green is universal

Christie's International announced today that they will be holding a Green Auction, called "A Bid to Save the Earth" on April 22, 2010, coinciding with the 40th anniversary of Earth Day. Proceeds from the sale will be divided among four leading not-for-profit environmental organizations: Conservation International, Oceana, Natural Resources Defense Council and the Central Park Conservancy.

The Evening Sale will be a star-studded event with top celebrities serving on the Green Auction Host Committee including Leonardo DiCaprio, Harrison Ford, and Matt Lauer, among many others. The live auction will include major works from designers and artists including Keith Tyson, Maya Lin, and Olafur Eliasson. Other lots will include coveted celebrity experiences with Hugh Jackman, Christina Aguilera and Candice Bergen, upscale eco-vacations and exquisite jewelry, with additional luxury items secured daily.

Green is Universal is proud to be the official media sponsor of the event. As the auction will be taking place during our 3rd annual Earth Week, you will be seeing more information as the event draws closer on NBC Universal's family of networks, here at greenisuniversal.com and of course, at abidtosavetheearth.org.

We are happy to announce the winners of the national "Green Your School" contest, funded by the NBC Universal Foundation and in connection with Green is Universal.

The contest, which we launched last spring, challenged eco-conscious high schoolers to submit their school's best green-related projects. After receiving hundreds of thousands of entries from classrooms nationwide, a panel of distinguished judges, including NBC News' Anne Thompson and environmentalist Simran Sethi, selected West Geauga High School in Chesterland, Ohio as the grand prize winner of $5,000. Two runner-up prizes of $2,500 were also awarded to Boston Latin School in Boston, Mass. and Amphitheater High School in Tucson, AZ.

We  would like to extend a huge congratulations to the winning schools and thank all of the students who participated!

The "Green Your School" contest engaged students in conservation projects that improved, restored, or beautified their school's environment. To be eligible, entries had to be student-led and have been started after August 1, 2008. Projects were judged on their environmental impact on the health of the school, sustainability, and the involvment of other students, teachers, administrators and/or the outside community.

Last April, Green is Universal launched its first version of the wildly popular iPhone app, iBloom. With iBloom, you can plant a seed in seconds and watch it grow. Simply tend to its seedling needs while you're on the go, but beware... life's not all roses in iBloom! You'll have to conquer smog and drought to grow the happiest, healthiest little blossom around and make it to the next level.

This Green Week, we are very excited to launch v2.0 of iBloom. New features include:

- Additional Flowers: In addition to the original daisy, rose and orchid, there are now 3 more flowers to grow. A lily, marigold and the exotic black bat flower.

- Insects: Now you've got one more element to battle in your garden, pests! If you are growing a healthy flower, you will be visited by positive insects like aphids, lady bugs and butterflies. If you've got a brown thumb, your bud may be paid a visit by a Japanese beetle, a white fly or a moth.

- Weather/Location Settings: You can enter in your domestic zip code or any city name worldwide and iBloom will use weather.com's API to determine that locale's current weather conditions and display that weather type appropriately.

- Facebook Connect Distribution: Share all your iBloom fun with your friends through Facebook Connect!

View a demo of iBloom and then download it from

In addition to the New York and Los Angeles events, NBCU Volunteers helped Make Green Count around the country - and world - this week.

In Miami, volunteers cleaned up John U. Lloyd Beach State Park in Dania Beach, Florida. The event, as part of the South Florida Living Green Fair, involved employees from WSCV, WTVJ, Telemundo, GE, and the Hispanic Forum.

"It was a gorgeous day," said Maria Christina Barros, who helped organize the event. "We had a great time and helped make a difference!"

This week NBCU Volunteers in Los Angeles returned to Aberdeen Canyon in Griffith Park to plant 50 trees and remove invasive weeds, as part of a long-term commitment with NBCU Foundation grantee Los Angeles Conservation Corps and the City of Los Angeles Recreation and Parks. More than 60 employees were joined by Ron Meyer, Lauren Zalaznick, and L.A. Councilmember Tom La Bonge.

"I truly appreciate everyone's commitment to the environment on such a beautiful November day," said Zalaznick. "You can really see the direct impact of our efforts, even in the short three years since this canyon was so terribly damaged by fire. Everyone should be very proud of their continued hard work."

View coverage of the Los Angeles event.