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In Balance
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In Balance takes a reasoned look at some of the key components of climate policy. It is particularly interested in carbon markets and energy markets. The perspective is mainly British or European, but there are often articles about international poli
Recent Posts Tagged With 'consumerism'
Ethical consumerism reports tell us … practically nothing
Results of the Co-operative Bank’s annual survey of ethical spending (pdf) were published last week, showing how much British consumers spent on various categories of ethical products in 2006. The r...
Soil Association comes to the worst possible decision on air freight
Over the past few months the Soil Association Standards Board has been considering whether it should withhold its Organic certification from air freighted food on environmental grounds. In Balance arg...
The Soil Association Standards Board would misjudge its role by including air freight in its Organic criteria
Labelling is pretty much the most important issue in consumer environmentalism, so it was an interesting story when the Soil Association Standards Board announced earlier in the summer that it is cons...
“There is still hope, and the middle classes, with their composters and eco-gadgets, will be leading the way.”
Today George Monbiot directed his rage at ‘ecojunk’; pointless consumer goods that are supposedly green but do not replace any unsustainable product. In Balance heartily agrees with him...
Green consumerism is highly sensitive to the economic cycle
Last week Tesco moved away from its recent focus on sustainability, health and quality, and launched a price-based marketing campaign. The supermarket’s commercial director said that the campaign re...
We Are What We Do is creating fashion accessories, not a green revolution
We Are What We Do's carrier bag went on sale today in London and sent bag lovers into retail frenzy. It is made of canvas, is reusable, and bears the Ronseal legend 'I'm not a plastic bag'.The designe...
Three issues with the Carbon Trust label
The Carbon Trust yesterday announced a significant step in green voluntarism. It has launched a label that will show the volume of greenhouse gases released in manufacture, transportation and disposal...