Eco-Libris offers a unique way to offset a booklover’s carbon footprint. Simply choose how many books you want to balance out with Eco-Libris, pay for it online, and a tree will be planted for each of these books.

And you can show off your newfound environmental responsibility with pride by placing a provided Eco-Libris sticker on each book you “redeem.”

That’s playing conservation by the book!

Popular Science reports that researchers at MIT and Boston College are developing a way to reuse old semiconductors to dramatically increase thermal efficiency. The end result: the consumption of less energy.

And you thought recycling was just for soda cans and newspaper…

The standard DVD packaging is called a “keep case” – as in, “keeping around in the environment for a long, long time.”

Aren’t there any more eco-friendly DVD case alternatives? The blog Seven Generational Ruminations did some research on the subject, and came up with these options:

• The digipak. It contains some plastic, but is mostly cardboard.

• The Discbox Slider, which is described as 100% recyclable.

Of course, with the popularity of streaming online video and direct-to-download movies, we might one day be keeping our film collections on our keychains. But until then, we can all make our digital experience just a little more green!

Or, you can fold your own DVD or CD case. 

-Valerie 

Of course, adopting a cool, eco-friendly lifestyle is a year round thing, but there are a few days in particular where many people stop and pay attention to these kinds of issues. Coming up soon is Earth Day, celebrated in the US and also in some places worldwide. But it’s far from the only time we stop and take stock of the state of the environment. Grab a pen, pencil, or crayon and put these days on your 2008 calendar, because you’re going to want to celebrate.

International Earth Day – March 20

World Water Day – March 22

Earth Day – April 22

Arbor Day – April 25

World Environment Day – June 5

World Population Day – July 11

World Ozone Day – September 16

Green Consumer Day – September 28

While Earth Day may not exactly be the best time to run out and buy more stuff, there’s a lot of great eco-gear to be had. And some cool eco-friendly thing may make the perfect Earth Day gift. For shirts, crafts and other fun items, check out these environmentally aware online shops:

Café Press: This shop has some great T-shirts with clever environmental messages.

Eco Mall: It’s like your average shopping trip, but it’s all environmentally responsible, too.

Ten Thousand Villages: Promoting fair trade and sustainable practices, this store is great for unique gifts.

Green Week, the week of Earth Day, is the perfect time to take a look at this place we call our planet. It can actually be a pretty strange place. Check out some of these weird facts and bits of information about Earth.

• Baby robins eat 14 feet of earthworms each day. http://www.funshun.com/amazing-facts/earth-universe-facts.html
• A huge underground river runs underneath the Nile , with six times more water than the river above. http://www.thatsweird.net/facts4.shtml
• After a volcanic eruption, some of the resulting rocks can float. http://www.strangevehicles.com/content/item/116957.html
• A shark can grow a new set of teeth in a week. http://www.liquidice.co.uk/joke/strangefacts.html
• 3% water of the Earth is fresh and the other 97% is salted. http://www.wonderfulinfo.com/winfo/earth1.htm

It really doesn’t matter what your plans are for Earth Day. What matters is that we all take a little time to recognize the day in our own way. Whether you go for a hike on a nature trail in your area, plant a tree, or watch some of the MTV SWITCH spots (I particularly like Brad and Earth), the day’s all about getting out there and doing something.