Start with the simple thing to do, help out the less fortunate human beings and the starving children worldwide by donating. You don't have to break your bank to do it, just help as much as you can afford. It's really that simple.

Just a couple samples:

www.christianchildrensfund.org
http://www.cncf.org

 

I've always been semi ethical about what I buy. Some examples
I didn't buy grapes when Chavez and the farm laborers were boycotting grapes.
I didn't buy Nestle's products when Nestles was encouraging sales of powdered infant formula in third world countries--because the water in third world countries is so bad, babies using formula had a 40 to 60% fatality rate vs much lower for breast fed babies.
Now I don't shop at Walmart, because I don't like their employment policies. I also buy clothing made in the USA or Mexico because I don't want to support child slave labor, as practiced in some Asian countries. I buy organic produce, but that is really more for my health than the health of our environment. I practice conservation of resources a bit, I like Christmas lights, so I decorate even though that is a waste of electricy. I drive my S2000 instead of a hybrid or a ecobox. Except for those two indulgences I am a good conserationist. The diamond issue doesn't impact me because I don't buy diamonds.

 

Not that donating to charities isn't a great thing to do (I think most of us probably do it to a degree), but I've always been stuck in this dilemma - a lot of charities don't get at the root causes of the problems. So we need to put efforts into meeting immediate needs and tackling the causes of those needs. Then the problems seem to multiply to me.

 

i feel like charities exist to ease the conscience of the american people. it's the easy way out. do you follow ur money and see what it does or do u give it to them like a mutal fund and hope it spreads some joy? if u did follow it, u'd probably see it going into some fat cat's pocket. but for all our cases, i hope im wrong.

 

I totally agree with your statement. I donate every now and then to charities but I am very skeptical as to whether or not my money is benefiting the right people. It terrifies me that some greedy bastard is pocketing my money quietly instead of forwarding it to a family in a third world country. If there was a definite answer to this question, I think I'd be a more charitable person.

 

It's too hard these days to buy consumer goods without hurting the good or perpetuating something evil. Even peeps against buying clothes made by child-labor China gave in, as most all companies use East Asian countries. You could try really really hard and buy used clothes from the "good ol'days" or only buy from 1 brand that continues to pay their workers fairly, but it's really pretty hard. The price and variety is just so different.

 

you can make a good start by not getting caught up in consumer culture.

Don't buy a new cell phone just because the new one is new. Don't buy crap that wears out in a year or so just because it is cheap. By the same token, don't buy things just because of the price tag - pay attention to where your money goes and who benefits. Try to spend your money with local establishments so your money stays in the community. Volunteer to work a soup kitchen or something once a month just to do something for someone else, and to spend some time with people who you might not get to know otherwise (other volunteers as much as customers). Don't use senseless appliances like electric can openers. Pay attention to your electric bill, and see if there are simply ways to lower it. Do the same with water, especially if the tap water in your area comes from a well or underground aquifer. Don't litter. Be nice to other drivers and people on the street. Say please and thank you. Don't fill a closet with things you never use. Pay attention to how and where the food you buy is produced. Feel free to write a letter on paper, and then mail it using a stamp. Don't begrudge people their success, or lack thereof. Recycle aluminum, glass, and paper. Try to make people's jobs easier when possible.

Humans are imperfect by definition. Don't abuse the priviledge, and accept failure in other people. It's easy to say "no-one cares, why should I?" but the bottom line is you should care regardless of other people. The upside is when someone notices that you are making some kind of effort, they will be less likely to think no-one cares.

 

I see lots and lots of waste everywhere. I try to be semi conscience about it, but i am guilty of wasting gas at 8mpg at the track, etc....

I had posted about "office temperature" sometime mid summer. there appears to be lots and lots of wasted energy just in office heating / cooling. Ours is too cool in the summer and sometimes too hot in the winter (or people run space heaters, etc..)....

I recycle all paper, aluminum and plastic at my work. I am the only one out of 270+ people. Everyone else just throws everything in the trash.

I assume recycling helps to a degree (since the recycle guy comes to my house, i just take my work stuff home with me). Obviously driving 2 gallons of gas worth to the recycle center with a handful of stuff wouldn't really be helping the world.

I rarely contribute to charities based on what everyone else has already stated..... so the CEO of the United way makes $$$$$$$ and knowing I just paid some of that sux.

It would be nice to say that 1 person mattered, but in the scheme of things I kind of doubt it, unless that person had a great impact at getting others to follow, but that doesn't happen often.

 

Doesn't pretty much everything we throw away get recycled at the garbage disposal company?

 

It varies from place to place. . . even then, the act of recycling is semi-wasteful. While yes, it saves some resources, it sometimes takes as much fuel (oil and/or electricity) to turn the recycled goods back into something useful. . .

. . . but that's for now. Costs on those things decrease over time.

I do think the addage "Think Globally Act Locally" can and does apply to this thread.

In terms of many of my T-shirts, they are made here or in Canada in sweatshop-free environments (a lot of them are concert tees or funny tees, so the artists take an intense interest in their sourcing).

In terms of gas. . . keep voting for public transit; and make sure your gas taxes go to what you voted for!

In terms of diamonds. . . see the diamond thread. . . but I will say, make sure that what you value is truly the value you think it is.