The Story of Broke

Annie Leonard returns with Season 2 of The Story of Stuff! Watch her new movie, The Story of Broke: Why There's Still Plenty of Money to Build a Better Future, to bust the myth that the United States is broke. Annie talks about corporate tax loopholes, enormous tax breaks for the richest 1%, and military spending, and then she breaks down the different types of subsidies that the government hands out to big businesses - all of which give the impression that the country is too broke to build a healthy, green economy. My hope is that this information helps us realize that we can't keep electing the wrong people, people who will only continue this disastrous trend that offers such a bleak future for the generations to come. Please share this video with your friends and family!

World Water Day

In honour of World Water Day today, let's watch Annie Leonard's Story of Bottled Water.



Next time you feel tempted to buy a bottle of water, think about the oil and energy that goes into making the plastic bottle, the downcycling that occurs once you toss the bottle into your blue bin, the fact that the water itself isn't from some pristine spring but rather a municipal source - which is already clean enough to drink from and much, much cheaper than the bottled version!

Looking for water-saving tips? Here are 100 ways to conserve. Can you add any more ideas to the list?

The Story of Citizens United

Annie Leonard, one of my eco-heroes due to her public education work with The Story of Stuff project, just released another film: The Story of Citizens United vs. F.E.C.: Why Democracy Only Works When People are in Charge! (video embedded below)

In the film, she explores the history of corporations. In the beginning, they were used as a sort of short-term contractor for building things like bridges and railroads. After these projects were complete, the corporations were disbanded. Not so today, where corporations exist indefinitely with the purpose of maximizing profits, often at the expense of people and the planet.

Fast forward to 2010, when corporations fought to be granted the US First Amendment right to free speech, as though they were people. By winning this Supreme Court case, they were given a green light to spend as much as they wanted to influence elections, including intimidating and crushing candidates running on a platform against their interests. In other words, since 2010, corporations have played a big part in getting policymakers elected who give them what they want: being subjected to as few government regulations as they can get away with.

Outraged by this decision, the public is asking for a constitutional amendment that would exclude for-profit corporations from the protection of First Amendment rights, and a bill is in the works to allow for public financing of campaigns so that candidates without corporate backing stand an equal chance at getting elected. Don't lose hope, take action!

Please watch the film and spread the word, then leave comments below.

The Story of Electronics

It's finally up! Annie Leonard's Story of Electronics video has been posted to her website. Watch it, tell others about it, leave comments at the bottom of this post, then watch it again!

Also check out here other videos if you haven't already:

• The Story of Stuff
• The Story of Bottled Water
• The Story of Cosmetics

In the News Today

I don't usually write posts this late at night but just read an article that I feel compelled to share with you immediately.

A breast cancer action group based out of Montreal is trying to raise awareness about the importance of research into the prevention of breast cancer, and they point out how little this area is being funded relative to how much goes towards research into treatments or a cure. The group urges consumers to change their spending habits and support organizations that fund prevention research rather than purchase products with a pink ribbon on the label. What's the problem with the pink ribbon? Something called "pinkwashing" (a term I first heard Annie Leonard use), which occurs when big corporations get consumers to buy more of their products by projecting an image of leading the fight against breast cancer when in reality they make matters worse. Examples include Ford, whose vehicles' exhaust includes carcinogens, which is especially ironic in light of a recent study that found breast cancer is associated with traffic-related air pollution. Then there's Avon, L'Oreal, Revlon, and Estee Lauder, whose personal care products contain known or suspected carcinogens. While it is no doubt important to improve treatments and find a cure, it is equally vital that we research the causes of breast cancer, test widely used chemicals' toxicity levels, change legislation to ban known carcinogens, and raise public awareness about how to prevent this disease.

Read the article here, and check out the following related links:

• Breast Cancer Action Montreal: this is the group who wants us to switch from pink ribbon products to prevention research
• Think Before You Buy Pink: the title says it all, this website has more details about pinkwashing
• Annie Leonard's Story of Cosmetics: watch this video to learn more about toxins in personal care products (I advertised this a few months ago)
• Less Toxic Guide: a Canadian resource for identifying harmful chemicals in beauty and cleaning products
• traffic-related air pollution and breast cancer research study (as the publication is ahead-of-print, currently only the abstract is available, but check back later for the full article)

Don't be deceived by pinkwashing!

The Story of Cosmetics

Annie Leonard is back at it again with her Story of Cosmetics. Check it out!

The Story of Stuff

Annie Leonard is my hero. If you haven't already, watch The Story of Stuff and The Story of Bottled Water, and read this LA Times article about her.