These should have been on the link list from the beginning, but sometimes you miss what's staring you in the face.
Adbusters- We are a global network of culture jammers and creatives working to change the way information flows, the way corporations wield power, and the way meaning is produced in our society. Also the founders of Buy Nothing Day.
National Geographic's The Green Guide- According to Wikipedia, it has become the most reliable source of environmental information for consumers.
Green America (formerly Co-op America)- Our mission is to harness economic power—the strength of consumers, investors, businesses, and the marketplace—to create a socially just and environmentally sustainable society.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
The Uniform Project
Here's an amazing website: The Uniform Project. Sheena Matheiken is pledging to wear just one dress the entire year, using scarves, jewelery and accessories to customize her outfit. (I should mention, there's 7 dresses, but it's only one style and color.) Taking a stand against consumerism and fostering creativity! I should have done this project myself for this semester!
Outfit for November 21, 2009
Thoughts on Buy Nothing day
I’ve been seeing a lot of posts about Friday being “Buy Nothing” day (Friday also being Black Friday, the so-called busiest shopping day of the year.) I like the idea of having a buy nothing day to raise awareness about excess consumerism. People can tend to get a little crazy during the holiday season, having to buy presents for friends and family and teachers and babysitters and hostesses… the list goes on and on. People will also buy gifts just to have them on hand; in case someone surprises them with a gift, they can reciprocate. It’s hard to draw a line when the line gets further and further away each year.
However, I keep thinking about the other repercussions of a Buy Nothing day. What would happen to the economy if a large part of the population actually bought nothing? I have friends who own small retail businesses, and friends who supply those businesses with goods, and the effect on them would be catastrophic. Retail businesses depend on the holiday season to sustain them the rest of the year. Again, there’s a line. On one end are shoppers getting to WalMart at 3 in the morning to be first on line to trample down anyone who gets in the way of their $15 DVD player. On the other end it’s a little trickier. Is it a person who doesn’t celebrate by giving or receiving gifts at all? Or someone who makes gifts out of items around the house and in the woods?
Personally I’d fall closer to the “no gift” end of the line, but I can see why some people would fall to the other side. If I was really poor and wanted to treat my family to some nice things for the holidays, Black Friday might be the only chance I get to stretch my dollars as far as they can go. Even as a conscious consumer, I fall prey to the discounts and deals that the bigger chains are able to offer. I certainly can’t afford to shop exclusively at local indie boutiques (though I would like to.) And as far as children’s clothing and shoes are concerned, why on earth would you spend more than you had to? They’ll grow out of it in a few months!
Like everything else, I think the answer lies in the happy medium. We should be taking some time for reflection and honoring our loved one with experiences and memories, not just gifts. Ethical consumerism, by definition, implies consuming. Something must be purchased. So at this point in history, I think the best we can do is just stop and think before we open our wallets. Shop, but with purpose and meaning. When you’re buying gifts this season, make sure you feel good about your purchasing decisions when you leave the store.
Monday, November 23, 2009
10% Shift
Thanks to Portland- Buy Local's website, I found 10% Shift, an initiative to get people to shift 10% of their spending from big box chain stores to local, independent retailers. Unfortunately it's for the other Portland, in Maine.
It's kind of like the 3/50 project I wrote about a week or two ago.
It's kind of like the 3/50 project I wrote about a week or two ago.
Make Wealth History
I subscribed to Make Wealth History's feed and have been reading a lot of interesting posts from them. I like their tag line: "Because the earth cannot afford our lifestyle".
As someone living in a modern, first world country, it is hard to remember that most of the world doesn't have the luxury of living like I do. It's something I know, of course, but not something that I fully grok. Because I don't have to see it everyday. I simply can't imagine a world in which resources were scarce. I watched Waterworld last night and while I know that's a fictitious story, I do know that some people in this world live by scavenging.
As Make Wealth History points out, we have a responsibility to start watching what (and how much) we consume. Because the way it is right now, it's not fair.
As someone living in a modern, first world country, it is hard to remember that most of the world doesn't have the luxury of living like I do. It's something I know, of course, but not something that I fully grok. Because I don't have to see it everyday. I simply can't imagine a world in which resources were scarce. I watched Waterworld last night and while I know that's a fictitious story, I do know that some people in this world live by scavenging.
As Make Wealth History points out, we have a responsibility to start watching what (and how much) we consume. Because the way it is right now, it's not fair.
If everyone on the planet enjoyed the same quality of life as we do, one world would not be enough. If we can't create a fairer world at this level of consumption, then we have to scale back our lifestyles, for the planet and for each other. MakeWealthHistory.org
Well, that's one way to do it
Here's a story from UK's The Guardian about Mark Boyle, a guy who decided to live for a year without spending any money.
That's a huge undertaking. He did it, but I don't think it's possible for everyone to pull it off. For one, he started with some resources, like his laptop and the solar panels he bought to power it. And had he not donated 3 days of his time per week, he wouldn't have had a physical place to set up shop. In today's society, it's really not possible to live completely free. You cannot sustain yourself by yourself. But he got his point across: all his materials came from places like Freecycle, and he bartered or traded or scrounged for the rest.
I admire the effort, and I think it goes to show how little we actually need. But to modern society, his way of living is unsustainable. If companies stopped manufacturing goods, people would have to scrounge for the materials already out there. Eventually resources would be so scarce that people would fight over any scrap. There must exist somewhere a balance of recycling and reusing and reducing... and consuming.
That's a huge undertaking. He did it, but I don't think it's possible for everyone to pull it off. For one, he started with some resources, like his laptop and the solar panels he bought to power it. And had he not donated 3 days of his time per week, he wouldn't have had a physical place to set up shop. In today's society, it's really not possible to live completely free. You cannot sustain yourself by yourself. But he got his point across: all his materials came from places like Freecycle, and he bartered or traded or scrounged for the rest.
I admire the effort, and I think it goes to show how little we actually need. But to modern society, his way of living is unsustainable. If companies stopped manufacturing goods, people would have to scrounge for the materials already out there. Eventually resources would be so scarce that people would fight over any scrap. There must exist somewhere a balance of recycling and reusing and reducing... and consuming.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Textile Library and Earth Pledge
Wow... I stumbled onto an amazing resource a few days ago: Textile Library. I originally read about it on Eco Fashion World, then followed the link. The Textile Library is a source for information on all eco conscious fabrics. The amount of information there is staggering. They cover different types of sustainable fibers and techniques, and list the available certifications. My favorite part of the website was the "Questions to Ask Textile Suppliers." They consider not just environmental impact, but social as well. For example: Is your product being responsibly and ethically produced (i.e. how much are workers paid, do they benefit from incentives such as a pay-by-piece program, are child labor laws being respected)?
This website is a great primer for anyone working in the fashion or textile business.
After perusing through, I decided to check out what exactly Earth Pledge was, and was blown away again. From their website: Earth Pledge partners with businesses, communities and government to accelerate the adoption of sustainable practices. They have a consulting business, but the website is so much more than that. They have sections for fashion (which is where the Textile Library is) as well as climate change, waste, green roofs and agriculture. And to top it off, the website is beautifully designed. I recommend you take a look.
This website is a great primer for anyone working in the fashion or textile business.
screen shot from the sustainable fabrics section
beginning of the certification chart
After perusing through, I decided to check out what exactly Earth Pledge was, and was blown away again. From their website: Earth Pledge partners with businesses, communities and government to accelerate the adoption of sustainable practices. They have a consulting business, but the website is so much more than that. They have sections for fashion (which is where the Textile Library is) as well as climate change, waste, green roofs and agriculture. And to top it off, the website is beautifully designed. I recommend you take a look.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
The 3/50 Project
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Facing Unsustainable Levels of Consumption
Great post today on Bonnie's RRRethink blog. Some wonderful quotes dealing with consumerism and it's effects on the U.S.
The possibility of environmental catastrophe has led many leaders, scholars and average citizens to reconsider an economy based on constant growth. It is becoming clear that people, especially in the United States, will need to consume less in the way of natural resources to avoid planetary peril. The million-dollar question, of course, is how the U.S. can move to a sustainable, zero-growth economy without losing more jobs... The whole economy collapses if we don’t consume enough, and we’ve got to change. (John Talberth, president for the Center for Sustainable Economy, Source)We've based our entire society on consuming things, and that's a hard habit to break. Part of being an ethical consumer is REDUCING the amount of stuff you have. But currently it's easier to buy something new than to make or fix something. And with high fashion and social stigmas surrounding appearance, it's going to be pretty difficult for America to kick the habit. Not to mention that going cold turkey would result in a collapse of the economy. Damned if you do, damned if you don't?
The Seven Sins of Greenwashing
I thought this website was kind of neat... Details what exactly it is about "greenwashing" (see definition below) that makes it so hard to be an ethical consumer.
Green-wash (green’wash’, -wôsh’) – verb: the act of misleading consumers regarding the environmental practices of a company or the environmental benefits of a product or service.
Green-wash (green’wash’, -wôsh’) – verb: the act of misleading consumers regarding the environmental practices of a company or the environmental benefits of a product or service.
Do you want it or do you need it?
I just found this video on YouTube. It's an interview with Australian Julian Lee, author of Clean Living in a Dirty World. As a journalist, he was assigned to do a story on consuming ethically, and for two days he had to consider every single purchase he bought. Two days, as he says, was "long enough to realize that there was something there, but not nearly long enough to uncover it."
The focus of the interview was helpful in that Lee acknowledges that it's difficult at first, but once you learn to question purchases it becomes like a second nature. Because right now, consuming ethically is hard. There are few regulations for marketing, which allows companies to take advantage of consumers who want to do the right thing. The message a company puts out does not necessarily reflect their actual values. Part of purchasing ethically is reading the label, but you also have to decide if you can trust that company.
At this point in time, aligning your purchasing with your moral values also (for the most part) costs more money. Society is not yet at the point where "eco" is mainstream, so to truly buy a green product is often times more expensive. The manufacturing world has not caught up yet to the demand for ethically made materials. So it is hard for businesses to source enough variety of eco options to sell, thus they may end up offering items that may not be as ethically sound. And as responsible as anyone wants to be, we are all still so used to low prices, convenience and variety to give that up.
The focus of the interview was helpful in that Lee acknowledges that it's difficult at first, but once you learn to question purchases it becomes like a second nature. Because right now, consuming ethically is hard. There are few regulations for marketing, which allows companies to take advantage of consumers who want to do the right thing. The message a company puts out does not necessarily reflect their actual values. Part of purchasing ethically is reading the label, but you also have to decide if you can trust that company.
At this point in time, aligning your purchasing with your moral values also (for the most part) costs more money. Society is not yet at the point where "eco" is mainstream, so to truly buy a green product is often times more expensive. The manufacturing world has not caught up yet to the demand for ethically made materials. So it is hard for businesses to source enough variety of eco options to sell, thus they may end up offering items that may not be as ethically sound. And as responsible as anyone wants to be, we are all still so used to low prices, convenience and variety to give that up.
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