The social and economic benefits of bamboo forestry are steadily becoming more recognized around the globe.  Already, trade organizations and government programs have been pushing for broad based utilization of the resource in certain areas of Asia and the Pacific, namely the Philippines and India.  Now there are fresh indications of bamboo advocacy in another area where it is badly needed.

Togbe Akliku Ahorney II, the Environmental Officer for the Volta region of the nation of Ghana, recently issued a statement to the Ghana News Agency in which he insisted that local political parties must give due attention to environmental issues.  Specifically, Ahorney emphasized the depletion of forest reserves throughout Ghana, recommending that the government focus on lesser known timber species as a way of preserving and recovering depleted forest resources.

Throughout West Africa, some ninety percent of the original forest land has been lost.  The rate of deforestation for the continent as a whole is second only to South America and exceeds the global average by four times.  Between 2000 and 2005, Africa lost over four million hectares of forest per year, or about ten million acres.  Generally speaking, this awful trend is attributable to slash-and-burn techniques clearing way for agricultural land.  Beyond that, the situation is made worse by a further lack of sustainable agricultural practices, such as efficient use of fertilizers, as well as by the virtual absence of local land rights and land management.

Naturally, this situation has consequences for local populations and the local ecology, and also for the rest of the globe.  For instance, it has been show to contribute to lower levels of rainfall in the remaining African rainforests, which extends the consequent threats to resource scarcity beyond timber resources.  Of course, this is still something that is needed by local populations, and it is mainly for that purpose that bamboo and other relatively unfamiliar timbers might step in.  It only directly addresses a small selection of the causes behind this rampant deforestation, but it could be a meaningful step in the direction of broad-based reform.  As ever, the presence of this sort of advocacy heralds the sort of awareness and conviction that can snowball into a greater trend of ecological sustainability.

Bamboo resources can play into more than just the fostering of political will, though.  If bamboo proves popular as a timber, and potentially as a source of food or medicine, or a raw material for bamboo clothing and other goods, then bamboo agroforestry might well be an element of future improvements to African agricultural practices.  That is, bamboo can be grown in close proximity with other crops, allowing for the existing demand for agricultural land to be satisfied at the same time that timber resources are replenished, and with them the greenhouse gas-reducing capabilities of the lost forest land.

That is no doubt the main consequence to the rest of the world of ongoing African deforestation.  At the same time that the quantities of forest land on the surface of the Earth are going down at an alarming rate, the quantities of carbon dioxide in its atmosphere are going up in kind.  The problem is serious enough just in light of industrial and vehicular pollution, so that the planet can’t afford to lose the precious carbon sinks provided its trees.  But where this lose has already occurred, bamboo can do much to make up the difference, growing far faster than trees and producing roughly three times as much oxygen.

It is highly encouraging, then, to see the government of Ghana recognizing the value that bamboo can bring to their local ecology and their local economy.  It speaks to the fact that growth in awareness of environmental issues, and more to the point their recognized solutions, is truly a global phenomenon.  And the potential effects of implementing the recognized initiatives will prove to be global in equal measure.

A bundle of joy.  The apple of an eye.  The light of a mom’s life.  This year, many moms celebrating Mother’s Day will be new moms!  After countless sleepless nights and messy days, new moms are ready to be pampered on their newly-included special day.  If they’re lucky, loved ones will give them the gift of comfort and luxury with bamboo bedding (for when there is time for a good night’s sleep) or stylish bamboo clothing  for when they’re post baby body returns.

But perhaps the best gift a new mom can receive is the gift of advice from seasoned moms.

1)       For busy moms (and who isn’t a busy mom?), remembering to journal, scrapbook and photograph milestones can be one too many things on the to-do list.  But you know you will take your baby to the doctor so use that time in the waiting room to make some notes about your baby’s growth, funny habits and take some photos.

2)      Tell people what you really need.  Everyone will want to hold the cute new baby but what you may really need is help with housecleaning, cooking meals or doing the laundry. Let people hold and coo to the baby but in exchange, ask for a little help to keep your sanity intact.

3)      Slow down.  We are used to running a mile a minute in our lives but babies only go at their own pace.  They set their own schedule, they have no awareness  of what needs to get done but only what they have to do.  Move at their pace and enjoy that time with your new baby.

4)      From one of my funnier friends:  “Other moms are really, really competitive.  Make stuff up.  Tell them your baby started muttering the phrase ‘Einstein was wrong’ while thrashing in the crib at night.”

5)      Don’t invest in a lot of small clothes – babies grow too fast.  Instead, buy in larger sizes and let your baby grow into them.  For extra softness and comfort, invest in organic baby clothing from Green Earth Bamboo!

6)      Boys smell slightly of pee most of the time.  They really do.  Make sure to have plenty of natural odor removers on hand!

7)      For middle-of-the-night groggy changings, pre-fill newborn diapers with ointment before bed to save time.

8)      For sore baby gums, put a cold, peeled cucumber in a mesh teether or use a frozen washcloth to soothe sore gums.

9)      Lay your baby on your chest; skin-to-skin contact is comforting and encourages bonding.  An added bonus:  it strengthens your baby’s neck muscles!

10)   And the best advice for new moms:  Go Easy on Yourself!  It’s tough enough to be a mom but putting pressure on yourself to be a supermom will make it harder.

To all the new moms out there, have a wonderful, happy, joy-filled 1st Mother’s Day!

Pagan holidays have evolved into many of our Hallmark holidays today.  Saturnalia became Christmas; All Hallow’s Eve became Halloween and even our celebration of that most important woman in our lives originated in ancient festivals as well.  Mother’s Day is this May 13th and the modern holiday of brunches and bouquets is one with quite a history.

In ancient Greece, the traditional holiday of Mother’s Day started out as a non-traditional feast for Cybele, an exotic, mysterious goddess who arrives at parties in a lion-drawn chariot accompanied by wild music and wine.  And while most of our mothers don’t make quite the entrance she did, Cybele was known as Magna Mater, “Great Mother.”

In ancient Rome, the festivities were centered on a celebration for the vernal equinox also honoring Cybele whom they considered the “mother” of all gods.  It coincided with the first day of the year that was longer than night meaning that winter gloom was gone and mother earth was brighter each day.  Their honoring of Cybele, though, was a solemn one with a statue of the goddess carried in a long procession complete with richly goods and precious works of art.

With the introduction of Christianity, the celebration to honor Moms became a part of the church calendar during Lent with the intent to honor the Virgin Mary and the “mother church.”  People would go “a-mothering” and visit their home church and family on what was then the only real holiday for the working class.  Children would pick wildflowers along the way home and gift them to their mothers and eventually this tradition became Mothering Sunday and included a tradition of gift-giving that we carry on to this day.

From a religious holiday grew a commercial holiday (no surprise there).

In the United States, Mothering Sunday was revived by Anna Jarvis [put this before the UK] who founded the Mother’s Day Work Club in five cities to improve sanitary and health conditions.  After her own mother passed, Jarvis began a nationwide campaign to make “Mother’s Day” a recognized holiday by the government.  Jarvis’ revival of Mothering Sunday caught on strongly in the 1920’s in the United Kingdom thanks in large part to the deployment of so many American soldiers during WWI and the eagerness of shopkeepers to market their wares. The holiday of Mother’s Day was promoted with zeal by the church and merchants alike.

While Jarvis herself became embittered by the commercialization of Mother’s Day, there is nothing kinder in my mind than a reason to buy your mother a gift to thank her for her kindness and sternness and patience and love.

Since it started off a celebration of a goddess, treat your mom like a goddess by indulging her with the gift of amazingly soft bamboo clothing or bamboo sheets!  Fresh new styles have arrived spring while bedding is available in a variety of colors and patterns sure to fit any mother’s décor.

Green Earth Bamboo is happy to help you pamper your mother with an incredible Mother’s Day Sale!  Between May 7th – 13th, receive $15 off any $100 order and free shipping on orders over $200!  Use Coupon Code MOTHER12 at checkout.

Happy Mother’s Day!

The travel website Trip Advisor recently conducted a survey of its users regarding their interest in and commitment to ecologically friendly practices.  As Trip Advisor boasts some 100 million users, we might assume that their views and experiences are reasonably representative of the traveling set in the United States.  And what the survey says is that despite the intrinsic carbon footprint of traveling in comfort, the vast majority of people are concerned with reducing their impact on the environment through their choices of destination, accommodations, and travel practices.

The survey concerns green practices among hotels and hotel guests, but of course its significance reaches into day-to-day life as well.  Answer to the more general topic, sixty-five percent of people surveyed said that they had made green choices over the course of the preceding year, and over seventy percent said that they would do so in the year ahead.

Naturally, the values that a person demonstrates in his ordinary life, he carries with him when he gets onto a plane or piles his family into the car for a vacation.  With travel having a comparatively larger environmental impact, the reforms that one makes there may not be what they need to be until she is packing bamboo clothing, recycled goods, and other indicators of a green lifestyle into her travel bag before leaving home.

As with so much of what we report here, the details of this story point both to the progress that is actively being made and the volume of work that must still be done in order to break our society of old, environmentally damaging habits and ushering in the creation of a greener, more sustainable world.

Nearly ninety percent of respondents to the Trip Advisor survey say that they contribute to ecologically friendly practice by turning off the lights in hotel rooms when not in them.  That’s somewhat encouraging, but really, nothing short of one-hundred percent can be acceptable in that case, since that is such an exceptionally easy thing to do to cut down on energy use.

Eighty percent of respondents also claimed to participate in towel and linen reuse at hotels with such programs, opting not to waste energy and water in having those materials laundered every day.  The number of people willing to reuse their rooms towels and linens may be even higher, considering that the institution of reuse programs was the top environmentally conscious activity advocated for hotels by the travelers in the survey.  What’s more, hotels do not always publicize these programs once they are instituted, but it has been demonstrated that when guests know about them, they tend to participate.

And indeed, towel and linen reuse programs are among the recommended environmental guidelines of the American Hotel and Lodging Association.  And it is only one of eleven minimum guidelines, which are in turn supplemented by fifty-eight additional guidelines.  Of course, the possibilities don’t end there.  For instance, upgrading current inventory to include viscose from bamboo towels might encourage more of the holdouts who don’t want to reuse towels, once they observe their ability to wick away moisture.  The same material can be used for linens, and utilizing it in either case has the added effects of promoting sustainable resources, helping to counteract greenhouse gas emissions, and adding a level of luxury which doesn’t cut against efforts to travel green.

Material aside, linen and towel reuse, like switching off the lights, is a perfectly common sense solution.  At home, you don’t discard your own towels and sheets every time you use them.  Why should it be any different on the road?  And from the hotel’s perspective, why keep energy costs high and decrease the life span of your materials when it is so easy to save the money at the same time that they help save the planet.  This also is a common refrain on the pages of Green Earth News:  Economic interest and social and environmental interest should never be seen as being at odds.

Of course, sometimes a little sacrifice of one is needed for the sake of a major gain in the other area.  The Trip Advisor survey shows a crucial willingness among travelers to make this sort of sacrifice.  About a quarter of people surveyed would be willing to pay up to twenty-five dollars more per night if they knew they were staying at an ecologically friendly establishment.  That goes to show that the market demand is there for greener products and services.  As that grows, the appropriate supply will follow.

I was listening to a recent episode of NPR’s marketplace, and my ears pricked up at its coverage of the housing market, wherein the host pointed out that it had had a markedly good month but that analysts were predicting that it would still take some time before prices returned to their pre-crisis peak.  The sentiment was repeated in a sound bite from economist Chris Rupkey, though he tentatively admitted that maybe we don’t need to get back to that peak “at this point.”

At this point.  That implies that everyone is taking it for granted that we do need to get back to the artificially inflated prices of the early 2000s at some point.  To my understanding, the very origins of the crisis in the housing market were the faulty assumption that home prices can go up indefinitely.  That was what convinced people that a new house was always a good investment, regardless of whether they could actually afford it.  And that drove prices to astronomical levels that were far-detached from reality and ultimately had to come down.

Now, despite what the country has already been through, economists and the general public both expect home prices to return to levels that precipitated a catastrophic collapse four years ago?  Have we learned nothing?  The kind of dialogue advanced on this installment of Marketplace give me the impression that even in the midst of long-term consequences and widespread suffering, we collectively believe that we should never have to sacrifice anything or accept a slightly lower rate of return for the sake of the greater good.

I can find reasons for optimism about our capacity for social progress in the strangest places.  But things like this demonstrate just how entrenched the status quo can be.  Even when American society has been kicked pretty hard, after falling down, most everyone takes to climbing right back towards where they were when it happened.  And it’s not as though there’s no place else to go – places where the world, its environment, and its financial markets don’t have their legs cocked back for another punt.

This tendency towards myopic focus on the former benefits of the status quo makes it difficult to encourage acceptance of anything that could be better, that might promote more sustainable profits and a better quality of life.  It makes it difficult to convince the powers that be to accept new and better resources and technologies.  And what’s true at the highest levels of society is unfortunately true down to the level of each nameless individual.

It’s hard to get a man to change the material or even the brand of undershirt that he wears, not because bamboo wouldn’t be legitimately better than cotton, but just because cotton is what he’s always worn before.  Why, then, would industries and investors change their behavior when it comes to such materials?

But as should be clear from all the attention that I’ve given to actual acceptance of better and environmentally friendly resources and technologies, it’s not as though that sort of change is impossible to bring off; it’s just that it takes a lot of dedication from a small minority of the population in order to convince the defenders of the status quo that they’re defending the right to be kicked in the gut all over again.

Even sleeping on the most comfortable bamboo sheets doesn’t guarantee a perky morning.  Maybe the bed is just too comfy to leave or maybe the day is just too busy to face.  Either way, there are mornings where everyone can use a boost.  In keeping with our toxic-free month, here are natural ways to energize your morning!  (And say what you will, but there is nothing too natural about most energy drinks!)

Wake up slowly:  Sounds counter-productive but take your time getting out of bed.  Breathe deeply and loosen up and stretch your limbs, starting with your fingers and ending with your toes.  Take a moment to think about your day, focusing on what positive outcomes are coming your way.

Sniff a citrus scent:  Whether it’s a fresh orange for breakfast or a zesty citrus body spritz, the smell of citrus energizes!  Invigorate your skin by removing toxins and dead skin with a citrus scrub (make your own by mixing citrus essential oils, sweet almond oil and coarse salt).

Crank up the tunes:  This is one of the most effective ways to increase energy.  Some research suggests that music is an effective distraction from feeling fatigued while a recent study in the journal Ergonomics showed that runners who listened to music while on the treadmill ran faster than those who jogged in silence.  So put on your favorite songs and start the morning with a quick dance break!

Get some exercise:  It may seem impossible to think about some groggy mornings but vigorous exercise is a natural stimulant.  Slip on your bamboo yoga pants to welcome the day with sun salutations or put on your wonderfully wicking bamboo jacket for a cool morning run!

Speaking of exercise, try this ancient energizer:  Gi Gon, a system of gentle movements practiced for thousands of year in Asia, has certain exercises that can help you tap into the energy within you and in your environment.  The Wood Exercise is an exercise using guided imagery that lets you pull energy into your body.

To do the Wood Exercise, stand with your arms by your sides. As you inhale deeply, slowly raise your arms up to your sides and then over your head, twisting your wrists so that the backs of your hands meet and touch each other. Then, still inhaling, turn your palms in and pretend that you’re firmly grasping a column of wood. Pull the column down until your hands are level with your throat, about six inches away; stay there for a few seconds as you hold your breath. Exhale deeply and press the column toward the floor, keeping your back straight and stopping your hands at groin level. Repeat nine times.

Make your shower a wake-up zone:  Add a few drops to the floor of your shower and turn on the hot water to create an energizing steam room.  The eucalyptus scent stimulates and the hot water (along with a loofah scrub)speeds up blood flow which sends oxygen to your brain where it becomes energy for your busy day.

Practice these naturally energizing tips and wake up feeling ready to conquer your day!

There has been a growing push for the use of forest biomass as a source of energy production.  Some environmental advocates assume that those efforts would be carbon neutral, job-creating, and an effective way for the United States and Europe to reduce dependence on fossil fuels.  However, a recent study warns that implementing such plans could actually result in a net increase in greenhouse gas emissions.

The researchers, from the Max Planck Institute of Biogeochemistry in Germany, concluded that increased emphasis on forest biomass for energy would lead to shorter tree life cycles and less-developed forests with lower biodiversity, meaning a significant loss in the current ability of the world’s forests to absorb carbon dioxide and produce oxygen.  They further add that there might be resulting depletion of the soil, greater erosion, increased use of carbon-positive fertilizers, and impacts on the price structures of biomass materials.

This all seems pretty obvious.  If you asked me for a list of recommendations as to how to reduce greenhouse gas pollution, one thing that would definitely not be on the list is “cut down more trees.”  Even if advocates’ plans include continually reforesting all of the areas that they intend to utilize for biomass energy production, they must realize that it takes decades to achieve this, and that even now reforestation cannot keep up with the rate at which we consume forests just for timber, paper, and so on.

A co-author of the study, Helmut Haberl declares that it “raises important issues for bioenergy policies.”  Yes indeed; it raises the issue of carefully choosing the kinds of resources that we count as viable alternatives.  And it should demonstrate to persons concerned with the environment that just having the prefix “bio” in its name does not necessarily make a particular item or strategy worth pursuing for the betterment of the Earth.

The old cliché about not putting all your eggs in one basket applies to the argument against over-reliance on fossil fuels, which, environmental damage aside, are increasingly scare and often tainted with bloodshed.  But at the same time, it’s no wiser to start tossing your eggs into every basket you have on hand, some of which might have holes in the bottom of them.

There’s nothing wrong with biomass energy in general.  We previously reported that biomass pellets constitute a clean alternative to coal, but in that case the fuel is primarily derived from scraps and waste material.  If, on the other hand, the production of biofuel leads to deforestation or saps resources that would be better served elsewhere, it is coming from the wrong sources, or being handled improperly.  There are effective alternatives to simply felling trees, turning them into fuel, and then burning that fuel while feeling content because its source had been green instead of black.

We also pointed out last September that new developments in chemistry might soon make it possible to efficiently turn bamboo into biofuel.  When this becomes a commercially viable reality, it will be a highly preferable alternative to the use of forest biomass for energy.  Essentially, it could provide the best of both worlds conferring all of the benefits of biomass energy that a growing number of environmentalists are embracing rather naively, but also answering the important bioenergy policy issues that the Max Planck Institute has raised for us.

Most importantly, it will avoid raising the demands we place upon our existing forests, allowing them to continue to naturally sequester carbon at the same time that we add bamboo crop as another, better oxygen source.  That, after all, is the key difference bamboo: it can continue growing and consuming carbon dioxide even after it has been harvested.  Once it has been established, it can regrow quickly enough that the same plants can be cut for processing year after year.  And all the while it produces two-thirds more oxygen than do equivalent quantities of trees.

Even aside from worries about forest biomass not being carbon neutral, the authors of the given study also raise concerns about potential economic impacts, including the increase in prices for biomass for other purposes, the need to incursions onto lands used for agriculture or livestock, and the general possibility that biomass energy might not prove economically viable.

Again, if future emphasis was placed on bamboo instead of forest biomass, it seems that these sorts of issues would not apply.  Once again, the amazing growth rate of the crop helps to place it in a better position, as does its remarkable versatility.  Bamboo can grow almost anywhere, even in close proximity with other crops, meaning that as demand for it broadens to include biofuel production, it will usually be possible to supply the resource locally with minimal impositions on the production of other crops.

Heightened demand surely will broaden the geographic reach of bamboo as a commercial crop, and given a few years lead time, the resulting surge in supply will probably be able to keep up with that demand to such extent that prices are unaffected.  In fact, though the popularity of the crop is on the rise, there are still relatively few commercial bamboo growers in the West.  Under a situation of increased competition, prices will almost certainly decline.

Finally, if biomass does prove to be economically non-viable for some reason, or if in the future some other environmentally sustainable alternative utterly overtakes it, the crop itself will still have the capability of creating jobs and making money in a wide variety of ways.  Whether it is biofuel and global warming concerns, or something else entirely that brings bamboo into more widespread production, once it is established, it can be used sustainably as a durable building material, a replacement for other woods in various consumer products, or it can be processed into bamboo clothing that’s about as soft as cashmere.  And if you follow this blog you’ll know that its uses are growing all the time.

Despite the much needed warnings of the Max Planck Institute study, it is good that there’s been such a growing demand for natural and sustainable energy resources.  Despite the warning, that trend should continue to build momentum, but it must also be followed cautiously and deliberately.  There are excellent sources of future sustainability within our grasp, but often they are not right under our noses.   Biofuel advocates ought to be able to see past the forest and the trees.

If we can celebrate Labor Day with appliance sales and commemorate Memorial Day by purchasing mattresses at incredibly low prices, then surely it makes sense shop green in honor of Earth Day.

Bamboo clothing offers a sustainable fabric option for eco-conscious shoppers.  Viscose from bamboo is harvested from the quickly growing bamboo plant growing at a rate of 1-4 feet per day.  Bamboo grows without the use of pesticides, herbicides and the earth surrounding needs not be disrupted as bamboo requires no irrigation and can be harvested by cutting at the root (leaving it to regrow).

While one might think eco-friendly clothing equals drab clothing, let Green Earth Bamboo prove that wrong!  Check out these NEW ARRIVALS of sizzling items for women featuring stylish cuts and fresh colors for spring!

Spruce up a closet with a versatile and beautiful Chloe Skirt with pockets that goes from day to night easily with its mid-length style.  Available in the staple black and for a bit of a kick to any outfit a Riviera blue is also available.

Add a bit of layering to a wardrobe with a Kalin short-sleeved top available in trendy stripes, beautiful basic colors of fern or black or a fun and lively Paradise pink!  For a long-sleeved look, choose the comfortable Lela top with dolman sleeves fitted just below the elbow.  Super soft and super sleek, the top is a perfect complement for bamboo skirts and bamboo pants!

Perfectly paired with bamboo leggings is this Maddy Tunic with a scoop neck and flattering drape for anyone still working on their summer swimsuit figure.

Don’t let the comfort end when it’s time for bed.  Snuggle into bamboo bedding wearing this ultra-feminine Luna Pajama set available in black, paradise pink and a soft peach.

Green Earth Bamboo is excited to offer Earth Day savings starting today and ending on April 23!

Get $10 off orders over $100 (use coupon code EARTHDAY10 at checkout) or get $15 off orders over $150 (use coupon code EARTHDAY15 at checkout).  In addition, receive Free Shipping on all orders $200 and over!

Happy shopping and Happy Earth Day!

When I need invitations I order them online at best-little-wedding-shop.com. They have very unique invitations to choose from to fit everyone’s budget. Check out the graduation party invitations, discount wedding invitations and the photo invitations. I also like that you can order green wedding invitations made from recycled paper stock. Another fabulous place to shop on line is a fun little store called Green Earth Bamboo. I really like the bamboo towels. They are super absorbent and very luxurious. While you’re on this wonderful site make sure to take a peek at the bamboo clothing and bamboo sheets too.

You will find the most affordable wedding invitations at-best-little-wedding-shop.com. They have graduation party invitations and anniversary invitations. I love the photo invitations. You will also find save the dates, themed wedding party favors, accessories and gifts. For those of you getting married they have wonderful wedding announcements to choose from too. Check out Green Earth Bamboo for all of you wedding gifts. They carry fantastic bamboo sheets and duvet covers in awesome colors and prints!