Initially you would have thought that the basic cup of coffee would not be very eco friendly, but it really depends on your point of view. With over fifty per cent of Americans enjoying a daily cup of coffee that works out at a lot of coffee, power and water, but with no viable alternative things could be much worse.

However normal instant coffee would have been grown in factory style farming by huge companies this may not be too eco friendly, but there are certain labels to look out for which will show you that the product is in fact more eco friendly than the regular brands.

Coffee labels explained:

Fair Trade Certified: Sponsored by TransFair USA

Certified Organic: Coffee with this label has been grown free of harmful pesticides

Shade Grown: This indicates that the coffee was grown under the rainforest canopy

Rainforest Alliance Certified: Grown using low or no pesticides and workers treated fairly

Triple Certified Coffee: The best choice is coffee that is organic

Source [She Knows]

america, Business, coffee, Conservation, Consumerism, Drinks, Eco Friendly, Eco Friendly, Fair Trade, farming, Food, labels, Organic, pesticides, Social Injustice

People these days, particularly the women, are sure to be looking for alternatives to the usual stuff they would need for beauty and skin care to store in their medicine cabinets. While checking out the contents and ingredients made to produce various cosmetic products such as lipstick and nail polish is a good manner to control these things, it simply remains that you need further information to avoid the toxins and chemicals that such products provide.

Fortunately, there are some groups that can help you in determining the level of toxic content (if any) and the products you should endorse and check out.

Luckily, Web sites such as the Environmental Working Group’s cosmetic safety database Skin Deep and PristinePlanet.com have done much of the work for you. On Skin Deep, the Environmental Working Group has compiled information on ingredients in thousands of personal-care products and matched them against data in more than 50 toxicity and regulatory databases. Based on the results, each product is given its own “hazard” score. Pristine Planet, which grew its traffic from 50,000 to 100,000 shoppers over the past year, lets consumers browse, compare and review sustainable companies’ products, including price points, says Catherine Finn, owner and co-founder.

(Source) Forbes

There has been much talk about what has been coming out of the G8 summit in Japan many of the leaders have been talking about how we need to save energy, food and cut back on just about everything else. Well this is fine we all need to think about our actions, but until everyone thinks about this then is there any point?

Take the G8 leaders themselves, it has been estimated that the carbon footprint for this years G8 summit is around eight thousand tons of Co2, this is over three times what was created in last years G8 summit in Germany!

We were also told to watch the amount of food that we buy and go on to waste, in the UK it has been estimated that the average family throws away around £6 ($12) worth of food every week. Yet, shortly after telling us this, the G8 leaders sat down to an eighteen course meal.

Source [Metro]

There are many eco friendly style coffins around these days, but a lot of them are made from wicker, willow and other materials, these are fine if you like that sort of thing, but sometimes a traditional coffin is what’s needed.

When it comes to the traditional style coffin made from solid wood with no plastic fixtures or fitting then pine the natural choice as it can be sustainable. It is also recommended that a burial is preferable than cremation, as this can produce emissions.

Source [Wigan Today]

If there is one thing that many of us need in today, it is the combination of getting the eco-friendly ideas as well as meeting people who share the same interest. With the boom of social networking over the web, Commuto.com is certainly one social networking site to check out.

With Commuto, you can trade with other eco-friendly minded consumers. Launched just this June, it follows the usual sign-up process done by standard social networking sites today. As for trading, if they agree on terms and the conditions of the trade, they make arrangements to meet up online to consummate the transaction.

Stephen Arbib, President and founder of Commuto, says, “Commuto’s vast product database makes trading movies, games, books or any other item quick and simple.” He adds, “Once members have agreed on a trade, they arrange a time and place to meet in their community. Commuto’s eco-friendly service is membership driven and involves personal exchanges of goods to avoid shipping delays and delivery charges.”

Designed to help users minimize spending, and thus being ‘wallet friendly’, Commuto is already being recognized for its ‘Eco-friendly’ elements. The Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising has commended Commuto as part of its ‘Go Green 2008′ campaign. Named the ‘Green Tip of the Week’ on fashionclub.com, Commuto is described as “a new site that allows you to swap…anything you can think of. Talk about eco-friendly!” An April review by independent Trendcentral.com, says “..swapping has become the latest means of recycling…” and describes Commuto as a “Cool online swap meet”. Apartment Therapy called Commuto “a great alternative to ebay”.

(Source) PR Web

Bamboo is one of the most eco friendly materials on the planet, although there is always the worry that if this product become over farmed, then it may end on the endangered list.

In the mean time bamboo is safe to be used and will grow back faster than it can be harvested in some cases. This furniture sold by Stacks and Stacks is made by hand and uses glue and stains which have been certified as non toxic.

Features:

Lounge Chair Includes Ottoman

Environmentally Friendly Bamboo

Non-Toxic Materials

Unique, Modern Design

Includes 1-Year Warranty

This item ships directly from the manufacturer. Product usually arrives in 2-8 business days, depending on destination, including order processing and shipping.

Assembly level/degree of difficulty: Easy

International Shipping (except to Canada) not available

Express delivery not available

Colour: Natural

Size: 36″H x 19.75″W x 28″D

Price $489.00

Well some do, here is the Hollywood actress Julia Roberts, she does not worry about what people may think and unlike the rest of us she actually takes her reusable bags to the store with her.

What a great example some stars make to us all, it is really refreshing seeing Julia Roberts going to the supermarket getting the food in, not too sure about the car that she is getting in though, but as they say, “small steps at a time”