In the face of mounting public pressure, Amazon announced new plans to use more clean energy to power its computing subsidiary Amazon Web Services (AWS), which it says will keep the company on track to meet its goal of reaching 100% renewable energy use by 2030. The retailing giant announced plans for four new renewable energy projects to power its data centers – an announcement that came only after intense activism on the part of Green America, the nation’s leading green economy organization, and allied groups.

In 2014, Green America launched its Build a Cleaner Cloud campaign urging Amazon to shift to renewable energy to power its cloud computing services and protect workers in their warehouses and supply chain. Consumers involved in the campaign canceled their Amazon Prime subscriptions, stopped shopping on Amazon.com, and sent messages directly to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and the company.  More than 42,000 consumers joined in the Green America push, which was the largest of its kind.

WASHINGTON, DC – March 24, 2020 – In the face of mounting public pressure, Amazon announced new plans to use more clean energy to power its computing subsidiary Amazon Web Services (AWS), which it says will keep the company on track to meet its goal of reaching 100% renewable energy use by 2030. The retailing giant announced plans for four new renewable energy projects to power its data centers – an announcement that came only after intense activism on the part of Green America, the nation’s leading green economy organization, and allied groups.

In 2014, Green America launched its Build a Cleaner Cloud campaign urging Amazon to shift to renewable energy to power its cloud computing services and protect workers in their warehouses and supply chain. Consumers involved in the campaign canceled their Amazon Prime subscriptions, stopped shopping on Amazon.com, and sent messages directly to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and the company.  More than 42,000 consumers joined in the Green America push, which was the largest of its kind.

Historically, Amazon has not been a leader on climate change. After years of intense consumer pressure, Amazon finally reached 50% renewable energy use in 2018. Last year, Amazon adopted a 100% clean energy target for powering its widely used AWS cloud computing operation. Data centers require vast amounts of power to operate and are a major contributor to climate change. Amazon’s adoption of renewable energy, and use of unbundled RECs, means the company still trails competitors like Microsoft and Google.

Charlotte Tate, manager of Labor Justice Campaigns at Green America, said: “The new announcement is further evidence than when consumers, workers, and small businesses come together, we can hold even the largest corporations accountable. Green America is committed to maintaining pressure on Amazon until it addresses its practices that are harmful to both workers and the planet.”

Todd Larsen, executive co-director of Consumer and Corporate Engagement at Green America, said: “Despite AWS's prominence in the cloud computing space, the company has not kept pace with competitors in terms of renewable energy use. While Amazon has committed to 100% clean energy by 2030, other companies are getting there much faster. The climate crisis is impacting us now. While this announcement is a step in the right direction, ten years is too long to wait for one of the world’s richest companies to catch up on renewable energy.”

Last year, 4,500 Amazon employees signed an open letter to Jeff Bezos and Amazon’s Board calling for the company to address climate change by adding more clean energy and getting to its 100% clean energy goal, greening the company's delivery fleet, providing meaningful climate targets, and being more transparent in its climate and environmental reporting. The company has threatened to fire employees if they continue to speak out.

While Amazon has made progress on renewable energy use, worker safety remains a concern. In the current context, Amazon needs to meet its workers’ demands to protect their safety. Amazon should provide paid sick leave that is not limited to those that test positive for COVID-19 as testing within the US remain difficult to access. In addition, Amazon should cover the cost of health care and testing for any employee or contractor that has potentially been exposed. This week Amazon logistics workers scored a victory when the company agreed to provide paid time off to them.  The company needs to build on that action and fully protect all its workers.

ABOUT GREEN AMERICA

Green America is the nation’s leading green economy organization. Founded in 1982, Green America provides the economic strategies, organizing power and practical tools for businesses and individuals to solve today’s social and environmental problems. http://www.GreenAmerica.org

MEDIA CONTACT: Max Karlin for Green America, (703) 276-3255, or mkarlin@hastingsgroup.com.

Ethos Logos Investments works exclusively with individuals, institutions, employers, and family offices who seek to make an impact on the world through their investments. Integrating faith, morals, and ethics into an investment portfolio is a dynamic strategy for effecting both social and financial returns. We believe in the impact of conscientious people investing intentionally. We’ve witnessed its power and experienced its influence. Our passion is working with people who are serious about their mission. Ethos Logos provides the resources necessary to truly customize a portfolio that can insulate clients from activities they’d be morally opposed to profiting from or being complicit with, while also using investments to proactively effect positive change. We offer fee-based financial plans, fee-based advisory accounts, commission only brokerage accounts, life insurance and annuities (including products offered by Catholic Order of Foresters). We also offer an extremely robust SRI and faith-based 401k & 403b platform. Now, employers can empower their employees to honor their conscience with money that is locked up in their retirement plan.

In honor of Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day, we are taking a look at how investments are now being deployed to promote gender parity and women’s empowerment.  While there has historically been a lack of financial investments that benefit women and girls, change is underway with gender lens investing.

The good news is that there is increasing focus on how consideration of gender – the roles and numbers of women in the workforce and the increase in women’s economic empowerment – relates to financial portfolios and to investments that benefit women and girls. According to March 2020 research released by Veris Wealth Partners, assets in what is now called “gender lens investing” totaled $3.4 billion as of June 2019, up from $2.4 billion the previous year.

The challenge is that we have a long way yet to go to achieve economic equity for women. A new 2020 report from the USSIF Foundation, Investing to Advance Women: A Guide for Investors, documents that women in the U.S. still earn almost 20% less than their male counterparts, barely 27% of CEOs are women, and only 4% of c-level positions are held by women of color. Action to correct this inequality is needed across society – and the investment sector has an important role to play.

The origin of the phrase “gender lens investing” in 2009 is attributed to the Criterion Institute, a non-profit think tank that uses the finance sector to leverage social change. Criterion explains that “Investing with a gender lens is an extension of gender lens philanthropy. It builds on the networks, power, and experience of women’s funds [i.e., grant makers].”

Criterion’s 2017 Blueprint for Women’s Funds includes insight on “the need to bridge gender knowledge with investment knowledge” in order for finance with a gender lens to be as successful as needed over the long term. Criterion observes that gender lens investing needs to go beyond just counting women or viewing them solely as an economic opportunity, and to put investment decisions in the context of women’s economic empowerment. This means ensuring that investments actually improve women’s lives and set the stage for greater asset building and access to the resources and rights needed to thrive economically.

FAQs about Gender Lens Investing:

What does gender lens investing actually entail?

As with many aspects of socially and environmentally responsible investing, also known as impact investing, there is not just one definition or strategy. That said, in short, gender lens investing integrates gender analysis with investment decision-making. Common aspects of gender lens investing include the selection of companies for investment that have some mix of the following:

• Significant percentage of women on their boards of directors;
• Significant percentage of women at the executive level;
• Woman CEO
• Woman CFO
• Woman founder
• Strategies to give women access to capital
• Payment of a living wage
• Products and/or services for services that improve the lives of women and girls
• Responsible portrayals of women in advertising   

In addition, the Pax Global Women’s Leadership Index and Fund, a leader in gender lens investing, also reviews whether companies have signed the Women’s Empowerment Principles formulated by the U.N. Global Compact and U.N. Women. Other funds consider whether and how companies are addressing the U.N. Sustainable Development Goal on gender equality.

What are the desired outcomes of gender lens investing?

For most investors, the desired results will be multiple, including increased economic and educational opportunity for women and girls, stronger economies, better corporate management, and greater profit for companies and shareholders. Moreover, as the Veris report above notes, we now see connections between women in leadership and better outcomes across a range of social, environmental, and corporate governance issues.

Community development investments for women can also dramatically improve the quality of women’s lives. This happens by providing loans to women and access to needed products and services (from electricity to clean cook stoves). Customized mortgage pools from Community Capital Management, for example, give access to capital to low-to-moderate income female borrowers. Calvert Impact Capital’s Women Investing in Women initiative supports women as investors and uses investments to improve the well-being of women and girls.

Why choose a gender lens for investing?

Research from around the world demonstrates time and again that companies that value women’s leadership, and societies where women have economic opportunity, do better. The Pax Elevate Global Women’s Leadership Fund, for example, invests in companies with more gender diversity because they will have greater financial returns, more innovation, greater productivity, more satisfied employees and less employee-turnover. As the Investing to Advance Women report states: “A significant body of research suggests that companies that promote women to the most senior levels of business and appoint them to boards tend to perform better than those companies that do not.”

What is the role of shareholder action on gender equity?

Active shareholders file shareholder resolutions at companies seeking transparency and practices to close the gender gap between male and female employees across race and ethnicity. The 30 Percent Coalition, including asset owners and asset manager among others, is dedicated to having 30% of corporate board seats held by women, including women of color. This proxy season, Arjuna Capital, for example, has filed 13 resolutions on the need for median gender/racial pay equity disclosure. If you own company stock – be sure to check your proxy ballots and vote your values!

Is investing with a gender lens financially competitive?

Yes! While there are no guarantees with the stock market, funds with a gender lens have performed competitively over time. For example, the Pax Elevate Global Women’s Leadership Fund has outperformed the MSCI World Index, its benchmark, from its inception in 2014 to 2019.

Impax Asset Management, the advisor to Pax World Funds states: “Increasingly, analysts in both finance and academia are examining the relationship between financial performance and gender diversity, and there is abundant evidence that having more gender-diverse leadership is connected to better financial outcomes.” Gender Diversity Delivered: Results from 5 Years of Investing in Women explains the financial performance of the Pax Elevate Global Women’s Leadership Fund in detail.

What products and service providers can help me with gender lens investing?

For financial planners, products, and services dedicated to social and environmentally responsible visit GreenPages.org for members of Green America’s Green Business Network. Many of these options will include a focus on gender lens.

For example:

Mutual Funds: Domini, Green Century, Pax, Parnassus, and Calvert

Community Development Investments: Calvert Impact Capital’s Women Investing in Women initiative, Community Capital Management, and Shared Interest

Asset Managers/Larger Accounts: Miller/Howard, NorthStar Asset Management, Trillium Asset Management, Veris Wealth Partners

In closing, we need investors and investment professionals to continue to work for the day when all investing is socially and environmentally responsible -- and there is no longer any need for a gender lens. That will be a great announcement on an upcoming International Women’s Day!

The global shift — albeit, a slow shift — to renewable energy sources is starting to pay off. According to a new report, last year, CO2 power sector emissions dropped by 2 percent. This is the greatest reduction we've seen in about three decades, and it's largely thanks to a few key regions using more renewables and less coal in 2019.

The report was conducted by Ember (formerly known as Sandbag), an independent climate think tank. Ember has been reviewing Europe's power sector for years, but this report is its first review of the global power sector. For the report, researchers took into account data from 85 percent of the world, and made estimates for the remaining 15 percent.

According to the report, last year, as we saw coal use decreasing in the U.S. and the EU, coal-fired electricity generation dropped by 3 percent. This led to that 2 percent drop in CO2 power sector emissions. 

This fall was the biggest we've seen since 1990, which is when the International Energy Agency first reported on these trends.

How did we manage to do this? Well, instead of relying so much on coal, both the U.S. and the EU both increased their reliance on renewable energy as well as natural gas. Unfortunately, natural gas emits about half as much carbon as coal does, according to Green America. The various kinds of renewable energy produce significantly lower carbon than that, though the specific amounts vary greatly, as per Carbon Brief. Switching to renewable energy is much more effective in curbing emissions than switching to natural gas.

Even though the U.S. and the EU managed to cut back on coal last year, China's coal use actually increased for the first time, and China was responsible for half of the world's coal generation.

The report also noted that in 2019, global wind and solar energy increased by 15 percent, accounting for about 8 percent of global electricity. As Ember notes, to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement, the planet needs a compound growth rate of 15 percent every year — which we achieved in 2019. If we want to maintain that rate and hold onto hope that we will keep the global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius, the whole world will have to work together to continue scaling up renewable energy so that it becomes more affordable, according to Ember. 

But despite all that, global coal generation still grew by 2 percent in 2019, Ember found. That's because the rise in clean energy was "not enough to meet electricity demand growth." Basically, even though we are replacing more and more coal with clean energy, humans are requiring more electricity every year (this likely has to do with our ever-growing global population).

“The global decline of coal and power sector emissions is good news for the climate but governments have to dramatically accelerate the electricity transition so that global coal generation collapses throughout the 2020s," Dave Jones, Electricity Analyst for Ember, said in a statement. "To switch from coal into gas is just swapping one fossil fuel for another. The cheapest and quickest way to end coal generation is through a rapid roll-out of wind and solar."

As Jones said — and as many climate activists have been saying for years — transitioning away from coal (and natural gas) and towards clean energy is key in fighting the climate crisis. As more nations continue to implement energy forms such as wind, solar, and hydro, the closer we may get to maintaining the goals of the Paris Agreement.

Green businesses adopt principles, policies, and practices that improve the quality of life for its customers, employees, communities, and planet. But just because a business claims it is “green” doesn’t mean it upholds the standards of social responsibility and sustainability. So how can you determine what is in fact a sustainable business, or how can your business achieve that high standard?

That’s where third-party certifications come in. A third-party certification serves to verify a business’s claims against their independently developed criterion. Such certifications reduce conflicts of interest and provide accountability to a business’s claims. Studies show that customers look for such things from businesses and are willing to pay more for high-quality products with safety and sustainability standards.

Green America's Green Business Certification is the leading trust mark for true green business practices. Our program recognizes businesses that excel in social and environmental responsibility, and the businesses found in our Green Pages directory have met or exceeded our certification standards to become leaders in the green economy.

The Green Business Network at Green America recommends businesses consider both environmental and social justice issues when making decisions. To earn our certification, businesses must meet both standards of social and environmental responsibility. If you are interested in becoming a green business, we’ve highlighted a few important steps—and if you’ve reached these steps, check out the full requirements of our Body and Personal Care standard. You may be ready to apply.

Environmental Responsibility 

"Green" or sustainable businesses make planet health a core part of their mission. The following steps are ways your personal care business can account for environmental responsibility in its operations.

Use clean ingredients.

No matter what your specialty, all body and personal care businesses must use the best possible ingredients in your products and services. This means we require your business to refrain from the following: chemicals containing “sulfate” or “sulfosuccinate,” parabens or paraben preservatives, petroleum variations, synthetic alcohols, fragrances, or dyes, and phthalates. If your business sells sunscreen, we prefer mineral ingredients. Bonus points if it is certified reef-safe. See a more detailed list of chemicals we do not accept at our Body and Personal Care standard.

Additionally, we do not accept businesses that use nanotechnology (particles below 100 nanometers) in their products. There is not enough research on nanotechnology to demonstrate their safety, therefore we use the Precautionary Principle—the principle that a product with disputed or unknown effects should be resisted—until further research is complete.

Treat animals safely and humanely.

If animals are in your supply chain, they must be treated humanely, and your business must be transparent with this treatment. Many of our certified members use vegan ingredients and while we prefer this, we will not refuse a business that uses animal-derived ingredients—such as lanolin, honey, milk, and beeswax—if you can prove these animals were treated humanely. We require all businesses to refrain from animal testing. Acquiring the Leaping Bunny cruelty-free certification is another way to demonstrate your commitment to humane animal treatment.

Operate a green facility.

Not only do we analyze the steps in your supply chain, we are also interested in your business’s operational and administrative fronts. Our definition of a green office or facility includes reusing resources, recyclability, and maximum water and energy efficiency. We require this from body and personal care businesses.

Additionally, we love to see businesses maximize recycling and recyclable packaging as well as opportunities for refills or reusing containers.

Social Responsibility

Triple bottom line businesses are not only kind to the planet, but kind to people—hence, social responsibility. The following points are a handful of ways your business can be an ethical one.

Friendly to sensitive skin and different skin types.

Body and personal care businesses must be attuned to the variations in skin, hair, and body types and sensitivities. Since these can be so wide-ranging, we only require businesses to refrain from chlorine bleaching, scent with only natural essential oils and use organic cotton balls, swabs, and tampons.

Uphold transparency.

While we value integrity at all points in the supply chain, transparency in your ingredients promotes trust between you and your customers. We expect a full list of ingredients on your products. This includes where they are sold and online marketplaces.

We love to see businesses source their ingredients locally whenever possible. However, if your ingredients must be shipped from elsewhere—such as shea butter, olive oil, sugar, and certain essential oils—we prefer to see a Fair Trade label. While this is not a requirement, it helps demonstrate to the certification board and to your customers that you are dedicated to social responsibility.

Why Certify?

In a sea of businesses claiming to be “conscious" or "natural," it’s hard for the average consumer to weed out the green from the greenwashed. Third-party certifications demonstrate that your business has withstood the vetting of an outside body and come out as a truly socially and environmentally responsible business. With certification, your customers will know your business has the credentials to back up claims of environmental and social responsibility.

While these requirements are comprehensive, they are not definite. We love seeing businesses exceed these standards and take steps beyond certification to be even greener. In addition, our certification analyzes business practices and not individual products. We believe a sustainable future is also an ethical one and ensure the businesses that earn our certification reflect that.

If you have met these criteria, you can view the full requirements for personal care businesses at our Body and Personal Care certification standard and begin the process of becoming a member and official sustainable business.
 

By: Ken Roseboro, The Organic Non-GMO Report 

Many Midwest farms are struggling with low grain prices and the trade war with China, among other challenges. But a small farm in Nebraska offers farmers hope that a focus on soil health can help their farms prosper, while delivering a range of environmental benefits and even a solution to climate change.

Scott Gonnerman’s farm in Waco, Nebraska has been in his family since 1918 when his great grandfather bought it. It is small by Midwest standards, just 160 acres. Gonnerman rents two other parcels, giving him a total of 250 acres.

He grows non-GMO corn, soybeans, and small grains such as wheat.

“We’re awfully small in today’s scale, but we seem to be able to make a living farming,” he says.

Switched to no-till and cover crops

Gonnerman’s journey as a regenerative farmer began in 2008 when he switched to no-till farming, which leaves the soil undisturbed.

“We went to a couple no-till meetings and decided that was what we needed to do,” he says.

A year later he started planting a cover crop after realizing the importance of crop diversity. He initially planted an annual ryegrass to improve soil health. In 2010, he planted multi-species cover crops.

Today, Gonnerman plants 14 to 17 different varieties of cover crops. These include hemp, crimson clover, Austrian winter peas, hairy vetch, pearl millet, sorghum sudangrass, oats, radishes, and others.

The cover crops perform different functions to build soil health. Oats build biomass to protect the soil, sorghum sudangrass promotes the growth of beneficial mycorrhizal fungi, tillage radish helps break up compacted soil, and Austrian winter peas add nitrogen, an essential nutrient.

Planting cover crops has delivered many benefits to Gonnerman’s farm. They prevent soil erosion, increase water infiltration, suppress weeds, and reduce the need for chemical inputs. Gonnerman has eliminated the use of insecticides and fungicides.

He still uses an herbicide to “burn down” a cover crop in the spring but has been trying to use a roller crimper to mow them down instead.

Gonnerman has also reduced his use of nitrogen fertilizer to 50% of the recommended amount for corn.

“They say it takes a pound of nitrogen to raise a bushel of corn, but our best year was 2.75 bushels of corn per pound of nitrogen applied. I’m raising 200 bushels of corn on 80 to 100 pounds of nitrogen,” he says.

Because of his success reducing chemical inputs, Gonnerman plans to take the next step, which is transitioning to organic production.

“This spring, I’m going to planting alfalfa and keep it for three to four years, then that ground will be organic. That’ll give me three to four years to figure out an (organic) crop rotation.”

The alfalfa will help control weeds and provide nitrogen for corn.

Better water infiltration

One of the biggest benefits Gonnerman has seen from cover crops is the ability of his soil to absorb water. In 2008, water was absorbed into his soil at a rate of one-half inch per hour. By 2019, that rate improved to two inches in less than two minutes. His soil soaks up water like a sponge.

Even with the heavy rains that Nebraska saw last year, Gonnerman’s farm was able to absorb it.

“We’ve had no runoff on our farm. I can soak it up,” he says.

Better water absorption also reduces the need for irrigation, which is common in Nebraska.

“With our water infiltration rates, our cover crops, and keeping the ground covered, we’ve basically eliminated a majority of our irrigation needs.”

Gonnerman grows only non-GMO corn and soybeans. “In 2013, we became 100% non-GMO with no insecticide, no fungicide, and no seed treatments.”

He grows non-GMO soybeans for a seed company and food-grade soybeans for Gavilon Grain, which are sold to the Japanese market. This year he will also grow non-GMO white corn for Gavilon.

A legacy of soil health

Gonnerman slashes his costs by buying non-GMO corn and soybean seed.

“I pay $85 a bag for corn. If you buy a Pioneer fully traited (GMO) corn, it’s probably $300 or more per bag.”

Soil health as the bottom line

By reducing seed and other input costs for pesticides and fertilizers, Gonnerman’s farm is profitable, unlike many other farms in the Midwest.

“My wife and I are pretty much making a living off of our farm,” he says. “Our input costs are down considerably. Our profitability per acre is up.”

But the bottom line for Gonnerman is soil health.

“Everything on our farm is based on what it will do for our soil. Will it benefit it, keep it the same, or degrade it? For all our farming decisions, soil health comes first,” he says.

Gonnerman’s soil health focus was recognized in 2018 when he received the Master Conservationist Award from the Omaha World-Herald.

He wants to leave a legacy of soil health to his future generations.

“I’m 59 years old, and my goal is to have my soils functioning the way they were when my great-grandfather bought the farm back in 1918. I’m trying to make it so that, some year down the road, my grandsons can make a living off my 160 acres.”

“Our philosophy is that a healthy, living soil produces healthy plants that are resilient to pest and disease.  We use the principles of permaculture and biodynamic agriculture, but we aren’t really about the labels, just growing the healthiest food possible without sacrificing our environment”.        

ECO City Farms is a nonprofit farm located in Prince Georges County Maryland, that is devoted to educating the youths and adults in the community about the importance of a healthy lifestyle and nutrition habits. In addition, ECO City seeks to enhance food security, safety and access amplifying community engagement to reinvigorate the Chesapeake foodshed with sustainable ways of making food and money while preserving ecological diversity.

Edmonston farm, is considered the heart of the ECO City Farms where they have on-site bee keeping and use various farming practices for growing organic produce. ECO City Farms focus on organic farming without the use of any chemical such as pesticides, fungicides, or herbicides as they hold the status as a Certified Naturally Grown farm.

There are four on-site hoop houses that allows ECO City Farms to produce mass amounts of vegetables year-round. Hoop houses are low-cost renewable energy system similar to greenhouses but is covered by greenhouse plastic. In addition, composting and vermiculture practice incorporated into ECO City Farm’s foundation for farming. Composting and vermiculture converts organic substance from waste to produce a more fertilized soil. Edmonston farms also have a Microgreens project funded by Maryland Department of Agriculture Specialty Crop Block Grant. ECO City Farms produce and sell buckwheat shoots, pea shoots, radish and cress microgreens at Riverdale Park farmers market. Edmonston farm also offers their own guidelines and practices for their customers to grow microgreens themselves. Another feature about the Edmonston farm is that they have developed an on-farm kitchen. The foodshed was built in a shipping container where cooking classes are taught and produce is stored.

Bladensburg Farm shares their 3.5 acres of land with three low-income multifamily apartment buildings.  ECO City Farms provides healthy produce for the residents at the apartment complex and the community.

ECO City Farms provides extensive outreach programs to educate youths and adults within the community.

Programs include:

• Farm-to-School
• Nutrition Education
• Tours/Field trips to the farm
• Summer Program - Seed to Feed.
• Growing Urban Farms and Farmers

What makes ECO City Farms so special is that they open their farm to the community for volunteer work. ECO City encourages their community to be involved in creating a sustainable environment and healthy lifestyle habits.

The future of farming is key to an environmentally sound future. You can help through volunteering and supporting the work of ECO City Farms and Green America, like the Soil Carbon Initiative's new 2022 Go-to-Market Pilots.

Green America is pleased to announce that at our first board meeting of 2020 in April we will welcome five newly elected board members: Bama Athreya, Eleanor Greene, Julie Lineberger, Carolyn Parrs, and Brady Quirk-Garvan. Green America’s board of directors draws representatives from each of our stakeholder groups—individual members, green business members, and our staff worker members—to help oversee and guide our economic action plans. 

Bama Athreya, based in Washington, DC, elected by our individual members, is a Fellow at Open Society Foundations. She has worked in the past with USAID with a focus on gender and social inclusion and with the International Labor Rights Forum during which she worked with Green America on the Ending Child Labor in Cocoa Campaign. Bama shared: “I’ve cared about ethical trade throughout my career and have long valued my affiliations with Green America going back about 20 years! I look forward to supporting Green America’s efforts to organize and build a grassroots movement for change.” 

Eleanor Greene, based in Washington, DC, elected by Green America’s worker member staff, joined the staff in 2016 and serves as Green America’s editor in chief. Prior to that, she worked in social media and communications at organizations focusing on sustainable innovation, regenerative agriculture, education, and the arts. She served as the editor in chief of AWOL Magazine at American University, where she also studied journalism. Eleanor states: "I've learned a lot about Green America in the past four years I've worked here and I'm excited to learn about the organization from a different perspective as a board member. I'm honored to serve the staff as a worker-member representative and be part of shaping Green America's future." 

Julie Lineberger, based in Vermont, was re-elected by Green America’s Worker member staff, and runs two green companies, Linesync Architecture and Wheelpad. Julie has served on Green America’s board as chair and is a long-standing member of Green America’s Green Business Network. Julie affirmed: “I am delighted to be re-elected to the Green America board, especially at this crucial time in our country when Green America’s commitments to clean energy, safe food, responsible finance and fair labor have never been more important.” 

Carolyn Parrs, based in Washington State, was elected by members of Green America’s Green Business Network. Carolyn leads Mind Over Markets which provides marketing and branding expertise for sustainable businesses, as well as Women of Green, an online community that “turns up the volume” on the feminine voice in the green movement. Carolyn has conducted webinars for Green Business Network members over the years to strengthen their public presentation. “We are entering a new era of sustainability (the global market for sustainability products hit $2.65 trillion) and it’s more important than ever for all of us to be as engaged as possible. Our time is now,” stated Carolyn.  

Brady Quirk-Garvan, based in South Carolina, was elected by worker member staff. He works with Natural Investments/Money with a Mission, a firm dedicated to socially and environmentally responsible investing. Brady is a member of Green America and of our Green Business Network. He was recognized last fall in Charleston Business’ 2019 Best & Brightest 35 and Under and expresses his commitment to serving on Green America’s board: “In these turbulent times, when larger institutions are failing to lead on the environment and social justice, it is up to us consumers, investors, businesses, and activists to push forward. I am honored to join Green America’s board.” 

Green America extends special thanks to outgoing board members Jeff Marcous (board chair), Scott Kitson, Adam Ortiz, and Meredith Sheperd. 

Horizon Organic, the largest USDA certified organic dairy brand in the world, today announced a commitment to become carbon positive by 2025. Horizon Organic’s goal is to be the first national dairy brand to become carbon positive across its full supply chain. The company plans to achieve carbon neutrality, and then go further to remove, reduce, and offset additional emissions from entering the atmosphere, becoming carbon positive.

The Horizon Organic path to carbon positive will start with its new Growing Years whole milk half gallons, which will be the brand’s first certified carbon neutral product by the end of 2021. Horizon Organic will continue to advance product certifications in direct partnership with family farms through 2025.  The brand has already begun the certification process with The Carbon Trust² and is working alongside many other friends on the journey, including The Organic Trade Association and Green America’s Center for Sustainability Solutions.

The brand is finalizing its full life-cycle assessment and a panel of independent experts will validate the results. The life-cycle assessment will guide specific milestones toward the carbon positive achievement. Goals include:

• To become carbon positive, Horizon Organic will also work collaboratively with its more than 600 direct farmer partners to ensure a farmable future for all.
• Horizon Organic’s on-farm actions will include energy efficiency, soil regeneration, and cow feed and diet management. These issues are all inter-connected and play a key role in the brand’s carbon positive commitment. A five-year partnership with EcoPractices is already in place to conduct in-depth sustainability and soil health analysis, helping track and inform our soil health efforts.
• The brand is investing in optimized transportation and distribution, renewables, emission reductions for its manufacturing facilities, and packaging improvements. 100% of Horizon Organic’s beverage cartons will be certified by the Forest Stewardship Council by the end of 2020.

To complement a full-scope carbon reduction strategy, the brand will co-create new projects that generate carbon offsets and removals, largely around US-based agriculture. Examples of these projects include restoring prairie lands and forestlands. The options available in the future to reduce, offset, and reverse emissions will likely look different than the options of today. Horizon Organic will evaluate and pursue new technology and partnerships on an ongoing basis across the environmental, scientific and financial space to understand innovation and break-through opportunities that could make a difference.

On February 25, 2020, JPMorgan Chase, the world’s largest bank funder of fossil fuels by a 29% margin, announced new restrictions on its financing of coal and Arctic oil and gas as well as new investment in clean energy and other environmentally sustainable projects. The announcement followed mobilizations around the world pressuring the bank to halt investment in fossil fuel expansion, phase out fossil fuel investment in line with the Paris Agreement, respect human rights and Indigenous Peoples’ rights, and support renewable energy.

In addition, just days before the announcement, a document was leaked from the bank affirming that the climate crisis has dire consequences for life on Earth.

As the largest financier of the climate crisis, the bank’s steps to address climate can play a major role in transitioning the financial sector as a whole away from fossil fuels and towards a clean energy economy.

Green America has generated over 10,000 emails to JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, urging the bank to halt support for fossil fuels and to demonstrate leadership on the climate emergency. Because more is needed to reverse the climate crisis, the bank’s latest steps must be viewed as initial progress, not an end. Its steps should clearly signal to the financial sector that there’s no future in fossil fuel investment.

It’s officially been one year since Verizon issued a $1 billion green bond to, in part, help the company reach its goal of 50 percent clean energy by 2025. In 2019, its major competitors announced new clean energy projects, shifting their networks further from reliance on fossil fuels. But Verizon did not announce any new clean energy contracts – until now.

Verizon recently announced that $133 million of the green bond is allocated to a purchase agreement for up to 130 megawatts of capacity from a new wind energy facility that will begin operation at the end of 2020. This is a step in the right direction, but Verizon still has a long way to go to reach its goal. Its competitors have made impressive progress, with T-Mobile reporting 95 percent of its energy use is now renewables and AT&T announced it now uses 1.5 gigawatts of clean energy. Verizon will need to allocate more funds from its green bond to increase its use of clean energy rapidly in order to meet its goal.

AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint all made strong progress on renewable energy in the past two years, with $1 billion raised specifically for green initiatives, why isn’t Verizon moving faster?

What is Verizon's Green Bond?

A bond is an instrument for a company or government borrowing money from investors in the market with a commitment to repay in a certain timeline. A green bond means the money is lent in exchange for a commitment to repay on a fixed timeline and to use the funds for environmental initiatives in renewable energy, clean transportation, pollution prevention, water management, etc. On the business side, green bonds also provide tax incentives like exemption and credits.

Green bonds are rapidly growing worldwide, reaching an estimated $500 billion in value, but this is still just one percent of the larger global market. And their growth in North American markets is slower than in other regions. It was estimated that Verizon’s announcement would lead other US companies to follow suit, but that shift remains to be seen. In the past, there have been transparency issues in cases of green bonds around the world, such as the funding of "clean coal" projects in China. There are efforts underway to implement universal standards and expand the green bond market, but transparency from recipients of these funds remains a critical issue. 

In his State of the Union address on February 4, President Trump presented a rosy picture of energy in the US, touting America’s energy independence and the expansion of national gas. 

“Thanks to our bold regulatory reduction campaign,” Trump said. “The United States has become the number one producer of oil and natural gas anywhere ay in the world, by far.”

While President Trump correctly identifies that his administration has cut regulations, he should probably be more cautious about bragging about energy deregulation. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has tracked hundreds of gas pipeline explosions and leakage incidents during his administration. Over just three years, at least 13 people were killed, and dozens injured, all while millions of gallons of oil and natural gas spilled into our environment.

If we attempted to list every incident from 2017 to 2019, this article would probably be longer than the State of the Union itself, and even the most comprehensive lists don’t include incidents that resulted in smaller spills. In early 2017, Green America highlighted some of the most damaging incidents of the past few years, but pipeline accidents have continued to occur unimpeded.

From February 2017 to December 2019, these incidents stood out as some of the most impactful:

2017

May 25: A pipeline explosion in residential Mead, Colorado killed one maintenance worker and injured three. Mead is surrounded by gas pipelines and some homes are within 200 feet of the initial explosion.

October 18: In the largest spill off the Louisiana coast since the BP Oil Spill in 2010, 672,000 gallons of oil leaked into the Gulf of Mexico for five days after a pipeline ruptured. The Coast Guard reported that 672,000 gallons had spilled after the company which owned the pipeline, LLOG Exploration, claimed that only 300,000 gallons had spilled.

November 16: The controversial Keystone Pipeline partially ruptured in South Dakota, leaking over 400,000 gallons of crude oil. The spill contaminated huge areas of land surrounding the spill, destroying the crops in the area’s farmland.

November 16: Near Denver, Colorado, a gas pipeline caught fire, killing one worker and injuring two others.

December 5: Two North Carolina farmers, a father and son trying to free their stuck tractor, were killed when a gas pipeline exploded under the tractor. 

2018

June 19: Near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a natural gas pipeline cracked, spilling over 33,000 gallons of natural gas liquid into a creek. Sunoco, which owned the pipeline, did not stop the leak or inform residents for more than a week after initial reports came in.

July 10: After a contractor failed to properly mark the location of a damaged natural gas pipeline, the pipeline exploded in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, killing a firefighter and destroying several buildings.

September 7: A pipeline cracked in Decatur, Indiana, releasing 8,195 gallons of jet fuel into the St. Mary’s river, making the river unsafe for swimming and boating. 

December 13: In Las Cruces, New Mexico, a gas pipeline exploded, spilling over 300,000 gallons of gas, over 50,000 gallons of which reached an irrigation ditch with direct contact with groundwater.

2019

March 4: A natural gas pipeline explosion killed two workers in Martin County, Texas, after gas pressure built up in the pipe. 

August 1: In a residential community in Stanford, Kentucky, a gas pipeline explosion killed one person, destroyed five homes, and damaged four other homes. Some residents told reporters that they’d been afraid of living by the pipeline for years. 

October 3: A brand-new pipeline in Miller Grove, Texas ruptured, spilling around 500,000 gallons of diesel directly into Turkey Creek, contaminating over a mile of the creek.

October 29: The Keystone Pipeline began leaking yet again, this time spilling 383,000 gallons into North Dakota.

Activists fought for years against the construction of massive pipelines like Keystone XL and the Dakota Access Pipeline, and these incidents have proven them right time and time again. The dangers of pipelines date back years, and fatal and environmentally disastrous accidents continue to happen at a steady pace. So, as President Trump boasts about our energy independence, don’t forget the people threatened by this shift, particularly the Native Americans whose land and safety are put at risk by high-profile pipelines and the people who may lose their lives and their families. 

When you're on Amazon, you can accomplish in a few clicks what it might take hours, days or weeks to find elsewhere. But its convenience comes at a high cost. Amazon continues to struggle with worker rights, clean energy, and a market monopoly that harms small businesses.

Green America launched our “Build a Cleaner Cloud” campaign in 2014 to pressure Amazon to use clean energy to power its servers for Amazon Web Services (AWS), a major branch of its business. In 2018, we amended our campaign to call it “Build a Cleaner and Fairer Cloud” as we push Amazon to treat its workers with dignity and pay them fairly.

Amazon has a lot of customers—the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) reports that about $1 out of every $2 spent on the internet is spent on Amazon. 105 million households have Amazon Prime memberships. Amazon’s platform is maximized to encourage the easiest and quickest shopping experience: one-click shopping, impulse buys, and easy returns are the direct enemies of the “buy less” and circular economies.

There’s a lot Amazon doesn’t want its customers to consider: like how sometimes, processing returns is too costly—so retailers may opt to trash those returns instead. Return logistics company Optoro reported that five billion pounds of returned items end up in landfills every year. Amazon makes a practice of incinerating its unsold merchandise as well, according to an undercover reporter in the UK.

Here’s why we should quit Amazon:

Worker Rights

Most companies push their employees to be as productive as possible. At the minimum, Amazon workers are being pushed too far, but at worst, the company violates its workers’ human rights.

In its warehouses, Amazon’s “pickers” reach high and squat low to grab orders from bins. Their speeds are tracked by wearable technology. Pickers often report repetitive stress injuries from squatting and lifting, but dizziness, vomiting, and heart attacks have also been reported by Amazon warehouse employees.

Some employees get fired for not meeting quotas when they get injured, or at best, leave with some workers’ compensation benefits. But others aren’t so lucky — 13 Amazon warehouse workers have died on the job in the last six years.

A report by the Center for Investigative Reporting showed that the injury rate in 23 of Amazon’s 110 warehouses is more than double the national average for the industry. Nearly 10 out of every hundred workers at Amazon’s warehouses sustained injuries in 2018, compared with a warehousing industry average of four per hundred.

Warehouse conditions aside, worker rights suffer in all parts of Amazon’s supply chains. Leaked documents from Foxconn, Amazon’s Chinese supplier of smart speakers and other tech items, show that more than 1,000 schoolchildren have been recruited to their factories as “interns.” The documents show these children have been required to work nights and overtime, going against Chinese labor laws.

A Wall Street Journal investigation from October 2019 showed that Amazon is still working with dangerous factories in Bangladesh that other apparel companies have agreed to not work with as part of 2013’s Bangladesh Accord on Fire and Building Safety.

“Amazon seemingly undermines workers’ safety and well-being at every opportunity. It isn’t a coincidence that Amazon sources products from countries with weak labor laws—they are able to get the lowest price and make the highest profit, at the expense of health and safety,” says Charlotte Tate, labor justice campaigns manager at Green America. “We can’t sit by while this corporation exploits people to increase profits.”

Clean Energy

Amazon’s AWS makes up a large portion of the energy Amazon uses— and it uses a lot throughout its supply chain: 44.4 MtCo2E (a measurement of greenhouse gas emissions), compared to 16 MtCO2E used by Microsoft and 1.5 MtCO2E by Google, the other top cloud computing companies, according to a 2020 report by Greenpeace.

Since 2014, Green America has pushed Amazon to use 100 percent renewable energy by 2020 and end the construction of new data centers that rely on fossil fuel or nuclear power. Amazon’s fossil fuel energy demands are comparable in size to a large power company, according to Bruno Sarda, president of the Carbon Disclosure Project. Before our campaign, Amazon was using zero percent renewable energy to power those operations.

Since then, Amazon has contracted construction of 66 renewable energy projects. By the end of 2020, those sites will have the capacity to deliver 3.9 million MWh of energy annually.

In September 2019, Amazon announced it would reach 100 percent renewables by 2030. Its peers Apple and Google have already reached 100 percent renewable energy as of 2014 and 2017, respectively.

In February 2020, Bezos committed $10 billion to fight climate change through a new fund. While we do need big investments in climate solutions, that money will eventually run out. When it does, if Amazon has not addressed its harmful impacts, people and the planet will continue to pay the price.

Monopolizing the Economy

Headlines are most likely to cover Amazon’s growth promises or its labor abuses. But there’s a lot going on behind the scenes that has scholars and legislators concerned.

In 2017 and 2018 Amazon sought bids for HQ2, its much-anticipated $5 billion high-tech hub. It promised 50,000 jobs to the chosen city and suggested cities should compete to give the best counteroffer to the company. Most cities offered free land and tax breaks despite the fact that Amazon paid $0 in taxes on its $10 billion income in 2018 and even collected $129 million back from the government, according to filings from the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Amazon chose the suburbs of Washington, DC, for HQ2, perhaps due to its proximity to Capitol Hill. The company spent $14.2 million on lobbying in 2018, employing 28 in-house lobbyists and using 13 external lobbying firms, according to Bloomberg.

Stacy Mitchell, co-director of ILSR and Amazon expert, testified in July 2019 before the House Judiciary Committee on the monopoly power of dominant tech platforms.

“Amazon is a dangerous kind of monopoly. It doesn’t just dominate markets, it dominates the basic infrastructure for the economy,” says Mitchell.

Amazon is a monopoly because of the way it eliminates competitors and dictates prices. Amazon collects and analyzes data on its sellers. When it sees a seller has a popular product, it creates a similar product, and sells the product at a lower price even it’s at a loss to Amazon. Then, when the seller gives up and goes out of business, Amazon is free to reset its price.

What does lobbying have to do with beating the competition? In the 1970s, business regulations that had addressed monopolies were “redefined to focus on consumer welfare, which is to say, price,” according to New York Times reports. Since then, US regulators have ignored the growing power of Amazon as the European Union has moved to investigate and fine it for violating antitrust laws.

“What we’re moving to is a situation where we don’t really have a market anymore or any semblance of an open market where buyers and sellers can exchange goods on a fair playing field with rules that are set by democratic government,” says Mitchell. “More and more of our transactions are happening in an arena where there’s a kind of private government that controls things. And that private government is Amazon.”

The Bottom Line

Amazon takes away much of the work of shopping with delivery and easy-to-find low prices. But as it undercuts competitors, it eventually will raise its own prices and leave customers no other choices. 

In addition to skimping on worker rights, Amazon also slacks on climate progress—it could afford to make changes on all those fronts as it currently enriches its CEO, Jeff Bezos, to the tune of $215 million every day, estimated Business Insider in 2018. The median Amazon employee makes $28,000 per year. It’s easy for shoppers to ignore the problems with Amazon, but as Amazon enters homes through mailboxes, smart speakers, security cameras, and televisions, customer concern is rising.

The movement pushing back against Amazon is gaining momentum. From labor organizers to racial justice organizations and environmental nonprofits like Green America, we’re pushing back and working together as part of the Athena Coalition. Athena’s goal is to stop “Amazon’s growing, powerful grip over our society and economy.” The alliance aims to address community and environmental health, worker safety, surveillance, and threats to democracy that Amazon poses.

Kipchoge Spencer is the founder of Threshold, another nonprofit in Athena. Threshold’s CancelPrime.com educates people on the problems with Amazon and offers alternatives. The campaign aims to get one million people to pledge to stop using Amazon once the threshold is met, in order to have the power of the collective voice to negotiate demands with Amazon.

“Amazon needs us more than we need it and that gives us great power. We think 10-20 million people would be willing to quit Amazon today if they thought it would make a difference,” says Spencer. “Until now, there hasn’t been a way to turn that kind of potential consumer energy into real leverage.”

Take action to rein in Amazon’s greed at GreenAmerica.org, CancelPrime.com, and AthenaForAll.org. We can make progress pushing corporations, but only when we act together.

Specialized, the cycling company, likes to position itself as a green company, but there is nothing green about the fact that workers who make Specialized clothing are being cheated out of wages.

Clothing supply chains – from field to factory to store -- can be long, complex, and often seemingly opaque, and even in cases where brands promote their transparency or sustainability, they often fall short in sharing enough information with consumers so that they can make an informed decision.  As our toxic textiles campaign highlights, the clothing industry takes a huge toll on the environment and the health of workers. Vague corporate messaging about sustainability programs and corporate impacts can leave a green shopper at a loss for where to buy clothes.

Is it even possible to find a sustainable clothing company?

The Toxic Textiles report found that brands often have one ‘sustainable’ line of clothing, but a vast majority of their products aren’t made with people or the planet in mind. This puts the burden on consumers to research each piece of clothing they want to buy, which most people don’t have time to do.  In order to transform the clothing industry, we need brands integrating environmentally and socially responsible practices across their entire business model.

While it can be difficult, Maven Women, a Green Business Network member, has done just that. The founder, Rebecca Ballard, started her career working on human and labor rights issues, but she was having trouble finding clothing options that both were well-fitting and fit her values. So, Rebecca set out to make her own socially and environmentally conscious clothing brand – Maven Women. Maven Women is now a leader in responsibly-sourced clothing, but Rebecca found it challenging at times to find the right partners or suppliers, which resulted in a three year process of creating her supply chain.

For the clothes produced domestically, Maven Women works with Lefty Production Co., an LA based clothing production company. Lefty pays employees a living wage and provides a clean and safe work environment. Additionally, the cotton used in Maven Women’s clothing is GOTS certified, which lessens dangerous chemical exposure to both workers and consumers.

Maven Women’s clothing also is meant to last. It is the opposite of the fast fashion clothing that is the norm these days, and is accelerating the industry’s negative impacts on people and the planet. The high demand for cheap clothing, perpetuated by the fast fashion industry, creates a ripple effect of problems. High, unpredictable demands for clothing creates production stress for suppliers, which can result in labor abuses within clothing manufacturing facilities. On top of this, cheap clothes often do not last as long, resulting in increased waste.

Between 2000 and 2015, clothing production doubled, and during that same period, the clothing that Americans dispose of annually nearly tripled! The EPA estimates that Americans create 16 million tons of textile waste a year and 62% of this waste ends up in landfills.

In addition to making clothes built to last, Maven Women lessens their waste impact by donating clothing scraps to local foundations. In India, their scraps are donated to a foundation teaching women new skills; in the US, scraps are donated to several women-led businesses.

As noted in Green America’s From Fast to Fair Fashion, “choosing ethical and sustainable fashion goes beyond voting with your dollar—it manifests substantial change for disenfranchised women workers around the world. Clothing brands based on fair trade principles empower women on both sides of the supply chain.”

Maven Women also calculates the positive impact the shopper has by opting to buy new from Maven Women, rather than buying new from a traditional clothing brand. To read more about Maven Women’s environmental impact, check out this blog by Green Story.

What is the individual’s role in the sustainable clothing industry?

When Rebecca started her Maven Women journey, she realized she wasn’t alone in wanting socially and environmentally conscious clothing. The greater the demand for ethically made clothing and the level of transparency that Maven Women provides, the more sustainable clothing options there will be. While Green America recommends buying used clothing when you can to lower your impact on the planet, buying new can still help to move the industry forward. For those times, when you aren’t able to shop second hand, looking for and supporting brands similar to Maven Women is a great option. Maven Women and other Green Business Members, such as Sympatico Clothing, Natural Clothing Company, and Organic Attire, demonstrate that a business model that prioritizes the planet and people is possible.

For $40 off your first order from Maven Women, use the discount code "GreenAmerica" at check out.

Here are some tips to spot leaders in sustainable clothing:

Look to see if the brands:

• Are measuring their waste impacts; incorporating more recycling & recycled products into their supply chain.
• Are taking part in industry initiatives to help standardize information tracking.
• Have chemical management policies, such as public MRSLs and RSLs, and/or are a part of industry initiatives, such as ZDHC or Bluesign, to phase out the most dangerous chemicals.
• Have water treatment plans as well, to help clean up water that is discharged.
• Share goals and benchmarks to incorporate more sustainable textiles into their supply chains and are not limiting sustainable alternatives to one line of clothing or one type of clothing.
• Are transparent about labor practices and sourcing.

Additional resources:

• If you would like to learn more about what it takes for a clothing company to become a Green Business Member, check out How to be a Sustainable Apparel Business.
• If you would like to learn more about Maven Women and Rebecca’s story, I highly recommend their blog!
• For more examples of how to determine if a corporate led effort is green or greenwashing, in our last issue of The Green American Magazine, we took a deeper dive into three popular brands with “green options”.
• To take a deep dive into the fashion industry see our Winter 2019 issue of the Green American Magazine: Unraveling the Fashion Industry.

One person's trash is another person’s treasure, but with a little creativity, some of your waste may never have to make a trip to the landfill. Many items lying around the house can be repurposed into something new without needing to buy anything. Here is a short list of free zero-waste swaps that are kind to your wallet and to the planet.

Silverware

Wooden utensils are a favorite among zero waste bloggers—but they’re not a necessity, especially when cutlery already exists in our kitchen drawers. Also, many thrift stores such as Salvation Army and Goodwill sell cheap kitchenware. If you’re on the crafty side, try taking an old t-shirt and sewing a wrap for your cutlery to make it easy to-go. Or wrap them with a cloth napkin and slip them in your bag or glove box.

Old T-shirts

They’re not just the bottom-dwellers in our drawers. They can be cleaning rags and kitchen towels, too! Cut them up to the size you need, and you won’t have to purchase anything—just add them to your laundry routine and run them with hot water when dirty. If you’re crafty, you can turn old t-shirts into yarn for crocheting reusable facial rounds, potholders, and other neat things.

Brown Paper Bags

Even the most resolute Green Americans will forget a reusable grocery bag from time to time. While recycling and composting are both options, brown paper bags can also double as wrapping paper, book covers, or taped into a mailer for a small package.

Old Sheets

Do your bed sheets have tears, stains, or are generally not usable anymore? Like old t-shirts, bed sheets are a gold mine for cloth. YouTube and Pinterest have a plethora of how-to’s for cutting your bed sheet into yarn to crochet for rugs, baskets, and more. Check out this simple how-to from YouTube here

Grow Your Own Food

The industrial agricultural system creates mass amounts of food waste before it even makes it to our plates. Try asking your Buy Nothing group or Facebook Marketplace for seeds to start your own garden or try a locally owned garden shop. You’ll skip the entire agricultural supply chain when you do this and know exactly what’s in your food, too. Permaculture Gardens offers workshops to help urban gardeners make the most of their space. If you’ve got an organic garden going, register it as a Climate Victory Garden with us at greenamerica.org/cvg.

Using Up Your Food

On the same thread as growing your own food, we can also reduce food waste and save money by doing the mundane: eating leftovers and the long-time residents of our pantries before they spoil. Additionally, “sell by” and “best by” dates are not for the consumer—they’re
so the retailer knows how long they’ve been on the shelves. “Use by” dates just mark when the food is at peak quality, not that it has spoiled. The only food that has an actual expiration date—in other words, when the food should not be consumed—is infant formula because it loses nutrients. Therefore, most food past its date belongs on the table, not the trash. Read more about using up food at greenamerica.org/foodwaste.

Urban Foraging

While a little unorthodox, urban foraging —searching for wild food, like plants and berries—is entirely free. Join an urban foraging class near you or pick up Stalking the Wild Asparagus by Euell Gibbons, a reliable guidebook, at the library. As long as you’re searching responsibly, not trespassing, and thoroughly washing what you pick, urban foraging is a low-impact way to add food to your plate without spending a penny.

Broken Mugs and Old Candle Containers

Candle containers that come with a lid can be repurposed as containers for DIY beauty products, like exfoliant made from used coffee grounds and honey. When a mug handle breaks or a crack develops, its not good at its intended purpose of holding hot drinks anymore; however, it does make a charming container for succulents or other small plants.

Gently Used Clothing

Organizing a clothing swap is simple: gather a group of friends or co-workers, ask them to bring gently used clothes they don’t wear anymore, and swap amongst yourselves. Clothing swaps are a great way to refresh your wardrobe without buying anything new and keeps perfectly good clothing in use. According to WRAP UK, keeping clothing in use for just nine extra months can reduce the related carbon, water, and waste footprint by 20-30 percent. Read more about the benefits of clothing swaps over donating in “Unraveling the Fashion Industry."

This short list is just the beginning—you will likely invent new ways to repurpose things as you go about reducing individual waste. Joining communities online and in-person can help spark creativity and the cross-pollination of zero waste ideas. Browsing the r/zerowaste subreddit, Facebook zero waste groups, and meeting with sustainability-minded people near you are all ways to learn more. Read
“What You Gain When You Buy Nothing” to learn more about community-based green living.

Over the last decade, podcasts have skyrocketed in popularity—over 100 million people listened to a podcast every week in 2019. Compared to conventional radio stations that have limited airtime and contracts, podcasts offer in-depth storytelling on topics ranging from the daily news to comedy, and true crime to sci-fi stories. Here are a few picks from the Green America staff that cover a wide array of environmental topics.

Sustainability Defined

Recommended by Beth Porter, Climate Campaigns Director

Beth Porter recommends Sustainability Defined, a podcast that explores all facets of sustainability, one topic—and one bad joke—at a time.

“I like this podcast because it explores climate solutions that also support communities, interviews experts, and encourages ways to take action,” says Porter. “I liked the August episode on advocacy [episode 42]—with Grist and the Sunrise Movement—and the October episode on biomimicry in nature [episode 44] and how to apply those learnings to organizations. It’s really interesting!”

Sustainability Defined brings together different experts for each episode to define sustainability under seven topics: energy, cities, natural environment, transportation, business, society, and policy. Co-hosts Jay Siegel and Scott Breen started the podcast out of their shared passions for the environment, good conversations, bad jokes, and communicating the big picture ideas of sustainability. Each episode is added to an organizational tree to categorize topics for listeners seeking specific themes, making it popular in school curricula. Sustainability Defined is available wherever you listen to podcasts.

Similar podcasts: Sustainababble, Living on Earth.

Bite

Recommended by Jes Walton, Food Campaigns Manager

Bite is a podcast for people who think hard about their food.

“Bite addresses food issues in a really current context and it shows the connectivity between issues,” says Walton. “It talks about food from lots of different perspectives and it includes controversial topics.”

Bite is co-hosted by Mother Jones editors Kiera Butler and Maddie Oatman, as well as acclaimed food journalist Tom Philpott. The informative show invites writers, farmers, scientists, and chefs to help the hosts dig into the politics and science of what we eat and why, revealing the stories behind the food on our plates. The show’s 100th episode featured a Green America Soil Superhero, Leah Penniman from Soul Fire Farm, who spoke about young Black farmers in America fighting the legacy of racism in agriculture.

Walton’s other favorite was episode 98, which addressed catering waste from tech company events and local entrepreneurs bringing this to those in need.

“Even as someone working in food, I hadn’t thought about this issue or solution,” says Walton.

Bite’s recent series, “Eating in Climate Chaos,” explores the role of food in a changing climate; from the newest technologies in lab-grown meat to the way each presidential candidate would influence our dinners. Listen to Bite with additional context on Mother Jones, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Similar podcast: Eating Matters.

Think 100%

Recommended by Sytonia Reid, Associate Editor

Nicknamed “The Coolest Show on Climate Change,” the Hip-Hop Caucus’s Think 100% podcast explores topics like environmental justice, job creation, voter mobilization, and diversity in the climate movement.

Instead of arguing the facts on climate change, the podcast focuses on solutions. The co-hosts, Rev. Lennox Yearwood Jr. and Antonique Smith, interview community leaders, elected officials, and entertainers who are using their platform to advocate for climate solutions and share action items with listeners who are eager to get involved. Rev. Yearwood is the president and CEO of the Hip-Hop Caucus and a community activist. Smith is a Grammy-nominated singer, actress, and activist—together, their style brings a realness and relatability to the climate conversation.

The theme for season two is “Young People Will Win,” focusing on youth climate heroes pushing climate change to the forefront of the political agenda. Think 100% is available wherever you listen to podcasts.

Similar podcasts: No Place Like Home, Mothers of Invention.

Drilled

Recommended by Mary Meade, Green Business Network & Editorial Fellow

Drilled is one of the most alarming environmental podcasts of 2019: as the first investigative true crime-style podcast on climate change, Drilled examines and uncovers the “propaganda campaign of the century—the creation of climate denial.” Season one traces the manufacturing and spread of climate denial, funded by corporations. Host Amy Westervelt is an award-winning climate journalist who pieces together primary source documents, uncovers the history of fossil fuel-funded influence campaigns, and interviews former Exxon scientists to get to the bottom of climate denial as we know it.

“I listen to podcasts mostly when I’m traveling,” says Meade, “so I like to get into mysteries to help pass the time. Drilled took that and added climate change to unravel the truth behind climate denial history.”

Drilled’s second season—called “Hot Water”—looks at West Coast crab fisherman who are experiencing the devastating impacts of the climate crisis first-hand. This industry has become the first to sue big oil. Listen to Drilled on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, and TuneIn.

Similar podcasts: Warm Regards, Hot Take.

HOPE Credit Union is a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) serving the Mississippi Delta region of the United States, which encompasses Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee. With a mission to strengthen economically under-served communities, HOPE provides financial services and engages in policy analysis.

In 2019, HOPE authored the “HBCU-CDFI Economic Mobility Strategy Guide,” a pioneering framework for the ways that CDFIs and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) can work together to advance economic mobility, inclusion, and even justice. Since this report speaks to the heart of Green America’s work to harness economic action for social justice and the environment, we seized the opportunity to interview William J. Bynum. Bill is the CEO of HOPE, board member of several social justice organizations including the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and the William Winter Center for Racial Reconciliation, and a longtime friend of Green America. Bill spoke with associate editor Sytonia Reid about the report. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Green American/Sytonia Reid: HOPE serves lower-income communities in the Mississippi Delta. Can you give some background about the economic challenges in the region?

Bill Bynum: The Delta encompasses Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee. One-third of the nation's persistent poverty counties are in the Mississippi Delta region and federal funds have not been invested in economic development of these towns. We’re not a reinvestment priority area for any of the national banks and don’t have megabanks that support community development in larger markets like New York, Boston, and Chicago. So, these are resource-constrained areas and we’ve decided to build on what we have and that’s the people. Through our HOPE Community Partnerships, we review the economic data of certain communities, ask residents and leaders what would most improve conditions there and from that, we develop strategic plans.

Green American/Sytonia Reid: How did the idea for the “HBCU-CDFI Economic Mobility Guide” come about?

Bill Bynum: In 2019, we expanded our HOPE Community Partnerships programs to engage HBCUs, which are the primary financial anchor in many low-income communities across the Deep South. We have more HBCUs per capita than most other parts of the country and the poverty rate in neighborhoods surrounding HBCUs is 10 percent higher than that of PWIs (Predominantly White Institutions).

[Editor’s note: HBCUs and PWIs aren’t the only types of colleges. There are 304 Hispanic Serving Institutions, which are colleges that have 25 percent or more full-time Hispanic undergraduate students, Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs), and Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISI). The US has 107 HBCUs with 37 located in the Deep South.]

Since HOPE started over 25 years ago, we’ve known that we can’t fulfill our mission alone, and there are certain institutions that share our interests, HBCUs especially. Over the last three years, HOPE Community Partnerships has worked with seven neighborhoods in the city of Itta Bena, Mississippi, where Mississippi Valley State University (MVSU) is located. MVSU has produced brilliant minds in the heart of the Mississippi Delta but it is one of the least-funded public institutions in the state. Since MVSU is an anchor institution—one of the primary financial assets in Itta Bena with historical ties to the city—it was a natural partner. With our headquarters being in Jackson, Mississippi, working with Jackson State University was also a natural next step.

Green American/Sytonia Reid: What is it about HBCUs that empower them to put students of color on a path to economic mobility?

Bill Bynum: While we know that HBCUs are under-resourced, they outperform in their return to their communities and in the nation. Research shows that students who move from the bottom two percentile to the top two quintiles [60th to 100th percentiles] were twice as high at HBCUs compared to at PWIs. HBCUs only represent three percent of all US colleges but they enroll 10 percent of all African American students and produce 17 percent of all African American graduates, so they play a critical role in helping some of the most vulnerable members in society become prosperous and contribute to the economy.

Green American/Sytonia Reid: The report mentions that two of the major lessons gained from the partnership is the importance of 1) knowing the history of community development efforts near HBCU campuses and 2) building relationships. How did HOPE learn these lessons?

Bill Bynum: We did several focus groups and it became very clear that the residents know more about their community than anyone. We were privileged to have the opportunity to work with community leaders, elected leaders, and HBCU administrators to find common ground. Like other campus neighborhoods, there can be tension between “town and gown,” so intentionally creating a process for honest conversations was important. I think it was also helpful that we already had a presence in these communities with staff who’ve lived in these neighborhoods and attended these universities—that gave us credibility to play the role of facilitator.

Green American/Sytonia Reid: What are some of the top shared priorities between residents in Itta Bena, West Jackson, and the HBCU campuses?

Bill Bynum: The priorities are consistent across the Mississippi Delta. We recently met with the leadership of Alabama State University (ASU) in Montgomery and quality, affordable housing is a major need. In some of the neighborhoods surrounding HBCU campuses, there are blighted properties that bring undesirable elements like crime, and that is a priority that we’re working on.

Another is the need for jobs and one of the things we do is support small businesses. The gap between white and Black entrepreneurs is 3:1 and the average white American family's net-worth is almost ten times greater than that of an African American family. The more we can support Black-owned businesses, which you will likely find near HBCU campuses, the more we can create wealth.

Access to grocery stores is another issue, and we’ve heard stories of students who are on campus during seasonal breaks and can’t find healthy food because there are no nearby grocery stores that sell fresh produce. These are all areas that align with HOPE’s capabilities and that we have experience in.

Green American/Sytonia Reid: Does the HBCU-CDFI Economic Mobility Strategy Guide include a framework for how HBCU communities can access CDFI services?

Bill Bynum: We’re in a partnership with ASU to hire students and implement a financial education program that will address student debt, which is a significant issue on HBCU campuses, particularly for upperclassmen whose debt could prevent them from graduating. We want to restructure debt so that it’s not as much of a burden. 80 percent of the staff at ASU are members of HOPE and we’re looking to deepen that relationship by tailoring our services to meet campus needs.

Green American/Sytonia Reid: As we talk about community development and HBCUs, I wonder if there are strategies HOPE uses to ensure that development benefits longtime residents? Washington, DC, for example, is the most rapidly gentrifying US city and one of the areas where gentrification is most visible is near Howard University’s (an HBCU) campus.

Bill Bynum: I think we can do it by amplifying the voices of residents and equipping them to control their fate. Fostering agency is the root of why HOPE exists in the first place, and the more that people feel they have stake in their communities and can hold elected officials accountable, the more we’ll see outcomes that benefit their interests.

One calorie of food grown on a conventional farm takes 10 calories of fossil fuel energy to produce. That’s because industrial agriculture relies on energy-intensive chemical inputs and results in difficult-to-manage waste. This linear system is wreaking havoc on our planet and it just doesn’t make sense.

Conventional agriculture depends on the production, transportation and use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers that release enormous amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Even though these chemicals are expensive, they’re often used in excess in conventional systems, with waste polluting nearby ecosystems and waterways because yields take priority over environmental health. In industrial agriculture, imperfect produce is often wasted and animals are raised on concentrated lots where manure causes additional pollution concerns. The systems that once defined agricultural and nutrient cycles are broken.

Emissions from our global food system account for nearly one third of all climate change-causing greenhouse gases. But research by the Rodale Institute has shown that widespread adoption of regenerative growing methods could sequester a significant amount of the world’s current emissions.

There’s hope, and it can start at home.

With the right practices, your Climate Victory Garden has the potential to be an efficient, climate-friendly closed loop. Instead of relying on fossil fuels, you can harness the energy of the sun and soil for your food.

Tina Jacobs, owner of Devine Gardens, supplies gardeners with compost created on her 70-acre regenerative farm. For her, soil health, and nutrient cycling are key to closing the loop.

“When plants grow, they take up nutrients from the soil. They pass these nutrients to you when you eat them and it’s your job as a Climate Victory Gardener to return nutrients to the soil for future growing seasons,” says Jacobs. “Nourish your soil and your soil will nourish you.”

Acadia Tucker, author of Growing Good Food from Stone Pier Press, looks to healthy ecosystems for guidance.

“Think of a forest: Nutrient-rich leaves fall to the ground where insects, fungi, bacteria, and other critters incorporate the fallen material into the soil,” says Tucker. “This cycle builds topsoil packed with nutrients that support more plant growth. It’s a process that replenishes ecosystems the world over, from forests to grasslands.”

When you start looking for ways to reduce waste and close the loop in your garden, you’ll find that minor changes can have major impacts. Instead of raking, bagging, and discarding leaves, you can compost them on site, creating fodder for healthy soil microbes. It’s easier on the wallet and beneficial for your garden. Plus, it eliminates the pollution associated with single-use plastics, waste pickup services, and fertilizer production.

Dr. Sasha Kramer is the co-founder and executive director of SOIL, an organization that treats and transforms human waste into agricultural-grade compost in Haiti. She advocates for ditching commercial fertilizers and instead regenerating soil fertility with organic matter.

“By recycling waste into the soil, we are reestablishing the broken nutrient cycles that tie us to the land,” Kramer says. “Compost helps the soil sequester carbon and increase plant growth—a win for both climate and agriculture.”

Curious about “humanure” and safely composting human waste? Read more about Dr. Kramer’s work to transform a public health issue into an environmental solution on her Soil SuperHero profile. [Editor’s note: We don’t recommend composting human waste unless you’re an expert or working closely with one.]

Looking for more ways to close the loop in your garden? Seed saving, sharing excess harvest, and using graywater are all great ways to decrease your garden’s footprint and become even more self-sufficient. For Climate Victory Gardening tips, visit our guide.

Look around your home and think about all the ways you use this place where you spend much of your time. You’ve heard about the circular economy and zero waste, but have you considered how your space itself could be contributing to your environmental footprint?

Despite the fact that census surveys show that American families are shrinking, the same data show that our homes continue to get larger and larger. Living large seems quintessentially American; in fact, over the last forty years, the average size of a home in the US has increased by 1000 square feet.

But when houses grow, the effects go far beyond simply adding an extra room. Larger houses require significant energy usage, with the average American home using approximately 914 kWh per month. Additionally, the space required for large houses can reduce biodiversity by breaking up habitats. Living in a smaller place can have the added benefit of reducing your footprint in other ways, including some that we may not initially notice.

Downsizing for the Earth

People who have downsized prove you don’t need to sacrifice comfort for the Earth. By reducing the size of your home, you can save money, make more time for the things you truly love, and reduce your environmental footprint in the process.

Miranda Anderson, small-space blogger and host of the Live Free Creative podcast, recounted her experience moving from a 2500-square-foot home to a 1000-square-foot home with her family of five.

“It feels just right—it’s the just right amount of space and just right amount of furniture,” Anderson says. “We knew from a financial perspective how it would reduce our water, electrical, and gas, because when you’re in a big house, you don’t even realize how you’re putting energy in a corner of the house you never go in.”

Dr. Maria Saxton, a researcher focusing on the tiny house movement, found just this phenomenon when she conducted a study on the environmental footprints of tiny house residents. These people take downsizing to the next level by living in a space of 100 to 400 square feet. While there is not a cap on space to be considered a tiny house, residents who identify their homes as such generally live within this size.

Dr. Saxton’s study found that the average American has an ecological footprint of 8.4 global hectares, while those that have lived in tiny homes for over a year have a considerably lower footprint at 3.87 global hectares—about a 45 percent difference. The hectare measurement is a universal scale of carbon emissions and shows the amount of land that would be required to counter an individual’s ecological footprint, making a small change significant.

Enrich Your Life

People interested in downsizing don’t have to go straight into a tiny house to reduce their footprint. For Anderson, simply transitioning to a smaller house sparked lifestyle changes.

“Downsizing almost created a domino effect for the people in my study,” says Dr. Saxton. “Things like their diet, their transportation, especially the purchasing habits and recycling habits, there’s a myriad of things that downsizing influences in other parts of your lifestyle.”

Dr. Saxton found that respondents reduced the amount of meat in their diet, ate less food packaged in plastic, and even flew less. The full effects impacts of these trends aren’t entirely known, but these far-reaching effects are encouraging.

Tiny houses are part of a relatively new movement and represent the extremes of downsizing, but the positive impacts of transitioning into smaller homes shows that in addition to improving your environmental impact, downsizing influences all aspects of your life.

The tiny house residents Dr. Saxton interviewed said that their living situations left them better able to save and spend on what they care about most, like travel, children’s education, or other goals.

“They would say things like, ‘now I have more money to travel,’” Dr. Saxton says. “‘Now I have more money to set aside for my children’s college education or to save.’”

Anderson started downsizing at the same time as she decided to challenge herself and her family to not buy any non-consumable goods for a year.

“We started to spend our time and money in new ways,” Anderson says. “And that for us was experiences, adventures, and traveling, like going on picnics and taking my kids to the park more often. Our motto ended up being ‘less stuff; more adventure.’”

The Downsizers Community

Both Anderson and Dr. Saxton found that when you downsize, you may become engaged with the “buy less” community (see more here). The sharing economy is very important to the downsizing movement, as downsizers can find clothing, furniture, and other household items, all without contributing to further waste.

“This enables them to volunteer both in their communities, or spend more time with their family,” Dr. Saxton says. “They’re going out into their community and doing what they want to be doing.”

Anderson agrees with Dr. Saxton’s findings, saying that downsizing forced her to narrow her shopping to necessities. It was easier than she expected, because her smaller living space would have made it impossible to store more items than just what she needed.

Even after the year of not shopping ended, Anderson didn’t fall out of the habit of buying less.

“I realized really quickly that I was not shopping,” she says. “I opened up so much space, resources, and extra money in our budget every month because I hadn’t gone to Target to buy random things.”

The Path Forward

Although small apartments are permitted under zoning laws, many municipalities restrict the construction of residences under 400-500 square feet, making tiny houses effectively impossible to build. As a result, many residents take advantage of their mobility and use large vehicles to tow their homes to rural areas, friends’ properties, or RV parks.

Of course, tiny houses aren’t the only good options for downsizing; apartments feature benefits these freestanding residences can lack. Tiny houses can have external energy footprints from activities that may be impossible to fit inside, like showering at a gym or eating out for meals that can’t be made in micro-kitchens, while apartments are likely to contain the basics. Architectural researchers have found that apartment buildings also have very low embodied carbon levels, and the condensed living arrangements further reduce individual footprints.

Home-sharing and co-ops also allow for more traditional living styles while still having a positive impact on the environment. Green America partners with green housing organizations (find them by searching for housing at GreenPages.org) that help residents choose homes that reduce energy and space.

Additionally, living in a small apartment close to work would allow for even shorter commutes and access to mass transit, making it a practical option for young professionals.

For Thom Stanton and his family, downsizing seemed like the best way they could make a difference in their personal lives.

“I’m not going to be the person who invented the scrubber for the upper stratosphere,” says Stanton. “But with this home, the smaller the house, the less that goes into it from the start and the ongoing efficiency is incredible—we predominantly run off of a 400-watt space heater.”

Our growing houses have taken a toll on our environment. These stories show that downsizing can reduce your footprint and waste. It can even free up money and time for the people and activities you care about most.

When Cory Chow’s sister got married, Cory bought a bridesmaid’s dress. After the wedding, she put it in her closet, where it hung there for more than three years. Then, someone on her local Washington, DC, “Buy Nothing” Facebook group posted in search of a formal dress in her size.

“Being able to pass it along to a neighbor who would otherwise be buying a new dress gives me the little push I needed to let it go,” Chow says.

Across the country, groups are popping up where people can participate in burgeoning low-consumption and low-waste communities. These groups are both informal and formal and can be hyperlocal or part of municipal efforts. What makes them special is that they challenge American culture’s “buy more” messaging as they help people save money and engage with neighbors.

Zero Waste & Buy Nothing

The Zero Waste movement is not new. The idea goes across cultures over the centuries, back to the ideas of “waste not, want not,” and “use it up, wear it out, make do, or do without.”

But between the Great Depression and the beginning of the 1950s, that thinking changed in America. In 1955, Life Magazine published an article celebrating “throwaway society” which framed convenience food, paper towels, and disposable diapers as giving back time to housewives. Plastic did save people time, but now we see the societal and environmental costs of having an economy based on products that are designed to be thrown out.

All along, there have been people going against the grain to be thrifty and make do. It finally seems that those people are becoming part of the mainstream again. Many forward-thinking cities are starting to implement Zero Waste plans to encourage reducing consumption, composting, and recycling. Encouraging these ideas can save municipalities money for incineration and landfill space.

In 2013, Liesl Clark and Rebecca Rockefeller started “Buy Nothing Bainbridge” on Bainbridge Island, Washington, where they lived. Their project was founded on the principle of “give where you live” and encourages members to give freely and ask for what they need. Since 2013, Buy Nothing participants have grown to number over a million in at least 25 countries. While people may join groups as they declutter or to save money, the Project says “a gift economy’s real wealth is the people involved and the web of connections that forms to support them.”

Of course, social movements are only as strong as the people in them. Luckily, they’re everywhere.

Living with Less

Polly Barks cared about the planet but didn’t engage far beyond recycling in her home. She was (and still is) living in a low-income and food-insecure neighborhood in Lafayette, Indiana, and wasn’t making much money herself. Waiting for the bus one day, she couldn’t help but notice plastic trash sitting at her ankles. She realized if she wasn’t part of the solution of excess waste and litter, then she was part of the problem.

“I realized I always had the privilege of being away from trash. But I was in this neighborhood where I really had to confront it,” says Barks. “I didn’t have money and I didn’t really have connections in this new city. But the one thing I could control was my waste.”

Barks didn’t stop at curbing her own waste. She wanted to find a community to share tips, hold each other accountable, and take collective action, but realized she’d have to work at it. Her first meetup attracted only three people, but they enjoyed sharing tips and getting to know each other. Over time, she joined a Buy Nothing group, put a “Little Free Pantry” in her yard to give pantry staples and the bounty of her garden to her neighbors. Now, Barks is the co-organizer of a local climate action group. Its first goal is to get the city to instate a climate action plan.

“Zero waste as it’s often presented is insular. […] Sustainability needs to be community-oriented, but too often it isn’t,” says Barks. “What I always tell people is, ‘what is the point of you creating a mason jar of trash every year if all your neighbors are throwing out ten giant trash cans every week?’ Or, ‘what’s the point of a trash jar if your neighbors are hungry?’”

Two thousand miles away, in Lafayette, California, lives Nancy Hu, a self-identified “Zero Waste Mom.” She works as a dentist for the Department of Veterans Affairs and has accepted that hers is an inherently wasteful industry. Her spare time, though, is dedicated to creating less trash and helping others do the same.

It isn’t always easy, but it is rewarding to work with members of her community and figure out how to create less waste together. Hu got an idea from the City of Palo Alto’s Zero Waste team to put together a “zero waste party pack:” a set of reusable dishes, cups, and flatware to loan out to residents for parties. She took on the project herself and is eager to share the pack with community members, even when it means arriving early and staying late at her kids’ piano recital to collect the party pack.

“Reducing plastic waste is like a gateway drug to political action. If you can make positive steps in your own personal life, say, reducing plastic waste within your own circle of influence, you can feel pretty good,” Hu says. “You start realizing and seeing a bigger picture behind why it is you’re doing what you’re doing. Then you realize there are limitations of personal action, and that leads you to doing more in
your community and getting involved. At least, that’s has happened with me, and how I’ve seen it happen to those around me.”

Hu became the administrator of her local Buy Nothing group and hosts six TerraCycle bins in her backyard so neighbors can drop off hard-to-recycle waste, like cigarette butts and kids’ apple sauce pouches. When the bins fill up, she sends them to the company for recycling (read more about TerraCycle here). She also joined a 2018 training for climate activists put on by Al Gore’s nonprofit The Climate Reality Project, after which she got involved with her local chapter working on public comments and rallies in the Bay Area.

Putting the You in Community

Reducing demand for new items and reducing trash both have obvious benefits for the Earth and your wallet, but joining communities like these can boost your self-esteem, too. A 2012 study from Stanford psychologists showed that even small cues of social connection can boost personal motivation for shared goals (like getting a community to reduce its waste). A study from the University of North Carolina showed that positive social connections could improve your physical health as well as your mood.

Cory Chow, who finally donated her bridesmaid dress from her Buy Nothing Group, got something in return, too: a heavy-duty thermos to help reduce her use of disposable cups. She says she uses it every day.

Whether you’re giving or requesting, have something to teach about waste or a lot to learn, communities are out there. Find your local group by searching buy nothing, zero waste, or another term and your town name on Google, Facebook, or Meetup. Don’t forget to ask around on NextDoor, your local listserv, or at in-person community events, too. If you come up short, start your own group by registering with Buy Nothing or spread the word about a zero waste group on social media, local bulletin boards, and listservs.

Balled-up paper towels, plastic food containers and crumpled stationery: when Anamarie Shreeves did her first trash analysis back in 2013, these were some of the most common culprits she found in the pile, and it probably isn’t far off from what many of us would find if we perused our own.

The average American produces roughly 1,700 lbs of trash per year, which is almost three times the global average, according to a 2019 report by the research group Verisk Maplecroft. Though waste-prevention practices have always been around, “going zero waste” has gained momentum in recent years as advocates take to social media to model their lifestyle.

While everyone can produce less waste, we can’t all do it the same way. For this lifestyle switch to make a real impact on our planet, it is important to understand the ways that rigid zero-waste “rules” can exclude certain groups and find low-waste solutions that allow everybody to get involved.

But First, What is Zero Waste?

Zero waste encompasses a strict set of principles that lead to zero percent of personal waste going in the trash can. Some zero- and low waste advocates have expanded the Three Rs rule to include repair and refuse, so everyday habits include: refuse, reduce, reuse, repair, and recycle.

“[A trash analysis] turns on a visual lens that most of us have never exercised before, and once you become aware of your trash there’s no turning that off,” says Shreeves.

She’s the founder of Fort Negrita, an online community where she shares waste reduction tips and hosts a store that sells reusable cloth menstrual pads and upcycled products. Shreeves says the metaphorical “Fort Negrita” is where resilience, green spaces, and “Black girl magic” meet.

Trash analyses draw the connection between the waste we produce at home and what we see when we drive by a dump. It’s a literal deep dive people do by sorting through their trash bins and identifying items that could have been recycled, composted, or maybe didn’t need to be bought in the first place. Often these are single-use items like napkins, plastic bags, and food scraps.

Invite Only: Exclusivity in Zero Waste

While consciousness of our consumer habits is an important aspect to reducing waste, where a person lives and their socioeconomic circumstance are not as adjustable.

Shreeves, who lives in Atlanta, says she used to shop regularly at a natural foods market but had to cut back after she started grad school and stopped working full-time.

“If a zero-waste lifestyle is out of your means, you simply can’t do it. But that doesn’t mean that you’re less of an environmentalist,” says Shreeves. While she has incorporated these habits into her own life, Shreeves doesn’t call herself a “zero waster,” because of the barriers to inclusivity that everyday people face when it comes to pursuing a completely zero waste lifestyle.

For example, getting food from bulk and fresh produce sections of grocery stores is key to reducing plastic waste, but at least 23.5 million Americans live in communities where access to fresh produce is extremely limited. Eighteen million Americans also live in neighborhoods where water systems are in violation of EPA lead standards. While the plastic water bottle has become a symbol for unsustainability to some, it remains a reminder of a national environmental injustice for others.

Freweyni Asress has been living a low-waste lifestyle for four years and is the founder of the Zero Waste Habesha community (named so in homage to her Ethiopian roots). Her work focuses on the experiences of Black people and land sovereignty.

“I started doing low waste for similar reasons as many others who are in that mainstream culture—to reduce my impact,” Asress says. “But my intentions evolved as I learned more about environmental racism, environmental justice, indigenity, and eco-movements in Ethiopia.”

Food insecurity disproportionately harms African American and Latin American communities, according to the nonprofit Move for Hunger, and is one example of how constructs like race and class can intersect with a person’s environmentalism. What society considers “normal” ability is another: In 2018, when Starbucks announced that it would eliminate plastic straws, the news sparked debate about ableism within the environmental movement, since plastic straws are considered a necessity for many disabled individuals. Disability rights advocates recommended offering straws by request only, instead of creating outright bans.

Another way we can understand the role of privilege in zero waste spaces is by taking a closer look at who is most burdened by waste and who works hardest to reduce it. Married American mothers spend twice as much time on housework than fathers, according to a 2012 Oxford study. Since domestic activities like cooking and cleaning can generate preventable waste, many women find themselves taking on sustainability leadership roles in their households—and there are numerous zero-waste blogs, YouTube channels, and Instagram accounts
run by working moms to prove it.

A 2017 Scientific American study also found that some men perceive eco-friendly behaviors as feminine and may avoid them because of it.

“When it comes to gender, there may be a lack of interest among men and it’s up to them to get involved,” says activist Rob Greenfield.

Greenfield famously wore a suit made of trash around New York City for 30 days to bring attention to the waste crisis and in 2019, he completed one year of growing 100 percent of his own food while living in Orlando, Florida.

“Men need to overcome the idea of masculine versus feminine and that’s no easy task in a society that has ingrained these ideas about gender,” says Greenfield. “Carrying a pouch of reusable items, for example, is considered feminine but men have to overcome these stigmas.”

All of this is to say that where we live, what we buy, and how we use products are all indicative of the types of privilege each of us may have.

Will You Have This Dance?

It’s often said that inclusivity goes beyond inviting someone to a party; it’s asking them to dance. Here are a few actions you can take to foster inclusivity along your own low-waste journey:

• Celebrate Everyday Actions: Mundane habits like eating leftovers and sharing hand-me-downs may not seem like much, but they prevent a lot of waste. So does taking reusable items like tote bags, food containers, and silverware with you on-the-go.
• Don’t Eco-Shame: When we know the power of our everyday actions, it’s tempting to judge others who we don’t feel are exercising that power. Keep in mind that sustainability looks different across cultures and communities and the best way to inspire isn’t to be preachy, but lead by example.
• Learn From Others: Sustainability looks different across cultures and communities. Seek out low-wasters from different backgrounds and ask yourself what can you learn, support, and adapt for your own low-waste life. You can follow @FortNegrita, @ZeroWasteHabesha, and @RobGreenfield on social media for ideas.
• Embrace Low Waste: Everyone who starts their journey may not get to 100 percent zero waste, but appreciating the steps people are taking to radically reduce wastecreates a sense of empowerment and community.

Turning bike tires into bags, sugar cane waste into to-go boxes, and reclaimed wood to new flooring is what the circular economy looks like.

Each of these trash-to-treasure concepts are real practices by real businesses: Green Guru, which makes outdoor gear out of busted bike tubes and old climbing rope; Greenline Paper Company, which offers compostable to-go clamshells from bagasse (sugar cane waste fiber); and Pioneer Millworks which takes wood from dilapidated buildings for new home building projects. These are just a few examples of business leaders redefining capitalism as a mechanism to care for the planet instead of taking advantage of it.

While this concept is getting more press in recent years, it is not a new phenomenon—compassionate businesses have been coming together for decades under Green America’s Green Business Network® to demonstrate unity for a circular economy.

While there are several schools of thought that inform a circular economy—from cradle to cradle, to natural capitalism, to industrial ecology—at its most basic level, a circular economy is about rethinking supply chains to minimize waste. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation describes it in three parts: “designing out waste and pollution, keeping products and materials in use, and regenerating natural systems.” This economic model takes the principles of reduce, reuse, and recycle, and scales them throughout society. Read more about the various schools of thought at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s website.

Conversely, our country runs on a linear economy: we take resources, make products, and when we tire of them or they outlive their usefulness, throw them away. This take-make-toss model operates as if resources are infinite—whereas the circular economy makes the most of the planet’s resources while giving back. The following case studies from Wrangler, TerraCycle, and Green America’s Center for Sustainability Solutions demonstrate examples of each piece in the Ellen MacArthur Foundation definition of designing out waste, keeping things in use, and regeneration.

Design Out Waste

Most pollution and waste occur early in the supply chain, not from consumer purchasing. For example, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) states that about one-fifth of the world’s industrial water pollution occurs in textile mills, long before the finished clothing items make it to the hands of buyers. Green America’s winter 2019 issue, “Unraveling the Fashion Industry,” took a deep dive into the world of harmful fashion be an authoritative resource on issues and victories throughout the industry.

Jeans alone will go through several chemical-intensive washes to get that “lived in” look (unless you’re buying raw denim, yours have gone through this too), generating a significant amount of wastewater; however, by designing out waste at the beginning of the supply chain, businesses have the opportunity to generate industry- wide positive impacts.

Wrangler’s newest denim collection is one such example. In 2019, the brand released Indigood™, a collection that uses a foam-dyeing process to eliminate 100 percent of wastewater from the indigo dyeing process. Wrangler collaborated with Texas Tech University, Indigo Mill Designs and the Spanish fabric company Tejidos Royo to bring the foam-dyed denim to market.

Compared to conventional denim manufacturing, which uses around 1,500 to 2,000 liters of water by dipping denim yarn in 12 to 14 different dyeboxes—imagine bathtubs filled with dye—the foam dyeing processes uses almost no water.

“Instead of using water to carry the indigo dye, this process uses foam, which is comprised mostly of air. The foam is introduced via applicator brushes and the yarn runs over it,” says Roian Atwood, Wrangler’s director of sustainability, who states the technology is a totally different system than conventional methods.

The Indigood Collection was originally released in 2019 and is currently available in stores. Atwood says Wrangler intends to increase the amount of foam-dyed denim throughout their entire collection.

“We want to incorporate foam-dyed denim into our products as fast as possible, because without water, you eliminate wastewater,” says Atwood. “And a denim mill that isn’t producing wastewater as a result of its operations is almost unheard of.”

Additionally, Atwood states that Wrangler won’t monopolize the foam-dyed denim market. Wrangler has already shared the technology with competitors because of its potential to completely change the denim industry.

For a notoriously water-intensive item of clothing, the foam-dyeing process offers a clear solution to designing out waste near the beginning of the supply chain—the first piece in the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s definition of a circular economy.

Keep in Use

A linear economy turns a profit off waste: Americans threw away 4.51 pounds of trash per person per day in 2017, according to the EPA. Most of that discarded material comes from goods that are used briefly, such as food waste and packaging materials. As these items are replaced, they perpetuate the take-make-waste model of a linear economy.

Combating this model begins with re-imagining how these materials are wasted and is also the second part of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s circular economy definition: keeping items in use longer. In the Wrangler example, pollution and waste must be managed by businesses and therefore, are out of the average person’s control; however, we do have control over how often we buy items, how long we use them, and how we repurpose them. Food waste and some paper materials can be composted, which gives them a new life as fertilizer. Certain plastics, metals, and glass can be recycled in curbside bins, too.

But what about household items that can’t be composted, repaired, or recycled? Empty toothpaste tubes, dead car batteries, and dried out markers are a few examples of “unrecyclables”— in other words, items that are not accepted by municipal recycling and thus, landfilled. This is where TerraCycle comes in.

“TerraCycle’s mission has always been ‘to eliminate the idea of waste,’” says Sue Kauffman, the North American public relations manager of the recycling company, which has been in operation for over a decade.

TerraCycle is a leader in recycling the unrecyclable—the company partners with major consumer goods manufacturers to offer recycling programs. In 2019 alone, TerraCycle collected and diverted over 30 million pounds of post-consumer and post-industrial waste from landfills. The company won Green America’s People and Planet Award in 2015 for recycling innovation and has since won additional accolades and expanded to 21 countries.

The recycling company offers multiple programs for collecting unrecyclables, from the Zero Waste Box program for picking up nearly every type of waste, to the Regulated Waste program for items like fluorescent lamps and batteries that would be hazardous in a landfill.

To make these programs possible, TerraCycle works with a variety of third-party processing subcontractors that sort and reprocess the waste into usable raw materials for new product manufacturing. Whenever possible, these processing locations are located near where the collections take place.

TerraCycle’s newest project, Loop, follows the “milkman model”—like when the milkman came to the doorstep with a fresh delivery and picked up used containers. Loop expands on this concept with familiar consumer brands by delivering reusable and recyclable packaging of everyday products instead of single-use packaging.

“With the launch of Loop, a fully circular economy was our desired outcome,” says Kauffman. “Through all of the waste reduction programs offered by TerraCycle, we have redefined the concept of what truly is waste and encouraged consumers and the packaged goods industry alike to reconsider what can be given a second life through recycling.”

Regenerate Natural Systems

In nature, waste does not exist. When a leaf falls, it becomes food for microorganisms, then becomes part of the soil to feed the tree. While there are multiple schools of thought educating circular economy theory, the concept of ‘waste as food’ is an underlying theme. Thus, the third foundational pillar of a circular economy is regenerating natural systems; not only does this principle close the loop of a circular economy, it has the potential to protect and improve the environment by returning nutrients to ecosystems.

Vermicomposting (composting using live worms) is an example: in a household vermicompost system, earthworms are fed kitchen waste, from eggshells to orange peels. Their eliminated waste can be used as a nutrient-dense fertilizer. Now imagine that process on a much larger scale, considering increased biodiversity, soil health, and surrounding ecosystems. This is the idea of regenerative agriculture.

Mary Johnson, the Carbon Farming Innovation Network director at Green America, explains that regenerative agriculture is an approach to farming that mimics nature to create a healthy and symbiotic ecosystem.

“Over the last hundred years, conventional and tillage-based farming systems have not reflected how important living organisms are,” says Johnson. “Regenerative agriculture uses knowledge of how nature works on a deep, complex systems level to farm in harmony with those systems, rather than dumbing them down to the most reductionist, controlled approach that relies heavily on applications of toxic chemicals and sterilized soils.”

Regenerative agriculture also has the capacity to capture carbon and store it in the ground, reducing the effects of the climate crisis and sequestering global carbon emissions. Read more in “Planting Seeds of Climate Hope."

With this in mind, regenerative agriculture has the potential to not only protect natural ecosystems but improve deteriorated conditions caused by conventional agriculture. Project Drawdown ranks regenerative agriculture as its 11th highest-impact solution to climate change.

The practices of farming regeneratively are applicable to both small, worker-owned or family farms as well as large corporations are looking to incorporate regenerative methods in their supply chains. In 2018, Green America announced its collaboration with DanoneWave—a maker of dairy and plant-based products such as coffee creamer and yogurt—to implement regenerative agriculture practices in its supply chain, as well as to develop a certification for regenerative farms. If regenerative agriculture becomes widely adopted, it has the potential to drastically alter our economic relationship with food, the land, and the climate.

Closing the Loop

Collectively, each of these case studies offer a glimpse at what is possible in a circular economy. The shift would require all facets of society to participate—from government and business, to cities and individuals—but the momentum is already growing. Climate change has never mattered more to American voters. Businesses across the nation are increasingly taking the initiative to be greener. A circular economy is the only economic model that can support humanity on planet Earth—and it is more important than ever.

As the calendar shifted from 2019 to 2020, it felt like other shifts occurred too—with the US elections on the horizon and Australia on fire for the last few months, many are waking up to the reality of climate change and the growing need to act on it. Trying times are times for trying, right?

This is a moment when we can all look at our habits and challenge ourselves to make change. How can we make do with what we have? When it comes to things we must buy, like food, how can we get the greenest, cleanest food with the least plastic trash coming along with it? Learn how to take some simple steps for cutting down on your personal waste in “Go Green for Free”. And your food can get to you with the least chemical inputs if you’re able to grow it yourself—read how your garden can feed you and nourish itself with regenerative gardening techniques in “Planting Seeds of Climate Hope."

These are choices we can make for ourselves every day, but this is also a moment for inclusivity. As we stand up for the Earth, we have to also consider how we can welcome our friends and neighbors into our environmental and social justice communities, as Polly Barks and Nancy Hu do in “What You Get When You Buy Nothing."

While everyone can produce less waste, we can’t all do it the same way. In order for this lifestyle switch to make a real impact on our planet, it is important to understand the ways that rigid zero-waste “rules” can exclude certain groups and find low-waste solutions that create space for everybody to get involved. Read more about how privilege plays into this movement in “Come As You Are: Zero Waste for Everyone."

This work, like so much of our economic work, starts with individual action. Then we join hands with neighbors to form and improve communities. Our communities can work together around the world to hold companies accountable, because companies are responsible for most of the pollution— through high demand for dirty energy and pushing impulse purchases that lead to waste (the ubiquitous Amazon does both, unfortunately). Our communities join together to hold local and national governments accountable too, as they have the power to rein in corporate excess and allocate funds to clean up pollution or act in other ways to help those who have less means and privilege.

One of the ways you can stand up to corporations is, as always, visiting GreenAmerica.org and participating in our many corporate actions—like Cool It!, our new campaign telling Walmart to end the use of climate-polluting gases in its refrigeration, which make up half of the company’s emissions and rapidly escalate climate change.

Here at Green America, we also join hands in coalitions with allies to leverage change faster. For example, building on our campaigns to pressure Amazon on both environment and justice issues, we have joined the Athena coalition as a leading member. The coalition brings together nearly 50 nonprofits, unions, and community organizations to force Amazon to take accountability for its bad actions to the Earth, its workers, the communities it’s located in, and even to the country. Read more about Amazon and Athena.

What will you do as an individual and as part of the global community to reduce your waste this year, and to make the Earth happier for yourself and others—to consume less and live more?

Making the most of what you have isn’t just good for the environment. Bucking wasteful consumer culture can build community and save money as individuals team up to save the planet.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on Monday announced a commitment of US$10 billion of his personal money to the newly launched Bezos Earth Fund to fight climate change.

"Climate change is the biggest threat to our planet," Bezos wrote. "This global initiative will fund scientists, activists, NGOs (non-governmental organizations) -- any effort that offers a real possibility to help preserve and protect the natural world."

The fund will begin issuing grants this summer, Bezos said. The $10 billion commitment is to start the effort, which suggests he will contribute more money in the future.

Whether he does so "likely will depend on what the reaction to this investment is," said Rob Enderle, principal analyst at the Enderle Group.

Reactions to the Announcement

The $10 billion "is not sufficient," said Charlotte Tate, labor justice campaigns manager at Green America.

"While it's good that Jeff Bezos is finally recognizing that we're facing a climate crisis, he needs to tackle Amazon's massive climate emissions more quickly and effectively in order to create sustainable climate solutions," she told the E-Commerce Times.

Amazon emitted 44.4 million metric tons of carbon dioxide in 2018, an amount Green America said was "larger than the emissions of UPS and FedEx, and the emissions of Apple, Alphabet and Microsoft.

"We applaud Jeff Bezos' philanthropy but one hand cannot give what the other is taking away," Amazon Employees for Climate Justice said in a statement.

AECJ pointed to Amazon's signing up oil and gas companies for its services; funding think tanks like the Competitive Enterprise Institute, which denies climate change; and the company's threat to fire employees for speaking out publicly about its role in the climate crisis.

"People often seem to want to be critical before learning what they are being critical about, and thus are working against the greater good in many cases rather than for it," Enderle told the E-Commerce Times. "If we want wealthy people to donate to causes like this it might be wise to cut back on the criticism."

Many tech companies have announced efforts to combat climate change.

"Almost every tech giant is focused on driving down the cost of datacenter energy usage," noted Ray Wang, principal analyst at Constellation Research.

"It's in their self-interest," he told the E-Commerce Times.

"However, not many tech CEOs have pledged green initiatives," Wang added.

The Business of Business

"Business decisions can no longer be made with only profits in mind," said Green America's Tate. "The future of our society and our planet must be incorporated into all business decisions, and corporations as large as Amazon have a responsibility to prioritize ethical decision making."

She suggested that Amazon take these steps:

• Not renew contracts with oil and gas companies;
• Not seek new contracts with them; and
• Publicly announce this commitment, giving a date for ending all contracts with oil and gas companies.

If Amazon were to pull out of servicing the oil and gas industry, it might lose ground to Google and Microsoft, which also work with the industry.

"There is no business rationale to get out of this business," Constellation's Wang said. "Being in the business may help Amazon find solutions for energy-intensive and carbon-based businesses to shift to greener alternatives."

The purpose of any business arguably is to make money first, last and always. That may be changing, though, with company staff, investors and shareholders now pressuring businesses on issues such as climate change.

AECJ wrote an open letter to Bezos and the Amazon Board of Directors last April. Nearly 1,800 Amazon employees staged a walkout in support of a global climate strike last fall.

Activist shareholders have been pressuring Amazon on climate change and other issues. Further, 251 institutional investors around the world with more than $16 trillion under management have called for corporate action over deforestation and the forest fire in the Amazon rainforest.

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission last fall proposed amendments to Rule 14a-8 to modernize the process for shareholder proposals' inclusion in proxy statements.

The amendment "would make it more difficult for shareholders to file and refile resolutions," Green America's Tate pointed out. "Shareholder resolutions have been highly effective in addressing environmental, social and governance issues at corporations for years."

Green America, together with Americans for Financial Reform and As You Sow, delivered a petition with 18,000 signatures opposing the amendment.

Being Good Needs More Work

The major high-tech companies have pledged to combat climate change. However, their plans may be more hype than reality, according to Greenpeace.

Amazon's commitment to renewable energy covers its own operations and electricity use but leaves out its supply chain, which constitutes more than 75 percent of its overall carbon footprint, for example.

Amazon, like Microsoft and Google, includes renewable energy credits (RECs) in its carbon footprint calculations. RECs confirm that one megawatt-hour (Meh) of electricity is generated and delivered to the grid from a renewal energy resource.

However, RECs can be purchased, and reporting RECs lets companies claim they run on clean energy while actually not doing so.

Getting rid of RECs is not a solution, though, because "this model ensures that they budget for offsets," Wang pointed out. "However, there is a need to take these investments and drive down the cost of renewable energy production and distribution."

Gordon is a leader in the field of Sustainable, Responsible, and Impact Investing (SRI), having received the CSRIC designation - the first-ever certification for study in the SRI discipline. Gordon is a Fairfax, VA Fee-Only financial planner and at Your Best Path Financial Planning, he provides comprehensive financial planning, retirement planning, and investment management to help clients in any situation organize, grow, and protect their assets. He serves clients as a fiduciary at all times and never takes compensation from anyone, at any time, other than fees the client agrees to in advance.

Jeff Bezos made news this week when he publicized an upcoming $10 billion donation to address the climate crisis.  But, as the richest person on Earth, Bezos is making his money off Amazon.com, a company that is a major driver of climate change. As the Amazon Employees for Climate Justice aptly put it: “One hand cannot give what the other is taking away.”

While it’s good that Jeff Bezos is finally recognizing we’re facing a climate crisis, he needs to tackle Amazon’s massive climate emissions more quickly and effectively in order to create sustainable climate solutions. Last year, Amazon.com finally released some data on its climate emissions, which are staggering. The company emitted 44 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent in 2018, including indirect sources. That is larger than the emissions of United Parcel Service and FedEx. It’s also larger than the emissions of tech competitors Apple, Alphabet (Google), and Microsoft. Amazon should be working aggressively to reduce those emissions and taking action to address prior years’ emissions on the planet, like Microsoft recently agreed to do.

Donating money is a nice gesture, but it doesn’t make up for the harm that Amazon is causing, and has caused, to people and the planet.

Bezos’ $10 billion commitment is a large sum of money, although it is a small percentage of his fortune. We do need huge investments into climate solutions, but $10 billion will eventually run out. More importantly, if Amazon hasn’t addressed its harmful impacts, people and the planet will continue to pay the price.

Steps Jeff Bezos and Amazon can take to address climate change

1. Stop intimidating employees from speaking out on Amazon’s climate policies. Silencing workers and environmental activists will NOT solve the climate crisis.
2. Commit to 100% renewable energy by 2020 and end the construction of any new data centers that rely on fossil fuel or nuclear power. Many of Amazon’s competitors reached 100% renewable energy already.
3. Submit complete and accurate data to the Carbon Disclosure Project. Amazon is a laggard amongst large tech companies in refusing to report out fully on its climate emissions.
4. End efforts to sell Amazon Web Services technology to the oil and gas industry to support increased exploration and drilling. You can’t end the climate crisis by fueling it.
5. Take action to protect the health and well-being of employees in Amazon warehouses and throughout the supply chain.
6. Addressing environmental justice issues in communities impacted by Amazon’s operations. Amazon’s warehouses cause massive pollution from shipping.
7. Ensure no labor rights abuses are occurring throughout your operations, and allow workers through the entire supply chain – from factory, to warehouse, to the office – to raise concerns without fear of retaliation
8. Ensure that companies manufacturing Amazon electronics are in compliance with local laws regarding wages and hours, providing a safe work environment, allowing for unions, and taking steps to move towards a living wage.

In addition to having a huge impact on the planet, Amazon workers report dangerous and grueling working conditions; within Amazon warehouses. Injury rates are more than double the industry average. Numerous reports have found Amazon violating human rights across its operations, impacting workers, consumers, and children. Through its various electronic devices (Alexa, Ring, etc.), Amazon may be listening to your conversations and sharing video footage without your permission. This behavior must stop!

Sustainable climate solutions prioritize both the planet and people. In order for Amazon to transform from a laggard to a climate leader, it must address its massive emissions and end the labor and human rights violations occurring throughout its operations.

Take Action on Amazon and Climate Change

Share the truth on social media!

Or paste the below message in your Facebook status or on Twitter:

Hey @jeffbezos $10 billion won’t erase @amazon ’s climate impact! You can’t end the #climatecrisis by fueling it: https://www.greenamerica.org/blog/sorry-bezos-10-billion-donation-wont-undo-amazons-climate-impact

Call Amazon's customer line!

Call (888) 280-4331

When the automated message prompts you to verify your Amazon account, just press # and then ask to speak to an associate about Amazon’s social and environmental policies:

"Hello, My name is ____ and I am concerned about Amazon’s impact on the people and the planet. While I appreciate that Jeff Bezos recently committed $10 billion to fight climate change, that money will not negate the massive damage that Amazon’s everyday operations are having on the climate crisis. I am joining Green America in calling on Amazon to get serious about addressing its negative impact on people and the planet." 

Please feel free to select whichever points from the bulleted list below speaks to you most:

"When will Amazon:

1. Cut ties with the oil and gas industry?
2. Submit accurate and complete data to the Carbon Disclosure Project?
3. Stop intimidating employees from speaking out on Amazon’s climate policies? Silencing workers and environmental activists will not solve the climate crisis.
4. Reach 100% renewable energy? Some of Amazon’s competitors have already reached 100% - the planet cannot wait 10 years for Amazon to get to 100%!
5. Address environmental justice issues in communities impacted by Amazon’s operations?
6. Address worker health and safety concerns throughout Amazon’s entire supply chain?"

Let us know you called by simply clicking the button below.

I called Amazon

Black history is rich with connections to the natural environment, from the sustainable maroon communities that sprang up in the Carolinas and Florida, to the Great Migration and search for nature near urban spaces, to the modern environmental justice movement for clean land, air and water for all. Green America celebrates the contributions of these eight Black leader who have revolutionized the movement.

Dorceta Taylor

In 1991, the Jamaican-born sociologist Dorceta Taylor became the first Black woman to receive a doctoral degree from Yale University’s School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. In 2014, Taylor authored the most comprehensive study of gender, racial and class diversity within the environmental movement, “The State of Diversity in Environmental Organizations,” which found a serious lag in the progress of racial diversity within environmental institution and that men are still more likely than women to hold executive positions. For 27 years, Taylor was a professor and director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability. Inn 2021, she became the first Senior Associate Dean of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Yale School of the Environment, where she still works and teaches today.

Robert Bullard

In 1979, sociologist Robert Bullard served as an expert witness for the landmark case, Bean vs. Southwestern Waste Management Inc. Bullard’s wife, Linda McKeever Bullard, was the attorney for a Black Houston couple who believed the decision to build a solid waste facility in their neighborhood was largely based on its racial demographics. Mr. Bullard led a study that found that toxic waste sites were most likely to be located in Houston’s predominantly Black neighborhoods, and eventually launched a national study that found this was true across the US. Since then, he’s served as Dean of the Barbara Jordan-Mickey Leland School of Public Affairs at Texas Southern University, authored several books, and is fondly called the "father of environmental justice." In 2021, President Joe Biden named him to the White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council.

Rev. Lennox Yearwood

Rev. Lennox Yearwood Jr. is a minister with the Church of God in Christ (COGIC) with penchants for community activism, political organizing and hip-hop culture. In 2004, he was a key organizer for Sean P. Combs ‘Vote or Die’ campaign and founded the nonprofit Hip Hop Caucus in the same year. Hip Hop Caucus describes itself as an organization that links policy and culture and operates with a mission to empower communities hit first and worst by injustice, including climate injustice. In 2008, Yearwood led Hip Hop Caucus’s ‘Respect My Vote’ campaign which registered 32,000 people to vote in a single day, setting a world record. Yearwood continues to lead Hip Hop Caucus’s campaigns and is the co-host of the podcast Think 100%--The Coolest Show On Climate Change. He also currently serves on The Climate Mobilization's advisory board.

Mustafa Santiago Ali

Mustafa Santiago Ali is the vice president of environmental justice, climate, and community revitalization at the National Wildlife Federation (NWF). Before NWF, Ali served as vice president at Hip Hop Caucus and worked at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for 24 years in the Office of Environmental Justice (OEJ), of which he was a founding member. During his time at the EPA, Ali brought attention to social and environmental justice issues in the U.S. and abroad. In 2017, Ali resigned from the EPA. A snippet of his resignation letter to administrator Scott Pruitt read:

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “We may have come to these shores on different ships, but we are now all in the same boat”. The upcoming choices you make will have significant impacts on the public health and environment of our country. Those choices can stand as a beacon of hope, and as a powerful role model to the rest of the world on our priorities and values.

Catherine Flowers

Catherine Coleman Flowers is the founder and CEO of the Alabama Center for Rural Enterprise (ACRE)—an organization working to fight poverty and provide water and sanitation equity. For years, Flowers has worked to address the persistent issue of substandard sewage systems in her native Lowndes County, Alabama that disproportionately affect African Americans in the area. In 2019, Flowers testified to Congress about the Alabama Department of Health and Lowndes County Health Department’s failure to provide affordable and effective septic systems to residents and called on policy makers to make meaningful investments at the local, state and federal levels to accomplish this. One year later, she was chosen as a MacArthur Fellow and published her first book, Waste: One Woman’s Fight Against America’s Dirty Secret.

Jacqueline Patterson

Jacqueline "Jacqui" Patterson has experience at a variety of organizations working at the intersection of race and climate justice, including as the director of the NAACP’s Environmental and Climate Justice program, and at Women of Color United and ActionAid where she approached issues like climate change and food access from a gender lens. In 2021 she founded The Chrisholm Legacy Project, which serves to connect Black communities with resources for frontline climate justice leadership. The organization's name pays homage to Shirley Chrisholm, the first African American woman to be elected to Congress in 1968, and to later seek nomination for a presidential candidacy.

Rue Mapp

Due to a lack of representation, there's a misperception that African Americans don't like the outdoors. The most recent National Parks data shows that 78 percent of visitors are white and when African American, Asian American, and Latinx populations do visit, they often report feeling uncomfortable. In 2009, adventurer Rue Mapp founded the nonprofit Outdoor Afro to celebrate African Americans’ connections with nature and leadership in exploration spaces. Today, the organization has chapters in 30 states and 80 leaders who guide members through nature tours and other recreational activities.

Warren Washington

The landmark research by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) can be traced back to the trailblazing work of atmospheric scientist, Warren M. Washington. In 1964, he became the second African American to earn a doctorate degree in meteorology and started his career at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). There, he and fellow scientist Akira Kasahara created one of the firsts computer climate models that simulate weather patterns and make predictions about how changes in temperature will impact the earth over time. Washington has served multiple presidential administrations and has received several prestigious awards including the Nobel Peace Prize (2007), National Medal of Science (2010), and Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement (2019).

Updated February 2023.

A Berkshire Hathaway Company

Supervisor: Executive Co-Director, Consumer and Corporate Engagement
Hours: Full-time (4 days, 32 hours/week)
Salary: Commensurate with experience
Benefits: Generous benefits including medical, dental, disability insurance, sick leave, vacation

Green America is a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating a just and sustainable society by harnessing economic power for positive change. Our unique approach involves working with consumers, investors, and businesses. Our workplace reflects our goal of creating a more cooperative, environmentally sound economy. We have a participatory decision-making process, which aims to build consensus within the departments and teams.

The Climate Campaigns Director is part of Green America’s Corporate Responsibility Programs team, which works to educate consumers about various social and environmental issues and to push large companies to improve their practices. The Climate Campaigns Director will primarily work on Green America’s climate campaigns, with a focus on corporate action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The Climate Campaigns Director will lead Green America’s various campaigns focused on reducing emissions from various sources in several sectors and addressing environmental racism and impacts on frontline communities.

Duties and Responsibilities

Campaigns

• Plan and execute several, simultaneous campaigns to get large corporations to take action on climate change impacts (including greenhouse gas emissions, energy use, and solid waste generation).
• Take existing campaigns to the next level to create greater corporate impacts and consumer education. 
• Ensure that justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) impacts are a priority in all campaigns. Incorporate JEDI impacts into our existing campaigns and ensure that JEDI considerations are at the forefront in all future campaigns.
• Take a lead role in strategic partnerships with outside coalitions for our campaigns.
• Direct outreach to and engage productively with target companies.
• Draft comments to regulatory agencies, provide comments on legislation, and build support for government action on climate change.

Management

• Provide supervision to the campaign associate.
• Supervise interns and fellows working on climate issues.

Content and Outreach

• Work with the publications team to support content on climate issues.
• Oversee and work with the new campaign associate to research and develop content (blogs, e-blasts, webpages, social posts, and press releases) to educate consumers about various climate issues. 
• Create actions for Green America members and the public to take to advance campaign goals and raise awareness on climate issues.
• Speak on behalf of Green America at events and to the media on campaigns and relevant topics.
• Work with consultants on generating earned media.
• Work with Web and Social Media Teams to ensure climate campaigns content is well-suited for the web and social media, reaching a wide audience.
• Work with Green America staff to integrate the campaign into Green America’s events, websites, social media, and publications.

Fundraising and Organizational Support

• Assist Development Team with fundraising and grant proposals and reports. Assist the marketing team in developing language for direct mail and online appeal.
• Take part in Green America staff meetings, annual planning meetings, and budgeting process.
• Participation in Green America Cross Departmental Teams: The success of our work and the strength of our organization depend on the voluntary participation of staff from all levels of the organization in various cross departmental teams, in addition to the core responsibilities of each staff position. While staff are not required to participate in a voluntary team every year, we do depend on volunteers throughout the year for teams such as: Space Team; Operating Plan & Budget Team; Justice, Equity Diversity & Inclusion (JEDI) Team; Pulse Survey Team; and the Fun Days Team. Please check-in with your supervisor about your interest in joining a team to ensure the time for team participation makes sense in a given period.

Qualified Candidates should have the following skills and qualities:

• Strong campaign skills. The ability to conduct powerful campaigns that result in substantive change in targeted entities with little supervision. Applicants will have 7 or more years’ experience and a track record of success.
• Experience with corporate campaigning, including strategy development, power mapping, and negotiating with senior management at corporations.
• Strong research and writing skills. Experience creating content for various audiences and for web and social media.
• A passion for climate issues.
• Experience with outreach to diverse communities including Black, Indigenous, People of Color, and/or international communities.  
• Ability to manage multiple projects at once and meet deadlines.
• Proven ability to use social media creatively and effectively, including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
• Strong public speaking skills.
• Proven ability to lead coalitions and to reach consensus.
• Experience with fundraising.
• Bachelor’s degree in climate/environmental science or other related field or comparable experience preferred.
• Willingness to publicly present Green America’s campaigns and mission.
• Willingness for occasional travel.

To Apply:

Please email your cover letter and resume to cdhiring@greenamerica.org and note in your cover letter where you learned of the position.

**********************************************************************************

Green America is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without discrimination regarding: actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, related medical conditions, breastfeeding, or reproductive health disorders), age (18 years of age or older), marital status (including domestic partnership and parenthood), personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, family responsibilities, genetic information, disability, matriculation, political affiliation, citizenship status, credit information or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. Harassment on the basis of a protected characteristic is included as a form of discrimination and is strictly prohibited.

<p>Focus on the validation and adoption of innovative soil solutions to speed soil regeneration. Field trails embedded in systems to scale start fall 2019. Paper on the science behind breakthrough soil health innovations: fall 2019.</p>

<p>Supply chain education about the role of healthy soil. Webinars, special forums, C-Suite and board briefings.</p>

<p>Public campaign to build the narrative that soil health is essential for climate and food system solutions. Phase I launched Earth Day, 2019. Phase II launched Labor Day 2019, targeting 40 million through network members’ media channels.<br />
&nbsp;<br />
Poor soil stewardship is creating a crisis in top soil available for food production –&nbsp;&nbsp;at the rate we’re going, according to the international Food &amp; Agriculture Organization (FAO) we only have 50 years of topsoil left. Because conventional farming practices have released so much carbon from the soil, farming is also fueling climate change.&nbsp;&nbsp;Soil SuperHeroes are working to&nbsp;reverse that damage and turn soil into a&nbsp;&nbsp;carbon sink to store the excess carbon contributing to climate change. We need to&nbsp; regenerate the soil to save farming and to save the planet – SoilSuperHeroes are showing us how. To learn more or to nominate a Soil SuperHero, visit Soil SuperHeroes home page.</p>

<p>Bringing all of the Center's agricultural initiatives together into large-scale commercial projects. Currently focused on small grains in the Midwest and Dairy in the Northeast.</p>