B io ph ile Issu e 18 - Biophile Magazine

Greening the Webwithurban sprout is a blog-stylegreen website that is fanaticalabout the environment,sustainability and buyingorganic. With daily greennews and opinion, a directorythat lists organic and ecofriendlyproducts, and a focuson green issues: organic food,global warming, sustainablelifestyles and environmentaljustice — we’re a site for ethicalconsumers.www.urbansprout.co.zaThe power of the web to disseminateinformation is enormous.At the click of a mouse one has accessto the new green ideology that haspropelled formerly diametrically opposedgroups to pull together to placethe environment at the top of theworld agenda. Green has hit the highstreet, the highway, the main road,and the internet plays an enormousrole in helping us fuel our future in acleaner, greener way.Gristgrist.orgRight down to the title of their firstbook – ‘Wake up and smell the planet’ –Grist is about environmental news andcommentary that veers away from dryjournalism and reportage. Their aim is totell the untold stories, spotlight environmentaltrends before they become trendy,and provide independent coverage. Bestof all – they don’t take themselves terriblyseriously - so there’s a lot of wry elbow-inthe-sidetype humour. They don’t sufferfools lightly either and their reaction toMacDonald’s ‘half- price big Mac to fightglobal warming’ campaign in Japan got topspot on their grist list. They also tell youhow to deal with climate change sceptics.Greencars bloggreencars.za.netThis is a blog for those into cars. Evenif you’re not (yet!) into cars, you’ll want tocheck out local lad Carl Nienaber’s take onvehicles that are kind to the environment.His blog isn’t just about fast cars either.News like: the recent international greenhousegas curb agreement; and whetherthe misguided assertion that a Hummeris actually more ecologically friendly thanthe Prius makes it onto his blog. Greencarstakes on the mainstream South Africanmotoring media, who remain well withinthe ‘petrol head’ paradigm, and puts‘green’ where it should be.Organic food –just a click awayfaithfultonature.co.zaorganicsonline.co.zachoosehealth.co.zaethical.org.zaorganicemporium.co.zaforearthsake.co.zaThe ‘login, order organic, and have itdelivered to your door’ market in South Africais growing by the day. Where there used to beonly a couple of ecommerce websites, there arenow quite a few that deserve a mention:Organics Online offers the full gambit –food, body care, baby, cleaning, pets, books,magazines, gifts and gift vouchers.Choose Health also has an exciting rangeof products plus a few kitchen gadgets totempt health fundis.The Ethical Co-op has an excellent onlineordering system. Their box deliveries aroundCape Town are easy to order and their alreadylarge range of products grows by the week.They also have an accompanying blog: blog.ethical.org.za which explores titillating subjectslike ginger and patented broccoli, and beatingthe living daylights out of wheat!Organic Emporium delivers to selectsuburbs in the north of Johannesburg and hasan extensive range that includes kids’ toys, andFor Earthsake Organics has a rich supplyof beauty and food products, including gift andvalue packs.Faithful to Nature is the new kid on theblock and is a great site to look at and use. Thesite’s raison d’etre is a concern about the lack oftransparency in cosmetic labelling, hence theselect range of beauty brands for those whoworry about what they put on their bodies.Biophile website redesignedWe've given our website a freshnew look, and made it easier foryou to read articles from our backissues, comment on the articles andsubscribe online.www.biophile.co.zaBiophile Issue 1861