Twiking for Two
Look out car-obsessed America, here comes the TWIKE, the most efficient motorized vehicle on the face of the planet, which made its Chicago debut at the recent Eco-Transportation Show hosted by the Foresight Design Initiative. It’s a German-engineered human-electric hybrid vehicle designed to carry two passengers comfortably through any weather with speed and style, and without harmful emissions of any kind.
Two people sit side by side Flintstones style in a pod-like vehicle that resembles the Egg-ship from Mork and Mindy, and pedal the vehicle onward, aided by an electric motor. The TWIKE gets up to 600 mpg, goes about 55 mph, and has a battery that will last 5 years. The innovative “regenerative antilock braking” system captures energy from deceleration and puts it back into the battery, where it belongs, instead of wasting brake pads and rotors.
The TWIKE’s aircraft-type components are built to last lifetimes, and because the TWIKE has far fewer moving parts than an ordinary vehicle, and does not burn fuel, it does not need much service, nor motor oil, coolant, filters, spark plugs, and so forth. Most minor adjustments can be done by a motorcycle or bicycle dealer, computer operator or licensed electrician.
Of course, all this value ain’t cheap. Custom built and shipped from Germany, the TWIKE costs…gulp…$26,000! You can pick up a Prius for a thousand less. For more information, visit twike.com.
— Charles Shaw
Here’s to Healthy Homes!
Forget spring cleaning. Why not bring fresh air into your home along with the crisp autumn breeze?
A Healthy House Fair is being held in Chicago on Oct. 21 by NaCar Interiors, Inc. to inform people of health threats in the home they may not be aware of. The company is a resource for the environmentally minded house-owner.
“Green is often associated with building. This event is about living,” said N’Dana Carter, owner of NaCar Interiors.
House cleaning and home construction have strayed from using natural products such as baking soda, lemons and vinegar. The chemical alternatives used today can create indoor air pollution, especially in small spaces like classrooms, offices and bedrooms. And relying on indoor temperature control as winter creeps in can add to the risk of having indoor spaces tainted with chemicals and germs. No wonder everyone gets sick this time of year!
The fair will provide information about the dangers of cosmetics, insulation, pesticides, cleaning supplies and much more. Attendees receive a 10 percent discount on “healthy house” books at Barnes and Noble. The event will include presentations by the American Lung Association, a discussion with house experts, prizes, music and food. Be sure to check out the on-going showings of Al Gore’s documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, too.
The fair is scheduled from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m Saturday, Oct. 21, at DePaul University, 1 E. Jackson Blvd. For more information, call 773-624-6281.
The City of Chicago has also been working to raise awareness of environmental issues in the home. The city held its first Green Home Expo on Sept. 30, in conjunction with its annual Historic Chicago Bungalow show at the Merchandise Mart.
More than 100 vendors were present and over 45 workshops were held on such topics as how to choose the right paint, how to apply for home improvement loans, and how to rehab using environmentally responsible products.
— Taylor Swanson & Jack Bess
Fair Trade Month Highlights Consumer Role in Global Issues
Many people, if they have heard of Fair Trade, may think of coffee or chocolate. Indeed, Fair Trade is the fastest growing niche in the specialty coffee sector, giving consumers the opportunity to use their purchasing power to express solidarity with small farmers while reinforcing a new market-led version of social justice.
October is celebrated nationally as Fair Trade Month, highlighting activities that encourage broader support of fairly traded products. Chicago’s celebration will be led by Chicago Fair Trade (CFT), an organization composed of businesses, faith and community organizations, students and individual activists who promote Fair Trade in the Chicago metro area. CFT also campaigns for important issues such as immigration and a domestic living wage. This month at the Gene Siskel Film Center, CFT is co-hosting a screening of Black Gold, a documentary about the coffee industry, as a vehicle for raising awareness about Fair Trade.
Fair Trade isn’t just about food, it’s also a social movement mobilizing for economic justice. More and more Fair Trade-certified products are finding their way onto supermarket shelves, and Fair Trade is gaining recognition as a groundbreaking approach to economic development by integrating human rights, with ecological and economic concerns. Fair Trade introduced the concept of a “triple bottom line” with attention to social responsibility, environmental sustainability and market profitability.
More about Fair Trade and Chicago’s events can be found at chicagofairtrade.org. Read our review of Black Gold this month.
— Charles Shaw
Wear Your Passion: Green Fashion
A shift toward eco-friendly awareness in the fashion industry has brought the term “green fashion” from Europe to Chicago.
There is no official regulation on the use of toxic chemicals in the fashion industry. The effects of some of these chemicals on the human body are not known because few studies have been conducted. A new European proposal may change that for clothing companies, but local fashion designers are already steps ahead in creating eco- and human-friendly clothing.
Safe clothing is available at retailers throughout Chicago. Designer Stewart+Brown uses organic cotton and factory surplus to create a line of high-end soft and airy fashions. Stewart+Brown is carried at Jolie Joli, 1623 N. Damen.
“I chose the line because it’s really cute,” said Gina Kulbieda, owner of the boutique.
She only has a few people ask specifically for Stewart+Brown, the only environmentally conscious designer she currently carries.
“Most gravitate towards it because they like the style. It’s an added bonus to tell them about the environmental aspect of the line,” Kulbieda said. Styles range from a flowing pleated cami ($79) to a pale-blue, loose-knit cashmere hoodie ($330).
Don’t have the cash to dig green fashion? Think again. The sexy cotton clothing from American Apparel is green-friendly. The company recycles all fabric scraps and fibers—an estimated 3 million pounds since opening in 1997. American Apparel has come to stand for “anti-sweatshop” by paying employees at U.S. factories a living wage. Retail stores are located throughout the city in Lakeview, Wicker Park, Lincoln Park, Gold Coast and in Evanston, IL. Check out americanapparel.net/storelocations.
Big name designers are catching on to this movement of green-fashion and calling for legislation on chemical usage. Registration, Evaluation, Authorization of CHemicals (REACH) is on the agenda for the European Parliament this month.
REACH’s goal is to establish a Chemical Agency to test and regulate chemicals used by manufacturers. Around 30,000 chemicals would be assessed over the next 11 years. The proposal would go into action in late 2007 if it is approved this autumn.
Greenpeace and 16 fashion designers collaborated for the Moda Sin Toxicos fashion show in Madrid this summer to lobby EU. Designers, including Carmen March, Antonio Pernas and Jacomomola, dazzled the catwalk with clothing free of toxic chemicals. Many designers still choose fabrics containing lead, nickel, chromium IV, aryl amines, phthalates and formaldehyde. Major brands Mango and Camper announced plans to discontinue use of materials containing these chemicals.
Los Angeles debuted Eco-Fashion Week in July. Such events will hopefully create waves of change in the New York and Paris scene as well.
For more information, visit ec.europa.eu/environment/chemicals/reach/reach_intro.htm.
— Taylor Swanson
Cheapo Big Box Retailers Cost Illinois Taxpayers Billions
They called it the “shot heard ‘round the world.” On July 26th the Chicago City Council overwhelmingly passed a new ordinance which requires “Big Box” retailers to pay their employees a living wage that amounts to $10 an hour in pay and another $3 an hour for benefits. It was the culmination of two years worth of vicious political warfare.
A new report by UIC’s Center for Urban Economic Development measured the hidden public costs of low-wage Big Box work and found that taxpayers funded an annual average of $2.2 Billion in government subsidies in order to pay for public services like health care and rent assistance for almost 500,000 working families.
“The great myth of public subsidies is that people receiving assistance are not fully employed,” said Illinois State Rep. Mary Flowers. “This report exposes that these corporations are actually having taxpayers pick up a significant portion of the cost of living for these working families.”
Responding to the findings of the report, Ken Snyder of the Grassroots Collaborative, the coordinating body for the campaign, said, “We didn’t have any idea the figure was so large, but it doesn’t surprise us. If we weren’t paying for Wal-Mart or Target’s health care, their employees wouldn’t be able to afford to take the jobs, and they wouldn’t even be here.”
On Monday, September 12th the ordinance was dealt a crushing blow when Mayor Daley vetoed the bill, claiming that the measure “will unfairly keep stores out of black city neighborhoods, where jobs are needed.” It was the first time in his 17-year tenure as mayor that he chose to exercise his veto power. The City Council upheld the veto with a 31-18 decision, when three alderman switched their votes to side with Daley.
— Charles Shaw
Tainted Tuna in City’s Sushi Restaurants
Environment Illinois recently tested 10 local sushi restaurants and found that 10 percent of the tuna exceeded levels unsafe for human consumption. 70 percent exceeded the Illinois EPA’s special advisory threshold that, for example, recommends women and children eat no more than one serving per month. This adds to a recent stream (no pun intended) of bad news about high levels of mercury in store-bought tuna, locally caught fish and other seafood available to the residents of Illinois.
“Mercury contamination is a toxic threat to food safety in Illinois, and the only long-term solution is to cut off mercury pollution at its source,” said Max Muller from Environment Illinois. “In Illinois, the main sources are coal-burning power plants and the improper disposal of products containing mercury (like fluorescent light bulbs and computer screens).”
Mercury is a potent neurotoxin that accumulates in animals and the environment. Fetuses and young children are particularly vulnerable as mercury poisons the developing brain. Higher doses similarly impair adults and can also increase the risk of heart attacks. It is estimated that up to 100,000 Illinois women have sufficiently high blood-mercury levels to put an unborn child at risk of developmental problems.
Illinois has been the site of several recent revelations about dangerous levels of mercury in fish. In December, the Chicago Tribune broke a nationally reported news story revealing the government’s failure to systematically monitor and warn consumers about mercury in canned tuna and other fish available in stores.
Canada, Japan, and the EU have legal limits less than half those of the US. For the full report, visit environmentillinois.org.
— Charles Shaw
