The man, the myth, the legend Michael Jackson has died. Although he did not really walk the “green” walk, he did talk the green talk, with such unforgettable songs such as the timeless “Heal the World” and “Earth Song.”

So now, a moment of silence please, whilst we listen to the haunting melodies of “Earth Song”, in remembrance of Michael Jackson, the former King of Pop.

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Also, it’s not too late to try to win your very own Smart fortwo. Act now while supplies last.

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I figured it’d be one of those gimmicky “Go Green!” products whose only claim to “greenness” is its actual color. Imagine, if you will, my surprise when I saw that 40% of its surface is made from recycled rubber. Now sure, that’s not 100%, but that’s almost half of the surface that’s made of recycled rubber! Crazy.

While it’s not quite as eco-friendly (or cheap) as buying a used basketball (or just finding one in a creek), it’s a good start. I hope to try one out soon; if it passes my reverse jam test, then it’s good enough for me.

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A little while ago, I had the good fortune to talk with Aaron Vronko, the CEO of RapidRepair, and ask him a few questions. For your 411, RapidRepair buys your broken small electronics and uses their parts to repair other people’s gadgets. A prime example of a business that helps the environment while also making money. But let’s get on with this here entrevista…

Joe (Me): So, what does your company repair?

Aaron Vronko: Ipods, iphones, zune, mp3 players, handheld game consoles.

J: I heard you guys do electronics recycling; do people send in or come in in person?
AV: We get lots of walk-in business, but mainly people send in what they need to be repaired.

J: How fast do you guys fix most things?
AV: Our diagnostic process is free. We average about 1 day for diagnostics, then 1 day for repairs, so even if you mail your device in, you can get it back that same week.

J: How long have you been doing electronics recycling?
AV: We started our repair business 5 years ago, but didn’t recycle then. We didn’t throw away old stuff, just kept it around since it was all small electronics that didn’t take up much space. Then about 3 years ago we started recycling old stuff that we couldn’t use.

J: How much of what people bring in can you actually use?
AV: Very damaged items get recycled. We’ve used a couple different recycling companies, and usually have to call them just once a year. We don’t get any money for plastics or aluminum or batteries, but we do get a very small amount for a pound of boards.

J: Do y’all have any plans on expanding and opening new stores?
AV: We’ve looked at it, but we’re pretty comfortable. Our operations are basically at the center of country [Kalamazoo, Michigan], so it’s pretty fast to mail stuff to and from us.

J: What’s the biggest way that your company saves material from landfills?
AV: We use old parts to repair electronics. We take in old damaged devices and use them to make refurbished devices. Last year we saved 10,000 pounds of small electronics waste saved from landfill. These were small electronics, so 10,000 pounds represents a lot of iPods and Zunes. We just added consoles this year so the amount of waste saved this year will go up dramatically.

J: Last question: how many iPods do you yourself own?
AV: I actually don’t own any. I have an iPhone, and sometimes use that to play music. But even if I didn’t have the iPhone, I wouldn’t have an iPod.

I hope you enjoyed that interview. I know I did. The only question I forgot to ask was if I could have a free iPod. Dang! Anyhoo, if you need your iPod or Zune repaired (or want to sell your old or broken one), check out RapidRepair.

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Remember, all these free tote bags don’t do any good unless you actually bring them to the store and use them instead of plastic bags, so get on that!

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I thought I’d opted out of phone book delivery last year, but just today I got “The Talking Phone Book” plopped on my front porch.

So, here’s a quick, easy way to stop getting “The Talking Phone Book” delivered to your casa. It takes about 3 minutes, so it’s a very easy way to save lots of paper, ink, and gas (for phone book delivery) from being wasted.

1. Click on the city nearest to you on this page.

2. Call the phone number.

3. Hit “0″ when the automated message starts.

4. Ax the operator to kindly stop delivering phone books to your house.

That’s it! Never again will you come home to find cruelly murdered trees in the form of a worthless book in front of your door again. Not on my watch.

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1. Buy a Kraft Foods brand product from this list.

2. Scrawl your name and address on a 3×5 card. Sound out any big words.

3. Stuff that card and your original receipt (with the Kraft Foods brand item’s price circled) in an envelope.

4. Send that envelope to:
Every Day with Rachael Ray Magazine
16 East 34th Street
14th Floor
New York, NY 10016
Attn: Kraft Foods Promotion

5. Twiddle thumbs and prepare for the imminent arrival of a free reusable tote bag that’ll allow you to quit using disposable plastic bags.

You can only get one free bag per household. Also, this offer is only valid during May, so don’t delay, act today!

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On average, an LCD monitor will use 30% less energy than a CRT monitor. Not only will this help the environment, but it’ll save you money. How much money will an LCD screen save compared to a CRT monitor, you ask? That all depends…

LCD Energy Savings Compared to CRT

Here’s how to figure out how much an LCD screen will save you compared to a CRT screen.

• Calculate kilowatts per year used for each monitor. Take into account that each screen uses different amounts of energy even when it’s turned off.
• Subtract the LCD energy usage from the CRT energy usage.
• Multiply the kilowatt difference by the cost per kilowatt in your area (9.8 cents per kw where I live).

Voila, that number is how much money you’d save if you had an LCD monitor instead of a CRT monitor. So if you do decide to get rid of your ol’ CRT, please either give it away to someone or a thrift store, or, if no one wants your hunk o’ junk, you can bring it to a recycling center.

If you want to see a detailed example of how much an LCD screen might save compared to a CRT screen, check out this here linky.

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‘Tis a good way to reduce waste and save some money, so give it a looksie. I shall end this brief article with a little more detail about how they aim to plant 10,000 trees today, courtesy of their press release:

For Earth Day 2009, Swaptree is working with The Nature Conservancy’s ‘Plant a Billion Trees’ initiative and will be planting a tree for every trade completed on Earth Day. While currently several thousand trades happen every day on Swaptree, our goal on Earth Day is to do 10,000 trades and plant 10,000 trees. While the average Swaptree user, given its emphasis on recycling and sharing, lowers their yearly carbon footprint by 180 pounds, with this initiative we hope to offset several thousand tons of CO2.

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From the incomparable Onion.

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