Most people don’t think of a roof top as a highly valuable real estate asset. With the growth of the green roof industry – up 28.5% in North America in 2010 – that’s all changing.

A green roof sits on top of a conventional rooftop, transcending it with a bevy of benefits. A green roof contributes to biodiversity, can help combat global warming, manages pollution-causing stormwater, extends the life of a conventional roof and is simply gorgeous, especially for those lucky enough to have a view of them.

With gas prices soaring well over $4 in many parts of the nation and summer vacation season looming, most Americans are trying to figure out how to cut their gasoline usage and the pain at the pump.

Gasoline is still less expensive in America than in most other countries, however cutting back on your fossil fuel usage is a great idea no matter what. Here are some easy tips to cut down your gasoline consumption.

Drive-through windows, microwave ovens and liposuction. These seemingly oddball things share one distinctive quality in common – they cater to our instant gratification society. After all…why wait until tomorrow for something that we can have right here and right now? Part of the pure convenience of living in our current day and age is that we don’t have to break a sweat in order to have access to infinite goods and services that make our lives all the more easy-breezy. Do I hear a ‘heck yeah’ from the peanut gallery?

Stringing up your laundry to dry on a (gasp!) clothesline may seem like an archaic tradition; it’s definitely not common anymore. Some well-to-do communities around the nation have even banned clotheslines, writing them off as eyesores to the neighborhood. Wouldn’t want to see your neighbors’ unmentionables, right? While that may be true, I’ll take a few undie sightings over wasting resources with conventional dryers.

Take advantage of the delicious springtime breezes and warming summer air over the next few months to dry your clothes naturally. Find out how.

Debates about whether wood or plastic cutting boards reign supreme rage among gourmet chefs and home cooks alike. (Anyone get the Iron Chef reference, eh, eh?)

Whether you’re a wooden board aficionado or pro-plastic, you gotta get your boards clean. You don’t want bacteria milling around the area where you chop veggies, fruits and meats.

It only takes two natural ingredients to disinfect wood cutting boards. You probably even already have them in your green cleaning arsenal. Find out how to sanitize a wood cutting board, eco-style.

Spring and summer are the perfect seasons to turn your old possessions into brand-new cash with an American community tradition: The garage sale. 

For treasure hunters, garage (or yard) sales can be a bounty of unique housewares, vintage clothes and one-of-a-kind items that can’t be found anywhere else. Those hosting a sale can expect to make anywhere from a couple hundred bucks to a couple thousand, depending on the quality and quantity of stuff for sale.

Garage sales take some work to make happen, but if you follow these tips and do it right, people will pay YOU to haul off your unwanted items. While throwing a garage sale alone is quite possible, having a buddy to watch the cash box while you load a dresser into someone’s car will help you immensely – just be sure to give your friend a split of the profits.

I've road-tripped it across this heart-breakingly beautiful country of ours four times. (Read: I've done my share of camping.) Though I'm less inclined—at least my back is—to sleep on a rocky tent floor these days, outdoor living is still part of my makeup.

I've been ogling these four sustainably-designed cabins from all over the globe. They'll inspire you to create your own modern take on back-to-basics living—even if it's only in your own backyard.

Which is your favorite?

1. Modern Campground

Rose petals are a DIY craft lovers darling, and reusing those soft, silky petals is a far more worthy fate than sending them to a landfill. Roses are also edible flowers full of healthy benefits, and have been used to treat conditions including asthma, indigestion and stress for centuries. Try one—or all—of these ideas for your spring rose petals.

Giving an out-of-style dresser a makeover can save you money and add a focal point to any room of the home.

You can customize any ol' dresser to suit your décor. Just put a little lipstick on that pig. With a touch of paint here and a little elbow grease there, you can tailor a dresser to become formal, elegant, romantic or playful.

Follow these tips to revive even the most seemingly far-gone dresser.

After running a pile of clothes through a cycle in the washing machine, I get a certain satisfaction out of seeing them emerge clean and smelling fresh. I know I didn’t do any of the grunt work, but still. There’s a sense of accomplishment that goes with turning stained, possibly smelly clothes (every family has that one family member who’s especially stinky; am I right?) into neatly folded, spotless garments.

What you might not think about when you’re folding your freshly laundered clothes is that the chemicals in commercial laundry detergents could actually be dirtier than a grass-stained, mud-caked, sweat-encrusted pair of pants.