According to the latest IPCC report, the mean global surface temperature has already risen by 1.09°C above pre-industrial levels. Here’s a brief summary of the essential points from the IPCC’s sixth assessment report. Continue reading IPCC climate change report summary
It’s time to announce the winner of the Green Stars Project contest! The challenge was simply to include an ethical rating in an online review for any product or local business. The prize is a subscription to Ethical Consumer for one year. The winner for this month’s competition is George from Northern Ireland – congrats! Also – it starts again now! Continue reading Ethical Consumer UK – subscription winner
For Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic tourists, the carbon footprint of the short flight is roughly equivalent to a 25-year carbon footprint for the average person. The money spent on a couple of minutes above the clouds could be used to save around 100 human lives. Continue reading The carbon footprint of space tourism
Welcome to another Green Stars Project friendly contest! The challenge: write a review of any product, company, or local business and include a Green Stars rating for social and environmental impact. The prize: a subscription to Ethical Consumer, the UK nonprofit that’s one of the best resources on ethical consumption. Continue reading Green Stars / Ethical Consumer competition
Peet’s coffee was founded in Berkeley, California, by Dutch immigrant, Alfred Peet, all the way back in 1966. Peet’s changed the landscape of coffee in America, taking things up a few notches in terms of quality and experience. You can imagine what Berkeley culture was like in 1966, when Peet’s arrived on the scene, fueling conversations on free speech, civil rights, and the Vietnam war. … Continue reading Peet’s Coffee – sustainability and social responsibility
This is part 2 of my ethical review of Amazon, and it will broadly examine the topic of Amazon’s ethics and social responsibility. (Part 1 focused on the Amazon Dash program.) I think the best way to start is by looking at what Amazon has to say about itself in its latest sustainability report. Amazon’s 2020 Sustainability Report Amazon published its 124-page 2020 sustainability report … Continue reading Amazon ethics and social responsibility
Hey Folks. I think we all have different ways of dealing with the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery. The first thing for me was to start looking back – to Rodney King in LA, 1991, Oscar Grant in Fruitvale station in Oakland, 2009, Eric Garner in New York, 2014, and Michael […] Racial equality and ethical consumerism Continue reading Racial equality and ethical consumerism
It’s already three months since I asked you to vote in the poll: How Ethical is Amazon? In this post I’m going to show the poll results and also ask myself that same question. I came to realize that Amazon simply doesn’t value sustainability. I had a growing feeling of unhappiness with Amazon that spanned various topics but the last straw was the introduction of Amazon Dash buttons. Continue reading Amazon’s Dash program tells you all you need to know about the company
Bayer’s imidacloprid is one of the most widely used insecticides and belongs to a group of pesticides known as neonics (or neonicitinoids), which target insects’ nervous systems. Following extensive research I present a risk/benefit analysis for imidacloprid. Neonics are often used by default, for example as seed coatings, and yet offer no benefit in many cases. The risks, on the other hand, are sobering and demand immediate action. Continue reading Risk-benefit analysis of Bayer’s imidacloprid
Earlier in March, USA Today reported that bestselling Seresto flea collars have been linked to 1700 pet deaths in the US – and that’s just going by the number reported to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); the actual number is expected to be higher. The story originated from Johnathan Hettinger at the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting, a non-profit newsroom focused on agribusiness and related … Continue reading Seresto flea collar & imidacloprid
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