How can we make ethical choices in a consumerist economy?

So, in the last few days I have read a few things, including this Guardian article. As much as I agree with the anti consumerist message, I feel that it's a little too harsh on us 'consumers'. Yes, we all probably could and should buy less but the article falls short in the respect that most people do not know HOW to buy less. Particularly when it comes to things we need. The other thing I read yesterday was that the number of disposable nappies in this county alone is in the millions. And wipes are littering our beaches. For those of us with small children, nappies are essential. I, for one, am not convinced that buying a load of reusable nappies, hot washing them and tumble drying them is a suitable alternative to disposal nappies. I personally think that the government should implement legislation to prevent companies from over packaging food, stop the use of polystyrene and other non recyclable packaging material and encourage fast food outlets and supermarkets to use corn starch bags and other biodegradable alternatives. How else are consumers supposed to make green choices if there aren't any options worth choosing from?

Retail therapy and keeping up with the Jones'

Modern life is hard. We all know it. It's drummed into us to aspire to be more and have more. It's like being content is a bad thing. This sense of urgency to change takes its toll. Recently I've been feeling a little low, if I'm honest. I'm not ascending the career ladder, I'm not going onto bigger and better things and I'm not buying into the keeping-up-with-the-Jones' crap. How do you combat this feeling of inadequacy? How do I feel content with just being where I am? If I tell people I feel down I get well meaning advice of "go buy some new clothes" or "get your hair done", "that will cheer you up". Firstly, would anyone offer those suggestions to a man in my situation? I doubt it. Secondly, why would spending money on superficial dressings cheer me up? To be fair, hiding those grey hairs would stop me from scowling at the mirror every time I pass one! But that's not the point. 

Maybe I need time out from the day to day stuff, take the kids for a long walk in the woods, or hold my partners hand whilst watching the sunset. Sounds wonderful but it's not always practical, especially in the great British weather! Maybe I'll just spend a few days 'slowing down' and trying to enjoy the little things for a change. My sense of self worth and happiness can be shaped by the little people in my life, not by what other people think I should look like or be achieving. My kids won't be little for much longer, but those shops, courses, jobs and hairdressers are always going to be there. I've got plenty of time for that sort of thing later. Right now I'm going to forget about the world and try to be content as a pillow for my baby!

Minimalism: freeing ourselves from stuffication

This blog post will make anyone who knows me laugh out loud. I'm a hoarder. Not a 'I-need-help' type hoarder, but a "what if I need it later" or "but that could be useful" hoarder. I read an article recently that said that my generation are prone to hoarding as our parents had so little after the war years, that their need to hang onto everything that they owned is also engrained in us. The telegraph article suggested chucking out one item of clutter on day one, two items on day two, three on three etc for a month. Because starting the decluttering process is the hardest step. In the last two weeks I have taken four large bags of stuff to the charity shop. Stuff that I won't miss (hopefully!), stuff that might make someone else a bit more comfortable or happy. I could list all the clichés about possessions owning you, uncluttered home meaning an uncluttered mind, blah blah blah but you've heard it all before! I'm clinging onto my old junk for the wrong reasons. It's not useful, it's not beautiful, it doesn't make me happy. What would make me happy is a clean and tidy home but having two small children puts pay to that. I used to think that having a bigger house or better storage would be the solution. But buying something just to keep your other stuff in isn't the solution. It's still early days so it will be interesting to see how I get on. 

Ethics and parenting: when two worlds collide

So, it's been a while! A lot has changed since my last post. I'm now a mother of two mischievous boys! My ethics have fallen by the wayside a bit as parenting is stressful enough without fretting about Eco options! I have, I suppose unsurprisingly, fallen unintentionally into the attachment parenting camp. It does seem fitting for my ethics to breastfeed, rather than support the likes of nestle (that's a whole blog post in itself!)

Sadly, I've come to realise that even parenthood has become commercialised. From your first midwife appointment, you are bombarded with advertising. The 'bounty' pack you are handed is rammed full of advertising mixed with helpful lists of things you need for your baby. Mums to be are almost brainwashed into thinking that babies need £1,000s worth of essentials. Even I was left a little stunned when the NCT instructor said that you don't actually need anything other than a few clothes. That's why attachment parenting suits me. Of course I bought into the baby industry at first too but now I realise that even the cot is surplus to requirements! Attachment parenting isn't a check list of things you must do, it's basically parenting by instinct. It's about being responsive and mostly how our ancestors would have parented. Unfortunately, the baby book industry is massive and there is a mind boggling array of books about how you 'should' be raising your child. Ignoring their cries, putting them in cot in their own room and winning battles of will with them is the norm in most books. Sadly, all this advice just leaves many mothers lost and confused. Mothers no longer trust their instincts and are left feeling inadequate when their child doesn't conform to the books. Believe me, I was one of them. According to the books, babies should sleep through the night and only feed every four hours. My kids didn't read the books! 

I still have guilt though. The disposal nappies fill up my wheely bin. As beautiful as reusable nappies are, I'm too lazy to change both boys nappies every three hours and spend all day washing them. In general, many aspects of attachment parenting are more ethical. Some AP mums cope without pushchairs, choosing a fabric sling instead. Even baby led weaning means you avoid buying ready made baby food. I'm not saying that AP is good for everyone, it doesn't suit everyone. But as far as I can see, it is more ethical in nature and that suits me down to the ground. 

Freedom: the choice is yours

As I sit in my garden, watching the woodlice explore the cracks in the patio and listening to the bees visiting the sweet peas, I can’t help but remember over hearing a conversation on the train the other day. A woman was telling her friend how she emailed her boss at 3am because she was so worried about work she couldn’t sleep. Now I bet she doesn’t feel she has the time to watch woodlice and what a shame. I was reading about freedom on the train and how freedom isn’t about escaping responsibilities but respecting them as well as other people’s freedom. Sadly, the woman on the train probably doesn’t realise that she has freedom (as most of us in the modern world do) as we create cages for ourselves with work and perceived responsibilities. We allow ourselves to become trapped in consumerism and the rat race when there really is no need. Why trade our freedom for the choice between designer brands?

So, whilst blissfully soaking up the sun and admiring how nature has managed to overcome the paving slabs and grow a willow tree in the smallest possible amount of soil, I realised that whilst 9-5 doesn’t feel like freedom, we are all still free. We just need to remember that. If we enjoy the simple pleasures in life, make the most of what we have rather than striving for more money, more stuff, more responsibility, then we can feel free. I for one will try to remember this, although it’s going to be hard the next time I get soaked to the skin on my way to work at 6am when I’d rather be in bed!

Is it time to escape the rat race and downshift?

I’ve noticed recently, that just buying ethically isn’t enough for me anymore. I feel the need to live more ethically, in all areas of my life. Don’t worry, I’m not about to start some moral crusade or anything, I mean living a life that has less impact on the environment, perhaps one that makes a positive difference. Whilst browsing facebook and twitter I see that more and more people are keeping chickens, bees and animals and growing their own veg – a friend last week even announced he wants to live on a farm. This got me thinking, where has this sudden ‘getting back to the world ways’ idea come from? More and more people are becoming disillusioned with the 9-5 constant consumerist society, the American dream we’ve all been sold since the 50’s where work equals money which means we can buy stuff to make us happy rather than just being happy. In the past we’ve had a New Age craze going on where these disillusioned people, feeling displaced from modern society, were seeking solace in Eastern religions and philosophies. We had a resurgence of yoga, Buddhism, spiritualism, anything exotic or ethnic rather than something western religion. Now its like the trend has swung back to where we are, it’s just that we’re embracing the old ways of self sufficiency, working the land and even paganism. Whilst the religious side of things doesn’t interest me, I don’t need to believe in anything to be content, this concept of a simple life, downshifting or dropping out the rat race really appeals. My experience of living cheaply and ethically from charity shops and farm shops fits nicely in this concept so now I’m just working out how to take the steps to get to live my dream of the good life.

Why not everyone needs a cuddle: keeping wildlife wild

As most people know, animal welfare is one of the many things that gets me all riled up and unable to sleep at night. So, imagine my horror when researching an email to my pal Daniel at The Born Free Foundation I came across this video of a hapless (and rather ignorant) tourist attempting to cuddle a rather unwilling panda.





The place is the Wolong Giant Panda Breeding Centre in China. It’s essentially a conservation project but sadly, the welfare standards are comprised by the drive for cash. This cash is raised from misled tourists who think it’s a good idea to give a panda a cuddle.


So what’s wrong with cuddling a panda? Well, the trouble is, these panda are being captively bred so they can be reintroduced to the wild. It is widely accepted that reintroductions of captive bred animals is hit or miss and efforts are likely to be unsuccessful is the animal becomes too tame. Its only healthy for wild animals to have a degree of fear of humans – it stops them from being hunted or captured. If the pandas used for cuddling aren’t destined to be reintroduced then the centre is basically sacrificing these individuals welfare for the good of the other pandas. Surely this is questionable at best and immoral at worst!

My advice is to steer clear of anywhere that offers animal cuddling (other than domestic animals). If you want to cuddle a bear, get a Care Bear! Plus you get browny points for retro chic too.