When the last Hanukkah candle is extinguished, we will shift our attention to Christmas. Since the wise men laid down their wares at baby Jesus’ feet in Bethlehem, Christians (and atheists and agnostics and many in between) have demonstrated their love and consideration for friends and family through gifts. Theoretically.

In reality, this tradition has evolved into a cacophony of  registers blowing smoke from burning cash. So people in the green world have been calling for more meaningful giving: fair trade items, homemade art, or experiences versus things because only a gift that has been created with a wholesome spirit, from the cradle to the grave, can be truly loving. Which is why we think blue jeans may just be the most unloving gift of all.

Post Gold Rush fever, in 1872, a poor tailor named David Jacob approached Levi Strauss, by then a prominent member of San Francisco’s Jewish community.

He had designed a sturdy pair of pants but could not afford to get them patented. Levi shared the patent and turned those pants into the most famous article of clothing on the planet: jeans.

But the Bavarian merchant was a good guy who insisted that his employees call him Levi, not Mr. Strauss. He was so well respected, in fact, that the city of San Francisco declared the day of his funeral a business holiday so that his admirers could attend. The business has remained in the family, but if Levi’s ghost could speak, what would he say about the state of jean production today?

According to Greenpeace, Xintang, China is the “jeans capital of the world.” 40% of jeans sold in the United States are produced here in factories large and small. Everyone in the family helps – from small children who snip threads after school to their mothers and fathers.

Arguably, the industry provides jobs for people who might otherwise not have one. But residents of Xintang pay a hefty toll with the destruction of their habitat and health.

The process to create those sexy whitewashed denims requires several chemically intensive washes, while fabric printing and dyeing requires help from our friends cadmium, lead, and mercury.

In tests conducted in water and sediments surrounding the factories, Greenpeace discovered traces of cadmium, chromium, mercury, lead, and copper in 17 out of 21 samples. One sample contained 128 times China’s legal level of  cadmium.

That means that 260 million pairs of pants distributed each year contain traces of potentially harmful chemicals. And because of poor environmental regulations, the wastewater from factories is washed into Xintang’s local river, which in turns spills darkly into the Pearl River Delta.

“Everyone says that people who work in dyeing and washing have reproductive and fertility problems. My cousin once worked in a dyeing plant. He died of pleurisy,” Lin Zhixin, a migrant worker from Sichuan, told Greenpeace.

Spending money on products that cause this kind of destruction directly sanctions the process by which they are created. Why not spend your money on gifts created locally and in environmental and social harmony?

Your loved one will no doubt feel the warmth and factory owners may be inspired to clean up their act if their bottom line depends on it.

After we published this story, the Levi Strauss communications division contacted us with this statement:

At Levi Strauss & Co., we deeply care about how we make our products and the impact they have on the environment. Our company does not work with any factories in Xintang or Gurao, China, the towns featured in the Greenpeace report.

:: Greenpeace

Friendlier eco-fashion:

Ana Seco Teaches Her Grandmother’s Eco-Fashion Techniques

PopLove Designs Brings Upcycled Eco Chic Fashion to Tel Aviv

Zolaykha Sherzad Resurrects Traditional Afghan Crafts

The post Thinking About Giving The Gift Of Jeans? Please Think Again appeared first on Green Prophet.

In the short-term, electric vehicles (EVs) aren’t so sustainable. Although they reduce carbon emitted from individual vehicles to basically zero, they still require electricity, the bulk of which in most countries is produced by burning carbon-emitting fuels.

They also require unfriendly batteries that are not easily disposed. But once electricity is generated from solar and wind power and appropriate recycling solutions are created, EVs could go a long way to reducing city din and smog.

But there’s more. A significant challenge is getting enough of a charge to make EVs practical. Modern drivers are accustomed to being able to travel long distances, stop, fuel up, and drive on. But recharging EV batteries requires an investment that tests our time-starved society. As a solution, this past April Better Place inaugurated a battery switch program for a Tokyo taxi fleet. Following their success, San Francisco plans to implement the same.

According to a Business Wire press release issued by Better Place, the taxi operators and car sharing programs will include:

Yellow Cab Cooperative, Yellow Checker Cab Inc.; Regional and state agencies: Bay Area Air Quality Management District Consumer and EV organizations: Plug-in America, AAA Northern California;
Leading regional business/community organizations: Silicon Valley Leadership Group, Bay Area Council, Bay Area Climate Collaborative, Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network, and others; San Francisco Public Utilities Commission.

The Jerusalem Post reports that it’s good to start an EV program with taxis since they are always on the go (sending dirty plumes into the atmosphere), but this is also why they need a quick electric fix.

And though Better Place offers a variety of charging solutions, teaming up with GE in some cases and including a station that talks drivers through a more efficient charge, taxi drivers running their meter need something swifter still.

So Better Place designed zippy, unmanned switching stations. This is how The Jerusalem Post describes the process:

Battery switch stations are like gas stations for electric cars. The driver rolls onto a platform, where the battery is removed by an automated robotic system and replaced with a new one. Better Place’s station can switch a battery in just over a minute – shorter than the time it takes to refuel an internal combustion car.

This system has served Tokyo well. In three months, EVs from Japan’s largest taxi company, Nihon Kotsu Co., drove over 25,000 miles using the battery switch program. North America’s Better Place Vice President Jason Wolf told the paper:

The battery switch model is gaining momentum globally. Our Tokyo EV taxi program has proven to be an example to major metropolitan areas around the world, and we are pleased that the Metropolitan Transportation Commission recognized this and the Bay Area is taking a leadership position in the US.

By the end of next year, Better Place will expand it’s commercial EV deployments to Israel, Denmark, and Canberra, Australia.

Exchanging batteries is a great solution for commercial vehicles. Can individuals get free switching too?

:: Jerusalem Post

More on Better Place:

Better Place Gets a “Charge” With GE Partnership

Better Place Founder Shai Agassi Heads to China for Summer Davos Economic Forum

Denmark Prepares to (Slowly) Enter Electric Car Network

The post San Francisco Taxis Make The Switch To Better Place Electric Vehicles appeared first on Green Prophet.