Is being green the new black?

It seems now that being green is becoming mainstream. In my local cornershop the other day I found PG tips tea bags sold in association with the rain forest alliance meaning that at least 50% of the tea bags were the equivalent of fair trade. I also found Andrex toilet roll in association with WWF. Pedigree dog food is supporting dog adoptions too. I’d like to think that this means that consumers are demanding more ethically conscience brands, but the cynical part of me wonders if the big brands are just jumping on the bandwagon. Maybe they are afraid that they will lose out as more and more people are switching to organic, fair-trade and free range so are taking steps to be more competitive. I suppose, either way it doesn’t really matter. As long as some charities and local people benefit then whether it is a real change or just a marketing idea then it’s worthwhile. But I really do hope that this isn’t just a passing phase but that its means that ethical products are actually here to stay.

Recycling problems: living in a disposable world

I spent most of the day yesterday polishing furniture. Whilst I lovingly worked the wax into the tatty looking wood I thought of my friends. One of whom, until recently, thought that furniture polish came in a spray can with a duck on and the other who has told me that she has never polished a pair of shoes in her life. This got my thinking: why is everything so disposable? It started off with disposable nappies, which is fair enough (being face to face with poop isn’t everyone’s cup of tea), but now it seems that everything is designed to be thrown out. You can buy disposable cleaning wipes (because washing out a cloth is such a hardship), use kitchen towel instead of a mop, use make up removing wipes instead of a flannel and the old favourite, Kleenex instead of hankies. I use the brand name here on purpose as the manufacture of Kleenex in particular is wiping out vast tracks of forest throughout the world.

The government is urging us all to recycle more but they don’t seem to mind that it is becoming increasingly hard to recycle and minimise waste. We are bombarded with easy solutions to domestic problems; advertising tells us to pour chemicals down our drains to clear blockages even though a simple plunger is far cheaper and better for the environment. Until there is more education to consumers about these wasteful products or the government brings in legislation to make all products recyclable then I can’t see how things will change. I suppose I’m rather old school, doing things the hard way and polishing my shoes and furniture to make them last longer. Most people my generation would just replace them. But there goes my guilt again, every time I throw something away.

Can everyone afford to be ethical?

There has been a lot in the press recently about being green and being ethical with regards to energy bills and free range chickens. Most people would agree that it usually comes down to a matter of choice. It may cost more to switch to a green energy tariff or buy a free range chicken but most people can afford a couple of pounds a week extra to do their bit. My opinion is that is you are a bit strapped for cash them maybe smoke or drink less to save the money to afford these things (that is assuming you have enough spare cash for cigarettes and alcohol: no-one should expect families on the breadline to make their lives any harder). The real question is ‘where do you draw the line?’

I’ve been on my ethical shopping crusade for several months now and it’s been fairly successful. I have mostly been avoiding temptation and staying away from shops. I have walked past all the high street sales and ducked into the charity shops instead. So I’m feeling pretty snug and self righteous with my ethical shopping but I have struck upon a rather massive spanner in the shopping works: I have bought a house. The house isn’t the problem, its second (or third, or fourth) hand and it’s not from a high street chain store but how do I decorate it? The house needs a little work and I’m viewing it as akin to a piece of second hand clothing that needs a little repair work before I can wear it. My dilemma is do I buy a great environmentally friendly paint like ecopaint or scrimp every penny to pay the mortgage and just buy it from B&Q?

At what point do I, or anyone else for that matter, say ‘enough is enough, I’ve done my bit’ and go with the easy and cheaper option? It’s all well and good when the government and media start telling everyone to be green and turn our thermostats down but when we’re shivering with cold under three layers of blankets isn’t it time to think about ourselves again? I think some of us actually could go the whole hog if we thought that MPs and government officials were tucked up shivering in their blankets too but I sincerely doubt they are. It is a matter of personal choice and I know many people choice not to even think about it. Being ethical is difficult and it can become expensive. I have drawn my line and it lies between need and want. I need food and I need paint. I only want clothes, conditioner and non essential bits and bobs. I’ll buy food (although I try to get local, organic and free range as much as I can) and I’ll buy paint. My clothes and other frivolous spends will be ethically sourced.

Free range food: What is the price of freedom?

You can’t help but to have noticed that more and more supermarkets are starting to stock free range and organic produce. These previously speciality foods are slowly making their way into the mainstream and its about time too. Organic produce has been around for donkey’s years but it has taken such a long time to build up the amount of support it has got now. But it’s still not nearly enough, which is why the TV chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall has launched his chicken out campaign to raise awareness of the poor conditions of most of the chickens in this country. Really there is no excuse for us to be keeping animals in these kinds of conditions. I’m sure most peoples’ excuse for not buying free range is that it’s too expensive but then it boils down to personal choices. I believe that everyone (within reason) can afford free range. By cutting down on luxuries such as alcohol, cigarettes and takeaways you can easily save the couple of pounds that would make the difference between intensively farmed chicken and free range. But then sadly a percentage of people in this country will not care or just won’t bother to think about it.

Low energy light bulbs – the great mercury shock

Like many people these days I’m keen to reduce my carbon footprint and do all the usual energy saving stuff. Changing your tungsten light bulbs to energy saving bulbs is one of the easiest ways to make a difference without breaking the bank. So I, like most people, found the recent news that these ‘planet saving’ light bulbs are in fact fairly toxic rather shocking. It’s now come to light that low energy light bulbs contain mercury and need to be disposed of by the council and good luck to you if you break one! I’m familiar with the recycling of electrical waste legislation and I know that new electrical goods have to have an ‘end of life’ strategy incorporated into their design. And this is why I’m so confused about this whole light bulbs mess. Why isn’t there any information on the box about how to dispose of them? Are they really better for the environment when they contain mercury? And most worrying of all; are people going to switch back to the old style energy hungry light bulbs because they are afraid? At a time when people are switching to organic produce and avoiding parabens in toiletries it’s surprising that something labelled as green can be so deceptively dangerous.

Nightmare before Christmas shopping: an ethical dilemma

This ethical shopping thing of mine has been going really well so far, until now. When it comes to the crunch, it’s actually really difficult to keep my morals whilst Christmas shopping. Some people are easy to shop for, some are happy with a charity donation or a charity sponsorship of some kind, whereas others are a little more complicated. I have found a few good ideas such as t-shirts from THTC, the RSPB shop and charitygifts but it’s a struggle to find exactly what I’m looking for. I might get a solio solar charger for my gadget obsessed techie friends.

Overall, my ethical shopping hasn’t been too problematic as fair trade and organic produce is becoming more and more main stream. Primark even have organic t-shirts but £4 they are hardly likely to be fair trade or anywhere near it. I have even seen TVs made of wood from sustainable forests for sale! So things are looking up. But it does seem that at Christmas all the environmental considerations seem to go out of the window. I know that I’m going to have to give in and buy a few things which wouldn’t normally fit in with my shopping rules but I don’t really have a choice. For once my morals are going to have to take a back seat whilst I buy stuff to make people happy. I’m sure I’ll be able to make up for it in the New Year. Maybe in the New Year I’ll extend my shopping rules to food. I have started to buy more organic and fair-trade food despite the huge price tags they carry so it is something I’m thinking about. Either way, I will definitely find a way to make up for my bad spending. Maybe I should spend a day without electricity and sit in the dark and think about what I have done.

Green washing for a white Christmas

It amazing me how at this time of year the press like to jump on the eco bandwagon and talk about having a ‘green Christmas’ when in actual fact, this time of year is a nightmare for the environment. I’m not just talking about all the trees being cut down and covered in tacky bits of tin foil (although all that plastic and nasty chemicals can’t help), I’m not talking about the huge amounts of wasted energy powering the Christmas lights all over the world or the waste of wrapping paper that gets used once then dumped into landfill. I’m talking about all the money spent on useless presents that no one really wants. Parents spend up to £500 per child at Christmas. I’m not some scrooge who wants to cancel Christmas or anything but a little bit of sensibility would be nice. I’ve seen parents take their kids to toys-r-us with a trolley and say ‘what do you want?’ Now that’s not what Christmas is all about.

I know it would probably be a disaster to the economy but what would happen if people only bought presents for friends and family that they knew that person would really like? What if we stopped buying toiletries, perfume and DVDs and bought meaningful presents that people would treasure rather than add to the already dusty collection of stuff that will get used/watched once if you’re lucky? I hate Christmas shopping, not for the usual reasons but because seeing so many people milling around looking for something, some generic ‘that will do’ gift for some aunty they haven’t seen in years, is such a waste of time and money. I don’t know what has caused this need to spend either. Perhaps it’s just the commercialisation of Christmas these days; fifty years ago kids were pleased with an orange for Christmas. Whatever the reason, it has spoilt Christmas for me. For me, Christmas has never been about presents but has always been about having sausages and bacon and a turkey for lunch.