Behind The Swoosh: Nike’s Catholic Nemesis
By Jenn Breckenridge
Filed Under Conscious Commerce, eCo TV | 4 Comments
The story of Jim Keady, former coach of St. John’s University, who heads to Indonesia with Leslie Kretzu, Co-Director of Educating For Justice, to personally experience the living conditions of Nike factory workers there. Behind The Swoosh is a deep piece. Apologies for the video quality, but the story was worth it. Get ready to rethink your running shoes…
Posted on April 23, 2008 |
Fashion Conscious
By Pippa Sorley
Filed Under Sustainable Style | Leave a Comment
I admit it. I’m a sucker when it comes to fashion. I pride myself on biking to work, buying organic food, and voting with my dollar whenever possible…but I love clothes. So what’s an eco-conscious girl to do? Most conventional retailers like Gap or Banana Republic are agonizingly limited in their eco-friendly choices. Who knows how many pounds of pesticides were used to make this cotton T-shirt or how little that Vietnamese worker was paid to sew that incredible skirt.
Until recently, when the words “eco-friendly” and “fashion” were used in the same sentence, it would conjure up images of frumpy frocks made out of hemp, or Birkenstock-clad festival goers. Environmentally and socially responsible clothes – that were also fashionable - were hard to come by, and came in limited styles, sizes and fabrics.
Today, supply has caught up with demand, and hip, urban, funky clothes – that are also consciously made – are more accessible than ever before. Businesses such as Nike and Patagonia have learned that their customers really do care about the social conditions of their manufacturing facilities, or the environmental effects of their operation. According to the LOHAS (Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability) Report on sustainable economy, one-third of U.S. consumers are willing to pay 20% more for environmentally or socially responsible products. That translates to a $226.8 billion market worldwide.
This “Conscious Consumer” market segment is driving a new economic paradigm. Mainstream, global corporations are starting to realize that unless they adopt a triple bottom line philosophy of economic, social, and environmental sustainability, they may lose their ‘loyal’ customer base. Even Walmart – the global behemoth we love to hate – has jumped on the bandwagon by preserving an acre of wildlife habitat for every developed acre of their footprint.
But I digress. Back to the most important issue at hand - fashion. Here’s a quick list of hip, functional, trend-setting clothes that will make you look fabulous while you’re “walking your talk.”
Same Underneath is an uber cool fashion company that specializes in hip clothing made out of bamboo, wool, hemp, organic cotton and recycled polyester. All of their fabrications are composed of sustainable and/or organic blends. The company’s mission is to “change the way people look at each other,” and, in line with their name, their objective is to “unite those who don’t judge others by religion, race, hobbies, color, creed, and/or sex.”
When it comes to seeding the growth in the supply and variety of sustainable fabrics, Patagonia is the true pioneer. Back when organic cotton was unfathomably expensive, the company made a bold decision: to convert their entire sportswear line to 100% organically grown cotton. Within three years, Beneficial T’s became one of the biggest users of organic cotton in the United States. They now convert roughly 500,000 pounds of organic cotton into T-shirts, tote bags and hats each year. They were also the first outdoor clothing manufacturer to use fleece made from post consumer recycled plastic soda bottles, saving some 86 million soda bottles from the trash heap.
Everybody loves funk. Thanks to Funk Divine, we can now buy hemp tees and jumpsuits that are funky, retro and ‘sweatshop-free.’ The company’s mission is clear: to use only the finest hemp and organic cotton fabrics to be found. The limited edition line evokes a modern day Egyptian glamour, the scarab logo representing ‘life’.
Sadly, Made In The USA and sweatshop-free garments are few and far between; over 93% of clothing in America is made in foreign countries. Companies like Funk Divine are breaking this paradigm. With more than a hundred boutique clothing designers based in the U.S., the awakening of the American-made fashion movement is poised for success.
Co-designed by U2 frontman Bono’s wife, Ali Hewson, and fashion designer Rogan Gregory, Edun (“nude” spelled backwards) is founded on four respects: respect for what your clothes are made of, respect for who is making them, respect for where they are made, and respect for the people who are going to put them on. The result is a fabulous, funky new line of apparel made in developing countries with environmentally friendly materials.
Posted on April 15, 2008 |
-
Buy eCo Products
