Articles Written by Julie Hancher

Dine out on May 22nd and help out a Philly environmental nonprofit, too! We're psyched to share: Dine out for the Environment - Philly Many of our favorite restaurants are supporting local farms, reducing waste & chemicals and using smarter options for the city's footprint.  Dine Out for the Environment is the first city-wide restaurant event, showcasing our city's most sustainable dining options. How can you join in on the action?

Spring is here! Philadelphia's green community emerges from the woodwork with a nonstop calendar of awesome, local events. Here's two events coming up on Monday you won't want to miss.

Do you have old books sitting on your shelf, wasting space? It's almost difficult to give away books since they rarely retain any value. Plus, I've been denied giving books to libraries by my office!  But never fret, dear readers. We found JUST where to donate those books for today's Where Can I Wednesday column helps you donate all of those used and old books in Philadelphia. Happy spring cleaning! Here's where to donate used books in Philadelphia:

Sustainability's on its way to become a little more permanent in City government, but they need your help! As we mentioned back in November, Resolution No 130884 is to make the Philadelphia Mayor's Office of Sustainability Permanent within Philadelphia city government. Director of Sustainability Katherine Gajewski sent an email with an update on the progress.  Councilwoman Reynolds Brown and Councilman Kenney co-sponsored the bill and it was positively voted out of the Committee on Law and Government last week.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Zojirushi. The opinions and text are all mine. Regardless of the type of plastic, more than 70 percent of plastics leak estrogen-like chemicals. Makes that microwavable meal really appetizing, right? Yum! Whether you're at home, camping or the office, you can kick plastic from your life in favor of more sustainable products. Here are a few tiny investments I've made over the years to limit my plastic waste in the office.

Remember all of that insane rain and flooding on Wednesday? That 7th worst in Philly history that competed with Superstorm Sandy? Yeah, that one. For those Philly bike commuters, things got a little more complicated on Wednesday and Thursday morning: Check out more photos from the storm for our Photo Friday!

Mayor Michael Nutter signed an executive order yesterday to ban smoking in Philly's parks. According to the City of Philadelphia's official wordpress account (speaking of which, can't City of Phila afford a URL that doesn't include .wordpress?),

Biking sure has its perks: Save cash, get in a little exercise and liberation from SEPTA's inconsistent schedules. How can you look cute while biking: wear dresses, manage accessories and keep your hair from looking like you went through an urban jungle? Here's the lady's guide to look cute while biking.

Litter is causing an uproar on the Philly internets. We addressed the causes, frustrations and potential solutions for Philadelphia's litter in our blog post last week, Why is Philly so Dirty? The Litter Epidemic. Insightful reader comments sparked conversation about citizen attitude, neighborhoods with paid personnel  and plastic pollution. On April 24th, Jared Shelly, Digital Producer of Philadelphia Business Journal shared a Twitter explosion after he asked Mayor Nutter about the city's plan for litter on the streets. Mayor Michael Nutter originially responded