Articles Written by Beth Funari

Today is Arbor Day, yo. As Arbor Day is all about planting (and appreciating) trees Mayor Nutter will appropriately celebrate Arbor Day with TreePhilly at the tree planting and volunteer day held at Marian Anderson Recreation Center.

Ah, spring produce is finally here! I don't know about you guys but I've had about all the apples, pears and winter citrus I can handle for a while. It's time for some variety. When it comes to the best of spring produce here's what to choose, how to pick the best of the best and a few seasonal recipes to boot:

  So when you think of Houston, Texas the image of an environmentally city may not be what you envision. And, well you'd be correct. It's true Houston is well known for big hair, big houses and  big oil;  Plus in my experience residents don't walk anywhere (one exception may be across the popular Galleria mall) and recycling bins in public areas are somewhat scarce. But enough Houston criticizing - for today ;)  While visiting the city recently I found a restaurant gem I had to share. Haven restaurant is all about seasonal fare and inventive dishes. The atmosphere is polished yet earthy and formal enough for a special occasion but not too stuffy for a slightly boozy brunch. Plus, it's a green certified restaurant. Haven's produce, herbs, and honey are grown and harvested from their organic garden located on the property.

Philadelphia is participating in walk to work day! Get your legs moving, feel healthy and perhaps score some free stuff too. We understand it may not be plausible to walk your entire commute. If you're a road warrior commuting from the city to NJ and Philadelphia suburbs or vice versa - 95 and 76 aren't exactly stroll-friendly. Don't despair - you just need to  walk 15 minutes of your commute to receive 25% off of 5K Run for Clean Air registration and 10% off loaves of bread at Metropolitan bakery, along with other great deals. You'll just need your...

  Gasland Part II will make its World Premier at the famous Tribeca Film Festival in NYC on April 21st. The much-anticipated sequel to the ground-breaking and controversial Gasland will likely frame more heated debates from both fracking supporters and adversaries. Pennsylvania was and is among the states where fracking is a major concern. Gasland and Gasland Part II filmaker Josh Fox has said that 60-65% of PA land is being turned over to gas companies for exploration and drilling.

Truth: I always thought that the concept of a juice cleanse was a bit of a gimmick and I wanted no part. My thinking was what's 3 or 5 days of juice going to do for me? I try to focus on long-term, big picture health and eschew trends and fad diets. Plus, I love to eat...  I really, really love food and the ritual of meals. I'm the type of person who begins thinking about lunch promptly after finishing breakfast. Spend upwards of $150-200 only to feel hungry and deprived? No chewing? Blah, I can't drink ALL my meals. Nope, no thank you. Though I've been on the fresh juice bandwagon for some time my habit was to incorporate them into my diet in moderation I spent a good amount of time in New York and the abundance of juice bars quickly turned me on to a healthy habit. And when time allows I make juice at home. But here's where I started to realize I might want to take a cleanse for a test spin... Besides being an environmental blogger I also work as a Sports Performance trainer. Over the past few months more & more clients began to inquire about the pros and cons of a juice cleanse. My instinct was to tell them to avoid extremes and focus on healthy eating and exercise! But, I realized I couldn't provide a fully formed opinion without trying one myself. So I decided to try the 3-day Suja juice cleanse. There are a lot of juice options out there these days but Suja appealed to me for a few reasons. Read on for the deets!

This week Green Philly Blog is interviewing some of Philadelphia’s female sustainability leaders in honor of closing out March as International Women’s History Month. We're wrapping up the week with Sandy Bauers of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Sandy is the Inquirer's Environment Reporter; She covers the city's environmental news on her blog and column GreenSpace. She's worked as an editor and reporter at the Inquirer for more than 20 years. Sandy lives the green life in northern Chester County with her husband, cats and pet chickens.  I've been reading Sandy's work for years, and was delighted for the opportunity to pick her brain a bit.  Click through to get Sandy's thoughts on Philly's greatest environmental accomplishments and more!

Today is World Water Day 2013! In 1993 the United Nations General Assembly declared March 22 World Day for Water. Every year the UNGA focuses on a specific aspect of water conservation. This year the theme is water cooperation.  From the UNGA " (We) recognize that cooperation is essential to strike a balance between the different needs and priorities and share this precious resource equitably, using water as an instrument of peace. Promoting water cooperation implies an interdisciplinary approach bringing in cultural, educational and scientific factors, as well as religious, ethical, social, political, legal, institutional and economic dimensions." One important takeaway from this statement is that water is a shared resource. It is not ours to use as we please at anytime, and it shouldn't be taken for granted. There. is.not.an.endless.supply. By paying attention to our personal and family water usage all year we're taking small steps to help the cause. What can you do?

While I love most things green it did take me a little while to jump on the green juice bandwagon.  Oddly enough my parents had a juicer back in the 90s (before juicing became trendy!) and I remember grimacing as a kid when they'd offer me a green concoction. I guess they were ahead of the times because now I have a juicer and kind of love the thing. Yep, I can be a slow adapter but now that I have experienced true green juice goodness there may be no turning back. We've discussed the juicing craze a bit before - including the benefits behind it and the pros and cons that come with the hype. Whether you're curious about juice or you're already hard-core this juice will become your new favorite green juice. It's refreshing and a little sweet. The apple is key to balancing out all the veggies! And, the lemon/lime combo add a hint of citrusy spring flavor. I especially recommend this recipe to those who have trouble with salad-like, pungent juices. I know a lot of people that juice first thing in the morning. I tend to enjoy my juice mid morning or for an afternoon snack.  (I still love my morning coffee, nut butter and occasional muffin...I'm human.) Either way this juice is a nice compliment to lunch or as a tasty stand-alone snack.