Time Magazine Environmental Hero Casson Trenor

Casson Trenor’s life passion is ocean conservation. With rising concern over unsustainable fishing practices and recent alerts about the rapidly shrinking bluefin tuna population worldwide, consumers may finally be waking up to the state of our oceans. Because of his involvement in opening one of North America’s first fully sustainable sushi restaurants, and his expertise in marine resource management (as highlighted in Sustainable Sushi: A Guide to Saving the Oceans One Bite at a Time), Trenor was honored as one of Time magazine’s “Heroes of the Environment 2009!” I can’t think of a more ideal recipient!

Jacqueline Church of The Leather District Gourmet and The Nourish Network spoke with Casson Trenor just moments after he learned of the Time magazine environmental hero honor.

When did you first learn that you won this honor?

About four hours ago, sitting here in my hotel room in Amsterdam.

Describe the moment you picked up the magazine and saw/or learned about the award?

I haven’t seen the magazine yet!  But I got a google alert in my email, checked it, and… I dunno, I still can’t really believe it.  I’m so happy.

What started you on the path of sustainable sushi?

I love sushi… and I also love the ocean.  I guess it kind of grew out of that.  I realize that the ocean is in serious trouble, and the art of sushi will be lost if we can’t heal our planet.  I don’t want that to happen… it seems like such a dismal prospect.  I want my children and their children to know both the beauty and magnificence of a healthy ocean and the taste and experience of sushi.

CLICK HERE to read the rest of this conversation and learn the 5 best sustainable sushi options, and the 5 everyone should avoid.

CLICK HERE to read more about Time magazine’s “Heroes of the Environment 2009.”

CLICK HERE to learn more about Sustainable Sushi: A Guide to Saving the Oceans One Bite at a Time.

CLICK HERE to visit Casson Trenor’s SustainableSushi.net.

Sustainable Sushi…in LA?

I am a Los Angeles native. You can find me in my mom’s SUV on the 5, attempting to befriend two-hour traffic jams while stuffing my face with day-old supermarket California rolls. Two years ago, I came to the Bay Area for school, and discovered the beauty of fresh. Fresh air, fresh food, fresh vibe…I love it all! Better yet, fresh for me meant a whole new avenue of truly healthy living and helping to create a healthy world.

I will say that for those of us who live here, we are blessed with the best gift that a coastal city of fresh, world-changing visions could ever want: sushi connoisseur Casson Trenor as a resident.

Lucky for us, we’ve heard of his new release Sustainable Sushi, a friendly guide with all the information needed for us to make sustainable choices at the sushi bar, allowing people like me to enjoy eating fish in a healthy manner while keeping healthy oceans in mind. We also have Tataki, one of the only sustainable sushi bars in the country, that Trenor helped launch. I must admit that my newfound excitement for this alternative mode of sushi eating has, well, made me eat more of it rather than talk about it to my dear, oblivious buddies back home.

Thanks to a review of Sustainable Sushi in the seasonal food magazine Edible Los Angeles, LA will finally get a taste of saving the oceans while dining exquisitely, as they seem to do so well. It’s a win-win situation.

Here’s what Edible Los Angeles had to say:

[Trenor’s] Sustainable Sushi is full of hard fishery facts and undeniable science…but Trenor wisely knows that it’s not just the facts that will change minds. Gorgeous illustrations of each fish and clear photos of exquisite sushi dishes will surely convince readers that seafood like the relatively abundant Northwestern geoduck is as tasty as and more sustainable than the scarce Caribbean conch. Most of us want to do the right thing, but few are willing to sacrifice gustatory pleasure doing it. Sustainable Sushi shows that it is possible to eat right—and well.

So, sushi-loving friends in LA, and elsewhere, here is a list of some sustainable options that can replace our common favorites:

1. Geoduck (“goo-wee-duk”)/mirugai
•    Order mirugai instead of surf clam, wild abalone or conch

2. Alaskan Pollock surimi
•    The Pollock are abundant and a more sustainable option than imitation crab used in rolls like California rolls
•    Here’s a fun fact: Legend has it that the California roll, surimi and avocado, was invited in the 1970s in Los Angeles. The chef used avocado as a replacement for toro, which was difficult to find. The roll went on to become one of the most popular sushi dishes in the US.

3. Wild Salmon
•    Farmed salmon live in crowded conditions which can increase their chances of contracting diseases or parasites. Farmers also use antibiotics or pesticides to combat these problems, and the residual chemicals can be passed onto consumers.
•    Order wild salmon or farmed arctic char instead.

4. U.S. farmed shrimp and freshwater prawns, British Columbia spot prawns, Oregon pink shrimp
•    They are a much better option than most Asian imported farmed shrimp such as tiger prawns—more environmental regulations are in place and in general the product is cleaner.

Can’t wait to make some immediate changes?
CLICK HERE to create a virtual sushi dinner. You can pick up to 8 choices and see if your choices made it on the “Best Choice” or “Good Alternative” categories. Don’t be shocked after the first round when you discover all your choices are ones to avoid; you can read why they are with the helpful pop ups. After you play a couple rounds, put your knowledge to test at dinner tonight at the sushi bar.

CLICK HERE to find reviews of restaurants and recent news in the sushi world.

Browser on IPhone not fast enough?
CLICK HERE to get your own handy copy of the guide!

So go on, tell your friends!

Sustainable Sushi on TV

Casson Trenor, author of Sustainable Sushi, is a busy man. As with any critical environmental issue, there has been a huge amount of interest in the topic of sustainable seafood, and Trenor has been traveling throughout the country offering his insight and knowledge. And there’s no better way to spread your message to the public than through TV appearances, which reach massive markets.

Tomorrow, May 12th, Trenor will appear on Daytime, which, judging from this station line up (with air times), finds its way into just about every corner of the U.S. For our local Bay Area residents, you can check out the segment on KRON beginning at 9 a.m.

If you are unable to tune in to the Daytime segment, be sure to check out the video clips below, which offer information on this important issue from Trenor and other experts.

Click here to visit Casson Trenor’s informative website.
Click here for real time updates from Casson Trenor via Twitter.
Click here for more information on Sustainable Sushi.

In Celebration of Earth Day…

Courtesy: NASA / Goddard Space Flight Center

A piece of North Atlantic’s mission statement is “to nurture spiritual and ecological disciplines.” Accordingly, we strive to publish books on the topic of sustainability that will inform and inspire readers. In honor of Earth Day 2009, we would like to present a selection of these titles—some old and some new. Also included are links to leading sustainability resources on the web that we think are important.

Sustainability is a growing category for North Atlantic. If you would like to see us cover any specific topic, feel free to let us now by commenting. Thanks!

Selected Titles from our Sustainability Shelf

From Eco-Cities to Living Machines by Nancy Jack Todd and John Todd
- Visionary work published in 1994. Presents new ecological designs for integrating agriculture and flowing pure water into green urban settings and purifying wastewaters to tertiary quality effluent without chemicals. More info available in a previous blog post.

Maya Atlas by Toledo Maya Cultural Council and Toledo Alcades Association
- Selected as one of our top 16 most important titles by our publisher, Richard Grossinger. In his words: “This document essentially preserved traditional Mayan lands and enabled an unregistered nation of indigenous people to educate themselves on their own geographic legacy and cultural ground; to use the tools of modern technology to pass their knowledge and brief on to the world, the world’s courts, and their own future generations.  The text was presented as a legal article to the Organization of American States and the United Nations.  We are now attempting a similar project for the Northwest Territories of Canada tentatively entitled The Inuit Land Use and Occupancy Project and the Creation of Nunavut.”

Sunfood Living by John McCabe, Foreword by David Wolfe
- An encyclopedia of options for living an eco-friendly life. Provides concise information on a wide-range of topics, including plant-based food and health, pollution caused by farm animals, soaps and detergents, fair trade products, and hunger and homelessness.

Sustainable Sushi by Casson Trenor
- The definition of a timely title. Trenor provides all the information needed to make sustainable choices at the sushi bar in an easy-to-use guide. More information available in this previous blog post. Listen to Trenor discuss the topic here.

Meadowlark Economics by James Eggert
- A call for a new sustainable perspective in economics. University of Wisconsin-Stout professor James Eggert takes inspiration from Thoreau and a close-study of meadowlarks in the fields near his home to offer a welcomed alternative to free-market capitalism. Check out a sample chapter, “What’s Wrong with Capitalism.”

Green Earth Guide by Dorian Yates
- A comprehensive green travel guide to France. Offers user-friendly information on health food stores and farmers’ markets, public transit, alternative health care facilities, green businesses, renewable energy resources, yoga and spiritual centers, national parks, and much more. Check back soon for a sample itinerary from the author.

Online Sustainability Resources

Ecostreet
Environmental News Network
Grist
Local Harvest
Matter Network
Radio Ecoshock
Success Through Play
Superforest
Sustainable Sushi
Treehugger

Spread the Word About Sustainable Sushi

Casson Trenor, author of the newly released Sustainable Sushi guide, has hit the ground running since his book was published on January 13. Trenor is eager to spread the word about an often-overlooked aspect of preserving our environment—Seafood. Recently praised on Treehugger.com and Sierra magazine’s The Green Life blog, Sustainable Sushi offers a truly cutting-edge approach to eating this popular cuisine. Check out Trenor’s comprehensive new website at www.SustainableSushi.net.

On February 16, 2009 Trenor will offer a short presentation followed by a book signing at Red Hill Books in San Francisco.
Check it out at 6:30pm:
401 Cortland Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94110
For more information, please call 415-648-5331.

On February 17, 2009 Trenor will be a featured guest on The View from the Bay, KGO TV, hosted by Janelle Wang.
Watch live at 3:00pm: http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/livenow?id=6387761.

On February 19, 2009 Trenor will be at the Monterey Institute of International Studies participating in a panel entitled “Is Sustainability Enough?” The discussion will address whether seafood sustainability is a valid way to save our oceans and along with Trenor will also feature Kim McCoy of Whale Wars fame (Executive Director of Sea Shepherd), Dane Klinger (PhD at Stanford and right-hand man of Carl Safina), and Jason Scorse (Professor of Environmental Economics, Monterey Institute of International Studies).
460 Pierce Street
Monterey, CA 93940

On February 21, 2009 Trenor will be signing books in the Oceans Wing of The Smithsonian, Museum of Natural History.
Admission is free.
Museum hours are 10:00am to 5:30pm.
10th Street & Constitution Avenue NW
Washington, D.C. 20560
For information, please call 202-633-1000.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Sustainable Sushi: A Guide to Saving the Oceans One Bite at a Time.