I’m enjoying a few moments surfing online while E is napping.

Yesterday, I wrote a post on how buying less, not more is a key idea in living green (despite all the fancy new green products being marketed to consumers these days). Today, I encountered a few images from an ad campaign by UNICEF about child labor that anyone who wants to live a greener, more socially responsible lifestyle should think about. Here’s one of them:

Other than I simply don’t need any new clothes, there are a couple of other reasons why it’s easy to NOT go shopping:

1. Do I know how the stuff was made? Does the company who makes [insert article of clothing or accessory here] procure their materials responsibly and treat their workers fairly? I don’t care how good my ass will look in those jeans; I’d rather know that I’m not supporting a company who abuses children or who continually rapes the environment.

2. Price. There are things out there that are more socially and environmentally responsible. However, they are also usually at a premium. Some things, like fairly traded coffee, I’m more than willing to shell out extra dough because it’s worth it to give my support to those farmers. For other things like clothes and accessories, a “want” can easily become a “don’t need” when I see the price. Besides, I can put the money in more yummy coffee and tea instead!

View the other UNICEF ads here.

Categories: social responsibility, organizations, fashion, shopping
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So I’m always open to other ideas on how and where to get organic, locally-grown produce. The farmers’ market I go to on Saturday mornings is great (across the street from UCI); there’s a wide variety of vendors who carry a wide variety of good food. Before going back to the farmers’ market route, I had tried out Organic Express for a while and was pretty satisfied with the service. (They say 90% of their produce is from California farms.) It was very convenient since they delivered my weekly box to my office, but I figured that for the same price, I could also get some tasty bread at the farmers’ market, plus it’s nice to get outside on Saturday mornings.

These days I’m looking into Community Supported Agriculture options (or CSAs, for short). The name seems fairly self-explanatory, and I tend to think of it as some sort of farm co-op: members pay for a share of what the farm produces. In a way, some CSAs work very much like Organic Express where your weekly dues get you a box of produce, except with CSAs, you’re supporting a specific farm. As far as I know, Organic Express doesn’t share the names and locations of the farms from where they get their stuff. Not that I’ve asked, so maybe they’re willing to divulge the info.

Looking through Local Harvest’s database of CSAs, I’ve found a couple that service Orange County. One is Budwood Farms in Fallbrook, CA. These guys recently started their CSA program last year and charge $29.50 or $45 per week (small or family baskets, respectively) with a 12-week minimum commitment. Baskets are picked up from Costa Mesa on Thursdays starting at noon (though I don’t know how late they stay). They also sell at the farmers’ market in Irvine, and I’m pretty sure they’re the ones who sell the gorgeous tomatoes I have been buying.

Another option for Orange county is the Tierra Miguel Foundation from the Pauma Valley. These guys have been around since 2000 and offer many more pick-up locations across Southern California, including Costa Mesa and Newport Beach in the OC. Annual memberships will run you $1,500 (approximately $31.25 per week, payable quarterly), or you can opt for half-shares at $750 for pick-ups every other week. The thing I’m most attracted to about Tierra Miguel is that the first Saturday of each month is their Volunteer Day, meaning I can go out to their farm and get my hands dirty. Unfortunately, and this is one big reason I haven’t written them a check yet, is that their pick-up times in the OC absolutely does not work for me unless I change my work hours. Wednesdays between 11am and 4pm to either Costa Mesa or Newport from Huntington Beach? Not gonna happen.

I do plan on contacting them about possibly setting up service somewhere closer to work or home; maybe if I get enough co-workers or neighbors interested, they could add a new drop-off location. In the meantime, I guess you can still find me at the Irvine farmers’ market on Saturdays!

Categories: food, organizations
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I recently came across an announcement on MySpace from one of the bands I’m in love with, The Dresden Dolls. They have announced that they will be performing with the True Colors Tour this year, alongside Cyndi Lauper, Erasure, Debbie Harry, The Gossip, The Misshapes, plus Margaret Cho as host. It’s a 15-city tour across the U.S. in support of Human Rights Campaign, and kicks off on June 8 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The tour ends at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles on June 30.

Categories: organizations, music
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Categories: organizations
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The Global Roundtable on Climate Change (GROCC) released a joint statement yesterday on where policy and industry need to be with regards to climate change and responsibility. The Path to Climate Sustainability statement is the result of three years’ worth of discussion by the roundtable, an initiative of The Earth Institute at Columbia University. What’s impressive about this group are the names behind it: CitiGroup, DuPont, GE, Patagonia, Volvo, and many, many more. I am, of course, somewhat skeptical of these big names and their true commitment to affect climate change. Are they promoting energy efficiency in their offices around the world? What steps are they taking to reduce their CO2 and other GHG emissions??

“Global businesses are assuming their just place as catalysts for action on climate change. But action by business alone is not enough,” said Jeffrey Immelt, Chairman and CEO of General Electric.

Here’s to hoping that they follow what they preach.

In lighter news, Brit retailer H&M will soon stock organic cotton clothing! Sure, it’s nothing new in many department stores (in fact, TreeHugger thinks they’re kind of late in the game), but with H&M’s reputation for providing affordable wares, this could mean we don’t have to blow our entire income when purchasing the stuff. Of course, the true test would be looking at how (socially responsible) their organic line is procured in the first place.

Categories: organizations, fashion, environment
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One more post before I go to bed …

I have a confession: I’m an evil marketer. By night I may be a wanna-be champion of the environment, but by day, I help clutter up Americans’ mailboxes with junk mail. Yup, a big chunk of my 9-5 is spent in the environmentally un-friendly world of direct marketing. To be perfectly honest, the work itself can be quite fascinating, but in the end, sometimes it feels like I might as well drive a gas-guzzling Hummer because I’m contributing to the destruction of the Earth that much more. (Maybe this is one reason why I’m trying to be so green. GUILT.)

Anywhoo, so to help alleviate some of this guilt, I’d like to talk a little bit about GreenDimes (read more here and here). These guys and gals not only help keep junk mail from entering your mailbox, but they also plant a tree for each month you’re a member. Sounds good, yeah? Especially with the stats offered on their site:

• 100 million trees are chopped down every year for junk mail sent to American homes
• 28 billion (that’s 28 with 9 zeros) gallons of water are needed to make all the paper used for junk mail
• Paper makes up a third of the 235 million tons of waste Americans send to landfills each year
• The typical American household receives about 70 pounds of junk mail a year
• The amount of junk mail sent grows by 3 billion pieces a year

Obviously there’s the DIY route (the green LA girl method), but what I like about GreenDimes’ service is that while they’re doing the dirty work for you, you’re still (kind of) in control. One reason why I haven’t personally added my name to the DMA’s suppression list is because there are some pieces of mail I don’t mind receiving. With GreenDimes, they claim that subscribers can still specify which catalogs they wish to continue receiving.

Before jumping the gun on GreenDimes, I’d like to do a bit more investigating. There’s this bit on their web site that states:

We stop unsolicited credit card and insurance offers, and mail sent using lists provided by the DMA, as well as the catalogs that you specifically select to stop.

Um. As a direct mail marketer myself, I know that the DMA does not provide lists for sending mail. They provide a suppression list which members of the DMA are required to use to remove names from their mailing lists. Using this list to mail people means you’re mailing the people who specifically said DO NOT MAIL ME. In fact, the DMA clearly states:

Please note that DMA does not provide marketers with consumer mailing lists or do consumer mailings.

So I’m a bit confused by what GreenDimes means when they say they stop mail sent using lists provided by the DMA. The DMA does provide a list of direct mail companies who offer Do Not Share services, so perhaps GreenDimes was referring to that list??

Categories: organizations, environment
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