Lick Global Warming

Many of you may know Ben and Jerry's for their innovative ice cream creations like their Cherry Garcia, Chunky Monkey, or Phish Food. (My favorite is Oatmeal Cookie Chunk.) However, Ben and Jerry have been redefining more than just ice cream since day one. Through their dedication to a sustainable corporate concept, they embrace progressive values that focus on children and families, the environment and sustainable agriculture on family farms.

Below are some examples of how Ben and Jerry's embrace and continue to improve upon eco-friendly business practices.

• 2002: Ben and Jerry's launched their Ben and Jerry's Lick Global Warming campaign which educates others on the challenges of global warming
  
• 2006: "Cool Your Jets"" program was introduced to educate the public on carbon-offsetting and encouraging them to purchase carbon offsets to counter the greenhouse gas emissions from their airplane travel
  
• 2006: Ben and Jerry's converted their vanilla extract and the cocoa powder to Fair Trade Certified in 2007
  
• Beginning in 2007, all eggs used in their U.S. ice cream production were transitioned to Certified Humane cage-free suppliers, making Ben and Jerry's one of the very first national food manufacturers to commit to this practice
  
• Ben and Jerry's continues to work closely with farmers who supply milk and cream for their products in order to help implement sustainable practices on the farm
  

Ben and Jerry's also launched four organic flavors: strawberry, vanilla, sweet cream and cookies, and chocolate fudge brownie. All are made from certified organic ingredients and cultivated in environmentally-sustainable ways.

Who's House? Helios House!

Over the weekend during my visit to L.A. for a brief getaway, I was able to check out Helios House, a futuristic-looking gas station that offers sustainable alternatives for the future. Helios House which was created in February 2007 by BP, a global energy group, is made from recycled materials and is the first LEED certified gas station in the United States.

When I got a tour from Josh Weber, a BP employee, he explained that everything at Helios House had a purpose and way of contributing to the environment. "The little things add up. That's all this station is, it's a bunch of little things," said Weber.

The station's structure, made from 100% recyclable stainless steel, is solar-powered by the 90 solar panels sitting on the roof. Helios House also recycles all of its water through a graywater system to irrigate the bamboo plants and succulents scattered throughout the station's landscaping. Even the ground is recycled! The cement is mixed with recyled glass which not only gives it a nice sparkle, but sends back 70% of the sun's heat-causing rays which helps reduce heat island effect found in large urban areas.

During my visit, I realized that the gas station didn't even smell like gasoline. Weber later explained that all gas pumps in the state of California must have to use a special device on their pumps which siphon out the carbonmonoxide and CO2 vapors emitted while pumping gas. These pumps in particular catch between 98-99% of all of the vapors which eliminates the usual smell of gas fumes that are inhaled. You can even watch the screen while you fill up your tank, which flashes green tips with little things everyone can do to improve the environment.

Sitting between pumps are stations offering hand-sanitizing wipes with natural oils and lavender on 100% recycled paper, and mini paper postcards with snippets of information from the greencurve.com that raise awareness about sustainability. After you read the card, you can water it, plant it, and grow wildflowers.

There are also three cans - one for trash and two for recycling - between every two pump stations for customers who want to clean out their car while they fuel up. "if we make it available, if it's right here, people will do it," said Weber.

Marissa Sanchez a local resident said she's been coming to Helios House for the past four months becuase of convenience and because it's green. "The prices seem to be a little bit more expensive, but I think it's worth it overall," said Sanchez. "They make it really nice they have hand-sanitizer here and they have recycling here so you can get a lot done."

Everything at Helios House comes together full circle. "They [BP] really built it with the idea of 'can we take this back apart and reuse it' becuase we know it's not going to be here forever," said Weber. "Sustainability is they key to everything."

Healthier Cleaning

Over the weekend, I attended the Green Building Expo. along with some classmates to report on the event in downtown Scottsdale.

The two-day event was absolutely amazing with 100+ booths of companies that embrace an eco-friendly approach through their products and services. Being a clean-freak with borderline obsessive compulsive disorder tendancies, I gravitated towards a joint booth that featured Earth Maids and Shaklee, who both contribute to a toxic-free approach to cleaning.



Earth Maids, a cleaning service for homes and offices, embraces a greener way of cleaning, only using products that are eco-friendly, non-toxic, and biodegradable, by Shaklee.

Ranging from window cleaners, to dishwash soap, to laundry detergent, Shaklee's Get Clean line is both versatile and safe to use. Each bottled product is highly concentrated and can be mixed with different soap-to-water concentrations for the cleaning need on hand.

"What that means is less bottles and then it also means you're not shipping the bottles so it's less greenhouse gases, and you save money," said Jane Pederson, a Shaklee distributor.


With just a couple of drops added to one of their empty cleaning bottles and water filled to the top, Shaklee users improve their home and the Earth's environment, by reducing waste and toxins. They're just as effective in the way the clean, too.

"Most people think if you use those types of products," referring to natural household cleaners, "that they don't work as well," said Pederson.

Earth Maids and Shaklee embrace sustainability and raising awareness. Being socially responsible businesses, both strive to encourage others to make even the smallest change in their routine, for a healthier environment, and are more than willing to show other how to make these changes. Earth Maids only offers their services to homes and offices in the Phoenix Metropolitan area, however, natural cleaning tips using common household ingredients can be found on their website, along with additional guidelines on purchasing cleaning products.