Consumer Education

Here comes the ethical bride…

February 16, 2009
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Here comes the ethical bride…

  The current issue of Ethical Style has dedicated itself to brides to be: “Big day, big decisions — how to turn your white wedding green”   It offers simple suggestions toward some ethical options on your big day. The greatest thing about the guide however is the wide range of resources it provides; including the 3D’s: diamonds, dresses and destinations. A perfect illustration that an ethical choice doesn’t have to be   a) ugly or b) expensive (actually, in some circles the jury may still be out…)   You brides probably have enough on your mind, but you...

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How does “Poison Plastic” translate to “Sustainable Plastic”? Anyone?

February 11, 2009
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  And so, as promised, I had sent an email requesting more information on PVC to Melissa (via Arbec Group), Vivienne Westwood and Grendene.   I received an email response from the Arbec Group immediately asking me which environmental and safety concerns I was referring to. A simple Google search might have given them an idea, but none the less, here was my response:   According to this 2005 Greenbiz article, “azardous chemicals are used and released in this commonly used material, the second highest selling plastic in the world. Studies show links between chemicals created and used during...

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Sweated Labour, Dell, Transparency and this Blog

February 5, 2009
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  The issue of transparency is an important one. So, here’s a little blogging transparency … I write Social Alterations on my ‘Made in China’ Espresso Brown Dell Inspiron 1525.   The National Labour Committee released a report today titled “High Tech Misery in China: The Dehumanization of Young Workers Producing Our Computer Keyboards” Sure enough, Dell is one of the companies manufacturing products in the Meitai Plastics & Electronics factory highlighted in the report in Dongguan City, Guangdong China.   According to the report, the base salary at the factory is 64 cents/hour. Minus room and board, workers...

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The nature of your garment is to fall apart?

January 26, 2009
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    Another interesting article taken from The Independent today, discussed some frustrations in dealing with products that not only fall apart, but are designed to fall apart.   Thought it might be time for another poll. So, if your garment has a meltdown, what do you do? (polls)

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Fast fashion to blame for female consumer complaints in the UK

January 25, 2009
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  Consumer complaints in the UK surrounding poorly made clothing increased by 22% in 2008, according to this article by The Independent. The article cites a report by Consumer Direct released today. It claims that the biggest consumer complaint amongst females came from ‘defective goods’, at 34%.   According to the article, “n the past five years, with the rise of “value” retailers, the price of clothing has fallen by as much as 25 per cent, while shoppers have bought almost 40 per cent more garments. This suggests fast fashion may be behind the increase in problem items.”  ...

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green textiles not popular among shoppers

January 25, 2009
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  A recent report by The Boston Consulting Group, “Capturing the Green Advantage for Consumer Companies,” surveyed the green consumer purchasing habits of 9,000 shoppers across nine countries.   One section of the report showed that consumers vary their green purchases by product category (see Exhibit 6 in the report). While 14% have bought green before, but are not buying it now and 28% are buying green sometimes, 50% have never bought green. Only 8% of survey participants buy green systematically. As a result, ‘Textiles and clothing’ was listed as the third lowest category.   The report also states...

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ZARA and the right to freedom of association

December 17, 2008
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  A recent campaign from UNITE HERE Canada claims that the right to freedom of association is at stake for employees at ZARA, in Montréal, Quebec. According to a recent press release, “ZARA has engaged in conduct which may have violated the Québec Labour Code. This has included demoting two employees who led a union drive at ZARA’s downtown Montreal store, firing four employees who supported the union at ZARA’s Rockland Mall store, and holding anti-union meetings at three Montreal stores, in one case telling employees that joining a union is ‘treason’ against the company.”   Click here to...

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feeling fashionably overweight?

December 17, 2008
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The “Household Textile Environmental Impact Calculator” wants your closet to think about going on a diet. The calculator asseses you based on annual water usage, energy usage, use of non-renewable resources, and pollution. Unfortunately the calculator doesn’t account for non conventional fabrics, such as hemp. What is impressive however, is the fact that the calculator takes you through the lifecycle of your garments: purchasing, care, and disposal. The year is almost up, so Dec. marks a perfect time to start calculating and re-calculating to think about consumption practices for the year ahead. It doesn’t take long to calculate your annual...

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Message from the Asian Human Rights Commission on the 60th Anniversary of UDHR

December 17, 2008
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Many textile and apparel companies boast a commitment to operating within the legal frameworks of the countries in which they manufacture. It would seem only reasonable to expect as much (Congratulations! You didn’t break the law!). Considering the standard of human rights within such countries, should this fact be celebrated? December 10th marked the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In this video, Basil Fernando, CEO of the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), highlights the issue of “non-rule of law”. According to Fernando, the last 60 years of Human Rights has only worked to establish the...

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