Forget the red carpet. This year, the real buzz at the Oscars was green.

I'm not just talking about the fact that Al Gore won big at the Oscars [1] this year. His movie, An Inconvenient Truth [1], won the Best Documentary award, as well as the Best Original Song award for "I Need to Wake Up," sung by Melissa Ethridge. And despite all jokes to the contrary, the Supreme Court can't actually take either Oscar away from Gore.

But even before Al Gore [1] won the award, he and Leonardo DiCaprio told the star-studded audience -- and the some 40 million people who tune into the show each year -- that the Oscars had gone green [2] this year.

The 79th Annual Academy Awards show sought to reduce its carbon footprint [3] this year in a variety of ways. Among other things, they used recycled paper, served organic [3] food at the Governor's Ball, and used an energy audit for the Kodak Theater to reduce waste, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council [4], the advocacy group that worked with organizers. The official Oscar site also features a Go Green section [5] that lists several tips on how all of us can conserve energy on the road, at home, and at work.

The stars made an eco-friendly statement by showing up at the festivities in a green fashion. Celebrities turned up in rides [6] that ranged from plug-in hybrids and the hip new Tesla roadster, to carpools. The idea, it seems, was to show the general public how the stars have embraced green alternatives in order to prevent global warming [6] and climate change.

For all the high-profile gestures, however, environmentally-friendly changes are also taking place behind the screen [7]. For instance, one team took home an Oscar at the the Scientific and Technical Awards banquet Saturday night (the segment that isn't broadcast to the masses) for a soundtrack process that saves 2,000 kilograms of silver and 150 million liters of water each year. I'd explain what this means, but I'm not fluent in High-Tech Movie Speak. But there's a complete explanation at Nature.com [8].

Personally, I thought one of the more entertaining moments at this year's telecast came when Gore jokingly tried to announce a bid for the 2008 presidency while at the podium with Leonardo DiCaprio. Or he tried to announce something, anyway. We'll never know what he intended to say, because the orchestra -- the watchdogs that never let anyone ramble on too long -- cut him off before he could finish what he'd meant to say.

I was also glad that An Inconvenient Truth for Best Documentary was one of the few picks I got right for my Oscar pool ballot. Yes, everyone predicted it would. No, I didn't win the pool (alas, I never do). But at least this one lived up to all the expectations, and as a result, more people will get the message.