Sustainable With Style

"The most sustainable rain jacket we've ever made.” That’s the claim from Marmot for their EVOdry line of “sustainable, upcycled” rainwear. Then there’s Everlane's ReNew collection, a part of its new plastic-free initiative. Full of fleeces and puffer jackets, the collection is 100% free of virgin plastics. And don’t forget your feet. Nothing New wants to prove that once and for all, eco-friendly can also be attractive. They point out that 5.6 plastic bottles are repurposed into canvas for every pair of sneakers they produce and 160 gallons of water are saved per pair compared to 100% cotton canvas. It's all part of their virtuous circle program.

Interestingly enough, no clothing company is on Forbes’ top 25 most sustainable companies.

Chelsea Green: Sustainable Publishing

Founded in 1984, Chelsea Green Publishing is recognized as a leading publisher of books on the politics and practice of sustainable living, publishing authors who bring in-depth, practical knowledge to life, and give readers hands-on information related to organic farming and gardening, permaculture, ecology, the environment, local food, sustainable business and economics, and green building.

Their mission statement: "Chelsea Green sees publishing as a tool for effecting cultural change. Our purpose is to reverse the destruction of the natural world by challenging the beliefs and practices that are enabling this destruction and by providing inspirational and practical alternatives that promote sustainable living."

As part of its mission, the company is committed to being a sustainable business enterprise. This means reducing natural resource and energy use to the maximum extent possible. Chelsea Green is also a member of the Green Press Initiative, a non-profit organization dedicated to increasing the use of recycled paper in the book industry.

Glossary of Terms: Biodynamics

Biodynamic farming is based on the work of Austrian scientist and philosopher Rudolf Steiner. Meeting the requirements of organic farming, biodynamics goes further by working consciously with the life forces inherent in nature. Through studying the qualities of certain plant and animals, different preparations are spread over the land in homeopathic amounts, to bring into balance and enhance the life forces of the farm. The knowledge of planetary cycles and constellations also attributes to the planting or breeding processes and fertilizing practices, governing the life of the plants and animals produced for consumption.

Exceptionally Well-Sourced Chickens

"Is that USDA organic? Or Oregon organic? Or Portland organic?"

In the premiere episode of Portlandia there's a hilarious sketch in which a bohemian couple goes to great lengths to make sure that their restaurant order is ethical and humane. Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein harass the server with a barrage of questions about the chicken dish, inquiring about the type of diet on which the animal was raised, his name, and even if the chicken had friends on the farm.

At one point, the server even hands them papers for "Colin the chicken," which documents his living conditions and upbringing. Later in the episode, the two actually go to the farm and end up joining the cult living there. The skit is an over-the-top skewering of farm-to-table fanatics, but raises an important question for those who want to make smart choices that help to protect and support the planet when eating out: What is a green restaurant?

For a couple of years, the Nature Conservancy hosted the People's Choice Nature's Plate award in which voters where asked to nominate their favorite green restaurant. The organization offered the following guidelines for determining whether a restaurant adhered to sustainable food practices:

  • Sustainable seafood: Uses ocean-friendly seafood that comes from a sustainable source (not depleting fish populations)
  • Free-range and grass-fed meat: Uses meat that is grass-fed, free-range, raised without antibiotics, organic and/or sustainably raised
  • Organic: Uses organic produce or other organic food
  • Local and seasonal: Uses regionally (within 300 miles) or locally (within 100 miles) grown produce
  • Water: Serves tap water rather than bottled water

There are other standards, certainly, but these are useful as a stepping-off point for a larger discussion. The Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch, for example, makes recommendations that help you choose seafood that's fished or farmed in ways that have less impact on the environment.