Top 5 Oscar-Nominated Green Celebrities

Even though posh Hollywood is hardly the standard of going green, I am a sucker for watching the Academy Awards every year. Out of curiosity, I have done some research on which celebrities have a green streak in them. So in honor of the upcoming Oscars, I made my Top 5 list of Oscar-nominated eco-friendly celebrities.

Colin Firth photo from thefilmstage.com

Leonardo DiCaprio

(three Oscar nominations, most recently in 2013 for Leading Actor in The Wolf of Wall Street) Founder of the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, which works to secure a sustainable future, DiCaprio has fostered environmental awareness throughout his life including support for universal clean water and reducing greenhouse gases. His documentary, The 11^th Hour, offers solutions to global warming. The hybrid car-driving actor (who often flies commercial rather than via private jet) has been an active supporter of World Wildlife Fund, National Resources Defense Council and Global Green USA.
Natalie Portman

(two Oscar nominations including 2011 win for Leading Actress in Black Swan) A staunch vegetarian (often vegan) who launched a vegan shoe line in 2008, Portman has resolved to carbon neutralize all her travels. She is a supporter of sustainable jewelry and wears an engagement ring handmade with an antique, mine-cut center stone and conflict-free diamonds set in recycled platinum. The actress has also shown support for PETA, Global Green USA and preventing the extinction of mountain gorillas in Rwanda.
Colin Firth

(two Oscar nominations including 2011 win for Leading Actor in The King’s Speech) An Oxfam ambassador and Fair Trade advocate, he helped set up Progreso, the world’s first chain of fair-trade coffee shops. The actor also owns Eco-Age, an ecological store in London, which is sustainably lit and heated and offer three stories of eco-friendly products, from bamboo computers to lampshades made from fallen Norwegian trees. In 2012, Firth made a video appeal to prevent illegal deforestation in an area of Brazil where an endangered tribe lives.
Meryl Streep

(19 Oscar nominations including 3 wins, most recently in 2012 for Lead Actress in Iron Lady) In 1989, the eco foodie created Mothers and Others (now defunct) to educate consumers about chemicals in our food. Streep, who credits becoming a parent as the impetus for her environmental concerns, helps raise awareness of toxins in the environment through her work with Healthy Child Healthy World. The gold Lanvin gown Streep wore to accept her 2012 Oscar win was made from eco certified fabric.
Ed Norton

(three Oscar nominations, most recently in 2015 for Supporting Actor in Birdman) A self-proclaimed environmentalist, Norton speaks out on green building, solar energy and waste reduction. In 2008 he narrated the National Geographic special Strange Days on Planet Earth, which explored topics of pollution and climate change. Norton serves as the UN Goodwill Ambassador for biodiversity, is a co-founder of the fundraiser CrowdRise and regularly contributes to the Wilderness Society and Earthjustice. The actor sends an Earth Day message in this 2012 blog on The Huffington Post.