October is the greatest time of year. My favorite, in fact. I love the smell in the air, the sun going down too early and I love picking out Halloween costumes. Recently l've been reading about some tips on how to green Halloween. One idea came from our very own website: buy candy that comes in recycling-friendly packaging, such as aluminum foil or paper. I also found tips on the Green Schools Initiative newsletter: using cloth/reusable bags, avoid vinyl masks, buy second hand, make your own, and so on.

The idea that really stuck was to have a costume swap! What a great idea. I know that I have a couple of costumes of my own that could be easily passed on. More...

Walking into The Crucible’s Fire Arts Festival is like stepping into a carnival from a previous era. Men in stilts parade about and crouch down from their 15-foot stance to whisper “hello”, while ornate shadow puppets dance across an outdoor stage to live music, and enormous and intricate mouse-traps snap and fly. More...

Artist Helen Nodding creates tiny, hidden worlds among the loose bricks and sidewalk splits that are usually taken as signs of decay in our cities. With a change in scale, the nooks and crannies becomes destinations. See a world tucked beneath a floor and a wall crack turned countryside on her website Stories from Space. More...

Looking for a way to decorate your patio wall or a patch of ground? With a little coaching and watering, grow moss into shapes such as a poem, an eco statement, or animals.

Full instructions are on Instructables.

Image credit: Flickr/aaron13251 More...

Eco roofs, and their more visible cousins vertical gardens, are inspiring pieces of architecture which are usually difficult to view, since getting on top of a building is often prohibited or just a hassle. The California Academy of Sciences roof, pictured above, makes it a little easier to take in the benefits and beauty of rooftop greenery. Here is an entire photo gallery devoted to eco roofs of the world, and here is a Flickr pool.

Image Credit: Arex/CreativeCommons More...

Have you ever wondered what your neighborhood is doing to reduce its environmental impact? How about using a scavenger hunt to find out? We were surprised to find a home with solar panels that we'd never noticed right around the corner, but couldn't uncover a single rain barrel. Think you can photograph everything on this list? More...

On Art Mondays we bring you innovative, inspiring examples of artists working with and for the environment.

Sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor creates cement figures from models--including students and a BBC presenter-- and then places them underwater as artificial reefs, where sea sponges and worms can collect on the hard surface and attract fish and other underwater residents searching for a stable home. Check out the images of the works changing over time, it's both eerie and beautiful how the sea overtakes the forms.
One more image after the jump. All images courtesy Jason deCaires Taylor. More...

Are you ready for more sun and more fun in the great outdoors? So are we. To launch into summer, we're sending our June newsletter soon with free printable coupons for outdoor recreation and reminders of all the great deals in our book.

If you aren't signed up yet, enter your email in the box at upper right. We only send newsletters monthly.

Here's a sampling to get you interested. This Tizzi bathing suit by Kelly B is 65% bamboo and 25% organic cotton (with 8% spandex), and USA made. Order online ($130) from Nimli.

Image via Nimli. More...

We're promoting outdoor recreation--running, hiking, biking, swimming, camping...hang gliding, you name it--for all of June. Submit your fun photos to show others in the community what you're up to. Winners will be chosen frequently throughout the month to receive a free book.

You can submit other photos of green living at any time.

Berkeley and Oakland Sustainable City on Flickr

Please note: To meet our criteria, the outdoor recreation must be non-motorized.

Image: Flickr/Creative Commons More...