Have you ever heard of conflict diamonds? The phrase refers to diamonds that originate in war-torn areas and are sold to buy arms or in other ways fund a conflict. Turns out diamonds aren’t the only resource financing wars—you may be walking around with a conflict cell phone in your pocket.
Tantalum is one of many “conflict minerals” that are key…
Once cell phones, laptops, or other electronics have outlived their mayfly-like lifespans, their disposal becomes an issue. Full of toxic chemicals such as lead, cadmium, mercury, chromium, and PCBs, improperly recycled electronic waste, or e-waste, can expose people to substances that lead to cancer, birth defects, and other major health issues…
For evidence that Big Biotech is working to suppress independent scientific research that links GMOs to health effects, you don’t have to look any further than the much-maligned 2012 study by Dr. Gilles-Eric Séralini, a professor of microbiology at the University of Caen in France.
In November 2012, he and his colleagues published a peer-…
Monsanto’s “seed police” are notorious for traveling the country, inspecting farms for Monsanto-patented GM seeds or plants that were not purchased from the company. Since Monsanto forbids farmers from saving its seeds, the company then sues farmers for patent infringement, even if farmers claim the contamination was accidental.
A 2013 report…
Fifty to sixty percent of US sugar comes from sugar beets—and almost all of that comes from a genetically modified (GM) version of the plant. Sugar is in a good chunk of our foods, even savory ones like soups and bread. With no requirements in our country that GM foods be labeled, you may be consuming a lot more GM sugar that you think.
As…
Even as science works to prove the safety, or lack thereof, of GMOs when it comes to human health, there are other issues at stake with biotechnology.
1. GMO Contamination --
Currently, GMO and non-GMO crops coexist side-by-side. But due to cross-pollination from insects, wind, and farmer error, some non-GMO and organic crops are being…
George Naylor has been growing non-GMO corn and soy on his Iowa farm since 1976. He talked to Green America editor-in-chief Tracy Fernandez Rysavy about his fight to stay GMO-free.
Green America/TRACY: Why did you decide to go GMO-free?
George Naylor: I chose not to raise GMOs, period. I just refused to buy products where corporations are…
Dr. Jane Doe is a biologist who works on crop evolution, genetics, and improvement at a major university. She asked to remain anonymous due to the sensitive nature of her work. Dr. Doe talked to Green American editor-in-chief Tracy Fernandez Rysavy about her research into stronger, better hybrid seeds, how they compare to GMOs, and how…
Every 30 minutes, a farmer commits suicide in India, a phenomenon that has been steadily rising since the 1970s. Documentary filmmaker Micha X. Peled took his cameras to the vibrant farming community of Telung Takli in the state of Maharashtra—which sits at the heart of the crisis— to find out why.
Peled’s 2011 film Bitter Seeds starts…
As a green-economy activist, you demand that companies improve their social and environmental practices. But what’s going on behind the scenes in these campaigns? Here’s an insider’s look at how Green America leverages your voice to engineer green tipping points—in this case, against genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in our food, starting with…
UPDATE: March 2014... There's still a chance to revive the Production Tax Credit!
Though the Production Tax Credit (PTC) for wind energy expired at the end of the 2013, members of Congress are working to bring it back. On March 21, 144 representatives and senators sent letters to their colleagues urging the PTC's renewal.…
The expansion of the green economy is seen in the growth or green market segments, certifications, higher education programs, and industry associations. (Source: The Big Green Opportunity Report, 2013; click image for larger.)
Here are seven things being "greenwashed," from granola bars to cleaning products. These items may seem more environmentally friendly than they are, but there are better alternatives for you to consider.
1. Biodegradable Bags
How much do they cost? $5 – $20
What’s wrong with them? Unless you know these bags are ending up in a…
It can be hard to eat organic food on a budget. But we have some tips on how to prioritize the foods least contaminated by pesticides, increase your access to healthy, organic foods, and even build community along the way.
Organic or Conventional?
If you’re on a tight budget, prioritize buying organic versions of produce that’s normally…
What if you could get what you need for free and make some really great friends in the process? That’s the concept behind what even the mainstream media has started to call “the sharing economy”—where people come together to pool time, talent, and treasure so everyone involved can get what they need. All around the world, people are sharing their…
We asked our summer editorial fellows, Krisna Bharvani and Sierra Schellenberg, to find an office casual outfit that they would wear, as cheaply as possible. The rules were that they could spend no more than $50; they had to assemble a complete outfit, including shoes and one accessory; and they needed to get their items from a combination of…
While many American companies have chosen to take the easy route and exploit workers from vulnerable populations, such as immigrants, the deep green companies in the Green Business Network® protect workers across their supply chains.
A few have even gone out of their way to employ a business model that empowers traditionally disenfranchised…
What’s a fair amount of interest to pay on a loan?
Think of your answer, and then ask yourself another question: Could you do business with a bank that you know is charging some customers as much as 365 percent interest on a loan?
That’s exactly what is happening at some corporate mega-banks offering new loan products with names like “Checking…
Around the world, the garment industry is notorious for exposing workers to abusive sweatshop conditions, from poverty-level wages to forced overtime to verbal and physical abuse. Consequently, many concerned Americans have vowed to only buy clothes with the “Made in the USA” label, to avoid supporting companies tied to sweatshops.
But that label…
As last April’s tragic Rana Plaza building collapse in Bangladesh illustrated, worker exploitation and abuse is still happening around the world. More than 1,200 people lost their lives, most of them women sewing clothes for US companies like Walmart. The workers had been ordered back into the building to sew, despite police warnings that it wasn’…
Since Green America launched our “Break Up With Your Mega-Bank” campaign in 2008, we’ve heard from thousands of Green Americans who have broken up with their mega-banks, switching their bank accounts to community development banks or credit unions. And it’s no wonder why — for decades, mega-banks like Bank of America, Citigroup, JP Morgan Chase,…
The American appetite for sugar ensures that the US ranks not only among the top ten sugar-producing countries in the world, but also takes the top spot as the world’s largest importer of sugar. With nearly 3.3 million metric tons of sugar entering the US in fiscal year 2011–2012, Americans can find sugar originating from 40 countries around the…
Most Americans are eating 122 grams of sugar per day or more, rather than the 30-45 grams most experts recommend.
With the sweet fructose that makes up 50% of sugar linked to increased rates of obesity, diabetes, stroke, heart disease, and even Alzheimer’s, it’s no wonder that many people are turning to alternative sweeteners to replace it. But…
How much added sugar should we eat each day? The American Heart Association recommends that women eat only 30 grams (6 teaspoons) and men consume 45 grams (9 teaspoons) of added sugars per day for good health. However, here in the US, the average person eats over 108 grams—or 22 teaspoons—of added sugars per day.
If you think it might be…
“There are very big forces that need to be challenged.”
Chloe Maxmin is a sophomore at Harvard University, and co-coordinator for the student-led movement to get Harvard to divest from fossil fuels.
Header photo shows Chloe Maxmin (left) and Sima Atri at the final #HarvardHeatweek rally.Via 350.org.
Green America/Martha van Gelder: How has…
"Having students at historically black colleges and universities, and minority- serving institutions involved in a climate justice movement is crucial for that movement to succeed. The issue of climate change is too important to leave to a small segment of our population."
Known as the “father of environmental justice,” Dr. Robert Bullard is…
Since 2006, more than 600 garment workers have died in sweatshop factory fires while sewing clothing for giant fashion companies, like Gap, H&M, JCPenney, and Abercrombie & Fitch.
These tragic deaths could be prevented these companies would follow the lead of competitors like Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein, by agreeing to a fire…
“Universities are very sensitive to how they are portrayed.”
Kyuwon Kim and two recent university graduates, Elysia Petrone and Yasmin Parodi, are attempting a unique method of pressuring universities to divest from fossil fuels. The three friends are asking Maclean’s Magazine, a current affairs publication that annually ranks Canadian…
A year ago, as then-presidential candidate Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama took jabs at each other in the media over the war in Afghanistan, the American auto industry bailout, and the national debt, one critical issue remained conspicuously absent—global warming.
Intensely frustrated over the fact that neither candidate had the courage…
The top 200 oil, gas, and coal companies around the world hold the vast majority of the world’s remaining fossil fuel reserves. Burn these reserves, and the world is on track to catapult past the two-degree rise in world temperatures that scientists say would result in the most catastrophic effects of climate change.
The fossil-fuel divestment…
Back in the 1980s, photographer James Balog didn’t believe in global warming. Part of the reason was that he didn’t trust the veracity of the computer models that predicted the Earth’s temperature was rising. And part was that he simply couldn’t wrap his head around the idea.
“I didn’t think that humans were capable of changing the entire physics…
Ninety-five percent of the US sugar supply made from sugar beets comes from Monsanto’s own genetically modified (GM) beets, engineered to be resistant to the company’s Roundup herbicide, which has been linked to birth defects, brain malformations, and DNA damage.
Also, most of the high-fructose corn syrup that sweetens many US processed foods…
“Institutions of higher education should have been leading the way and they haven't. They've been complacent, and they've been mired in the status quo. And yet, there's incredible opportunity in this crisis.”
Dr. Stephen Mulkey is a climate scientist and the president of Unity College in Unity, ME. Last November, he proposed to the school's…
“We want to make sure the solution is robust and encapsulates a lot of alternatives.”
Lauren Ressler is a National Organizer for the Responsible Endowments Coalition, which helps students encourage their colleges and universities to invest their endowments responsibly. She’s been especially active in using endowment activism to fight climate…
“This year is the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation, and we’re celebrating that from the standpoint that slavery was an institution, just like Big Oil, that we were able to get rid of. It took a lot, but we were able to get rid of that."
The Reverend Lennox Yearwood is the president of the Hip Hop Caucus, and works to empower…
“Your investment philosophy should reflect the values you have in governing.”
Seattle mayor, Mike McGinn made history last November when he became the first mayor to divest his city from fossil fuels. His office has already divested the $1.4 million in their direct control, and it’s working to encourage the Seattle pension fund to divest its $1.9…
Peter Zoe (not his real name) thinks about water every day. For the past five years, he’s been hauling water to his home in a water truck.
Zoe moved into his property in the California foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains 21 years ago. Five years ago, his well water dropped to such an extent that it became undrinkable, even with heavy…
From chestnuts roasting over open fires (spewing fine
particulate matter) and brightly wrapped presents (adorned
with paper from virgin rainforest trees), holiday practices
aren’t always green.
1. HOLIDAY LIGHTS -- LED holiday lights use up to 80 percent less energy than incandescent lights, and they’ll last longer, so they’re worth the splurge.…
In many ways, the holiday season celebrates the light. The Winter Solstice marks the lengthening of the light as the season passes from autumn into winter. Christmastime reminds us of the guiding light of the Star of Bethlehem. And Hanukkah celebrates the miraculous “renewable energy” of the oil lamps in the Jerusalem Temple that failed to run…
1. Minimize Gifts
“In my family, we have to draw names to become a family member’s “Secret Santa,” so we limit our purchases to one gift each—especially good for big families.” — Elizabeth O’Connell, fair labor campaigns director
2. Make a Holiday Date
“Instead of exchanging gifts with my siblings, we have a Sibling Outing! In the past…
1. Items in "Stupid Plastic" Packaging
Tired of single-use “stupid plastic” packaging, sharp wire ties, and open-proof plastic containers that many products come swathed in? The Earth is too. Most plastic is made from polluting, resource-intensive petroleum, and tons of single use plastics are clogging oceans and harming wildlife.
Avoid gift…
In an ongoing recession that has been difficult for many parts of the country, Cleveland, OH, has had the dubious distinction of being the second most impoverished city in the nation, after Detroit. Census numbers from 2010 indicate that one of every three Cleveland residents lives below the poverty line, and the unemployment rate was hovering…
Fabrics and Labels to Look For
When you shop for new clothes, a number of factors can affect the social and environmental impacts of your purchases. For example, about 14.2 million workers worldwide are trapped in forced and exploitative working conditions, including those in clothing manufacture, according to a June 2012 report from the…
Though dozens of countries around the world require genetically modified food to be labeled, the US is not one of them. In the absence of lables, here are our best tips for avoiding GMOs when you shop:
1. Look for the Non-GMO Project label: The Non-GMO Project label provides consumers with independent, third-party assurance that…
Around the world, several countries support a consumer's right to know by requiring some sort of labeling for genetically modified foods.
The European Union led the way in 1998, with countries steadily following suit (though laws vary widely worldwide) since then.
The US and Canada do not require labeling of genetically modified foods.…
Because of the prevalence of soy and corn in processed foods, about 30,000 genetically modified food products sit on US grocery store shelves.
Here are the top 9 GM ingredients to watch for:
1. SOY
GM since: 1996
How widespread: 94 percent of the US soybean crop was genetically modified in 2011, according to the USDA.…
Dynamic Green Festival® speaker Jeffrey Smith has traveled around the world, talking with government leaders and community activists on the dangers of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in the food supply. Known for his ability to translate scientific studies on GMOs into language that everyday people can understand, Smith is…
Throughout history, people have searched for ways to relieve stress. Some methods are healthy, such as gathering with friends and family, meditation, or ritual. Other de-stressors can have negative consequences when used in excess—think cocktails, drugs, or midnight ice cream binges
While they don’t take the place of great social support, herbs…
So, you’ve been wanting to end your relationship with your mega-bank, but you can’t break up just yet. While you work toward making a clean break, we’ve got some suggestions for how you can “cheat” on your mega-bank: ways you can move money into banking products from community development financial institutions (CDFIs), even if you’re…
Replace common single-use plastics with these sturdy reusables, recommended by MyPlasticFreeLife.com's Beth Terry and the editors of the Green American.
1. Instead of accepting plastic bags at the grocery store, carry your own cloth grocery and produce bags. Choose stretchy string bags that carry many times their weight (ReuseIt.com),…
