For this month’s neighborhood spotlight, we stopped by Broad Ripple, home of some of the city’s best restaurants, bars, cultural venues, and retailers, not to mention a couple of well-maintained greenways-The Monon Trail and Central Canal Towpath-which make walking or biking to this funky village a breeze. Here are some of our favorite eco-friendly offerings there.

To eat:
Bravo to Chef Neal Brown for offering local and sustainable items (such as pork chops and wild halibut) on his innovative menu at L’Explorateur. We’re also impressed with Petite Chou, not only for their always delicious omelets (made with local eggs), but also for parent company Cafe Patachou, who recently replaced their restaurants’ plastic to-go boxes with 100% compostable packaging and added new local and organic menu items.

To buy:
So many stores, so little time. Check out: Big Hat Books for an excellent selection of environmental themed books; Good Earth Natural Food Store for organic and natural groceries, food supplements, and cosmetics/body care products; Haus (257-0659) for cute organic cotton women’s clothing and furnishings made using recycled materials; Three Dog Bakery for 100% recyclable Orbee-Tuff non-toxic dog toys; Rusted Moon Outfitters for a wide variety of outdoor gear from ultra-green brand Patagonia, and The Toggery Resale Boutique for fab recycled women’s wear (a.k.a. designer clothing on consignment).

To do:
This Saturday begins the Broad Ripple Farmers Market where you’ll find a wide variety of produce, meats, breads, dairy products, and plants, all from Indiana vendors, sold in the parking lot behind Broad Ripple High School. Last but certainly not least is the Broad Ripple Village Cleanup taking place June 7. Just think about all the fun “trashed in Broad Ripple” jokes you and your friends can make if you attend this one!

Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

Treehuggers: on your mark, get set…Go to Monument Circle at noon on Friday, April 25, for Indy Free Tree Day. Keep Indianapolis Beautiful and Indianapolis Power & Light will celebrate Arbor Day by handing out 1,000 free potted 2-foot oak trees, encouraging Indiana residents to help improve the environment by simply planting a tree. Doing so not only reduces carbon dioxide in the air, it can also help reduce your energy bills by shading your house from the sun. And, let’s face it, trees make most yards look prettier. While you’re at Free Tree Day, be sure to chat up various local environmental organizations (including Green Piece Indy!) and pick up other freebies from Indiana Living Green magazine and Endangered Species Chocolate.

To help you continue the planting tradition, Keep Indianapolis Beautiful is also launching its My Tree and Me program this Friday, offering coupons for $20 off trees at more than 34 retailers around the city. For a printable coupon, visit www.mytreeandme.org.

Finally, to finish off the week of Earth Day celebrations and free trees, Georgetown Market is having a Spring into Wellness event this Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Stop by for various health screenings, $1.50 healthy lunches, and kid ID cards.

Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

We would have invited you to a birthday party for the planet, but we couldn’t fathom just how to get all those candles on a cake. Whether you use a reusable bag at the grocery store, make the switch from an incandescent to an energy-efficient lightbulb, carpool with a co-worker, or simply opt for a ceramic mug over a paper coffee cup this morning, we hope you’ll take some time to celebrate Earth Day. And instead of buying a present for the planet, why not get one for yourself that’s good for the Earth? Visit The Daily Green for a list of eco-conscious retailers who are offering discounts and coupons through the end of the month.

Don’t forget to check out Earth Day Indiana this Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the American Legion Mall downtown. Join thousands of Hoosiers for this free festival full of environmental information and free goodies. The General Motors Exhibit will be collecting unwanted household medicines and sharps. Clean out the unwanted and expired meds in your cabinet and drop them off on Saturday, keeping the chemicals out of our lakes and streams. Be sure to stop by the Green Piece Indy booth to say hello!

Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

We’ll be the first to admit that there’s nothing particularly chic about composting (though we still recommend trying it). Eco-friendly handbags, however, are a fashionable way to make a statement about your concern for the planet. Here are a few of our faves, all of which are made of recycled materials (and one that’s not but was just too clever to not mention).

• Silver in the City offers a number of enviro-friendly bags, in materials from sturdy canvas to recycled seatbelts. They also carry Envirosax, a line of stylish nylon bags that fold up super-small. Silver in the City even offers 5% off your in-store purchases when you use a tote purchased from their store or website. 434 Massachusetts Ave., 866-955-9925
• Indy designer Anita Hopper takes discarded leather apparel and upholstery and recycles it into cute handbags for her ReFind Originals line. Even the adorably-named Woof Packs-a line of children’s backpacks featuring a canine design-is made from old leather jackets. 348-0123
• Ever wonder what Endangered Species Chocolate does with all those extra chocolate bar wrappers? Duh! You’ll find an assortment of shoulder bags and one very sweet clutch-all made from reused wrappers-at the Indianapolis-based company’s Web site.
• The rubber meets the road with English Retreads’ line of bags made from-you guessed it-recycled tires. These durable totes come in chic styles and are virtually stain-proof, making them a prime choice for green girls and boys (yes, they offer a totally masculine messenger bag) who are always on the go. 

Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

Rather than stuffing your tax refund (and economic stimulus check!) under your organic mattress, try green investing. It only takes a little cash to create a decent savings and help make the world a better place at the same time.There are a lot of options for green or social investing: From buying clean energy mutual funds to stock in companies with high environmental standards to those with positive human and animal rights efforts, caring about your retirement and the environment is getting easier and more accessible.

Co-op America offers a complete guide to investing, including a list of socially responsible mutual funds.

LOHAS E-weekly is a trusted source that includes financial data on companies that get it.

Not sure where to begin? Work with a green financial advisor. Greenleaf Financial Group is a local company with a Green Your Green™ socially responsible investment service. They offer a monthly green investing newsletter and other valuable information.

Don’t build your future on a landfill - invest responsibly.

Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

We’re suckers for freebies. So when we heard that Indianapolis Power & Light Company (IPL) was offering its customers Energy Efficiency Kits at absolutely no cost, we thought it sounded too good to be true. Sure enough, ours arrived in the mail as promised, containing 7 different energy-saving products. Among them were:

• two (!) compact fluorescent lightbulbs,
• a water-saving showerhead,
• a handy hot water gauge,
• a stick-on refrigerator thermometer,
• one really cool luminescent night light (it costs just pennies a year to operate!),
• a bag that helps you measure water flow, and
• foam gaskets that reduce heat loss when installed behind light switches and electrical outlets.

Order yours now, but be patient: Because IPL has been flooded (no pun intended) with orders, it can take a couple of weeks to receive a kit. 

Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

We think the April issue of Indy Tails magazine is, well, the cat’s meow. This month focuses on pets and the environment and includes a round-up of cool products (our fave: the cat toys made from recycled soda bottles and filled with organic catnip), a feature story on how climate change is likely to affect pets, and helpful hints for eco-friendly pet care. Indy Tails is totally recyclable - get your paws on a copy now. E-mail Margie for a list of locations. (Meghan got hers at Hubbard & Cravens.)

Of course, the best way to combine pets and green living is to adopt a recycled pet - one from a shelter or rescue organization. Meghan is the proud parent of Ollie, a 2-year-old Jack Russell Terrier mix from the Humane Society of Indianapolis, while Renee has two cats, Spencer and Devon, and a dog, Miles (all hairless; less vaccuuming = smaller carbon footprint).     
 
Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

Getting dumped is never fun. So just imagine how your trash must feel when you haul it to the curb each week. Before you toss that half-used can of paint or old computer monitor, you should know that materials like these contain toxic chemicals, including lead and mercury. Throw those things out, and the damage is done: As they break down in landfills, they release chemicals that pollute our water supply. Three easy solutions:

• Tox Drops, Indy’s household hazardous waste disposal program, will properly dispose of a laundry list of harmful items, including pesticides, insecticides, and herbicides; used motor oil, oven cleaner, fluorescent light tubes, aerosol cans, and more.
• The city also maintains a free electronics recycling program, eCycle. Drop off your unwanted cell phones, computer, computer components, and gaming accessories year-round (visit same Web site as above for locations). Any equipment in usable condition is refurbished and redistributed to local non-profit agencies and low-income Indy residents.
• Virtual Scavengers combines free electronics recycling with free job training. Donate your old electronics (including computers, TVs, etc.), and volunteers learn to restore them to working order. If unfixable, they break the items down and send the component parts to a scrap metal business for recycling. On the fifth Saturday of volunteering, participants receive a free, non-working computer, which they fix and keep. Though you may always take your electronics to Virtual Scavengers’ drop-off center (55 S. State St., loading dock #15), during the month of April, they’ll set up collection sites around the city. 

Want to go the extra mile in keeping our water supply clean? Sign up for the 20th Annual White River Cleanup, taking place April 5 from 8 a.m. to noon at White River State Park. 

Piece out,
Renee & Meghan

If words like chlorine bleach and ammonia don’t send you into toxic shock, perhaps these jaw-dropping facts will: Chlorine bleach, on top of being poisonous, releases volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that have been shown to cause cancer, hormonal changes, reproductive disorders, neurological problems, and immune system disorders. Ammonia is a respiratory irritant. Combined, the two create a toxic gas. And when these harmful substances make their way into our streams…well, the result is not pretty.

Say so long to the scary stuff April 19 at area Whole Foods locations as they host Toxic Trade-In Day and Bright Ideas Tour. It’s no April fool’s joke: Bring in a bottle of conventional cleaner (doesn’t matter what kind), and they’ll give you a new bottle of Naturally Clean household cleaner (limit one per household). While you’re there, you can also pick up a free compact fluorescent light bulb. Put the two to use, and you’ll save energy, save money, and save your body from toxic chemicals. Looks like less really is more.

Check it out
9:30 a.m. to noon. 14598 Clay Terrace Blvd., Carmel, 569-1517
2 to 4:30 p.m. 1300 E. 86th St. 706-0900
Piece out,
Renee & Meghan