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Resource Kit on Sustainable Consumption and Production (PDF)  pop

United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), 2005. This resource kit was funded by the French Ministry of Ecology and Sustainable Development and developed in co-operation with Studio EKWO. It is composed of fact sheets on 12 different topics: advertising, ecodesign, energies, food, housing, leisure, lifestyles, mobility, NICT, textiles, tourism and water. The fact sheets aim at providing background information on a selection of themes by analysing the environmental and/or social impacts of related activities and featuring examples of good practices around the world. Moreover, they provide a selection of tips for individuals, companies and local authorities to put environmental principles into practice and offer a wide range of websites for further reading. They also highlight UNEP's specific activities related to each topic.

http://www.unep.org/PDF/sc/SC_resourcekit.pdf

(Added: Tue Apr 05 2005   Hits: 2056)

ChangingThePresent.org

ChangingThePresent.org is a new website for charitable giving which features gifts and donation opportunities from across a full spectrum of causes, all in one place. Established in the belief that there is a limit to how many scarves, ties, tools, figurines, bottles of cologne, electric gadgets or pen and pencil sets that any of us really needs; it offers the opportunity for individuals to give gifts that express and share their own values and interests. It is possible to search the site by cause or to look for a particular organisation. The site also encourages personal expression and engagement in giving through personal pages and wish lists. ChangingThePresent is a project of ImportantGifts, a nonprofit organisations registered in the USA.

http://www.changingthepresent.org/

(Added: Tue Jan 09 2007   Hits: 183)

Consumer Unity & Trust Society (CUTS)

CUTS is a civil society organisation which works in four operational areas: (1) consumer protection, which includes accountability, regulatory reforms etc; (2)trade and development, which include investment and competition policies; (3) sustainable production and consumption, including consumer protection; and (4) rural consumers and women empowerment. CUTS operate out of four centres in India and one in Africa, with a budget which exceeds US$4mn and a staff strength of over 65 persons.

http://cuts.org/

(Added: Tue Jan 28 2003   Modified: Fri Nov 11 2005   Hits: 275)

Consumers International

Consumers International supports, links and represents consumer groups and agencies all over the world. Consumers International is an independent, non-profit organisation. It strives to promote a fairer society through defending the rights of all consumers, including poor, marginalized and disadvantaged people, by: supporting and strengthening member organisations and the consumer movement in general, and; campaigning at the international level for policies which respect consumer concerns.

http://www.consumersinternational.org/

(Added: Fri Dec 14 2001   Modified: Fri Nov 11 2005   Hits: 312)

Ethical Trade: a Reveiw of Current Literature

Ethical consumerism is a growing phenomenon. Alternative approaches such as fair-trade, conservation-driven trade and the trade in organic produce began as market niches but are making their presence felt in the commercial mainstream. Who is the ethical consumer and what do they mean by ethical consumption? This publication reviews the large number of consumer surveys of ethical consumerism, and describes the different types of ethical consumer, their motivation and concerns, their willingness to pay an ethical premium, and the ways they learn about ethical products. (Anne Tallontire, Erdenechimeg Rentsendorj and Mick Blowfield, Natural Resources Institute, 2001)

http://www.nri.org/publications/policyseries/PolicySeriesNo12.pdf

(Added: Thu Apr 20 2006   Hits: 217)

Get Ethical - What you buy matters!

Get Ethical is a UK-based website that finds the best ethical, Fair Trade and environmentally friendly products and services available and brings them together in one place for online purchase. You can search categories to compare prices and options, find out background information on the products and the companies involved, or find information, links and hints about living a more ethical life.

http://www.getethical.com

(Added: Fri Mar 24 2006   Modified: Mon Mar 27 2006   Hits: 221)

Good Stuff? A Behind-the-Scenes Guide to the Things We Buy

Have you ever wondered where chocolate comes from, if antibacterial soap is good for your family, or how to recycle an old computer? If you've had these or other questions about the environmental and social impacts of the products you buy and use, Good Stuff is for you. It contains many of the tips, facts, and links you'll need to start making more informed purchases that benefit your health and the environment.

http://www.worldwatch.org/pubs/goodstuff/

(Added: Thu Apr 15 2004   Modified: Fri Nov 11 2005   Hits: 554)

Let's Act Like Citizens, Not Consumers

By Betsy Barnum, September 29, 2003. Ms Barnum writes 'In the past few weeks, several articles have appeared in the alternative press arguing that consumer action is the way to address corporate abuses and strengthen democracy. Doris Haddock (Granny D) described in an article posted on Common Dreams on Aug. 27 the process by which corporations have gotten too much power, especially when it comes to global trade, and declared that "a small group of dedicated people" can stop them by demanding fair trade products in coffee shops and other stores. Anita Roddick, of the Body Shop, in a Common Dreams article on Sept. 22 suggested that consumers "hold the key" to changing sweatshop conditions by supporting companies that have codes of conduct for how they treat workers. I admire these women tremendously, but they are pointing us in the wrong direction. Consumer power is a myth, and a very potent one, that not only doesn't work but actually distracts us from the only real power we have to address corporate rule and the degradation of our world. Why is consumer power a myth? Here are three reasons.'

http://www.commondreams.org/views03/0929-12.htm

(Added: Fri Oct 03 2003   Modified: Mon Sep 19 2005   Hits: 402)

NoLogo.org

NoLogo.org is a website that was launched following the success of Naomi's first book, No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies (1999). In fact, it is sort of a brand-extension of that book. NoLogo.org is not an organization, an activist group or a research institute. It really is just a website. The site was designed to be an on-line portal to the global justice movement for readers of the book who wanted to read further and get involved in the movements against corporate exploitation and neoliberal globalization.

http://www.nologo.org

(Added: Mon Nov 07 2005   Hits: 259)

Public Citizen

Public Citizen is a USA national, nonprofit consumer advocacy organization founded by Ralph Nader in 1971 to represent consumer interests in Congress, the executive branch and the courts. We fight for openness and democratic accountability in government, for the right of consumers to seek redress in the courts; for clean, safe and sustainable energy sources; for social and economic justice in trade policies; for strong health, safety and environmental protections; and for safe, effective and affordable prescription drugs and health care.

http://www.citizen.org/

(Added: Fri Mar 28 2003   Modified: Fri Nov 11 2005   Hits: 257)

State of the World 2004

(For purchase) WorldWatch Institute, January 2004. Special Focus: The Consumer Society. A Bangladeshi child eats a bowl of rice. An American child plays with a plastic doll. A woman in Finland talks on a cell phone. A man in Zimbabwe fills his car with gasoline. A Japanese woman reads a newspaper. Think of the objects you buy and use in any given day. Now, try to imagine that there are more than 1.7 billion human beings in the consumer society-and their numbers are growing yearly. In many cases, excessive consumption burdens societies with bulging landfills, declining fish stocks, and rising obesity levels. Meanwhile, there are still another 2.8 billion who consume too little and who suffer from hunger, homelessness, and poverty. On the Worldwatch Institute's thirtieth anniversary, this special edition of State of the World examines how we consume, why we consume, and what impact our consumption choices have on the planet and our fellow human beings. From factory-farmed chicken to old-growth lumber to gas-guzzling cars, many of the things we buy support destructive industries. But businesses, governments, and concerned citizens can harness this same purchasing power to build markets for less-hazardous products, including fair-traded foods, green power, and fuel-cell vehicles. With chapters on food, water, energy, the politics of consumption, and redefining the good life, Worldwatch's award-winning research team asks whether a less-consumptive society is possible-and then argues that it is essential.

http://www.worldwatch.org/pubs/sow/2004/

(Added: Fri Jan 09 2004   Modified: Fri Nov 11 2005   Hits: 255)

Valentine's chocolate is bitter-sweet

American consumers are expected to spend over $12 billion on Valentine's Day this year, according to the National Retail Federation. America is the world's largest chocolate consumer, consuming 3.3 billion pounds of chocolate in 2000 alone. The Chocolate Manufacturers Association predicts more than 36 million heart-shaped boxes of chocolate will be sold this Valentine's Day. Why then is the picture so bleak for most of the world's cocoa farmers who grow the crop that becomes everybody's favorite candy?

http://www.cs.org/publications/win/win-article.cfm?id=271&highlight=Valentines%20chocolate%20is%20bitter-sweet

(Added: Wed Feb 11 2004   Modified: Tue Sep 12 2006   Hits: 324)