I’m going to do a few posts on the general topic of ethical consumerism and this first one will address the claim that there is no such thing. You may have seen this online at some point: There is no such thing as ethical consumption under capitalism If you look at the statement from one angle, you could extract an element of truth from it: … Continue reading Ethical Consumerism, Part 1: Is There Such a Thing?
In the last post, I took a look at laundry detergent pods, concluding that they are a step backwards in terms of environmental impact. I believe that there are a few detergents that deserve a high Green Stars rating and that supporting one of these is a happy medium between the extremes of buying one of the bestselling brands (from P&G, Unilever, etc.) and making … Continue reading Laundry Detergent, Part 2: Homemade versus Commercial (Biokleen)
Summary: Laundry detergent is as effective as it needs to be and yet is constantly being reinvented for marketing purposes. Any further improvements in detergent should be made on the fronts of sustainability and social impact. Instead, the major detergent makers focus on minor tweaks to improve aesthetics or convenience, addressing first-world problems rather than the real-world problems that they should be tackling. Are laundry … Continue reading Daily Footprint, #27 – Laundry Detergent, Part 1: Revenge of the Pods
Earlier in the year, I wrote a post about cell phones that covered a few social and environmental issues, from repairability and longevity to sourcing of (conflict) minerals. I said I would post an update once I chose a new phone and wrote a Green Stars review, and so, here I am! Based on the research that I did for that post, I had come … Continue reading Ethical Cell Phone Update: LG Review
Hey folks! I’m happy to announce the winners of the first competition to write a Green Stars Review, both of whom happened to write their reviews in blog form. Below that, I’ll describe the next competition, which involves a Glee Gum giveaway 🙂 Winner 1 S. from A Misplaced Pen wrote a review of the Queen Ann B&B in Denver, Colorado. She looked at many … Continue reading Competition Time: Results and Round 2!
I think it’s finally time to call it quits on this epic work day and head home. But wait! It has been a stressful day (/year) and you decide that a drink is in order. Time to head to your favorite pub for a swift half, or whatever’s your poison. But have you ever considered: How sustainable is your local? Is your local pub sustainable? … Continue reading Daily Footprint, #26 – How sustainable is your local?
You’ve reached that mid-afternoon slump in your typical day at the office and are trying to come up with something to do that doesn’t involve completely skiving off. Then the idea comes to you – check your retirement funds! Few things cheers you up more than thinking about financial freedom, and it also qualifies as being work-related (kind of). Why you should learn about investing. … Continue reading Daily Footprint, #25 – Ethical Investing
I got a request from S., author of A Misplaced Pen blog, to cover this topic (thanks for the suggestion!). I don’t use a water filter at the moment, partly to reduce waste and partly because (like Mulder) I want to believe. In my case, I want to believe that safe water is provided for us – it’s the very least we should expect in return … Continue reading Daily Footprint, #24 – Sustainable Water Filter
Or… More Ethical Reviews of Local Businesses (California by Train, Part 3). Since I’m charting the impact of our voyage through a typical day it seems like we’re definitely overdue for lunch by now (although we’ve been snacking so much that I’m not sure we deserve any). A previous post dealt with how to review a small business, but it’s such a large part of … Continue reading Daily Footprint, #23 – Lunch in Santa Barbara and Dunsmuir, CA
Apparently it became all the rage in mid-19th century Saratoga Springs, NY, to carry your potato chips around the spa town, munching along the way. (See part 1 for the dubious origin story.) As restaurants and vendors began selling potato chips around the world they often packaged them in waxed paper bags. Modern bags are made from multiple layers of plastic and foil and are … Continue reading Daily Footprint, #22 – Potato Chips, Part 2: Packaging
The Green Stars Project 