Starting a home improvement project bumps the odds of bringing VOCs inside WAY up unless you are explicitly planning to avoid them. Here’s how you can.
Environment
Think Spring: Plant Shade Trees Now for a Cool Summer
Spring is the best time to plant young trees in your yard. Why and how to use shade trees to keep your home cool and cost effective.
Is it Good for Humans? Lessons and Questions from Structures for Inclusion, New York
While moss isn’t explicitly a public interest design firm, we all definitely try to keep a finger on the pulse of that community. We helped spearhead the People Spot project here in Chicago, designing the first parklet which is re-installed every spring here in Andersonville. Team member, Lety Murray, has served on the board of […]
The Dyeing of the Green – St. Patrick’s Day Reminds Us About the State of the Chicago River
There’s an old joke most famously spoken by Tommy Lee Jones’s Marshall in the Fugitive: “If they can dye the river green today, why can’t they dye it blue the other 364 days of the year?” Just dyeing the Chicago River blue isn’t a great idea, environmentally speaking, but perhaps we could treat the St. […]
Winter Can Show: Do you have Leaky Windows?
Cold winter days are an excellent see just how much because you have maximum contrast between indoor and outdoor temperatures.
Why the Polar Vortex is Part of a Changing Climate
Recent temperatures during the “Polar Vortex” in Chicago left an arctic fog crawling over Lake Michigan, and those who were able to, sequestered in the safety and warmth of their homes as dangerously cold weather hit on a Sunday night through Tuesday afternoon. More incredible photos via Huffington Post. A warmed up Arctic caused a […]
Support USA grass fed beef and reduce our dependency on international supplies
What we eat and how it is produced is one of the biggest influencers of climate change, whether it is grown locally or abroad, whether it is meat or vegetable, down to the type of meat and what it’s been fed. Environmental Working Group’s Meat Eater’s Guide helps break down some of these choices, using […]
The heritage of heritage Turkeys, and how to get one
We’ve all heard a lot about the benefits of biodiversity when it comes to purchasing fruits and vegetables. Think purple carrots, black radishes, russian blue potatoes, and other varietals that you encounter at your local farmers market, but can be hard to find elsewhere. Growing and enjoying many varieties of fruits and vegetables, not just […]
Link-asaurus #11: The case for BRT + Whole Foods ups transparency on produce, flowers
Where we’ve been on the web this week: as the weather gets colder, there is lots of great news on the green front to lighten our spirits. John Greenfield writes a thoroughly researched piece on examples of successful BRT lanes, including ones that have banned left turns on major streets (a point of contention in […]
Hyper-local with global influences: Is Noma the future of dining?
In the grocery stores of Chicago the leafy green, Escarole, a less bitter member of the Endive family, still sounds foreign. The lemony, berry tones of Sorrel is only to be found at relatively expensive, grassroots farmer’s markets, and it’s sold in small quantities. On the other side of the Atlantic, Rene Redzepi, owner of […]
Can Chipotle practice what it preaches? On consumer expectations, production and waste in the current Fast Food industry
Yesterday I had a mean craving for some Spaghetti Carbonara, the bedrock of which is pancetta, eggs and cheese. I give a lot of thought to my food and where it comes from, so all sorts of dilemmas and decisions were issued forth. I went to my local deli, where the prices are high, but […]
The Slow Food movement illustrated via Southern Italy (Pt.1)
At the Pugliese McDonalds in Bari, Italy, the first hint we weren’t in America anymore was the clientele: suit-clad, they sat at windows, sipping beers and reading newspapers. Food was served on porcelain and beers in elegant glasses. And then it was the prices: seven Euros (about $9 USD) for a hamburger? Eight for a […]