Vote with your wallet!

This is one of the best consumer information sites I've ever found. Better World Shopper provides guides on how to "vote with your wallet" and make a positive difference in the world through your purchases. They have charts of the 20 best and 20 worst companies in the USA based on their five methods of evaluation (in the image below). The information they provide can help you become a more informed and conscientious shopper.

And can you guess who makes the top of their list for best company? Seventh Generation cleaning products! So next time you have to wipe some grease off the stove, clean it with something that's good for the planet. And who takes the cake for worst company overall? Exxon Mobile. No surprise there.

Let me be the first to admit that when I go to the grocery store, I'm not always thinking about what is best for the planet. I'm usually thinking about how I can eat healthily on a tight budget. But with the handy guide from Better World Shopper printed and tucked in my wallet, I will have tangible reminder to think of health, cost, and global impact equally. Sometimes all it takes to make a real difference is a little gentle reminder. Next time I go to the store, I'll try to buy more from Sprouts and Stater Bros., not from Walmart (#3 on the "bad" list). This may seem like a little difference, but if each consumer makes a tiny impact, we end up creating a landslide of validation for safer companies and condemnation for unsafe ones. We have more power in our wallets than we realize.




Caio!

The Lonely Alchemist