World

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor in Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World "Books are the carriers of civilization. Without books,...

Sweet Charity for a Mom with a Mission: Health Child Healthy World Arms Parents with Information about Environmental and Chemical Pollutants By Nancy Chuda Founder...

Forrest Gump may have been on to something when he compared life to chocolates. You really never know what you’re gonna get in a box of chocolates, do you? The truth behind chocolate is more bitter than sweet. The Ivory Coast produces 40% of the world's chocolate, and it just so happens to also be notorious for this little thing called child slavery. Children, both local and from other third world countries, are sold to farms in this area where they are physically abused while working in risky and inhumane conditions. Some children are sold into the trade by parents who are tricked into believing their children will have better lives at the farm. Others are trafficked, stolen from their families, lured by the promise of…chocolate. In these farms they are forced to work 60 hour weeks with little or no food (depending on their performance on the field). These children lose their fundamental human rights when they enter these farms and “modern” society turns a blind eye to the atrocities. Every time we buy a box of chocolate that is not fair trade stamped, we (often unknowingly) endorse child slavery.

By: Molly Rovero, LuxEco Editorial Assistant First up on our journey through Lotusland is the Lotus Garden: a center for spirituality. Lotus flowers are significant to many eastern cultures, such as the Buddhist and Hindu religions. This beautiful flower emerges from the murky depths of mud and contrasts the dark water with its vibrant petals.

Nuclear reactors aren't generally accident-prone, though when something does goes awry, it's devastating. By Derin Richardson, LuxEco Editorial Assistant If you’ve been following the tsunami disaster in Japan lately, you’re probably somewhat confused about the dynamics of the situation. While we’re no experts on nuclear physics here at LuxEco Living, here’s a basic, tentative guide on the radiation involved and current events.

Journey with us to South Africa the home and heritage of Nelson Mandela. The Saxon Villa and Spa is one of the most beautiful hotels in the world.

By James and Nancy Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World Santa Barbara California Earl Warren Showgrounds   "The most dangerous 8 seconds in sports."...

By Galen Crawley's, author of A Path To Survival Against All Odds and LuxEco Advocate In 1979, the British colonization of Zimbabwe came to an end under Ian Smith. After sustained social unrest, the ZANU party, led by Robert Mugabe, came to power. Initially, there was a pervading sense of optimism as this charismatic, highly intelligent individual began to educate the country. In the 1980’s, the economy was growing and Zimbabwe was the breadbasket of Africa. Unfortunately, what began as a democracy became a dictatorship. During the 90’s the Zimbabwe spiraled into decline. At the beginning of the millennium, the Land Reform Programme was initiated. The white farmers, who fueled the economy with their tobacco and food production, were brutally kicked out. It was the beginning of mass starvation, hyper-inflation, and when the diamond fields were found, murder and torture.

By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Editorial Assistant It seems BP has finally begun to make good on weeks of promise to fix the Deepwater Horizon wellhead that has been gushing crude oil into the Gulf Coast. It has taken nearly 3 months for them to initiate a plan that might hold back the oil, but at last, crews worked through the weekend and fitted a new 150,000-pound cap to the wellhead on Monday. They began tests Tuesday, which may take up to 48 hours, to see if the cap will be strong enough to temporarily contain the oil and gases.

By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World LuxEcoLiving "The hair cut that I'm most proud of, to tell the truth,...

Hands by Guido Daniele Hands by Guido Daniele By Florence "Flip" Ross, LuxEcoLiving Advocate and Contributor If I could bring the planet Earth, back to its natural beauty If I could sing its praise, and make the world assume its duty If I could make the industries clean up their foul pollution Our air, our water, would be clean, and would be the solution If I could force our corporations to help clean up our planet

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World What's a hat got to do with it? The Kentucky...

LABC Sustainability Summit: Fulfilling Our New Market Potential Much is in store for the LA Business Council Sustainability Summit, including the “Salon of...

By Tatyana Rocha, LuxEco Marketing Assistant At around 8:30 am PST on September 2, 2010, an oil rig caught on fire approximately 90 miles south of Vermilion Bay near the Louisiana coast. No one was killed during the explosion and all 13 crew members are accounted for, with one minor injury.

By Merry Elkins, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Ken Kragen knows what it’s like to accomplish the impossible. He’s done it time and time, again. This time every California Community College Campus and Student is his beneficiary with his Hands Across California campaign on April 17th, 2011.

By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Editorial Assistant The iconic Barataria Bay, a Gulf of Mexico bay located in southeastern Louisiana, is being destroyed by oil still gushing from the Deepwater Horizon blowout. The formerly thriving estuary, rich with virgin cypress trees and an array of wildlife, has been known historically—as the site of an original colony—and literarily—as depicted by Kate Chopin in “The Awakening.” It is beloved by its inhabitants, who knew it, not so long ago, as some of the best fishing in the region.

By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World I was craving cheese. Not just that typical stinky cheese you find...

By Hannah Canvasser LuxEco Editorial Assistant With Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding rapidly approaching, and the highlight to this week in Tivo, many are curious to know if Prince William will carry out green standards throughout his celebration. With the Royal Family’s interest in reducing energy and their environmentally friendly practices in and around the Palace, it is expected that the Prince and his bride will hold the same in their celebration. Although the ever so famous rhyme still holds true to weddings of every nation, it is rumored that Kate Middleton’s “something blue” may actually be tinted a little green this Friday.

We got lucky! Six years ago we adopted the most "labradorable" puppy.

By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Our very own LuxEco advocate, Olivia Newton-John was a guest on the taping of Oprah's show Tuesday. Oprah, filming two shows at the Sydney Opera House this week, had a star studded line-up for her travels Down Under.

Candice Held dresses have inspired us at LuxEco Living to think outside the box when it comes to sourcing eco-conscious materials. Saving the environment is not just about finding rare and exotic eco-friendly materials. In fact, sometimes it can be as simple as extending the life of the clothing already in our closets.

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World In a historic setting which rekindles Hollywoods Golden but now...

Just last month marks the fifth year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, the catastrophic natural disaster that claimed more than 1,800 lives in the Gulf coast region with damages totaling $80 billion. After the devastation of the hurricane and consequent flooding, it seemed to its residents and many around the world that New Orleans, specifically, was making a painstakingly slow recovery. Frustrated by the sluggish progress, actor Brad Pitt founded the Make It Right Foundation in 2007 to help rebuild the hardest hit region of New Orleans, the Lower 9th ward.

By Elaine Durr, Sustainability Coordinator of Elon University and LuxEco Advocate Elon University’s mission statement says, in part, that “We integrate learning across the disciplines and put knowledge into practice, thus preparing students to be global citizens and informed leaders motivated by concern for the common good.” Elon believes that one of the most pressing issues facing students, indeed all citizens, today is global environmental change. In order to be true to that mission statement, it is imperative that Elon teach its students about environmental change, human interactions with the earth and how they can be good stewards of this planet so that the mission of producing “global citizens and informed leaders motivated by the common good” is accomplished.

Someone sent me an amazing article from WebEcoist who presented some of the most moving and beautiful photographs of nature's awesome phenomenons that have...

By Florence “Flip” Ross, LuxEco Advocate Since I was fortunate to have just celebrated my 88th birthday, I assume I am the oldest person writing for LuxEco Living. Therefore, allow me to tell you what life was like back in my day, and how we treated the environment. We didn't. We simply accepted things as they were, and I did not become aware of our world and how to keep it clean. It was just sufficient to live it.

By: Molly Cimikoski, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Before the April explosion of the Deep Water Horizon, I could hardly get through a Dawn dish soap commercial...

By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World Why Your Health Matters Most Walk don't run while searching Google for the...

By Nancy Chuda Founder and Editor-in-Chief of LuxEco Living and Healthy Child Healthy World Enter Wael Ghonim, a charismatic young Google executive who helped launch the protests in Tahrir Square. His heroism validates what a real social network can do. Sorkin and Facebook aside, certainly not as newsworthy, will win the Oscar for best Original Screenplay not because of a few Harvard grads, but Google. The Umpire of all networks which will always win... it just makes adsense! Life imitates with purpose as the world watches Wael's Facebook page, as he herds the hordes of young brave Egyptians as they face off in the streets urging President Hosni Mubarak to step down. The cacophony of people, police, military, women, men and press from around the globe could not visually hold the power or the purpose that the Internet is providing.

By Merry Elkins, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Best known for being a star-maker, Ken Kragen, who is also an author, teacher, and film and television producer, has charted the career course of some our most celebrated entertainers including Kenny Rogers, Lionel Richie, Tricia Yearwood, Olivia Newton John, The Bee Gees, The Smothers Brothers, Harry Chapin and more; but nothing he has accomplished in his illustrious career has ever achieved the significance or the scope of his philanthropic work. For breathing life into Hands Across America in the 1980s where young and old alike joined hands across the country to call attention to hunger and homelessness here in the US; for setting in motion and organizing the recording We Are the World, that brought together 45 prominent recording artists including Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie and Bruce Springsteen to raise $64 million to feed people in Africa and for founding USA for Africa to distribute the money, he received the United Nations Peace Medal, something few civilians receive and an honor for which he is most proud.

By: Molly Rovero, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Join LuxEco Living as we explore the wonder and magic of Lotusland in Santa Barbara California. In today’s episode...

By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World   We had a terrible scare!!! Journey, our 18 month old adopted yellow...

By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World Luxury for Less. The most beautiful authentic jewelry, custom designed, one...

By: Molly Rovero, LuxEco Living Editorial Assistant Among Madame Gana Walska’s collection in the theatre garden are grotesque figures, which she hid in the ground to protect during the world war. She also had a garden clock with the different star signs. Her actual birthday is unknown but Lotusland believes that she was born in June, making her a Cancer. Join Nancy Chuda and Gwen Stauffer as they journey through these two lovely gardens.

"It will awaken your senses not only to the beauty of nature but to the plight of South Africa's wildlife, many of which are teetering on a thin line for survival.