Live Earth

On July 7th, over 24 hours on 7 continent, more than 100 musical artists will plays concerts to spur on a global movement to solve the climate crisis. The details are here.

Barefoot Beach Rescue

This one is an event sponsored by a California winemaker, which almost disqualified it, but then we thought, why not? Why not encourage this kind of civic-mindedness?

The idea is to cleanup a beach (seven have been selected across the country) and then have a party afterwards. Sounds good to us.

Aid to Artisans

Cambodian basket weavers. Woodcarvers in Mozambique. Haitain potters.

The mission of Aid to Artisans is to provide practical assistance to artisan groups worldwide -- improving livelihoods, sense of tradition, and of community.

You can make a donation or purchase one of the striking artisanal products here.

Save the Whale Week

This is Save the Whale week -- join the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society to protect the endangered species. Japan, among others, wants to get the rules protecting whales relaxed -- a terribly shortsighted proposal and one that should bring shame to that country. More info here.

Blue Planet Run

20 international runners,
24 hours a day,
95 days
15,200 miles,
26.7 million strides

Why? To raise awareness that, incredibly, over a billion people live without safe drinking water. Here is what you can do to help.

Charity Navigator

Before you go giving away your millions (or your tens), it's a good idea to check with Charity Navigator.

They evaluate the financial health of over 5,000 charities -- which will help you decide if a charity you're considering will spend your money wisely.

RAWA

The Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan, founded in 1977, is the country's oldest political action group.

They need at least 20 digital cameras (3 mexapixels or greater) to help in the cause. Details are here.

True Colors Tour

The True Colors Tour, starring Cyndi Lauper, Margaret Cho, Debbie Harry, Erasure, and some fun special guests, has just launched its 15-city tour starting in Las Vegas. In support of the Human Rights Campaign Fund, Lauper says, "We should all have the right to live with the same diginity, opportunity, and safety. It shouldn't matter what anyone's sexual orientation is."

Volunteer Vacation

There are quite a few organizations now that will facilitate a vacation in which you do volunteer work.

One of them is Global Volunteers International, an organization which has been around since 1984. Among the things you can do: teach conversational English, care for at-risk children, and build, repair, and paint buildings.

It's a vacation that will stay with you.

Eyes on Darfur

This is an extraordinary website from Amnesty International.

Eyes on Darfur uses technology -- in this case, satellite images -- to offer evidence of the atrocities being committed there. You can see with your own eyes which villages have been destroyed and which are at risk. And you can take action here.

THE Bulb

The use of compact fluorescent light bulbs is 75% more energy efficient than incandescent bulbs, last 10 times longer, and using them creates 75% less CO2 emissions.

Makers of THE Bulb also offset the CO2 emissions from their light bulbs with a donation to the www.Carbonfund.org Foundation.

If You Care Products

The If You Care line of environmentally friendly coffee filters and baking paper, now produces aluminum foil.

It's 100% recycled, 95% less energy is used than when producing primary aluminum, and it can be recycled indefinitely.

Leave Out Violence

Leave Out Violence (LOVE), which started in Canada, has helped send the message of non-violence to over 40,000 teens in that country.

The program has now become part of some New York City schools -- many more are on the waiting list to get LOVE. Donations make it possible.

Plant a Tree For Me

Computer maker Dell has teamed up with The Conservation Fund and Carbonfund.org to promote a tree-planting program called Plant a Tree For Me.

You can offset the carbon produced from electricity used to power your computers (in their average lifetimes) by making a donation. Offset a notebook with a $2 donation. Offset a desktop computer with a $6 donation. You can offset yourself (or the estimated total one-year carbon impact of an average American citizen) by donating $99 to the program.

100% of the funds go toward planting trees.

EarthPortal

Science is under attack these days and facts are just a matter of opinion.

Which is why the recent launch of EarthPortal is such good news. It's the combined effort of 650 of the world's top scientists from 49 countries and the point is to offer the most commercial-free, bias-free, and cost-free information about the planet currently available.

Grit Design

What's jewelry doing here?


Well, Grit Design creates jewelry using stones, crystals, or other materials, inspired by the elements of air, earth, fire or water.

The generous impulse part: Grit, which is a woman-owned business, donates half its proceeds to non-profits that support women's economic independence.

Global Volunteer Network

Here's an email that came to us:

"I am currently in Vietnam as a volunteer at orphanages around Da Nang, and I'm having just the best time. I've only been here a week so far, will be here for seven more. The organization has been featured as one of those Volunteer Vacations, and I found it through the internet and a small bit in the NYTimes. The organization that brought me here is based in New Zealand, and could really use a bit more exposure in the States, (I'm the only Yank this month). I'll give you the link so you can get an idea of what it's all about:"

Website

BoGo Light

This is so great: the BoGo Light is an eco-friendly flashlight -- there's a solar panel that powers the rechargeable AA batteries for up to two years.

But the really cool thing is that if you buy one ($25), the company donates one to an organization that will distribute it in the developing world. That means that children who have no light at night by which to study, except perhaps kerosene lanterns, will have a bright task lamp. And perhaps a brighter future.

Taproot

Most people haven't got much time to spare, so sparing time for someone or something is
almost invariably a significant gesture.

That's the essential idea behind the Taproot Foundation. "Nonprofits have the greatest potential for addressing our society's most challenging social and environmental problems, but often lack the operational resources to fulfill their potential. The Taproot Foundation exists to close this gap and ensure all nonprofits have the infrastructure they need to thrive."

Anyone can write a check (not that there's anything wrong with that). But investing some spare time and expertise is something else again. Taproot will connect you and your marketing, IT, HR or design skills with a nonprofit organization that will benefit from it. Details

BOOMGen

Here's an interesting statistic: within four years, the population of the Middle East will be nearly 800 million and 75% of those people will be under age 35.

That gave some smart people a good idea: make a documentary about it. Promote the "common desire for stability, properity, and understanding."

BOOMgen is the project and you can keep up with their progress if you email them here.

Certified Humane

The Certified Humane Raised and Handled program is designed to improve, through consumer demand, the way animals are raised in the U.S.

It's been just four years since the program start, but already 22 million have benefited from it. Sufficient space and shelter. Good nutrition and fresh water. Regular inspections. No growth hormones.

All of which should go without saying, but of course does not. You can help by making a donation and to ask for, and buy, products with the certified humane label. A list of stores participating is here. Finally, you can send a letter to retailers and to restaurants, encouraging them to carry these products. Sample letters are here.

Alberto Gonzales

Enough.

Sign the petition to get this disgrace fired and to restore integrity to the Department of Justice.


[We've updated the URL for the petition - should be working again.]

NURTUREArt

Nuturing contemporary art is the focus of NURTUREart, based in Brooklyn, which has been doing good things for the cultural landscape for 10 years.

They can use volunteers, particularly in the areas of web and graphic design, event programming, and grant writing.

Green Clean

Green Clean, by Linda Mason Hunter and Mikki Halpin, is our go-to book for cleaning up the housecleaning.

You'll learn what's really in the common housecleaning products in most kitchen cabinets in the country. Gulp! The authors give you a step-by-step guide to cleaning your home with natural and safe products.

Women for Women International

Women are not only disproportionately affected by wars around the globe, they are crucial to the rebuilding of communities once the conflict has ended.

Women for Women International recognizes that "stronger women build stronger nations." You can sponsor a woman in Iraq, Afghanistan, Sudan, Rwanda, or elsewhere for $27 a month. The money will provide financial support, job skills training, and hope.

The Alpha Workshops

The Alpha Workshops is a unique idea. It's the only non-profit in the country that trains people with HIV/AIDS in the decorative arts. Everything from decorative finishes, gilding, restoration, wallpaper, and lamps is part of their portfolio. And their list of clients now range from individuals to the corporate offices of Benjamin Moore, eBay, as well as Gracie Mansion. Since they started over a decade ago, they've grown from two employees to 30. Alpha, which was started by Ken Wampler, has made a profound impact on the lives of individuals who work there. The also do beautiful work.

Seafood Watch

The Monterey Bay Aquarium has put together some helpful guides that will help you choose sustainable seafood in a restaurant or store and avoid those fish that are either in short supply or farmed in ways that hurt the environment. Printable, pocket-sized guides are here.

The Cultural Landscape Foundation

It might sound a little dry, but the mission of The Cultural Landscape Foundation is actually pretty simple -- and pretty great.

They help preserve geographical areas that have meaning: natural, cultural, or historical.

The beautiful Stan Hywet Birch Alee (pictured) in Akron, Ohio, part of the historic Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens, is just one small example.

Support them here.

Yolo Colorhouse

Yolo Colorhouse, a line of paint developed in Portland, Oregon, has no VOCs -- the solvents in paint that aren't good for people or the ozone layer.

Not only that, the paints come in a range of 40 gorgeous colors, in flat, satin, or semi-gloss and they make a zero-VOC primer, too.

You can purchase online or find a retailer here.

Reach the World

Reach the World helps disadvantaged students connect to the world.

The non-profit, started in 1998 by two young educators, wants to inspire curiosity about -- and an understanding of -- the world's environment and cultures.

In other words, they make geography cool. And one of the ways they do that is by following, with their classmates and teachers, the world journey of the 43-foot sailboat Maluku, which will complete its third voyage next month.

Anything that makes kids excited about learning is a good thing in our book. And these days, a better understanding of the world at large seems not just useful but a matter of survival.

Reach the World has programs in New York and Chicago. You can help expand their reach by making a contribution here.

Darfur

Let's talk of graves, of worms, and epitaphs,
Make dust our paper, and with rainy eyes
Write sorrow on the bosom of the earth.
– Richard II

Can there be a more sorrowful place on the planet than Darfur right now? The numbers are staggering: over 400,000 people are estimated to have been killed in the genocide. There will be more. But there are things you can do:

At Darfur Genocide, you can:
Donate to help bring the perpetrators to justice
Sign the petition urging President Bush to act.
Other ways to help.

[Photo: USAID]