MIAMI — For the past couple of years, the city has been garnering a reputation for becoming a major player in the art and fashion world. Pioneers have been taking notice of Miami’s endless opportunities and are starting to capitalize on it. Tobi Salver, 26, is one of the entrepreneurs who see the potential this city offers for the world of art and fashion.

“Miami seems to be growing everyday with people who have a unique style. I feel there is a huge market to cater to.” Salver points out, well aware of her niche in styling, and, in turn, has launched her latest entrepreneurial endeavor: Fox House/Myfoxhouse.com, a website specializing in selling clothing pieces and accessories whose broad range appeals from budding fashionistas to the everyday working girl, and everything in between.   Prices are solely based on: designer, rarity, condition and quality, even so, Myfoxhouse.com still manages lean on the more affordable side of the spectrum.  Salver also wants to make it a point to showcase talent from the local designers along with the ‘fresh out of fashion school’ designers on her web site.

Salver, a local Florida girl who was raised in Fort Lauderdale, has always had her finger on the pulse when it comes to clothing and personal styling. With her particularly keen eye for bold, yet approachable fashion sense, Salver launched Myfoxhouse.com.

It’s no surprise that MyFoxhouse.com has been garnering a lot of buzz recently.  Salver’s eccentric and unique personality can be seen through the beautiful pieces of clothing and accessories she carefully selects for Myfoxhouse. com, mainly focusing on unique patterns, colors, cuts and silhouettes. “But the most important key factors I focus on, go to the classic, timeless pieces. Clothing fabulous forty years ago, and still relevant today.” Salver stresses. “When it comes to vintage, everything stands out”.  Really, the only blueprint formula that Salver follows for the vintage selection is just taking the time to search through hundreds of pieces, in order to find the classic, ‘diamond in the rough’.

When it comes to the process of selecting the latest items, Salver makes it a point to not follow the current trends. She rather, wisely focuses on pieces that turn heads, the ones that make woman feel confident and comfortable, and most importantly, compliment figures.

Salvers eye for style and art didn’t start with her; in fact, she has a rather fascinating history with fashion that is as unique and intriguing as her vintage finds.

Salver’s heritage of fashion and strong pedigree for styling and designing stems from her grandmother, Joanne Alterman, a well-known and respected fashion and interior designer in Miami Beach. Alterman studied at the prestigious Parson’s School in New York City, and went on to carry a line at Bendel‘s, the upscale department store there. Initially, she specialized in long evening patchwork skirts before moving on to coats and jackets. Alterman also became one of the first designers to use authentic textiles from the Seminole Indian tribe in Florida. At that time, the Seminoles were the only Indian tribe to sign a peace treaty with the United States. Alterman, just like her granddaughter Salver, saw incredible opportunity and approached the Seminoles, working out a fair deal with them, using their materials for her clothing line. All sorts of individuals owned Alterman’s creations, from Luciana Pignatelli, all the way to Christina Ford, wife of the auto magnate. Christina Ford even made it on to ‘Vanity Fair’ magazines list of ‘International Best Dressed Hall of Fame’ in a velvet Alterman skirt.

Alterman’s heavy influence on Salver started at a very young age. She taught her granddaughter how to skillfully paint and dressed her in hand made clothing. “I share an almost haunting similarity of style and eye as my grandmother. No doubt, she has inspired and shaped my style.” Salver sings her praises, and it’s easy to see why she credits all of her artistic and designing talents to her grandmother. To this day, Salver still goes to her grandmother for advice on running her online store.

It wasn’t until Salver was 24 that she became involved with  the fashion and art scene. Before then, she had attended the University of Central Florida, where Salver did a ‘Semester at Sea,’ that whisked her around the globe to different countries such as: Thailand, Africa, Brazil, etc. exposing her to various cultures, rich in colors, styles, and tradition. The semester at sea ended, and Salver found herself back at home, bored, and in desperate need of creativity. She transferred to the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale and got a degree in Graphic Design. The same month Salver graduated, her lease of her apartment was up and she moved out west to Los Angeles. Salver’s depiction of Hollywood is that it was a “strange, but insanely creative place.”

It was in Los Angeles, where Salver became immersed in the fashion and art scene. After relentless networking and sending many emails to studios, Salver eventually landed a job working on several film sets in the art and wardrobe department. “I had no idea the title of set designer, wardrobe stylist, and prop master even existed. It was through meeting people in these fields, that I realized I had a calling for everything to do with styling.” This opportunity led Salver to style sets, people, photo shoots, and even go back to her roots of some graphic design for production as well.

“I had to work miracles with low budgets”.  Salver says of her job experience. But it was exactly the type of experience and crash course training needed to give Salver the proper confidence in her styling abilities. “It was then, I realized I had a knack for finding gems in thrift stores, antique markets, estate sales, etc.”

After a couple years in Los Angeles, Salver made her way back home to Fort Lauderdale where she launched her website.

“The name ‘Fox’ stems from the idea that foxes, by nature, are not pack animals. They’re opportunistic feeders which translates into what I want my clothes to represent an individuality and uniqueness for the women who wear them. For them to feel confident and ready to conquer the day.” Salver’s goals for the women who shop at her web site are simple: “ I want women who shop at

Myfoxhouse.com to feel as if they put on an article of clothing, and are ready to go out there and ‘get it.’”

With the success of Myfoxhouse.com, talks of expansion are natural. Salver already has future plans to eventually open up a local storefront along with putting together a launch/fashion show. She also plans to add her own personal touch of hand made designs of hair accessories on her site.

I highly recommend Myfoxhouse.com to any girl that even has the slightest interest in fashion. I wouldn’t steer you wrong on this, it’s a great find.

Designers: if you’re interested in contacting Tobi Salver, please do so at: info@myfoxhouse.com.

The Halo faithful looking to extend their loyalty beyond simply playing Bungie games to adorning themselves in Bungie apparel can do so thanks to the newly opened Bungie Store.

As a special promotion, a few t-shirts, including the most iconic of the lot, have been discounted to very affordable levels.

Now only $10

Hey, if nothing else, wearing these shirts will keep you buzzed for the upcoming Halo: Reach multiplayer beta beginning May 3.

As the resident Halo-head here at Blast, I’m in for a few. I mean, how awesome is this Bungie crested water bottle?

According to the non-profit Earth Pledge, today some 8,000 synthetic chemicals are used throughout the world to turn raw materials into textiles. Domestically, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that one-quarter of all pesticides used nationwide go toward growing cotton, primarily for the clothing industry. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency considers many domestic textile manufacturing facilities to be hazardous waste generators; and lax standards and enforcement in developing countries, where the majority of textiles are produced, means that untold amounts of pollution are likely being deposited into local soils and waterways in regions that can hardly stand further environmental insult.

Luz Claudio, writing in “Environmental Health Perspectives,” considers the way Americans and Europeans shop for clothes as “waste couture”: Fashion is low-quality and sold at “prices that make the purchase tempting and the disposal painless.” Yet this sort of so-called “fast fashion” leaves a pollution footprint, with each step of the clothing life cycle generating potential environmental and occupational hazards.

According to “Technical Textile Markets,” a quarterly trade publication, demand for man-made fibers such as petroleum-derived polyester has nearly doubled in the last 15 years. “The manufacture of polyester and other synthetic fabrics is an energy-intensive process requiring large amounts of crude oil,” reports Claudio. In addition, she says, the processes emit volatile organic compounds and solvents, particulate matter, acid gases such as hydrogen chloride, and other production by-products into the air and water.

“Issues of environmental health and safety do not apply only to the production of man-made fabrics,” says Claudio, citing subsidies to the pesticide-laden cotton industry that keep prices low and production high.

In an effort to green up the industry, Earth Pledge launched its FutureFashion initiative in 2005 to promote the use of renewable, reusable and non-polluting materials and production methods. Besides putting on its own FutureFashion showcases, the group organized the January 2008 New York Fashion Week, encouraging designers to create and showcase greener clothing on their runway models. Green-leaning designers can also pick through Earth Pledge’s library of 600 sustainably produced textiles, including organic cotton as well as exotic materials such as sasawashi, pina, bamboo, milk protein, and sea leather.

Another effort underway to speed the fashion industry into a carbon-constrained future is the Ethical Fashion Forum, which provides a variety of tools and resources and runs training sessions and networking events to help facilitate moving the industry towards more sustainable practices.

One stumbling block to the greening of fashion is that only a small number of consumers—some analysts say less than one percent—will pay more for a greener shirt. But if the industry itself can improve its footprint from the inside and drive the costs of more eco-friendly materials and processes down, the benefits will trickle down to consumers, whether they are bargain-conscious or fashion-conscious.

Image courtesy Martin LaBar, Flickr.

With New York City a mere four hours away, Boston is often overlooked in the fashion department. What a shame, considering the abundance of talent in our fair city. In this new monthly column, the best of Boston’s local clothing, jewelry, handbag and shoe designers, as well as local boutiques, are showcased. NYC, eat your heart out!

Nettie Kent Jewelry — Leather, copper, silver and gold leaf bracelet — $148

Leather, Copper, Silver and Gold Leaf Bracelet

Looking for the perfect bracelet that will go just as well with your sexy red dress as it will with jeans and a t-shirt? Look no further than Martha’s Vineyard designer Nettie Kent’s leather, copper, silver and gold leaf bracelet.

The first leather bracelet style she created, no two are ever the same. Silver is melted over copper and the flow creates a unique design each time. Kent then paints with gold leaf to highlight different areas. “The process brings me back to my roots as a painter,” she said. “It’s just a really fun and unrestricted way to use metal.”

Kent collects her leather from old belts, purses, even cowboy hats. Old copper flashing used in the jewelry is gathered from houses on the vineyard. “The sea air and salt water patinas the copper with beautiful colors and I think it looks like landscapes, almost like paintings,” said Kent, who studied painting at Hampshire College.

Blast is obsessed with the preppy leather cuff paired with the boho look of mixed metals. We guarantee compliments when you strap on this bracelet for a night, or day, on the town.

Get it now at Turtle in the South End, or visit www.nettiekent.com.

Nirva — Katya Dress — $650

Katya Dress

New England winters may inspire you to wrap up in cozy cashmere, but Lexington based designer Nirva Derbekyan looked to the even harsher winters of Russia to inspire her autumn/winter 2009 collection. Weather this cold never looked so good.

The gorgeous fuchsia fabric was Derbekyan’s inspiration for the Katya dress. She also noted that the wool gabardine is perfect for manipulations, prompting her to create a bright, fun colored dress with a conversely harsh structure. “Contrary to the tailored look, I wanted to add a bit of fluidity and geometry at the same time,” Derbekyan said. She added the front drape and the movable cap sleeves to keep this unique dress in line with her signature style.

Blast is just dying to wear this dress to a formal fall event, but how special would it be for New Year’s Eve? We dare you to keep it in your closet that long.

You can buy the Katya dress when it goes on sale at Stil Boutique in the Prudential Center at the end of the month. Visit www.nirva.com to see the whole collection.

Twigs and Heather — Sterling Silver Dangle Twig Necklace — $125

Sterling Silver Dangle Twig Necklace

The summer weather beckons us to enjoy nature; what better way than to put it around our necks? Twigs and Heather, headed by twin sisters Heather and Kerry Alice Collins, cast sterling silver one-of-a-kind pieces plucked right from the Atlantic Northeast.

The dangle twig necklace reminds us of playing outside in the woods as kids, but without that child-like look. The particular twig pictured is a winter twig, and the changing seasons is the twins’ biggest inspiration.

“It’s pretty amazing the subtle (and not so subtle changes) that occur in the trees year-round. Plus, the sentimental feeling that the twigs evoke in our customers is very special to us,” Heather said.

The dangle twig is a popular item, and because each necklace features a different twig, they each have their own personality. Blast thinks this necklace is the perfect gift for the nature girl or the city girl who wants to get back to her, um, roots.

Order it online at www.twigsandheather.com or www.etsy.com. You can also pick it up at Turtle in the South End and MagPie in Somerville.

Sea Bags — Medium Anchor– $110

Sea Bags Medium Anchor

If we were millionaires at Blast (as we someday hope to be), we would certainly own a large sailboat perfect for party cruises and romantic dinners. But, for now, we’ll happily settle for the Anchor Bag by Sea Bags of Portland, Maine (not super-local, but how could we resist?).

All the bags are made out of recycled sails, and we especially love the Anchor Bag (available in navy or red) for its ability to catch the eye of a hot sailor on leave (not yet tested, but we’re assuming).

Sea Bags are environmentally conscious and preppy at the same time, which is more than we can say for that Abercrombie model you dated.

Owned by Hannah Kubiak and Beth Shissler, Sea Bags are designed by Stephanie Moran and her team.

To own a bag inspired by all things nautical, visit www.seabags.com.

Lillian Asterfield — Sea Lillian Necklace — $35-$65

Lilian Asterfield Sea Lilian Necklace

If you used to rummage through your dad’s closet and play dress up with his ties, the Sea Lillian necklace is your dream come true. Nicole Deponte’s Lilian Asterfield pieces are made completely from recycled and up-cycled products, such as old vintage ties, t-shirt yarn and plastic curtain rings. We love this necklace because it is one of the most unique out there.

Each Sea Lillian necklace is different, but we chose to feature this particular one because we couldn’t take our eyes off it. Sadly, it’s recently been sold– but never fear; Deponte takes special orders.

Her jewelry was recently shown at Lucky Gallery during an exhibit featuring artists who focus on sustainability. You can buy her pieces at Turtle in the South End or at www.nicoledeponte.com.

Read, set, SHOP!

James Reinhart, one of the founders of an innovative new company, called ThredUp, came to speak with Blast recently. Reinhart and friend Oliver Lubin are on a mission to add a refresh button to your closet.

BLAST: So, James, we hear you’re a Harvard guy, correct?

JAMES REINHART: Just graduated actually, last month, with a joint degree program at Harvard Business and Harvard Kennedy School.

BLAST: And how did the idea for ThredUp come to mind for you?

JR: I was literally getting dressed last November and doing the classic “going through stuff in my closet,” and there was all kinds of stuff in there in good shape, but I was tired of wearing it. And it occurred to me; lots of people have tons of stuff and feel they have nothing to wear. I asked around and everyone said, “I have the same problem but I just let stuff pile up in my closet.” So I thought, why don’t people transact in the used clothing market place? It was really a sort of “aha” moment at seven in the morning.

BLAST: And the economy hasn’t hindered business at all? It sounds like this is the right time for something like ThredUp.

JR: Yeah and I think this is a time where Americans are trying to economize and cut back on luxury purchases. It’s accepted more; now is a great time for used stuff. You see transactions on every used marketplace and they’ve gone up. People are trying to get more value from stuff they already own.

BLAST: How do you think ThredUp is helping the fashion world environmentally?

JR: Well, I think it’s a classic example of trying to do more of a reduce, reuse, recycle mentality. We all have enough stuff in our closets that just aren’t new to us, and if someone else were to use the item they’d be perfectly happy with it. I mean, we haven’t done a carbon footprint analysis”¦ but it’s a lot more environmentally friendly than buying new items from China. I think that matters.

BLAST: And its similar to how Netflix works?

JR: Yes, exactly, and its exactly how Netflix works with the exception that Netflix goes through its warehouse, and we are exactly peer to peer.

BLAST: So its different from consignment because you can constantly recycle and keep clothing from being wasted? Or how would you describe the biggest and best difference?

JR: Yeah, so if you compare it to a place like Second Time Around, the difference is that for most people, its not as easy to get to these consignment shops. The average person on a Saturday doesn’t have time to do vintage shopping. You can do it all online “" sizes you wear, brands you like “" all those types of things. You can do it at midnight on a Wednesday versus going to a vintage store. It’s a real time efficiency issue. And some consignment stores are set up a bit haphazardly, where you’re trying to find the diamonds in the rough. And most of those diamonds in the rough are in other people’s closets. We can help you shop from other people’s closets.

BLAST: Do you think this will effect other industries and how they operate sales, recycling, or renting? After all, movie rentals were impacted by Netflix in a huge way.

JR: I think what you’ll see is that retailers will understand that consumers want more environmentally friendly items, and want to get more value for their goods. This movement to discount and get everything cheap will (be helpful) in the long run. I’m not sure how it will change the entire industry, but you can mix and match between new and used.

BLAST: And your pilot went well?

JR: Yeah, the pilot went great. We had 160 uses in a men’s pilot, and just over several months from February to April with an 85 percent satisfaction rate. Eight out of 10 are major indicators.

BLAST: Are you going then market to men, women, children?

JR: We are relaunching with men’s and women’s and hoping to add kids in about a month later. Kids are a natural fit for us because kids grow out of their stuff so quickly. We’ll be doing the hand me down experience “" quicker, faster, and more efficiently.

BLAST: Anything else you want to say about ThredUp?

JR: I think ThredUp is a real experience product. I think people need to really give us a chance. I noticed in the pilot, a lot of people outside of the 160 signed up but then chose not to use their envelopes. And the people who did really do it liked what they got. And that’s part of the fun. You can get cool stuff delivered to your doorstep based on what you specified. Its not just great value, it has a fun aspect.

ThredUp points out to us: Why can’t it be painless to get rid of stuff you don’t wear anymore, through an easy and cheap process to get new stuff that you will wear?

Joel Williams, a ThredUp client from San Diego, recommended the service.

“So far it has been great and I think the key thing they’ve done since the beginning is using high quality items. The results have been positive for me” Williams said. “If you wanted to, you could use Ebay, but the coordination costs would be so much. They (ThredUp) do it at a price that is much lower than the value it delivers to the customer”.

Right now, the first 1,000 registrants can try ThredUp for free the first three times. You can sign up at Thredup.com and be notified when registration opens.

Dear EarthTalk: Is there really such a thing as “sun-protective clothing?” If so, does it mean I can dispense with oily sunscreens once and for all? — John Sugarman, San Diego, CA

While there will always be a place for high-quality sunscreen on body parts exposed to the sun, covering up elsewhere-ideally with clothing designed to absorb or shield the sun’s damaging ultraviolet (UV) radiation-can minimize a person’s skin cancer risk significantly.

With recent news about the inadequacy of many sunscreens-the nonprofit Environmental Working Group found that four out of five name brand sunscreens offer inadequate protection from the sun or contain potentially carcinogenic ingredients-covering up instead of smearing is looking better and better to many people. A handful of clothing manufacturers are responding to the increased demand for shirts, pants, dresses and hats bearing “SPF” (sun protection factor) ratings with stylish sun-protective duds.

The granddaddy of them all just might be Sun Precautions Inc., which was started 15 years ago by avid downhill ski racer and outdoors enthusiast Shaun Hughes after he was diagnosed with skin cancer at age 26. The company’s Solumbra line of sun-protective casual and outdoors clothing blocks upwards of 97 percent of all UVA and UVB radiation it encounters, and is recommended by thousands of dermatologists.

To test that its product line offers the kind of protection the company advertises, Sun Precautions subjects all of its Solumbra clothing to 500 laundry cycles, then snips out fabric samples which are exposed to the equivalent of 500 days of UV rays. If the samples pass muster, the line can be shipped.

Another leader in the fast growing field is Coolibar, which boasts a 50+ SPF rating for all of its garments. Its clothing, including wide-brimmed hats and long-sleeved bathing suits among many other items, is crafted from a proprietary tight-weave yet breezy fabric it calls Suntect. Another top purveyor is Sun Protective Clothing, which makes its casual and sporting clothes from a proprietary fabric blend called Solarweave, which fends off UVA and UVB rays yet maintains a light cottony “summerweight” feel.

Some hardcore environmentalists shun sun-protective clothing because it is usually made from polyester, Lycra or nylon-all which are petroleum-derived and are can contain some nasty chemicals. But Marta Phillips of SunGrubbies.com feels that it is better to wear the clothes than to smear chemicals directly onto your skin via sunscreen. That’s why her company sells a wide variety of sun-protective pants, jackets and hats, as well as specialty items such as cover-ups, sun gloves, sun sleeves and nose scarves.

If getting a whole new wardrobe of sun-protective clothing is out of the question, washing your existing clothes with Rit’s SunGuard, a product that treats fabric with a compound that imparts 96 percent UV protection through about 20 washings, might be the way to go. Also, sun lovers shouldn’t forget about protecting their eyes. A good pair of 100 percent UV protection sunglasses doesn’t cost an arm and a leg anymore; everyone in your family needs a pair.

CONTACTS: Environmental Working Group, www.ewg.org; Coolibar, www.coolibar.com; Sun Precautions, www.sunprecautions.com; Sun Protective Clothing, www.sunprotectiveclothing.com; SunGrubbies.com, www.sungrubbies.com; SunGuard, www.sunguardsunprotection.com.

Dear EarthTalk: Aren’t orangutans seriously threatened by the cutting down of forests?

– Nick Chermayeff, Greenwich, CT

Deforestation is indeed the primary threat to the orangutan, a species of great ape known for its keen intelligence and the fact that it’s the largest animal to live primarily in trees. A 2007 assessment by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) predicts that orangutans will be virtually eliminated in the wild within two decades if current deforestation trends continue. The great reddish-brown apes are native to the tropical rainforests of Indonesia and Malaysia, which are being cut down rapidly (and in many cases, illegally) to make way for agriculture and other development.

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classifies the Bornean sub-species of orangutan as Endangered and the Sumatran sub-species as Critically Endangered. The non-profit Orangutan Conservancy estimates that 54,000 Bornean orangutans and only 6,600 Sumatran orangutans remain in the wild. Given that it’s rare for adult orangutans, supremely adapted to life in trees, to ever touch the ground; it’s no wonder that forest degradation, fragmentation and outright clearing-sometimes by intentionally set fires-are the main drivers of the species’ population decline. The result has been the loss of some 80 percent of the orangutans’ habitat in just the last two decades.

While small independent farmers are cutting down rainforest swaths to plant their crops, an even larger problem is the spread of large oil palm plantations-in some cases funded by supposedly forward-thinking international development banks-that stretch for hundreds of thousands of acres across formerly diverse rainforest. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) reports that over the last four decades, the total land area planted with oil palm in Indonesia has grown some 30-fold to over three million hectares, while in Malaysia, oil palm agriculture has increased 12-fold to 3.5 million hectares.

Orangutans are also killed for the illegal wildlife trade. Poachers kill the mothers and then sell their babies as pets. According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), there may be more (pet) orangutans per square-mile in Taipei, Taiwan than in the wild. Unfortunately for the often unwitting owners, orangutans quickly grow out of being cuddly and can, like any wild animal, become unmanageable and unruly when confined.

Poachers are also killing orangutans for food for the so-called bush meat trade. According to the Orangutan Conservancy, the fact that many Indonesian logging companies do not provide food for their workers exacerbates this problem. “Hundreds of loggers are employed to cut down a particular area of forest, and they have to find food for themselves,” says the Conservancy. “The loggers, along with settlers who establish communities in the forest, hunt orangs, birds, and small mammals the orangs eat.”

The group pins the blame on economic pressures along with human greed and ignorance. “The needs of so many people with little landmass are pressingly urgent, allowing little time for planning or care about the environment.” Readers can help by donating time or money to the group, or by contributing to its adopt-an-orangutan program whereby donated funds go toward caring for specific orphaned orangutans.

CONTACTS: UNEP, www.unep.org; IUCN, www.iucn.org; CSPI, www.cspinet.org; WWF, www.wwf.org; Orangutan Conservancy, www.orangutan.net.

SEND YOUR ENVIRONMENTAL QUESTIONS TO: EarthTalk, P.O. Box 5098, Westport, CT 06881; earthtalk@emagazine.com. Read past columns at: www.emagazine.com/earthtalk/archives.php. EarthTalk is now a book! Details and order information at: www.emagazine.com/earthtalkbook.

Dear EarthTalk: What is the “clean tech” business sector and why have I been hearing that term so much lately? — Andrea Newell, Denver, CO

Cleantech is a loosely defined category of businesses dedicated to creating cutting edge technologies that address the world’s environmental problems. These high flying companies-most of which began small with the hope of ascending to publicly traded status-are the new darlings of Wall Street, attracting billions in venture capital and public funding in what many financial analysts are calling the next big thing since the burst of the dot-com bubble.

Venture capitalists poured more than $3 billion into the cleantech sector in 2007 alone. Whether this cleantech boom will lead the rest of the economy down the green path for the long term-or go bust in a couple of years like its dot-com predecessor-remains to be seen.

In the thick of the movement is Cleantech Network LLC, a research firm and clearinghouse for cleantech companies and investors that also publishes the online information clearinghouse, Cleantech.com. The firm defines its budding industry as “new technology and related business models offering competitive returns for investors and customers while providing solutions to global challenges.”

The firm interacts with a network of 8,000 investors, 6,000 companies and 3,500 professional organizations involved in alternative energy and energy efficient transportation, wastewater management technologies, air pollution control innovations, sustainable materials production and sourcing, environmentally responsible industrial and agricultural applications, and waste recycling and management.

Some examples of the thousands of companies that consider themselves part of the cleantech movement include: Finavera Renewables, a firm that is developing underwater turbines and buoys to generate power from the ocean’s tides and waves; 3TIER Group, which uses advanced computer modeling to help energy companies and utilities figure out where best to site wind, solar and hydro-electric projects; Avalence LLC, which is developing high-pressure hydrogen generation and storage equipment that will dispense hydrogen for use in transportation, home power and industrial applications; and, Infinia Corporation, which is developing a utility-scale system to harvest solar energy.

Over and above the cleantech sector’s potential for addressing crucial environmental problems, analysts see it as a bright spot in the darkening picture of the recession-bound economy over the next few years.

Marketing research and consulting firm Fuji Keizai USA expects the global market for cleantech products and services to grow from the $284 billion is it is generating today to over $1.3 trillion within a decade. The value of the companies in the sector is also expected to grow from today’s $104 billion to some $467 billion in the same 10-year time frame.

CONTACTS: Cleantech Network LLC, www.cleantech.com; Finavera Renewables, www.finavera.com; 3TIER Group, www.3tiergroup.com; Avalence LLC, www.avalence.com; Infinia Corporation, www.infiniacorp.com.

Dear EarthTalk: I’m planning a summer backpacking trip and was hoping to buy some of the latest green-friendly outdoor clothing. Where the best options out there today that wear as well as traditional items but without the environmental guilt? – Steve Nezhad, Boston, MA

Outdoor gear and clothing manufacturers are slowly but surely beginning to work materials crafted from recycled, reused or otherwise sustainable sources into their products.

Synthetics like polyester and nylon have been the “go to” materials for outdoor clothes, due to their moisture wicking, quick drying and warmth retention properties, but they are fast being augmented if not replaced outright by new fabrics crafted out of organic plant-based materials. For one, soybeans are now finding their way into outdoor clothing. One example is ExOfficio’s Tofutech Tee, which wicks moisture, retains warmth and resists wrinkles while being made of a 100 percent soy-based, biodegradable fabric.

Another innovation is Cocona, from the Colorado-based company of the same name. It’s a fabric treatment derived from coconut husks discarded by the food industry that helps other traditional fabrics wick moisture, control odor and shield UV rays. Some 40 clothing manufacturers, including GoLite, Marmot, Sierra Designs and Royal Robbins, are incorporating Cocona into their 2008 product lines.

Not to be outdone is Patagonia, a company many consider to be the granddaddy of eco-conscious outdoor gear. The California-based company now uses 100 percent organic cotton in all of its shirts, pants, outerwear and underwear to avoid the pesticides used in the growing of conventional cotton. Patagonia also takes back its customers’ own discards, melting them down to use the raw materials in new jackets and sweaters. And last year the company launched a new line of footwear constructed using organic cotton, recycled rubber soles, latex made from the milk of Hevea trees, hemp, and laces made from vegetable waste.

New on the scene but as green as they come is Oregon-based Nau, an outdoor clothing maker and retailer launched in 2006 with green production values key to its mission. Every item in the company’s diverse clothing line uses either recycled polyester from soda bottles, organic cotton or the corn-based plastic-alternative polylactic acid (PLA). Also, the company’s four retail outlets were designed using reclaimed timber, energy-efficient lighting and a “ship-to-you” program that cuts down on in-store storage space and energy usage (consumers choose items by handling display merchandise, but then rather than walk out with their purchases they order using in-store touch screens and then have it shipped to them).

Another cutting-edge outdoor company is shoemaker Timberland. Its new Greenscapes line of sneakers is made with vegetable- (instead of chemical-) tanned leather and is hand-sewn instead of glued with the toxic adhesives normally found in footwear. The new line also sports recycled polyester laces and outsoles made from recycled rubber. Timberland also recently switched to packaging made from green-friendly and recycled materials. And it has launched a “Green Index” to measure each product’s environmental footprint. The company is working with the Outdoor Industry Association to implement an industry-wide version of the Index so consumers can compare the relative green-ness of competing products.

CONTACTS: ExOfficio, www.exofficio.com; Cocona Fabrics, www.coconafabrics.com; Patagonia, www.patagonia.com; Nau, www.nau.com; Timberland, www.timberland.com.

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