Green Options

One of the largest challenges for those of us who have been using natural and organic products for a while has been the obstacle of finding these responsible beauty care lines. If the “green movement” has done anything, it has opened doors for eco-friendly companies previously seen as niche to be distributed at mass retail.

While some may have objections to these big box retailers, such as WalMart, Target and even department stores, like Macy’s, recently, they have brought affordable organic and natural beauty options to the mass market. I’ve spent a few years covering luxury products and all natural spa treatments at luxe spas and boutiques, but with the shift in the economy, it’s really nice to be able to cover readily available and in some cases now, more affordable alternatives. Here is a list of where I have spied some of my favorite paraben-free, phalate free, organic, natural, etc. brands and products.

Jeff McIntire-Strasburg occasionally writes posts on new, innovative green products (see Five Greenish Products You’ve Seen on TV and Five More Greenish Products You’ve Seen on TV). Rather than try to steal his thunder, this post looks at some basic, simple, green products that can make your everyday life many times greener.

Staying away from the topics of food and transportation, which are probably the biggest daily products you could green, here is a list of products you use everyday.

We are influenced throughout our life by the company we keep, the groups and issues we engage in, and the people we respect and learn from. But is there anything that compares to what we learn from our parents as children?

We can see the way children imitate their parents, even as adults. Children learn habits (small and large ones), beliefs, likes and dislikes, interests, manners, and even deeply engrained ethics from their parents. It may seem superficial at times, but when you get to know someone closely, and their family, you can get to see how deep what they learned actually goes.

We put a lot into the future of our children. We want them to have a good education, good friends, want them to be polite and respectful. We hope they will learn what’s important in life and what’s not as important, and we do our best to help them learn this.

All of this being said, what do we do to educate them about the environment? We do some things on a superficial level — we might recycle and tell them how to recycle and what recycling is; we might be conservative in the use of lights and water and such resources. We give some passing mention of the importance of the environment. But is this a true environmental ethic and are we doing what we should in this field?

By contributing guest author Ida Cheinman, Principal and Creative Director of Substance 151, a strategic design agency for Green Printer’s “Design Goes Green” series.

We live in a time when “sustainability” is topping the buzzword charts and a wave of greenwashing is flooding the mainstream. We live in a time of intense competition, gloomy economic forecasts and rapidly disappearing marketing budgets, but also in a time when more and more companies and organizations strive to uphold higher environmental and social values, making the shift to the triple bottom line economic model. Sustainability and social responsibility are the forces that drive many of today’s business decisions; they also change the way organizations re-think their branding and marketing strategies. As marketers and business leaders, we are faced with the challenge of finding differentiation by creating empowering and memorable brand experiences for our audiences in the increasingly crowded sustainable marketplace.

So, What are the rules?

The WebMD Health eHome is a a new educational collaboration between WebMD and Healthy Child Healthy World and is sponsored by Seventh Generation.  It provides you the tools to discover how to create a safer and healthier home for you and your children.  While many of the writers here provide daily information on how to provide your family a safe environment both outside and inside your home the WebMD Health eHome promises to provide more wonderful information on how to rid your home of health hazards.  With a variety of tools it may even enlighten some ECP readers on new ways to improve their quality of life.

Landor Associates, a leading strategic brand consulting and design firm, has released their second annual trends outlook, which provides “predictions” for 2009 including sustainability.

Is your Resolution to Kickstart the Next Clean Revolution?

A post by contributing writer Melissa Chungfat.

I talked to one of my friend’s yesterday and she told me that the staff Christmas party wasn’t nearly as joyful as in previous years. Half of the people who came to the party were let go. There have been record layoffs since the economy has gone south, and it’s hard to talk to someone whose family hasn’t been impacted in some way.

We all know that every little girl is going to become a woman someday. There are those of us who wish that day would stay far away and there are those who embrace and celebrate the transition from childhood to adulthood.

For some reason, having my oldest daughter turned eight was difficult for me. I looked at this blond haired, blue eyed, angel and realized she is quickly going to be taller than I am and that she is now becoming an independent being. I was devastated. Then I started sweating… at what point do I start talking to her about PUBERTY? For crying out loud, she is eight. When I looked around our community I realized that some girls need this information by 8 or 9 while others don’t until 13 or later. The last thing I want is my child to enter the world of becoming a woman without being informed.

So, I set out on a mission to prepare her (and myself). Thankfully there are a lot of good books out there, so grab one (or several) that you’ve read through and get ready. Decide on the age and how much you want to cover. We’ve started with the basics and I have the kit on hand to bring out when the time comes.

Have you ever noticed that things you would normally recycle may not get recycled in the bathroom? Most people simply have a small trash can in the potty and toss everything in.

Not in my house. We keep a small basket on the back of each toilet. In it we store things like extra rolls of Seventh Generation or Sunrise recycled toilet paper. I also toss in my waiting to be recycled preserve razor handles, toothbrushes and packaging. When a roll of tissue runs out, the empty cardboard roll goes into the basket.

Whenever I talk about all natural or home made cleaning products the response is always, “does it work?”. The short answer is ABSOLUTELY.

Somewhere along the way we have been brainwashed to believe we must KILL KILL KILL bacteria and viruses by using toxic substances like chlorine bleach, triclosan and fancy “antibacterial” products. Thanks to mass marketing ploys such as Clorox’s “Essential to a Healthy Home” advertisement.

The truth is simple. Yes we need to keep things clean, no we don’t need super antibacterial products to do that. In reality, over use of bacteria killing products can be counter productive. Clean well, clean naturally, clean often.

A wonderful cleaning solution is the Vinegar of Four Thieves recipe. We’ve been using this for years. It does have a vinegar smell (add more herbs to help counteract), but it works beautifully.

You purchase organic cotton bedding and pesticide-free fruits and vegetables.  At home, you use a vacuum with a HEPA filter and make sure that your children wash their hands before eating.  But are you hiding skeletons under the sink or in the closet?  I’m referring to chemical-based, conventional cleaning products – those bottles usually marked, per federal regulation, with a skull-and-crossbones logo.

In the US, accidental ingestion of chemical-based cleaning products accounts for many trips to the emergency room and calls to the Poison Control Center.  Bleach is a strong corrosive and may cause pulmonary edema or coma if ingested, while ammonia can damage the eyes, respiratory tract, and skin.  These aren’t the only harmful ingredients in conventional cleaning products, but manufacturers purposely omit many dangerous ingredients from labels.  Additionally, chemical cleaning products end up in our waterways, soil, and landfills, where they contribute to oxygen-depleted ocean dead-zones, release harmful gases into our air, and poison both humans and wildlife.