Eco Chic

We are diving deep today with Christina Vidal of JetSet Christina + Watercolors Swim! She’s explaining the intricate process of creating a swimwear line, and how a smaller fashion brand really operates. We also discuss the true meaning of “sustainability” in the fashion industry. Plus, Christina shares her experience of having fast fashion giant, Zara, steal one of her designs. We’re chatting about waste, consumer responsibility in America versus Bali, and ensuring passion throughout a supply chain. Connect with me on instagram, @ecochicpodcast + @lauraediez Read jetsetchristina.com (here is the blog post I keep referring to!) + follow on her instagram, @watercolorsswim +@jetsetchristina

The local food movement is gaining popularity, and we’re here for it! We’re chatting today with Wen-Jay Ying of Local Roots NYC, a CSA in New York City. We’re discussing how regenerative agriculture supports our long-term ability to farm (and why the time is now to make a change!). Plus, we learn the value of supporting local farms both for your environmental footprint and your personal health. Your food choices are the easiest, most impactful way to lessen your impact on the planet – and we totally have the power to make a difference.  Find Local Roots NYC online or on instagram Connect with me!! On instagram @ecochicpodcast or @lauraediez

The Amazon Rainforest has been burning for three weeks largely due to deforestation for cattle ranching. This episode is a special report on the current situation: how the fires began, why this emergency will accelerate climate change, + what you can do. We are explaining deforestation, carbon sinks, and current climate science predictions for global temperature thresholds. Statistics shared today are collected from BBC and CNN. Organizations to donate to, helping protect the Amazon (bottom of the article has a good list!) The latest IPCC Special Report, Climate Change and Land Episodes, if you’d like to learn more about today’s topics: * 69: What is the Carbon Budget?* 66: 5 Ways to Eat A More Plant-Based Diet* 46: 10 Foods to Stop Buying and Start Making with Your Food Scraps* 3: What’s The Beef?* 9: The Compost Convo Chat with me on insta – @ecochicpodcast / @lauraediez or email me at laura@lauraediez.com

Honesty hour: I sometimes struggle my to balance my environmental lifestyle + “regular” millennial culture. Today, I’m sharing a couple of tidbits from my life + internal conflicts around vegan leather handbags, introducing myself as an environmentalist, and when bringing your own metal straw is nonnegotiable. This episode is the first of a few more personal episodes I’d like to share – opening up the conversation around our collective concerns + conflicts with becoming truly ECO CHIC. Listen to Episode 16 with Ashlee Piper here Connect with me on instagram, @ecochicpodcast / @lauraediez (I would love your feedback!)

Tis the season for education, career shifts, and even back-to-school fever for those of us out in the workplace. Today, we’re speaking about the value of short-term, immersive experiences to build on your environmental education. Whether you are looking to dive deeper into your passions or learn about a totally new topic, there is plenty to gain from field stations, programs abroad, or bootcamp-style institutes. We are specifically today discussing our personal times at: * The Green Program (through which CJ went to Iceland); learn about CJ’s scholarship program here * Highlands Biological Station (but also mention Flathead Lake Biological Station and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute)* University of Illinois – Chicago’s Summer Institute for Sustainability and Energy * WWOOF, World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms Connect with CJ at @cjcasey3320 on Twitter + Instagram Listen to Episode 58, Careers in Climate Hang out with me on insta! @ecochicpodcast + @lauraediez

Recycling incorrectly can be just as harmful as not recycling at all! However, recycling properly can be challenging based on where you live or what you’re disposing of. While every area may have different regulations around their specific acceptable items, we’re discussing things you should always recycle, plus programs for your hard-to-recycle items, like contact lens packaging and toothpaste tubes. We also chat about the importance of personal care product take-back programs and dispel myths about what bathroom items can’t be diverted from a landfill. While we should be focused on reducing and reusing, correct and effective recycling should also be a priority. Previous episodes mentioned: Episode 64, Dating Sustainably: Chic Chats; Episode 67, The World’s First Totally Zero Waste Makeup Palette; Episode 9, The Compost Convo Learn more about TerraCycle here Learn more about E-Steward here Check out Greenpeace’s electronics report card + EPEAT here

Our second Chic Chats call-in episode! Today, we’re speaking with four women about their experiences with environmental lifestyles around the world: Celine from Germany, Lynn in South Korea, Marley in Uganda, and Jainan in China. We’re discussing national policies and location-specific challenges, plus coming to terms with things like family and social norms. Pollution, food, recycling, and so much more! This episode is one of my favorites yet, because it is so full of personal knowledge and relatable stories. Follow along @ecochicpodcast (or my personal page, @lauraediez), and email me at laura@lauraediez.com

We’re breaking down the elusive “carbon budget” – what is really means, and what it will take to keep our planet within reasonable levels of warming. Between the promise of shiny technologies and human habits, we’re talking about limiting emissions with the current reality of a climate crisis. Connect with me @ecochicpodcast + @lauraediez on instagram. I’d love to send you stickers!

Silk sheets are totally having a moment, and cotton is a classic … but both of these options problematic! Today we’re chatting with Phoebe and Kat of Ettitude, a bamboo lyocell bedding company. Bamboo is an environmental superstar, requiring minimal resources and causing no animal harm. We spend one-third of our lives asleep … and Ettitude sheets are a super luxurious vegan option for that huge portion of your life! We’re also talking about ethical factory standards and the importance of educating women. Use the code ECOCHIC of 15% off at ettitude.com or ettitude.com.au Follow along at @ecochicpodcast or @lauraediez, or online at lauraediez.com

Sustainable, non-toxic, inspiring makeup – let’s discuss! Today, we’re chatting with Tiila Abbitt of Aether Beauty, the brand behind the world’s first zero waste makeup palette. Tiila served as the Head of Product Development for Sephora, which led her to create a truly clean eyeshadow collection. She talks about her background in the beauty industry and challenges of creating a zero waste consumer product. I was especially interested to learn about how crystal can actually benefit your skin, and the pros to lab-grown mica. Let’s connect – @ecochicpodcast / @lauraediez on instagram, and online at lauraediez.com Find Aether Beauty online at aetherbeautyco.com, @aetherbeautyco + a variety of big-name stores.

Plant-based diets are actually the most impactful personal climate change solution you can make. We’re talking today about five easy ways to transition into a more plant-based diet, little by little – you don’t have to be totally vegan overnight! First, let’s discuss two major food groups you can reassess, and then we’ll get into three key ingredients you can incorporate into your meals as animal product replacements. Today’s episode is full of simple recipe ideas and encouragement for you to start taking the next steps for lightening your environmental footprint. Connect with me – @ecochicpodcast + @lauraediez, and on lauraediez.com Linked here is the B12 supplement spray I mentioned!

Transportation is a *massive* source of global greenhouse gas emissions. Today, we’re going over some ways that innovation and up-and-coming ideas are making our travel more efficient. We’re diving deep into why a typical gasoline-powered car doesn’t make a lot of sense, how hyperloop could totally change public transportation, + where there is still plenty of work to be done. Explore more solutions/research here Connect with me!! Find us on Instagram, @ecochicpodcast or @lauraediez + connect via email through lauraediez.com

Our first call-in episode! Today, we’re talking with FIVE friends of ECO CHIC all about their experiences dating as someone making eco-conscious lifestyle choices. We discuss how living low-waste, plant-based, or just environmentally aware can influence romantic relationships. Each guest lives a little differently from one another, so it is really eye opening to understand how we can date while still keeping true to our values. Leave a rating/review to enter our giveaway for reusable produce bags! Simply send a screenshot of your review to @ecochicpodcast on instagram or via email to hello@lauraediez.com Let’s chat! Find me on instagram @ecochicpodcast or @lauraediez. Send emails to laura@lauraediez.com. Plus, we have stickers again! Reach out if you’d like to receive one.

The diamond industry is dirty, corrupt, and arguably super outdated. Diamonds are simply compressed carbon – and technology has caught up with nature to alleviate some of the adverse effects of mining. Today, we are sitting down with Anna-Mieke Anderson of MiaDonna & Co. and The Greener Diamond Foundation. We’re discussing how the technology of growing diamonds in a lab facility has actually surpassed the quality of stones we can find in nature, and how historically oppressed communities can be revitalized through sustainable investments. Connect! – @ecochicpodcast or @lauraediez, and via email on lauraediez.com. Leave a rating/review on iTunes to enter the giveaway for a set of reusable produce bags; just send a screenshot via DM to @ecochicpodcast or via email to hello@lauraediez.com

Let’s get analytical today when we talk about waste: what is it really costing our communities? We’re discussing the economic and social downfalls of a disposable society, plus possible solutions. It’s easy to simply encourage recycling and composting, but we also have to realize the policies and infrastructure currently in place. Waste-To-Energy electricity and fuel generation is also a hot topic, but there are cons to those systems, too. Where do we need our markets to go, and how do we deal with the trash we already have? Connect! @ecochicpodcast + @lauraediez on Instagram, or www.lauraediez.com Info + Inspo * “Advancing Sustainable Materials Management: Facts and Figures.” by Environmental Protection Agency, 2017* “The economics of municipal solid waste.” by Beede, David N., and David E. Bloom* “What a waste: a global review of solid waste management.” by Hoornweg, Daniel, and Perinaz Bhada-Tata* “Issues and options in waste management: a social cost–benefit analysis of waste-to-energy in the UK

There is a lot of speculation on if technology will save us from a climate crisis … today, we’re bringing that conversation down to a much more personal level. How are the products you’re inviting into your life impacting the environment? We’re sitting today with Josh Poulsen of House of Marley, an eco-conscious brand of personal audio products. We are getting into the challenges with designing sustainable speakers and headphones, a more responsible supply change, and where the technology industry as a whole needs to be headed. Find House of Marley online at houseofmarley.com and @houseofmarley Let’s please connect! Find me @ecochicpodcast and @lauraediez on Instagram, and via email through lauraediez.com

We’re talking today about shopping for beauty products the same way you shop for groceries: personalized, food-grade organic, ethically sourced, and even a little spiritual. Tina Hedges, founder of LOLI Beauty, joins us to discuss how LOLI is on a mission to stir up clean, conscious beauty. Makeup, skincare, and haircare products are crafted from organic food waste, and also contain no water, addressing issues of scarcity and high-end food byproducts that are often overlooked. Coming from the beauty industry, Tina thinks deeper about improving products that are impacting our personal health, but also how our environmental footprints and bigger-picture supply chains can be more righteous. Find LOLI Beauty online at www.lolibeauty.com and use code ‘ECOCHIC15’ for 15% off (I’m honestly obsessed!). Follow on instagram at @loli.beauty Connect with me on instagram, @ecochicpodcast + @lauraediez or online at lauraediez.com

The grid: what even is it? We’re talking today about why you should care about where your electricity comes from! Let’s break down the whole situation: importance of grid reliability and flexibility, how our energy is generated, and how we’re going to transition into a safer, more stable system. Lots of goodness to better prepare you not only for climate conversations, but deeper thinking about national security and consumer comfort. Keep in touch! On instagram, @ecochicpodcast or @lauraediez. Email me via lauraediez.com. Find my recommendations for learning more about climate change here, on my Resources page. Learn more about energy sources on Episode 21: Happy Hour: Energy More info here on biomass, off-shore wind versus on-shore wind, + rooftop solar power

Climate change is impacting all of us – and we all have the ability contribute to solutions! Today, we’re exploring a whole variety of ways that you can tailor your expertise for a career in cliamte. We’re first introducing the obvious scientist roles, but then diving deep into sectors you may not immediately associate with sustainability: economics, insurance, marketing, education, community planning, policy… there is really no shortage of opportunities! Whether you’re unsure of your next career move or just looking to better understand our society, this episode will definitely encourage you to think a little more about your role in facilitating positive change. Connect with me – @ecochicpodcast or @lauraediez, or send an email via lauraediez.com, where you can also find  climate science and green living info (like this post on some great resources, like books and documentaries!) I also mentioned an article on the legalities of selling public lands; if you’re interested in learning about land management

Happy Earth Day, friends! We’re firm believers that we should be celebrating Earth Day every day by thinking a little more about our environmental footprint. Today’s bonus episode outlines five easy ways you can live more eco-consciously. Below, each tip has links to additional podcast episodes in the Apple Podcast app if you’d like more info – episode are available wherever you listen to podcasts! You can also find some of my fave climate change resources (books, documentaries, etc) here + some zero-waste supply recommendations here. Connect with me on instagram – @ecochicpodcast or @lauraediez, and you can send me an email via lauraediez.com! Eat More Plants 3: What’s The Beef? 17: Our Global Food Systems + Sustainability: Megan Faletra, The Well Essentials 43: Your Guide To Becoming A Zero Waste, Vegan Home Cook 55: Eco-Conscious Beef: How Animal Agriculture Can Be Done Sustainably Avoid The Big Four: Water Bottles, Straws, Bags, Coffee Cups 25: Straws vs. Fishing Nets: The Real Deal 40: 10 Easy Zer