What companies are conscious about the sustainabilities and what are they doing

Levi's is dealing with the suitabilities by making waterless jeans and telling people to clean their jeans with cold water and to line-dry they're clothes and give them to good will, but they are trying to give better leans to the people and make the sale good and eco friendly when they make them they try to make "waterless" jeans and try to make them with less chemicals.

Issues with the Eco Index

The Eco Index is a tool that textile and clothing companies use to determine the “green-ness” of their products. It is a “US driven initiative” that was created by the Eco Working Group that operates under the umbrella of the  Outdoor Industry Association. It is a collaboration with The Sustainability Working Group, and according to European-Outdoor-Sustainability, tries, “to ensure consistency in the development and deployment of sustainability tools and solutions for the global out… based on a life cycle approach and integrates some key environmental impacts.” For the most part, it is a fledgeling tool that needs to be developed further, but where it needs to be taken is another matter entirely, and there are no theories as to how it could be improved. I suppose theories will come about when problems in need of solutions arrive, and the Eco Index will evolve into what we need it to be.

What is an Eco Index? How does the system work, and how are scores assigned?

The Eco Index is a software tool that poses a series of questions to companies on their environmental and labor practices. The questions cover every step in life of a product, from raw material production to manufacturing, shipping, and even disposal. The answers are used to calculate a score, representing a percentage of a perfect score.

-Ryan

Companies: Are they Green?

There are a few companies that are green. Such companies include Nike, Levi Strauss, Target, and Brooks. Some outdoor-wear makers that have gone green are Timberland, Columbia Sportswear, and REI. Sustainability has proven to be a powerful motivator for companies worldwide. Companies have gone green in many ways. Many companies that make clothing have a program that is called The Eco Index. This program "poses a series of questions to companies on their environmental and labor practices; some of which require answers from the companies’ suppliers." It then produces a score, representing a percentage of a perfect score. Different companies have also started using different products that are more green than the general tanning leather or polyester. So next time you put on a piece of clothing, check what they are made of to see if they are green or not.


For more information: http://classroomedition.com/cre/articles/10oct_cs_envi_greenjeans.htm

Textile Industry not being Environmentally Friendly

The apparel industry has been around for years and has moved around from the United States to China, Mexico, and Vietnam, but one thing that hasn't changed is the pollution concerns. With the exception of some companies, the apparel industry has not done very much to improve the environmental problems we face today. They create pollution by when they tan leather, it often involves toxic chemicals which end up going into our environment. Making synthetic fabrics such as polyester uses large amounts of crude oil and other materials that release volatile compounds. 32.3 KG of CO2 is used in the life of a pair of Jeans which is equal to a car that drivs 78 miles. according to the Wall Street Journal. According to a June 5, 2005 article in Business Week, the population that is allergic to these chemicals will grow to 60 percent by the year 2020.

When transporting clothes, the clothes goes through many places and equipment. Cotton first shipped from the U.S. and Europe to Asia to make thread and fabrics, then it is shipped for cutting and sewing (in China, India, and Honduras). Some of our clothes have circled the globe twice by the time they arrive in stores. By looking at just the shipping, that alone puts out a lot of pollution, either by ship, plane, train, and even by trucks. Some of toughs forms of transportation use high amounts of fuel to move and create very high amounts of With the total of the pollution being very high with transportation and manufacturing clothes, these companies have to look at other ways to decrease pollution. Either by bring more factories back to the U.S. and creating jobs or reusing/recycling old textile items.

For more information visit the The Wall Street Journal website for the news article

Keep your personal information personal!

Almost every person nowadays has created an account on a social networking site to keep in touch with family and friends, or even just to try it out. We all have, haven't we? When using facebook, twitter, msyspace, xxanga, ext. we are all opening ourselves up to strangers. They can find out where we live, where we go to school, what kind of car we drive, and so on. Social networking sites make it easier for people to spam you, and create stalkers. Everyone should learn how to limit the information they put out there. You should limit that only the people you know should be your friends, and see the information you decide to post. And the most important is to make sure you remember that whatever you post, you cannot take it back!

http://www.whoswatchingcharlottesville.org/social.html

Why Facebook is After Your Kids

Did you know that over 7.5 million kids 12 and under are starting to use Facebook? In The New York Times article Why Facebook is After Your Kids, they talk about how younger kids are logging onto Facebook and can use it without parents permission. Some people believe that kids this young should not be able to access Facebook until and older age. I agree with this article that kids 12 and younger are still too young to be using Facebook. I feel that Facebook should be used for socializing with friends and family but when they are mature enough to use it. Kids under the age of 13 are still young, and they can be quite immature. They try and grow up too fast and could possibly do something stupid online, like add strangers or post inappropriate content. you never know who's out there and i feel kids under the age of 12 should wait to use Facebook.