Ethical fashion, ethical beauty… why not ethical furniture? Greeen was the crazy idea of Christophe Labaj and David Levy, the two founders of the brand. In 2009, they decided to make their lives greener and had the idea of creating a website offering both useful and ethical design objects. Without making any immoderate promises, Greeen sells eco-design objects such as tables, chairs, beds, but also table linen, bags and jewelery. Coconut fiber, braided rattan, wood from FSC certified forests… The price is often high but results are here: design, chic and timeless objects. Greeen regularly joins forces with other ethical furniture brands. Greeen recently announced an upcoming collaboration made in France with CartonStyl. Furniture made out of recycled, light and resistant cardboard, to assemble yourself!

Discover the collections on the Greeen website.
Information and tips on the blog.

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“The ocean must be preserved, not only because it is magnificent, but because the survival our societies depend on it” (Edouard Bard, climatologist). This statement lays the cards on the table for the new exhibition at the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie, “Océan, Climat et Nous”. Since April 6th and until June 2012, this educational exhibition tackes three problems: “How does the ocean regulate the climate?”, “How is the ocean changing today?” and “How are men adapting?”. After “Climax, Changer d’ère et La Terre”, the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie continues the sustainable development-related exhibition series and takes interest in water, because let’s not forget that our planet is made of 70% of water and it is essential to life.

Exhibition “Océan, Climat et Nous” until June 2012.
Open from Tuesday to Saturday from 10 am to 6 pm and on Sundays from 10 am to 7 pm.

Photo Credit: Poster of the exhibition Océan, Climat et nous
© CSI / csuper

Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie
30, avenue Corentin Cariou
75019 Paris
France
T. : 33.(0)1.40.05.70.00

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If you are one of those who believe it’s impossible to combine fashion and ethic, you may change your mind with Dupleks! This boutique of the Canal Saint-Martin sells clothes respectful of man and nature. There are clothes made out of natural fabrics (wool, alpaca, silk, linen, cotton) which are also made with recycled clothes, fair trade and organic (including Eko or Skal certified cotton). If you think these anti-glamorous terms might sound a little inadequate for a cute summer dress, you should have a look at the designer collections: By Mutation, beautiful fabrics and very feminine cuts, G=9.8, sexy lingerie made out of pine fiber, les Fées de Bengale, a definitely urban and trendy brand… Jewelery, bags, jeans, there’s no doubt you’ll find your fit in this temple of ethical fashion. The boutique is constantly receiving new items. This month, it’s Eclats de Rouge, a new brand using organic natural fibers.

Open from Tuesday to Saturday from 11.30 am to 8 pm and on Sundays from 2.30 to 8 pm.

Dupleks
83, quai de Valmy
75010 Paris
France
T. : +33.(0)1.42.06.15.08

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Obsessed with grey hair but concerned by the environment (and your health)? You might fall for the charm of R Végétal, hair salon by Alain Teixeira. Energy-saving lights, air conditioning through plants, natural products… even the water from the steam dryers is saved! Hair colors available are from the Eos range from Wella and made of 80% vegetable products. The haircuts are “sustainable” (meaning “easy to look after” and not requiring going back for a blow-dry every three days) and adapted to your hair type. The prices aren’t that more expensive than a regular hairdresser and you are certain not to torture your scalp with the usual toxic products used in regular hair colors! Moreover, R Vegetal is a lovely salon in bricks and stones, decorated with plants, a fountain and a zen aquarium. The sweet and unusual treatments are cocoa, nettle, spinach or lemon. Make your appointment with Alain in the “bobo” area of Canal Saint-Martin for a unique hair experience!

Open from Tuesday to Saturday from 10 am to 7 pm and on Thursdays from 12 to 9 pm.

R Végétal
36, rue Beaurepaire
75010 Paris
France
T. : +33.(0)1.42.06.80.04
rvegetal@gmail.com

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For nearly 15 years, Valérie Roubaud and Patrick Lions have been working on an idea: making the East and the Provence meet through fragrances filled with memories. Since then, the dream came true with the creation of the brand Terre d’Oc with products sold at Nature & Découvertes and now also in a charming boutique with exposed stones, paneling and colors of Provence, located in the Abbesses area. Spice, flower or ocean-scented home fragrances, “Nature after the rain”, “Frangipani flowers” candles, cinnamon tea from Sri Lanka, white tea from the Fujian… natural products with scents as exotic as pleasant. All the cosmetics are certified organic and the brand sponsors several GNOs worldwide. A great place to treat yourself to an eco-friendly lifestyle.

Open from Tuesday to Friday from 11.30 am to 2 pm and from 3 to 7.30 pm.
Open on weekends from 11.30 am to 7.30 pm.

Photo Credit : ©OlivierMESNAGE

Photo Credit : ©OlivierMESNAGE

Photo Credit : ©OlivierMESNAGE

Boutique Terre d’Oc
38, rue des Abbesses
75018 Paris
France
T. : +33.(0)1.55.79.02.53

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Did you know that 93% of French people knew about fair trade? Yet it only represents 0.02% of global exchanges in 2009. The 11th edition of the Quinzaine du Développement Durable (15 days for sustainable development) is currently taking place everywhere in France, an annual event initiated by the members of the Plate-Forme du Commerce Equitable (Fair Trade Platform). A chance to learn more about this ethical and responsible way of consuming!
For 15 days (from May 14th to the 29th), the Quinzaine du Commerce Equitable sheds the light on companies, regions ans associations which develop economic relations based on fairness, solidarity and environment preservation. Many attractions are planned: concerts, “fair” brunches, debates, promoting of fair trade products and film showings. If you wish to participate and create an event around this happening, see the Guide de Mobilisation 2011 (in French) made for the occasion.

Visit www.quinzaine-commerce-equitable.fr to have a look at the event agenda.

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On May 27th, 28th and 29th, you may come across a lot of bikes… and for good reason! These few days will indeed be dedicated to the 15th bike festival (a great opportunity for you to go back on your old bicycle!). This event brought by the Comité de Promotion du Vélo (CPV) will take place everywhere in France. Each city and each association will have the opportunity to organize an event on this green mean of transport. Sports course, competitions, picnics, fashion shows… In the city, in the middle of the country, along the beach, there are plenty things to do for a convivial weekend with your friends and family. From cyclo-discovery to ATB rally, there is no doubt that you’ll find a suitable activity for you. And if you cannot pedal, you can still enjoy the many open houses around bikes.

For more information on the events near you, visit www.feteduvelo.fr

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“With GREEN T’s, we wish to join forces and act with international charities in order to strengthen our ecological and ethic commitment with more concrete actions” say Annabelle de Bernede and Catherine Valenza, the two founders of Featherstone & Co, the French eco-friendly and ethic apparel brand. The brand chose to work with ROOM TO READ for its first collaboration with a charity. All the benefits will go the this association specialized in helping with the education of disadvantaged children. The concept? A collection of organic cotton t-shirts, the “Green T’s”, designed by trendy artists such as André, Duran Duran, Betony Vernon or Harland Miller. The result? A fresh, rock and sexy collection, perfect cuts and pleasant fabrics. No room for hesitation, we jump at this ethic fashion collection and we rush to Colette to get it!

Colette
213, rue Saint-Honoré
75001 Paris
France
T. : +33.(0)1.55.35.33.90
Open from Monday to Saturday from 11 am to 7 pm.

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According to a recent report of France Nature Environnement (FAO), each French person throws away an average of 20kg of food each year (including 7kg of unopened products). Even worse: between the time of the harvest and the time the product reaches our plates, an estimated 55% of global production goes to waste. Beyond the ethical aspect of the problem, this important figure leads to ecological consequences, notably with the use of soils, water and unnecessary waste. Still according to the FAO, 90% of people don’t have any idea of the amount of wasted food. For instance, did you know that the equivalent of a bathtub full of water is necessary to make one baguette? An awareness program in schools would be a good start to grasp the importance of this waste. There are yet simple tricks to avoid throwing away food. For example, store your food in the right place in the refrigerator for a better preservation, use left-overs (by making French toast or soup), rather buy products by the slice and in bulk or make a shopping list of what you’re really missing at home.

See more eco-friendly tricks on www.trucsbio.com/-Conservation- (in French)

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Since its foundation, La Mie Câline has remained a family, ethical and social company. Through its action called “Câlinons notre planète!” (“Cuddle our planet!”), La Mie Caline shows that it definitively is an example in terms of sustainable development. Since 2008, it’s been acting towards its aim, notably by internally creating a Sustainable Development committee. The company thus demonstrated its green engagement by eliminating all plastic bags in shops in 2009, and by drawing up a carbon footprint report in 2010. This year, it will sign the Charte d’Engagement Volontaire des Réseaux (Charter of volunteer commitment of the network). This charter was an initiative of the Club Génération responsable and was signed by 19 brands (KFC France, L’Occitane, Courtepaille, Nature et Découvertes…) on May 4^th 2011. Signing this charter is an engagement for companies to reduce their energy consumption, reduce packaging, put ecological products forward, encourage eco-friendly behavior… Since it entered into this commitment, La Mie Câline has eliminated 9 million plastic bags, saved 4,600 cubic meters of water and recycled 70% of its waste. And it’s not about to stop there! Optimizing the eco-designing of retail stores, reducing CO2 emissions further, those are the next goals of the company. A nice initiative and a great model to follow!

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