TOOLS FOR GREEN LIVING.

Resources for eco-awareness and action

SINGING THE WORLD

It's a big world out there, and the vast array of musical traditions can be confusing to the novice. A new three-CD collection called Global Voices, dedicated to music from 33 countries (Bali to Zimbabwe), is a good place to start. The CDs are organized into traditional, sacred and contemporary volumes with an informative booklet and truly inspired track selection. A soulful piece from the Congo is juxtaposed with Don Walser's country swing "Rolling Stone From Texas." If we're ever to achieve any kind of cross-border cooperation, music makes an effective international passport. Global Voices is $43.45 postpaid from Music of the World, PO Box 3620, Chapel Hill, NC 27515-3620/ [phone].

--Jim Motavalli

TRIX ARE FOR ... STUDENTS?

Cereal is not just for breakfast anymore. At the University of Michigan campus, Cheerios boxes are showing up in backpacks, biology labs and classes everywhere. The student group EnAct (Environmental Action at U-M) has innovatively sandwiched 100 pages of one-sided paper between the cardboard faces of cereal boxes to create a truly recycled notebook. Discarded paper from campus offices and empty cereal boxes from dining halls are bound professionally to withstand the test of college time, then sold for $2 each, plus shipping. CONTACT: EnAct Recycled Notebook Project, 4168 Michigan Union, 530 South State Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1349/[phone].

--Jennifer Bogo

NEWS YOU CAN STOMACH

The phrase "All You Can Eat" takes on new meaning with the Environmental Working Group's recently launched website. Using the same data as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and pesticide industry, All You Can Eat (http://www.foodnews.org) puts pesticide information at the fingertips of consumers. Visitors may select foods from an extensive menu, which are then matched in a database of over 90,000 government test results for food contaminants. The result: an approximation of the number and type of pesticides people take in every day and potential health effects. Armed with this information, visitors may then link directly to supermarket chains, the EPA and the American Crop Protection Association.

--J.B.

TOMAYTO? TOMAHTO?

No matter how you say it, Muir Glen is pronouncing its tomatoes a sweet success--with their flavor attributed to organic soils and the company's "Field to Can" practice of rushing freshly harvested produce straight from the farm to the cannery. Praised for the presence of powerful antioxidants, tomatoes also provide about half the RDA for vitamin C and about 20 percent for beta carotene. But it's likely to be taste, not nutritional value, that makes you reach for that jar of Portabello Mushroom sauce ($2.49) or Black Bean and Corn salsa ($2.29 to $3.19). Check out your nearest grocery store or CONTACT: Muir Glen, 1250 North McDowell Boulevard, Petaluma, CA 94954/[phone].

--J.B.

PURE GARBAGE

Thinking of burning that yard waste? Bag it! Send those lawn clippings back to nature with Eco-Bags, a completely compostable solution. Made of vegetable starches degraded quickly by microorganisms in the soil, the transparent bags will weather curbside elements like rain, snow and ice. And being eco-friendly does not add cost: these sacks retail competitively with other plastic bags, and are 50 to 80 percent cheaper than paper compost bags. Available in 13-, 30- and 39-gallon sizes, Eco-Bags prove a hefty alternative to name brands. CONTACT: Comprehensive Environmental Solutions, 317 Meadow Street, Chicopee, MA 01013/[phone].

--J.B.

A PARTY IN YOUR GARDEN

Where would you want to put 900 billion microorganisms? In every pound of healthy soil, of course! Earth Force, an all-natural biological activator from Morganics, is just the aphrodisiac to keep the little guys happy and multiplying. Made of glacial and fossilized rock powders, Earth Force restores the mineral content of the soil, increasing microorganism growth as much as 100 percent. The process makes more nutrients available to plants, which in turn makes the plants healthier. Also great for compost bins and seedlings, a 2.75-pound bag of Earth Force can be purchased for $24.95. CONTACT: Morganics, Inc., 7430 East Butherus Drive, Suite F, Scottsdale, AZ 85260/[phone].

--J.B.