Cool Stuff from The Chicago Green Fair

Last weekend, the husband and I attended the Chicago Green Festival. Due to (I believe) too much enthusiasm at breakfast (I ate too much yummy and greasey potato pancakes), my stomach wasn't feeling that well that day. My discomfort and resulting grumpiness didn't allow us to stay at the Festival for more than a couple of hours. Basically, we went around and grabbed interesting brochures and business cards off of tables that looked good. We skipped the food vendor section all together due to tummy ache. I came home with a pile of literature. I piled it on my desk and am now going through it. What follows is basically a catalog of what stuff I brought home. I'm not saying all this stuff is great (although it is all certainly interesting), but I just wanted to share the info in case something should strike your fancy. Also, in almost all cases, I have never actually tried any of the products or services I'll mention, so I don't know if the specific ones here are the best in their category. This is more of a "hey, did you know that somebody makes recycled glass counter tops that look like granite?" rather than a "Company X sells the best/only recycled counter tops." Ok, disclaimer over. On with the show...

1. MyCounterSpace.com - From what I can tell, its like Facebook or Myspace but with a "save the world" flare. I signed up for it, but so far I find it kinda lame. They talk a lot about how they'll never bow to the man (sell the site to a corporation), which is cool I guess. I will say that their marketing tactic at the Fair was cool (a packet of sunflower seeds.)
2. Swheat Scoop and Worlds Best Cat Litter - I already use Swheat Scoop, so I took the opportunity to tell the dudes there how much I like it and to collect some of the coupons they gave me (thanks!). While I've never used Worlds Best, I have seen it in the stores, so I was interested (but never interested enough to buy a whole bag apparently). So, what I learned was, its made of corn, instead of wheat (like Swheat Scoop), but it looks similar, and apparently works just as well if not better. They did the dropper of ammonia (cat pee simulator) test, which was impressive. It didn't stick to the side of the kitty box or smell (bad, or otherwise: it was just odorless). They gave me coupons too, and I can't wait to try. They also said that World's Best can be used with the automatic litter scooper appliances. I don't have one, but sometimes they look tempting, and its nice to know I could use something other than clay litter if I did get one. Incidentally, I've been using Sweat Scoop for a few years now and I'd recommend it highly. I'll let you know what I think of Worlds Best once I get my own bag, get some real pee and shit in it, and see how it goes.
   
3. Marmoleum flooring- Its marketed as a natural and sustainable linoleum product, made from natural materials that don't include PVC or Vinyl. And, it comes in a bunch of cool modern colors and designs. If any of you out there have a floor to cover, this looks cool.
   
4. Sustainable Energy In Motion Bike Tour- This company runs week long bike tours in Oregon. Along the way, the tour stops at organic farms, grassroots community projects, schools, land trusts, etc. Nights are spent low-impact camping. Apparently there's a lot of hippie liberal bonding opportunities (which I could be in favor of, unless it involves a Trust Fall exercise, hehe). This looks really awesome, and if I had any vacation left at work I'd probably seriously look into doing it.
   
5. Toys With Integrity- Claim to be environmentally friendly socially responcible wooden toys for kids. I guess its better than plastic, right?
   
6. Gilasi- Really cool looking counter tops that are made out of recycled glass. Theiyt're supposed to be an alternative to granite. Its definitely got a granite price though.
   
7. Earth Shade- Eco-friendly window treatments and shades
8. Mister Miser Urinal- By far, Nick's favorite exhibit, its a water saving urinal for your house. Although I can't really understand why peeing in a urinal is so much better than peeing in a toilet (even though Nick spent a good ten minutes trying to explain it to me), it is true that this urinal is much more eco-friendly than flushing the toilet all the time. And its small and looks easy to install in a home bathroom.
9. Greenmaker- Environmentally friendly building materials. Sweet.
   
10. Renewable Resource Insulation- An alternative to the pink panther shit.
    
11. A green condo building (and another), if we could afford it, it might be cool.
12. Some new organic and vegan restaurants and bakery in town.
    
13. Green Exchange- If I had an eco friendly business or organization and I was in need of office space, this green building and eco centric community looks really cool.
    
14. Hey, and check it out: its a new vegetarian magazine (or at least one I didn't know existed.)

OK, so that's the low down from the green festival. I skipped the isles of environmentally and socially responsible textiles and clotheing, so I don't have any info on that stuff, although I'm sure you could gogole it. The fair reminded me just how much enviro friendly stuff there is out there, so the next time I go to purchase a product or service, maybe I'll explore some of the green alternatives. Over and Out.