Jeremy Clarkson doesn’t like environmentalists, and we aren’t all that fond of him. Except for in a love-to-hate him sort of way. His crimes against the environment include a penchant for fast driving, high performance cars, and the destruction of… Read More »Jeremy Clarkson pokes fun at environmentalists (again)
Not the environmentalist’s favourite retailer by a long stretch, Tesco seems to be making a real effort to appear green. The green pound is the new holy grail for supermarkets, and Tesco isn’t planning to stand back and miss out… Read More »Tesco rewards recyclers
Barenaked Ladies are known for their environmental activism, and so it’s only natural that their latest release: Talk To The Hand: Live In Michigan would be offered up in environmentally friendly packaging. The 6-Panel CD Folder holds both a CD… Read More »Win a Barenaked Ladies “Talk To The Hand”: Live In Michigan CD & DVD in eco-friendly packaging
The Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards are the biggest responsible travel awards in the world, and this year attracted over 1700 nominations. So well done to the New Forest, a wonderful holiday destination in the UK, for being the overall… Read More »The New Forest wins the Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards 2007
Victoria Eisermann and Jamie Taylor have been crowned Europe’s sexiest vegetarians in the PETA 2007 Europe’s Sexiest Vegetarian Contest. You can check out all 20 of the sexy finalists here. Not only are vegetarians sexy, they also generally have lower… Read More »Europe’s sexiest vegetarians
A few quick midweek links for your perusal: Would you let a 4×4 destroy a friendship? at Hippyshopper. Self-Sufficient Veg: November calendar at off-grid. The production of 1 kg of beef requires 16, 000 litres of water, while 1 cup… Read More »EcoLinking – 14 November 2007
Grandmother and former nurse Linda Sones sells organic cotton baby and children’s clothing and accessories, and natural, organic baby toiletries online at SonesUK.
This post examines some of the issues concerned with the employment of children in the production of cheap textiles in the third world. Child labour is an emotive subject and a consequence of extreme poverty which creates hunger and homelessness. There are no simple solutions and legislation alone will only drive the practice further undercover. The International Labour Rights Forum (ILRF) have concluded in a recent report that corporations are not making sufficient interventions in eliminating child labour in cotton but that is not the sole problem.
Multinational companies have acknowledged the use of child labour on farms producing for them and have made some progress in addressing the issue, and they report that their investments in education have been a great success. However they have failed to address the grass roots issue of a fair procurement price for farmers which is the major factor influencing the continuation of cheap child labour on cotton seed farms. As a farmer in Uzbekistan expressed it “We know the risks (to children’s health) but we are forced to give up the children for cotton each season otherwise we will starve”. Employers pay children less than adults and they are not so likely to complain about working conditions, this makes them an attractive proposition to unscrupulous people.
It was estimated in ILRF’s report which analysed trends in child employment that approximately 400,500 children of which roughly half are below the age of 14 continue to work on cotton seed farms in India. Labour contractors will often advance their children’s low wages to parents and then take them to work on farms in other villages as a form of bonded labour. Children working in the cotton fields are at serious risk of health problems due to close contact with toxic pesticides and fertilizers and a poor diet. It is further suggested in the report that the 2007-2008 harvest season will actually see an increase in child labourers.
Read More »The human cost of a cheap shirt
This is a guest post by Lorna Li, of Lorna Li : Green 2.0 Marketing.
As oil prices skyrocket and the climate heats up, the debate around the 2007 Energy Bill, currently being debated in U.S. Congress behind closed doors, is getting hotter. Environmentalists, students, rock stars, and even auto industry workers in the United States are clamoring for a strong, clean 2007 Energy Bill that includes high fuel efficiency standards, more renewable electricity and no nukes. The U.S. auto industry is contentiously divided, as American students rally across the nation, and everyone launches YouTube video campaigns.
Can the U.S. Ever Reach 35 mpg by 2020?
The United States Congress is hard-pressed to choose between 2 fuel efficiency standards – the 35 mpg Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) Standard, which was approved by the Senate in June, and the U.S. Auto Industry counter-proposal of 32 mpg by 2022.
A large group of auto workers and dealers have broken from the industry in order to support the 35 mpg by 2020 fuel efficiency standard. As oil prices continue to rise, what is at stake in the debate over fuel efficiency is the future of the American auto industry and the livelihood of U.S. autoworkers, not to mention the wallets of American drivers in the years to come.
Adam Lee, a third generation auto dealer, makes this personal plea in his 3-minute video clip.
“My family has been selling American made cars since 1936. My livelihood and the livelihood of over 350 employees who work for us depend upon the success of the automobile industry. Today that strength is severely compromised by the lack of fuel-efficient cars and trucks customers want to buy. …
Without a 35 mile-per-gallon mandate, I’m afraid, global warming and our dependence on foreign oil will continue to get much worse in the long run. And, in the short run, I’m afraid I’ll be stuck with a lot full of cars that no one wants to buy or even worse: This country will no longer have an American auto industry.”
To emphasize the difference between the 2 fuel efficiency proposals, the Pew Campaign for Fuel Efficiency delivered Trick or Treat bags to members of Congress, illustrating the Spooky Truth about the32 mpg by 2022 Auto Lobby proposal.
Read More »The 2007 Energy Bill – Can the U.S. Ever Green Its Energy Policy?
You may not like it if someone called your town a low budget, tourist stop, ghost town. That’s what Toyota said about Fresno in a Prius ad that was only aired on the East Coast of the US. But after… Read More »Toyota unpopular in Fresno, California