book review

Can a carnivore appreciate a vegetarian-turned-carnivore book? At first, I was unsure if “The Vegetarian’s Guide to Eating Meat” by Marissa Landrigan would speak to me. But after reading it, I realized that it’s meant for anyone who wants to...

We recently hosted a bookclub with Nic Esposito to discuss his first book, Seeds of Discent. A beautiful evening last week, we appropriately gathered at Head & the Hand Press headquarters over wine, with friends in a conversation that covered sustainability, urban farming and how it all began. Head & the Hand Press Beginnings Nic Esposito had a passion and noticed a problem. Authors with book deals aren't always necessarily better than those who didn't have big publishing companies behind them. Some of the best writers in Philly didn't have published works to their names. Local writers simply didn't have the accessibility of New York to make those essential connections to get their books published.   Yet Philadelphia is a city of sharers, entrepreneurs and people who support their community. Find out more about Seeds of Discent, Head & the Hand and our discussion on urban sustainability, after the jump!

I have a confession to make. Deep breath. Here it goes. When I was a small kid,  I used to trap insects in a bug catcher. Then, I read James and the Giant Peach.  James and the Giant Peach is an adventure about a young boy who crosses the Atlantic with his best friends, who just so happen to have many legs and an exoskeleton. My days as a bugnapper were officially over. This experience taught me how important books are in shaping the values of children. However, I’m not the only one who can benefit from the lessons of my transformation. What literature can you use to introduce environmental lessons for your kids? Find out the 6 best children’s books to raise young environmentalists, after the jump!

Love to prepare food at home but hate draining your time? Raw, Quick & Delicious is a great solution for you. I recently tried out a few recipes during a dinner gathering with a friend. Locavore Dinner Party A Twitter match made in heaven happened when I became friends with Kristy, an up-and-coming food blogger. Lucky for us, Kristy loves to cook and I love to eat. Kristy hosted me at her place to discuss KEEN Digital Summit (co-founded by one of my favorite bloggers, Kristin Luna of Camels & Chocolate) which we're psyched to attend in October. (Bonus: I even won a pair of passes to the conference!) This girl doesn't mess around while cooking. Seriously, just look at this Dill-salmon that was the main course along with an asparagus-based purée. Raw, Quick & Delicious: My creations My first experiment was the Salmon side, Green Beans Amandine. A simple recipe consisting of raw almonds, sea salt, green beans, olive oil & lemon juice (I left out the nutritional yeast...) was easy and a great pairing to our meal. (See recipe below!) Find out more about our dinner party and Raw, Quick & Delicious after the jump!

Staying up to date on sustainability can be a job within itself. But understanding the logic behind the ‘green’ arguments? It can be overwhelming. Summertime means lots of time on planes, trains and carpooling automobiles... or lazy hours in the cabin or beach chair... which is the perfect time to nestle up with some green reads. Here are 6 of my favorite green books:

Although there's many passionate workers out there, companies aren't always in line with environmental goals. Mark Tercek, President & CEO of the Nature Conservancy is coming to the Free Library tomorrow to discuss his book Nature's Fortune: How Business & Society Thrive by Investing in Nature. One of the chapters highlights Philadelphia as the poster child of "Green Infrastructure", and how the city's Green Cities Clean Waters storm water management is using natural systems instead of engineered 'grey' solutions. Catch Mark at the Free Library of Philadelphia tomorrow (May 22) at noon it's a free event that doesn't require tickets. Want to enter to win a FREE copy of Nature's Fortune? Leave a comment below (and make sure to like us on Facebook) and you'll be entered to win! Contest ends EOD Friday 5/24. We chatted with author Mark Tercek about Nature's Fortune, "grey-green" companies and when the environment struck a chord with him. (Read the Q&A and enter to win a FREE copy of his book, after the jump!)

Where Does Our Food Come From, Really? Do you ever grab a (reusable) cup of Starbucks  and wonder about the lives of the farmers who harvested the coffee beans that make your caffeine fix possible? Have you ever taken a bite of a banana and pondered a typical Costa Rican banana farmers day to day work that allows Americans to enjoy this oh so versatile fruit? It's okay if the answer is no. In Kelsey Timmerman's latest book  Where Am I Eating: An Adventure Through the Global Food Economy he addresses these issues and more. We talk a lot about organic food, the local food movement, avoiding GMOs and farm to table dining these days. I often feel optimistic that our country is making strides towards an environment in which we can identify where what's on our plates came from. But the reality is America imports twice as much food now then it did ten years ago. Kelsey Timmerman calls himself a curious person who began to wonder about where the food he ate to fuel his life came from.

Why we're not 'green' One of the biggest complaints about sustainability is how we have to cut back. Stop standing under the faucet and limit yourself to a 5 minute shower. Reduce your energy consumption. Don't buy as much. "The sustainability movement will never completely catch on," a friend recently said to me. "Consumerism drives America." William McDonough & Michael Braungart, authors of the Upcycle: Beyond Sustainability- Designing for Abundance would disagree. Let's go back to those steaming, hot showers. Although I love the environmentalist in me, I also love me some hot, steamy showers on a cold day. But what if we could filter and reuse that water, so I could stand under the faucet until my skin was wrinkly? Instead of worrying about how many fossil fuels the filter process would take, that South Philly wind could power the process. This type of thinking is how The Upcycle challenges you to reconsider sustainability. (Find out more about the Upcycle, released today, after the jump!)

After embarking on our ‘plastic bag reduction’ journey, I wanted to dig deeper on plastics. After a quick search of the Google, Beth Terry’s “Plastic-Free: How I Kicked the Plastic Habit and You Can Too” landed on my Kindle. Terry has a very challenging mission: She wants to live plastic-free. At first, it sounds simple – stop buying water bottles, disposable crap, DIY or find natural versions. But then you realize that EVERYTHING is plastic. I didn’t think of my shiny Macbook Laptop as 'plastic' (it's a miracle!), nor the Pyrex lids on my containers. Not clothes I wear, seats I sit in, airplanes I fly in…  Plastic is EVERYWHERE. Terry does a great job at (Find out more, after the jump!)