Sportswear and the
Olympic Spirit
Upgrade your computer and reduce the waste
mountain
Adbusters bring out the Black Spot trainer
Wind power potential for Europe
Fairtrade Flowers
Tesco-owned shops sell dolphin and whale meat
Veggie housing
National Vegetarian Week
Christian guide to living compassionately
Organic milk more healthy
New guide
Eating meat causes hunger
Betraying the Olympic Spirit
Giant sportswear brands are violating the rights of millions of workers around the world in order to fill shops with the latest and cheapest sports shoes, clothes and accessories in time for the Athens Olympics.
On March 4th, the Clean Clothes Campaign, Global Unions and Oxfam launched a new worldwide campaign, Play Fair at the Olympics. The campaign calls on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and companies such as Fila, Puma, Umbro, Asics and Mizuno to clean up their acts.
Using new research, Play Fair exposes the ruthless tactics used by the global sportswear industry to produce the latest fashions, made cheaper and faster and to ever more punishing deadlines. In order to deliver, suppliers are forcing their employees to work longer and harder, denying them their fundamental workers’ rights.
Play Fair researchers spoke to workers such as Fatima, who works in an Indonesian factory that supplies Fila, Puma, Nike, Adidas and Lotto: “We do not feel we can demand higher wages, welfare and legal status... If I don’t complete my daily target within regular work hours I have to work overtime without pay... I don’t feel that I have job security.”
According to the campaign, the IOC has an obligation to challenge the abusive business practices of its sponsors and licensees. The industry needs to make prices fairer, deadlines more appropriate and treat labour standards as important a set of criteria as cost, time and quality. The industry must emphasize to every supplier that the rights to join and form trade unions and the right to collective bargaining are fundamental to implementing international labour standards.
“If hypocrisy and exploitation were an Olympic sport, the sportswear industry would win a medal,” said Junya Yimprasert from the Thai Labour Campaign and member of the Clean Clothes Campaign network. “The industry is sacrificing human rights in the search for profits. Should the race to outfit athletes mean a race to the bottom for these workers?”
Go to the Play Fair website at www.fairolympics.org for more info or to email the IOC, Puma, Fila and Asics. In the coming months you will be able to petition other targeted companies, including Umbro, Kappa, Lotto and Mizuno. Profiles of all the companies can be found on the website. To obtain the report - ‘Play Fair at the Olympics’ go to: http://www.fairolympics.org/en/report/olympicreporteng.pdf
Think upgrade before
buying a new PC
A United Nations University study into the environmental impact of personal
computers, published in March, has found that around 1.8 tonnes of raw
material are required to manufacture the average desktop PC and monitor
and that extending a machine’s operational life through re-use
holds a much greater potential for energy saving than recycling.
According to the study, the manufacturing of one desktop computer and
17-inch CRT (cathode ray tube) monitor requires at least 240 kilograms
of fossil fuels, 22 kilograms of chemicals and 1,500 kilograms of water.
In terms of weight, the total amount of materials used is about equal
to that of a mid-size car.
By far the best way to minimize impact on the environment from a personal
computer is to extend its useful life, said Eric Williams, a researcher
at the United Nations University (UNU) in Tokyo and one of the report’s
co-authors.
Users should think carefully about whether they really need a new computer,
if upgrading their existing computer could serve the same purpose, he
said. Actions such as delaying replacement and upgrading the memory
or storage space or, if the machine is replaced, donating the old computer
so that it may continue to be used, offer potential energy savings of
between five and 20 times those gained by recycling.
This is because so much of the energy required to manufacture a personal
computer is used to make high-tech components like semiconductors which
are destroyed in the recycling process. In an earlier study published
in late 2002, Williams concluded that 1.7 kilograms of fossil fuels
and chemicals and 32 kilograms of water are used to produce a single
2-gram 32M-byte DRAM (dynamic RAM) memory chip.
Seemingly endless advances in technology are encouraging people to replace
their machines and falling prices are making replacement a more attractive
option than upgrading. Users are now accustomed to a two-year to three-year
upgrade cycle.
The market in used computers for private users is growing as technologies
like Internet auctions allow users to quickly advertise their old machine
to several potential customers. The market for used computer equipment
on eBay was around two billion dollars in 2001, said Williams.
The report, “Computers and the Environment: Understanding and Managing
their Impacts,” is published by Kluwer Academic Publishers and
the UNU and is available in paperback (ISBN: 1-4020-1680-8) or hard
cover (ISBN: 1-4020-1679-4) editions and costs £22. The UNU’s
dedicated website related to IT and the environment is http://www.it-environment.org
Trainers no longer
a workers’ rights blackspot
There’s going to be a new training shoe on the market to rival
Nike, brought to you from Canadian culture-jammers Adbusters. The group
wants to take on Nike CEO Phil Knight at his own game by launching ‘unbranded’
shoes in an attempt to ‘unswoosh’ Nike. Adbusters has been
doing R&D for more than a year and they say; “Guess what? making
a shoe - a good shoe - isn’t exactly rocket science. With a network
of supporters, we’re getting ready to launch the blackSpot sneaker,
the world’s first grassroots anti-brand, with a ground-breaking
marketing scheme to uncool Nike. If it succeeds, it will set a precedent
that will revolutionize capitalism.” Revoluntionary or not, Adbusters
guarantee the shoe will be made in fair working conditions and will
retail for ‘around $40’. To place your order, go to www.blackspotsneaker.org
Turbines could power
every home in Europe by 2020
Greenpeace released a report in February by international experts that
shows how all Europe’s 150 million homes could be powered by clean,
green offshore wind energy by 2020.
The report - entitled ‘Sea Wind Europe’ - says wind could
supply almost a third of all Europe’s electricity needs including
industry, service sector and domestic needs - a comparable amount to
that currently supplied by the entire EU nuclear industry.
Greenpeace is now calling for EU governments to commit to a target of
at least 20% of energy to come from renewable sources by 2020. Greenpeace
is also calling for:
• Increased research and development support for offshore wind
and other renewable energy technologies
• The redirection of EU energy subsidies away from dangerous and
dirty energy sources such as coal and nuclear and towards renewable
energies
For more contact Greenpeace on 020 7865 8255. The report can be found
at http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/seawindeurope.htm
Fairtrade roses
The UK’s first-ever Fairtrade flowers went on sale at Tesco in
March to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the Fairtrade Mark and
the start of Fairtrade Fortnight 2004, which ran from March 1-14. The
new Tesco Fairtrade Mixed Roses and Luxury Roses, are selling for £4.99
and £7.99.
85% of all flowers sold in the UK are imported, of which about 20% come
from countries outside the EU. Around 23% of roses are purchased directly
from Kenya, mainly by the major supermarkets.
The Fairtrade Foundation gave the following responses to these questions:
Should we buy roses from Kenya at all?
“People in the UK are already buying flowers from Kenya, which
is now the second most important export crop for the country (after
tea). The UK already imports about 15% of all Kenya’s flower exports
– worth an estimated £25 million a year to Kenyan farmers.
The flowers in the Fairtrade scheme were already being imported into
the UK – the difference is that now the workers are getting a better
deal.”
Isn’t it damaging the environment to fly flowers around the world
when we can grow them in Europe?
"Unfortunately, roses don’t bloom naturally all year round
in the UK, yet consumer demand for them is often highest during the
colder months, for example on Valentine’s Day or Mother’s
Day. Although it is possible to hothouse flowers in Europe, this is
also extremely energy intensive.
Consumers of course have a choice. For those who do want to purchase
flowers, the Fairtrade Mark simply offers a way to do so which guarantees
a better deal for the workers. The flowers are sourced from farms that
are also committed to meeting environmental standards at the local level."
More information from the Fairtrade Foundation at www.fairtrade.org
or Tesco at www.tesco.com
Dolphin and whale-meat
on sale at Tesco-owned stores
In March, the Environmental Investigation Agency revealed that C Two-Network,
a Japanese supermarket chain and a member of the Tesco Group, had been
selling whale and dolphin meat.
Clare Perry, EIA Cetacean Campaigns Manager, said: “C Two-Network
stores are selling internationally protected species, and as such, are
not only sustaining the market for these products in Japan, but are
supporting Japan’s refusal to abide by the international ban on
commercial whaling. Tesco, by association, could be seen by the public
to be condoning these actions.”
Greenpeace Ocean Campaigner, Richard Page said: “We are appealing
to Tesco to use its ownership of C Two-Network to bring about an end
to the sale of cetacean products in C Two-Network stores. Tesco’s
UK customers will be appalled to learn that Tesco is so closely linked
to the sale of whale meat.”
Up to 22,000 small whales, dolphins and porpoises (collectively known
as small cetaceans) are slaughtered each year around the coast of Japan,
with the meat and blubber sold for human consumption. The EIA is hoping
that media attention will force Tesco to take the matter seriously and
hopefully negotiate a phase-out of the sale of these products.
For more information contact: EIA London, 62/63 Upper Street, London
N1 0NY
Tel: 020 7354 7960
http://www.eia-international.org
Help for veggie elders
The Vegetarian Housing Association was set up in 1962 to enable vegetarians
and vegans to live their later years in peace and comfort, in homes
provided specially for them. This charitable organisation runs two centres
of sheltered accomodation in Hastings and Colwyn Bay. There are currently
places at both locations and the organisation is looking at creating
more homes, and possibly centres for younger vegetarians and those with
special needs. If you are vegetarian and have an opinion as where and
how any new properties should be acquired, want to donate, or even register
a place for yourself, get in touch at www.veghousing.org.uk,
PO Box 193, Hastings TN34 2WT Tel: 01424 757851
National Vegetarian
Week 24th - 30th May
Get stuck in to some food for thought this National Vegetarian Week
by ordering the new edition of the essential guide for anyone considering
vegetarianism. The ‘Food for Thought’ booklet is packed with
contributions from celebrity vegetarians, health advice and new recipies.
To order a copy and to find out what Vegetarian Week events are going
on in your area, call 0161 925 2000 or visit www.vegsoc.org
If you are already vegetarian, have you tried your pet on a vegetarian
diet yet? A new business has been launched to help animal lovers do
exactly that, supplying brands that are approved by the Vegetarian Society.
See www.veggiepets.com
L is for Lifestyle
A new book by Ruth Valerio on “Christian living that doesn’t
cost the earth” covers all you need to know, from Activists, through
Investments, to Xenophobia in a simple A-Z format. Although there are
some Biblical references, it less a theological tome and more a simple
action guide to living compassionately and responsibly. It is published
in paperback by Inter Varsity Press, Tel: 0115 978 1054.
C is for consumerism
A smaller booklet, concerning a Christian perspective on consumerism
is now available. Written by Julie Kelly, a school Religious Studies
tecaher, ‘Consumerism’ is part of the Grove Books ‘Ethics’
series. It costs £2.50 from Grove Books on 01223 464748 or online
at wwwgrovebooks.co.uk
Organic milk healthier
than conventional milk
A new study by the Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research
in Aberystwyth has shown that organic milk contains two thirds more
Omega 3 essential fatty acids than ordinary milk. Omega 3 has been shown
to help maintain a healthy heart, combat arthritis and aid the development
of healthy brains in children. It is also known to aid concentration
and can help ease behavioural problems. Nutritionists believe that most
people in the UK do not get enough Omega 3 in their diet.
New Editions
The new Organic Directory, listing organic retailers, producers and
wholesalers and covering all of the UK on a county-by-county basis is
available in May. Co-published with the Soil Association, the Organic
Directory 2004-05 is edited by Clive Litchfield and published by Green
Books for £6.95. Tel 01803 863260 or see www.greenbooks.co.uk/books
The handy-sized Naturewatch Compassionate Shopping Guide entered its
9th edition. This directory of animal testing in cosmetics, toiletries
and household products listed by brand name costs £2.50 per copy
including postage and packing. You can buy online at www.naturewatch.org
or by post by sending a cheque or postal order for £2.50, made
payable to ‘Naturewatch’, at: 122 Bath Road, Cheltenham, Glos
GL53 7JX.
The State of the World 2004 has just been published by Earthscan. It
is the 21st edition of this annual report written by the Worldwatch
Institute and published in 28 different languages. It looks at global
economic, social and environmental trends and this year’s report
has a special focus on the theme of consumption. The 272 page paperback
edition can be purchased for £14.99 from bookshops or direct from
earthscan at www.earthscan.co.uk
or tel 01903 828 800
Feed the world (with
veg)
Campaign group Viva! has launched a provocative new guide to coincide
with the 20th anniversary of Michael Buerk’s famous report from
the Ethiopian famine. “Feed the World (why eating meat is a major
source of world hunger - and going vegetarian is the solution)”.
The booklet is introduced by Jeremy Rifkin of the Foundation for Economic
Trends and provides some chilling statistics. An area of land the size
of five football pitches will grow enough meat to feed two people, or
enough maize to feed ten, enough wheat to feed 24 or enough soya to
feed 61. In India, 37 per cent of all arable land is used to grow fodder
for livestock animals that are killed for export. Land is also used
for exporting soya beans to feed European livestock. To read more, send
a cheque for £1 (plus 50p p&p) to Viva!, 8 York Court, Wilder
St, Bristol BS2 8QH or phone 0117 944 1000
