Blog : July 2010
Zev Yoga Studio meets summer with new events
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Typically, Zev Yoga – located right above Breaking New Grounds in Market Square – offers a quiet, reflective, largely sound-free retreat from the hustle and bustle of downtown Portsmouth.
But on the night of August 31st, that hustle and bustle – albeit of a much quieter variety – will be making its way up two flights of stairs to the wooden-floored yoga studio.
Starting at 8pm that Tuesday, Jonas “Zev” Amberger will host the second in a series of unique events combining music, light refreshments, and a gentle yoga practice.
According to Zev, the “SUBTONIC” event – which gets its name from the musical term for the leading tone directly before the “root note”, the most stable note in the musical scale – “seeks to utilize a mindful practice as a way to experience music on a different level.”
“We want people to have an entirely new experience of music through the practice of yoga,” he says.
Musician, multi-instrumentalist and renowned world music icon Randy Armstrong will get things rolling with an array of unique and exotic instruments, including the Lakota flutes, guitars, a sitar, as well as ambient sound-scapes. To call Armstrong a multi-instrumentalist would be an understatement: the musician is capable of playing over 200 of them.
Building off the energy in the room, Zev will then commence a yoga practice suitable for all ages and experience levels, while Armstrong will continue playing notes in sync with the movement of the practitioners.
Eco-mother sells eco-products and spreads eco-awareness
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By Alex Cooper
Wouldn’t it be nice if all businesses concentrated on product quality and making a point to raise awareness on important social and environmental issues?
Kim Mosher certainly thinks so. Working as an independent consultant for Arbonne International, Mosher is able to run an eco-friendly beauty supply store, “Beauty with Benefits,” from her home.
A busy mother with an active lifestyle, for Mosher family always comes first. But that doesn’t stop her from her seeking out and touting products that fall in line with her beliefs. To that end, Mosher has strived to make her beauty store an outlet to spread awareness on consumer products and the health complications they can potentially create.
While Mosher offers a whole host of products that contain absolutely no harmful or unnatural ingredients, her newest addition called FC5, is a particular source of pride.
Phone Bank with Repower America and the Green Alliance
Organizations and individuals across New Hampshire and the nation have been working for nearly a year towards strong, comprehensive clean energy and climate legislation. On July 22nd, at the very same time there was 13 New Hampshire leaders in Washington to talk to our senators, clean energy proponents were dealt a crushing blow. The corporate polluters and their army of Washington lobbyist kept their grip on America's energy policy, preventing the Senate from taking action on comprehensive climate legislation.
At this time, it is expected that a weaker bill to deal with only the disastrous oil spill in the Gulf will be put to the Senate with some hope of a comprehensive bill in September. In any case, at THIS MOMENT we need the Senate to use every opportunity to address clean energy and climate reform. Every day we delay action; our national security, economy and environment are at further risk. The Climate Protection Act Fund's Repower America campaign have organized a phone bank to make calls to clean energy friends throughout New Hampshire.
1 World Trading Co. offers products that tell their own “green story"
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By Jim Cavan
Take a stroll down any aisle of any big retailer, pick up a small box a package, look somewhere on the bottom – it’s always pretty much the same story: Made in China, Made in Bangladesh, Made in Taiwan.
And that’s really just the opening salvo of a much deeper – and darker -- story. Indeed, if you knew the conditions under which many of those products were made, chances are you’d probably walk out after the first few pages.
But take just a short jaunt through Portsmouth’s 1 World Trading Co., and you might discover that, for at least one local business, every tag ought to have its own, unique, and decidedly green tale to tell – and a happy one at that.
1 World Trading has a motto: “Purveyors of goods that benefit the planet and the people who live on it”. The catch-all retail store, which opened its doors on Congress Street this past November, offers a wide range of products and accessories that truly run the green gamut.
Owners Karen and Paul Keegan, who run another 1 World Trading Co. in Nashua along with their flagship Mother and Child Clothing Store, take great pride in offering organic, fair-trade, and locally made products that are as unique as they are sustainable.
Whether you’re looking for organic clothing, jewelry, home décor, hemp shoes, biodegradable cups and plates, New Hampshire-made maple syrup and chocolate, or books and CDs from local writers and musicians – 1 World Trading offers socially-responsible products that keeps the money where it belongs: in the local economy, or in the hands of those who made them.
In short, the Keegans go to great lengths to make sure that everything on their shelves tells a story – one that is as empowering as it is occasionally whimsical.
Here are just a few of those stories:
Casabella eclipse Cleaning System: Made in the U.S.A, this household cleaning tool features a handle made of 30% recycled aluminum, as well as plastic components made from 100 percent recycled bottles. The product is also Cradle-to-Cradle certified, one of the most prestigious green rankings in America.
Eco Touch Car Washing System: Manufactured in Dover, these unique car-wash products are devoid of harmful chemicals, require only a quart of water to apply and wash, and are bottled in 100% recycled plastic. Even their full ingredient disclosure separates themselves from larger manufacturers, who would just assume hide what’s really in their products.
Just Soap: This self-proclaimed “Pedal-Powered Natural Soap”, produced in Ashfield, Massachusetts, requires exactly zero electricity to produce. Instead, a bicycle – that’s right, a bicycle – drives a belt that turns a blade in a large steel vat, where only the purest, completely all-natural ingredients are mixed to create this truly “carbon-neutral” product.
Aire Trashion Recycled Banner Bags: Ever wonder what happens to movie and other promotional banners that have run their course? Chances are you might be seeing them slung across a shoulder the next time you walk down the streets of Portsmouth. That’s because the Air Company has taken it upon itself to turn these would-be landfill fodder into colorful, vibrant satchels and bags that are as durable as they acre creatively rendered.
J.R. Liggitt Soap: Boasting perhaps the most interesting back story of any of 1 World’s unique products, Liggitt’s Soaps were created when their founder retired from a lucrative advertising career on Madison Avenue, moving to the tiny Cornish, New Hampshire to produce his all-natural soaps. To say Liggitt was an advertising wizard would be an understatement: he literally created the famous and iconic Owens Corning Pink Panther ad campaign, for which he won several awards.
Green Toys: California-based Green Toys offers a whole host of child’s fare – everything from dump trucks to shovels and pails to tugboats and stackers – all of which is made from 100 percent recycled plastic. According to the company’s website, on average, every pound of recycled plastic used to make their toys saves enough energy to power a TV for 3 weeks! The best part: all Green Toys are from curbside recycled milk jugs, and are BPA, PVC, and phthalate-free.
BioKleen: A store staple and huge selling point for 1 World Trading, these highly concentrated – they use half as much packaging as similar products from green standard-bearer Seventh Generation – and non-toxic household cleaners are offered in bottles that customers can bring back and refill out back, where Keegan houses four enormous drums of the products. The BioKleen refill station is the first of its kind anywhere on the Seacoast, and provides a way for consumers to not only green their cleaning products, but reuse the bottles as well.
Join the Isles of Shoals and Green Alliance Business Partners for Fun, Free Summer Cruises
This summer Green Alliance and Isles of Shoals have partnered to bring you Dockside Parties and Reggae Cruises hosted by local green business leaders. This Wednesday, July 28th through August you can join various sustainable entrepreneurs for a Free Dockside Party from 5:30-7:30pm aboard Portsmouth's floating bar, the Thomas Laighton. Enjoy networking, customer appreciation and free snacks and then shove off for a free Reggae Cruise 7:30-10:00pm. Guests must arrive before 6:00pm to enjoy the Reggae Cruise for FREE! This is a great opportunity to cruise with the Isles of Shoals Steamship Company for free and socialize with green-minded individuals. Come enjoy live music and good green company on the Piscataqua River. This event is open to the public and free if you arrive before 6:00pm! For more info about these cruises, visit the Green Alliance events calendar by clicking here.
Two Steps Closer to a Zero Waste Portsmouth!
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Zero Waste Portsmouth is excited to announce that on Monday, July 19, 2010, the Portsmouth City Council unanimously approved the placement of seven zero waste stations throughout the downtown footprint, as part of our Downtown Portsmouth Zero Waste Project! Zero Waste Portsmouth is a grassroots collaborative of the Islington Creek Neighborhood Association, Tim Gaudreau Studios and Ecomovement Consulting and Hauling. The non-profit 501c3 fiscal sponsor is the New England Grassroots Environment Fund.
The following day, with the generous help from Middleton Building Supply as well as Michael Warhurst, Park Superintendent, Zero Waste Portsmouth placed the first zero waste station in Prescott Park, thanks to the approval of the Park's Board of Trustees! The beautiful ceramic tile art work done by local students from Robert Lister Academy and is now proudly on display just across from the park stage. Be sure to check it out!
For Suntree Tree Health Care, varying weather brings equally varying challenges
By Jim Cavan
Living on the Seacoast, we’re used to strange weather. Even when we momentarily find ourselves getting fed up with the ice and the sleet, the heat and the humidity, the rain and the rogue winds, we’re quick to remind ourselves: It’s New England. Wait five minutes.
But you’d be hard pressed to recall two summers more distant on the weather scale than the summers of 2009 and 2010.
While for most the schizophrenic summer sways of Mother Nature in New England simply mean waiting a few minutes – or changing vacation destinations – for Chris Kemp of Suntree Tree Health Care, it means a constantly shifting set of challenges for his business.
According to Kemp, last year’s unusually cool and rainy summer wasn’t just a drag for Seacoast residents; it helped create conditions that favored a lot of diseases and insects as well. “With the wet springs you worry more about the residual effects than anything,” explains Kemp. “Certain fungus diseases thrive in these kinds of conditions, and if it’s left untreated, it can persist through the following year.”
But unpredictable weather isn’t the only ‘X’ that Kemp and others in his industry constantly have to solve for. From blight and disease to insects and other vermin, there is no shortage of adversaries – or combination of adversaries – waiting in the wings beyond the weather.
As with businesses of all stripes, matters certainly haven’t been helped by the recession. Still, Kemp claims the toll the economic slowdown took on his company’s bottom line was much more apparent last year than this year.
“Things have been a lot steadier this year, for sure,” he said. “Mother nature certainly helped in jumpstarting the season.”
Then again, Kemp acknowledges part of the upswing in business can itself be attributed to the weather. While it’s been almost the exact opposite of what we came to expect through much of last summer – rain, rain and more rain – the dry, hot conditions of 2010 came on the heels of an untypically volatile spring.
Magic Salt - saves you money while saving the environment
Magic Salt is a bi-product of the distillation process of vodka mixed with Magnesium. It is 90% less corrosive, works at a lower temperature, almost no damage to the environment, and only 50 to 60 percent is required to do the job regular salt would. You are reducing everything from fuel, to salt, to cost with this product. Magic Salt will stay around for a few weeks after application to continue protecting against snowstorms. Watch the video to learn more. For more info on Crescent Snow and Ice Management, click here.
GA's trip to Washington brings unprecedented press coverage
Last week we took the message national! For three days, hundreds of citizens and business owners from throughout the country -- including a combined 27 from Maine and New Hampshire -- descended on Washington to help persuade members of congress about the importance of comprehensive climate change legislation.
But Sarah Brown's trip last week to our nation's capital wasn't just a learning experience for our beloved organization -- it also generated some great press throughout the Seacoast.
Click on each link to read stories from the Portsmouth Herald, Foster's Daily Democrat, and the Nashua Telegraph!
The GA goes to Washington
By Jim Cavan
Since its 2008 launch, the Green Alliance (GA) has certainly made a name for itself here on the Seacoast. In just two years the locally-based organization has partnered with 85 businesses from across industries and sectors, in the process helping each to raise their own green profile while providing nearly 1500 individual members discounts to the businesses themselves.
This week the group took their message national.
Beginning Tuesday, Clean Energy Works (CEW) hosted an American “Clean Energy Fly-in” to Washington, D.C. For three days more than 200 residents, business owners and concerned citizens from 21 states descended on the capital to lobby the Senate to pass comprehensive clean energy legislation this year.
Included in the group’s New Hampshire delegation was GA founder and Director Sarah Brown. For Brown, the trip to Washington paints a vibrant picture of just how far the green movement has come.
“It’s certainly a great opportunity, not just for us to learn how the legislative process works, but to show people from all over the country the unique way we’re touting the message of green,” says Brown. “A few years ago this group would have been made up almost entirely of environmentalists. But you’re seeing people from all across business and industry who have come to realize that the green movement is as much about creating jobs and stabilizing the economy as it is about the environment.”
Also Included in the Granite State team were Allie Degan and Laura McKay, owners Acorn Organic Salon in Dover – themselves Green Alliance Business Partners.
Between Brown, Degan, McKay, and a host of other Granite Staters -- including Michal Bruss of Bruss Construction, as well as representatives from the state’s Department of Fish & Game and Mount Washington Auto Road – the group is eager to bring the state’s green stories, strategies, and successes to a national audience.
“We should make some excellent contacts and hopefully be able to collaborate with our representatives and their staffs to help make climate change legislation more of a national issue, and to bring that sense of urgency back home to New Hampshire” said Allie Degan.
New local group offers “Fabulous Finds” and peace of mind
By Alex Cooper
It seems like “shopping” and “spending” have been two words ultimately linked with environmental disaster. But wouldn’t it be great if it were the other way around? What if you also donated to a great cause without paying anything extra?
Got your attention?
Lucky for everyone, such a group exists. It’s called “The Fabulous Find”, and it was thought up by a friendly group of creative local women. The idea behind the group is that donated products would be offered to the public at low prices, with the resulting profits being donated to a different local nonprofit group each month.
Apart from determined environmentalists, the group includes a former thrift store manager and two business owners who have pledged to donate goods.
“I love being a part of creating community. I think that is what it’s all about,” explains Debby Ronnquist, one of the chief overseers of Just Us Chickens Gallery in Kittery and one of the founders of “The Fabulous Find”.
Get Paid for Solar! New Hampshire Passes Forward-Minded Solar Electric Legislation
Guest Blogger: Fred Greenhalgh, ReVision Energy
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The Granite State has already been a solar leader in New England with their generous $6,000 cash rebate for residential solar electric systems up to 5kw as well as an average $1,500 rebate for solar hot water.
Now New Hampshire has taken the next step – mandating utilities to pay the customer for excess electric generation! Yes, New Hampshire now requires utilities to pay customers when their solar electric system generates more electricity than they use.
The legislation, House Bill (HB) 1353 states that:
"...the customer-generator may elect to be paid or credited by the electric distribution utility for its excess generation at rates that are equal to the utility’s avoided costs for energy and capacity to provide default service as determined by the commission consistent with the requirements of the Public Utilities Regulatory Policy Act of 1978 (PURPA)"
Emphasis Added
Say hello to Scott Szycher, new GA Assistant Director!
Greetings Green Card Holders, Business Partners, and other friends of the Green Alliance! My name is Scott Szycher, and in just a few weeks I’ll be joining the Green Alliance as Assistant Project Director to Sarah Brown. I’m genuinely excited to contribute to GA’s mission of connecting “green” consumers with local Seacoast businesses that actively integrate sustainability into their business operations.
You can find out more about me at http://www.greenalliance.biz/about-us, but in a nutshell, I not only have a great interest in sustainable economies and communities, but also in promoting a vibrant and healthy Seacoast community. I have been visiting the Seacoast since attending high school in one of Boston’s northern suburbs, and quickly became enamored with the area’s residents, natural landmarks, and thriving cultural attractions.
Starting in August, you can contact me at scott@greenalliance.biz; I’ll be happy to hear from you whether you are a Green Card Holder (or soon-to-be Green Card Holder!) wanting to learn about the latest discounts and information on our valued business partners, or a business partner of the Green Alliance wanting to brainstorm on how to promote your company’s great products, services, and green business practices to our loyal cardholders who value local businesses and the great deals they offer to the Green Alliance community.
I also wanted to mention something time-sensitive regarding politics. Last night, I had the pleasure of attending a meeting conducted by Jim Rubens, the New Hampshire coordinator for the Union of Concerned Scientists. Jim explained that during the next 2-3 weeks, the U.S. Senate will hold hearings on the so-called “Energy Bill” (sometimes know as the Kerry-Lieberman-Graham bill, or the American Power Act). Of the various points Jim made, one thing appears a reasonably safe bet: if the Energy Bill fails before Senators go home for their August recess, it will likely be a good long while (years?) before the bill comes up for debate again.
As a result, whatever your position is on the bill’s components (which may include proposals that would place a cap on carbon emissions for utilities, a rebate sent directly to consumers to offset higher prices for energy from fossil-fuels, and a surcharge on oil companies to fund cleanup efforts in the Gulf of Mexico), you should contact your Senators to make your feelings known. In fact, we have four Senators from New England who are currently undecided on how they would vote on the bill: NH Senator Gregg, MA Senator Brown, and Senators Collins and Snowe from ME.
Although we don’t know exactly what will be in the Senate version (though it’s all but assured it will be less aggressive than the version produced by the House of Representatives, which would not have the votes to pass in the Senate), Jim Rubens was quite convincing in his statements that regions like New England – with our traditionally high electricity prices, our region’s sensitivity to climate change, and our abundance of small businesses involved in alternative energy – would stand to gain the most from an energy bill that integrates climate policy into energy legislation.
So, whatever state you reside in, we urge you to contact your state’s senator(s) who are currently undecided, and let your voice be heard! If you are in favor of legislation that would include pricing carbon (widely considered a critical element towards the transition to cleaner, greener energy production), you can simply let your Senator’s office know your position by stating so via phone call, fax, email, postcard, etc. Jim assured us that their offices do track their constituents’ responses.
Here are the addresses and phone numbers for the Senators’ respective offices:
Sen. Judd Gregg: 16 Pease Blvd., Portsmouth, NH 03801, 603.431.2171
Sen. Susan Collins: 160 Main St, Biddeford, ME 04005, 207.283.1101
Sen. Olympia Snowe: 227 Main St., Biddeford, ME 04005, 207.282.4144
Sen. Scott Brown, 2400 JFK Bldg, Boston, MA 02203, 617.565.3170
Planet Hugger Boston 2010
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Planet Hugger Boston 2010 is dedicated to educating, inspiring, and empowering children and adults, individuals and families, urbanites and small town folks to come together in their communities and workplaces to create a more sustainable planet for future generations. Charismatic and well known speakers will bring the inspiration to our attendees. Past PlanetHugger speakers like Ed Begley, Jr., Bill Nye, Daryl Hannah, Jeff Corwin and Ted Danson all share a passion for the environment and brought that fire in their keynote speeches to the attendees. This year’s speakers and performers are coming to Boston to do the same! Still, knowledge and passion alone won’t save the planet. That requires action. Action is what PlanetHugger exhibitors bring to the event. It is through the exhibitors products and services that people are able to take the actions that start them…
…saving the planet one person at a time.
Don't forget to keep a look out for both a Green Alliance booth and an Alaska Wilderness League at this event! Also, the GA is offering a promotion for anyone who wants to attend Planet Hugger! When you purchase your tickets online ahead of time, use the coupon code: GANH, to receive $5 tickets! Click here to order your tickets now!
For more information on PlanetHugger, click here!
REDHOOKFEST: Going Green
Saturday July 24 marks the 14th Annual REDHOOKFEST at the Redhook Ale Brewery. The event will be featuring the Blues Traveler with special guests Crash King, Rustic Overtones, and Adam Ezra Group. Great bands are not the only thing making there way to the festival, Redhook is taking the step to go green.
REDHOOKFEST will be maximizing recycling efforts at the festival and will use compostable corn-based cups. EcoMovement Consulting & Hauling is assisting Redhook with the composting and recycling efforts. Beer is being served in compostable corn-based cups, and the wonderful local food vendors have agreed to serve food with compostable paper a/o corn-based products—they are aiming for a zero waste at the festival! The hops grown in the Brewery’s Beer Garden use the compost made from scraps from the Pub! Click here to visit EcoMovement’s website or visit EcoMovement’s booth at the festival to learn all about composting and recycling and just how easy it is.
Become a Green Alliance member today and START SAVING on local, green goods and services! JOIN NOW
