Beth Fiteni

Ecofashion Guru Speaks in NYC

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Branson Skinner, Of Rags; Sass Brown, author "EcoFashion," and Nemit Degirmencioglu, Soham Dave

Last night, Soham Dave hosted an evening with Sass Brown, author of the book “Ecofashion,” along with Branson Skinner, cofounder of Of Rags, at the Textile Arts Center in Manhattan. Soham Dave works directly with artisans in India, with each piece being hand-crafted, using natural materials and natural dyes. Of Rags is a NY company that upcycles clothing from pieces of existing clothing, and sells their items at about 20 university bookshops. Sass Brown is a leading expert in the field based in Italy who has taught at Fashion Institute of Technology and has worked with women’s cooperatives in Peru to advance sustainable fashion. Aside from authoring a book on the subject, she also blogs and contributes to magazines such as CocoEco Magazine.

It was a great event, with a room full of people interested in sustainable fashion. Very encouraging! Discussion focused on how far ecofashion has come and where it needs to go. Attendees included Harvey Russack, producer of The Green Shows, and Kate McGregor, owner of Kaight, NYC’s leading ecofashion shop located on Orchard St., NYC and Atlantic Ave. in Brooklyn.

See:

Harvey Russack, The Green Shows, with Sass and Nemit
Kate McGregor, owner of Kaight, and Beth Fiteni
Beautiful piece by Soham Dave

NYC Green City Challenge 2011

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On October 23, 2011 the NYC Green City Challenge was held where people rode bikes around the city to visit some of the city’s “green highlights.” Winners received beautiful awards and a bag of green goodies. The challenge ended at Union Square, where I was invited to speak about how to reduce toxins in order to look beautiful and feel great, and also about how to have an ethical diet that doesn’t harm the planet. Many companies sponsored the event and offered exhibit booths at Union Square, including NYSERDA and Raw Food DVDs. I always learn something new: there is a company here on Long Island called Ciao water that sells bottled water in biodegradable plastic bottles. The plastic is infused with natural enzymes that will break the bottle down in about 5 years time. Other exhibitors included: Enagage Green, which offers eco-friendly bags, Green Apple Cleaners, Brooklyn Greenroof, Tri-State Biodiesel, and Ethicus, a website compiling all things green in NYC. See greencitychallenge.org.

Eco-prizes!
Tri- State Biodiesel
Green Apple Cleaners
Ethicus
Ciao water
Engage Green

 

Conservation Commissions Hold Conference on the Environment

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Oct 21-23, 20011– The NYS Association of Conservation Commissions (NYSACC) held their annual meeting in Rensselearville, NY (near Albany) and I was invited to participate in a panel on climate change. It was a very smart and conscientious group, including some students who were given scholarships to attend. It was a fact-filled conference, with many from around the state sharing stories of their efforts to reduce their town’s greenhouse gas emissions. A compelling lecture was offered by Michael Gerrard, a well-known expert on environmental law from Columbia University. He spoke about the fact that when scientists talk about the effect of excess carbon dioxide, they have already taken into account all the natural background contributors, such as volcanoes and sun activity. He noted the widespread doubt being fostered by conservative news outlets and politicians, however there really is no scientific doubt anymore. Robert Moore, Environmental Advocates, spoke about hydrofracking and some of the other campaigns their organization is working on. I think everyone gained a lot of information that will assist them in going back to address the work that is clearly cut out for us. See www.nysaccny.org.

Mark Lowery, NYS DEC conducts workshop

Greater Long Island Clean Cities, Advancing the Choice

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The Greater Long Island Clean Cities held its annual Advancing the Choice Conference on October 14th, 2011 at Bethpage Park. This event highlights alternative fuel vehicles, alternative fuels, and all the people locally who are helping to make them a reality here on Long Island. Peter Scully, Regional Director of the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) addressed the crowd with facts about climate change to remind the group why their efforts are so important. He pointed out a scary fact– because we are releasing so much carbon into the atmosphere that is binding with oxygen, there is now actually less in oxygen in the atmosphere. On the positive side, it’s therefore always inspiring to hear about successes with fleets being converted from conventional fossil sources of fuel, and to actually see cutting edge vehicles on display. See GLICC.org.

David Schieren, Empower Solar, loves his new Chevy Volt
Peter Scully, Regional DEC Director speaks at GLICCC event

Tribute to Professor Wangari Maathai (1940-2011)

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(Excerpted from the United Nations Environment Programme tribute)

Professor Wangari Maathai, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, founder of Kenya’s Green Belt Movement and patron of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Billion Tree Campaign, died 9/25/11 in Nairobi. She was 71 years old. Professor Maathai was one of Africa’s foremost environmental campaigners, internationally recognized for her commitment to democracy, human rights and conservation. She founded the Green Belt Movement in 1977, encouraging women in rural Kenya to plant trees in order to improve their livelihoods through better access to clean water, firewood for cooking and other resources. Since then, the Green Belt Movement has planted over 30 million trees in Africa and assisted nearly 900,000 women to establish tree nurseries and plant trees to reverse the effects of deforestation. In 2004, the Nobel Prize Committee recognized Professor Maathai’s lifelong commitment to environmental sustainability and the empowerment of women by awarding her the Nobel Peace Prize. She was the first environmentalist and the first African woman to receive the honor. In December 2002, Professor Maathai was elected to Kenya’s parliament and appointed Assistant Minister for environment and natural resources. [Read more…] about Tribute to Professor Wangari Maathai (1940-2011)