Our newly branded company, offMetro.com, gets a big boost of exposure in the latest February issue of Cosmopolitan Magazine! (Check the inside flap.)

“This is not normal,” my friend Katharina said with a flick of her bike bell. “Stopping!”

We were in Copenhagen, halfway across the Dronning Louises Bridge, where 35,000 people pedal to and fro every day. Off to the side, we stood straddling our stadsfiets, hearts pounding, as hundreds of helmet-less cyclists in protected lanes whirred by automobiles, looking totally relaxed on their way to work. No wonder the Danes are the happiest people on the planet, I thought, calling to mind the claustrophobic interior of New York subways. As the sun perforated the clouds, we jumped back on the saddle and spent the following four days dissecting the town on two wheels, feeling like part of some miraculous urban experiment where bicycles and cars coexisted peacefully on the road.

Biking fuels the senses. Come springtime, it’s the prescribed mode of transportation if you want to experience the town like a local, rolling along a charming, eco-conscious rhythm of life. When the bike traffic light turns green, here are the best eco things to do in Copenhagen, from where to eat, sleep, drink, and get inspired by a city well on its way to becoming the first carbon-neutral capital in the world.

For the full story, go to offManhattan.com

Knowledge Is Power: Experts Share Easy Tips to Help You Eat Better, Save Our Planet [SLIDESHOW]

Before attending the NYC Wine & Food Festival’s “Dining Sustainably” panel last Saturday, I was sure I had the eco-chick shtick down pat. Before hearing what four smart, successful, and environmentally enlightened women had to say, I would have expected Al Gore and Ed Begley Jr. to praise my super light carbon footprint with a You Go Girl slap on my derrière. Ten minutes into the event, I realized: Who was I kidding?

Read the whole story for my organic food shockers and sustainable restaurant discoveries at huffingtonpost.com/lauren-elyse-matison/

Cosmopolitan Magazine’s Publishing team named oM as one of their 10 favorite and most influential blogs!

“We clicked far and wide for the hottest up-and-coming bloggers who are experts on everything from fashion and beauty to food, fitness, motherhood, travel and going green. offManhattan.com proves that even your weekend getaways, dining and nightlife can go green. Get inspired with loads of budget-friendly, eco-friendly things to do near you.” — Cosmo

Pick up an issue of the September or October magazine to learn more about the rest of Cosmo’s top bloggers.

Scottsdale, AZ: On the new Soleri Bridge with my rented Schwinn bike

It’s a wonderful thing that the Pope’s new ride will be a plug-in hybrid, but vroom vroom doesn’t sound as sexy as it used to. Not when gas is $4 a gallon and the average car causes 600 pounds of air pollution every year. Obama’s pledge to up fuel-efficiency standards to an average 56.2 miles per gallon by 2025 is all well and good. But in the meantime, a troublesome economy is driving people to drive less.

AAA’s Fourth of July holiday report cited a decline in car travel and a shift towards alternative modes of transportation. Biking and low-cost interstate bus travel are on the rise. Might this be the start of a new era of footprint-sensitive vacationing? (Let’s think positive and say, “Yes.”)

So, where should you take your next car-free getaway?

These six cities may not boast mass transit systems like New York’s, but they do have what it takes to make discovering their best features an easy, fun, and affordable experience without a car.

Read the full story at Grist.org.

I could move to France tomorrow. Leaving New York City behind does not seem such an impossible idea anymore. Especially after my recent visit, when my so-so grasp of the French language somehow came naturally, almost fluently after just a day. The joie de vivre seeped into my bones, the vibrant colors, the impressionist landscapes, the smell of fresh baked croissants, all the street-facing rows of scarf-wrapped coffee drinkers…on my fifth visit, France felt like home. And all those bikers! It really did move me. So I wrote about it for HuffPo.

Vive le Vélo! America Needs A Bike Ambassador, and a French Lesson

Bikes have replaced berets as the “it” accessory in France. The two-wheeled vehicles may be chic and eco, but this is not why locals ride them. It’s because bikes are cheap and they are everywhere. In May, while on assignment for a story about this summer’s Normandy Impressionist Festival–an event mostly accessible by the Train à Grand Vitesse (TGV), for those interested–I saw firsthand how France is trumping the United States on the alternative transportation front.

To read the full story, click here.

Rail Europe, the France Guide, and Air France are hosting journalists May 16-21 on a cultural trip through five cities in France. I am so looking forward to being back!

It doesn’t matter how many times you hear or read his panoply of pleas about going green, even to republicans, Ed’s got a mouthful worth listening to. Quite simply, and without needing a script, he knows just how to get the serious message across–often by making light out of how to lighten our carbon footprint.

I followed up with the eco-friendly father, husband, and hybrid-trotter over email about his upcoming big project, some easy next steps for greenies, and what Ed Begley Jr.’s climate bill would look like if he knew Congress would pass it.

How can folks who already incorporate “green” acts into their daily lives take the next step to being even more eco-conscious? (Consider both those who live in a small NYC apartment and those who live in a house in the suburbs.)

ED: The way I did it, beginning in 1970, is by picking the low hanging fruit first–the stuff that is cheapest and easiest and gives you the biggest bang for your buck. Walking, riding a bike, taking public transportation, recycling, composting, home gardening or supporting your local farmers market are good ways to start that help you save money right away. Others in this category include energy efficient lighting, low flow showerheads and faucets, power strips to shut down phantom power-draw devices, weather stripping around doors and windows, window coverings. As you do these things and save money, then you can do more. The next level includes things like a rain barrel, a compost tumbler, LED light bulbs etc. Then you can climb the ladder higher with things like an energy efficient water heater or solar hot water. Then towards the top come things like solar electric and hybrid cars. You don’t RUN up Mt. Everest–you climb slowly, get to base camp, get acclimated, then climb higher. Do only what you can afford to do. Be fiscally responsible and do what you can today, save money and then do more.

Read the full interview here: Seeing the World Through Green-Colored Glasses: My Interview with Ed Begley Jr.

This day is supposed to be the most beautiful day of your life. It also happens to be one of the most egregiously un-green traditions we have. I didn’t even realize this–and I run a green travel website–until my boyfriend proposed to me in the middle of a rain forest five months ago and I began planning my wedding. Now that I am a bride-to-be, I figured I’d share some easy things we can do for the good of the planet (and our wallets) in anticipation of the big day.

To read the full story, visit huffingtonpost.com

Since the spring of 1912, people have stopped in Washington D.C. to smell the cherry blossoms. Last year, over one million tourists came to the nation’s capital to enjoy the gift from the Japanese government 97 seasons after the first trees were planted in West Potomac Park. At a time when climate bills are struggling instead of flourishing on the Hill, why not explore the National Cherry Blossom Festival (March 27- April 11) in an environmentally conscious way? (Especially when this town is making it so easy to lighten the carbon footprint.)