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Tag Sustainability

Blue Avocado Bags

We all know that we should use reusable shopping bags at the grocery store and when out running errands, but sometimes it can be difficult to remember to bring them with us.  If you do forget, it is always better to ask for paper than plastic, but I recently found something that will help me remember to bring reusable bags every time I shop: Blue Avocado bags. Reusable grocery bags don’t need to be boring mesh-like bags with the logo of the convenience store or grocery store where they were purchased; Blue Avocado provides a stylish fun alternative. Blue Avocado bags come in all shapes and sizes and can easily be folded down to fit inside any purse for unplanned errands or impulse buys. The bags are cute and come in a variety of colorful designs. In fact the bags have been praised in some major style and living magazines, such as Real Simple, InStyle, and Parade.


Another reason to love Blue Avocado is that all of their shopping bags are made from recycled plastic. Not only do these reusable bags prevent more plastic bags from entering the waste stream, they also take some already-used plastic out of the waste stream. 1,000 plastic bags can be replaced by reusable bags per consumer per year, which empowers every individual to have a huge positive impact.


Blue Avocado also provides other tools to help people make a positive impact. They actually have an entire portion of their website titled “Impact”. There you can find a carbon footprint calculator and links to Green Mountain Energy where you can offset your carbon usage. Blue Avocado also has a partnership with Kiva.org, which provides micro-loans to people that need them the most around the globe. Blue Avocado donates 1% of all proceeds to Kiva. This shows that Blue Avocado is not only environmentally sustainable, but socially and ethically sustainable as well. That is reason enough to remember your reusable shopping bags every single time you hit the stores!

Finding Good Eats with the Green Restaurant Association

In this blog we’ve focused on how to make homes more green, but what about activities outside the home? Take going out to eat for example.  It is something nice that we all like to do on occasion, but restaurants can have a huge carbon footprint. Even if you order a vegetarian meal and make eco-conscious decisions inside the restaurant, the restaurant’s practices and policies might be damaging to the environment and public health.  By eating at such a restaurant, you are indirectly supporting harmful practices.

Fortunately the Green Restaurant Association helps shed light on which restaurants engage in environmentally-minded practices. The Green Restaurant Association (http://www.dinegreen.com) educates restaurants, consumers, distributors, and manufacturers on how to go green. In the consumer section of the website they provide a tool that allows people to search for certified green restaurants in their area. I was actually surprised at how few restaurants in my neighborhood are making the effort to be recognized by the Green Restaurant Association.  Since I really want to support the restaurants that ARE taking the right steps, the list given to me by the DineGreen.com tool is very helpful.

There are three types of certifications given by the Green Restaurant Association: Restaurants, Events, and Sustainabuild. Sustainabuild is for restaurants that are undergoing renovations. The generic Restaurant category includes a wide array of criteria that businesses are judged on, including: Water Efficiency, Waste Reduction & Recycling, Sustainable Furnishings & Building Materials, Sustainable Food, Energy, Disposables, and Chemical & Pollution Reduction. A points system is assigned to each category and in order to be certified, a restaurant must achieve at least 100 points. To get the highest score, or “4 Stars”, a restaurant must achieve at least 300 points.

The Green Restaurant Association also recognizes a business’ year-to-year improvement in a program they call “Continual Change”. The program requires that, to maintain their certification, restaurants must improve and gain more points on their scorecard each year. This means that the longer a venue has been certified, the greener it is. So look for the Green Restaurant Association Certification symbol next time you go out to eat and help support businesses that are striving to continually make positive changes for our environment!

What is Greenwashing?

Everyday we are bombarded by terms like “green”, “all natural”, “environmentally friendly” and so on, but it doesn’t stop there. More and more products are being sold with logos inspired by nature to give consumers the idea that the product is better for the environment, but how can we be sure the product actually is better? Sometimes it is very difficult to determine how geniune a company is being because greenwashing is becoming a prevalent practice.

Greenwashing is a hybrid word of “green” and “white-washing”, and means that the true environmental impact of a product is covered up by using misleading labels. This means that a company’s claims might not reflect the real attributes of a product. Green marketing company Terrachoice brings the truth to consumers by releasing an biennial Greenwashing Report. The reports findings are based on if a product commits any of the “seven sins of greenwashing”. The seven sins of greenwashing, according to Terrachoice are:

1. Hidden Trade Off – one environmentally friendly aspect of a product is highlighted when other environmentally harmful characteristics of the same product are ignored.

2. No Proof – the product makes claims which are not easily verifiable.

3. Vagueness.

4. False Labels – words or images that lead consumers to assume a product has certifications from a third party when it does not.

5. Irrelevance – making a claim that is true, but unneeded by consumers. One example of this given by Terrachoice is that if a product claims it is “CFC-free” that is true, but CFCs are banned by law, so the claim is unnecessary.

6. Lesser of Two Evils – claims that distract from larger more harmful issues.

7. Fibbing – claims that are straight-up false!

The most recent of Terrachoice’s greenwashing reports was released in 2009, and found that 98% of products reviewed committed at least one sin of greenwashing. So while we should be embracing products that are improving the way we use our earth’s resources, we need to be aware that not all products are actually making the improvements they claim to be. Consumers can further educate themselves by reading the Terrachoice reports at http://sinsofgreenwashing.org/

Ecouterre brings Green Style to You!

It can be difficult to walk into an average department store and easily find eco-friendly stylish clothes. And even harder to find them for a good price. Many consumers don’t even think about the impact clothing has on the environment while they are shopping. However, there is one blog that is trying to remedy this issue of making green design accessible to consumers. Ecouterre is a thorough, current and fascinating website/blog that focuses on environmentally sustainable fashion. Ecouterre was started by a well known environmentalist, Jill Fehrenbacher, who previously founded InHabitat (Green homes and design at its best! http://www.inhabitat.com). Ferhrenbacher shows stylish ways for consumers to get passed greenwashing and get a truly sustainable wardrobe of clothes. Ecouterre is the perfect balance, and doesn’t get too “crunchy granola”. This balance has struck a chord with consumers leading Fehrenbacher to be profiled in Vogue, the New York Times, and the Wall Street Journal.

Its easy to see why Ecouterre has gotten so much attention, the blog has a clean design making it easy to read, and splits off into different pages for: Women’s, Men’s, Shoes, Accesories, Beauty, Textiles, Tech, Designers, DIY, and Vegan Style. The Do-It-Yourself (DIY) section is particularly fun and includes articles about how to sew old tank tops into reusable grocery bags, or how to sew old zippers into fashion-forward bracelet cuffs. I’m also a shoe addict and love that there is an entire section of this blog that is dedicated to different types of sustainable shoes – including a variety of designers and price ranges. I am dying for the “Twist of Fate” vegan sandals by Olsenhaus as featured in Ecouterre’s article “7 Eco-Friendly Sandals To Kick Off Summer in Style“.

Another reason we love Ecouterre here at Merida is because of their focus on sustainable fibers and textiles. Part of MeridaMeridian’s mission is to make sustainably and ethically produced fibers available to consumers, so the “textiles” section of Ecouterre really jives with Merida’s overall message. They write articles on organic cotton, hemp, wool and issues regarding dyes. So, check out Ecouterre and let us know what you think.

A Green Guide to Furniture

1). If buying wooden furniture look for pieces certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) or the Rainforest Alliance to make sure the wood in your furniture was sustainably harvested and is not contributing to deforestation around the world.

2) Look for Bamboo. Bamboo can be made to look like wood and creates beautiful furniture and flooring, but it is not wood at all. Bamboo is a grass which means it grows far more rapidly than trees and is an easily renewable resource.

3) Before buying something brand new, see if there is an already used option to suit your needs. This is not only A LOT cheaper, it prevents lightly used items from building up in landfills. Check out Freecycle and Craigslist for the cheapest used furniture options.

4) Look for Greenguard certified furniture which ensures low toxicity. Don’t forget that some pieces of furniture (not certified) give off VOCs or may even contain lead paint both of which are toxic to humans.

5) Think about the lifespan of an item. When purchasing, look for long term solutions — will you still like that couch 10 years from now? This thought process will help prevent unnecessary waste. If you don’t think you want to have your furniture for the long term, find out if the product is recyclable or biodegradable. (Like MeridaHome’s 100% biodegradable wool rugs).

6) Go local – if an item doesn’t need to be transported very far, it saves a lot of fuel from shipping materials all over the world. Ask local artisans where their materials come from and if they use local materials – commission a piece for your home!

7) Be innovative. Find ways to spice up what you already have. Paint a shelf to suit a different room, reupholster a couch or chair, or sew your own curtains. There are plenty of DIY options when it comes to decorating, and often times, these options are far more green than going out and buying all new furniture.

Natural Ways to Repel Summer Bugs

Summertime often means more bugs trying to sneak their way into your home, making their way into your food and pestering you while you sleep. However, instead of killing or repelling insects with harsh chemicals, consider these non-toxic alternatives.
Ants: Deter ants from smelling food or other ants by spraying entry ways of your home (doors, window sills, any cracks) with vinegar and water, or dust a bit of baby powder. Cayenne pepper or bay leaves placed at entry ways are also known to repel ants and other insects.
Mosquitoes: Mosquitoes hate garlic which has spurred a few different types of ‘garlic sprays’ to pop up in the gardening market. Spray it where mosquitoes usually buzz outside your home. If you are particularly prone to mosquito bites, eat a diet that is high in garlic for a couple of weeks and you are sure to see a difference, but do the rest of us a favor and please brush your teeth!
In addition, mosquitoes really don’t like marigolds, so plant marigolds in your garden and window boxes, and maybe even use a few potted marigold plants for decoration indoors.
Fruit Flies: Flies are attracted to sweet things so rinse out all of your recyclables and make sure your trash can has a tight, clean lid. Keep fruit and candy in the fridge. If the flies are still around, make your own all-natural fly trap by putting an inch of apple cider vinegar in a jar and puncture the lid with a few small holes. The flies go in, but can’t get back out.
Centipedes: Centipedes hide out in warm wet habitats, so move your compost bins outside, unless they are small and tightly sealed. Remember, though, that centipedes eat other pests, so you might actually want a few around.

Moths: These winged creatures can be tricky since they are so easily attracted to lights in our homes. I discovered this all natural moth repellent recipe, which I haven’t tried quite yet, but sounds promising:

½ cup whole cloves
½ cup whole black peppercorns
4 sticks cinnamon bark, broken into pieces
Small squares of cheesecloth or muslin

Mix the peppercorns, cloves and pieces of cinnamon together. Place a little of the mixture on the center of the squares. You can either tie or sew the squares. Then hang these little natural mixture filled squares in the closet or strew them around in drawers. Another place that might draw moths is the clothes hampers, try putting a couple of squares there to repel as well.

And with that, have a pest-free summer!

The Sustainable Furnishings Council

MeridaHome, in its quest to deliver the best, most sustainable and beautiful products to consumers, is a member of the Sustainable Furnishings Council (SFC). SFC is a coalition of concerned businesses that, together, are trying to promote sustainable practices. The mission of the council is to try to achieve four goals in the interior design industry:
1) Raise Awareness of Sustainability Issues
2) Assist Companies in Adopting Good Practices
3) To Provide Information and Clarification
4) To Create a Symbol of Assurance for Consumers
The great thing about the four goals that the SFC is working towards is that they are not limited to environmental sustainability. The SFC defines good practices as economic vitality, ecological integrity, and social equity. Which means that member businesses have a well rounded approach towards achieving sustainability. The SFC is broad in its membership as well, including retailers, manufacturers, designers, and distributor, which encourages entire supply chains to be sustainable. This is an idea that we highly value at Merida because it promotes ethical treatment of people, animals, and the environment at all stages of creating, selling, and using a given object (in this case, home furnishings).
The SFC website, http://www.sustainablefurnishings.org/ , is also a great resource for everyday consumers. The site has search buttons so that consumers can find SFC members by business type (i.e.: manufacturer, retailer, and designer).
Within each of those search buttons you can search more specifically for what exactly you need, and you can search by location as well, which makes the process even more user-friendly. In addition, SFC has a resource page so that the public can easily find other types of non-profits like theirs that promote better business practices.

SunChips: A Sustainable Snack

SunChips made headlines earlier this year when they came out with the first 100% biodegradable chip bag. One of SunChips’ main company missions is to lower their negative environmental impact, and the biodegradable bag is a huge step in the right direction. Their bags are designed to break down in about 14 weeks. Most bags won’t break down that quickly because it is unlikely that most bags will end up in a hot compost bin which is the ideal setting for decomposition, but even so, SunChips bags will eventually biodegrade in regular dirt as well. SunChips is using the bag as a chance to spark interest in composting, hoping that the public will want to start their own compost piles after being educated on the subject. Education has been part of their media campaign about the bag which is encouraging, especially coming from a company as large as Frito-Lay.

Frito-Lay’s SunChips brand started the compostable bag project a few years ago, and it took some serious trial and error to find the perfect bag. The first prototypes of the bags only broke down in an industrial composting facility, to which few Americans really have access. Since even the final product still biodegrades best in a composting facility, awareness has become a large part of their marketing mission. Their website even has a “Composting 101″ section that includes a great how-to guide on getting started.
Their mission to lower their environmental impact doesn’t stop at composting, Sunchips also uses solar energy in Modesto, CA to power the creation of 145,000 bags of Sunchips every single day! On Earth Day this year, Sunchips donated a dollar towards Environmental Education for every person that “Liked” them on facebook. While in the scheme of things these are still small steps towards sustainability, SunChips’ multi-faceted approach is commendable. Educating the public, using renewable energy, promoting renewable materials, and using social media to create awareness and raise money are important and difficult tasks that Frito-Lay is taking seriously and is making major progress!
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