sustainablah-blah-blah

Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder

Posted by in Uncategorized

When Tamar showed our Sustainability Marketing class the video about the “ugly” fruits and vegetables, I was instantly amazed at the execution of the campaign. The “Inglorious Fruits and Vegetables” campaign set out by Intermarché aims to fight against food waste. These imperfect fruits and vegetables were sold 30% cheaper and were completely glorified. They were given their very own aisle, each produce had its own name, and there were even product extensions, such as soups and juices, to allow consumers to realize they were just as good (or even better!) than what…read more

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Are “mods” the next step to sustainability?

Posted by in Uncategorized

Modular construction. What is it, you may ask? I was asking the exact same question as you just a few hours ago. Essentially, it’s building a structure off-site, under controlled conditions, using the same materials and design as conventionally built facilities. These buildings are often produced in “modules” or “mods” and upon completion, they are then stacked together almost like Lego. This construction is often used for micro-apartments, such as those seen in Japan. You may think this sounds a little dangerous, but apparently modular construction is generally stronger than…read more

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Natural or Not?

Posted by in Uncategorized

I work in clothing retail and we were already getting stock for summer way (wayyyy) back in late February and March, when it was still pouring and 5 degrees. The new clothes that we received contained a fibre called “tencel”. And me being a keener, I went online and searched what it was exactly so I could impress the customers about my product knowledge (heh). “Tencel” is a fibre made from the cellulose in wood pulp, which is harvested from tree-farmed trees. It’s produced by an advanced “closed-loop” solvent spinning process that apparently has…read more

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Upcycling the Forgotten: Tree Change Dolls™

Posted by in Uncategorized

To the ladies (and the few men!) out there, remember when we used to play with Barbies or Bratz dolls when we were little ones? Do you know what happened to them? They probably were sold during a summer yard sale or just tossed away, forgotten. I was browsing through Facebook (like I always do) and came across a link titled “Mom Wipes Makeup off Bratz Dolls, Wins Internet” a few weeks ago. If you’re familiar with those websites that uses titles such as “So and so does this, you won’t believe…read more

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Recycle. Don’t Recycle. Can’t Recycle.

Posted by in My Opinion

How many times have you went to throw something out and realized that you had to figure out what material exactly it fit into the “sort-it-out” disposal bins? A lot of the bins around UBC are now converted into these large sorting containers. I usually have fun taking off the cardboard sleeves or plastic covers and finding the right bin to place them in, as nerdy as it sounds. However, when I’m tight on time, I have to be honest and say that I definitely just toss all my contents…read more

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Carbon Offsetting or Upsetting?

Posted by in Uncategorized

Our Sustainability Marketing class had Brinkman Climate come in as a client for our last Client Challenge project. Brinkman Climate is a company that develops carbon offset projects in British Columbia. But if you’re like me, when I initially heard of carbon offsetting, I was completely clueless on what it was and why there was such a huge debate about it. To clear up any confusion, the general idea of “carbon offsetting” focuses on reducing emissions. A carbon offset is essentially a credit that is purchased by a party (whether it be…read more

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RIP POLYESTER

Posted by in Uncategorized

It’s almost happening. We can finally wear clothes made of mixed materials without feeling guilty! All thanks to Worn Again‘s new innovation. Worn Again is a company that continuously seeks for bigger and better solutions to tackle the challenge of textile waste. They introduced their footwear made of recycled materials in 2005 and they haven’t stopped there. Worn Again has used various waste fabrics into jackets, wallets, and handbags. Their goal states on their website that they aim to eradicate textile waste. With this in mind, they’ve moved from upcycling to…read more

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A cup a day, fills a landfill all the way!

Posted by in Uncategorized

The inventor of Keurig’s K-cup, John Sylvan, has recently come out stating that he regrets ever making these single-use coffee pods. The full article from The Atlantic can be found here! What the article ultimately states that K-Cups and Keurig machines are not only expensive to use, but it’s also completely and utterly harmful to the environment. The machines can cost from $70 to even over $100, but what generates the most profit is the amount of K-Cups that are needed to refill the machine. The coffee can cost roughly $50 per pound and if you…read more

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Taking Sustainability to the Dinner Table

Posted by in Uncategorized

If I received an invitation to an event, and there was just a mention of the word “food” – I would be there (and if it’s FREE food, then why are you even contemplating?) Being a food lover, it is a given that I would write my first blog post about food. I tend to read more news on companies and topics that I know fairly well. I’ve grown up with the Vancouver Aquarium and I always jump onto any news that I see relevant to them. While I was scrolling…read more

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