This article, which appeared in the September edition of Ottawa Magazine, was written by Urban Hippie blogger Jen Lahey, whose blog is published every second Tuesday at OttawaMagazine.com. Follow Jen on Twitter ‏@Jen_Lahey.

In charge of social media and relationship building at terra20 (see Ottawa Magazine‘s pre-opening coverage of the store here), Pamela Tourigny describes her job as a perfect fit. Opening September 15, terra20 is an eco-superstore offering a raft of green goods — from cosmetics to fashion, housewares to baby clothes, snack foods to outdoor items — under one roof. Ever since her parents took her to the town dump as a child and she saw the massive piles of garbage, Tourigny has been passionate about how individual daily choices can have a dramatic effect on the environment. A stint as editor of Construction News piqued her interest in green building, and a six-year run in market writing at the Ottawa Citizen saw her penning sections about eco-decor and furnishings for the home. Add to all this Tourigny’s years of often single-handed media work as founding president of the National Capital Vegetarian Association, and she was a natural pick for the terra20 gig.

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