Going green is all the rage and it's seeping into everything -- even into the casino gaming industry! EGM Green is now offering what they tout as the first ever 100% eco-friendly line of casino gaming products. The main attraction is their line of gaming tables (like the poker table shown above) plus they also make seating for tables and slot machines and luxury lounge furniture. Everything for indulging your hobby and getting the complete casino experience, whether in your home or business.

Speaking of that, does anybody know of any eco-friendly/LEED certified casinos?

Ugh, isn't Dubai full up of celebrity hotels, resorts, and developments already? Apparently not, as the latest celebrity to join the fray of "I have a hotel in Dubai" is Pamela Anderson.

Her hotel will apparently be environmentally friendly, although how exactly we're not sure -- except that she was quoted as saying "It's built with no fossil fuel at all... in Abu Dhabi - where they have all that oil."

Pamela was first inspired for the project after traveling to the area this past June with the Make a Wish Foundation. No word on what her hotel will be called, or when it will open for business.

Although luxury boating is pretty closely associated with size, not all sweet yachts are necessarily the biggest. The newest design from Sabdes is a good example of that principle at work. The Sabdes 50M Superyacht may be slightly smaller than it's predecessors but it more than makes up for what it lacks in square footage by having both cutting edge styling and several eco-friendly features. The 50M has increased fuel efficiency and reduced emissions, a specially styled hull that reduces both wave 'slamming' and the wake impact that can disrupt marine life and cause shoreline erosion, and more energy efficient LED lighting. Plus it runs on a hybrid diesel-electric propulsion system that gives it higher cruising speeds than many other similarly sized yachts.

On top of all that it kind of looks like a spaceship. That's always fun.

Via Bornrich

Can huge be green? It's a question that comes up every time we see another large home aspiring for LEED certification go up. The NY Times profiles one of the most ambitious eco-friendly projects, Windermere on the Lake in North Stamford, Connecticut.

THe private community of twenty-four homes is spread out over 74 acres with a private lake. The model home is approximately 7,000 square feet of gracious living space with five bedrooms, four baths, a home theater, wine cellar and exercise room.

Windermere is being developed by NRDC Residential, a new division of the National Realty and Development Corporation of Purchase, N.Y., and will be going for LEED certification. The homes will be built to basic LEED standards. Buyers can also opt for a $100,000 geothermal system that uses an electric pump to transfer heat from the soil to the house in the winter, reversing that process in the summer. Other green features include formaldehyde-free kitchen cabinetry, sustainable building materials, low-VOC paint and carpets and smart lighting.

The homes are available in four basic styles meant to mimic the look of an English village and sell for $3.2 million to $4.8 million depending on size. Many question how green houses of this size can actually be. By nature, smaller is generally greener but if people are going to build mega mansions creating ones that are both attractive and more eco-friendly is at least a step in the right direction. Check out the gallery below for a look at the model home.

Froote Jewelry, by designer Elizabeth Moore, is created with the intention of inspiring people to realize both their own inner beauty and how precious our lives are on this planet. The launch of Froote Jewelry will include 3 lines called Calypso, Island, and Tudor, each with individual color and gemstone themes representing inspirations like the South Pacific Islands, femininity, and glamorous tradition. And they're not only gorgeous, but they're all made to be eco-friendly by reusing precious gems, metal scraps, and recycled packaging in production.

Think "eco-friendly home design" and a lot of different options come to mind, but I'm willing to bet fruit pits as flooring isn't one of them.

Alla le Roux feels differently however, and after being inspired by personal experience has started a business (Stone Fruit Floors) that designs and sells handmade flooring created out of peach pits. The pits are sanded down (to get rid of sharp edges and make them more comfortable to walk on) and set into the floor by hand along with glue, sand, and a resin mixture. The end result looks like a strange mix between hardwood, tile, and linoleum.

Interesting... I'm not really sure what else to say about this!


Via Luxury Housing Trends

In an ongoing trend, another jeweler has launched an eco-friendly jewelry line. Gary Ptak's new Conscience Collection is a line of designs featuring lab-grown diamonds and gemstones and recycled metals. The minimalist designs include rings for men and women, earrings, bracelets and pendants and are made in 18K gold, palladium and platinum (80% of which is recycled). All the pieces are made in the U.S.

[via National Jeweler]

Today is the fourth entry in our month-long series that looks at end-of-the-year gift giving. The Nature Conservancy has some very interesting options for your holiday giving. The charity, which helps protect ecologically important lands and waters for both nature and people, has gift options in a variety of price tiers. For $50,000 you can sponsor a scientific expedition that will bear your recipient's name. For $32,000 you can protect a mile of land in Costa Rica. You can also donate to help to protect coral reefs and sponsor land by the acre in the U.S. The Nature Conservancy has protected more than 117 million acres of land and 5,000 miles of rivers worldwide and they are involved in over 100 marine conservation projects globally. The easiest way to give is to donate a gift membership. The membership will include a Nature Gift Card announcing your present and all membership materials including a Conservancy membership card. This includes the Nature Conservancy magazine and invitations to participate in local events at Nature Conservancy preserves, which can be a fun and educational experience.

Here's a great chance to both do something great for the environment and get something fun to show for it: adopt yourself an olive tree! Nudo, an olive grove in Italy, is offering people the chance to support small scale artisanal farming (instead of the large mechanized operations that damage the earth) by adopting a specific olive tree. And when you adopt an olive tree in the grove for one year not only do you get the satisfaction from the environmental effort, but you also get all the produce from your tree. You'll get a Spring Package with the olive oil from your tree, and then an Autumn Package of more olive oil and some handmade olive oil soap. $130/year.



via DailyCandy

Two of the biggest trends in housing developments right now are buildings with eco-friendly features and residences for the over 55 crowd. Put them both together and you've got Highland Meadows a new luxury development in Weston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe reports that the development will have the high-end features such as Sub-Zero refrigerators and Wolf stoves and options for basement saunas and wine rooms. The development also has a network of pipes and tanks that store rainwater to irrigate the property's landscaping. During a dry season it can be supplemented from on-site wells. Waste water from sinks, bathtubs and toilets are routed into an on-site treatment site and then into a leaching field. The 69 condo units will be priced between $1.6 million and $2 million with seven units earmarked for affordable housing.

The other day I mentioned a LEED neighborhood development project in Florida, now comes news of another LEED neighborhood development project, the $1 billion project in Colorado, Ever Vail. The project at the base of Vail Mountain seeks to become the largest LEED-certified project for resort use in the U.S. The resort will include residences, a hotel, office space, retail shops, restaurants and a public park.

Eco-sensitive measures at Ever Vail will include using woods certified by the Forest Stewardship Council and local area beetle-kill Lodgepole pine trees in building construction, using a geothermal system for snowmelt, using micro-turbines in Gore Creek to power the outdoor streetscape lighting and using reclaimed water from snowmelt for use as water in toilets rather than using drinking water. A "closed-loop" gray water system would also be in place for washing all mountain operations vehicles, such as snowcats and snowmobiles at the site of the new mountain operations maintenance yard. The project will also include affordable housing in the form of studio, one- and two-bedroom units that will range in size from approximately 900 to 1,600 square feet.

South Florida hasn't exactly been the hub of the green movement but an ambitious new project in the city of Plantation might help to change that. A 33-acre development called 321 North seeks to create a new green town center for the city of Plantation. The $350 billion project includes 600 residential units, office space and a revamped shopping mall all within walking distance. A local news station, NBC6, checked out the development which will be created with eco-friendly materials including zinc siding and green screens where plants can grow to create natural shade. On the interior the bamboo and palm wood and products made of recycled materials continue the green theme. The development also is part of a nationwide pilot program to expand LEED beyond individual buildings to creating entire eco-friendly neighborhoods. Construction is expected to begin next year.

In Libya, among the archaeological treasures of Cyrene in the Green Mountain region, Saif al-Islam Khadafi gathered a select group of dignitaries and journalists for the signing of a unique declaration for sustainable development in the region. The Cyrene Declaration marks the beginning of a regional conversation and development project designed to both the artifacts of prehistoric, Greek, Roman and Islamic antiquity in the region and help the sustainable development in the region. The plan is to make the Green Mountain area a carbon neutral green development zone that will cater primarily to tourism. The energy will come from wind and solar power, waste will be recycled and trash will be converted to biofuel. The buildings for hotels, resorts and villas will be designed to blend in to the landscape and the fragile Greek and Roman ruins will be protected.

The British architectural firm of Foster and Associates has been contracted to work on the project. We've been hearing a lot from this design firm, they designed the plans for Spaceport America, the diamond tower is Siberia and the carbon neutral city of Masdar in Abu Dhabi. The announcement of the project is meant to show that Libya is ready to join the drive for tourism, a move that we have seen other oil-producing countries such as Dubai make. Libyan coast, which has a virtually untouched ecosystem offers a unique opportunity for responsible development.

Do you want to relax and enjoy a lazy summer day, but you can't sit still for worrying about the environment? In the Sling by Ting, you can satisfy your need for relaxation and feel confident that at least at that very moment, you are part of the solution, not the problem. Made from end-of-the-line seat belt webbing that would otherwise end up in a landfill, the sling is as eye-catching as it is environmentally friendly. Designed by Inghua Ting, this durable and weather-resistant hammock is available in six colors, including my favorite - orange. $578.

The rather chunky India Tower seeks to be the greenest skyscraper in India. The India Tower is a 60-story tower in Mumbai. The developer is aiming to get a LEED gold rating for the project. The tower's odd patched- together look was created by FXFOWLE architects and comes as a response to the three-acre site, the building's requirements and its mixed use. Each chunk of the tower has a different use, separating out retail, a Park Hyatt hotel and serviced apartments, and long-lease and duplex penthouse condominium apartments. The tower will use sustainable systems such as solar shading, natural ventilation, rainwater harvest and the use of green materials.

The tower's three-story podium will include restaurants, retail stores, a fitness club and a nightclub. The Park Hyatt will have a Sky Lobby (floors 30-35) with the hotel residences beneath on floors 14-28. The long-lease apartments will be located on levels 38 through 50 and levels 52 to 59 will be home to duplex penthouse condominium apartments with panoramic views. Construction is underway and should be done in 2010.