I want to tell you the story about Earthawear - how it came to be and what we're about...but before we get to that, I need to fill in the blanks for you regarding the business end of things....the "official" mission and our definition of "sustainability." What Earthawear is – our Mission Statement Earthawear is a business offering apparel and other products promoting positive behavioral habits that support sustainability and environmental awareness. By wearing and/or displaying our products, people on the streets of the world will be encouraged and educated with simple ideas that can make a positive difference.  Our Definition of Sustainability Social, economic, and environmental behaviors which preserve and maintain our global community. Policies and procedures which honor human being’s rights to a safe workplace and a livable wage. Sustainability at its best, considers all available resources to be utilized in a manner of cooperation, conservation, and balance whereby we meet current needs without compromising future generation’s ability to meet theirs. ___________________ Our Story OK, now that the "official" business is taken care of...here's the story... Roll back the clock to the late ‘60s and early ‘70s…earth shoes, peace, and hippies. I was one of those guys. But somehow life happened. My dreams of being energy-independent, a breakaway from “the system” somehow faded into the rush of life. I gardened, chopped and heated with wood (which we now know contributes to brown clouds - but still, ya gotta love an open fire on occasion), and did a few “earthy” things - but life continued to take little pieces of those early simpler idealistic values until one day I woke up and realized I was a different man. __________________ Those earlier ears and eyes tuned into some modern day issues: fossil fuel usage issues that lead to greenhouse gases and global warming high gas prices poor water quality limited water quantities resulting from urban sprawl and over-population manufacturing that rushed to places that didn’t value people and/or the environment It was time to stop and reconsider where we as a people are going and how we are treating the earth and its people. How can we, individually, in small contributions, make a real difference? Lynard Skynard’s “Simple Man” would play in my Ipod and touch the heart of that guy I used to be. A 4-day solo motorcycle ride in the fall of 2008 through the Smokey Mountains provided time away from the noise of everyday living that allowed for some much needed peace and personal reflection. The time came to take stock of where I am, where I came from, and how I want to spend the rest of my short time here on earth. The principle of mass/matter conservation Law of Physics: Mass of a closed system will remain constant, regardless of the processes acting inside the system. More simply, mass cannot be created or destroyed, although it may be rearranged (in space), and changed into different types of particles. This implies that for any chemical process in a closed system, the mass of the reactants must equal the mass of the products. Application: Every single thing we buy, manufacture, transport, and otherwise use is harvested or mined from the earth. Nothing is created, or destroyed, “from cradle to grave”. The materials that made up the components of the computer you are reading this story on, right down to the colors projected electronically on the screen, are an end-product produced from materials harvested from the earth. The truck that delivered it - consider its collective manufacturing - was made of steel from iron ore using coal and coking, the tires of petroleum, the glass from silica. Its fuel and lubricants were refined from petroleum; the roads that carried its cargo made from concrete or asphalt. You can expand this out for yourself, but think about it…the mattress you sleep on, the clothes you wear, the fuel source you cook with, the lights in your house, the electricity that powers those lights come from a powerplant, and the fuel that powers it, the wires that carry it…all harvested from the earth. And guess what…(in many cases) that harvesting / end-product consumption and usage / and ultimate disposal, come with a toxic price on the sustainability of earth and humankind. We hope you believe in the message enough to buy a shirt or other item and share the message. ___________________ “What can you do?” … Our tag line…. A list of suggestions folks can do to make a positive impact on how we, as humans, treat the earth. Most of our products will display a partial list of those behaviors. Some display something you may already be doing personally. If so, you may want to share it publicly. For example: “I recycle…what can you do?” As our company and product lines grow, we’ll offer more personal statements. The “what can you do?” tagline simply asks the question…what can you do to contribute a positive behavioral change for planet earth’s sustainable environment. The products are walking billboards, a memory jogger, an idea page… If you’re one of the thousands of folks who believe humanity needs a little encouragement in healing our planet, please buy one of our products and display that conviction publicly. We believe a little awareness may just catch on and actually make a difference. Why not all organic clothing? Great question given the nature of our message and business. Organic materials of construction are clearly more aligned with the idea of an eco-friendly company.      There are actually two answers that address the question: The Message - We know that commercially grown, bleached cotton is hard on the sustainability of the environment. However, part one of our much-debated answer lies in the fact that the message is important enough that we have to make them affordable for the consumer. Affordability – Organic clothing is clearly more expensive to produce and purchase on the wholesale level. The end result is a much higher priced retail item. Not everyone can, or will, pay a premium price for organic goods. We will offer both lines so that the message remains affordable for most folks - and the purist can opt to remain true to his or her convictions by purchasing the organic line. One other note of importance – The question of “sweatshop” manufacturing has come up regarding where and how our commercial cotton shirts are produced before the earthawear screenprinting takes place. We have, and continue to, research this issue. Our full intent is to only purchase shirt “blanks” from (companies) manufacturing facilities that meet conditions, requirements, and membership in the Fair Labor Association (FLA) http://www.fairlabor.org/. Personal note: Have I done everything right? Absolutely not… Am I proud of my negative impacts? Absolutely not… Will I do everything right going forward? Most likely not… However, I do know I can: Drive less Plant a garden and support local farmers Adjust my thermostat Use CFL bulbs Pay my bills online Add insulation Buy only fair trade coffees Walk when I can Renovate rather than build new Drive slower Educate our youth about the earth Buy sustainable/biodegradable products Use less chemicals Plant a tree Vacation closer to home Recycle Upcycle Freecycle VOTE Advocate world peace Close my fireplace damper when not in use Avoid the drive-thru Take shorter showers Ride my motorcycle Utilize rainbarrels Consider packaging Consume less Don’t litter Help my employer adopt a greener philosophy Maintain my vehicles Use both sides of most every piece of paper Reduce vampire energy usage And many more….what can you do?.... Thank you for stopping by. Together, a little at a time, we can all make a difference. It’s our planet, it’s our responsibility.