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“Whatever we present has a high aesthetic value, is made well, is quality, is something you want, but at the same time has a very meaningful sustainable element to it,” says actor Adrian Grenier. He’s talking about his burgeoning web business SHFT, but he might as well be talking about our eco-friendly Jetsetter hotels. In fact, Grenier and his SHFT partner, film producer Peter Glatzer, curated a collection of eco-conscious escapes around the same principles that guide them at SHFT, where they publish articles about everything from fully electric motorcycles to furniture made of reclaimed wood to recipes. They call it “curating the culture of today’s environment.” We call it great taste with a low carbon-footprint. Fresh off the heels of two Webby wins and a major sale on GILT, I chatted with Peter and Adrian about how to live life, the SHFT way…

Jetset Farryn: So you two are quite the duo? How did you find each other?

Peter: We met through a very good mutual friend who wound up designing the website.

JSF: I’m guessing concern for the environment was part of that connection. Have you always been interested in environmental issues?

Adrian: We bonded on several things when we first met. We were both personally concerned about environmental issues and were raised to be conscious about it. But what we agreed on was that the focus of SHFT needed to be on solutions. The doom and gloom and fear-based preachiness surrounding environmental issues is a turn-off.

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I’ll be the first to admit that travel is not the most eco-friendly hobby to have (Coachella = planes, cars, shuttles) but travel can be responsible, and not just in the hardcore voluntour-kind-of-way. In honor of Earth Week, here are my mean, green travel dreams for 2011…

1. Roadtrip… in a Tesla
From America’s West to the Amalfi Coast, it’s no surprise that road tripping is on my to do list. So it’s a good thing that Tesla creates electric cars that are actually… well, electric. On the road since 2008, Tesla Roadsters are more upscale, more varied and, quite frankly, just plain cooler than the traditional idea of an electric automobile. 

2. Eat, drink and buy local… in Nicaragua
Don’t be tempted by Starbucks and snow-globes! Support the surrounding community by stocking up on local snacks and souvenirs. There’s no better way to learn about a country than through its’ local traditions, crafts and of course, food, and this year I’m in need of Nicaragua (the best gift I got this year was this pack of presents from a friend in Nicaragua). Providing exclusive access to one of Central America’s lesser-known ecological treasures — the Indio Maiz Biological Reserve — Rio Indio Lodge has the benefit of being near both the rain forest and the Caribbean on the Costa Rica–Nicaragua border… a perfect place to fill my stomach, and suitcase. 

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