a green super fling

I don't know about you, but nothing puts me to sleep quicker than talking about financial matters.  Don't get me wrong, I love money (and wish I had more of it) but topics such as mortgages, exchange rates, interest rates and the Dow make me start to yaaaawwwwwnnnnn. . . 

I have no idea how I ever finished my business degree.

Topping off my list of dull financial topics would have to be superannuation.  I know it's incredibly important but I'm also happy not to have to think about it too much.  In fact, I ignore it so much so that it took me over three years since learning about ethical super funds to finally transfer over to one. I'm happy to report that I am now a proud member of Australian Ethical Super.

Ethical super funds are run similar to regular super funds but they only invest in organisations that are sustainable socially, environmentally and economically.  For instance, Australian Ethical's list of benefits include:

• Investing in companies with positive environmental, social and governance practices
• Investments are chosen based on both strong ethics and solid financial performance
• Transparency - you know what your money is funding. 

So my money will now be investing in companies that share my values and I'll still get good returns - thankfully it's not an either/or proposition as Australian Ethical returns are similar to non-ethical super funds - I was even able to invest some of my money in 'Climate Advocacy' shares.

To tell you the truth, I'm sort of embarrassed to be sharing this with you. I mean, I work for an environmental non-profit organisation, write this blog and am writing a book, and yet I paid no attention to where my super was going. Australian Ethical came to my office twice and convinced me both times to make the switch, but I was so lazy about it and never made it a priority. Even more embarrassing is the incident that finally tipped me over the edge: while glancing at my latest super statement I learned - horror of horrors - that I had been investing in BHP, Rio Tinto, Exxon Mobil and Shell. Ahhh! I try and live an ethical, environmental lifestyle and I'd unknowingly been contributing to a number of organisations that go against my ideals all because financial matters bore me.

I filled out my Australian Ethical forms the next day.

Signing up for an account was terribly easy, done online, and the most time consuming part of the process was locating a JP to certify my identification on my rollover form.  Sure, there was a bit of administrative homework, but now it's done and I feel a huge weight lifted and one step closer to leading a completely sustainable lifestyle.

If finances don't bore you to tears you'll be pleased to know that Australian Ethical is not the only ethical super fund so you can shop around; a few other ethical funds include:

• Climate Advocacy Fund
• Christian Super 
• Cruelty Free Super 
• Ethical Investment Advisers - self-managed super funds

So remember, even though super is compulsory, it doesn't mean you don't have a choice in where you invest your money. Invest in organisations that share your values, make competitive financial returns and it's a completely win-win situation (don't you just love it when that happens?)!

a green coles fling

Yep, you read that correctly, I'm giving Coles a shout-out on my green-living blog.

For years I've looked upon the retailer with near-disgust.  After all, they stock all the dreaded packaged foods in this country responsible for so much waste and unhealthy diets. They pushed out the independent fruit and veg shop in my neighbourhood last year and have a pathetic selection of organic produce. And why won't they just ban plastic bags already?

But we have recently kindled a flame.  It started innocently enough. Just a flirtation.

I'd run out of the Fairtrade organic tea I get from Oxfam and was desperate for a cuppa.  I couldn't get to the Oxfam shop so I popped down the road to the oh-so-convenient Coles to buy an emergency pack of tea.  And then, there amongst the Twinings, Bushells and Dilmah, I discovered Coles-brand tea that has been certified both Fairtrade and organic!

I promptly wrote Coles an email to thank the company for its growing commitment to the environmental cause and encouraged them to add more eco-friendly products to their store.

A couple months after discovering the tea I had a similar situation with organic cotton make-up pads (typically purchased from the health food store or Eco at Home). The health food store was sold out for a few weeks and I couldn't get to Eco at Home, so just like the tea, I popped down to Coles to get some non-organic pads to cover me until I could get the eco-brand.  And, voila! Coles now stocks Swisspers certified organic cotton pads - and they are even the same price as the non-organic.

The affair got really steamy a couple weeks ago when I needed clothes pegs  -I had a couple loads of laundry to hang and not nearly enough pegs.  I don't know where they go, probably to the land of lost socks and hair pins, but it seems I have to stock up on pegs about once a year.  Last time I purchased wooden pegs, thinking they must be better for the environment than those made of plastic.  Unfortunately they don't withstand the weather or frequent use, and were the first to disappear or break down.  As I entered Coles I still didn't know if I was going to buy more wooden pegs or buy the plastic ones in hopes they lasted longer, but instead I found these:

They're a bit alien-like, but I do appreciate the Aussie colours!

They were produced in the UK, so there is a travel footprint associated, but they are made of 93% recycled plastic and use no metal.  According to the back of the pack, making recycled plastic uses 70% less energy than making virgin plastic. They are also completely recyclable should I ever need to discard them. The pack also says they can withstand hurricane-strength winds - I don't know if I'll have to worry about that, but a few weeks in they are withstanding the sea breeze that blows through my garden.

Of course I love supporting small businesses and will continue to frequent the great specialty shops I've discovered along my green journey, but I also think it's incredibly important to support mainstream stores stocking green products.  I'm a firm believer that if these products are readily available people will purchase them, it's all a matter of convenience (and price), so I'm happy to support Coles by buying these certified (remember to ensure the products you purchase are certified organic, Fairtrade or recycled so you're not greenwashed) green products and encouraging them to do more.

So what are you waiting for?  Why not see what great green finds are at your local grocery store? I'd love to hear what you discover!

a green fling lesson: patience : follow-up

Wouldn't you know it - 5 minutes after I blogged, facebooked and tweeted about my waning patience for eco-custom-mixed-paint I received a phone call from the fine folks at Eco at Home telling me my paint was ready to pick up.  Insert sheepish feelings here (and gratitude to the universe!).

So last Saturday morning I hightailed it over to Willoughby to pick up my paint so that I could spend the long-weekend refinishing my dresser.

The lovely man who had taken great care to create my dream eco-paint colour told me to brace myself for the bright colour I was about to see - I was so excited to see the beautiful blue!  It was probably more duck-egg than peacock, but still as vibrant as I'd wanted.  I picked up a paintbrush and stir-stick, and he provided me an instruction sheet (printed on beautiful brown recycled paper) for how to use my BioPaint.  I've used it before, and love that I can just rinse everything with soap and water, no paint-thinner required.

As he apologised for the delay he explained he had a 'painterly' week, spending the bulk of his time mixing custom-paints for a number of clients.  My hubby was with me and asked if it's the painters or designers who recommend green paint or if it's client-driven, and he explained demand is predominantly client-driven.  He said there are "a handful of architects out there who will specify eco-paints" but 99% of the requests are from the client.

He recounted an encounter he had the day before with a young painter who had come to the shop a couple times throughout the week. When he came in Friday to pick up a final can of paint he said:

"This is the first Friday I've ever worked that I didn't wake up feeling really sick."

To which the Eco at Home paint guru replied:

"Well, you don't really see any old painters around, do you?  It's too hard on your body to do this job for long, breathing in fumes from synthetic paints."

During the week the Eco at Home paint guru had also given a talk at the Greenpainters Association where he started the discussion by writing down a long list of health problems associated with VOCs including: brain and central nervous system damage, lung disease, skin disease and reproductive disorders.

There's really nothing else to say, is there?  Please take care of yourselves when you catch that renovation bug and use low-VOC, plant-based paints.  You'll be amazed at the difference in how you feel and at the similarity of the end result.

Now, what you've been waiting for - the big reveal of my final product.

I'm really happy with my bright new dresser!

a green fling lesson: patience

Over the past few years I've learned a lot of greenie lessons - what can be recycled, what VOC stands for, to beware of greenwashing, how to make my own cleaning products - but by far the hardest lesson for me to learn has been patience.

It's also the one being tested right now.

I'm not sure if you've noticed but we live in a culture of convenience.  Between fast food, smart phones, tap-and-go credit cards and the ability to outsource everything from our laundry to our dog-walking, we can generally get what we want when we want it and don't have much inconvenience in our lives. The idea of waiting for something we want is practically foreign.

Being the somewhat spontaneous individual that I am, I've had to practice relinquishing my 'right' to purchase exactly what I desire precisely when I crave it.  Overall I've adapted to taking the time to research eco and ethical credentials of my purchases. I've waited for my eco-swimsuit and bamboo iPhone cover to arrive in the mail, I've embraced drying my clothes on the line and even sought out eco-friendly hair salons. But this week I'm wavering.

Here's the situation: a couple years ago I found a dresser on the street that was in perfect condition (well, until the hubby dropped it while bringing it into the house and a chunk of wood came flying off).  I eco-painted it a shabby-chic whitewash, finished it with antique knobs and welcomed it into my beachy bedroom. 

I was never in love with the final outcome, but left it for awhile until I came up with a better plan - which I did about a month ago. I decided I would paint it a vibrant peacock blue (similar to the below image) to add some colour to the room and set off our newly acquired Aboriginal painting.

photo via the-chic-life

I found a shade I liked from the huge array of paint samples at Bunnings and a couple weeks later took the paint chip to my favourite eco-homeware store so they could mix the colour from eco-paints (plant-based with low-VOCs; I've tried both Volvox and BioPaints before with good results).  It's not guaranteed this vibrant colour can be matched with natural pigments, but I couldn't imagine not at least trying to achieve what I wanted the eco-way.

The friendly, helpful shopkeeper told me it would be one day before he could play around with the colour; it's now been one week and one day, and two phone calls later he still hasn't tried to match the colour.  I really wanted the paint before the long weekend so I could tackle this project over a few days, but it's looking less and less likely by the hour.  To add further inconvenience, the store is only open 9-4 Monday thru Saturday, and is not easily accessible by public transportation so I have to set aside a couple of hours to drive to the shop and back. 

Bunnings and Dulux are only 15 minutes away on the bus and looking more attractive by the second.

I know compared to plenty of world issues this is not something to get overly worked-up over, but I am irritated.  It's a prime example of how it's not always easy being green and demonstrates how far the environmental movement still has to go if we're to motivate the masses.  And, of course, it's a huge lesson in patience.

Personally speaking, it's not the concept of climate change I'm struggling with, or even the value of using plant-based paint over petroleum-based paint on only one piece of furniture, but I'm fighting against my very Western, consumer-convenience-cultured self - she wants what she wants when she wants it - and she can be pretty feisty; if I don't get a call from my eco-paint store soon, she's going to win. 

Will I last?  Or will I cave and buy the petroleum-based paint at Bunnings?

I'll keep you posted.

a green gala fling

On Friday night I attended 'Dining at Sunset', a benefit organised by one of my friends to raise funds for Sunrise Orphanage in Nepal.  Australian Emma Taylor co-founded Sunrise with two friends in 2005 after volunteering in a Kathmandu orphanage the previous year; it was their vision to establish an orphanage to provide a loving, nurturing and safe environment for Nepalese children in need. Today Sunrise supports over 70 children in the orphanage and also runs scholarship programs and community training and development centres to support the larger Kathmandu community.

Emma Taylor opening the evening

This dinner (and similar events in Melbourne and Adelaide) was held to generate funds to build Sunrise Children's Village.  The village will incorporate a permanent home for up to 100 children (they currently rent facilities and are forced to move on average every 18 months), a training and development centre and a school, which will serve both the Sunrise children and the wider community.  Last year I read the incredibly moving book Half the Sky and the number one recommendation in the book to reduce female poverty and extremism is education; Sunrise is a perfect example of a charity putting that principle to work right now.  I felt honoured to attend this dinner and even more so to have a few words with the charming Emma herself (who is missing her kids terribly after two weeks in Australia!).

The beautiful setting at Doltone House - inside 6 Star
Green Star - Office Design v2 workplace6

As if all of that wasn't enough to encourage me to support this amazing organisation, the new Children's Village is designed to be environmentally sustainable and self-sufficient. Below is a pic of the draft plan including solar panels, rainwater collection tanks, a natural toilet system and organic gardens included amongst the meditation rooms, sports and activity areas, school and dorms.  Local materials, resources and labour will also be used and assist the local economy whilst instilling a sense of ownership among the people.  It is Sunrise's intention to provide a model that can be replicated in other communities.

As the date of the gala approached of course I'd been thinking about what to wear.  I was tempted to rent another fabulous frock, but instead I opted to put the money I'd have spent on the rental toward solar panels at Sunrise Children's Village, and dug around in my wardrobe for something appropriate.  One of the best things about being a recovering shopaholic is the range of quality pieces remaining in my closet.  I pulled out an oldie (but a goodie) and styled it a little differently than I have before so I didn't feel like I was wearing 'this ole thing' again. (This was also great practice for Buy Nothing New month coming up in October!)

On the left (apology for the fuzziness!), 2007, long hair down and long bling necklace. On the right, hair pulled up, black tights, red lipstick and shorter bling necklace; I also wore my black Gorman Tencel bomber jacket for part of the evening. Four years on and I still love my Flame dress by Willow, and with its timeless, flattering design I suspect it will remain a favourite for years to come. (My hubby is wearing the same suit in both pictures as well - totally unplanned coincidence - he also re-styled the suit with short hair, glasses and a dark shirt and tie.)

Okay, I admit it. There were some incredibly beautiful and trendy women at the benefit and I experienced the slightest twinge of jealousy of their 'so hot right now' dresses.  But surrounded by friends and having a great time eating, drinking and dancing the night away in honour of the beautiful Sunrise children, I really didn't dwell on it.  I still felt like my glamorous self in a fabulous dress.

Feeling inspired? Donate and support Sunrise Children's Association.

A side note on transportation - even in my fabulous frock and sparkly stilettos I took a ferry, then a train, and finally a bus, to get to the gala dinner.

My sparkly shoes look even prettier on a dingy train!

a green aussie fashion fling

As seen on The Vine

These days you don’t have to farewell fashion in order to become a greenie; check out five of Australia’s hottest (and greenest) labels.

SOSUME

As seen in Peppermint

SOSUME may just be the antithesis of fast fashion. Dedicated to style and sustainability, the designers of this forward-thinking collection have meticulously selected sustainable fabrics to create modern, sophisticated pieces certain to last many seasons in your wardrobe.  Preferred fabrics of the label include organic wool, raw silk, micro modal (made from Beech trees), Tencel (Eucalyptus trees) and Lyocell (Oak and Birch trees).  The collection’s draping shirts, vests and tops are incredibly soft to the touch, and any chemicals required to create the soft fibres are used in a closed-loop process, ensuring no chemical runoff into land or waterways.  SOSUME’s business operations are sustainable, too, with a commitment to carbon offsets, use of recycled paper and boxes, and soy inks for printing.


Gorman

The capricious and distinctive designs of Gorman have captured the attention of Australian women since 1999, with environmentalists also paying attention thanks to the label’s strong commitment to sustainability.  Since it began Gorman has reduced garment packaging by 90% and now uses recyclable packaging materials like LDPE when required.  In addition to energy-efficient lighting and great recycling practices, the company also uses 100% accredited green power and has hired an environmental consultant to work with the label both in Australia and in its overseas manufacturing facilities to lessen the label’s environmental impact. Gorman has even been known to give discounts to customers who ride their bikes to the store.  In 2007 the label launched Gorman Organic, which features fabrics sourced from certified organic or sustainable farms and treated only with non-chemical and/or closed-loop processes.


Lane Palmer Green

Born out of a desire to create environmentally minded fashion, Lane Palmer Green’s collection of clothing and accessories was launched by mother-daughter team Lane and Adele. Inspired by European summers, the collection is modern bohemian chic, innately fashionable and kind to the planet.  Sustainable fabrics are used throughout the collection including hemp, organic cotton, recycled PET (plastic bottles) and vegetable tanned kangaroo and parrotfish leather.  The team apply their sustainability values to all aspects of the label, from carbon offsetting flights to the manufacturing process of the swing tags, and it’s hard not to appreciate their candid admission: “We are not perfect, but we are certainly trying to practice what we preach.”  Here’s looking forward to more seasons from this feminine, ethical collection.


Funkis

Funkis range of clogs, clothing and homewares are inspired by the designers’ Swedish background, including strong design aesthetics and environmental responsibility.  Currently working toward carbon-neutral status, Funkis has a number of sustainability initiatives already in place including use of 100% accredited green power, no plastic in garment packaging, plantation timber used in their clogs (along with vegetable dye-treated leather), and a range of organic cotton clothing and fabrics.  The collection is also designed to operate on-demand, ensuring minimal extras and waste.  Encompassing sustainability into all aspects of the collection, manufacturing takes place only in Sweden or Australia to ensure good working conditions and fair wages for people involved in the production of Funkis goods.


Elk

If you’re seeking unique, sustainable accessories then look no further than Melbourne-based Elk. The label creates jewellery, textiles and knitted apparel using only the finest, sustainably sourced, natural materials from around the globe.  Elk’s bold wooden jewellery is a standout in the range, and the wood used in its production is offset by a tree buy-back scheme.  The designers work directly with independent manufacturers to guarantee safe and fair working conditions and ensure efficient, low-waste processes, while also bringing us beautiful pieces made with traditional techniques from cultures around the world.

a green sample sale fling

Can you be a greenie and a fashion lover at the same time?

I hope I'm living proof that you can, and with labels like One Teaspoon it's getting easier all the time.

The other day I dragged myself to the OT sample sale to score something from their Salvage range to refresh my summer wardrobe. My eco-fashion curiosity had been piqued recently when I heard about OT's line of upcycled denim, so when Missy Confidential alerted me to the warehouse sale I jumped at the chance to get some Salvage at a discount.

The things I do in the name of research.

The very chic, very clever folks at OT scour the globe for pre-loved jeans (only 1 in 8 pair make it through the strict quality tests) then pull them apart and re-stitch them into the hottest shorts, jeans and minis on the market.  No additional colour or chemical treatments are made to the denim, only the occasional distressing or detailing. And though each piece is truly one-of-a-kind they are all totally One Teaspoon (read: extremely covetable).

The colours and detailing all vary because of their pre-loved nature.

I hot-footed it to opening day of the sale and less than two hours after the doors opened the place was already buzzing. Scores of the Northern Beaches most stylish were hunting through racks of denim, maxi dresses, knits, swimsuits and tees, feverishly seeking out the best fashion bargains. I couldn't help but feel overcome with nostalgia for simpler days when my only warehouse sale concern was whether I'd find my size, and had to remind myself that just because the prices were amazingly low didn't mean I could buy whatever I wanted (and yes, I wanted); I was here for recycled denim only.

These large black tags hung from each Salvage item helped focus my attention.

I found a selection of Salvage shorts and skirts in my size and worked my way into the crowded group changing area.

As I huddled with the other fashion-lovers I felt a twinge of jealousy toward their carefree shopping attitudes.  It was hard to see all the gorgeous tops, dresses and non-recycled denim being modeled by my fellow shoppers knowing that I wouldn't be buying anything *new* today.  I felt I was betraying my fashionista-sisters by only buying one item so tried on my options as fast as I could. (I admit I was thisclose to buying a cropped tee because it was totally *now* and only $15, but put it down because it wasn't even organic.)

I stayed strong and walked out with only one pair of Salvage shorts - after waiting in a queue twenty people deep - excited that my purchase left both the environment and my wardrobe better off.

All in all I had fun revisiting the scene of many fond fashion memories. Though my resilience was strongly tested, it was fantastic to be shopping amongst my fellow fashion-lovers and find eco-fashion by a mainstream label.  I only hope more labels take OT's lead and create upcycled, recycled and eco-fabric fashion so we can all (easily) be eco-fashionistas.

Now bring on summer!

I LOVE this mini plastered with black sequins

The shorts are longer than they seem and totally flattering - but
still really good motivation to keep up my yoga!