What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed last week:

How to collect rain water for your lawn using a cistern (video) – It may even help you save money on your water bill as you'll be able to use rain water on your plants and lawn.

EarthTalk: The EPA's first 40 years – How effective has the EPA been and what are its biggest challenges today? – As to the EPA’s priorities now under administrator Lisa Jackson, climate change is high atop the agency’s agenda, as are further improving air quality, assuring the safety of chemicals used in everyday products, protecting increasingly compromised waterways and coastal areas, building stronger state and tribal partnerships, and expanding protection for underrepresented communities.

TEDx comes to USF St. Pete: "Changing the Way We Eat" webcast Saturday, February 12 – The live TEDx talk is an all-day event taking place this Saturday, February 12, that "will highlight several aspects of the sustainable food movement and the work being done to shift our food system from industrially-based agriculture to one in which healthy, nutritious food is accessible to all."

Gift ideas for an eco-friendlier Valentine's Day – Why not make your gifts a little greener this year this year by purchasing more sustainable treats for your sweet?

This article appears in Feb 17-23, 2011.