Green Business Network director Fran Teplitz submitted the following letter to the Natural Resources Committee of the California Assembly in support of new “Skip the Slip” legislation. The bill was inspired by Green America’s Skip the Slip campaign urging businesses to use electronic receipts rather than toxic and wasteful paper receipts. Progress! On March 25, 2019 the Skip the Slip…

March is celebrated as Women's History Month to commemorate the accomplishments and contributions of women to American history. It originally began as a local, week-long celebration in Santa Rosa, California after the Education Task Force of the Sonoma County Commission on the Status of Women planned and executed a Women's History Week celebration in 1978. Other communities caught onto…

Big companies have a history of oppressing small businesses and putting a heavy burden on low-income communities, including Black communities and Black-owned businesses. For example, Amazon’s presence in Seattle caused rising housing costs and pushed out local mom-and-pop shops. But diversity builds economic vitality, uplifts communities, and promotes productivity and resilience. For a green…

By Nicky Schauder of Permaculture Gardens, a member of our Green Business Network My family and I have a Climate Victory Garden in the suburbs of Washington DC. I wanted to give you a tour of our tiny garden with the hopes it will inspire you. Permaculture designer Geoff Lawton is known for saying, “All problems can be solved in a garden.” The real problem of climate change is no…

Socially Responsible Investing (SRI)—also called sustainable investing; impact investing; Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) investing; mission-based investing; faith-based investing; and other names—is a powerful tool more investors are using both to meet their financial needs and to make their money work toward their social and environmental goals. The Forum for Sustainable and…

In May, Global Labor Justice uncovered active gender-based violence in Asian factories supplying American apparel giants H&M and Gap. Results conclude that abuse against female garment workers stems directly from the way fast fashion meets its bottom line: outsourcing, contract work, and accelerated labor. We're living in the era of fast fashion. Boasting 52 micro-seasons a year, this…

While plastic straw bans represent progress in the movement against single-use plastics, the bans have been criticized for negatively impacting individuals with motor disabilities who rely on plastic straws to drink. In this article, we discuss why plastic straws are still a necessity for some and how you can support effective anti-plastic initiatives that are accessible to all. Summer is in…

If you drink coffee, you’ve probably heard the words “fair trade” and “direct trade.” Both seek to protect farmers from predatory corporations and work with farmers to develop partnerships that benefit both stakeholders. So, what’s the difference? What is Fair Trade? The fair trade movement has grown in demand over the decades—the most obvious sign being the development of multiple fair…

Through aggressive vertical integration, the Monsanto-Bayer merger represents a near-monopoly on the agriculture supply chain, which eliminates marketplace competition and forces farmers’ complete reliance on genetically modified organisms (GMOs). This phenomenon poses a massive threat to global food supply and environmental health. In 2016, Green America’s Food Campaigns Team published an…

In 2015, New York City instituted a polystyrene ban which was challenged by recycling firms and plastic manufacturers under the premise that polystyrene is recyclable. New York Supreme Court judge Margaret Chan agreed with the coalition under the premise that the industry had a feasible recycling plan. Polystyrene foam, or more commonly known as Styrofoam, is widely used as packaging (in the…