Happy “Hallowgreen”

Green Halloween:  A healthy, green & fun community movement

This Halloween, think treasures, instead of candy. Kids love little trinkets like spinning tops, stickers and collectable cards. Most children especially love gifts from nature like polished rocks, crystals and seashells. Think keepsakes, tokens and stocking-stuffer type gifts but don’t forget to think healthy and green. Although non-food items are generally healthier than food items, try to avoid non-recycled plastic toys.

Readers, Send Us Your Green Halloween Photos!

Did you pass out organic candies or fair trade treats? Design a fresh-from-the-farm jack-o-lantern? Throw an eco-fabulous Halloween party? Enjoy the bloodcurdling benefits of a DIY costume? Prove it! We want to see photos from your green Halloween for our next readers slideshow--if you're the last minute type, check out Planet Green's How to Go Green: Halloween . Click through for details and see the potential for your photo in this week's Readers' International Day of Climate Action Photos.

The Green Halloween Movement

A few years ago, while taking her then six- and two-year-olds out trick or treating, Colwell-Lipson was impressed and inspired by the houses that provided treats like bubbles and stickers as an alternative to candy. She thought it would be great if there was a way -- like a sign -- for parents to know which houses had healthy treats, so they could steer their children accordingly.

Green Home Business

Home Based Green Businesses Are Raking In The Green

All of us have been exposed to the green movement in one form or another, you can’t turn on the TV or radio, can’t open a newspaper or magazine without getting blasted with information about how we need to protect the environment.  I have personally seen the phrase “ Green is the new Black” used at least five hundred times over the past year and although I’m an environmentalist, I could certainly survive without having to hear that little quip once more.

Green Home Business Profitable Start-Ups

Fortunately, savvy entrepreneurs are using their ingenuity along with new technologies and renewable energy sources to recycle, reduce, and reuse waste materials to start profitable ventures. Here are fifteen green home business ideas for you to consider that are potentially-profitable and earth-friendly.

Green Budgets

55 Green Budget Tips to Show Nature You Love Her

I don’t care if you grew up in the city, and your only interaction with nature was through the birds on the phone lines, or the ants in your kitchen. Nature has been there for you your entire life, and now it’s time for you to open yourself up to nature’s message.

Permanent Link- 30 Green Ways to Stretch Your Family’s Budget

Money doesn’t seem to go as far as it did even a few years ago, and raising a family while being green can be expensive if we believe all of the hype about buying more green stuff.

Back to basics: Green budget living tips

The economy. Energy. Burgeoning carbon footprints vs shrinking portfolios. Not an appetizing picture. Still, we gotta eat. To alleviate some of the stress surrounding these complex and confusing issues, let’s look to the past for simple, green solutions. During the Great Depression, consumers had to differentiate between needs and wants, and you may have witnessed the legacy of that frugal time in the spending habits of your grandparents and their friends. It’s time we all started buying like that generation.

Green Living Made Easy - The Eco-Friendly Lifestyle

Green Tech

A round-up of recent Green Tech stories from CNet:

Where the clean-tech jogs are
General unemployment may be on the rise, but the clean-tech sector should be a bright spot for job seekers, according to a report released Thursday by Clean Edge research.

Solar-charging backpacks set for hike to market
G24 Innovations has shipped its first flexible solar panels, which are destined for the outside of backpacks and other bags, the company said Wednesday.

Who will pay for the electric 'gas' stations?
With electric vehicles, you could probably do away with stopping at fueling stations entirely, as the majority of your fueling, or battery charging, will be done overnight while plugged in at home or during the day while parked at the office. But because it is conceivable that not every trip will be within the battery range of your vehicle, the mere presence of public charging stations for electric vehicles could help alleviate "range anxiety," or the concern that with an electric vehicle, you will be stranded when your battery dies.

Solar village begins to bloom on National Mall
WASHINGTON--After nearly two years of preparation, teams of architecture and engineering students will soon open the doors on a cluster of 20 solar-powered homes on the National Mall.

Green Redecorating

Green redecorating / remodel on a budget PART1
There is a time in the life of a house when remodeling, or at least redecorating is absolutely necessary: walls thirsty for paint, tired rooms begging to be rejuvenated. In our difficult economic times few people have the resources for such home improvements. However, it is not impossible to redecorate or remodel on a budget while still upholding green standards.

Green redecorating / remodel on a budget PART2
The initial stages of a remodel can be daunting for homeowners, decreasing energy consumption is one of the primary goals of green remodeling. This can be achieved in a myriad small ways begun quite simply by fostering environmentally sound habits: turning off appliances and lights, decreasing use of heating or air-conditioning, etc.

Green...And Spooky!

Green Costume Ideas for Halloween
Looking for a way to spread the message of environmentalism with a sense of humor? Why not consider a green-themed Halloween costume for this year's round of parties and trick-or-treating?

How to Have a Green Halloween
Back in the day, Halloween was different. It was a low-budget holiday. We spent more time and effort on Halloween than we did money and energy. Decorations and costumes were not bought. They were fabricated out of old sheets and cardboard boxes. Treats were often homemade and eaten on the spot. Trick-or-treating was done on foot with protective parents in tow. Kids carried old pillowcases as candy bags. Back then, Halloween was green and we didn't even know it. Unfortunate changes over time have made a green Halloween harder to achieve, but it can be done. With these suggestions and ideas, you can do your part to help the environment while you have a good, old-fashioned Halloween holiday.

Green Halloween costumes
Need some costumes ideas for Halloween? Store shelves are lined with costumes, but why spend your hard earned dollars on a pre-fab costume that your children will wear once and throw away when you can make your own costumes from old clothes and other items you already have around the house? As promised in my Green Halloween primer, here are some great ideas for simple, eco-friendly Halloween costumes for you and/or your kids. Got a few great ideas of your own? Post them here!

Green Halloween Party Ideas – Recycling Theme
If you have decided on hosting a party for Halloween, why not plan it around a green theme? And what could be greener than “recycling”? Here are some easy, cheap and fun ideas you can use for your Halloween entertainment.

Green Shopping

eBay Launches Green Shopping Campaign
eBay's Green Team has launched a six-week "re+purpose" campaign designed to get people to make more sustainable shopping choices and increase awareness about green products.

Tax-free holiday lets shoppers go green for less green
In Virginia, the state also is offering what is being called a first-come, first-serve rebate program aimed at encouraging residential and commercial customers to buy energy-saving products. The Virginia Energy Efficiency Appliance Rebate program will use $15 million in federal stimulus funds to give back 20 percent of qualifying purchases, or up to $2,000 for homeowners and up to $4,000 for commercial buyers, the AP report said.

Reportlinker Adds Green E-Commerce: Gaining Momentum Report
The Green E-Commerce report traces the many ways the Internet is spurringeco-consumerism and how brand marketers are responding.

How parents can save money and live green
In today's economy, every penny counts. It can be difficult to live green and give the best to your family on a budget. Here are a few simple ideas to save money while living green.

Green Careers: Green Design

Green On A Budget

Josh Dorfman's Tips for Going Green on a Budget
Going green doesn't have to cost a lot of green! Use these simple tips to make a positive impact on the environment while keeping your wallet intact. It's easy, even for the laziest of environmentalists.

Demand more efficient lighting
How much energy could be saved by more efficient lighting? If you're among the millions of Americans who switched to CFLs, you've seen the difference in your electricity bill.

How to 'go green' on a budget
The consumer who grabs the half-gallon of organic milk instead of regular milk knows something about the cost of "going green." It's high.

Going Green on the Cheap
For those of us with more limited means, there are small things we can do every day to trim our energy use. Many are low-cost or free, and some will even save you money. After all, you shouldn't have to be rich to help save the planet. Check out these 15 ways you can live an environmentally friendly lifestyle on a budget.

Five Simple Steps to Going Green on a Budget
1. Rethink your trash: Make a conscious effort to reduce your garbage and increase your recyclables. “Everything should not be destined for the trash can,” says Caraccioli. “Help reduce the mountains of material headed for the landfill by donating toys, clothes, old computers, cell phones and extra food to charities.” The remaining “trash” can then be sorted and recycled where applicable. “I recently discovered that Hewlett Packard recycles old printer ink cartridges,” she offers. “When you purchase new cartridges, the company includes mailing labels to send back the empty cartridges at no cost to the consumer.”

Carbon Capture And Storage

Carbon Capture and Sequestration 101
Several recent congressional hearings on the deployment of carbon capture and storage technology require a look at why CCS is necessary and how best to implement it.

Carbon capture and storage: Absolute necessity or crazy scheme?
That said, there is urgency to the task, according Gardiner Hill, head of environmental technology at oil giant BP, which is participating in the CCS project in Algeria. "For every five years of inaction, it requires an extra gigaton of reductions," he said. And that urgency—plus U.S. and global political realities—are pushing even environmentalists to back CCS for coal.

DOE awards $21.6 million for 12 carbon-capture projects
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- The Obama administration on Friday awarded $21.6 million to a dozen companies seeking to capture carbon dioxide emissions from cement plants, chemical plants, oil refineries, paper mills and other industrial sources.

Staying Warm And Green

Now that October is here, you can feel that cool crispness in the air. Cooler temperatures are heading our way as winter approaches. Here are some tips and some information about how to stay warm while staying green.

Weatherizing homes: The next big green industry?
It's not the sort of thing that excites your typical Silicon Valley venture capitalist, but companies that weatherize homes could be the sleeper green-business success stories this year.

Take Advantage of the Government's Weatherization Assistance Program
A well-insulated house won't just save you money, it will also benefits the environment. The less energy expended to heat your home, the less pollution emitted. Everyone wins.

Winter Green Weatherization Tips
Definitions of winter weather differ throughout our country. I cannot help but be jealous of my San Franciscan friends’ 70 degree weather forecast as I bundle up to face my Chicago 10 degree (and falling!) weather. The chill of my first Chicago winter has driven my poor San Franciscan self to uncover as many alternative heating solutions as possible.