More than a few Hollywood stars fancy themselves as eco-crusaders, so it's no surprise that green-friendly marketers see the Academy Awards as a chance to get some high-wattage free advertising. One company in particular that’s feeling the love is Eco-Limo, a 3-year-old car service whose fleet is comprised entirely of hybrid or biofuel-powered vehicles. The CEO of Eco-Limo, the unusually named Y Fray (shown here), is known as the environmentally friendly limo-driver to the stars. “Leo [DiCaprio] is a client every now and then,” Fray says. “Things have just blossomed by word of mouth. We have not done any advertising or marketing.” This year, the Oscars telecast itself aims to reduce its carbon footprint by selecting “supplies and services with a sensitivity toward reducing the threats we face from global warming, species extinction, deforestation, toxic waste, and hazardous chemicals in our water and food.”

—Posted by Tim Nudd