All blog posts in Eco Speak - Shameless Magazine - your daily dose of fresh feminism for girls and trans youth

All posts in Eco Speak

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- Eco Speak
- Event Listings
Toronto event: UberSWAP clothing swap

January 9, 2012 • Julia Horel

Shameless is excited to be attending this event – look for Julia and Sarah at the Shameless table and come say hi, buy a magazine and check out some merch!

PLEASE NOTE: The venue has a few stairs leading to the entrance and is not wheelchair-accessible.
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Join 100+ stylish scavengers in Leslieville for the next edition of Uber-SWAP, our used & vintage clothing exchange! (Facebook event page here.)

Expect a thriftshop-style swap boasting a tempting stash of gently used, vintage & even some new clothing, accessories & footwear.

Bring a bag, take a bag!
NOTE: The main focus is on women’s fashions, but men’s items are also very welcome (no kid’s clothing or toys, please).

Save-the-date & please help spread the word re: this eco-fab & frugal event!

Saturday, January 21
11am-2pm
Queen St East Presbyterian Church
947 Queen St East at Carlaw, Toronto, ON

ADMISSION:
$6 for Advance/Early-Bird tickets + your swap loot (limited number avail.)
OR
$10 at the door
(+ your bag of gently used/vintage clothing)

Note: Those who contribute their loot in advance will be entered into a draw for a $50 Nathalie-Roze & Co. store credit!
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UBER-SWAP RULES:

1. Participants are expected to contribute a minimum of 1 tote bag of decent cast-offs (8 to 10 items). Swap loot must be dropped off by Jan, 20th, in order to purchase a $6 advance ticket (vs. $10 at the door day-of).

2. No damaged or dirty items, please ~ only bring clean/decent quality clothing & accessories to the SWAP

3. Each participant can leave with 1 large tote or 2 grocery bags of wearables (a significant haul per person!). Bags will be provided.

(Nathalie-Roze Fischer)

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SWEET CHARITY:
1. All leftover items will be donated to Double-Take, the Yonge Street Mission’s thrift shop at 310 Gerrard St. East (near Parliament), which raises money for various East-End social service programs.
2. A portion of the admission fee will benefit our underwear drive for Red Door Shelter & South Riverdale Health Centre.
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Key Swappables:
~ Tons of clothing, shoes, bags & accessories (incl. some vintage & maternity items)
~ A table of fabric & craft supplies
~ A few *new* indie designer gems hidden in the piles from our shop (yay!)
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What You Can Expect:
~ clothing & accessories divided into categories (eg. tops, shoes, coats, etc.)
~ a bit of chaos, but lots of fun too
~ mirrors on-site, but no private change rooms, so please dress accordingly (wear leggings or layers)
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DO BRING this kind of stuff:
~ jackets ~ tops ~ sweaters ~ skirts ~ jeans ~ dresses ~ hats ~ scarves ~ bags ~ PJs ~ shoes & boots ~ belts ~ active wear ~ purses ~ pants
~ costume jewellery ~ fabric & craft supplies

PLEASE DO NOT BRING:
~ home decor ~ books & mags ~ baby or kid stuff ~ furniture ~ toys
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QUESTIONS?
Feel free to post any queries on the event wall or call the shop at:
416-792-1699
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See you at Uber-SWAP on January 21st for some eco-friendly fun!
Bye for now,
Nathalie-Roze, Ashleigh, Shannon, Laura & Anneke :]
An Indigenous Feminist Reminder of Women and Environmental Justice

February 24, 2011 • Erin Konsmo

In anticipation of the book launch of Jessica Yee’s book, Feminism FOR REAL: Deconstructing the academic industrial complex of feminism, I want to keep it “real” and give a reminder of what this deconstruction will mean if taken seriously. To provide this reminder, I have chosen to point out the patriarchy and racism that is still so pervasive in the environmental movement.

As an Indigenous Feminist, one of the links I, as well as many Indigenous women across the world, see is between reproductive health and environmental justice. Simultaneously I am angry about the lack of recognition of this link within most environmental discourse, both mainstream and Indigenous.

One example that recently came out which highlights this link for Indigenous women across the world is the Declaration for Health, Life and Defense of Our Lands, Rights and Future Generations, provided to me by co-rapporteur Jessica Yee.

As a student studying Environmental Studies, it bothers me that in every class I attend, so many people are surprised when I make this connection. When I drop the word abortion in my International Environmental Law course, I immediately get the feeling that I’m alone in the room. But how can one talk about sustainable development without recognizing the history of abortion amongst Aboriginal communities? It’s insulting to hear in environmental classes that the idea of any form of sustainability is a new concept. Indigenous women have in numerous ways understood the relationship between resources and the amount of mouths to feed in the community.

Most discussions around the environment and risk are void of the voices of Indigenous women, including Indigenous midwives. Indigenous midwives were environmental-reproductive stewards! While working as midwives they had some of the most extensive knowledge of medicines to use during birth. Just like understanding the lifecycle of children, they understood the lifecycle that so closely resembled that of mother earth’s seasons. Métis Elder Tom McCallum describes how his grandmother directly linked women’s reproductive health to the Earth when she would travel for a woman’s birth: “If she saw some medicines, she would pick the medicines, and hang them up and then pick them up on her way back. She only took those things that she needed for that delivery she was going to go and do.” From across Turtle Island, midwives continued these links: “Anishnawbe babies were born into a moss bag and the mother was given a broth of salmon or whitefish to stimulate lactation”(NAHO, p.13).

If the precautionary principle tells us that states are not to do anything environmentally that may cause negative impacts, would it not be crucial to include the voices of our Indigenous midwives? They critically understand how the the loss of medicines or the effects of pollutants in salmon will affect the mothering process. Our Indigenous midwives understand risk, the importance of protecting the land through every step of the mothering process from pregnancy to birth, and the values that are passed onto further generations. If our midwives pass on Indigenous concepts of respecting our environment and keeping it healthy for the next seven generations, should they not be central to environmental discourse?

They absolutely need to be. Otherwise, the ideas of risk will be greatly slanted away from our women and our future genererations.

I encourage all feminists, all environmentalists, and academics to attend the book launch of Feminism FOR REAL in Toronto and to order your copy online.
- Eco Speak
Safe cosmetics campaign targets Canadian girls

April 12, 2010 • Jenna Owsianik

Photo courtesy of FemmeToxic.

Many of the popular resources available on cosmetic products and toxic ingredients come from the United States. They include some useful databases and backgrounders, but their conclusions seem at times periphery to us Canadians. Up here, we regulate our cosmetics differently!

You may be happy to then know that FemmeToxic, a Montreal-based campaign for safe cosmetics, launched last summer. Its goal: to inform Canadian girls and young women about the chemicals found in cosmetic ingredients.

FemmeToxic is hosted by Breast Cancer Action Montreal, a cancer prevention organization. The Girls Action Foundation also partners the project, and operates to promote girls “to speak out, build skills, and create action on issues that are important and real to them.”

“Youth specifically are more susceptible to toxins in the environment, at that stage in development, so they decided to launch this project,” Angela Day said, the safe cosmetics campaign assistant.

Originally posted on TheThunderbird.ca. Read the rest here.
- Eco Speak
Eco-beauty resources

March 25, 2010 • Jenna Owsianik

Sometimes trying to figure out how to find safe personal care products and what ingredients to avoid can be overwhelming. Depending on where you look, you might even find conflicting information that will only aggravate the headache you’ve developed in the process of your search. Below, I’ve provided a list of helpful resources that break down the details for us in a palatable way.

Health Canada’s Consumer Product Safety website on Cosmetics and Personal Care. This website is crucial if you want to know how cosmetics are classified and regulated in Canada. It also provides a “Hotlist” of ingredients banned from use.

Guide to Less Toxic Products developed by the Environmental Health Association of Nova Scotia.
This site compiles an extensive list of common hazardous chemicals found in beauty products and explains why they are problematic. It also ranks and recommends a wide range of natural product brands for eye and face make-up, hair care, feminine hygiene and much more.

Originally posted on TheThunderbird.ca. Read the rest here.
- Eco Speak
Earth Hour: March 27, 8:30pm

March 22, 2010 • Julia Horel

This Saturday, March 27 at 8:30pm (local time), people around the world will be turning off their lights for one hour in support of climate change awareness.

But that’s just the beginning. Every hour, Canadians are taking small steps to lessen their impact on the environment. From hanging your clothes to dry to taking transit to work, those small steps add up to huge changes for the better.
– Earth Hour 2010 Canada

What do you think about Earth Hour? Will you be participating? Is this an effective form of action, or it is an excuse to pay attention for one hour per year and then ignore the problems? What else do you do to lessen your impact on the environment?
- Eco Speak
- In My Opinion...
Health risks: Parabens in beauty products

March 19, 2010 • Jenna Owsianik

What’s in your make-up kit? And how many of those beauty products do you use in a day? Give or take a few products, my usual morning regime involves body lotion, tinted moisturizer, mascara, hair mold, and sometimes bronzer or eyeliner if I’m feeling so inclined. I wouldn’t be surprised if a lot of other women, particularly young women, also reach my daily average.

What concerns me is that most beauty products contain parabens, a type of preservative used to extend the shelf life of cosmetics and prevent them from developing mold. But, what concerns me more are recent studies suggesting parabens may pose human health risks.

Originally posted on TheThunderbird.ca. Read the rest here.
- Eco Speak
- In My Opinion...
In search of safe beauty products

March 17, 2010 • Jenna Owsianik

Picture from flickr user kuuipo1207

The living’s green and pretty in Vancouver, again named “the most liveable city in the world.” Just about every cosmetic product comes in a greenwashed or health-friendly option: there’s paraben-free lotion, deodorant without aluminum, and nail polish sans formaldehyde! I’ve spent a year trying to pick safe, personal care products that work, and I’m still confused about which ones I should avoid.

Sarah Dickson, the body care buyer at Capers Whole Foods Market in Kitsilano, puts it to me simply, “I’d like to be able to eat all my make-up if I had to.” Our bodies absorb most of what we put on our skin, and we can’t always break down that material she explains. If it’s not safe to eat, don’t put it on you is the idea.

The problem is many people don’t understand the meaning of the often hard to pronounce substances found on long ingredients lists, let alone their potentially harmful effects.

Originally posted on TheThunderbird.ca. Read the rest here.
- Arts
- Eco Speak
Write a Play NOW!

March 8, 2010 • Anna Leventhal

Writers and aspiring playwrights take note: NOW!, the by-youth for-youth sustainability organization, is hosting a national playwriting competition for youth. From the NOW! newsletter:

Are you an innovator passionate about the environment? Do you want a challenge? Do you love writing? Enter the Act NOW! National Playwriting Competition!

Who? Dreamers and change-makers (Ages 14-26, divided into junior and senior categories)
What? The Act NOW! Playwriting Competition! Write a short play on sustainability.
When? Deadline: March 31st 2010 (At the end of this month!)
Where? All across Canada.
Why? Make a difference and push your creative boundaries.

Plus, cash prizes ($500 for each winner), and the opportunity for your play to be performed all over Canada and filmed and aired by Sustainability TV, to an estimated audience of 10,000 people! Quality plays will be published in a free online sustainability play database for change-makers to ripple sustainability innovations.

Check out the NOW! website for more information and to enter.
- Eco Speak
Muppets Spreading the Eco Word

May 16, 2009 • Desirée O

* image courtesy of The Muppets.

Kermit the Frog may be famous for singing “It’s Not Easy Being Green”, but in this fun little video from back in the ‘80s, Kermit explains how simple it is to be ‘green’… in the eco-friendly sense.

Check out Kermit and Fozzie chillin’ and talkin’ about the importance of respecting our world’s water. There is no embed code to add the video into this post, so click here to watch it on the GreenTV website.

And how could I possibly write a post about The Muppets and not include anything about Miss Piggy? Click here for some eco tips from the divine diva swine.
- Body Politics
- Eco Speak
An Environmental (& Cost) Question. Period.

December 20, 2008 • Desirée O

Julia Schopick from The Keeper, Inc. was awesome enough to leave us a comment in a recent Shameless Women post to let us know that they’ve put together a page on their site to show the average environmental and financial cost of using tampons.

“It gives a terrific visual representation of the amount of WASTE that is created by ONE WOMAN’S disposable menstrual products in one month, one year, 10 years, and 40 years (the menstruating lifetime of the average woman)!

Please take a look. I think you’ll agree that these photos are real eye-openers. If only more women would realize how much waste they are foisting on the environment when they use disposable tampons and pads.”

Check out how much waste is produced in just one year:
courtesy of The Keeper, Inc.

Think that’s a lot? You won’t believe how much waste is produced in 10 years … OR 40! Make sure to check out the comparison pics (with info) here.

For an alternative to tampons, you can find out more about the awesome products that The Keeper, Inc. has to offer that are “economical, efficient, comfortable, and environment-friendly”.

Thanks for the tip, Julia!