More Hip Than Hippie Pocast #48 - Take a Bike - For Your Health!
The weather’s turned sunny and warm – perfect for riding a bike. By taking your bike instead of a car you’ll save money, do your part to help the environment and maybe even tone up those calf muscles. We’ll discuss the do’s, don’ts and how-to’s of riding around town. We’ll also chat about Fair Trade Day and cover the basics on what Fair Trade is. It’s a good refresher on the topic and it may help to explain the concept of Fair Trade to others.

We’ve got fun, finds, beer, and chocolate and, as usual, lots of fantastic listener emails.

Finds and Hip News:

• ‘Green Roofs’ growing more popular – an article found on CNN.com
• Dori’s article on the Real Cost of Owning a Hybrid. Courtesy of aol.com.
• Is the hype about the benefits of green tea just that? Is it Hype? Read about it here.

The Beer and Chocolate

 

The Beer: Boddingtons Pub Ale - find it at www.boddingtons.com. That link (which was on the can) didn't work for me, and when I did some research here is what I found.

The Chocolate: Ecco Bella’s Health by Chocolate at www.eccobella.com

Take a Bike - For Your Health

Join us for our chat with Ed from Chico Velo – a local bike club. This guy knows his way around a kickstand! Ed shares some great tips on how to prepare to bike to work – everything from ensuring you have the right equipment, back up plans and oh, yes, the sweat. How the heck do you stay fresh and dry? Visit these websites for more details on the benefits of actually riding your bike and tips on how to be successful biking to work, school, wherever with safety, comfort and style in mind.

• www.chicovelo.org
• www.bikeleague.org
• www.californiabikecommute.com
• www.biketoworkvictoria.ca

Celebrate Fair Trade Day - It Does A World Good!
In a nutshell, Fair Trade acknowledges basic human rights and environmental standards. It’s that simple. “Fair Trade? means that trading partnerships are based on reciprocal benefits and mutual respect. Here are some great resources to learn more. We strongly encourage all of you to understand Fair Trade and participate as well as sharing your knowledge with others. Remember, one of our loudest voices is how we spend each and every dollar. We do and can make a difference.

• fairtraderesource.org
• www.globalexchange.org
• www.coopamerica.org
• www.fairtrade.net< /a>
• www.fairtradefederation.org

 

Listener Emails:

• A new listener in Noriko Japan wrote in and shared that they own a hybrid car called an Estima. It’s a hybrid minivan from Toyota. Check it out.
• Larry from Podcasting Dallas sent us an article to share regarding a University of Illinois research team who makes crude oil out of pig manure.
• Brian from “OK? had an issue with the new Plenty magazine (turns out the author of the article didn’t find MHTH her cup of tea) so we’d like to suggest that you send the editor your take on things. Here’s the email letters@plenty mag.com Brian also wanted to share his find for the week – a comic book collection on DVD ROM for the More Geek Than Hippie crowd.
• Heidi has been listening to our show for quite a while now (thank you) and is putting together a new environmental blog www.groxie.com (rock on!). She also came across a great article.
• Prabjit provided us with this ecological footprint calculator.
• Shayna sent this article from Google Reader that lists the top 10 states with the most hybrids.
• Jon and Karen from Everlution Forms emailed us and provided the link to 1% for the planet – an alliance of businesses committed to leveraging their resources to create a healthier planet.
• Our friend Patrick sent an article to let the hippies meet the nerdies. More news about the Ethanol Tariff.
• Liz shared a great article from the Wall Street Journal about Organic Milk. Here it is.
• Katie shared with us Oregon’s first all organic brewery. www.rootsorganicbrewing.com
• Our favorite Doug over in Pennsylvania sent us the “green version? of digg.com - you can find it at www.hugg.com
• Gail. Here are the links to the DEET free insect repellents we were talking about. Herbal Armor Bite Blocker V’tae Outdoor Aromatherapy Mist (contains Catnip oil)
• Melissa is a new Canadian listener (eh!) and is building a deck this summer. Here are the sources for some alternatives to pressure treated lumber. Good luck and send us a picture when its complete!
• ACQ (Alkaline Copper Quaternary) lumber for posts and support beams
• Recycled Rubber/Plastic Lumber
  • www.ciwmb.ca.gov
  • www.continet.com
  • www.trex.com
• Jill sent us a link to this great website for kids (and grownups too). This is the link to the piece that we played at the end of the show.

Email us at hip@greenfeet.com. Don't forget to vote for us at Podcastalley.com, review our show at iTunes and Podcast Pickle .