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OMFG... who isn't talking about Gossip Girl? The teen drama, which airs Mondays on the CW, is the big buzz right now. And while most people are talking about the young stars of the show — like Blake Lively and her rumored beau Penn Badgley, and Blake's reported nemesis Leighton Meester — it's one of the parental figures who I think deserves headlines.
Kelly Rutherford — who got her start in soap operas like Loving, Generations and Melrose Place — tells Us magazine this week that she has gone green. And her inspiration wasn't Leonardo DiCaprio or Al Gore — it's her 18-month-old son Hermes.
"You have a baby and you starting thinking about all these things," Kelly said. "You think: Wow, they come in so pure, you want to keep it that way."
The actress and her businessman husband, Daniel Giersch, are currently building an eco-friendly house — complete with denim insulation. And the actress says they've already converted from incandescent light bulbs to eco-friendly ones.
"Now I won't have to think about them for another decade!" she said last week at the launch of SYLVANIA micro-mini Twist compact fluorescent light bulbs, which are the smallest CFLs on the market. "It was such an easy and quick way to make my home more energy-efficient and I'm happy knowing that I'm doing my part to help the environment."
Helping the world... and entertaining America on Gossip Girl. Does it get better than that?
In other green news, did you see Julia Roberts on Oprah's Earth Day episode last week? I finally got around to cleaning out my Tivo and saw the megastar stirring up compost during her segment.
Julia and her friend Sophie Uliano, author of Gorgeously Green: 8 Simple Steps to an Earth Friendly Life, were showing off how easy it is to compost. Julia says she's all about composting and, in fact, that one of the chores that her 3-year-old twins have is to take out the leftovers after meals to the compost. Cute... though I'm certainly glad I didn't have chores when I was 3.
Days after being hit by a drunk driver, Sandra Bullock also appeared on the show to talk about her eco-friendly restaurant Bess in Austin, Texas. She talked about the water filtration system they use, showed off the tables (made from old wood floors) and revealed that her take-out utensils are made from... potatoes.
The very busy Sandy also has a line of soy-based candles — with eco-friendly 100% lead free paper wicks — that are on the market. Even the packaging is made from recycled paper.
Lastly, a few weeks back we talked about Kate Hudson and hair guru David Babaii's new line of earthy-friendly beauty products. Well, they've finally revealed the name of the line to the New York Daily News: Babaii for WildAid. And, again, proceeds benefit WildAid, an eco-force working towards ending the illegal wildlife trade and save endangered species around the world.
So when you're washing your mane, know that you're helping others with manes as well.
Check out past Celebrity Planet columns:
Sienna Miller Wants to Cool The Earth
Gwyneth Paltrow, Shannon Elizabeth & More!
Madonna, Kate Hudson & More!
Community Voice
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On a celebrity’s income, they can afford to modify their homes and transportation habits—that’s easy! However are the big Hollywood names acting consistently, when it comes to living green?
We’re well aware about transportation and power as being the biggest contributor to CO2 emissions. But let’s also think about the smaller everyday thing. Are these people considering the products they buy, the cost of production on the environment and on people in underdeveloped countries, what happens after disposal?
So let’s really consider who’s doing what and why…
Are celebrities who get named for their green lifestyle reducing their carbon footprint when they travel? Are they considering the cost of the products they buy in a larger sense rather than financially? Do they know who’s actually making their designer bags, shoes, clothes, jewelry, etc., where the products originate, how they are brought to the US and where it ends up when the item is no longer the hottest trend?
Consider the a minor item such as their usual coffee run….visiting a local Starbucks for coffee is generating tons of CO 2! Consider how the celebrity arrived at the coffee shop, the cup that holds their espresso drink, the methane that is produced by the cream/milk in the latte, the delivery and business practices of those who supply coffee chain and its business practices in roasting its coffee beans etc; Suddenly, it’s not just coffee anymore…
Perhaps this point of view seems exceedingly unfair and skeptical which doesn’t appreciate what celebrities are doing. After all, if they providing others with a positive example. I admit they deserve some credit. On the flip side, no one wants to hear that these Hollywood stars don’t care about their planet. So okay, credit is due. But let’s get real, if energy efficient changes were to cost stars a significant part of their salary, require a greater effort on them personally, and if they received absolutely no publicity for their eco-friendly choices, would they still make them?
I’d like to believe that many would. People who care about the environment today, have cared and intuitively protected it before Al Gore’s, Inconvenient Truth came out.
So, I’d like let’s see who’s made a REAL commitment and who will support the causes decades from now and applaud those with a genuine concern for the planet. Some people are doing it for the publicity while others were a part of the green movement to start.
The Green Room
May 11, 2008 3:09:08 PM