Environmentally Innovative Art

Environmentally Innovative Art

Artist Germaine Suriyage found a wealth of materials for his hand-crafted, art-deco lamps and wall hangings while working in the food-service industry. Suriyage reuses mass quantities of discarded but usable “garbage,” including recycled industrial cardboard spools, newspapers and colored paper, along with organic glues and acrylic paints. His creations are capriciously colorful animal-shaped lamps and wall-art (like lions and tigers). The eye-catching and innovative artpieces add style to any room, and make quite an environmental statement. For more information, contact:

Germaine Suriyage
138 South Pearl Street
Lancaster, PA 17603
Tel: (717) 293-9525

Granting the Way

Many environmental organizations classified as non-profit will find an invaluable tool in the fourth edition of Environmental Grantmaking Foundations, a comprehensive directory compiled by the Environmental Data Research Institute (EDRI). Granting aid in the imperative search for funding, this guide profiles 700 foundations which provided over $425 million in “green” financial support last year. For struggling grassroots organizations, help can be just a grant application away. Available for $90 postpaid from:

EDRI
P.O. Box 22770
Rochester, NY 14692
Tel: (800) 724-1857

Shade Your Brain

Look out! Right now your brain is being bombarded with waves of electro-magnetic radiation. From microwave ovens to powerlines, cellular phones to radios, electro-magnetic radiation is inescapable in today’s high-tech world. But protection of a sort is available from Shieldworks, makers of the CyberCap, a baseball-style hat made from radio frequency (RF)-reflecting material that blocks these waves from your brain. The Pentagon reportedly uses the same material to avoid leaking radiation from its five-sided building. Sporting a “Radio-Free Head” logo, this cap is available for $44.90 postpaid from:

Shieldworks, Inc.
5821 Mt. Sinai Road
Durham, NC 27705
Tel: (800) 403-0255

Chemical Insight

Scientists are alarmed over a new societal fear they call “chemiphobia.” But John Emsley’s reader-friendly book, The Consumer’s Good Chemical Guide, discusses how various chemicals, like saccharin, perfume and detergents, affect our health and well-being for both good and bad. Emsley sheds new light on the chemical compositions of popular products, and contends that many chemicals—including some of the artificial sweeteners and preservatives generally regarded as harmful and toxic—may actually be benign. Available for $12.95 (paperback). To order, contact:

W.H. Freeman and Company Limited
44 19 West 1980 South
Salt Lake City, Utah 84104
Tel: (800) 877-5351

Breathe Right

Believe it or not, outdoor activities can actually be harmful to your health. The air that you breathe during cardiovascular exercise contains sub-micron pollutants like lead, tar, carbon dust and diesel smoke that build up in your lungs, causing shortness of breath. The Sportsta Mask, manufactured by Respro, filters these particles from the air, giving your lungs a break. Made of hypo-allergenic neoprene (like the cloth used in wetsuits), the mask costs $49.95. (The charcoal-based filter, which costs $18, needs to be replaced after every 100 hours of use.) Respro manufacturers 40 other models with various filtering capacities, all designed to help your lungs cope with today’s polluted world. For more information, contact:

Boboli
1203-63 Street
Edmonton, Alberta
T5W 4E5
Tel: (800) 473-7776

Measures of Sustainability

How do you measure the damage we cause to the Earth? Authors Mathis Wackernagel and William Rees explore the complex issues of over-consumption, resource depletion, carrying capacity and waste disposal in the book Our Ecological Footprint, Reducing Human Impact on the Earth. The authors argue that there are clear, destabilizing signs within our “humansphere,” and that the Earth will eventually be unable to sustain the rapid “intake-and-disposal” of the planet’s resources dictated by industrial societies. Available for $18.95 (paperback) postpaid from:

New Society Publishers
4527 Springfield Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19143
Tel: (800) 333-9093

Be Alert for Natural Dessert

“Get a Cow off Drugs—Eat Organic Ice Cream” is Cascadian Farm’s way of promoting wholesome ice cream that doesn’t rely on synthetic growth hormones and antibiotics during dairy production. As the first nationally-based organic ice cream manufacturer, Cascadian Farm has introduced eight “cow-happy” flavors, like Peanut Butter Toffee Fudge and Toffee Chocolate Swirl, to their existing line of organic sorbet and frozen yogurt. “Over the past few years, consumers have become increasingly concerned about the use of growth hormones and antibiotics in dairy production,” says Gene Kahn, Cascadian Farm CEO. The ice cream is available in natural food stores. For more information, contact:

Cascadian Farm
719 Metcalf Street
Sedro-Woolley, WA 98284
Tel: (360) 855-0100

No More Rubber

For people who want to protect their fingers against everyday toxins and skin-damaging chemicals, Gloves in a Bottle is, well, at hand. This organic, non-toxic, biodegradable and fragrance-free lotion works with the outer layer of skin cells to form a protective barrier against most chemicals, solvents, acids, petroleum products, paints, metals, glues, epoxies and detergents. Each application lasts about four hours and also protects against poison ivy or poison oak. The eight-ounce bottle costs $8.50 postpaid and provides about 150 applications. To order, contact:

Gloves in a Bottle
P.O. Box 1430
Glendale, CA 91209-1430
Tel: (800) 600-1881