Would You Go This Far To Reduce Your Carbon Footprint?

Photo courtesy: Ahmedabad Mirror.

How far would you go to reduce your eco-guilt? You know, that feeling that racks a person when he/she realises the amount of damage he/she has inflicted on environment? Anupam Majumdar, a successful apparel designer used to drive luxury cars; wore expensive, designer clothes; owned gadgets galore; and, enjoyed a life of extravagance and excess; but, gave it all up to reduce his carbon footprint. He is a man whose goals and aspirations have changed.

Majumdar sold his two gas-guzzling cars and purchased a fuel-efficient car,the Maruti 800; recycled his expensive clothes and switched to clothes that were discarded by others; gave away his cellphones and other gadgets - all to embrace a new lifestyle of austerity. He even quit his high-paying job to begin his own business of recycling fabrics - usually khadi. Khadi is a traditional home-spun material usually made from organic cotton made popular by Mahatma Ghandi.

The 42-year-old Majumdar became the opposite of the well-known American dream. Instead of going from rags to riches, he went from riches to rags - literally.

“I realised how my lifestyle was harming environment; so, I changed it completely. I no longer buy things I don’t need. I make the best out of what is available,” he says.

Majumdar used to enjoy wearing expensive clothes; but, today, he wears his brother-in-law’s hand-me-downs. He refuses to buy new shoes wearing only old, repaired pairs. “My brother-in-law, who lives in Mumbai, buys new clothes every three to four months. When I came to know about this, I asked him to send me all his old clothes,” he says.

Majumdar’s company, Genesis Designs makes outfits from discarded bits of fabric. Photo courtesy: Ahmedabad Mirror.

Majumdar feels that too many throw out clothing that is still totally acceptable for no apparent reason. “One just gets bored, so he/she discards them,” he theorizes. “I keep some of the garments my brother-in-law sends me and distribute the rest among my relatives in Vallabhipur, Bhavnagar. I have realised that what goes out of fashion in Mumbai is pretty much in style Vallabhipur.”

How did his wife accept this sudden change in lifestyle? It did not upset his wife, Rupal, in any way. In fact, she welcomed the change. “I was always against the ostentatious way of living. I am glad he gave it up,” she says.

Fueled by his desire to ease his carbon footprint, he has started his own company called Genesis Designs. His company designs and promotes garments made from recycled fabrics. He collects discarded bits of fabric, such as khadi, from the larger fabric companies using them to design capris, wraparounds and kurtis (tunic/tops) for the aam junta (the masses). This is a great way to prevent waste cloth material from ending up in a dump yard.

“Khadi has become too elitist. It’s time to take it to the common people,” states Majumdar. “The rich can afford to get their clothes styled by designers, who have best tailors at their service. I want to cater to the aam aadmi (common person).”

Majumdar manages to make use of even randomly cut pieces of cloth and rejected khadi bales. A khadi weaver will throw away a bale if he fails to get colour consistency. “If the weave is defective, we run perpendicular prominent bands through texturing or embroidery. This is done to ensure the finished outfit looks beautiful,” he says.

Majumdar believes in sharing his expertise to make a difference. Currently, he is working with the Madhya Pradesh government and is trying to come up with ways to make good use of waste generated by artisans.

“Some day, I will set up a store where everything, from a simple pair of tongs to the most complicated machine, will be repaired. I feel we need a campaign to discourage the practice of use and throw. It’s not part of the Indian culture. People must realise the benefits of recycling and reuse,” he says.

Via Ahmedabad Mirror

25 Wasteful Things We Can All Live Without

All photos courtesy: Care2

We produce a lot of waste. In 2008 alone, Americans generated 250 million tons of trash, and though about a third of that was recycled, a lot went into landfills or was incinerated. Our culture is centered around disposability, and only we have the power to change that.

Take stock of the disposable, overly-packaged, and single-use products that you use, and then look for reusable alternatives. Not sure where to start? Here are more than two dozen items that many people use . . . and can easily live without.

25 Wasteful Things You Can Live Without:

Tin foil — Use an oven-safe pot or dish with a lid.
Plastic wrap — Instead, use a container with a lid.
Disposable cleaning cloths, dusters, etc. — Use a microfiber cloth that can be washed.
Paper towels — Use a tea towel, instead.
Disposable pens — Buy a good pen that only needs the ink well or refill changed.


Plastic cutlery — Use the metal stuff.
Paper plates — Washing dishes may be an effort, but it’s worth it.
Paper or plastic single-use grocery bags — Get a few reusable bags.
Packaged fruits and vegetables — Produce does not need to be packaged.
Individually wrapped snacks — Snacks travel better anyway in a hard container.


Disposable razors — Invest in a razor that only needs the blades changed.
Juice boxes — Put juice in a reusable container (not plastic).
Electric pencil sharpeners — Use the hand-crank version of days gone by.
Disposable diapers — Cloth diapers aren’t that much more difficult to use.
Disposable cloths — Fabric cloths can be washed regularly to avoid bacterial or viral build-up.


Plastic cups — Stick to reusable cups.
Bottled water — Install a water filter on your tap or pick up a water jug with a filter.
Non-rechargeable batteries — Make the investment for rechargeable batteries and you’ll save money in the long run.
Electric can openers — Use a little muscle.
Single-serving pudding or yogurt cups — Buy a large container of yogurt or make your own pudding, and send it in a reusable container.


Antibacterial wipes — If you must, use a gel hand sanitizer.
Disposable table cloths — Spills are a reality of life; just clean them up as they happen.
Facial tissues — Unless you have a bad cold, a handkerchief will work just fine.
Paper billing — Switch to e-billing for your bank statement, credit card bill, utility bill, etc.
Plasticized sticky notes — Use the original paper sticky notes; they can be recycled when you’re done with them.

Via Care2 and PlanetGreen

What's the Buzz Over Burt's Garbage?

Photo via Editor B

Probably my favourite company has to be Burt’s Bees. All of Burt’s products are approximately 99% organic plus they have an ethical commitment to both the environment and their customer. It doesn’t get much better than this company. I’m always telling my friends (and sometimes complete strangers) that Burt is so organic he knows every bee by name. Burt must be so proud to have me has his customer (**can someone help me get my tongue out my cheek?**)

Burt’s Bees is one example of how companies across the US and; hopefully, the world are taking a closer look at what’s in their garbage bins. Companies are beginning to realize that by making big changes in the way they handle their garbage they can not only reduce the level of garbage they produce; but, also save money. Many companies have set sustainability goals of curbing trash and improving recycling. The only truly effective way to do this is “hands-on, in the dumpster” inspection of the garbage and Burt’s Bees did just that.

After dressing for the occasion (in HazMat suits) Burt’s employees (no, not the bees) inspected two weeks worth of garbage for recycling opportunities and ideas that would further cut the company’s waste. Was it worth it?

According to John Replogle, president and CEO, “Employees … found recycling opportunities that cut the company's waste in half while generating $25,000 in estimated annual savings.”

"We found money in the dumpster," he declares. "We've turned our waste stream from a cost center into a profit center."

Businesses are also finding new revenue streams in their garbage by taking items that were hauled away to the landfill in the past and instead selling them to someone else for cash -- a boon in a slow economy. A bigger boon for the landfill that will now have a longer life to be used for items that truly can’t be dealt with in any other way.

“Dumpster diving helped move Burt's Bees closer to its goal of sending zero waste to landfills by 2020. Set 18 months ago, the company quickly made great strides at reaching that target and went from producing 40 tons of waste per month down to an impressive 10 tons per month by aggressively recycling and introducing composting at its Durham, N.C., corporate office and manufacturing plant,” says Replogle.

"Then we were stuck and needed to reinvigorate the effort again," he recalls.

The superheroes of the company, The Green Team, saved the garbage for two weeks, placed it in the parking lot and; with the help of employees, took a good look at what did or did not need to be there.

They made three piles: things they already recycle that weren’t and did not belong in the trash; things that could be recycled if an outlet were located (eg. Plastic buckets); real garbage that couldn’t be recycled for sanitary reasons (latex gloves, hairnets).

"Once you've seen your garbage up close, it's hard to ignore it," jokes Shira E. Norman, a research consultant in the Chicago office of YRG Sustainability.

Norman adds, “Experts insist the (dumpster diving) exercise makes a strong impression on employees that can inspire behavior change with far greater impact than any written report or e-mail alert.”

I believe we as a planet have become so desensitized to news that is reported to us via written report, spoken word, email or other forms of communication where the visual impact component is missing that it goes unheard by most of us.

Burt's Bees' Replogle felt the visual component to be a huge part of the exercise. He says they used their dumpster diving effort as a teachable moment and urged its 300-plus workers that day to inspect what they were throwing away

"That walk through the parking lot and seeing all that trash translated into a collective 'aha moment' and we all realized we could do a better job at recycling," says Replogle.

“After that experience, the company quickly jumped from 80 percent compliance in recycling to 98 percent,” he says. "Now we have a shared ethos of taking responsibility," he adds.