Cate Blanchett was an English queen in “Elizabeth” and a royal elf in “The Lord of the Rings.” Now she has entered a new realm of royalty: the green kind. This sexy star is leading her people into a new age of environmentally friendly practices, and she’s literally starting in her own backyard.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Cate spent $1.5 million making her home eco-friendly. The house has its own water tank, solar panels and low energy lighting. Cate also made sure that none of the timber used in her home came from the rainforests. This is money well-spent for Cate, who hopes to set an example to everyone, especially in her homeland of Australia, which is one of the leading contributors of carbon emissions into our atmosphere.

Cate is also an ambassador of Earth Hour (http://earthhour.org), a campaign that asks people to turn their lights off for one hour to show their support for our planet. Visit their Web site to Vote Earth and check out http://www.therenewableplanet.com to read Cate’s Greenography. Do your part and show Cate that you too have a heart of green.