Where do YOU work?

Okay, so I have to go easy on myself. I don't work directly for an environmental agency or non-profit that I can feel all hunkydory about, but it could be worse! I work for a locally owned business (see Local First for other local businesses), Worlds Apart, which is good for the environment because we are located in established parts of town rather than adding to sprawl, because we choose goods from local vendors/craftsmen which decreases shipping. It's not a lot, but it's something. And I feel like since I started working here in college we've improved some things. We have a recycling bin at all three of our locations now (obvious, but not present before!). This is especially important because of the amount of cardboard that would otherwise go to waste (shipping containers). We're lucky that one of our locations is just a few doors down from a UPS store which accepts our styrofoam peanuts for recycling (and if you bring yours in, they'll give you a $1 coupon off your next shipment with them!). We also donate clothing that doesn't sell once or twice a year to local charities. The Home store carries teak furniture from Indonesia which is grown sustainably on plantations rather than harvesting old growth rainforests, and some of it is reclaimed teak. So you might have a table that is made of an old carved door and some old parts of cabinets. I think that's pretty cool. As my mom is the buyer for the Home store, I have been encouraging her to buy more and more environmentally friendly goods. We have organic cotton baby clothes, reusable shopping bags of all sorts, locally made silk scarves from Pamela Mattei, and more. If you're near, here's a coupon for you to use before Mothers Day.

These other pictures are from 2006, but still fun examples of some of the things we have at the store.





Where do YOU work, and what things there can you be proud of?