ecochildsplay's story links

US companies have taken the UK’s voluntary ban seriously by removing additives for the EU market. Mars has removed artificial colors from Skittles and Starbust sold overseas, as has Kraft removed color additives from Lunchables. Sorry American children, but you are still getting these nasty treats filled with artificial ingredients linked to hyperactivity.

Globalization is a fact of modern times, and supporters of “free trade” tout it is good for the US economy and supports world peace.  Given that it will take a global effort to solve the climate crisis,

Most toilet bowl cleaners are made with caustic acids that can burn your skin, and I certainly don’t want my little one’s bums to experience that!  Seventh Generation’s Emerald Cypress & Fir Natural Toilet Bowl Cleaner is biodegradable, safe for septic systems, chlorine-free, phosphate-free, dye-free, etc.  It comes in a cool shaped bottle allowing you to squirt under the toilet bowl rim.

During fall season, tribes went into the forests and gathered the dead limbs and debris, the brush and leaves and cones.  They made piles of the dead and drying materials and covered the piles with bark slabs, abundant on an old windfall where much of the debris was piled.  Then they waited for the proper time.  At the proper time they took pitch torches into the forest and set the forest piles on fire.

On June 20, 2008, an unusual, early summer lightning storm sparked over 1400 fires in California.  According to state wildfire maps, currently 489 fires are burning.  The reduction in the number of fires is not because they have been put out, but because these blazes have merged.

Little girls love princess, but eco, feminist parents lament the adoration of helpless females who need rescued by princes.  Now, I have found a princess that is inspiring her subjects to grow organic vegetables.

The Uberstix Scavenger Series utilizes recycled materials, such as straws, water bottles, and cups, to create working models.

This week, typical of of the Bush administration’s ineptitude, the EPA decided to take no new action on global warming emissions.

If you are of my generation, you remember Schoolhouse Rock’s Saturday morning cartoons.  To this day, I only know what a conjunction is from “Conjunction Junction, what’s your function?”, and I clearly remember how a bill becomes a law by that little rolled up bill sitting on the congressional steps.  “The Energy Blues” is 30 years old this year, and we are still singing these blues

I don’t have a problem with ethanol per se, but I am concerned that Senator Obama favors corn-based biofuels over other alternatives.

With the explosion of organic baby clothing on the market, it is getting difficult to tell one company from another.  Offering organic cotton clothing for little ones is great, and many major retailers, like Pottery Barn Kids, have jumped on the bandwagon.  Still, not all organic kids clothing companies are created equal.  Social responsib

Fireworks displays create surges of pollutant ozone in lower levels of the atmosphere, where it is a respiratory irritant, greenhouse gas, and plant toxin.  Some scientists believe fireworks are  an “insignificant source of pollution”, because they occur infrequently; however, no source of greenhouse gases is insignificant considering our current climate crisis, not to mention the heavy metals and potassium perchlorate in these grand patriotic displays.

Austrian art collective Gelitin has created an installation titled “Normally, Proceeding and Unrestricted With Without Title”.  You can row around this four feet deep artificial rooftop lake in boats made from from reclaimed timber and junk-store furniture with oars assembled from old chair legs.

One of my fondest childhood memories was playing with a brand new refrigerator box with our neighbors in the front yard.  This large box was a space ship, a school bus, a house, etc.  Parents know that kids love boxes, and sometimes these corrugated containers are more interesting than the toys they contain on birthdays and holidays.  Kidsonroof has combined children’s love of cardboard boxes with dramatic play to create the MobileHome.

It seems like everywhere you go, people are talking (complaining) about the cost of gasoline. From the natural food coop to Twitter, everyone is wondering how many hours they will have to work to fill up their gas tank. There is one person who remains clueless as to what Americans are paying at the pump:  John McCain.