts a new idea each day until the 25th and solicits feedback from all. Also, London’s Lean Mean Fighting Machine sent a virtual radio including a playlist from staff members, and a slightly cringe-inducing parody of “Do They Know It’s Christmas Time” about social media.

For more, check out Creativity’s full list of picks.

Unnerved by the sight of post-Christmas trees heading en masse to the wood chipper, Scott Martin, Los Angeles-based landscape architect, saw a business opportunity and a chance to make Christmas a little greener. As Jennifer Steinhauer explains in her NY Times piece- Business Delivers Christmas Trees For Rent- Martin’s “new business is delivering live, potted Christmas trees that are taken away once the toys have been unwrapped and, possibly, already broken, and the New Year’s confetti has been swept away.”

Rentable Christmas trees is not an entirely new concept, especially in eco-minded cities (Portland, Oregon, for one), but, as Martin tells Steinhauer, the idea is a perfect match for Los Angeles, “where Christmas trees have’an image issue,’ and escaping a drive through traffic with a tree strapped to a car roof is especially welcome.”

Steinhauer writes,

To rent a tree, a customer visits his Web site, www.livingchristmas.com, picks out a tree from among several varieties and then awaits delivery. Delivery days are determined by geography, to save time and gas. Prices range from $50, for a two-to-three-foot number, up to $185 for something considerably bigger. While two weeks is the recommended length of stay for a live tree in a house, Mr. Martin lets his customers keep them for three weeks.

The tree is then picked up to join its evergreen cousins; they will summer together on industrial properties where Mr. Martin rents space for pennies on the dollar to house his inventory. People who want the same tree next year ask for the tree to be tagged with their name, so it might return next December, taller.

Extra-credit groovy points: The delivery trucks run on biodiesel; the trees are cared for by adults with disabilities; the drivers will pick up donations for Goodwill and used wrapping paper for recycling; and his Web site also sells eco-friendly, fair trade ornaments.

[Source: NY Times]

It’s that time of year again- when “Top lists” and “Best Picks” start popping up. We actually like sifting through those things, but we’ll forgive you for having “List” overload. One list we do recommend is the NY Times annual “Year In Ideas” list. The Times Magazines looks back on the past year for the most compelling ideas. For a recap of 2008, check our post from this time last year.

The Times presents the list “from A to Z, the most clever, important, silly and just plain weird innovations we carried back from all corners of the thinking world.”

On the list this year, and starting from the top, is the advertisement that watches you, designed by the Hamburg-based firm Jung von Matt (which bills itself as being in the business of “attention warfare”). The ad, for Amnesty International, uses face-tracking software with a working range of about 16 feet to modify the ad and react to passersby. A Potsdam company called Vis-à-pix created the technology and says the technology has been improved. “New posters can even identify the sex of onlookers. Consider a poster created for the service counters of the rental-car company Sixt: when a man gets close, he is tempted with an image of a limousine; if the customer is a woman, she sees, instead, a spunky Cabriolet.”

Another idea that made the list, the Hourglass Surfboard, a new take the classic longboard whose shape has changed little since surfing was invented by the ancient Hawaiians. But Swedish designer Thomas Meyerhoffer has introduced a new design, with a corseted waist and a narrow tail, with a bottom that is more deeply contoured than a typical board. All that curvaceousness is meant to lend the maneuverability of the shortboard, typically ridden by skilled surfers, to the more stable longboard. For more on the board and NY Times “Year In Ideas,” click here.

[Source: NYT]

Time again to give thanks- should there really only be one day set aside for that?- and we’re certainly grateful for the tremendous feedback we’ve received since launching Love Tomorrow Today. As always, we invite you to let us know about programs and people making a difference or tips to incorporating simple change into our daily lives.

Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving! This weekend, remember to reduce, recycle, reuse and…relax! Don’t forget, eating leftovers (delicious, food coma-inducing leftovers) is good for the planet!

[this is a recycled post]

This time next week, I’ll be just starting to emerge from a turkey coma. Ah tryptophan! My favorite of the essential amino acids! Thanksgiving is, for my money, the best holiday of the year. It’s one we all share- as Americans- and, without the stress of having to find the right presents, the focus is food, family and gratitude. But the holidays can also present certain challenges to sustainable living. For starters, Thanksgiving is the busiest time of the year for US travelers. With all that travel, shopping, cooking and eating…it’s a holiday that produces a lot of waste.

With a few tweaks to your normal routine, it’s possible to save time, money and waste this Thanksgiving. Often, simply being conscious of your consumption guides you towards responsible decisions. According to the Nature Conservancy, an estimated 96 billion pounds of food are discarded nationally every year, 5 million tons of trash during the holiday season alone. So, maybe if no one really finished your homemade pumpkin pie last year, make less this time around! I know, I know, you mistakenly put in a cup of salt instead of a cup of sugar, but, seriously, back away from the stove…!

What’s our point? Well, while some green sites might suggest things like a vegan menu, we know, in reality, you’d probably get expelled from all future family events for a stunt like that. And why drastically change one of the greatest days of the year? As you’re thinking about Thanksgiving, consider all the little decisions that go into the day, and then consider tweaking them. Carpool to your Aunt Barb’s house, or, if you’re flying somewhere, consider offsetting the carbon (roughly $12 for a cross-country flight), where possible buy products with less packaging, and don’t forget the best part of Thanksgiving…leftovers!

Happy Thanksgiving!

[this is a recycled post]

Being green around the holidays can be tricky. Many of our best rituals (Thanksgiving, July 4th, Labor Day, Super Bowl Sunday…) rely heavily on consumption (and, by extension, produce a ton of waste). So, for this July 4th, we thought we’d share some simple tips for green tweaks.

1.) Go Local

You don’t need read Michael Pollan to know food just tastes better when you know where it’s from. Maybe it’s the satisfaction of knowing you’re supporting local farmers. Perhaps it’s because your body knows when you’re eating fresh and when the food is processed. Either way, you’ll be doing the planet some good by buying food that hasn’t been trucked in from across the country.

2.) Go Easy

It’s nice to have leftovers, but how many hamburger patties and hot dogs got tossed last year at your July 4th party? When you’re buying and prepping the goodies, go easy. When you’re stacking your plate with potato salad, beans, ribs, hot dogs, watermelon and whatever else, keep in mind you’ll probably be throwing some of that out. So for all the piggies out there- myself included- there’s no shame in multiple trips to the food table.

3.) Go Gas

If you’re a purist, charcoal might be the only option for you. Try a 100% All Natural Hardwood Lump Charcoal. Fewer chemicals are always a good thing, but they also produce less ash than generic charcoal. Another good option is Wicked Good Charcoal, which is made from industrial scrap wood. Kingsford Charwood is good too. But gas is probably your greenest bet- it produces about half the emissions of charcoal.

4.) Go Silver

Well, maybe not silver, but at least think about using the silverware. Most July 4th meals are finger foods anyway (do we need more than a spoon?), but it might be worth busting out the cutlery instead of using the plastic alternatives. But if you’re hell bent on disposable products- and, I’ll be honest, I don’t blame you- there are some good biodegradable products you could choose. Branch and Eatware both have some good sustainble/compostable picnic accessories.

5.) Go Green

Let’s see, in my July 4th overall roundup… Be safe. Have fun. Recycle. Compost (if you can). Enjoy the fireworks (hopefully these new “eco-friendly” fireworks will catch on). Don’t go on any carnival rides- I’m still not feeling right from my ride on the tilt-a-wheel.  Go see The Hangover (finally saw it and it’s hilarious!). And, oh yeah, go U-S-A!

Laissez les bons temps rouler! Let the good times roll, dig into that King Cake and party like it’s Fat Tuesday. It’s Mardi Gras time again, and this year the blogosphere is abuzz about ways to combine bead-tossin’ good times with bead-recyclin’ responsibility. Some of the posts include Green Daily’s piece about parade trucks and floats powered by biodiesel, Ideal Bite’s post about having your own (eco-friendly) Mardi Gras ‘bons temps’ without flying to ‘Nawlins,’ and articles about what to do with all those beads you ‘earned’ on Fat Tuesday, once Ash Wednesday rolls around.

For many of us, the holiday presents have been opened, the wrapping paper and boxes have been broken down and we now have…new stuff. Let today, what many call Boxing Day, be the day to think about how to responsibly dispose of that old stuff that this year’s booty replaced.

Boxing Day, December 26th, is a public holiday in places like the UK and Canada and is based on the tradition of giving gifts to the less fortunate members of society.  It’s a good time to put into boxes those belongings that are in good condition but that we’ll probably never wear or use again. RecycleNow offers a handy guide to what can and can’t be recycled. Goodwill is always a safe bet- if you’re Goodwill hunting (oh geez), try their store locator. Or find a Salvation Army drop off location near you. And check out this helpful list of recycling tips from Real Simple. Remember, the holiday season can also be a good time to downsize!

If you’ve had kids recently, you might have run into NYC-based boutique giggle - a great resource and community for the new parent. With the baby/toddler marketing booming, it’s good to see they are mixing in some responsible products in keeping with their philosophies.

Giggle - Eco-Friendly Cookware & Dining Set

As part of its on-going series, “Project Green,” Newsweek has put out a list of the most environmentally unfriendly holiday decorations. As Caitlin McDevitt writes in “Decorating Sense: How To Celebrate The Holidays Without Trashing The Environment,” while this might be the most wonderful time of the year, “the holiday season exacts a high price on the planet.”

Think of all the waste created, from wrapping paper and packaging to holiday party leftovers. The EPA estimates a 25% increase in the amount of household trash during the holiday season. And while you might not go as crazy as the Griswolds, odds are your energy consumption goes up along with the holiday lights. Newsweek offers this list of decorations to avoid this holiday season.

more…

Every blog right now has tips, ideas, and spotlights on how to ‘green’ your holiday season. Here’s a few good ones to check out:

Planet Green - The  Ant-Gift List

Treehugger - Holiday Gift Guide 2008

dezeen - The Eco Christmas Tree

Notcot - Gifts That Lean Green

Brighter Planet - 12 Conservation Tips for the Holiday Season

Does Dad really need another soap-on-the-rope this Christmas? Ok, maybe I’m the only one who gave his father that same, lame present every Christmas, but, I mean, it’s soap that’s on a rope! This holiday season, why not consider a gift with a higher purpose. No, not shampoo. I’m talking about the gift of carbon-free living for a day. Through a great holiday initiative at Brighter Planet, you can provide your loved ones with the gift of carbon neutrality with a click of the mouse. The ONE DAY campaign is designed to reduce and offset U.S. CO2 usage at a time when emissions skyrocket. By visiting their web site, anyone can request one day of carbon-free living and will be able to pay the gift forward by emailing personalized links to their friends. Recipients of the ONE DAY gift can then, in turn, pass it along to others by forwarding new links- virally increasing the impact of the gift.

As we’ve profiled in previous posts, Brighter Planet recognizes that avoiding carbon-emitting activities in today’s world is, at times, impossible, so they offer these offsets to compensate for those inevitable emissions. The offsets are used to fund renewable energy projects in communities throughout the U.S. And they’re cheap, which means, Dad, you’ll probably be able to getting that soap-on-the-rope too!

more…

Time again to give thanks- should there really only be one day set aside for that?- and we’re certainly grateful for the tremendous feedback we’ve received since launching Love Tomorrow Today. As always, we invite you to let us know about programs and people making a difference or tips to incorporating simple change into our daily lives.

Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving! This weekend, remember to reduce, recycle, reuse and…relax! Don’t forget, eating leftovers (delicious, food coma-inducing leftovers) is good for the planet!