Is it more ethical to...(a thread for dilemmas)

[twentypence]

Mine is:

Is it more ethical to buy things from the $2 recycled clothing warehouse (no new stuff created, but don't know how it was made) or to buy brand new specialist ethical stuff such as people tree?

I have been solving the problem so far by buying from recycled clothing warehouse, but only buying NZ made products, but that means I end up buying what I can, rather than what I need - and so gives me a new dilemma.

I think both ways have their merits. Or you can be like me and buy about 1 new item a year

I think second hand is more ethical - the harm is done now, and you are preventing the stuff going into landfill. And even the most ethical producer will have a carbon footprint for new goods, but it will be minimal for second hand stuff.

I do local food rather than organic as I live right next to a market garden with a shop, so I figure that walking to get veggies that have travelled around 300 yards is way more ethical than getting an organic box delivered.

Eating seasonally has made an enormous difference to ds's skin and allergies so I'm wondering if much of the improvement people report when they go organic is really just eating things for one month of the year and then having 11 months off.

I think both washable and biodegradable nappies have a place to keep us sane.

I am trying to buy ds's school uniform secondhand to make up for the fact that it is made in china and the company that makes it has made 40 people redundant yesterday.

What about ethical bras. I used to buy Bendon as made in NZ - but they went offshore so there isn't a local manufacturer to support. I always imagine bras being made in really horrible conditions for some reason.

That might be ethical, but it's not wise. If you had seen my norks you would understand.

Triumph's ethical and environmental statements sound good for a 'mainstream' company www.triumph.com/uk/

I'm stuck with Royce as they're the only ones available in my size - no ethical policies at all - but sometimes I can find one on Ebay that someone bought in the wrong size. There are some OK looking ones from Greenfibres, the Natural Store and Ciel in a pretty narrow range of sizes.

I also have an ethical lingerie dilemma. I only buy black knickers and then, about once a year, I boil all of them in two packets of black Dylon to turn them back from grey to black. Some of the are at least 10 years old. But I'd never really considered the environmental cost of the dye. Would I be better off replacing them with some ethical ones more often instead?

could you not get natural dye?

I think some people on here dye wool & they might know?

Buying second-hand is ALWAYS better. Whatever environmental or social costs are involved have already been incurred, and buying second-hand means not creating any new demand. Even if something is the most ethically grown, processed, manufactured and marketed product available, at some point along the way it is using up STUFF, and we are running out of stuff to use.