Ecofashion

Recycle Your Old Sneakers

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running shoe

When your sneakers are too worn out to donate, recycle them. Since the 1990s Nike has had a Better World – Reuse A Shoe program through which they accept any kind of athletic shoes, including other brands. They grind up the materials to be used for flooring and even zippers. According to their website, 28 million sneakers have gone through the shredders, one of them located in Tennessee. Flooring for tennis & basketball courts, running tracks and playground surfaces made with “Nike Grind” now cover about 632,000,000 square feet – nearly enough to cover Manhattan. You can drop of your old shoes on Long Island at:

  • The Nike Store at the Tanger Outlets in Deer Park or Riverhead
  • The Roosevelt Field Mall in Garden City
  • Nike Store in Oceanside on Long Beach Rd.

For other locations around the U.S. see : http://www.nike.com/us/en_us/c/better-world/reuse-a-shoe

Note* Nike is one of the largest global users of organic cotton, but has been criticized for using sweatshop labor. Consumer pressure will help them continue in the right direction.

The Ugly Side of Gold and Diamonds—and Finding Truly Beautiful Ones

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loose-diamonds-recently-purchased-engagement-rings-300x240pxWhile gold and diamond jewelry is beautiful, it comes with a dark side that they don’t show us on commercials. Before just looking in the jewelry case, consider this:

“In Sierra Leone, Angola, the Republic of Congo, Liberia and the Ivory Coast the sale of conflict diamonds continues to thrive for many reasons. Rebels make large profits because they use free labor–They threaten villagers at gunpoint, forcing them to dig for diamonds. If villagers refuse to follow soldiers’ orders, their limbs are amputated as punishment. Rebels sell the diamonds on the black market for less than other diamonds. Therefore, wholesalers make a bigger profit. The rebels use the money gained from the diamonds to fund wars.”[1]— CNN

The UN has established the Kimberley Process to identify conflict-free diamonds that were obtained legitimately, however this does not prevent sale of unethical diamonds.

And mining the earth for gold is equally perilous, for the environment and surrounding communities. The Smithsonian has reported:

  • The majority of the world’s gold is extracted from open pit mines, where huge volumes of earth are scoured away and processed for trace elements.
  • To produce enough raw gold to make a single ring, 20 tons of rock and soil are dislodged and discarded.
  • Much of this waste contains mercury and cyanide used to extract the gold from the rock, and the contaminated soil runs off clogging rivers.
  • Air quality is also compromised by gold mining, which releases hundreds of tons of airborne elemental mercury every year, as well as sulfur dioxide.[2]

There is a No Dirty Gold campaign to raise awareness, and fortunately there are companies making jewelry from recycled gold and diamonds. [Read more…] about The Ugly Side of Gold and Diamonds—and Finding Truly Beautiful Ones

My Favorite Things at this Year’s Greenfestival

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The best part of the 2015 Greenfestival at the Javits Center in NYC was witnessing the Cafeteria Culture (formerly the “Styrofoam Out of Schools” campaign) win $5,000 towards the continuation of their efforts in schools. They successfully fought for the banning of styrofoam in NYC schools, and I’d love to see the same thing happen here on LI. Their styrofoam monster, made from the plates from just ONE lunchtime, must have made an impression on some decision-makers. See http://www.cafeteriaculture.org/foam-trays-out-of-schools.html

My 3 Favorite Products

  • Anti-human trafficking t-shirts: Sustainable items made by women who either escaped from having been sold into the sex trade or who are at risk and in need of financial opportunity. Started by a woman who was studying in Cambodia and saw how sad one family was to decide to sell their child as a desperate means of making money. T-shirts are made from organic cotton, and bags made from upcycled rice bags. See http://www.nominetwork.org/ or http://www.buyherbagnotherbody.com/.

nomi shirt

  • Socks for a Cause: Conscious Steps is an international company run by 3 young men that sell 4 styles of ethically made men’s organic socks, each one dedicated to a certain nonprofit organization. One is for a group providing HIV therapy for pregnant women in Africa, one is for food packs for children, another is for schoolbooks for children in Asia, and a fourth is for tree planting in Kenya. See http://consciousstep.com/

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  • Toys and kids tableware made from recycled plastic: This one is a no-brainer. While I prefer all plastic be a thing of the past, if children are going to play with/use plastic at all, it should at least be recycled. This brand uses the plastic from used milk containers which does not contain BPA. See http://re-play.com/

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4 Honorable Mentions:

  • The GrowOya—a terracotta jug that you plant in your garden and fill with water once a week—it naturally seeps water directly into the soil so less water is wasted by evaporation. Ancient technology made new again. See http://growoya.com/

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  • The Swedish cellulose dishcloth/sponge comes with fun prints and replaces 17 rolls of paper towels because it can be dried and reused. http://threebluebirds.com/

hand towel

  • Affirmats: Yoga mat made of natural rubber and jute (a plant fiber) so is totally biodegradable. See http://www.affirmats.com/

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And last but not least, my perennial favorite… the green burial casket and seashell made of ashes. This is the way I want to go. http://agreenerfuneral.org/

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Be Social Change Holds Series on the Future of Fashion

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Paper No. 9The final of a series of 3 gatherings on how to create a sustainable clothing future, the group Be Social Change sponsored a packed July lecture at Wix Lounge in NYC on future trends in fashion production. The panel of experts, moderated by Summer Rayne Oakes, author of “Style, Naturally,” focused on new people breaking into the business and how it can be difficult to do everything they’d like to do to be sustainable when first starting a business – but with a continued ethic, fashion companies can build up to include more green measures over time. They discussed product durability as a factor in sustainability, customization & 3D printing of clothing, banding together with like-minded others to reach target markets instead of competing, and standards for determining product sustainability levels. A very interesting textile featured was made from processed recycled paper. See Paper No. 9.

The Future of Fashion panelFind these panelists on Twitter:
@besocialchange
@paperNo9
@Sroakes
@Shethinx
@twinmiki
@haggarco
@rhoniball

Trashion Fashion with Skraptacular

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The lovely Dominique Drakeford and friends from Scraptacular at Earth Day, Union Square, NYC 2014
The lovely Dominique Drakeford and friends from Scraptacular at Earth Day, Union Square, NYC 2014

My friend Dominique Drakeford of Drake Natural has informed me of a fun and worthwhile organization that I want to share.

“Skraptacular is a grassroots, non-profit organization based in northern Manhattan. We inspire community and environmental awareness by teaching children how they can make the world cleaner and greener by transforming trash into art.” It educates about concepts of sustainability, waste reduction, and smart consumerism, while encouraging children’s creativity.

Founded by Michelle Del Guercio, Skraptacular recently celebrated its third anniversary and fundraiser “A Springing Affair,” and numerous activities for Earth Month. Coming up in May 2014 – two “Trashion” shows, one at the High Line on May 18th and one at the beautiful Brooklyn Grange on May 31st.

Skraptacular is always in need of craft items, funds, and volunteers. Visit their web site to get involved.

Green Festival NYC 2014 – the Latest Green Products & EcoFashion

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outside pier94

(April 26-27, 2014) The Green Festival in NYC is always a fantastic venue to discover the latest in green, such as biodegradable handy-wipes, educational games to help kids learn about nature, electric cars, vegan snacks, and clean energy organizations.

game

A main focus was ecofashion, including:

  • An ecofashion show hosted by the nonprofit Fashion Fights Poverty, and several local designers showed their eco-friendly and creative designs. My favorite was Janelle Funari, who makes beautiful children’s clothing from organic materials.
  • A vendor was selling hats made out of clothing donated to thrift stores and another sold organic baby clothes
  • A panel of experts led by Kate Black explained the current state of sustainable fashion and its importance on the earth and workers. See: Bhoomki, Shop Ethica, Mode Marteau (vintage), and Love is Mighty (shoes)
  • Ecofashion expert Sass Brown spoke about her new book which features designers who repurpose fabrics, such as a dress made from discarded Speedo racing suits.

I am always struck by the ingenuity and entrepreneurial spirit of the exhibitors. See Greenfestivals.org

nature game   panel   men's fashion

Post by Green Inside And Out Consulting.