January 10, 2025 • 40 mins
Your Shopping Superpower provides an insightful guide and strategies for shoppers to align the contents in their carts with their personal values. Your Shopping Superpower explores this important question and offers a comprehensive guide that navigates toward positive and sustainable shopping practices by providing pragmatic tips, tools and revealing how our habits can help reduce climate change, support companies with equitable workplace conditions, and foster diverse, local businesses. Broken into categories including People, Planet, Community, and Health, Diane Osgood expands on key issues regarding climate degradation, labor exploitation, products containing carcinogens and toxins, and the importance of supporting local, women-owned, and minority-owned businesses while covering an array of products that include food, fashion, gifts, household items, and personal care. Addressing shoppers’ doubts about whether consumer choices truly have an impact and their concerns about costs and accessibility, Osgood shows how making these easy changes fosters happiness. With helpful diagrams and firsthand stories on climate and social injustice, Your Shopping Superpower informs and guides shoppers on how to: Implement one change per weekIdentify trustworthy certifications, rating systems, and appsDetect greenwashing and other misleading marketingDetermine which purchases to switch for maximum impactHandle and approach choices that aren’t easy or affordable By changing what we buy, we can initiate the change in our economy's environmental footprint and social impact. To enact change, we must start simple; it’s about progress, not perfection.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:03):
Hello everybody, and welcome to the Best Ever You show.
I'm your host, Elizabeth Hamilton Garno. Happy New Year. This
is our first year for twenty twenty five, and we
have a tremendously wonderful guest with us. Her name is
Diane Ozgood. She is a new author with HCI. Our
friends over there at HCI at HCI books dot com.
Thank you so much. And your book is called Your
(00:26):
Shopping Superpower. Follow your values and better your world one
purchase at a time. Welcome Diane, Thank you.
Speaker 2 (00:34):
I'm so happy to be here and Happy New Year everyone.
Speaker 1 (00:37):
Yeah, so much fun. How exciting is it for you
to have your first book coming out in April?
Speaker 2 (00:43):
I'm thrilled. I also think the timing is fantastic. First
of all, Earth Day, What a great day to launch
a book that embraces environmental topics. But also, you know,
we're in an era of people trying to figure out, Look,
I want my best self heal, and I know what
I value and here is a way to live our
(01:07):
values a little bit more deeply. And I think it's
a really pertinent theme for this year.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
I love it now You're Shopping Superpower. It provides an
insightful guide and for an insightful guide and strategies for
shoppers to align the contents in their carts with their
personal values. Tell us what you mean by that.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
So you know, when we shop, our choices impact our health,
our communities, the environment, and the economy in some pretty
profound ways. You know, chances are you don't really want
your clothes stitch by slaves, or you're the way your
food is prepared to harm the environment and lead to
climate change, and you probably don't want to bring home
(01:51):
harmful chemicals that might harm your family. But unfortunately, some
of these things happen as unattended consequences of our choices.
And my approach is figure out what you really value
and go step by step, one change at a time,
(02:11):
and start making choices that really reflect the world that
you want. So, if you want a world where fairness
is experienced by more people, then maybe you'll choose to
look at who's under what conditions are my things being made?
What kind of things are going on in the labor market?
Are my things being made by sweatshops? Unfortunately, slavery is
(02:34):
still a terrible crime that happens in far too many places,
and many slaves are actually engaged with making things that
we purchase. And similarly, on the environment, you know many
people are concerned about climate change or ocean plastics. What
are some choices that I can make on things that
I normally buy. They can send a signal to the
(02:55):
market that hey, I actually care about the environment and
I want you company companies, X, Y, and Z to
care as well. So I'm going to switch and I'm
going to buy a different product that I feel is
trustworthy about its environmental performance.
Speaker 1 (03:13):
Nice do you do you have? While we're talking, I
forgot to ask you? What's your website that people can
go to?
Speaker 2 (03:21):
Oh? It's okay. So my website is just my name.
It's Diane Osgood dot com and that's d I A
N E O S G O O D dot com.
And there you'll choose to go to the book site
book part of it, and you'll see the book. You'll
(03:42):
see your shopping superpower places where you can pre order it,
as well as the Carbon Almanac. The other part of
my website is for my my consultancy business, where I
advise companies on how to make more ethical and sustainable products.
Speaker 1 (03:58):
That's that's fabulous. How long have you been How long
have you been in this business?
Speaker 2 (04:03):
Well, on a good day, I say I'm a real pioneer.
On a bad day, I say I'm basically a dinosaur,
meaning I've been around doing this work since before it
was a thing. I've been basically doing it since the
late eighties. I've had incredible privilege of creating myself a
career along with some extraordinary colleagues over many decades now
(04:26):
who have built this practice of helping companies perform and
produce goods and services in ways that are good for
people and good for the environment.
Speaker 1 (04:40):
You know, I've got just a child for you. Actually,
one of our four sons has a master's degree in
environmental science and he just got out of school. He
just got back from playing professional baseball in Germany. So
(05:00):
he's got an undergrad and environmental science, a master's degree
in environmental science, and then another master's degree in sports
industry management. And he's put and he's back now and
he's poking his nose around for a job. So do
you care if I connect you?
Speaker 2 (05:16):
He probably absolutely.
Speaker 1 (05:18):
He talks about what you're talking about all day long.
I was so excited to have you on.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Oh, fantastic, And I think that's an interesting proof point
and how the market's slowly changing, which is the younger
generations are more switched on to environmental issues and to
issues of equity and fairness in terms of everybody should
actually earn a living wage, and I think that's a
(05:43):
driving impetus for companies to perform much better in these areas. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
Yeah, he's very He's also very interested in sports sustainability
and the things that they're doing. He did I think
he did one of his one of his one of
the thesis was on the life of baseball and where
it goes and all these things really cool. So anyway, yeah,
I if you don't mind, I would love to connect
with him. His name's cam Garino.
Speaker 2 (06:12):
My pleasure, Yeah, pleasure.
Speaker 1 (06:14):
All right, we're going back to your book now. Just
as I saw your website and I was looking, I'm like, oh, yeah,
this is so cool. So who's the book for. If
you were gonna, if you were gonna have an ideal
person that you just would wish would pick up your
audience pick up your book and and you know, get
a bigger audience and write reviews on Amazon and all
(06:36):
these things, who's who are those people that you're you're
wishing for.
Speaker 2 (06:40):
It's you and your neighbor. So it's for people who
are aware of some of the problems that we face
in the world, and they really want to play a part,
but they don't know how, maybe a little skeptical, you know,
maybe a little bit like is that all greenwash? I
don't no. And they're willing to make some small changes,
(07:05):
changes that sometimes do cost more, but not necessarily and
many of the switches cost very very small amounts of
money more. And as you know, as I love to say,
will I spend thirty cents more for a chocolate bar
that I know has been produced in a way that
supports the environment and supports forest tree and pays the
(07:28):
cocoa farmer an equitable wage? You bet, I am. It's
the kind of person that will feel good about that
kind of decision. That's my ideal reader, And I bet
it is you, and I bet it's probably one of
your neighbors.
Speaker 1 (07:41):
Yeah, And how does intentional shopping protect the planet?
Speaker 2 (07:46):
What is that?
Speaker 1 (07:47):
What do you mean by that?
Speaker 2 (07:49):
So the planet's a big thing. Environment is a big thing,
and I break it down into five parts, so it's
more digestible. So I look at climate, biodiversity meaning the
diversity of species on the planet, some of them which
you know we just are in awe of because of
majesticy whops can't say that words. And you know, just
(08:13):
beautiful be it a flower or a bird species or
an elephant that just provokes awe And some of it
is just good. Soil health depends on biodiversity, so anyway,
but every's a second chunk. Then land use meaning are
we provoking deforestation? Are we rebuilding our soils? And then
water fresh water is a very much limited resource in
(08:36):
many parts of the world and in many parts of
the world where manufacturing happens. And then the fifth is waste.
This is such a huge issue. It doesn't go when
we say, oh, we'll throw it away. There isn't really
an old way. And so the book includes some strategies
to decrease waste, what to look for, how to understand
(08:58):
recycling a little bit better, and things like that.
Speaker 1 (09:02):
And I though, really is just like little on me
make a difference, you know, I see your dolphins story here,
and I kind of remember living that. I'm fifty five,
so I kind of I remember that pretty well. It
felt like a lot of people got together though on that.
Speaker 2 (09:19):
It was so let me tell the story. In the
rear late eighties early nineties, dolphins were consistently being caught
up in the fishing nets that large trollers were using
to catch tuna and as a large variety of speak
of fish and so this is called bycatch, and literally
(09:41):
millions of dolphins were perishing at the hands of as
by catch to fishing trolleys. To the folks out there
catching are two neat pretty disgusting. This was the first
first kind of environmental action I've gotten involved with. You know,
I was I was very young, and I was ready
(10:03):
to like storm the boats and rip up the nets.
And the nonprofit I was working for, the environmentalists, they's
just like, Nope, you're gonna write letters to consumers two
shoppers and ask them not to buy tuna until the
tuna companies change their way they fish. And I thought,
(10:23):
what I want to go do some direct actions, Like nope,
you're gonna write letters, and so we did. And I
thought it was a waste of time and my impatient self,
but lo and behold, less than a year later, the
tuna industries that the largest companies involved in Cantuna globally
(10:44):
surprised everyone and said, we're changing the way we buy tuna.
We will only buy tuna from fishing vessels that do
not use nets that harm dolphins. And the amazing thing
is they did that because one cent of shoppers had
changed their shopping habits. It was enough to catch their
(11:05):
attention and to write an environmental wrong one percent.
Speaker 1 (11:10):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (11:12):
So so the moral of the story is, we don't
know how many shop how many people have to change
behavior to provoke a big systems change like that, but
we know it's not very many. But the real kicker
is even if you chip away with it and you
don't see how company xchange, you don't see company exchanging
(11:34):
the way they manufacture whatever biscuits or tuna or chocolate
or clothing, you know you're doing your part. And what
I explained in the book is that's going to make
you happier. It's going to make you more content, because
you know, Elizabeth, as we as we live our best
selves and we live in alignment with our values, just
(11:57):
makes things easier. We're a little happier or more content
with what we buy. And so there's that our own
personal benefit, which is really important.
Speaker 1 (12:08):
What do you mean by the statement all the products
that we buy generate huge amounts of waste, carbon emissions,
unnecessary plastics, and may drive ocean pollution, deforestation, and biodiversity loss.
Speaker 2 (12:21):
Wow. Yeah, nothing like getting depressed. So it's just the
reality is there are no perfect products. Every product has
an impact the way it was made, the way it's
been transported, who sold it, how is that person treated.
I mean, if you just imagine a sweater, right, just
to imagine your favorite sweater. The wool that went into
(12:44):
it probably came from one country. It was the sheep
were sheared the lamb, the wool was carded, but it
was probably turned into yarn in another country. A third
country was probably the site of where that yarn was
knitted into fabric. Maybe in that country it was cut
(13:05):
and sown, but most likely it traveled again to another
country to be cut and sown into a sweater. Then
that sweater received its brand, you know, the little label
in it. It was shipped and it was transported probably
halfway around the world. Put on a truck and take
into wherever you bought it, or delivered to your home.
(13:26):
If you bought it online. So that's a big process
for your favorite sweater. And along the way there are
all sorts of environmental impacts that happen, none of which
are your faults, so to speak. But if you make
choices that maybe result in a lesser footprint, then you're
(13:49):
part of the solution. You can choose to buy something
that's been made in the US so it doesn't have
to travel so far, or you can ensure that the
that the sweater is durable, it's gonna last for five years,
so it doesn't end up in the waist heap, which
is where unfortunately so many clothes end up even after
(14:10):
after less than one years.
Speaker 1 (14:14):
Yeah, I heard that recently too, him like, wow, what
happens if you you know, I thought, well, maybe i'll
do some good and if I if I don't want
these clothes, I'll take them to Goodwill? Is that better
than just putting them in the garbage or you know
sometimes people do that or do they still end up.
Speaker 2 (14:36):
Not being so the answer the answer is it depends.
It depends a little bit on your location and what
kind of infrastructure your charity of choice has. So the
reality is less than one about one percent of clothes
that are donated actually get reworn most of it in
(14:57):
the good news. The good story is that more and
more frequently, although it's still only the minority of the case,
the fibers can be recycled, and they are recycled. And
so I know that the Goodwill has a few Oh,
I don't want to misspeak of its good will or.
Speaker 1 (15:13):
No, I know we're not picking anyway, well for sure, but.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
Some of the organizations are now connected through two figure
out ways to recycle fiber. But unfortunately many of it doesn't,
and still huge amounts end up in landfill and waste
heaps all over the world.
Speaker 1 (15:34):
Yeah, I love our Goodwill and film with Maine. They
shout out to them. They you know, they've got a
collection center and then and then a store hooked on
right to it, and so you see the things make
their way into the store. And that's pretty that's pretty useful,
I think so. But yeah, now I hear you. Okay,
here's a term that I don't know that I've really
(15:54):
ever heard. So maybe that's just me, I don't know.
But what's greenwashing? How can we detect greenwashing? Never heard
of it?
Speaker 2 (16:05):
Greenwashing happens when a company basically uses an environmental story
as a way to market, and so they exaggerate or
they use a vague term that gives you with those
you know, those nice warm feelings, but really there's no
substance behind it. And the issue the danger of greenwashing
(16:27):
is that it turns people into being less less willing
to take the risk. It erodes confidence that the companies
who are doing good work on the environment are not
are are confused with those who are just using it
as a marketing ploy. So I see green day. Greenwashing
(16:49):
is quite dangerous, and in the book I go through
what it is and also real clear specifics on how
to identify it, what terms to avoid, you know, vague
terms like natural or eco friendly, those terms actually don't
mean anything, and so that's a real telltale sign that
this company's trying to pull one over on me.
Speaker 1 (17:12):
Yeah, I'm ready to hear that bottled water that might
show nature stuff scenes on the labels to kind of
get you to think that it's friendly, eco friendly.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
Yeah, and that's a great product. That's one of an
example of something that isn't environmental friendly. You know, it's
pumping water from one place in the world, obviously shipping
it somewhere and most likely in a plastic bottle which
is single use.
Speaker 1 (17:39):
Yeah, which is maybe helpful in a crisis.
Speaker 2 (17:43):
Absolutely. I love to say. If I'm in a hospital,
you bet, I want single use plastics everywhere. If I'm
out on the road somewhere, I'd rather be prepared and
have my own water bottle. Yeah. I don't really ever
want to buy a single use plastic water bottle. There's
no need if I'm a little bit organized and bring
(18:04):
my own water with me.
Speaker 1 (18:06):
Yeah, we reuse them, like, we'll refill them and things
like that as best we can and stuff like that.
But every once in a while we're buying a pack
of water and we feel it's funny. I never really
used to think about it, and now I feel guilty.
Speaker 2 (18:19):
Yeah, And I just want to bring up I have
three principles that I think are really important here. The
first one is there's no rights and no wrongs. What
you value is what you value. It may be different
than what your neighbor values, or your cousin or your kids.
It doesn't matter. It's what matters most to you. That's
where your action point is, that's where you start. And
(18:43):
the principal number two is start what's close to your heart.
You know, if you care about fairness and equity, maybe
you're going to focus initially on how workers are treated.
And the first thing you going to do is buy
fair trade chocolate. And then the next week maybe buy
fair trade and then maybe after months kind of like, Okay,
(19:04):
I need a pair of jeans, maybe I'll look for
some fair trade jeans. But what matters is that's what
matters most to you, and that's where you start. And
the third principle is the most important progress not perfection.
Speaker 1 (19:18):
Yeah, that's a good, that's good in all areas of
your life. You might have used a term that people
might not be aware of, and you said fair trade.
Tell me what you mean now.
Speaker 2 (19:28):
So, fair trade is a system that ensures workers, be
it factory workers who are stitching your clothes, or farmers
who've grown your cocoa that goes into your favorite chocolate bar,
or the cane cutters who have cut your sugar cut
the cane to make your sugar, the system ensures that
(19:52):
they're paid a fair wage. Now, difference with fair trade
isn't one thing. That's the overall philosophy, and there are
a couple of different organizations that will certify a product
has been made with fair trade, and the book goes
into water certifications in which ones are trustworthy and how
(20:14):
to identify them. In this case, one of the most
common ones is certified by fair Trade USA, and it's
simply called fair Trade certified. And so I use that
as a bit of a shorthand to talk about products
that have been made in a way that there's verifiable
evidence that the folks involved in making it have been
(20:39):
paid a wage that they can live on that is fair.
Got it?
Speaker 1 (20:46):
If you're just joining us, We are having a conversation
with new HCI author Diane Osgoode, and her book is
called Your Shopping Superpower. You can preorder that wherever books
are sold, but most of the time authors love it
when you go to Amazon, the the pre orders set
(21:08):
up there so nice, and their book comes out I
think April twenty second, and you can preorder it on Amazon.
Of course, you can preorder it at your local bookstore,
Barnes and Noble or Books a Million, or any of
the independents as well, but most of the books these
days do I don't know what you think about that.
I'm curious, Diane, most of the books do get but
ninety eight percent of the books I think is the
(21:29):
stat go are sold on through Amazon. And just a reminder,
Health Communications Anchor HCI is a renowned publisher behind transformative
bestsellers such as Chicken Soup for the Soul and A
Child Called It And we am an author with them
as well, and we just love our folks at HCI.
You can go to HCI books dot com for Diane's
(21:53):
book on a ton of other ones. They're the publisher
of the Peace Guidebook, the Change Guidebook, The Upcoming Book,
The Piece Guidebook, the Change Guidebook, the Success Guidebook, and more.
And and you can also, as we're listening, visit Diane's website,
which is Dianeosgood dot com. So we're talking with Diane
(22:13):
about her new book, and we've talked a lot about
intentional shopping and so the practices behind that. I like that.
I like the information about fair trade. I don't know
that I was thoroughly aware of that. I like to
be more well versed. I guess when I I guess
(22:34):
a lot of us probably just buy what we know.
And I wonder if we're really got a thinking process
going on before we reach for the products that we're
used to. I'm just really curious in the comments, what
do you think, Diane.
Speaker 2 (22:48):
You know your shopping superpower. It is a superpower. Yeah,
it's your opportunity to make choices that really reflect what
you care about. And so, for example, it doesn't take
that much to go I'm going to spend twenty seconds
more when I'm looking for my chocolate bar and buy
one that's got a fair trade logo on the front.
Speaker 1 (23:11):
Yeah, and is that a certification mark like a little
trust that exactly.
Speaker 2 (23:16):
That is a certification mark and it is verified by
the organization's fair Trade USA. And fair trade products are
you know, throughout your grocery store, but they're also in
places like West Elm. You can buy fair trade soft
furnishings of genes. All sorts of brands have moved to
(23:38):
making products, making apparel and clothing and soft furnishings that
are fair trade certified. So it's not just even though
I keep using the chocolate example, it's become easy to
find or easier to find on all sorts of products
that you need to buy.
Speaker 1 (23:57):
Yeah, you know, sometimes it gets f us trading. You
want to buy you know, USA made things because you know,
we live here and so forth, but the prices get
so darn high that it's it's becomes a challenge. Can
you speak to that?
Speaker 2 (24:14):
So part of the challenge is transports more expensive and
wages are different in different countries. But you have to
remember that there's a reason why wages are higher here.
Workers are protected. There's general health and safety guidelines that
protects the workers. And as manufacturing returns to the United States,
(24:35):
we'll see more and more products being made here. You know,
my favorite little one of my favorite companies make socks. Yeah,
US organic cotton made in the US Southern States. Fabulous
little family run business called Zicano, and they don't cost
(24:57):
anymore than buying socks you know, off the rack or
from some unknown brand on the online. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (25:07):
We do a lot of weather Tech for the cars
and stuff.
Speaker 2 (25:11):
Like weather Tech.
Speaker 1 (25:11):
They're a USA brand. What about you have a couple
of points here like buy to last and start with
lower cost things. Do you want to talk a little
bit more about that, like from a tips that we
can have as shoppers.
Speaker 2 (25:26):
Yes. The first thing is to figure out what motivates
you the most, what's closest to your heart, is it
the environment. Is it you know you're concerned about climate
change or species like because of bio diversity loss, or
is it really workers and concerned for their welfare, or
(25:47):
is it you know, your community. You know, if of
having a thriving local community with local commerce is important
to you, there's some great steps to take to start
buying more locally and supporting women owned businesses, minority owned businesses,
and start paying attention to where I do business because
I want a community and which has a vibrant local
(26:12):
economy and that has a diverse set of business owners.
So the first thing is to figure out where I'm
going to start, and then to start one choice a week.
You know, for the environment, maybe it's starting to buy
(26:32):
durable goods and break up with fast fashion. If it's labor,
it's probably going to start buying a few fair trade products,
is some of the things I've mentioned. If it's supporting
your local community, it's learning to look for women owned
businesses or some of your locally independently owned shops. You know,
(26:53):
we mentioned bookstores before, but you know, toy shops are great,
and florists are great, and they provide so many benefits
to your local communities when you have local, independent, thriving shops.
So the first step is what matters most to me.
And again back to the principles, there's no rightness, no wrong.
Speaker 1 (27:14):
What about brands that don't pass the extra costs to
the shop or like Target?
Speaker 2 (27:20):
Target has quite a few fair trade goods, and in
fact fair trade Made Well and a few others made
the decision not to pass on the increased costs of
fair trade. So obviously, if you have two pairs of genes,
one was made with sweat in a sweatshop where workers
are not well treated and wages are below acceptable standards,
(27:46):
and a factory the mixed genes where health and safety
is clear and well practiced and workers are paid a
fair wage, obviously the price point is going to be different.
And what's interesting about Target good and also brands like
made Well and Eileen Fisher, they haven't They're not passing
on those increased profits and I'm sorry, those increased costs
(28:09):
to the to the shopper, to you. They're eating that
difference in the price so that you can buy fair trade.
Speaker 1 (28:18):
Okay, what about health wise, because you know, I think
a lot of us make the assumption that if it's
out there and it's available, it's good for us.
Speaker 2 (28:29):
Yeah, that's a big one. So the fourth topic I
cover in the book is health, and by health I
mean the very specific slice of health around avoiding potentially
harmful toxins in food, cosmetics, home cleaning products, and apparel,
(28:50):
because there are many chemicals that are used in these
products that are most likely allowed in the US, but
still come with health concerns, and so I explain what
to look for for those by those categories again, food cosmetics,
(29:11):
household cleaning products, and apparel, and tell you what to
look for where the first changes to make. So, for example,
and cosmetics, you really want to be careful about anything
you put on your lips because you're going to eat it,
and anything you put on your eyes because you're going
to your eyeballs will actually absorb the makeup, So you
(29:32):
want to make sure that you're buying non toxic lipsticks,
lip bombs, I makeup and cosmetics for eyes, that's really
where you want to start for that. And similarly for food,
there's a real clear list of where you want to
start by buying organic, because there's the top that's called
(29:52):
a dirty dozen of fruits and vegetables that consistently show
up with just high levels of pesticide sides, so the
dirty doesn't. It's your list where you start. So there's
really clear, easy places to start across all these areas.
Speaker 1 (30:07):
Yeah, okay, So so we don't overwhelm people because we
know this is the type of information where you go, okay,
just want to change up everything so that I'm healthy,
the planet's healthy, my cancer healthy, all that stuff. What
are give me some baby steps or something, you know, like,
(30:27):
what's one thing I could do this year that consistently
that would help the world or something like that.
Speaker 2 (30:36):
So I'd love people to commit to one change a week.
And if that's too much, gallop back down. It's got
to be sustainable, it's going to make you feel good,
and it's got to fit within your time budget and
your monitor in your financial budget. So start with easy things.
Start with some commodity, you know, fruits and vegetables, talk
(31:00):
lit tea coffee, bananas, things that maybe a five to
ten percent increase in cost. Isn't it going to break
your bank? And it's going to take twenty seconds extra
scanning on the shelf to pick up something that's either
organic or Rainforest Alliance, it's got air their symbol as
(31:22):
a green frog, meaning that it's good for the environment
and the workers, or as fair trade. So start with
those simple things and build up your experience, build up
your muscles, realize that hey actually feel pretty cool, and
then build some more complicated things such as apparel toys.
(31:44):
We spoke briefly about sports gear and what to look
for there.
Speaker 1 (31:49):
Yeah, is it is something such as like using less
of something an idea as.
Speaker 2 (31:56):
Well completely so it's that it's the pre purchase decision, right,
So refuse, reuse, recycle is kind of one of the
monkeyers that we have though kind of expressions, and I
speak a little bit about some of the new models
of particularly for apparel, of renting, you know, like rent
(32:20):
the runway or there's there's there's been a flourish of
new ways that you can rent instead of buy. And
you can also like a little bit like Airbnb for
your things. You can also do peer to peer lending
with your own things. And so for example, if you
have tools you don't use very often, or maybe a
(32:41):
winter sweater you really only wear two or three weeks
a year when it's cold enough that you can actually
rent those things out, and so there's ways of acquiring
the service of a product without actually have to own it,
or if you do own it, have to use it.
You know, have it just sit there and wait for
you to use it.
Speaker 1 (33:02):
You have a couple of hard stops, one being single
use plastics and palm oil. Do you want to talk
about that?
Speaker 2 (33:10):
Yeah, those are my hard stops. And again back to
progress that perfection. I still end up using them and
bringing them home. Sometimes I try very hard not to,
and sometimes it's just too overwhelming. So palm oil is
the most most frequently traded oil in the world. It's
(33:31):
in everything. It's an ice cream, it's in your cosmetics,
it's in your soap, it's in many times, it's in
peanut butter. It's just kind of prevalent everywhere. The issue
with palm oil is that because there's under there's such
demand for it, it provokes farmers to clear the forest
(33:55):
plant more plantations. In a way, it's a victim of
its own success. And so the purchase of products with
palm oil are linked directly to deforestation, and deforestation has
a couple of double whammyes. One is that deforestation is
a driver of climate change, but also really endangers species.
(34:19):
And so if you care about the rainforests, beautiful birds,
exotic animals, and the health of the planet, avoiding deforestation
is a great idea. And palm oil is a pretty
good area to start. You can either choose to look
for products that don't have palm oil and for those
(34:41):
that you can't find, or you still have products that
where you you know, it's still a key ingredient, look
for sustainable palm oil.
Speaker 1 (34:49):
Okay, And now for one of the real interests of mine,
of you being on the show, as I read this,
it's like, oh, my goodness, you discovered your shop. Superpower
was studying. Tell how you finished my sentence? I can't
even pronounce Yeah, I got that.
Speaker 2 (35:10):
Yes. So, a couple of decades ago I had the
incredible pleasure and fortune of studying orangutangs in the wilds
with Baruti Goldacus, who was set up by Lewis Leaky,
who you may or may not realize, helped set up
the research the initial research by Jane Goodall and the
(35:33):
late Diane Fosse to understand our closest ancestors. Fast forward.
I was a volunteer researching while the orangutangs and in
the force of Kalimantan in Borneo, Kalimantans on the Indonesian
side of the island of Borneo. And you know, at
the end of the day, sitting kind of on the
(35:54):
dock of the river, watching these boats go down with
these huge logs, like just fresh cut tropical trees, and
they were clearing the forest and had this very naive
yet powerful insight, which is if no one bought that
would then the people cutting it wouldn't have incentive to
(36:17):
cut it. And where is that would going anyway? And
so it created a turning point in my life where
I decided to pursue my PhD environmental economics and really
study how our resources, our natural resources are integrated into
(36:38):
production methods, sometimes efficiently and necessarily and sometimes not.
Speaker 1 (36:44):
I'm writing something down and tell me that again you're
pitching how our natural resources are integrated into.
Speaker 2 (36:54):
Well, the question I ask is how is it that
natural resources are used in the econom me to make
what we to make, what we use, and how can
they be used more efficiently?
Speaker 1 (37:06):
That's so cool? And what did you what did you find?
Speaker 2 (37:11):
Well, that's become my life's work, I know, and that's
really what. That's that that's the short story is. That's
why I wrote this book, okay, is to help people
understand that it does matter because we're driving the economy.
We are the economy. Without the demand side, box would
stop being made. You know, someone's got to buy them, right?
Speaker 1 (37:37):
Is there anything else I missed? This is so interesting,
especially as I'm kind of I'm it's funny. I have
a son of a master's degree in this, and he
talks a lot about this, and there's things in our
house that are set up and you know, but it's
a very different way than the way I grew up
as a child. I mean, like, we have a composter
outside because of him, and I'm like, I still, you know,
(37:57):
I get how to use it something that's easy now,
But at the beginning, I'm like, I don't know if
I want that in our yard. It's we're going to
have animal, you know, And he's like no, no, no, mom,
listen any kind of thing. So it's it's different and
kind of awkward if you're not used to paying attention
to things correct.
Speaker 2 (38:14):
Right that it is. It's a change in behavior. And
what I'd like to my last point is that it's
an opportunity. You've we've got the superpower as shoppers to
really say to the economy, this is what I value,
this is the world I want to live in, and
I'm going to shop based on those values.
Speaker 1 (38:37):
All right. Well, you know, it has been a joy
speaking with you and learning from you, and I just
want everybody to go out and grab a copy of
your book and tell somebody about it because it's it's
a it's really powerful information and so needed right now, everybody.
Speaker 2 (38:54):
Planet Elizabeth, thank you so much. It's been a real pleasure.
And good luck with your your forthcoming book as well.
Speaker 1 (39:00):
Thank you, all right, everybody. So that was Diane Osgood.
Her website is Dianeosgood dot com. Her new book is
Your Shopping Superpower and it is in pre order wherever
books are sold, and it will also Diane, I'm going
to guess be an ebook, which might be your preference
of people buying it without all the paper. But are
(39:22):
you going to do an audiobook too?
Speaker 2 (39:24):
I understand audiobook is being made.
Speaker 1 (39:26):
Yes, perfect, Yeah, those are so much fun to record.
Are you going to record your own or having somebody
record it for you?
Speaker 2 (39:33):
Someone will do it for me?
Speaker 1 (39:34):
Are you Yeah, that was fun to do. So I've
done two audiobooks so far and loved every minute of it,
so they're super fun. They're so popular right now too,
and so everybody listening knows. You can also pre order
her book in ebook and audiobook as well. You can
go right on to audible and pre order, so it's
really helpful to us as authors to help boost our
(39:54):
pre orders and things like that. It gets the it
gets the book circulating for us. So, Diane a pleasure.
I hope you will come back. I would you. Yeah,
I have a feeling best ever you dot com could
really use your knowledge, wisdom and information for all sorts
of topics to help us be our best. So thank you.
It was really nice to meet you.
Speaker 2 (40:13):
Lovely to meet you, all right, everybody, thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (40:16):
Yeah, thanks for listening, everybody,
Hello everybody, and welcome to the Best Ever You show.
I'm your host, Elizabeth Hamilton Garno. Happy New Year. This
is our first year for twenty twenty five, and we
have a tremendously wonderful guest with us. Her name is
Diane Ozgood. She is a new author with HCI. Our
friends over there at HCI at HCI books dot com.
Thank you so much. And your book is called Your
(00:26):
Shopping Superpower. Follow your values and better your world one
purchase at a time. Welcome Diane, Thank you.
Speaker 2 (00:34):
I'm so happy to be here and Happy New Year everyone.
Speaker 1 (00:37):
Yeah, so much fun. How exciting is it for you
to have your first book coming out in April?
Speaker 2 (00:43):
I'm thrilled. I also think the timing is fantastic. First
of all, Earth Day, What a great day to launch
a book that embraces environmental topics. But also, you know,
we're in an era of people trying to figure out, Look,
I want my best self heal, and I know what
I value and here is a way to live our
(01:07):
values a little bit more deeply. And I think it's
a really pertinent theme for this year.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
I love it now You're Shopping Superpower. It provides an
insightful guide and for an insightful guide and strategies for
shoppers to align the contents in their carts with their
personal values. Tell us what you mean by that.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
So you know, when we shop, our choices impact our health,
our communities, the environment, and the economy in some pretty
profound ways. You know, chances are you don't really want
your clothes stitch by slaves, or you're the way your
food is prepared to harm the environment and lead to
climate change, and you probably don't want to bring home
(01:51):
harmful chemicals that might harm your family. But unfortunately, some
of these things happen as unattended consequences of our choices.
And my approach is figure out what you really value
and go step by step, one change at a time,
(02:11):
and start making choices that really reflect the world that
you want. So, if you want a world where fairness
is experienced by more people, then maybe you'll choose to
look at who's under what conditions are my things being made?
What kind of things are going on in the labor market?
Are my things being made by sweatshops? Unfortunately, slavery is
(02:34):
still a terrible crime that happens in far too many places,
and many slaves are actually engaged with making things that
we purchase. And similarly, on the environment, you know many
people are concerned about climate change or ocean plastics. What
are some choices that I can make on things that
I normally buy. They can send a signal to the
(02:55):
market that hey, I actually care about the environment and
I want you company companies, X, Y, and Z to
care as well. So I'm going to switch and I'm
going to buy a different product that I feel is
trustworthy about its environmental performance.
Speaker 1 (03:13):
Nice do you do you have? While we're talking, I
forgot to ask you? What's your website that people can
go to?
Speaker 2 (03:21):
Oh? It's okay. So my website is just my name.
It's Diane Osgood dot com and that's d I A
N E O S G O O D dot com.
And there you'll choose to go to the book site
book part of it, and you'll see the book. You'll
(03:42):
see your shopping superpower places where you can pre order it,
as well as the Carbon Almanac. The other part of
my website is for my my consultancy business, where I
advise companies on how to make more ethical and sustainable products.
Speaker 1 (03:58):
That's that's fabulous. How long have you been How long
have you been in this business?
Speaker 2 (04:03):
Well, on a good day, I say I'm a real pioneer.
On a bad day, I say I'm basically a dinosaur,
meaning I've been around doing this work since before it
was a thing. I've been basically doing it since the
late eighties. I've had incredible privilege of creating myself a
career along with some extraordinary colleagues over many decades now
(04:26):
who have built this practice of helping companies perform and
produce goods and services in ways that are good for
people and good for the environment.
Speaker 1 (04:40):
You know, I've got just a child for you. Actually,
one of our four sons has a master's degree in
environmental science and he just got out of school. He
just got back from playing professional baseball in Germany. So
(05:00):
he's got an undergrad and environmental science, a master's degree
in environmental science, and then another master's degree in sports
industry management. And he's put and he's back now and
he's poking his nose around for a job. So do
you care if I connect you?
Speaker 2 (05:16):
He probably absolutely.
Speaker 1 (05:18):
He talks about what you're talking about all day long.
I was so excited to have you on.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Oh, fantastic, And I think that's an interesting proof point
and how the market's slowly changing, which is the younger
generations are more switched on to environmental issues and to
issues of equity and fairness in terms of everybody should
actually earn a living wage, and I think that's a
(05:43):
driving impetus for companies to perform much better in these areas. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
Yeah, he's very He's also very interested in sports sustainability
and the things that they're doing. He did I think
he did one of his one of his one of
the thesis was on the life of baseball and where
it goes and all these things really cool. So anyway, yeah,
I if you don't mind, I would love to connect
with him. His name's cam Garino.
Speaker 2 (06:12):
My pleasure, Yeah, pleasure.
Speaker 1 (06:14):
All right, we're going back to your book now. Just
as I saw your website and I was looking, I'm like, oh, yeah,
this is so cool. So who's the book for. If
you were gonna, if you were gonna have an ideal
person that you just would wish would pick up your
audience pick up your book and and you know, get
a bigger audience and write reviews on Amazon and all
(06:36):
these things, who's who are those people that you're you're
wishing for.
Speaker 2 (06:40):
It's you and your neighbor. So it's for people who
are aware of some of the problems that we face
in the world, and they really want to play a part,
but they don't know how, maybe a little skeptical, you know,
maybe a little bit like is that all greenwash? I
don't no. And they're willing to make some small changes,
(07:05):
changes that sometimes do cost more, but not necessarily and
many of the switches cost very very small amounts of
money more. And as you know, as I love to say,
will I spend thirty cents more for a chocolate bar
that I know has been produced in a way that
supports the environment and supports forest tree and pays the
(07:28):
cocoa farmer an equitable wage? You bet, I am. It's
the kind of person that will feel good about that
kind of decision. That's my ideal reader, And I bet
it is you, and I bet it's probably one of
your neighbors.
Speaker 1 (07:41):
Yeah, And how does intentional shopping protect the planet?
Speaker 2 (07:46):
What is that?
Speaker 1 (07:47):
What do you mean by that?
Speaker 2 (07:49):
So the planet's a big thing. Environment is a big thing,
and I break it down into five parts, so it's
more digestible. So I look at climate, biodiversity meaning the
diversity of species on the planet, some of them which
you know we just are in awe of because of
majesticy whops can't say that words. And you know, just
(08:13):
beautiful be it a flower or a bird species or
an elephant that just provokes awe And some of it
is just good. Soil health depends on biodiversity, so anyway,
but every's a second chunk. Then land use meaning are
we provoking deforestation? Are we rebuilding our soils? And then
water fresh water is a very much limited resource in
(08:36):
many parts of the world and in many parts of
the world where manufacturing happens. And then the fifth is waste.
This is such a huge issue. It doesn't go when
we say, oh, we'll throw it away. There isn't really
an old way. And so the book includes some strategies
to decrease waste, what to look for, how to understand
(08:58):
recycling a little bit better, and things like that.
Speaker 1 (09:02):
And I though, really is just like little on me
make a difference, you know, I see your dolphins story here,
and I kind of remember living that. I'm fifty five,
so I kind of I remember that pretty well. It
felt like a lot of people got together though on that.
Speaker 2 (09:19):
It was so let me tell the story. In the
rear late eighties early nineties, dolphins were consistently being caught
up in the fishing nets that large trollers were using
to catch tuna and as a large variety of speak
of fish and so this is called bycatch, and literally
(09:41):
millions of dolphins were perishing at the hands of as
by catch to fishing trolleys. To the folks out there
catching are two neat pretty disgusting. This was the first
first kind of environmental action I've gotten involved with. You know,
I was I was very young, and I was ready
(10:03):
to like storm the boats and rip up the nets.
And the nonprofit I was working for, the environmentalists, they's
just like, Nope, you're gonna write letters to consumers two
shoppers and ask them not to buy tuna until the
tuna companies change their way they fish. And I thought,
(10:23):
what I want to go do some direct actions, Like nope,
you're gonna write letters, and so we did. And I
thought it was a waste of time and my impatient self,
but lo and behold, less than a year later, the
tuna industries that the largest companies involved in Cantuna globally
(10:44):
surprised everyone and said, we're changing the way we buy tuna.
We will only buy tuna from fishing vessels that do
not use nets that harm dolphins. And the amazing thing
is they did that because one cent of shoppers had
changed their shopping habits. It was enough to catch their
(11:05):
attention and to write an environmental wrong one percent.
Speaker 1 (11:10):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (11:12):
So so the moral of the story is, we don't
know how many shop how many people have to change
behavior to provoke a big systems change like that, but
we know it's not very many. But the real kicker
is even if you chip away with it and you
don't see how company xchange, you don't see company exchanging
(11:34):
the way they manufacture whatever biscuits or tuna or chocolate
or clothing, you know you're doing your part. And what
I explained in the book is that's going to make
you happier. It's going to make you more content, because
you know, Elizabeth, as we as we live our best
selves and we live in alignment with our values, just
(11:57):
makes things easier. We're a little happier or more content
with what we buy. And so there's that our own
personal benefit, which is really important.
Speaker 1 (12:08):
What do you mean by the statement all the products
that we buy generate huge amounts of waste, carbon emissions,
unnecessary plastics, and may drive ocean pollution, deforestation, and biodiversity loss.
Speaker 2 (12:21):
Wow. Yeah, nothing like getting depressed. So it's just the
reality is there are no perfect products. Every product has
an impact the way it was made, the way it's
been transported, who sold it, how is that person treated.
I mean, if you just imagine a sweater, right, just
to imagine your favorite sweater. The wool that went into
(12:44):
it probably came from one country. It was the sheep
were sheared the lamb, the wool was carded, but it
was probably turned into yarn in another country. A third
country was probably the site of where that yarn was
knitted into fabric. Maybe in that country it was cut
(13:05):
and sown, but most likely it traveled again to another
country to be cut and sown into a sweater. Then
that sweater received its brand, you know, the little label
in it. It was shipped and it was transported probably
halfway around the world. Put on a truck and take
into wherever you bought it, or delivered to your home.
(13:26):
If you bought it online. So that's a big process
for your favorite sweater. And along the way there are
all sorts of environmental impacts that happen, none of which
are your faults, so to speak. But if you make
choices that maybe result in a lesser footprint, then you're
(13:49):
part of the solution. You can choose to buy something
that's been made in the US so it doesn't have
to travel so far, or you can ensure that the
that the sweater is durable, it's gonna last for five years,
so it doesn't end up in the waist heap, which
is where unfortunately so many clothes end up even after
(14:10):
after less than one years.
Speaker 1 (14:14):
Yeah, I heard that recently too, him like, wow, what
happens if you you know, I thought, well, maybe i'll
do some good and if I if I don't want
these clothes, I'll take them to Goodwill? Is that better
than just putting them in the garbage or you know
sometimes people do that or do they still end up.
Speaker 2 (14:36):
Not being so the answer the answer is it depends.
It depends a little bit on your location and what
kind of infrastructure your charity of choice has. So the
reality is less than one about one percent of clothes
that are donated actually get reworn most of it in
(14:57):
the good news. The good story is that more and
more frequently, although it's still only the minority of the case,
the fibers can be recycled, and they are recycled. And
so I know that the Goodwill has a few Oh,
I don't want to misspeak of its good will or.
Speaker 1 (15:13):
No, I know we're not picking anyway, well for sure, but.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
Some of the organizations are now connected through two figure
out ways to recycle fiber. But unfortunately many of it doesn't,
and still huge amounts end up in landfill and waste
heaps all over the world.
Speaker 1 (15:34):
Yeah, I love our Goodwill and film with Maine. They
shout out to them. They you know, they've got a
collection center and then and then a store hooked on
right to it, and so you see the things make
their way into the store. And that's pretty that's pretty useful,
I think so. But yeah, now I hear you. Okay,
here's a term that I don't know that I've really
(15:54):
ever heard. So maybe that's just me, I don't know.
But what's greenwashing? How can we detect greenwashing? Never heard
of it?
Speaker 2 (16:05):
Greenwashing happens when a company basically uses an environmental story
as a way to market, and so they exaggerate or
they use a vague term that gives you with those
you know, those nice warm feelings, but really there's no
substance behind it. And the issue the danger of greenwashing
(16:27):
is that it turns people into being less less willing
to take the risk. It erodes confidence that the companies
who are doing good work on the environment are not
are are confused with those who are just using it
as a marketing ploy. So I see green day. Greenwashing
(16:49):
is quite dangerous, and in the book I go through
what it is and also real clear specifics on how
to identify it, what terms to avoid, you know, vague
terms like natural or eco friendly, those terms actually don't
mean anything, and so that's a real telltale sign that
this company's trying to pull one over on me.
Speaker 1 (17:12):
Yeah, I'm ready to hear that bottled water that might
show nature stuff scenes on the labels to kind of
get you to think that it's friendly, eco friendly.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
Yeah, and that's a great product. That's one of an
example of something that isn't environmental friendly. You know, it's
pumping water from one place in the world, obviously shipping
it somewhere and most likely in a plastic bottle which
is single use.
Speaker 1 (17:39):
Yeah, which is maybe helpful in a crisis.
Speaker 2 (17:43):
Absolutely. I love to say. If I'm in a hospital,
you bet, I want single use plastics everywhere. If I'm
out on the road somewhere, I'd rather be prepared and
have my own water bottle. Yeah. I don't really ever
want to buy a single use plastic water bottle. There's
no need if I'm a little bit organized and bring
(18:04):
my own water with me.
Speaker 1 (18:06):
Yeah, we reuse them, like, we'll refill them and things
like that as best we can and stuff like that.
But every once in a while we're buying a pack
of water and we feel it's funny. I never really
used to think about it, and now I feel guilty.
Speaker 2 (18:19):
Yeah, And I just want to bring up I have
three principles that I think are really important here. The
first one is there's no rights and no wrongs. What
you value is what you value. It may be different
than what your neighbor values, or your cousin or your kids.
It doesn't matter. It's what matters most to you. That's
where your action point is, that's where you start. And
(18:43):
the principal number two is start what's close to your heart.
You know, if you care about fairness and equity, maybe
you're going to focus initially on how workers are treated.
And the first thing you going to do is buy
fair trade chocolate. And then the next week maybe buy
fair trade and then maybe after months kind of like, Okay,
(19:04):
I need a pair of jeans, maybe I'll look for
some fair trade jeans. But what matters is that's what
matters most to you, and that's where you start. And
the third principle is the most important progress not perfection.
Speaker 1 (19:18):
Yeah, that's a good, that's good in all areas of
your life. You might have used a term that people
might not be aware of, and you said fair trade.
Tell me what you mean now.
Speaker 2 (19:28):
So, fair trade is a system that ensures workers, be
it factory workers who are stitching your clothes, or farmers
who've grown your cocoa that goes into your favorite chocolate bar,
or the cane cutters who have cut your sugar cut
the cane to make your sugar, the system ensures that
(19:52):
they're paid a fair wage. Now, difference with fair trade
isn't one thing. That's the overall philosophy, and there are
a couple of different organizations that will certify a product
has been made with fair trade, and the book goes
into water certifications in which ones are trustworthy and how
(20:14):
to identify them. In this case, one of the most
common ones is certified by fair Trade USA, and it's
simply called fair Trade certified. And so I use that
as a bit of a shorthand to talk about products
that have been made in a way that there's verifiable
evidence that the folks involved in making it have been
(20:39):
paid a wage that they can live on that is fair.
Got it?
Speaker 1 (20:46):
If you're just joining us, We are having a conversation
with new HCI author Diane Osgoode, and her book is
called Your Shopping Superpower. You can preorder that wherever books
are sold, but most of the time authors love it
when you go to Amazon, the the pre orders set
(21:08):
up there so nice, and their book comes out I
think April twenty second, and you can preorder it on Amazon.
Of course, you can preorder it at your local bookstore,
Barnes and Noble or Books a Million, or any of
the independents as well, but most of the books these
days do I don't know what you think about that.
I'm curious, Diane, most of the books do get but
ninety eight percent of the books I think is the
(21:29):
stat go are sold on through Amazon. And just a reminder,
Health Communications Anchor HCI is a renowned publisher behind transformative
bestsellers such as Chicken Soup for the Soul and A
Child Called It And we am an author with them
as well, and we just love our folks at HCI.
You can go to HCI books dot com for Diane's
(21:53):
book on a ton of other ones. They're the publisher
of the Peace Guidebook, the Change Guidebook, The Upcoming Book,
The Piece Guidebook, the Change Guidebook, the Success Guidebook, and more.
And and you can also, as we're listening, visit Diane's website,
which is Dianeosgood dot com. So we're talking with Diane
(22:13):
about her new book, and we've talked a lot about
intentional shopping and so the practices behind that. I like that.
I like the information about fair trade. I don't know
that I was thoroughly aware of that. I like to
be more well versed. I guess when I I guess
(22:34):
a lot of us probably just buy what we know.
And I wonder if we're really got a thinking process
going on before we reach for the products that we're
used to. I'm just really curious in the comments, what
do you think, Diane.
Speaker 2 (22:48):
You know your shopping superpower. It is a superpower. Yeah,
it's your opportunity to make choices that really reflect what
you care about. And so, for example, it doesn't take
that much to go I'm going to spend twenty seconds
more when I'm looking for my chocolate bar and buy
one that's got a fair trade logo on the front.
Speaker 1 (23:11):
Yeah, and is that a certification mark like a little
trust that exactly.
Speaker 2 (23:16):
That is a certification mark and it is verified by
the organization's fair Trade USA. And fair trade products are
you know, throughout your grocery store, but they're also in
places like West Elm. You can buy fair trade soft
furnishings of genes. All sorts of brands have moved to
(23:38):
making products, making apparel and clothing and soft furnishings that
are fair trade certified. So it's not just even though
I keep using the chocolate example, it's become easy to
find or easier to find on all sorts of products
that you need to buy.
Speaker 1 (23:57):
Yeah, you know, sometimes it gets f us trading. You
want to buy you know, USA made things because you know,
we live here and so forth, but the prices get
so darn high that it's it's becomes a challenge. Can
you speak to that?
Speaker 2 (24:14):
So part of the challenge is transports more expensive and
wages are different in different countries. But you have to
remember that there's a reason why wages are higher here.
Workers are protected. There's general health and safety guidelines that
protects the workers. And as manufacturing returns to the United States,
(24:35):
we'll see more and more products being made here. You know,
my favorite little one of my favorite companies make socks. Yeah,
US organic cotton made in the US Southern States. Fabulous
little family run business called Zicano, and they don't cost
(24:57):
anymore than buying socks you know, off the rack or
from some unknown brand on the online. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (25:07):
We do a lot of weather Tech for the cars
and stuff.
Speaker 2 (25:11):
Like weather Tech.
Speaker 1 (25:11):
They're a USA brand. What about you have a couple
of points here like buy to last and start with
lower cost things. Do you want to talk a little
bit more about that, like from a tips that we
can have as shoppers.
Speaker 2 (25:26):
Yes. The first thing is to figure out what motivates
you the most, what's closest to your heart, is it
the environment. Is it you know you're concerned about climate
change or species like because of bio diversity loss, or
is it really workers and concerned for their welfare, or
(25:47):
is it you know, your community. You know, if of
having a thriving local community with local commerce is important
to you, there's some great steps to take to start
buying more locally and supporting women owned businesses, minority owned businesses,
and start paying attention to where I do business because
I want a community and which has a vibrant local
(26:12):
economy and that has a diverse set of business owners.
So the first thing is to figure out where I'm
going to start, and then to start one choice a week.
You know, for the environment, maybe it's starting to buy
(26:32):
durable goods and break up with fast fashion. If it's labor,
it's probably going to start buying a few fair trade products,
is some of the things I've mentioned. If it's supporting
your local community, it's learning to look for women owned
businesses or some of your locally independently owned shops. You know,
(26:53):
we mentioned bookstores before, but you know, toy shops are great,
and florists are great, and they provide so many benefits
to your local communities when you have local, independent, thriving shops.
So the first step is what matters most to me.
And again back to the principles, there's no rightness, no wrong.
Speaker 1 (27:14):
What about brands that don't pass the extra costs to
the shop or like Target?
Speaker 2 (27:20):
Target has quite a few fair trade goods, and in
fact fair trade Made Well and a few others made
the decision not to pass on the increased costs of
fair trade. So obviously, if you have two pairs of genes,
one was made with sweat in a sweatshop where workers
are not well treated and wages are below acceptable standards,
(27:46):
and a factory the mixed genes where health and safety
is clear and well practiced and workers are paid a
fair wage, obviously the price point is going to be different.
And what's interesting about Target good and also brands like
made Well and Eileen Fisher, they haven't They're not passing
on those increased profits and I'm sorry, those increased costs
(28:09):
to the to the shopper, to you. They're eating that
difference in the price so that you can buy fair trade.
Speaker 1 (28:18):
Okay, what about health wise, because you know, I think
a lot of us make the assumption that if it's
out there and it's available, it's good for us.
Speaker 2 (28:29):
Yeah, that's a big one. So the fourth topic I
cover in the book is health, and by health I
mean the very specific slice of health around avoiding potentially
harmful toxins in food, cosmetics, home cleaning products, and apparel,
(28:50):
because there are many chemicals that are used in these
products that are most likely allowed in the US, but
still come with health concerns, and so I explain what
to look for for those by those categories again, food cosmetics,
(29:11):
household cleaning products, and apparel, and tell you what to
look for where the first changes to make. So, for example,
and cosmetics, you really want to be careful about anything
you put on your lips because you're going to eat it,
and anything you put on your eyes because you're going
to your eyeballs will actually absorb the makeup, So you
(29:32):
want to make sure that you're buying non toxic lipsticks,
lip bombs, I makeup and cosmetics for eyes, that's really
where you want to start for that. And similarly for food,
there's a real clear list of where you want to
start by buying organic, because there's the top that's called
(29:52):
a dirty dozen of fruits and vegetables that consistently show
up with just high levels of pesticide sides, so the
dirty doesn't. It's your list where you start. So there's
really clear, easy places to start across all these areas.
Speaker 1 (30:07):
Yeah, okay, So so we don't overwhelm people because we
know this is the type of information where you go, okay,
just want to change up everything so that I'm healthy,
the planet's healthy, my cancer healthy, all that stuff. What
are give me some baby steps or something, you know, like,
(30:27):
what's one thing I could do this year that consistently
that would help the world or something like that.
Speaker 2 (30:36):
So I'd love people to commit to one change a week.
And if that's too much, gallop back down. It's got
to be sustainable, it's going to make you feel good,
and it's got to fit within your time budget and
your monitor in your financial budget. So start with easy things.
Start with some commodity, you know, fruits and vegetables, talk
(31:00):
lit tea coffee, bananas, things that maybe a five to
ten percent increase in cost. Isn't it going to break
your bank? And it's going to take twenty seconds extra
scanning on the shelf to pick up something that's either
organic or Rainforest Alliance, it's got air their symbol as
(31:22):
a green frog, meaning that it's good for the environment
and the workers, or as fair trade. So start with
those simple things and build up your experience, build up
your muscles, realize that hey actually feel pretty cool, and
then build some more complicated things such as apparel toys.
(31:44):
We spoke briefly about sports gear and what to look
for there.
Speaker 1 (31:49):
Yeah, is it is something such as like using less
of something an idea as.
Speaker 2 (31:56):
Well completely so it's that it's the pre purchase decision, right,
So refuse, reuse, recycle is kind of one of the
monkeyers that we have though kind of expressions, and I
speak a little bit about some of the new models
of particularly for apparel, of renting, you know, like rent
(32:20):
the runway or there's there's there's been a flourish of
new ways that you can rent instead of buy. And
you can also like a little bit like Airbnb for
your things. You can also do peer to peer lending
with your own things. And so for example, if you
have tools you don't use very often, or maybe a
(32:41):
winter sweater you really only wear two or three weeks
a year when it's cold enough that you can actually
rent those things out, and so there's ways of acquiring
the service of a product without actually have to own it,
or if you do own it, have to use it.
You know, have it just sit there and wait for
you to use it.
Speaker 1 (33:02):
You have a couple of hard stops, one being single
use plastics and palm oil. Do you want to talk
about that?
Speaker 2 (33:10):
Yeah, those are my hard stops. And again back to
progress that perfection. I still end up using them and
bringing them home. Sometimes I try very hard not to,
and sometimes it's just too overwhelming. So palm oil is
the most most frequently traded oil in the world. It's
(33:31):
in everything. It's an ice cream, it's in your cosmetics,
it's in your soap, it's in many times, it's in
peanut butter. It's just kind of prevalent everywhere. The issue
with palm oil is that because there's under there's such
demand for it, it provokes farmers to clear the forest
(33:55):
plant more plantations. In a way, it's a victim of
its own success. And so the purchase of products with
palm oil are linked directly to deforestation, and deforestation has
a couple of double whammyes. One is that deforestation is
a driver of climate change, but also really endangers species.
(34:19):
And so if you care about the rainforests, beautiful birds,
exotic animals, and the health of the planet, avoiding deforestation
is a great idea. And palm oil is a pretty
good area to start. You can either choose to look
for products that don't have palm oil and for those
(34:41):
that you can't find, or you still have products that
where you you know, it's still a key ingredient, look
for sustainable palm oil.
Speaker 1 (34:49):
Okay, And now for one of the real interests of mine,
of you being on the show, as I read this,
it's like, oh, my goodness, you discovered your shop. Superpower
was studying. Tell how you finished my sentence? I can't
even pronounce Yeah, I got that.
Speaker 2 (35:10):
Yes. So, a couple of decades ago I had the
incredible pleasure and fortune of studying orangutangs in the wilds
with Baruti Goldacus, who was set up by Lewis Leaky,
who you may or may not realize, helped set up
the research the initial research by Jane Goodall and the
(35:33):
late Diane Fosse to understand our closest ancestors. Fast forward.
I was a volunteer researching while the orangutangs and in
the force of Kalimantan in Borneo, Kalimantans on the Indonesian
side of the island of Borneo. And you know, at
the end of the day, sitting kind of on the
(35:54):
dock of the river, watching these boats go down with
these huge logs, like just fresh cut tropical trees, and
they were clearing the forest and had this very naive
yet powerful insight, which is if no one bought that
would then the people cutting it wouldn't have incentive to
(36:17):
cut it. And where is that would going anyway? And
so it created a turning point in my life where
I decided to pursue my PhD environmental economics and really
study how our resources, our natural resources are integrated into
(36:38):
production methods, sometimes efficiently and necessarily and sometimes not.
Speaker 1 (36:44):
I'm writing something down and tell me that again you're
pitching how our natural resources are integrated into.
Speaker 2 (36:54):
Well, the question I ask is how is it that
natural resources are used in the econom me to make
what we to make, what we use, and how can
they be used more efficiently?
Speaker 1 (37:06):
That's so cool? And what did you what did you find?
Speaker 2 (37:11):
Well, that's become my life's work, I know, and that's
really what. That's that that's the short story is. That's
why I wrote this book, okay, is to help people
understand that it does matter because we're driving the economy.
We are the economy. Without the demand side, box would
stop being made. You know, someone's got to buy them, right?
Speaker 1 (37:37):
Is there anything else I missed? This is so interesting,
especially as I'm kind of I'm it's funny. I have
a son of a master's degree in this, and he
talks a lot about this, and there's things in our
house that are set up and you know, but it's
a very different way than the way I grew up
as a child. I mean, like, we have a composter
outside because of him, and I'm like, I still, you know,
(37:57):
I get how to use it something that's easy now,
But at the beginning, I'm like, I don't know if
I want that in our yard. It's we're going to
have animal, you know, And he's like no, no, no, mom,
listen any kind of thing. So it's it's different and
kind of awkward if you're not used to paying attention
to things correct.
Speaker 2 (38:14):
Right that it is. It's a change in behavior. And
what I'd like to my last point is that it's
an opportunity. You've we've got the superpower as shoppers to
really say to the economy, this is what I value,
this is the world I want to live in, and
I'm going to shop based on those values.
Speaker 1 (38:37):
All right. Well, you know, it has been a joy
speaking with you and learning from you, and I just
want everybody to go out and grab a copy of
your book and tell somebody about it because it's it's
a it's really powerful information and so needed right now, everybody.
Speaker 2 (38:54):
Planet Elizabeth, thank you so much. It's been a real pleasure.
And good luck with your your forthcoming book as well.
Speaker 1 (39:00):
Thank you, all right, everybody. So that was Diane Osgood.
Her website is Dianeosgood dot com. Her new book is
Your Shopping Superpower and it is in pre order wherever
books are sold, and it will also Diane, I'm going
to guess be an ebook, which might be your preference
of people buying it without all the paper. But are
(39:22):
you going to do an audiobook too?
Speaker 2 (39:24):
I understand audiobook is being made.
Speaker 1 (39:26):
Yes, perfect, Yeah, those are so much fun to record.
Are you going to record your own or having somebody
record it for you?
Speaker 2 (39:33):
Someone will do it for me?
Speaker 1 (39:34):
Are you Yeah, that was fun to do. So I've
done two audiobooks so far and loved every minute of it,
so they're super fun. They're so popular right now too,
and so everybody listening knows. You can also pre order
her book in ebook and audiobook as well. You can
go right on to audible and pre order, so it's
really helpful to us as authors to help boost our
(39:54):
pre orders and things like that. It gets the it
gets the book circulating for us. So, Diane a pleasure.
I hope you will come back. I would you. Yeah,
I have a feeling best ever you dot com could
really use your knowledge, wisdom and information for all sorts
of topics to help us be our best. So thank you.
It was really nice to meet you.
Speaker 2 (40:13):
Lovely to meet you, all right, everybody, thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (40:16):
Yeah, thanks for listening, everybody,
Popular Podcasts
New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce
Football’s funniest family duo — Jason Kelce of the Philadelphia Eagles and Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs — team up to provide next-level access to life in the league as it unfolds. The two brothers and Super Bowl champions drop weekly insights about the weekly slate of games and share their INSIDE perspectives on trending NFL news and sports headlines. They also endlessly rag on each other as brothers do, chat the latest in pop culture and welcome some very popular and well-known friends to chat with them. Check out new episodes every Wednesday. Follow New Heights on the Wondery App, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to new episodes early and ad-free, and get exclusive content on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And join our new membership for a unique fan experience by going to the New Heights YouTube channel now!
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!