As we endeavor to bring you all things green and timely — a green stimulus package for your eyes, ears and mind…

• Princeton Environmental Film Festival 2010 – now through January 17.  FREE admission to all screenings and talks!  Amazing lineup — don’t miss:  Food, Inc; the Age of Stupid; and Garbage.  Sponsored by the Princeton Public Library in Princeton, NJ.
• Save the date — Go Green Expo in LA January 22-24.  Eco exhibits galore, while Mariel Hemingway, Jen Boulden, Ed Begley, Jr. and many other experts dish on how to go green.
• February’s Body + Soul features, among other useful things, 28 Days to a Healthier You — get on board and learn how to be healthy and fit, for life.
• On newsstands today, (1/5/10), is the first issue of the redesigned Organic Gardening (Feb/March) – start planning those spring plantings for tasty, homegrown sprouts.
• The National Children’s Museum in DC just launched the digital Launch Zone geared at getting kids to explore their world and learn how to make it better.
• Looking for a good read, try Remarkable Creatures by, Tracy Chevalier, (who also penned, Girl with a Pearl Earring).  RC is about the life of Mary Anning, a fossil hunter, who lived in the 1800′s, and was a contemporary of Charles Darwin.
• via Metropolis Mag.com and sponsored by Herman Miller – (almost) last call for entries: Next Generation Design Competition: One Fix for the Future, focused on sustainability – enter by January 29, 2010. $10,000 prize + fame, of course.
• Enter before January 7 for your chance to win $5,000 in Greener Gadgets’ Design Competition. Feeling geeky?  Plan to attend the Greener Gadget Conference February 25 in NYC.
• Good news for the Jane Goodall Institute – the U.S. Agency for International Development awarded them with more than $5.5 million to help expand existing conservation programs in Tanzania.
• Living in Colorado and want to greenovate your home?  It’ll take some cash to enter, but hey, you never know – check it out @ davinciquest.com

It’s been nearly two years since I first told you about Sock Dreams, and I continue to love this business enough to share an update.  Sock Dreams now has an entire page devoted to eco friendly socks and related wearables available in hemp, recycled, and organic fibers.  I couldn’t be happier!  I was initially drawn to Sock Dreams when a friend recommended their website to me and I realized that there were options beyond jackets for perpetually cold people (yes, I am one of those southern Californians who complains about the cold).  In addition to reasonable prices, shipping is always free, which is no small feat for a small business.  I was hooked after my first purchase.

Usually I’m reluctant to make online clothing purchases because I never know how the item will fit, but the folks at Sock Dreams try on their products as often as possible and detail accurate sizing information on their webpage, including whether a product runs smaller or larger than its label suggests and how generous the stretch is.  Today I am wearing these dark red Chevron Sleeves, made from 68% recycled cotton.  The following sizing tip turned out to be precisely correct for my long arms: “On people with smaller arms, these will probably go up to the middle of the upper arm, while folks with longer or wider arms will find that these come to rest comfortably at the elbow and bell out around their fingers.”  With other descriptions that remark on whether the socks will dent the thighs, which sizes of feet should wear them, and more, Sock Dreams makes online shopping a breeze for environmentalists of all sizes.  I really appreciate having an expectation of how the pictured products will fit me!  Thus far I’ve had no surprises.

I got to visit this charming, cozy little sock haven a year ago when I was staying in Portland, and the employees were friendly and helpful.  The photography on their website is beautiful and just may make you want to wear things you wouldn’t have notice sitting on a shelf.  Now that Sock Dreams has a whole page devoted to stylish, environmentally friendly socks and more, I will have even more fun shopping.

• No he wasn’t attacked by Courtney Cox…Family Dog Saves Boy From Cougar Attack – cnn
• Now that’s a dirty desk…Mouse Nest Found on Policeman’s Desk – ananova
• …and I have trouble sleeping already…Winter, Nighttime Tornadoes Pose Greatest Risk, National Weather Service – sciencedaily
• These guys have to be stopped. Kenya Arrests Rhino Poaching Gang – bbc
• but he’s sooo cute….Creepy Case: Tarantula Shoots Hairs into Owner’s Eye – livescience
• Dope duped! Fla. Man Calls Detectives After Pot Plants Seized – myway
• New Estate Bans Cats and Dogs to Protect Birdlife – timesonline

Whodathunk that computer waste like resistors, capacitors, diodes, oscillators (lead solder free) could be transformed into geeky earrings, bracelets and pendents?   PeriwinkleDzyns created the earrings pictured above from the factory remains of computers which, saved from the landfill, are now making an eco fashion statement.

The perfect accessory or conversation starter for anyone hitting the cocktail party circuit at this week’s CES.

(this geekery ranges in price from $7.50 to $15.00)

At the start of each new year, my mind always returns to the question:  What will I do and where will I go in 2010?  Of course, both of these questions can be answered literally or figuratively, but as a wanderlusting traveler, I’m apt to choose “wheres” that are actual locations.  At the top of my list for 2010 is a focus on ethical travel – globetrotting with an acute awareness of the impact of my journey creates, environmentally and socially.

To help narrow the infinite list of must-see locales, www.EthicalTraveler.org has deemed their top ten best ethical destinations in the developing world based on environmental protection, social welfare and human rights.  (Note that only nations classified as “developing” are considered.)  Countries to make the cut include:

• Argentina
• Belize
• Chile
• Ghana
• Lithuania
• Namibia
• Poland
• Seychelles
• South Africa
• Suriname

The well thought out list is an annual project for the organization and provides convincing arguments for each nation that will likely leave you questioning many of the tourism dollars you’ve dropped in the past. For the full report, visit  ethicaltraveler.org.

photo credit: ethical traveler

For those with a retro vibe permeating their kitchen – Maine’s TinCanSally makes wall switch plates out of repurposed and recycled classic tin cans.  She offers a large selection of switch and socket covers…a great way to keep consumer waste out of the landfill.

Designer Josh Finkle’s Extinct Toys are modeled after recently extinct animals.  The handcrafted, wooden prototypes are designed with simple anamorphic, humanistic shapes.  It’s hoped that the cool-looking toys will create interest in the creatures and draw attention to the on-going eradication of many species.

Included in this set of prototypes are replicas of the Quagga, Steller’s Sea Cow, Thylacine and Pig Footed Bandicoot.  The packaging of each toy unfolds to reveal an educational graphic about the animal.  Great execution of a neat idea.   More images are available in Josh’s Coroflot portfolio.

• Efficient, super-cooled and buried…No More Power Lines? – cs monitor
• (video) China Diesel Spill Reaches Yellow River – reuters
• World’s largest scaled (9′ long) freshwater fish…Giant Amazon Arapaima Fish is Under Threat – bbc
• I can hardly contain myself…Google Phone Debuting This Week – redorbit
• Whole Foods CEO Has Doubts About Global Warming – ecorazzi
• We need to know this…Future Robots Will Run Like Cockroaches – livescience
• Will the Next War Be Fought Over Water? – npr
• Natural recycling…Goats Munch Christmas Trees – myway

You’ll literally flip over these threads.  Wear as a dress, or turn upside down, and wear as a top.  Versatile threads for your eco fashionable wardrobe.

Especially great for travel — pack this dress or top and decide on the spot which way you’d like to bop.  Just remember to pack leggings.  Organic cotton New Tube in coral or blue; made in Seattle by Prairie Underground, ($92) @ sodafine.com