“Indie shopping” is a conscientious effort to patronize independents, or locally owned businesses, over chain stores when it’s possible to do so. “Buy Local” campaigns draw the support of like-minded citizens and community groups, particularly as businesses and consumers continue their slow crawl from recession. The pro-indie argument usually centers on community benefits, from social interaction to tax revenues. There’s an impact on the wallet as well. The energy costs typically associated with shopping at big shopping complexes or standalone chains must also be accounted for. Advocates say the decision to buy locally should be a lifestyle choice that reflects a commitment to the community. Shopping at locally owned establishments can leverage community funds times three, on average. For example, by supporting a local clothing boutique, a consumer is also supporting a local attorney, tax preparer, and printer. Local businesses tend to source small manufacturing and banking needs closer to home as well. [Read this article]

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They will run your errands by bicycle, recommend a spa that gives vegan manicures or buy organic clothes for you and your dog. They will even book you a dream vacation and buy the appropriate carbon offsets. Green living is just so much easier when you have your own personal environmental concierge. “The problem with going green is that people think it takes so much work, so much effort, so much conscious decision-making,” said Letitia Burrell, president of Eco-Concierge NYC, a year-old business in Manhattan that tries to make it easy for people to rid their homes of toxins, hire sustainable-cuisine chefs and find organic dry cleaners. It is a niche business, but a clever one. At least a half-dozen services of this type have sprung up around the country in recent years, both to help time-starved consumers manage their lives and to assuage the guilt of those who worry that they are letting the planet down. Personal concierge services originated in hotels but made the leap to people’s homes in the last decade or so. [Read this article]

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The Natural Resources Defense Council has joined forces with Facebook and Opower to launch a landmark initiative designed to kick energy efficiency up a notch. Seizing upon the potential for social networking to influence people’s energy use and behavior, the organizations are working together to launch an application designed to empower people to consume energy more efficiently – in other words, enjoy same level of comfort at lower costs. The application will be available early next year. The initial set of features will allow consumers to compare energy use to similar homes, and compare energy use among friends. People will be able to benchmark their home energy use against a national database of millions of homes, and they’ll be able to invite friends to compare their energy use against their own, show how energy-efficient they are, and share tips on how to improve. [Read this article]

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Nearly four decades after California earned its spurs as an energy efficiency powerhouse, Massachusetts has been named the most energy efficient U.S. state for 2011 according to the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE), an energy policy outfit based in Washington D.C. The ACEEE released the results of its 5th annual “State Energy Efficiency Scorecard,” which ranks all 50 states and the District of Columbia for energy-efficiency in buildings, transportation and industry. The Scorecard ranks each state on the strength of its energy-efficiency policies and the results those policies deliver. Massachusetts’ ascendance is primarily attributed to the impact of the “Green Communities Act,” which has galvanized significant investments in energy efficiency since 2008. Following Massachusetts and California, New York ranked as the nation’s third most energy-efficient state, up one spot from the previous year. One of the biggest movers was Maryland, which climbed from 16th place in 2010 to 10th place in 2011. [Read this article]

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The most widely quoted statistic about air quality is this: The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that indoor air can be two- to five-times more polluted than the air outdoors. And while the EPA is responsible for cracking down on outdoor pollution – the smog, ozone and other chemicals that spew from tailpipes and smokestacks – protecting the air indoors is largely the responsibility of homeowners. And while many sources of indoor air are fairly obvious and well-known – second-hand smoke, carbon monoxide and radon, to name the most prominent, and deadly – there are more insidious, secret sources of pollution that any concerned homeowner or parent should consider. Here are some of the most surprising. We all know that ventilating a bathroom is important to maintain good indoor air quality. Ventilating the kitchen is also important, though, according to the American Lung Association. [Read this article]

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In a bad economy, what used to seem essential can quickly become optional. At the same time, what was once merely fashionable can become a matter of necessity. Activities like growing and canning food, raising chickens and making your own clothes and other household goods – which in recent years have been exalted for their artisanal qualities – are now seen by many as a way to economize while staying true to green values. Gone, too, is the avid coverage of $1,000 laptops with cases made of recycled plastic, the furniture built out of sustainably harvested wood and the solar-panel hats. Not surprisingly, the green products industry is feeling the pinch. Some worry that all this frugality may result in what Gita Nandan calls “short-sighted knee-jerk reactions,” namely, passing up green products with high upfront costs, despite the long-term savings and reduced environmental impact. “People say, ‘I only have $3 in my pocket, I should buy the incandescent bulb because it’s cheap,’ ” said Ms. Nandan, a partner in Thread Collective, a Brooklyn design firm specializing in sustainable architecture. But “in the end, the math doesn’t work out,” she continued, because using more energy means your monthly bills will be higher. [Read this article]

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