The Green Magician

The Green Magician: Earth Day tips for conjurors:

• Think twice about using balloons in your act. These things never go away as they end up sitting in a landfill for years and years. Not only do balloons present an environmental hazard, but they are a health hazard, too. No one wants their birthday party ruined when little Bobby chokes on a balloon animal or gets electrocuted after releasing his metallic balloon into a power line. Besides, aren’t these things really for clowns? If you must, then go with biodegradable. Also, the jury isn't quite in yet about latex balloons as there is evidence to suggest some are treated with chemicals that serve as a preservative against bacterial decomposition (cited in Hibbard, New York Times, "Balloons' Effect On the Environment." April 1, 1990).
  

• When booking a show, think about using on-line tools instead of paper contracts. With e-mail and internet, magicians need not print out duplicate copies of contracts and waste tons of paper each year. E-mail is great for contracts. Not only is this tip good for the environment, but it saves your small business $$$ in the long-run.

• Finally, find ways to stop wasting so many playing cards. Playing cards are made from paper, plastic, and other stuffs. By "other stuffs," we mean toxic stuffs (Trend News, 5/2/09, see also "Beware of Toxic Playing Cards" on the ellusionist blog click here). Try performing a mentalism effect where your spectator thinks of a card and you divine the number and suit. If you perform card flourishes, take the extra time to collect the cards fallen on the floor and recycle them. You might also want to demand playing cards made from recyclable products from your dealer.

If you are one of those magicians who feel that there is no such thing as climate change or global warming, we recommend you educate yourself a little bit. There’s only 40+ years worth of research available. Please send all hate mail to the moderator, address found on profile page.