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67 votes
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Fairphone 5 - Android updates for five years and at least eight years of security updates; possibly upto ten years, keeping the phone active until 2033
57 votes -
Use this, not that: Positive swaps for the New Year
This is a bit of a sibling topic to the one about changing habits for 2020. Rather than looking at habits specifically, I want to look at "swaps" that people can make. What's something someone...
This is a bit of a sibling topic to the one about changing habits for 2020. Rather than looking at habits specifically, I want to look at "swaps" that people can make.
What's something someone could change out for a better alternative?
A swap should be recommended if it is,
- more ethical,
- more sustainable,
- heathier,
- or just overall better in an individual or collective way.
Importantly: the swap should be both feasible and sensical, and should be something that is relatively easy to do. This isn't about making huge lifestyle changes but about taking what we're already doing and making it better.
Please give your reasoning for your swap, as well as any important caveats. Mentioning specific brands/companies is fine if that's an important part of the swap. Also, swaps can be for anything so don't feel limited to consumer products. Feel free to give good food/service/app/software/store swaps as well!
See my post below for an example, if the setup I've given here is unclear!
54 votes -
Sweden's Northvolt says new lithium-free sodium-ion battery is cheaper, more sustainable and doesn't rely on scarce raw materials
49 votes -
How Signal walks the line between anarchism and pragmatism
45 votes -
Looking for sustainably designed anti-fast fashion brands
Hey all! Most clothing and fashion brands that you can find in your local shops or online are fast-fashion: cheap to produce in mass quantities, using cheap materials and don’t last very long. For...
Hey all! Most clothing and fashion brands that you can find in your local shops or online are fast-fashion: cheap to produce in mass quantities, using cheap materials and don’t last very long. For example, I currently buy my t-shirts from Banana Republic Factory for around $10-$15 and they last maybe 8-12 months before they shrink in the wash or discolor.
I’m looking for some alternatives! I’m okay paying a little bit more for stuff that’s going to last a long time. Open to any suggestions for a more sustainable, long-lasting wardrobe!
44 votes -
Why the world cannot afford the rich
43 votes -
Lego abandons effort to make bricks from recycled plastic bottles
43 votes -
"We are not sustainable" say Framework: a company's initiative to achieve sustainability
37 votes -
Using the menstrual cup and open menstrual discussion
I'm a female working in the construction field and was wondering how to dispose of my feminine products discreetly and hygienically in a portable potty with a crew full of males where male...
I'm a female working in the construction field and was wondering how to dispose of my feminine products discreetly and hygienically in a portable potty with a crew full of males where male toxicity exists... 'twas weird.
I've been meaning to make the jump to the menstrual cup (due to my sustainability inclinations), but due to laziness/squeamish reasons, I didn't make the jump until I realized how practical it was with my profession!
I'm able to keep it in for a half day before emptying, so it's awesome for the jobsite! I can urinate with it too! which is also awesome... and! NO SMELL! I feel so much cleaner now. and the internal pressure kinda releases some cramps... not all the cramps, but some! And it's totally comfortable to work out in (for reference: I do outdoor running). Not to mention, there's way less waste and cost! (And for those who find bodily fluids cool, the thick, deep, dark red that you see when you empty makes me feel powerful, like you can conquer anything... in reality, I just sit with my Chimmy plush and wait for my significant other to plop chocolate goodies in my lap.)
The only downside I could find is that it took some time to get used to (about 1 cycle) and I can't hold my pee (I know I'm not suppose to anyway, but it's a nice privilege... these pipes had some major damage).
Anyway, any cycle stories/tips/tricks? embarrassing moments? origin story?
I'll go first, my mom was in a ferocious fight with my older sister for spending the night with some guy or whatever. As my mom was ripping my sister's clothes/throwing her out the house, I got my first period. I had to interrupt the fight to ask what I should do... middle child problems! I guess I found a good way to break up a fight...35 votes -
How to build a low-tech website
31 votes -
Stop buying crap, and companies will stop making crap
30 votes -
Transparent wood is stronger than plastic and tougher than glass
28 votes -
The new colonialist food economy - forced use of patented seeds in Africa
27 votes -
Norway will not go ahead with plans to permit seabed mining of critical raw materials on its continental shelf if initial exploration suggests it cannot be done sustainably
25 votes -
Can we make bicycles sustainable again?
25 votes -
Beyond Cyberpunk: Towards a Solarpunk future
24 votes -
Costco capitalism
23 votes -
Costco clothing is cheap. But is it good value?
23 votes -
Fairphone Keep Club: Sustainable consumerism?
As you may well know, Fairphone is a company that originally arose from a kickstarter campaign and makes phones that are as easily repairable, as sustainable and as fairly sourced as possible....
As you may well know, Fairphone is a company that originally arose from a kickstarter campaign and makes phones that are as easily repairable, as sustainable and as fairly sourced as possible. They do have their issues, but compared to other big phone companies they've done a great job with this.
Now it appears that Fairphone is due to announce the so called 'Fairphone Keep Club' on the 14th of September - a bonus program as we all know it. You buy stuff, you get points for what you buy, and when you've got enough points you can redeem them to buy more stuff.
The keep club website claims that it's the only rewards program that gives back to those who keep their Fairphones as long as possible, but judging by the listed 'challenges' it appears that the most efficient way to gain points is to simply buy new stuff.
Personally I'm a bit torn on this, due to the idealistic viewpoints I tend to judge Fairphone under in accordance with their stated sustainability goals. I do realize that is a much higher standard than the big-players in the phone industry achieve. I also get that Fairphone wants to build its brand identity and create incentives to keep customers and sell their products. But at the same time I can't help but think that in the end that program is an incentive to be less sustainable, as it ultimately provides you with those fancy points as a psychological incentive to buy the newest and latest Fairphone product.
So I wanted to bring this topic into a wider community that may not currently be as deep in the Fairphone bubble: Do you think such bonus programs will rather help spread the idea of a more repairable, sustainable approach to phones, or will it rather serve as an incentive to artificially shorten a phone's lifecycle by prematurely buying a new one? And more generally speking: Do you think advertising strategies rooted in consumerism and classic capitalistic company goals are compatible with sustainable product lifecycles somehow, despite not exactly having aligned interests?
Note that I also posted this on Lemmy. I'm interested to see how those discussions will compare.
22 votes -
Scientific research suggests it might be a good idea to add python to your diet
20 votes -
EU countries already hitting some of their sustainable energy targets for 2030 – Study finds ‘systematic progress’ achieved in 2010s with some states reaching targets a decade early
20 votes -
Meet the American nomad prepping for doomsday by living in a homemade cart pulled by sheep and drinking their milk | World Wide Waste
20 votes -
How and why I stopped buying new laptops
20 votes -
How to build a low-tech website
20 votes -
EU passes nature restoration law in knife-edge vote
19 votes -
Furniture giant IKEA is planning to sell spare parts for its furniture – its aim is to prolong the life of its products and dispel the idea that it makes disposable goods
19 votes -
A shift towards a more sustainable global food system could create up to $10 trillion of benefits a year, improve human health, and ease the climate crisis
17 votes -
Why Jeff Bezos must be stopped before it’s too late
17 votes -
We need cheap protein — but it doesn’t have to be meat
16 votes -
Analysis of thirty long-running farm trials shows crop choice and manure addition can sustain high yields at low fertilizer rates
16 votes -
How would I determine which plants fix which nutrients into soil? Any resources?
I'm very on board with the concept of permaculture, and while I understand the concepts I don't have a good intuition for which plants fix which nutrients. For example suppose I grow basil in my...
I'm very on board with the concept of permaculture, and while I understand the concepts I don't have a good intuition for which plants fix which nutrients. For example suppose I grow basil in my herb garden.
How do I figure out which nutrients it will eventually deplete? How do I figure out a good buddy crop(s) to replenish those nutrients?
Any permaculturists out there that can point me in the right direction?
16 votes -
Iceland's innovations to reach net-zero – in pictures
16 votes -
What sustainability-focused companies/brands do you recommend?
It's honestly hard to separate out companies who are genuinely making a decent effort to not be completely terrible versus those that are just green- or ethical-washing their practices as a...
It's honestly hard to separate out companies who are genuinely making a decent effort to not be completely terrible versus those that are just green- or ethical-washing their practices as a marketing tactic. Furthermore, I realize that reducing consumption itself is the most sustainable choice one can make, so I'm asking this more as a "when I do need to buy something, what's a good place to turn to?"
Feel free to give recommendations for any areas, but in particular I'd love to hear about recommendations in the areas of clothes, linens/bedding, and coffee beans, as those are things that I'm currently on the market for. Also, if there are any good resources that aggregate reliable information about sustainable companies, let me know too.
16 votes -
Science-fiction visionary Kim Stanley Robinson makes the case for quantitative easing our way out of planetary doom
16 votes -
As millennial parents demand sustainable toys, Lego is perfecting plant-based bricks
16 votes -
Why growth can’t be green
16 votes -
Hard cider - making old orchards new again
15 votes -
Lego drops prototype blocks made of recycled plastic bottles as they "didn't reduce carbon emissions"
15 votes -
Crops at risk as coronavirus lockdown grounds bees
15 votes -
The case for making low-tech 'dumb' cities instead of 'smart' ones
15 votes -
Is anyone else interested in (or actively pursuing) meat from more ethical and sustainable sources?
I consider both industrial meat production and veganism to be sub-optimal across all dimensions. I've recently jumped into this growing niche market for more sustainable and ethical meat. It's a...
I consider both industrial meat production and veganism to be sub-optimal across all dimensions. I've recently jumped into this growing niche market for more sustainable and ethical meat. It's a little more pricey, unless you buy in bulk (e.g. 1/4 to full cow at a time), but I think it's worth it in the end.
I'm looking to share sources of info and network of producers/farms in this regard. Allan Savory has the Savory Institute which I found to be a good start. Though FYI there have been back-and-forth essays written about the criticism and defense of these practices (too many to post here but easy to find in the two above links).
I found one local family-operated farm that practices e.g. "organic" (in this case no herb/pest/fungi-cide) farming (crops for the animals), legitimate free-roaming chickens and sustainable land management that allows soil and ecology equilibration (reducing fertilizer use and subsequent runoff). Plus, buying and directly supporting local farmers and ranchers is always a plus!
EDIT: I foresee this thread being hijacked towards a discussion about how "meat is bad" and how we eat too much meat etc. I am being narrow here because I want to be pragmatic, rather than opine on global economics and dietary needs.
15 votes -
Why soil is disappearing from farms
15 votes -
If human population stops rising or decreases, what will be the negative effects for people?
From the environmental standpoint shrinking of human population is often quoted to have desirable effects, and that's reasonable. But from the point of view of our daily lives and functioning of...
From the environmental standpoint shrinking of human population is often quoted to have desirable effects, and that's reasonable. But from the point of view of our daily lives and functioning of the human society, what negatives could we then expect? (I mean a soft decline due to lower birth rates, not some abrupt events.)
For example, with smaller population fewer music albums could be made every year than some time before, and people would maybe feel less inspired and satisfied. Less scientific research, less choices for relationships... and maybe other things? Would being more technically advanced compensate for the issues? Won't we feel ourselves in oblivion and romanticize the "numerous" past?
15 votes -
SolarPunk vs CyberPunk: Our cities' last hope?
14 votes -
How to make biomass energy sustainable again: Coppicing, pollarding, and hedgerows
14 votes -
It’s time to be honest about seafood
14 votes -
How a grocery store's plan to shame customers into using reusable bags backfired
14 votes -
Steven Pinker’s ideas are fatally flawed
14 votes -
Mondelez cuts ties with twelve palm oil suppliers, citing deforestation
14 votes