PLENTY Likes AusPen

We’ve been big fans of the eco-focused publication “Plenty” for a while so it was nice to see in their latest issue that they are also fans of ours.

Plenty, which is the leading eco-living magazine on newsstands (their tag line is “The World In Green”) featured the AusPen markers on page 63, with the heading “High Marks”.

You can check out Plenty online at www.plentymag.com, or pick up the August/September issue at Barnes and Noble, Borders, Whole Foods and many other leading retailers. It’s a great read (and hey, we were saying that long before they gave us a tip of their hat).

Pasadena Gets A Little Greener

Thanks to the City of Pasadena (California), this jewel in the San Gabriel Mountains (made famous by Jan and Dean in their 60’s hit “The Little Old Lady from Pasadena) is a little greener today than it was before.

The City office has re-ordered more AusPen markers, which means not only are they saving money, but they have taken literally thousands of the old PVC-made disposable markers out of their local landfills (and they have reduced toxicity in their workplace by using our non-toxic markers).

Pasadena is just one of many City offices in North America that are making “greener” changes throughout their buildings, looking for eco-friendly alternatives to every day supplies. It produces a tangible result immediately, but also conveys to the community that they are committed to sustainability and creates positive actions all over the city.

AusPen is happy to be a part of these changes cities are making. Again, we say this all the time, but small changes can have a huge impact.

The Beauty of Brown

A buddy stopped by my place last week and made a comment on the appearance of my front lawn….which was sporting a burnt orangy/brown color. When I told him I hadn’t watered my lawn in three years and explained why, he was impressed and immediately declared, in solidarity with me, he would stop watering his lawn every night (breaking all water restrictions in his municipality by the way) and reduce that to only every second night - hey you can’t win them all.

But I do believe, and I realize this is only anecdotal, but I’m seeing a lot more brown lawns dotting the suburban landscape, way more than I used to. And I have to think that a portion of this neighborhood “browning” trend is all about conservation and sustainability. There has to be an increasing number of people these days who just don’t feel good about dumping hundreds of gallons of water a few times a week on grass patches in the front and back of their house.

So here’s to letting your lawn take on a beautiful brown hue every summer.

It’s Back To School (For Some)

For some regions, it’s back to school, or at least teachers are getting ready for the kids to start arriving soon (we spoke with several teachers this week who are back in class or starting next week).

Other areas still have a few weeks before the doors fly open to another school year.

When you’re getting ready to outfit the classroom with supplies, please try and think green with what you purchase, but also with how you go about your day-to-day activities once school has started. Recycle, reuse, reduce are the keys.

Whiteboard markers are one part of the equation when it comes to making positive changes, but refillable, recyclable, non-toxic products in any area are great to be looking out for.

For those who are back at school, have a great year, for those with a few weeks of vacation left, enjoy it.

Gas Up - Miles Down

The latest stats just came out today from the Federal Highway Administration - Americans drove 9.6 billion fewer miles in May of 2008 than they did last May. Clearly the cost of gas is responsible for much of this, but the trend was moving down even before fuel costs really spiked. The combination of citizens thinking more about being environmentally responsible and the pain at the gas pumps has parked a lot of cars and trucks.

Reduce, reuse, and recycle when you can - Indeed

We opened our daily newsletter from Ideal Bite today and the first item was:

Quoth the Raven, “How long does trash last in landfills?”

Evermore. Like something out of a creepy poem, even biodegradable items like food can hang around in garbage dumps for years. Trash is packed so tightly that it doesn’t always get the necessary light, oxygen, and/or microorganisms it needs to decompose, so truly, we implore: Reduce, reuse, and recycle when you can. Ca-caw!

We couldn’t have expressed the thought of the day any better.

AusPen Featured In Organic Spa Magazine

Pick up the Fall issue of Organic Spa magazine and flip to page 41 to read their feature on the AusPen markers. They’re big fans of our non-toxic, refillable, eco-friendly whiteboard markers and added us to their profile on office products.

You can access the issue online at http://www.organicspamagazine.com/

They are available on newsstands across the US (Barnes and Noble, Borders, etc) and at all Whole Food outlets.

Happy Canada Day

We want to wish all our Canadian customers a very happy Canada Day. Enjoy the holiday.

Eco-Friendly Markers A Hit

It’s Day Two of the Washington State annual summer Principal’s Conference, hosted this year in Spokane, Washington and aside from the heat (over 100 yesterday and hot, hot, hot again today) things have been going very well.

The AusPen booth has been busy, with school administrators from around the state stopping by to learn about our eco-friendly alternative to the disposable dry erase markers. Many of them are VERY interested in looking at “green” initiatives and alternatives for their schools.

We’ve also spoken with several educators who have the Auspen markers currently being used in their school district and love them. It’s been particularly enjoyable talking with people who are users of the product.

Well, back to the booth for the afternoon session.

Olympic Bids Highlight “Green”

I was reading an article this morning that highlghted how the Olympic bidding process is an intriguing barometer on the growth of eco-friendly consciousness.

While it’s true that in the past bid cities have included environmentally-responsible components to their applications, it has only been since the 2010 Olympic bids that a stronger commitment to “green” became apparent.

But to see the new 2016 bids, it is clear how far the movement has come. These cities have fully integrated “green-thinking” into all components of the bid. From mandatory emissions caps (Tokyo) to ‘21st Century Green Urban Spaces’ located near potential Olympic sites (Chicago) and on and on it goes for each city.

Sure, some of the projects outlined won’t see the light of day and there is a clear pandering to the what they believe the Olympic selection committee wants to see in a bid, but the fact sustainability and emission reduction has become such an important focus in a relatively short period of time is very encouraging.

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