Mattel Greenwashes Barbie

As little girls we all wanted a Barbie Doll, as grown women we all wanted to be Barbie.  Face it, as the saying goes “the bitch has everything”, the dream house, car, and guy, not to mention she’s had every career under the sun.  Barbie’s been an astronaut, school teacher, nurse, business woman, Rock Star, and we’ve enjoyed it all and at times look forward to her latest incarnation.

The makers at Mattel have introduced a new line of clothing and accessories for our favorite “it” girl in what they call eco-friendly fashions. 

According to  Mattel: “Barbie is always a reflection of current cultural trends and issues, and girls are increasingly aware of making a green statement,” said Richard Dickson, Senior Vice President of Marketing, Media and Entertainment, Worldwide, Mattel Brands. “Barbie BCause is for eco-conscious girls who believe that being environmentally-friendly is the right thing to do, and we are thrilled to give extra meaning and extra style to what was once just extra Barbie doll fabric.”  (They are taking the scrap pieces of fabric from the other collections and making clothes for this new collection.)

 Hmmmm…okay Mattel, BUT, what about the entire doll that’s made from molded plastic, and all the plastic that is used to package it, not to mention all its other billion pvc accessories and outfits that aren’t of the new eco-friendly (i’m starting to hate this word) line.  Truly, eco-conscious girls (and parents) would not be buying Barbie to begin with me thinks :)!

I always try to applaud companies for at least taking small steps toward sustainability (except Walmart), but Barbie is and always will be a symbol of fun decadence, heck I say just leave her that way!  Barbie has always been marketed as the smart, intelligent girl about town, well so are we, and we see through your obvious ploy to tap into the hot green market right now.

Happy Earth Day!

“On April 22, 1970, Earth Day was held, one of the most remarkable happenings in the history of democracy…” American Heritage magazine, October 1993

Did you know that today is actually the 38th anniversary of Earth Day? I have to admit I didn’t know that either. Senator Gaylord Nelson, the founder of Earth Day actually had this idea seven years prior to its official celebration. He knew then how important it was to bring attention to the demise of our environment. He had this idea in 1962 on how to bring environmental issues to the fore front; so he persuaded President Kennedy to take a five day, eleven state conservation tour in September 1963. The tour was not as successful as he had hoped in bringing national attention to the environment but it did plant the seed to what would become Earth Day!

“At a conference in Seattle in September 1969, I announced that in the spring of 1970 there would be a nationwide grassroots demonstration on behalf of the environment and invited everyone to participate. The wire services carried the story from coast to coast. The response was electric. It took off like gangbusters. Telegrams, letters, and telephone inquiries poured in from all across the country. The American people finally had a forum to express its concern about what was happening to the land, rivers, lakes, and air - and they did so with spectacular exuberance……….” -Senator Gaylord Nelson (www.earthday.enironlink.org)

Today, because of this one day 38 years ago, when millions of Americans decided to act, we now have laws protecting our most precious resource, our Planet! We have the Clean Air Act, the Endangered Species Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, the Federal Land Policy and Management Act, and so many others that help us live in a healthy environment.

Earth Day isn’t just about going out and hugging a tree, it’s the one day to pause and recognize that our very existence depends on how we manage and maintain our surroundings; and to ignore it is to do so at our own peril for now and generations to come.

I’ve always liked the reason why the company Seventh Generation chose that as its name: The company derives its name from the Great Law of the Iroquois that states, “In our every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decisions on the next seven generations.” This is something to think about on day like today.

I hope you enjoy your day today as there are so many celebrations happening all over. *Fun Fact:  Today is also the birthday of Julius Sterling Morton, founder of Arbor Day (the national tree planting holiday)!

Here’s a small timeline of just how far we’ve come in such a short amount of time:

In the 1970s 20 million people gathered to celebrate the first Earth Day.

In the 1980s Congress declares the public’s right to know when toxic chemicals are released in the air, land, and sea.

In the 1990s the EPA (environmental protection agency) issues tough new air quality standards for smog and soot, an action that would improve the air quality for 125 million Americans.

In the 2000s school buses across the country are retrofitted through the Clean School Bus USA program removing 200,000 lbs. of particulates over the next 10 years.

”Earth Day worked because of the spontaneous response at the grassroots level. We had neither the time nor resources to organize 20 million demonstrators and the thousands of schools and local communities that participated. That was the remarkable thing about Earth Day. It organized itself.” Senator Gaylord Nelson.

Happy Earth Day!

Book Review: Go Green, Live Rich

I’ve read a lot of books and I do mean A LOT on living green, being green, and doing green; and I’ve come to the point where I’ve almost stopped reading them because after a while you realize they are quite redundant of each other.

So when Go Rich, Live Green by David Bach with Hilary Rosner showed up in my mailbox I was instantly intrigued.  There is this assumption out there that being green is costly, in fact a couple of DJs on a local radio station here in my city were joking one morning on how the grocery store chain Whole Foods should be renamed Whole Paycheck! 

 The author David Bach is no eco-guru but he does know money!  So he combined his business savvy with top environmentalist Hilary Rosner and now we have 50 Simple Ways to Save the Earth (and Get Rich Trying)!  Something we tree-huggers have been trying to tell people for years.

The book is a list of easy to read tips that I will admit most eco-warriors already know and if you haven’t been living under a rock lately then you too are probably familiar with some of his ideas.  But the difference between David and Hilary’s book is that they present the what, the why, and most importantly the how!  Most books just tell you global warming is after us and go “be green” without explaining in non-scientific terms the why and the how.

I’m a fact girl - I like facts, statistics, and references and I assume most writers do too.  This book has them; that’s probably the most useful stuff I got from the book along with chapter 10, tip 43-Invest Green.

Everyone is looking for that get rich quick book , well here you go and it doesn’t hurt that you can save the planet while you’re at it!

Eco-Sins

Earlier this month Pope Benedict XVI declared pollution a sin.  I laughed and clapped, but it got me thinking about eco-sins I commit fully knowing that what I am doing is bad yet refusing to give up. 

What eco-sins do you commit?

I’ll go first.  I refuse to give up my long hot showers.  I take one every morning without guilt.  I also loathe public transportation.  I take it on days when I have to, not because I want to. 

“I’m not a Yuppie, I’m a Scuppie!”

The 70s had the Hippies, the 80s had the Preppies, the 90s had the Yuppies now the new millennium has the Scuppies.

It’s a new term I just read about - it stands for Socially Conscious, Upwardly-mobile person, a term coined by Chuck Faila, president of a Manhattan based financial planning firm.  He says he’s tired of being called a yuppie and hopes this new term will take its place in the American lexicon as the natural progression from Hippie-Preppie-Yuppie to Scuppie!

These days, more Americans not only want to live well, but want to also do good (or at least do no evil). They still love money and conspicuous displays of affluence. But now, the way to achieve status is to trade in the Beemer for a Toyota Prius, spend $50,000 putting solar panels on the roof, shop at Whole Foods for $7-a-bunch organic endive, and acquire a chic new wardrobe fashioned entirely of hemp, soy fiber, and recycled tires, Failla says.

He hopes to get the word out through a national promotional campaign and he is also writing a guide: “The Scuppie Handbook: A practical guide to living well while doing good.”

Visit the website and read “A Scuppie Believes”, it’s funny!

Earth Dinner on Earth Day

Having friends over to celebrate Earth Day and don’t know what to serve?  Let Earth Dinner help you plan your meal for your family or your community.

This event was started three years ago by America’s largerst collective of organic farmers: Organic Valley, to honor Earth Day with it’s own special meal.  This is akin to what we Americans do at Thanksgiving.  It has now grown and is taking root all over the nation.

“Many Americans are detached from what they eat and the tremendous impact of their food choices,” says Theresa Martinez, Earth Dinner Founder.

Go to their website, Earth Dinner to see which public events and fundraisers are taking place near you, or for recipe ideas for your own dinner.

Wal-Mart Stores not Green

This morning at the ECO:nomics conference being held here in California Lee Scott Jr., president and CEO of the retail giant Wal-Mart announced “We are not green”!  I shrug my shoulders and say tell me something I didn’t already know, to others this has been headline news.

I’m not a fan of the store and that is unfair to them considering I have never been inside one, but I will applaud Mr. Scott’s candor.  He freely admitted that the main reason Wal-Mart is looking to reduce it’s carbon footprint or use of plastics in products is price.  They aren’t doing all of this to save the environment per se, but more to save money.

Wal-Mart is trying to reduce waste which to them is cost, not paper, plastic or carbon!  High-five Wal-Mart, finally a company that owns up to it’s greed!  May all the other corporate giants follow your example and practice greed with a little integrity as well. Then we could stop calling shenanigans on all these “green” PR ploys.

Slightly “Greened” Homes For Sale

To say our housing market is in a slump is like saying Hurricane Katrina was just a few heavy winds!  It’s bad.  So what are home builders doing to attract buyers, they are “greening” their inventory.  Because we all know that green is the hot buzz word of the day and put eco in front of anything and people will come a running!

I’ve been reading in the Wall Street Journal how the big production builders are adding green elements such as Energy Star rated appliances and increased insulation so they can market their homes as “green” and sell them. 

My question is why aren’t these few features standard in any home?  And why are they only implementing them now - when forced by a housing crunch.  This leads me to believe that if our housing market wasn’t in such dire straits then the big builders would not be using any green features at all.  The WSJ agrees with me as they state “it is a strategy born out of neccessity.” 

Basically it all comes down to money.  Homes built truly green cost a few more dollars yet they are better built.  Why? Because truly green built homes exceed building codes, we go above and beyond what is required of us.  When any contractor comes up to you and says “oh yeah I build to code” you should run the other way.  We green builders have a saying around that, “building to code is just the bare mininum anything less would be considered illegal!”

Although I despise the “greenwashing” in my industry, eco-terrorism is not the answer either, which is what is suspected in some housing developments in Washington State.

If you are in the market for a new green home please keep the ancient code of Hammurabi in mind: “BUYER BEWARE”

Your Best Photo For Earth Day

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is having a photo contest for Earth Day, April 22.  They are asking for photos in three categories:

• Enjoying the environment
• Protecting the environment
• Nature and wildlife

If you have a photo of a day you enjoyed in the woods, or a wild animal that caught your attention or your community having a “clean up” day, then send them in.

The contest is open to anyone in the world, but you must be at least 18 years old.  In order to maximize participation it is being host on Flickr.com.

• March 24 - entries due
• April 1- finalists announced public voting begins
• April 15 - voting ends
• April 22 - winners announced

Winners and finalists will be featured on the EPA website.  For more details including how to enter click here.

Good Luck!

Earth: The Sequel

There is is fascinating new book titled Earth: The Sequel by Fred Krupp, President of the Environmental Defense Fund and Miriam Horn.  I have to admit I have not read the book- yet- but I have been receiving so many emails and hearing a lot buzz surrounding it, that I finally went to its website to see what all the hype is about.

It’s about hope, inspiration, ingenuity, entrepreneurship, and optimism, plus the biggest explosion of wealth for whoever wins this race (their words not mine)!

I even found the few minutes of the video educational, as there are many things happening as we race to end global warming and reinvent energy; that I have never heard of; and from what I gather the book is about all these innovative technologies and the inventors behind them.

The book tells us we can’t wait for governments to change the world, it’s the thinkers, risk takers, and innovators who will save the planet, in other words it’s us - the people!