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Eco Stimulus Package – even the little guys are doing it

Considering what is going on in the world right now I was wondering what the eco world is doing to support the tough economic times, bolstering the economy while maintaining their commitment to the environment.

Well, I thought I would focus my search for the not so public companies. I came across My Mad Monkey Inc (www.mymadmonkey,com) – small outfit that sells Bamboo T’s but also has an overall natural approach to living and supporting some environmental initiatives.  I think they feel the pain of the public and have recently dropped the price of their T’s by 40%!!! That seems huge and they have committed to this for the long term. So, I bought 2 t’s and saved a tonne, while knowing I was helping indirectly to some green initiatives.

The click was totally worth it for me! Also, t’s are awesome, very comfortable and look great!

- Boompa

Be Greeny not Greedy

So, I’ve been curious about how and what I could invest in that would be considered “green” investing without compromising the ideals of investing: Making an adequate rate of return. After all we all have mouths to feed, some more than others. Also, based on what’s going on right now in the world, especially the financial health of people, gave me more incentive to start looking at where I see opportunities in the future based on current trends…one of the largest movements in the world is the move to become more “green”…I gotta stop using quotations when I refer to “green” (there I go again) - like I’m saying it’s not a real word…oh, it’s real! And it’s insane what kinds of investments are available today for the average person to take advantage of – THIS IS WHERE YOU GET GREENY…

So, the first step I took is finding out what being green (yippee!) means as it relates to investments? Well, I came up with the following criteria:

• Environmentally friendly – either by what or how they make their products
• Is the product renewable or sustainable
• Fair labour laws and equal rights

This lead me to the term Social Responsible Investing. Here is a good excerpt from Wiki to explain:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socially_responsible_investing

From my research I found that there are a plethora (ya, that’s right, I said it, plethora) of investments that are considered socially responsible and green – most cover all my mandates as well as having a pretty decent rate of return.

So, the moral of the story is that you should start getting Greeny with your money, not greedy. Do your research, ask your investment dude or dudette, and get a little more involved.

- Boompa