Catch the buzz – our latest green stimulus package for your eyes, ears and mind:

• Aqua Man (Adrian Grenier of Entourage and Alter Eco) dives in to help save Bluefin Tuna:  oceana.org
• Keep an eye out for FASHIONmeGREEN‘s Greta Eagan as she travels to fashion capitals of the world, showing how living sustainably can be eco chic.  After recently completing her LA Project eco-fashion makover, it’s now on to New York, London and Paris.
• Know a few teens who could go green?  ProjectGreenDorm.com
• Free Screening of Food, Inc.  Join NewYork.Going.com and RSVP.  Sunday, 1pm at Peace Pentagon (646.678.5217)
• Give Grist a hand – Take their Reader Survey before 7/22 and hey, you may win a Grist t, Klean Kanteen or book.
• Are you a Londoner with a green ambition but need some cash to get that concept going?  You just might dig ProjectDirt.  Timberland’s Earthkeepers Grant (2010) will award up to £2000 to 5 recipients.  Apply by midnight, July 25th.
• Looking to go off-grid?  Hot off the press – Off the Grid, by, Nick Rosen.  “Inside the movement for more space, less government, and true independence in modern America.” 

Here’s a nifty concept for a children’s toy.  Designer Yana Tzanov’s Mod.U.Me is a multi-use, modular combo of kid’s furniture and toy, whose many uses are intended to grow with the child.  The piece’s combination of wood and soft ply-able foam offer children a multi-sensory experience.

Use it as a tunnel, a rocking chair, a fort or flower… and when done playing, make it a stylish table or shelf.  The materials used for this concept are renewable balsa wood, EcoSoftx and Sofficel.

With record breaking temps this week in NYC, there were a lot of folks who looked like wilted lettuce.  Here’s my small, edited collection of eco threads to help keep you fresh and cool looking.

Katrina may have turned New Orleans, LA upside down, but some resourceful folks at repurposingNOLA.com are making good use of found materials and piecing together remnants of the disaster to create useful clothing and home furnishings…sure beats tossing piles of stuff into those landfills.

Upcycled bags — from the Hobo Bag (above) to the all-important, RE-Weekender (below).

(at right), the RE-shift Dress, ($200) made of repurposed coffee bean sacks.

(above) Channel a little Zooey Deschanel, aka 500 Days of Summer.  The sweet small print, decorative button details and organic cotton lining make this reclaimed jacket a true beauty.  find (Navy Floral Blazer, £80.00) @ anniegreenabelle.com.

Not sure about this one, Web site says, “eco friendly fabric.”  (Spandex, OK – it stretches.  Nylon?  Typically, not so eco friendly.) Sexy bikini from L Space ($124) @ beachBliss.com

(above) On the lookout for some edgy earrings?  These handmade SAW earrings are sharp looking and attention grabbing. Earrings and hooks are sterling silver.
$55 @ missy industry’s supermarkethq shop.

Green gal-pal and editor extraordinaire, Jasmin Malik Chua of Ecouterre shows us how to roll with it, literally, in eco savvy style.  K2 fashions rollerblade frames from durable, highly renewable, bamboo and boots from PET (recycled plastic bottles).  Cruise to work or your friends – find the “eco” @ K2Skates.com.

We all know the staggering amount of time, energy and environmental costs involved in manufacturing anything new, especially apparel.  So we’ve become better at shopping vintage, freecycling and swapping.

Here’s an easy and FUN way to save the green (money & Mother Earth) while dressing in your own personal style — from boutique to bargain basement.  Shell out twenty five bucks a month and start clothes swapping with other fashionistas. (above, elizabeth and james slightly worn shoes @ GivePlusTake.com.)

Sooo, that’s a wrap for now.  Have a beautiful, low carbon impact weekend.  Remember, love what you have and only buy what you need.

Related:  previously on altCon – friday finds

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s a balloon…The U.S. Navy MZ-3A Airship arrives at Lakefront Airport in New Orleans, (July 8), en route to Mobile, Alabama where it will be based to conduct oil surveillance duty in the Gulf of Mexico.  The airship was requested by the U.S. Coast Guard to support Deepwater Horizon Response operations.  The A-1-70 series blimp will be used to detect oil, direct skimming vessels, and look for wildlife that may be threatened by oil.

Find more spill-related photos here – or checkout deepwaterhorizonresponse.com for official updates on the spill.

It’s summer and when the temps aren’t topping out at 100+, a great time to think about hitting your local park, beach, or roof deck for a nice green picnic.  The new, eco-friendly Boxsal picnic box comes with all the stuff you need (except food) for your next mobile summer noshfest.

The Boxsal comes in three designs and a full arsenal of eating accoutrements. Each Boxsal is produced locally using 100% recyclable materials and earth-friendly inks. When it’s done, all the Boxsal eating tools – forks, knives, spoons, glasses, plates, bowls and napkins – are fully biodegradable.  Just toss them in the compostable trash bag, which is also part of this party pack.

Each Boxsal comes with 4 biodegradable eatin’ trays, 4 biodegradable large bowls, 4 biodegradable small snack bowls, 4 biodegradable knife, fork & spoon sets, 4  biodegradable cold cups, 8 recycled napkins and one compostable trash bag.

Comes in three designs: Office Escape, Urban Picnic and Today’s Date.  Pick one up for $35 @ boxsal.com

Here’s a cool, new carry-all for the clothing obsessed…anyone?

It’s the summer of one billion weddings in my life, and in addition to multiple trips for gift shopping and bridesmaid dress sizing, it means multiple trips to the dry cleaners. And whether I’m headed to the cleaners or the tailor, I’m always dragging a dress with me, the kind of dress that is pricey, but pretty, in a if-one-single-rain-drop-comes-near-this-silk-I-will-scream kind of way. The kind of item that needs to be protected. Fortunately, there’s a new garment bag to the market that does just that, without the eco impact of those delicate disposable bags. (According to government stats, every year more than 300 million pounds of single-use plastic dry cleaning bags end up in the dump, potentially causing harm to critters.)

The Green Garmento just may be the solution. The reusable garment bag, made of recycled materials, serves double duty as a hanging hamper, laundry bag and even a duffel bag with shoulder strap. And starting at ten bucks, it’s a pretty good deal in my opinion, and dare I say priceless for the business traveler. You can grab one in black, blue or green. Stash it in your closet, or keep one in the backseat for quick cleaner drop offs and pick ups. (And if your dry cleaner doesn’t offer anything like it, you just might want to drop a subtle hint…)

Note to Green Garmento — Thanks for supplying a sample.  Obviously, it came in the nick of time!

Lamboo Inc. is a company that creates architectural and structural products from engineered, renewable bamboo.  Bamboo is a fast growing plant (it’s actually a grass) that produces 30% more oxygen and sequesters 35% more carbon than and equally sized forest.  When properly engineered it can surpass wood in hardness and strength and stability.  The Lamboo Studio Project (featured here) was designed to be a showpiece for the entire Lamboo product line.

This studio consists of multiple applications of Lamboo’s engineered bamboo products – including structural bamboo – curved beams are used for the roof structure and Lamboo beams implemented for the floor/deck joists.  Lamboo Design products were incorporated for interior paneling and custom furniture designs and Lamboo Vue window products were used in window and door installations.

The studio space is designed with an “S” shaped roof allows to maximize exposure to sunlight in the winter months and minimize expose in the summer. The design allows for passive solar heating in winter, along with maximum power production by the roof-mounted solar panels.  During the summer solstice the “S” shaped roof overhang shades the studio from the suns heat, reducing air conditioning costs.

Features: 304 sq. ft. interior, 308 sq. ft. deck, roof-mounted solar panels, composting toilet, cork flooring, aluminum clad roof, and Lamboo windows, cabinets, furniture and doors.

via: If It’s Hip It’s Here

• How deep will this disaster run? Toxic Oil Found Under Pensacola Beaches – natgeo
• Solar Plane Completes Historic 24-Hour Flight – msnbc
• Safety first…Legal Battle Looms Over Deepwater Drilling Ban – cnn
• A fuel processing plant may soon be coming to a farm near you…New Biofuels Processing Method for Mobile Facilities – sciencedaily
• Delicioso!! East Coast Zoos, RX for Heat Includes Frozen Insect Bloodsicles – aol news

BMW is giving drivers a sneak peek into the future with the new Megacity Vehicle (MCV), set to make its street debut in 2013.  Unlike the flying pods of Jetson lore, it’s grounded, but it does tout a lightweight shell that’s crafted of high-tech carbon–the first carbon-crafted passenger car planned for the masses. By swapping the typically hefty weight of a car’s “cell,” the vehicle nearly negates the added pounds of an electric drive.

Emission-free and running on pure electricity, the MCV (autoweek.com) has the potential to cause a major shift in the production process of cars globally, thanks to Bimmer’s innovative plan, which will bring development, manufacturing and procurement specialists together under one roof. By grouping together all the folks needed to create a car, the automaker lessens the carbon emissions used, offers a more collaborative environment, and just might revolutionize the assembly line that Mr. Ford made so popular.

Dubbed a solution for “sustainable urban mobility” by BMW, the MCV just might be the poster child for tomorrow’s automobile. It’s sleek looks and virtually noiseless operation make it a suitable option in my opinion, and who can turn down a BMW anyway?