Ten Things (for a good green start)
Tao, Carrboro, NC
With the flood of green news and ideas out there and growing, it can at times be hard to keep your priorities straight as a consumer. Here’s a quick glance cheat sheet from GreenAmericaToday.org:
10 THINGS YOU SHOULD NEVER BUY: styrofoam anything, paper towels, bleached coffee filters, teak and mahogany, chemical herbicides/pesticides, chemical household cleaners, PVC plastic toys, plastic utensils, farm-raised salmon, rayon
8 BODYCARE TOXINS TO AVOID: mercury/thimerosal, lead acetate, nanoparticles, placenta, hydroquinone skin lightener, phthalates, petroleum by-products, fragrance
10 FAIR TRADE PRODUCTS TO LOOK FOR: tea, chocolate, bananas, sugar, rice, vanilla, clothing, wine, olive oil, coffee
10 OF THE WORST CORPORATE CRIMINALS TO AVOID: Wal-Mart, ExxonMobil, Coca-Cola, Nestle, Monsanto, General Motors, Dominion, Citigroup, Shell Petroleum, McDonald’s (To learn what they are doing wrong - and how you can stop them - go to www.GreenAmericaToday.org, click on Responsible Shopper.)
5 THINGS YOU SHOULD ALWAYS BUY GREEN: Paint (no or low-VOC), paper, light bulbs, appliances (Energy Star), fruits and vegetables (organic, local, in-season)
“Green America is a not-for-profit membership organization founded in 1982. (We went by the name “Co-op America” until January 1, 2009.) 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.”
Green America works focuses on economic strategies, working to mobilize business leaders in a way that links social justice and environmental responsibility and empowers both personal and collective action. For more, visit GreenAmericaToday.org.
October 7th, 2009 at 11:41 am
Well, my deal is about my new year’s resolution; SHOP THRIFT-PRE-OWNED, HAND-MADE, Local.
About 3/4 of my wardrobe is either stuff I’ve made myself, bought at thrift stores, or been given to me. Mainly clothing, either to wear, to sell, or to up-cycle. Most goodwill’s have furniture, and especially just pieces of neat material, textile, dying to be in somebody’s home, or made into some original “piece to wear. ”
Habitat for Humanity “Restore” has odds & ends, furniture, used appliances, and the $$ goes back to Habitat.
Beyond that, think before you buy. How bad do I need this? Evaluate the packaging.
For more on MacDonalds, go to PETA.org