Hey folks! I’m continuing to look at the social and environmental impact of meat-alternatives; last time it was a newcomer, Beyond Meat, and now I’m going to take a look at one of the originals: Quorn. Since the 1960’s there has been a lot of interest in the idea of reducing our dependence on meat by exploring the option of eating microbes instead – single … Continue reading Daily Footprint, #32 – Quorn
I’m happy to announce the winner of the latest Green Stars ethical review competition. Congrats to Willow Croft! Willow wrote a review of Milagro Herbs, a small company that sells organic herbs and skin care products in Santa Fe, New Mexico. You can read her full review on her blog. Willow – you win a prize from the WWF (and a donation made to them … Continue reading Green Stars ethical review competition for Earth Day
Hi Folks! In a return to the Daily Footprint posts, I’m going to spend some time looking at plant-based meat substitutes. They are definitely catching on: last year, in the US, sales of meat rose by 2% while sales of plant-based meat-substitutes rose by 24% (and sales rose even faster than that in Europe). Over the course of just this one day, around 150 million … Continue reading Daily Footprint, #31 – Beyond Meat
A common issue that people raise is that they are not sure where to start when it comes to writing an ethical review. Perhaps you would like to join in, but the process of deciding on an ethical rating seems overwhelming? Well, look no further, because informing this process is one of the main priorities of the Green Stars Project! When I’m trying to decide … Continue reading How to decide on an ethical rating: Cafés
You probably know that I run recurring competitions to encourage you to write ethical consumerism reviews online. I’m happy to announce the winners for this month and also to start the clock on a new round (winners will be announced in mid-April ). Please consider entering! Congrats to this month’s two winners: Amanda and Nicole! You will receive a gift from the World Wildlife Fund … Continue reading Green Stars Ethical Review Competition: Results and Reboot
Tom Szaky, founder of Terracycle, is about to launch a new enterprise called Loop that aims to tackle the problem of packaging waste by delivering products in reusable containers. How important is packaging in ethics? Packaging is usually one of the factors to consider when deciding on an ethical (Green Stars) rating for a product. However, it’s not the only factor, and sometimes it’s not … Continue reading The Problem with Loop
The primary mission of the Green Stars Project is to encourage you, dear reader, to consider the ethical impact of your purchases. The best way to do this, and to have an impact on others at the same time, is to rate the product or business with a score for social and environmental impact. Reviews can be posted anywhere online, and I’m proposing a universal … Continue reading Competition: write an ethical review online
Greetings! In the next post, I’ll run another competition to encourage you, dear readers, to write a Green Stars review, so please stay tuned for that. In the meantime, I want to take another look at the ethical consumerism criteria that can go into a Green Stars rating. Evaluating the ethics of a product or business is sometimes daunting, but it becomes more manageable when … Continue reading Ethical Consumerism, Part 10 – Green Stars rating criteria
The world has changed. I see it in the water. I feel it in the Earth. I smell it in the air. J. R. R. Tolkien’s words could well describe our current situation. A darkness grows, the divide between light and dark is more apparent than ever, and there is a call to action for us (like Frodo Baggins) to forgo our normal routine and … Continue reading A New Beginning
I had always intended to write a post on the top things you can do to reduce your footprint. But I procrastinated, partly because I never felt that I’d done enough research and partly because the topic has been covered pretty widely. However, many of the lists that you’ll find online don’t really hit on the top priorities. Going back decades, we’ve had mantras like: … Continue reading Ethical Consumerism, Part 9 – How to reduce your carbon footprint
The Green Stars Project 