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Welcome to Bluedot Living Los Angeles, a newsletter that gathers local good news, good food, and good tips for living every day more sustainably. |
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Welcome to Bluedot Living Los Angeles, a newsletter that gathers local good news, good food, and good tips for living every day more sustainably. |
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If you purchase anything via one of our links, including from Amazon, we may earn a small commission. |
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SIMPLE / SMART / SUSTAINABLE / STORIES |
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Dear Readers, |
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As Bluedot strives to tell more local stories in more places, we’ve decided to change our focus somewhat. This will impact the way our newsletters are delivered to you. After this edition, we will be sending you our national Bluedot Living newsletter (The Hub), but not a specific-to-Los Angeles newsletter. The Hub currently comes out every other week, but will be changing to weekly on June 13. You’ll continue to find recipes for healthy eating, advice from Dear Dot, and stories highlighting innovators from across our region and the country, along with Climate Quick Tips and BuyBetter Marketplace suggestions. You can of course unsubscribe to the Hub at any time.
We appreciate your support and readership, and we thank you for coming along for the ride.
Jamie Kageleiry,
Publications Director, Bluedot Living
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Quick Links |
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Skip scrolling! Here’s what you’ll find in today’s Bluedot Los Angeles newsletter: |
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It’s that time of year when everyone starts talking about summer vacation plans. If you don’t have anything on the horizon but still could use a little getaway, Bluedot editor Emily Cain recommends a day-trip to Fourth Street in Long Beach, otherwise known as Retro Row. “If you have an affinity for the past and a desire to protect our future,” she says, “you’ll find plenty to love on Retro Row,” where vintage clothing shops sit side-by-side with eco-conscious restaurants and bars. And if you think you can’t get away from it all in the middle of a big city, writer Miles Howard’s exploration of the Southwest Corridor in Boston will make you think again. A multi-use greenway path shaded by tall trees, the corridor was slated to become an extension of an interstate highway until activists pressured the governor to call the project off. Now, it connects busy neighborhoods to a network of hiking trails. |
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–Illustration by Elissa Turnbull |
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Dear Dot,
Wondering if the Girl Scouts organization is now using sustainable palm oil?
– Sarah
Dear Sarah,
Dot would like to hope that the Girl Scouts had cleaned up their act, but the organization’s statement leaves us wondering whether they have, or whether they continue to use mixed sources. And though the organization directed me to the website for the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), the information there with regards to the Girl Scouts hasn’t been updated since 2023, at which point, it appears from media reports, they were still using mixed sources.
I’m heartened that public scrutiny of the Girl Scouts’ and other companies’ sourcing and use of palm oil has led to the surprisingly good news in 2023 that demand had fallen for the fifth year in a row. However, palm oil production is ongoing and continues to contribute to child labor, deforestation, and the environmental degradation that results from deforestation. …
Read the rest of Dot’s answer.
Got a question for Dot? Write her at deardot@bluedotliving.com. |
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If you make a purchase through our links, including from Amazon, we may earn a small commission. |
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Father’s Day comes on the third Sunday each June, and this year, that’s early: June 15! If you’re thinking about buying a present for the dads in your life, check out this list of climate-friendly gift ideas, including a few last-minute options. |
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For dads who love birding:
For dads who love cooking:
For dads whose gifters need last-minute ideas:
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While the seasonal fruit on the top of this tasty tart is the star, the flour used in the pastry is the unsung hero. “Kernza is a perennial grain — a rarity, since most grains are annuals — with roots that extend as much as 10 feet underground. Those long roots, combined with the fact that the plants grow back for multiple years, helps Kernza sequester carbon and create healthier, more climate-resilient soil,” writes sustainability-minded baker Caroline Saunders. “A cousin of wheat, Kernza has a whole-wheatiness that will be familiar, but with an almost Graham-crackery note that works well in this tart.”
Sign up for our Bluedot Living Kitchen newsletter, and get a free copy of our Bluedot Living Kitchen digital magazine.
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Brock Yordy might be the only college student to ever graduate with a double major in film and stage directing and groundwater science. When it came to choosing a career, he went with the latter, drilling wells for oil and gas companies. But after witnessing the environmental toll of that work, he decided to apply his trade in a positive way and took a job developing more efficient and lower-cost ways to drill for geothermal energy. In the latest installment of our column The Shift, he explains why he made the change and what he’s doing now. |
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It’s nesting season! And our new bird columnist, Ilene Klein, has her eyes trained on the “cheerful” house finches currently hard at work building nests and raising their broods. You don’t have to look far to see them — they’re in suburban settings across North America (along with open woods, fields and deserts). “The males,” Ilene writes, “unmistakable with their rosy red heads, fill the air with chatter as they converse with their companions, creating a melodic soundtrack for our backyards.” Read on about how to spot and help protect their nests. |
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If you need respite from feeling anxious, you’re not alone: Climate issues are coming up in therapy across the U.S.
For more Bluedot Climate Quick Tips, click here. |
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I Love L.A. |
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Before I joined the Bluedot team, I read a lot about climate change, and almost every news story or book I consumed left me with a sense of dread. We were too late, there was no way out of this, no one cared enough to change their habits, and we were just going to have to deal with it, I thought. Now, after about two years editing Bluedot stories and writing this newsletter, I am much more optimistic — even hopeful! — about our future. So many people and groups in L.A. have dedicated their lives, their careers, and all their free time to finding innovative solutions to the climate crisis, often fighting — and succeeding — against incredible odds. I am so grateful I had the chance to learn about these unsung heroes and bring their stories to you. As we say goodbye to the L.A.-based newsletter, I’ll be transitioning into a new role as an editor for Bluedot’s national newsletter, the Hub. I’ll still be sharing inspiring L.A. stories, but I’ll also be bringing you stories from around the country and the globe. I hope you’ll stay with us — you’ll get your first weekly Hub newsletter on June 13.
See you then!
–Robin Jones
Do you have a special Los Angeles photo or story to share?
Email laeditor@bluedotliving.com. |
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Robin Jones is a Southern California native who served as an editor at Westways magazine for more than a decade. She currently lives in Long Beach and teaches journalism at Cal State Long Beach, where she advises the award-winning student magazine, DIG MAG. She loves road-tripping across California, especially when the itinerary includes stops in Arcata and Trinidad. |
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