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EcoGeek

website · in 78 videos (2007–2026)

Hank's environmental-technology blog and business.

Part of: Good Store

Videos by year: 2007: 24 · 2008: 8 · 2009: 4 · 2011: 2 · 2012: 3 · 2013: 1 · 2016: 2 · 2017: 1 · 2018: 1 · 2021: 1 · 2022: 2 · 2023: 2 · 2024: 8 · 2025: 10 · 2026: 9

Website: EcoGeek.org

Threads

Also named in the threads: Brotherhood 2.0 Book Club: each brother reads a book the other assigns (2007) · Hank's 2007 punishment voted by viewers (for textual communication) · Hank: living with ulcerative colitis (2007) · Hank and Maureen Johnson's unsanctioned Nerdfighter gathering at Barnes & Noble, Union Square, New York (2008) · John finds and reads a picture book he wrote as a child, 'Happy New Year Streamers' (2009) · The Lizzie Bennet Diaries web series (2012) · Hanko de Mayo 2012 edition · Awesome Socks Club: monthly sock subscription (2016) · John asks viewers to buy Sun Basin Soap, whose profit goes to charity (2023) · Sun Basin Soap: the brothers' charity soap subscription made with Botanie (2023) · Keats & Co.: the brothers' coffee and tea brand fighting tuberculosis (2024) · Partners In Health's comprehensive TB care project in Lesotho (search, treat, prevent), backed by Keats & Co. (2024)

Often together

What comes up in the same parts of the videos; the number is how many parts.

Sun Basin Soap (3) · HankGames (3) · Brotherhood 2.0 (7) · Maternal Center of Excellence (4) · Katherine Green (8) · DFTBA Records (7) · Good Store (4) · An Abundance of Katherines (3) · VidCon (5) · Paper Towns (4)

What the videos say

The most important statements of each year; all statements.

2007

  • 2007-01-11 · Brotherhood 2.0: January 11th — ask: Hank asks John or viewers what to do with business cards he had printed online for Detroit, which did not come out like his Kinko's sample. (hedged) — 00:01:43
  • 2007-01-12 · Brotherhood 2.0: January 12, 2007 — John offers ideas for Hank's misprinted business cards: make Katherine a dress with a hole punch and dental floss, eat them while discussing Kenya, write tiny wedding thank-you notes, wallpaper his dollhouse. (playful) — 00:00:14
  • 2007-01-17 · Brotherhood 2.0: January 17th — Hank greets Maureen Johnson and E. Lockhart and wonders whether that Maureen is the one who told him to build a house out of his misprinted business cards; if so, he has a surprise for her. (playful, unsure) — 00:00:10
    • Taking up Maureen's suggestion from the comments to build a house out of his misprinted business cards, Hank, who didn't know how, researched card houses on the internet. — 00:00:38
  • 2007-02-16 · Brotherhood 2.0: February 16th — Hank lists his work: Brotherhood 2.0 with his brother, running EcoGeek.org (a blog on environmental technologies), his old web design and development business, and trying to be a freelance writer; he is in this month's (February 2007) Mental Floss. — 00:00:11
  • 2007-04-11 · April 11th: EcoGeek Podcasting — Hank: Since John's day-in-the-writer's-life video showed that watching someone type isn't very interesting, Hank shows what he does by discussing the biggest current green-technology issues. (playful) — 00:00:10
    • Hank asks John what he thought: he is thinking about doing a podcast for EcoGeek, is trying it out, and appreciates any opinions. (hedged) — 00:02:58
  • 2007-04-19 · April 19th: For Sale?! — ask: Hank asks for comments or suggestions about his EcoGeek.org video podcast intro. — 00:03:39
  • 2007-04-27 · April 27th: Bad Day,,, — Hank: Before leaving Hank must get EcoGeek ready, pack and write a lot so as not to lose his job, the only one he has now; Katherine is arranging care for the cat and garden. — 00:02:47
  • 2007-05-21 · May 21st: Comment Bashing, Anniversaries and EBO Ladies — announcement: Hank announces that Yahoo's new site green.yahoo.com features EcoGeek content alongside NRDC, Amory Lovins, TreeHugger and Worldchanging. — 00:01:36
  • 2007-09-11 · September 11th: Floorcats, Recycling Bins and Memories — Hank shows pictures of a Brotherhood 2.0 recycling bin someone made: Brotherhood 2.0 on top, notes about EcoGeek and John's books on the sides, the World Suck Index on the front. (playful) — 00:01:48
  • 2007-12-06 · Dec. 6th: Peer Pressure and the Green Green Manifesto — John congratulates Hank on EcoGeek's three millionth visitor. — 00:03:34
  • …and 21 statements more in 2007 — all statements of 2007

Also named in: Brotherhood 2.0: February 23, 2007: Books, June 7: Weather and My Pants

2008

  • 2008-06-16 · Maine Inspires Deep Thoughts — announcement: Hank announces that he and John are starting a temporary project, Obama's Idiots, about the 2008 presidential race, at youtube.com/obamasidiots. — 00:00:00
    • During the project the brothers will raise money for Democratic candidates and, when goals are reached, do painful or embarrassing things; Hank has not yet got John to agree to that part. — 00:00:00
    • Hank says John will deliver political commentary and news, while Hank will punish himself in return for donations to Barack Obama and other Democrats, starting with Daniel Biss. — 00:00:40
  • 2008-08-12 · Eight Days of Awesome — Hank: In New York City Hank met the editor-in-chief of Scientific American, who said he admires EcoGeek; Hank says it felt like being king of nerddom for a day. — 00:00:40
  • 2008-09-13 · Hank Vlogs (and a String Quartet) — Hank says he has been absent mostly because of EcoGeek, which is doing very well. — 00:00:00
    • EcoGeek's one employee left for a bigger position, so Hank is doing all his old work again; he is hiring and may have found someone. (hedged) — 00:00:00
  • 2008-09-25 (said on 2008-09-24, implied) · Obama llama Duck — Hank explains that his old idea of the brothers punishing themselves for donations to Obama's campaign was dropped: good, but not achievable alongside Nerdfighters, EcoGeek and Paper Towns. — 00:00:00
  • …and 1 statement more in 2008 — all statements of 2008

Also named in: Your Spying Thieving Valentine: Hank, Marion the Nerdfightarion, Hank and John from the Road

2009

  • 2009-05-13 · GREEN SCREEN!!!! — announcement: Hank announces that as of today his YouTube channel TheEcoGeek is live, another thing he is doing with the green screen. — 00:01:17
    • As the EcoGeek, Hank will discuss all kinds of environmental news on the channel, mostly focusing on green technology. — 00:01:49
    • Hank points to the subscribe button on the EcoGeek channel page, suggests viewers click it, and asks them to tell him what they think of the channel. (playful, hedged) — 00:01:49
  • 2009-08-04 · Twitter Games and Truth or Fail — announcement: Hank says he has been reluctant to adopt Twitter (the EcoGeek Twitter mostly carries EcoGeek stories) but has now started a personal Hank Green Twitter. — 00:00:23
  • 2009-09-20 (said on 2009-09-21, implied) · Health Care Reform: The Hank Factor — John says Hank is 29, a video blogger and musician, and runs the environmental technology website EcoGeek. — 00:00:00
    • John says Hank started EcoGeek in graduate school and it has grown into a business. — 00:00:00
    • John says Hank now has insurance through that plan, though without drug coverage he still pays $20 a day; worrying less about cancer and bankruptcy, he invests more in EcoGeek, which employs more people. — 00:02:04
  • 2009-12-27 · How To Be a Nerdfighter: A Vlogbrothers FAQ — John: Asked whether they have real jobs, John says Hank runs the environmental technology website EcoGeek. — 00:00:44

2011

  • 2011-05-05 · IT'S HANKO DE MAYO!! — John: Since turning 30, John says, Hank kept publishing EcoGeek.org, 'the best environmental technology website', and fostered young musicians from Chameleon Circuit to Mike Lombardo through DFTBA Records. — 00:01:24
  • 2011-10-26 · 7,000,000,000 People — Hank says he has a problem with talking about population as the problem; EcoGeek commenters always say 'this wouldn't be necessary' if only the population were smaller. — 00:00:58

2012

  • 2012-05-05 · It's HANKO DE MAYO!!!!! — John thanks the people at NASA and Northrop Grumman who made Hank's present possible, especially Ron Birk, Charlie Atkinson and Rolf Danner, and Michael Gardner at EcoGeek for facilitating it. — video description
    • John thanks Hank for increasing awesome through Vlogbrothers, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, SciShow, Crash Course, HankGames, VidCon, DFTBA Records and EcoGeek, and says he does too much. (playful) — 00:02:12
  • 2012-06-08 · How to be More Productive...With Hank! — announcement: Hank lists his many jobs: VidCon is coming up at the end of the month, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries just passed 50,000 subscribers, plus SciShow, Crash Course, Truth or Fail, EcoGeek and DFTBA Records. — 00:00:03
  • …and 1 statement more in 2012 — all statements of 2012

2013

2016

  • 2016-10-07 · Changing Our Business a Bit — Hank explains their content company has been called EcoGeek after the blog he started in 2005, the reason for his first company, an LLC; the name no longer really applies. — 00:02:47
    • Hank announces that this week (week of 3 October 2016), after years of failing to settle on a name, the company that produces their content is renamed Complexly. — 00:03:10
    • Hank gives the name's reasons: the world is not simple, we will never fully understand the universe, each other or ourselves, the process matters as much as the outcome, and they want to help others imagine complexly. — 00:03:18
  • …and 1 statement more in 2016 — all statements of 2016

2017

2018

  • 2018-07-13 · Why Do So Few Countries Have Nukes? — recommendation: Hank recommends a series on the US court system on youtube.com/complexly, Complexly's new YouTube channel where the production company can try new things. — 00:09:40

2021

  • 2021-06-25 · The Surprising Origin of Crash Course — Hank says Crash Course and Complexly have funded themselves creatively: advertising, grants from organizations that understand the mission, Subbable, then Patreon, and now the Crash Course coin. — 00:02:40

2022

  • 2022-04-22 · My Life is on My Walls — Hank: Going far back in Vlogbrothers history, Hank shows the misprinted business card cube from 2007. — 00:01:54
  • 2022-09-02 · How A YouTube Company Actually Makes Money — announcement: Hank: Complexly is selling five calendars for five shows: Eons and Bizarre Beasts art, James Weiss's Microcosmos microphotography, and SciShow and SciShow Space images, printed in the US with facts, shipping everywhere. — 00:02:16

2023

  • 2023-05-23 · Rough Week — announcement: John asks people to spare a thought for the employees of DFTBA and Complexly, who now have him, a store-brand Hank Green, as temporary CEO. (playful) — 00:02:55
  • 2023-12-24 · John and Hank Hanging Out but they Keep Getting Younger and More Pixelated — both: Asked whether they have real jobs: Hank runs the environmental technology site EcoGeek; John is an award-winning author of Looking for Alaska, An Abundance of Katherines and Paper Towns. — 02:17:44

2024

  • 2024-01-23 · Breaking News: Complexly Signs Major Tetris Athlete — announcement: John: Complexly is now the lead sponsor of Willis's Twitch and YouTube livestreams, with Complexly's logo prominently featured. — 00:03:35
  • 2024-05-28 · A Midlife Crisis — John says over 70 people work full-time for Complexly and over 50 for DFTBA.com or Good Store. — 00:01:27
  • 2024-06-14 · Some Reasons why People Suck — Hank says US CO2 emissions started to go down in 2005, the very year he started his EcoGeek blog. — 00:00:00
  • 2024-08-02 · My Letter to the Future — announcement: Hank announces that Complexly, maker of SciShow, Crash Course and Eons, has launched its own store, with products up to 50% off to kick it off; purchases help Complexly keep existing. — 00:03:49
  • 2024-08-26 · Welcome to the Learn-a-Thon — announcement: Hank announces the Learnathon, a fundraiser over the next few weeks for Complexly's mission of accessible education, celebrating its staff with livestreams and behind-the-scenes videos. — 00:00:51
  • 2024-09-06 · I feel like I can't talk about this… — ask: Hank: The Complexly Learnathon ends today; Complexly is not launching a streaming service, but viewers can pretend and give $60 for a year of Complexly. — 00:02:55
    • Hank says everyone at Complexly works hard on razor-thin margins, which is stressful, but at the moment a good stressful. — 00:03:24
  • 2024-10-02 · What I learned from the weirdest day of my life — Hank: On one of the weirdest days of his life, in New York in 2008, just after his first Nerdfighter gathering and wearing a fan-made Nerdfighteria shirt under his suit, Hank made a deal to sell EcoGeek to Scientific American for money and a job. — 00:00:29
    • When Lehman Brothers collapsed and the economy crashed in September 2008, Scientific American's owner paused all deals indefinitely; Hank jokes that the deal is still on pause. — 00:00:58
  • 2024-11-03 · Hank's very messy post-cancer year of mistakes, meaning… — Hank: Complexly (SciShow, Crash Course and more) is the most impactful thing Hank has helped start; it could always use him, from promoting Study Hall and the Crash Course coin to SciShow thumbnails. — 00:07:34
  • …and 1 statement more in 2024 — all statements of 2024

2025

  • 2025-01-24 · Am I OK? — Hank says all Dear Hank and John ad money goes to Complexly rather than to the hosts, as would be normal for a podcast; ideally not forever, but Complexly needs it now. — 00:05:55
  • 2025-03-11 · Hank Green's Brother — John says EcoGeek was successful, but the volume of Hank's other projects overwhelmed him and it sort of went away, except Hank Green ideas never do. — 00:01:28
    • John announces Hank is relaunching EcoGeek, no longer a blog but a subscription service for home cleaning products for eco-conscious homes. — 00:01:41
    • John says EcoGeek launches today and 100% of its profits go to the Coral Reef Alliance in support of its Maui Watershed Project. — 00:02:08
    • John says he has used EcoGeek's cleaning supplies exclusively for about two months and it is a game changer: less weight to ship, and the stuff is amazing. — 00:02:44
  • 2025-04-18 · This one's for your mom — announcement: Hank says that, as a separate Earth Day promotion, new EcoGeek subscribers get a free scrub brush, his favorite kitchen tool in a long time. — 00:15:52
  • 2025-09-30 · WHO ARE WE AND WHAT ARE WE DOING — Hank says that is why he and John quietly take no profit distributions from DFTBA or Complexly and give away all the revenue from the channel. — 00:05:35
  • 2025-11-11 · John's Annual Psychophysical Decline — announcement: John presents Good Store's holiday bundles in three categories: socks and Sun Basin soap, candles and bath bombs fund the MCOE; coffee and tea fight TB; EcoGeek products fund the Coral Reef Alliance. — 00:03:34
    • John says EcoGeek sells dish soap, laundry sheets and a new dishwasher powder designed in part by Alec from Technology Connections. — 00:04:03
  • 2025-11-21 · I Wasn't Always Like This!! — ask: Hank: On the last day of the Complexly Learnathon, Hank shows hand-drawn logo shirts and asks viewers to support Complexly: $60 gets a Pelican pin, SciShow dice set, Endlings bandana or shirt, gone after today. — 00:04:45
  • 2025-11-24 · Good Store Holiday Gift Guide LIVE with Hank and John — Hank brought Good Store products to a $25-limit white elephant; it felt a little sneaky, but the EcoGeek items did great and everybody wanted them. — 00:14:54
    • John explains where purchases go: Keats & Co. coffee and tea supports TB care in Lesotho; socks, underwear and Sun Basin Soap support the Maternal Center of Excellence; EcoGeek supports the Coral Reef Alliance. — 00:24:21
  • …and 12 statements more in 2025 — all statements of 2025

2026

  • 2026-02-04 · We Just Sold Our Company for $0 — announcement: Hank announces that, as of January 1, 2026, Complexly has relaunched as a nonprofit organization, which he and John had kept secret for about a month. — 00:02:02
    • Hank announces the brothers have donated all their shares to the new nonprofit to make Complexly stronger and built to last for generations, prioritizing the biggest impact on the most people. — 00:04:04
  • 2026-02-10 · I Was a Teenage Dirtbag — announcement: John congratulates everyone at Complexly on officially becoming a nonprofit. — 00:04:48
  • 2026-02-13 · Why Isn't Everybody a Nonprofit?! — announcement: Hank reminds John that Complexly, the company they founded together 15 years ago, just became a nonprofit organization, which they think was a good idea. — 00:01:27
  • 2026-02-13 · Project for Awesome 2026 Kickoff! — announcement: John says Complexly becoming a nonprofit is a relief to him and exciting; he remains its founder emeritus. — 07:44:31
  • 2026-02-24 · Risk Is a Privilege — announcement: John recaps that Complexly became a nonprofit. — 00:00:00
    • John says that flexibility came from earlier risks: in his early 20s Hank started the blog EcoGeek, which became profitable. — 00:00:58
  • 2026-05-22 · Why I Made Crash Course a Non-Profit — announcement: In a channel comment Hank says he forgot to say that he is no longer an owner because Complexly was converted into a non-profit, which is why coins are now tax deductible. — creator comment
  • 2026-05-26 · Hank Green Is a Fool — announcement: John says Complexly became a charity, so Crash Course and the rest of Complexly are now owned by the public it seeks to serve. — 00:03:38
  • 2026-05-29 · Chemo Cow Body Odor YouTube Helen Hunt Commute — announcement: Hank notes Complexly is now a non-profit, so donations are tax-deductible and the coins carry no sales tax. — 00:06:34
  • 2026-09-11 · Our Last YouTube View… — Hank says the event is in Los Angeles and expensive because it is a fundraiser, so inaccessible to most people, but it helps make Complexly's content accessible to everyone. — 00:03:28