From the category archives:

Consumer Choice

Stuff to do on Black Friday that does not involve shopping

November 18, 2010

According to a retail trade group survey released on Thursday, as many as 138 million U.S. shoppers may be heading out for Black Friday events. That’s a lot of shoppers to weave in and out of. Why not try Buy Nothing Day this year instead? Buy Nothing Day is a push to combat the overwhelming [...]

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Green Consumer Tips for Kids & Teens!

November 10, 2010

Kids and teens are major consumers in the United States. For example, kids under 14 years of age spend about $40 billion annually while teens spend about $159 billion. And that’s just the tip of what’s a very large consumer iceberg. Parents can help make a huge impact by simply trying to avoid consumerism, but [...]

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Buy Nothing Day – November 26th 2010

November 1, 2010

It’s November which means a huge event is coming, and I don’t mean Thanksgiving. Buy Nothing Day falls on November 26th this year (in the USA). I celebrate this event every year, and hopefully you’ll be on board to celebrate as well. What is Buy Nothing Day? Buy Nothing Day is an alternative event you [...]

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Do you buy products that are made in China?

October 20, 2010

Just wondering where people stand on buying toys and other products made in China. How important is it to avoid products made in China? Why do you avoid products made in China – or why not? Honestly, I’m on the fence. I do post some stuff made in China, for example water bottles. There’s apparently [...]

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Vote for Green America’s 2010 Green Business of the Year!

September 14, 2010

Before I told you about how you could nominate your favorite green business via Green America People’s Choice Awards – well, now the official nominations are up and you get to vote for your favorite. This year’s ten nominations: Brittanie’s Thyme Digital Hub Ecobunga Faerie’s Dance gDiapers Grounds for Change Hazelnut Kids Stay Vocal Theo [...]

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Nominate Your Favorite Green Business for a 2010 Green America People’s Choice Award

August 10, 2010

Green America has opened up nominations for this year’s People’s Choice Award. If you know of a great green company this is the perfect time to nominate them to win this killer award. When we honor companies that work to help – not hurt – people, communities and the planet, we open the door a [...]

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Parents need to avoid commercialism along with kids

July 13, 2010

It’s true that we live in a super hyper commercial culture. It’s also true (IMO) that commercialism makes it more difficult to raise green kids. BUT not impossible. As I noted previously, many health and child-advocacy organizations feel that we should avoid commercialism at all costs. Turn the TV off, skip junk food, never buy [...]

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Commercialism Makes Growing Green Kids Harder

July 12, 2010

One of the hardest things about raising green kids is that we live in an increasingly commercial culture. Some problems related to eco-friendly living and our current culture include: Excess stuff is not eco-friendly but excess stuff is pushed in our culture. It’s very hard to impress eco-friendly living skills upon kids when all they [...]

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A word about stuff and how darn hypocritical I may seem

June 25, 2010

I’m always saying, “BUY LESS STUFF!” Why am I always saying this? Because I’m a huge Buy Nothing Day advocate; and it would look pretty lame for me to be like, “Hey, the rest of the year buy away!“ Because having a lot of stuff is not eco-friendly. Because too much stuff is not very [...]

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How to afford green living – start by living green

June 25, 2010

Lately I’ve been talking about living green on a budget. If you need to catch up read the following first then head back here for more tips. Is Green Living Worth the Cost? Why green living is worth the cost False: It’s impossible to afford green living I’ve mentioned that even on a limited budget [...]