My friend Mila cares about being green, being organic, being healthy. And I love her for that. Shopping today should be more than an exchange of money. We should care about its origins, its environmental effect after we use/eat/wear it, etc.
However, why do things as essential as ensuring basic worker rights, and healthy and environmentally friendly origins have to be expensive? When I ask, most people say “I would like to be more responsible about what I buy, but it is not cheap”. And our pockets are not going through the best of times, right?
This week I decided to see how expensive it is to dress in a green way, with products that have been produced in a fair environment, using recycled goods, or using materials that won't damage our environment. I found Terra Plana.
Terra Plana sells shoes made from recycled materials. They ensure the people involved in making them were fairly treated, and they use vegetable dyes and other chemicals that don’t harm the environment.
Are they expensive? Ok, you won't find a pair of shoes for 8 euros (or 5 pounds), but I wouldn’t say they are expensive. They are good quality shoes and accesories, and prices range from anything like 30 or 40 pounds to 120 pounds (for a pair of fantastic leather boots).
Where can I find them? You can shop online (they ship world-wide) or go to any of their stores (see their handy website store-locator)
Picture: Terra Plana