Diane MacEachern’s BIG GREEN PURSE
May 30, 2008 8:51 pm
Diane MacEachern is someone who really “puts her money where her mouth is.”
Her new book Big Green Purse: Use Your Spending Power to Create a Cleaner, Greener World is a clarion call to consumers to exert the “power of the purse” and send the only message the marketplace appears to understand: consumers are getting smarter and better informed, and want to spend their money on products that can help sustain, rather than destroy, the planet.
So what if corporate mentality can’t conceive of “green” being anything other than the color of money? If enough consumers – most of whom, let’s face it, are women – send the marketplace the message that we will no longer purchase unsafe and polluting products in wasteful packaging, the marketplace will respond.
Diane’s book offers a wealth of information on products we all use every day, and lots of that information is quite alarming. Did you know, for example, that the Federal Drug Administration has evaluated the safety of only 11% of the 10,500 chemical ingredients used in lipstick, nail polish, hair coloring, soap, and other personal-care products? That means that 89% of those chemicals we bathe with, slather on our bodies, and make-up our faces with every day have not been evaluated for safety. Nor, as Diane points out, is it known what the cumulative exposure to chemicals linked to specific health concerns can be. According to the FDA’s Office of Cosmetics and Colors, which “oversees” the industry, “a cosmetic manufacturer may use almost any raw material as a cosmetic ingredient and market the product without an approval from the FDA.” Who exactly does the FDA exist to protect anyway: people or industries?
The beauty of the book is that is not just a litany of frightening statistics – far from it. It is also brimming with advice and resources on where to purchase greener and safer cosmetics, cars, food, household cleansers, clothing, garden products, electronics, furniture, kids’ stuff, and more. Enough information, in short, to empower us to change the way we live.
The marketplace will always sell what brings it the most “green,” but if we demand less polluting and safer products, well, we the people will have taken responsibility for doing something ourselves to create a “cleaner, greener world.” Hey, it’s not like we can wait for Congress to take action ..
Ruth
3 Responses to “Diane MacEachern’s BIG GREEN PURSE”
What a powerful message. I’ll wait for the book to be available in my library. In the meantime…I’ll put my money where the green movements go.
Ha, ha…I am so glad I have used little of the untested cosmetics in my life. I have always preferred the natural ingredients I can find to put on and in my body. Did you know gylcerine is used to soften deer hides? I keep pure gylcerine above my sink when my skin is really dry.
One thing I have learned to do, is unpackage everything at the store where I buy it (trash disposal, as you know is a real problem for me) and give it back to the store and let THEM deal with it! A small thing, but if all of us did that, imagine how packaging would improve. All that waste.
Keep on posting your green ideas, Ruthie. I think it can only spread the word and might make a world of difference.
Love you, K
Okay, sweetie, I am waiting for the Henley story and pics.
Care to comment?