Imported tomato paste being sold alongside local tomatoes in Accra
market.
Green or ethical or both
If you travel by public transport, use low energy light bulbs and compost your waste then you're green. But if you like your food fast, your feet flash and can't resist a £6 pair of jeans does that mean you're unethical? It's so confusing.
It sure is. The words green and ethical are banded about quite liberally as if the two mean the same thing, one goes with the other.
And before I go on, hands up, we too at Pressureworks are guilty of lumping the two together or substituting one for the other, often for the sake of a better headline; 'Does my bum look green in this' is way better than 'Does my bum look ethical in this', isn't it?
And before I go on, hands up, we too at Pressureworks are guilty of lumping the two together or substituting one for the other, often for the sake of a better headline; 'Does my bum look green in this' is way better than 'Does my bum look ethical in this', isn't it?
So, let's set the record straight
Usually being green relates to the environment; green energy has less of an impact on the environment, riding a bicycle is green, driving a car is not, composting is green because you're converting your waste into something that helps your garden grow which in turn benefits the environment.
And anything that benefits the environment is curbing CO2 emissions and therefore doesn't contribute to climate change. With me so far?
If you're ethical, your clothes aren't made in sweatshops, you buy fair trade produce and bank with an ethical lender.
Sometimes though, being one means forfeiting the other. If you buy fair trade goods flown halfway around the world, how can you be green? If you travel by train everyday but your train company has some ethically unsound investments, what do you do?
And anything that benefits the environment is curbing CO2 emissions and therefore doesn't contribute to climate change. With me so far?
If you're ethical, your clothes aren't made in sweatshops, you buy fair trade produce and bank with an ethical lender.
Sometimes though, being one means forfeiting the other. If you buy fair trade goods flown halfway around the world, how can you be green? If you travel by train everyday but your train company has some ethically unsound investments, what do you do?
It's a nightmare!
Realistically, if you were going to be 100% green and ethical you'd probably have to elope to Dartmoor and self-subside in a tree. Even then you'd probably be breaking some local bylaw - how ethical is that!
There are plenty of things we do in life that have a negative impact on someone; most of us work, eat, get dressed, buy mobile phones, fly on planes, open bank accounts, get married.
When you do these things though you can always think about how you can do them as ethically and as green as possible. Pressureworks is here to help with those ethical and green dilemmas.
There are plenty of things we do in life that have a negative impact on someone; most of us work, eat, get dressed, buy mobile phones, fly on planes, open bank accounts, get married.
When you do these things though you can always think about how you can do them as ethically and as green as possible. Pressureworks is here to help with those ethical and green dilemmas.
Time to summarise
The Climate Change section of the site, as well as educating about what's happening and what we are doing about it, will inform you on how to be greener. Being green, which is to reduce our carbon emissions, is essential and should be seen as non negotiable in the age of global warming. Whilst governments dither, we can all do our bit, no matter how small.
The pages in the Life/Style section are all about how you can lead a more ethical life from mobile phones to tying the knot. Whilst ignoring this advice won't lead to global meltdown, thinking more about where your purchases come from will sure make you feel good about yourself whilst improving someone else's life too.
Of course, because we're dealing with the distinctions between being green and ethical, some articles may belong in the Climate Change section and some in Life/Style section and some in both. The editorial debate rumbles on...
The pages in the Life/Style section are all about how you can lead a more ethical life from mobile phones to tying the knot. Whilst ignoring this advice won't lead to global meltdown, thinking more about where your purchases come from will sure make you feel good about yourself whilst improving someone else's life too.
Of course, because we're dealing with the distinctions between being green and ethical, some articles may belong in the Climate Change section and some in Life/Style section and some in both. The editorial debate rumbles on...
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