Sustainability In Your Ear

Micaela Preston has raised a family sustainably, sharing her learning with a growing audience along the way. MindfulMomma.com, Preston's site, delivers a wide variety of how-to sustainable living articles and products that she has tested herself. From non-toxic beauty products to natural products for the home, kitchen, and bathroom, MindfulMomma.com encourages people to think before they buy. It's...

Greg Seaman, the founder of EarthEasy.com, had the courage to live his values. He, his wife, and son moved to an island off the Pacific Northwest coast more than 30 years ago. They lived off-grid and raised a family in a home they built from recovered wood. The Seamans settled into a comfortably challenging existence living lightly on the Earth. In 2000, he launched EarthEasy.com to share his expe...

It's the deepest cold of the year in the Northern Hemisphere (while in the Southern Hemisphere, Australia is being ravaged by wildfires like the American West in Summer). The Earth911 team gathers at the microphone to talk about keeping warm inside, sealing your home to prevent the cold from entering, and the best ways to take care of yourself during the winter. Green lighting tips, the best vegan...

Welcome to 2019 and the month of Veganuary. The Earth911 team gathers to talk about the growing Veganuary movement. People around the world are adopting a vegan diet during January and, if it goes well, embracing animal-free eating all year. We also explore the role of recycling oyster shells in the environment and the best ways to start this year's garden in January with indoor seedlings. Sarah L...

It's the Sustainable New Year episode of Earth911's podcast as the team gathers around the microphone to talk impactful resolutions. What can we do to combat climate change, improve your use of renewable energy, reduce plastic pollution of the oceans, and lower CO2 emissions? What are the non-profits to support? How can we be better stewards of water? We also discuss getting involved in your commu...

The Oceanic Society (oceanicsociety.org) is celebrating Pantone's Color of the Year selection, Living Coral, a vibrant message that designers will use in media around the world. Earth911 talks with Wayne Sentman, director of Conservation Travel Programs at the Oceanic Society about the state of coral and raising awareness about coral bleaching and climate change. The organization encourages people...

The Ray C. Anderson Center for Sustainable Business at Georgia Tech's Scheller College of Business is a hotbed of innovation for the circular economy. Earth911 talks with the school's Dr. Beril Toktay and Michael Oxman about the application of sustainable practices in business and the future of careers in sustainability. If you are a student or a business owner considering how to turn green intent...

Vikram Aggarwal, founder and CEO of home solar comparison-shipping service EnergySage.com, talks with Earth911 about the costs of, and incentives available for, solar installations. The company, which provide free solar product comparisons and on-call expertise, has helped homeowners in more than 30 states get their houses off the traditional power grid. Aggarwal explains the many factors that con...

Evelyn Fielding-Lopez and the Earth911 gang assemble at the microphone to talk about 2018's biggest recycling and sustainability stories. From climate change and environmental protection, to recycling policy in and its impact on U.S. recycling rates, it has been a year we think sets the stage for major changes. Also, what were the best green businesses in apps, retailers that use renewable energy,...

Dr. Kinari Webb founded Health In Harmony (healthinharmony.org) in 2005 to help illegal loggers in the Boreo rainforest stop poaching trees. In a remarkable story, she and her team have reduced the number of families that rely on illegal logging for a living by 88 percent while virtually eliminating childhood deaths in the region. You won't forget this interview.

Sustainability In Your Ear follows the Earth911 team to the store for a holiday shopping that doesn't damage the planet. The gang explores whether online or shopping the mall is better for the environment. Sarah Lozanova introduces five green fashion brands to look for when shopping and our new list of top electric vehicles. Trey Granger takes us on a skiing green vacation. We also talk through th...

Evelyn Fielding-Lopez talks with Peter Mehring, cofounder and CEO of ZEST Labs, which makes produce-tracking sensors that extend the shelf-life of produce. By monitoring the condition of produce from the field to the store or restaurant, ZEST supports better decisions in the food supply chain. Learn how technology is being put to work to eliminate food waste that results in 40 percent of U.S.-grow...

Beth Porter, Climate and Recycling Director at Green America, a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit, has studied the recycling system carefully. In her new book, Reduce, Reuse, Reimagine: Sorting Out the Recycling System, Porter challenges established thinking and recounts the history of the single-stream recycling system introduced decades ago in the United States. With recycling rates stuck near 3...

It's Thanksgiving and that means it's Thankscycling time! The Earth911 team gathers around the table to enjoy a sustainable family day of simple swaps for a healthy Thanksgiving. Sarah Lozanova explains seven Thank-worthy DIY decorations and Trey Granger explains how to recycle cooking oil. Evelyn Fielding-Lopez talks 12 ideas to reduce or eliminate food waste on Thanksgiving, and Mitch Ratcliffe...

Arctic ice is in trouble. Leslie Field, Ph. D. founded Ice911 to build a solution to retreating ice in the Arctic, where 75 percent of the ice pack that existed in 1979. Field brings decades of high-tech work and 54 patents to the problem of restoring ice, which will contribute to cooling the atmosphere and returning the jet stream to its normal path. The non-profit has created reflective sand, wh...

Heading into the holidays with a sustainable mindset, Evelyn Fielding-Lopez, Sarah Lozanova, and Mitch Ratcliffe get ready for guests. The gang talk about how to eliminate toxins when choosing home cleaning products, how to make your own Earth-friendly cleaning recipes, and recycling of household product such as toothbrushes, toothpaste tubes, and cleaning product packaging. We also look to the sk...

The Washington State Pollution Control Hearings Board disappointed environmental leaders in October when it allowed largely unregulated concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) to continue operating in the state. CAFOs are giant cattle, pig, and other livestock operations that have manure waste ponds, like those that overflowed in North Carolina after Hurricane Florence. Chris Wilke of Puget...

Marc Choyt, the founder of Reflective Jewelry, talks with Earth911 about fair trade jewelry. He recently published an extensive and critical expose on the ethical jewelry business. Sustainable and humane metal and gem mining has caught on in Europe, notably in the U.K, but has been slow to establish itself in the United States. Learn what questions to ask when buying precious metal, diamonds, and...

Elizabeth Sanderson, chief marketing officer at Sunflare Solar joins Earth911's Sustainability In Your Ear to talk about solar progress, the economics of solar installation, and when Capture 4 for home buyers will be available. Listen in to get the latest information about the cost and increasing efficiency of adding renewable energy to buildings and, with thin-film technology, mobile solar for ca...

Paige Fashoni, founder of FLUX Undies, joins Earth911 host Evelyn Fielding-Lopez to talk about reducing the number of sanitary pads and tampons, along with all the packaging waste they come with, that end up in landfills. FLUX is recently introduced functional underwear for periods, leaks, and postpartum use. Fashoni's commitment as a female founder is to revolutionize the way in which women exper...

It's the Halloween episode of Sustainability In Your Ear. The Earth911 team gathers around the microphone to talk about the sustainable way to have Halloween fun. Get your little ghouls ready with DIY and eco-friendly costumes made with sustainable fabrics and consider healthy snacks or starting a Switch Witch tradition that lets kids trade candy for gifts. The gang also discusses how to recycle b...

Greg Lettieri, co-founder of New York City-based RTS is bringing a variation on Uber's playbook to recycling. RTS connects local recycling haulers with business recyclers in several states, delivering recycling training and services to employees along with a complete accounting of what happens to materials after they are picked up. By focusing on the logistics of recycling, RTS enables flexible bu...

The Hytch app is a clever approach to incenting ridesharing and carpooling. Mark Cleveland, founder and CEO of Hytch joins Sustainability In Your Ear to explain how the company is working with employers, cities, and non-profits to provide small payments to people who share a car on the way to work.

Author B.F. (Bruce) Nagy discusses his new book, The Clean Energy Future, with Earth911's Mitch Ratcliffe. Nagy offers his advice for homeowners who want to clean up their carbon footprint, as well as observations on the progress being made, albeit in fits and starts, across many sectors of the economy. You'll come away from this episode with plenty of actions to take. Follow Bruce at http://bfnag...

Evelyn Fielding-Lopez, Mitch Ratcliffe, and Sarah Lozanova talk the last week's recycling and sustainability news on Earth911. This week, we took a deep dive into planning your garden for next year and extending the growing season. How to minimize leaf cleanups, orchids in the yard, and more. We've also got Earthling Questions! How do you dispose of mercury safely? And a question with a twist: Are...