I'm not sure if Ed Begley Jr is better known at this point for his acting or his conservation crusade, but there's no doubt he lends a certain sort of star power to any "green" event. Such was the case Thursday in the preamble to the Green Living Show, as Begley played a starring role in the Energy Conservation Leadership Summit and then hosted the Green Toronto Awards.

But while business and civic leaders gathered to congratulate each other and share conservation strategies, I was more interested in Begley's message of hope and to pick the low-hanging fruit first, a theme we didn't stray too far away from in our 15 minute chat.

The entire exhibition space of the Direct Energy Centre will be turned over to purveyors of green products, tips, and food as the third annual Green Living Show opens on Friday. Ideas for a more sustainable lifestyle are on display and visitors will be able to go home with armloads of freebies - and plenty of merchandise available for purchase. Plus there are loads of activities, foods, workshops and speakers, all helping to fill our collective conscience (and tummies).

I found last year's event to be insightful and a fun use of my Saturday and am looking forward to attending again this year. Naturally, event organizers are hoping to see another good turnout so they're offering some free tickets to blogTO readers (see below).

Even at full price of $12 it's worth attending, and that can be reduced to $10.50 if you buy online or with your mobile (after all, paperless is green).

I love Earth Day. While Toronto has no shortage of green events throughout the year, it's only during this week that there are so many of them that there is bound to be a few really good ones no matter where you find yourself.

Earth Day 2009 is quickly approaching - it falls on this coming Wednesday. And while there are event listings for across Canada such as on EarthDay.ca, the following three Toronto events are my favorite. And they're all at different times and locations spanning the city, so if you're so inclined you could check them all out.

The Toronto Green Community, a local grassroots environmental organization, thinks it has a plan to help save the environment. They want me and you and others who shop at a selection of local stores to do something normally reserved for bars, restaurants and, uh, your friendly neighbourhood valet - leave a tip.

It's all part of an initiative called GREENtuity that takes place between April 16th and 26th. Participating retailers include familiar names like Kakayo Chocolate, Grassroots and Rowe Farms. The idea is that when shopping at one of these stores they'll ask if you want to add a $1 tip to your purchase. There's no obligation, and quite frankly, I'd be a bit surprised if there's a huge response rate. I hope GREENtuity (or, I guess, humanity) proves me wrong.

Photographers out there (i.e. people with cameras) still have a chance to enter a commuter-themed photo contest that closes at the end of the month. It's being jointly run by Smart Commute Toronto (a great alternative transportation organization set up by the City) and Spacing Magazine.

Thanks to record government deficit spending, there is one economic sector that appears to be flush with money that needs to be spent: green projects.

This week Toronto Greenhouse aimed to bring together environment-focused entrepreneurs and investors. It was the first in a line of downtown events that will take place on the last Tuesday evening of every month. Kicking things off at the Steamwhistle Brewery, the place was packed (apparently sold out) as presenters pitched their ideas to a room full of potential investors (or lots of people with suits anyhow). The crowd was totally abuzz, with half the room content to focus on networking as opposed to what was going on up on the stage.