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Does shaming a company work?

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Warren Buffett said, "It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it." It has been more than two decades now since a 1996 issue of Lifemagazine depicted a Pakistani boy sewing a Nike soccer ball, reportedly for six cents per hour. After the story, the company lost more than half its market capitalisation in just one year - it took Nike six years of demonstrated social responsibility to recuperate. Even today Nike is - fairly or unfairly - ranked low on lists of ethical companies. It has survived financially, but the reputation of the brand may never recover.

Environmental reputations can be just as hard to rebuild. NGOs like Greenpeace and the World Wildlife Fund believe in the potential fragility of the environment, and they see the potential fragility of companies' brands as a means of pressuring them to change.

"When Greenpeace reaches for its toolbox, it tends to find only one tool, and that's a mallet," said Scott Poynton, founder of the Forest Trust "and it tends to beat people over the head with it."

If you want evidence the mallet approach works, consider KitKat. In 2010, Guinness World Records certified that KitKat was the world's most global brand, sold in more countries than any other that year. But on 17 March that year, Greenpeace released a video parody of a KitKat commercial.

The clip opens with a bored office worker feeding papers into a shredder. Then, the screen turns red with the text "Have a break?" The worker opens a KitKat wrapper, but instead of fingers of chocolate, he finds the finger of an orangutan - complete with tufts of orange hair. Coworkers watch in horror as he crunches into the finger and blood dribbles on to his keyboard. The video urged viewers to "give the orangutan a break" and "stop Nestlé buying palm oil from companies that destroy rainforests".

Greenpeace used the power of social media to attack fast, far, and wide. In a matter of weeks, 1.5 million people had watched the video.

The attack surprised Nestlé. For one thing, the company thought it had already been addressing the issue. Nestlé had adopted a "no deforestation" policy when directly sourcing palm oil, committing that its palm oil would "not come from areas cleared of natural forest after November 2005". Nestlé neither produced palm oil nor owned any farms near orangutan habitats, nor had it ever ordered the clearing of rainforests to increase production of palm oil - but one of its suppliers had. Bosses attempted to address the issue by cancelling that supplier's contracts, a response that initially failed. Although the effects of the campaign on KitKat sales are not publicly known, we can infer they were significant - it took just eight weeks for the company to agree to Greenpeace's demands.

Public shaming may drive change in some notable instances, but success stories such as this are few and far between. Campaigns from environmental NGOs such as Greenpeace are necessarily targeted, their effectiveness limited to the company or brand under fire. After a summer of heatwaves and forest fires you might think that any CEO worth their salt would have sustainability in mind, whether for righteous (environmental) or unrighteous (PR) reasons. The problem is that sustainability and public image are two of many factors that a company must balance to be successful.

Each and every day CEOs across the world face numerous decisions, and sustainability is just one in a long list of priorities. Few will simply admit that they don't care, although it is clear from interviews conducted with them that many will only go as far as the customers demand, or only make environmentally positive decisions if they also reduce costs.

When it comes to sustainability in business it may even be necessary to take an entirely agnostic view on the science of climate change. To some extent it is irrelevant whether business executives personally embrace environmentalists' arguments about "the challenge of our time", or if they believe it is a hoax. The business merits of sustainability are based on the fact that even the most ardent climate-sceptic company executives face natural resource costs, public relations problems, regulatory burdens, and a green consumer segment.

Regardless of what they may personally believe, they still have to balance whether and how to pursue environmental initiatives, weighing time and resources against many competing demands. Naturally, most of them focus on green initiatives that are aligned with their shareholders' performance goals.

The dual role of businesses' supply chains in creating both economic growth (including jobs) and environmental impact highlights a fallacy in the Greenpeace story of "profits v planet". The environmentalists' narrative ignores the role of businesses and their supply chains in both employing people and delivering improved standards of living to humanity, especially to the billions of people who have yet to enjoy the plenty that modern industry can provide.

After Walmart's 2011 pledge to buy more sustainable seafood, Greenpeace contended that Walmart was not doing enough, whereas Alaskan fishermen and state officials complained that Walmart was asking too much of them. The real conflict is not "profits v planet" but rather "some people v other people". Our challenge is to prove that sustainability benefits everybody, but especially those CEOs whose company profits drive such decision making.

T his is an edited extract from Balancing Green by Yossi Sheffi (MIT Press)

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Profits v planet: can big business and the environment get along? | Yossi Sheffi

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Yossi Sheffi: Sustainability can bring benefits to everybody - including company execs with their eyes on the bottom line

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In 2016, MBDC partnered with L'Oréal to assess and optimize Biolage R.A.W. Nourish Shampoo and Conditioner to help them achieve Cradle to Cradle Certification. The Nourish Shampoo, made from quinoa husk and honey, is of 77% natural-origin (i.e. unchanged from the original plant or mineral source), and Nourish Conditioner, made of coconut oil and kaolin clay, is of 95% natural-origin. The shampoo and conditioner are both 99% biodegradable and do not include silicones, parabens or artificial colorants.

About the Process

MBDC first engaged the supply chain to obtain and assess full product formulations down to the molecule. Team members visited L'Oréal's manufacturing facilities and audited all processes using Cradle to Cradle criteria. We inventoried energy usage associated with production of Biolage R.A.W. products and facilitated purchase of Renewable Energy Credits (RECs). We also mapped water flows and evaluated the water effluent at production facilities, and performed a social fairness screen of tier one suppliers. Throughout the process, MBDC recommended opportunities for improvement in all categories evaluated.

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In 2016, MBDC partnered with L'Oréal to assess and optimize Biolage R.A.W. Nourish Shampoo and Conditioner to help them achieve Cradle to Cradle Certification. The Nourish Shampoo, made from quinoa husk and honey, is of 77% natural-origin (i.e. unchanged from the original plant or mineral source), and Nourish Conditioner, made of coconut oil and kaolin clay, is of 95% natural-origin.

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Urchin bags are created with upcycled seat belts bike inner tubes vinyl and banners. Each recycled bag is handmade and unique.

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© Evoware

One potential solution to the massive plastic pollution problem could come from Evoware, which makes seaweed-based packaging that is not only 100% biodegradable, but is edible as well.
Plastics have been a boon to industry, but are now the bane of the planet, even as plastic pollution is expected to continue unabated ( and even increase), with experts now predicting that by 2050 " the oceans will contain more plastic than fish by weight.." It's a curious and infuriating fact that our culture manufactures single-use products, such as beverage bottles, packaging, drinking straws, and bags, out of a material that basically never goes away, but instead just breaks down into smaller and smaller particles that find their way into almost everything.

According to the Plastic Pollution Coalition, some 33% of all plastic is "used just once and thrown away," which contributes to an immense global problem. Although we might idealistically call for a ban of plastics, or mandatory recycling, or adding a hefty surcharge for each 'disposable' plastic item, one of the only things that seems to hold promise in reducing plastic pollution is to move toward greener materials that are made from renewable resources and can break down quickly without adding more of a toxic load to our waterways.

To intentionally misquote Mr. McGuire in the '67 film The Graduate, "There's a great future in bioplastics," but the problem is that some bioplastics can contain petro-based plastics as well, which might reduce the overall amount of fossil fuel-based plastics, while inadvertently creating more waste by allowing consumers to treat these bioplastics more casually than they do traditional plastics. But one solution might come from an Indonesian company that has found a method of producing biodegradable packaging from seaweed, which is shelf-stable for up to two years but is dissolvable in warm water.

According to Evoware, the development of a seaweed-based packaging company in Indonesia has the potential to address several issues, the first of which is that nation is "the world's second largest plastic contributor to the ocean," and that some 90% of plastic waste ends up in the ocean, and "70% of that waste comes from food and beverage packaging." The second issue is the state of seaweed farmers in Indonesia, which is "the largest seaweed producing country," and yet these farmers remain very poor and their families suffer from malnutrition and other poverty-related difficulties.

The Evoware seaweed-based packaging products come in two basic varieties, a biodegradable one that can be used for packaging soaps and other non-consumable items, and an edible one that can be used as a food wrap, for flavoring sachets, or tea bags. The edible packaging, which is "almost tasteless and odorless," dissolves in warm water and is considered to be nutritious, as it "contains high fiber, vitamins and minerals."

"Seaweed-based packagings are good for small-format food sachets and wraps, e.g. instant noodle seasoning, cereal, single serving coffee powder and the complements, rice wrap, burger wrap, etc. It's good to replace your conventional packaging to enjoy your delicious food in a convenient and healthy way, and a best way to save our only earth. It can also be used to package the non-food based contents such as toothpicks, soap bars and sanitary pads." - Evoware

By turning to locally-grown seaweed as a feedstock for biodegradable packaging, Evoware aims to boost the livelihoods of seaweed farmers while also working to reduce plastic waste in general, and to reduce ocean pollution in particular. The company was recently chosen as a winner in the Social Venture Challenge Asia 2017, which brought Evoware a cash award as well as a mentorship and participation in a business incubator, which aim to help bring the company's products to a bigger market.

One potential solution to the massive plastic pollution problem could come from Evoware, which makes seaweed-based packaging that is not only 100% biodegradable, but is edible as well.

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This Indonesian company turns seaweed into edible & biodegradable packaging

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One potential solution to the massive plastic pollution problem could come from Evoware, which makes seaweed-based packaging that is not only 100% biodegradable, but is edible as well.

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Behold the humble bamboo chopsticks.

Most people see them as disposable utensils, something to be used over their sushi lunch or Chinese take-out, then thrown away.

But in them, Felix Bock sees the future.

A bamboo chopstick, he said, is almost a perfect raw material. Neatly tapered. No knots or cracks. Made with a fast-growing sustainable resource.

"It's just not justified we use them as chopsticks only," says Bock, founder and CEO of ChopValue, a Vancouver-based company that collects used bamboo chopsticks from local restaurants and turns them into home decor, household items and furniture.

"When you look at these chopsticks that have travelled 9,000 kilometres from China to Vancouver, then used for 20 minutes - I think the waste of it all resonates with people."

Bock, who hails from a small village in Germany, is a self-proclaimed bamboo enthusiast. A Ph.D. student at the University of B.C. studying structural bamboo products, Bock initially struggled to connect his research to Vancouver, where bamboo trees don't grow.

The eureka moment came one night in 2016 while eating sushi at home with his girlfriend.

He was frustrated at the time, he recalled. A project proposal to use wood from demolition and construction sites had no takers in the wood industry.

His girlfriend suggested he start with something smaller and more tangible: The chopsticks in their hands.

At first, Bock demurred. "But I couldn't sleep at night because I did the math of how many Asian restaurants we have, and how popular Asian cuisine is in Vancouver," he says, estimating at the time that about 100,000 chopsticks were thrown out daily in Metro Vancouver.

He invested $200 in cardboard bins, then he and Hugh Grady, an intern at the UBC lab turned founding partner at ChopValue, reached out to eateries in Kitsilano. Two weeks later, their lab was overflowing with tens of thousands of chopsticks.

Two months later, ChopValue was incorporated. Bock put his studies on the back burner (he is still working on completing his Ph.D).

"Restaurants were waiting for their bins to get picked up," he says. "I strongly felt the responsibility that once you started, you can't stop anymore."

Using a hydraulic hot press he designed, Bock turned the chopsticks into an 8×8-inch engineered bamboo tile - the raw material for ChopValue's array of products - using heat, steam, pressure and a water-based resin.

They quickly outgrew their small workshop in the False Creek flats, and moved into a 2,000-square-foot "micro-factory" in South Vancouver.

Today, ChopValue collects 350,000 chopsticks per week from about 300 partners, including Vancouver International Airport and several Metro Vancouver malls. Bock estimates they've diverted more than three million chopsticks from the waste stream.

This year, the company expanded to Victoria, Montreal and Los Angeles, and now has 18 employees.

The enterprise was cash-flow positive from the start, says Bock, although it made very little money in the first year, plowing back every dollar earned into the company. In its second year, angel investors got onboard.

This year, the company is aiming to make $1 million in revenue, says Bock. He declined to disclose how much the company made in previous years.

The company's product line, which started with tiles and coasters, now include wall decor, yoga blocks and furniture.

Each item comes labelled with its carbon footprint count, as well as the number of chopsticks it took to make. A set of coasters? 300 chopsticks. Hexagon tiles that can be displayed on the wall? 1,800 chopsticks. A nine-foot-long showstopper of a table? 100,000 chopsticks.

One of ChopValue's biggest potentials, says Bock, is in designing premium products for the restaurant and hospitality industry - the chopsticks going full circle, in a sense.

That's already what has happened in some locations such as Pacific Poke, a local chain of poke restaurants, which collects chopsticks for ChopValue and also uses its products, including table tops, wall art and cabinets.

Keeping their environmental footprint in check is one of the reasons Bock decided to go with a franchise model to expand the concept - from collection and design to production and sales - to other cities instead of centralizing manufacturing in one location, then shipping the products around the world.

"I knew I needed to do this for myself at least for a year ... and show it's feasible, and has traction, that we are doing something right," says Bock.

Now that he knows it's doable, Bock's plan is to expand to 75 to 100 locations over the next three years.

"We haven't even scratched the surface yet, with the potential for this," he says.
chchan@postmedia.com twitter.com/cherylchan CLICK HERE to report a typo. Is there more to this story? We'd like to hear from you about this or any other stories you think we should know about. Email vantips@postmedia.com.

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Vancouver chopsticks get a second, higher-class life

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Behold the humble bamboo chopsticks. Most people see them as disposable utensils, something to be used over their sushi lunch or Chinese take-out, then thrown away. But in them, Felix Bock sees the future. A bamboo chopstick, he said, is almost a perfect raw material. Neatly tapered. No knots or cracks.

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With the concept of a circular economy in mind, the opportunity exists to turn our 'waste' materials into new products! Therefore, we've teamed up with our friends at Surfrider Pacific Rim to bring you the (RE)generate Ideas Contest!

Vancouver Island residents, we want to hear your ideas on how our 10 identified waste types can be upcycled into new products! Fill out an entry form (or two) for a chance to win prizes!

Once our contest closes our judges will review all the entries and select 1 winner from each of the 10 categories. Judges will be scoring entries based on originality, feasibility, and high impact.

Winners will be notified the week after the contest closes. Then throughout April, we will be sharing the winning ideas on our website and social media platforms. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date!

Have an idea on how one or more of the identified waste materials could be upcycled into a new product? We can't wait to hear about it! The entry form will be available on this web page on February 25th, in the meantime, you can start brainstorming ideas! There is no limit on how many ideas you can submit.

To view the Contest Rules, click

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With the concept of a circular economy in mind, the opportunity exists to turn our 'waste' materials into new products! Therefore, we've teamed up with our friends at Surfrider Pacific Rim to bring you the (RE)generate Ideas Contest! Vancouver Island residents, we want to hear your ideas on how our 10 identified waste types can be upcycled into new products!

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"Don't waste it, wear it!" The future of fashion marketing campaigns!
In recent years we have seen innovative materials entering the world of fashion. A new revolution is underway, and thanks to new technologies, we are now able to transform by-products of the food industry in precious resources for the fashion industry. Today I would like to share five sustainable alternatives to conventional leather made from food waste. These materials are 100% vegan and are a great substitute to both mass-produced leather and petroleum-based synthetic fabrics.
VEGEA - "WINE LEATHER"
Vegea textile is a vegan leather alternative made from vegetable raw materials and winemaking by-products. The company aims to produce a bio-based fabric as an alternative to animal and oil-based synthetic leathers, to be used in fashion, design, automotive and packaging industries.
The material created by Vegea just feels like conventional leather and has similar properties. It should be added that the production process of "wine leather" doesn't require any water nor any toxic chemicals or heavy metals that are usually use in the tanning process of conventional leather.

Imagine the impact that this leather alternative could have considering that 27/28billion litres of wines are produced around the world annually.

Image credit: Vegea

MALAI - "COCONUT LEATHER"
Malai is a startup which "developed a biocomposite material made from entirely organic and sustainable bacterial cellulose, grown on agricultural waste sourced from the coconut industry". The utilization of the agricultural waste prevents the blockage of the local drainage system, water pollution as well as the acidification of the soil. In addition by using the waste product, Malai offers a second income to the local communities.

Coconut leather feels similar to conventional paper or leather. It is durable, flexible, resistant to water and it doesn't contain any plastic coating or synthetic ingredients which, makes it biodegradable. It is available in different colours which are obtained by using natural dyes. This material is customisable to meet a wide range of thicknesses and textures, and it can be used to create seamless three-dimensional objects.

Image credit: Honza Zima - Malai leather

PIÑATEX - "PINEAPPLE LEATHER"
Piñatex is a natural and sustainable textile made from the fibres of pineapple leaves which are a by-product of the fruit industry. The physical properties are very similar to these of conventional leather.

By using the discarded by-products Piñatex has created a new source of income for farming communities who otherwise may only rely on the seasonal pineapple harvest. In addition, once the fibers has been extracted from the leaves, the leftover biomass can be converted into a fertiliser or biofuel, which constitutes another benefit for the farmers. Like leather it can be used to manufacture goods including shoes, handbags and upholstery. Needless to say it is also 100% cruelty free.
MYCOWORKS - "MUSHROOM LEATHER"
MyCoWorks is a San Francisco based start up which produces vegan leather made from mycelium and agriculture byproducts. The material in customisable. It can be grown into nearly any size or texture. It is strong, flexible, durable and water-resistant. The 'mushroom leather' can easily and rapidly be grown from organic discarded material in a carbon-negative process, and it is 100% biodegradable.
THE APPLE GIRL - "APPLE LEATHER"
The Apple Girl is a start up from Denmark that uses by-products from the apple juice and the cider industry to make vegan "apple leather". This material is 100% biodegradable, requires only 1l of water for the production of 1 m of fabric and it is completely made from natural ingredients. It can be rigid or flexible depending on the requirements, and it can be also be laser cut. The material is under development, however you can pre-order some samples to support the project.

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5 Leather Alternatives Made Out Of Food Waste - 1410DESIGN

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"Don't waste it, wear it!" The future of fashion marketing campaigns! In recent years we have seen innovative materials entering the world of fashion. A new revolution is underway, and thanks to new technologies, we are now able to transform by-products of the food industry in precious resources for the fashion industry.

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© Adidas

The Futurecraft Loop performance running shoes can be returned to Adidas, where they will be ground up to make more shoes, again and again.
So, recycling is a mess. Manufacturers have sold us on the idea that it's the consumer's responsibility to recycle the manufacturer's product, ostensibly relieving the manufacturer of responsibility for all the trash their products generate. Meanwhile, despite many of us trying our best to uphold our end of the deal, recycling is complicated - and in the end, 91 percent of plastic, for example, is not recycled.

Given plastic's nearly eternal durability, it's little wonder that we're finding it literally everywhere on the planet. And we keep making new plastic at a prodigious rate - National Geographic notes that "If present trends continue, by 2050, there will be 12 billion metric tons of plastic in landfills."

As consumers we can stop consuming things made of and packaged in plastic, but manufacturers have to address the issue from the top - quite simply, the time has come.

Which brings us to Adidas.

I was invited to the unveiling of the company's revolutionary new performance running shoe, the Futurecraft Loop - and to be honest, I was a bit skeptical. Billed as a 100 percent recyclable shoe .... well, we've heard claims like this before (hello Starbucks, hi there Keurig).

But I have to say, I am impressed. Yes, the mystical/futuristic event in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, complete with a fog machine and Willow Smith (who is partnering with Adidas on the project), left some stars in my eyes - but I left feeling genuinely excited about the future of the Futurecraft Loop.
© Adidas | Willow Smith and Adidas have partnered on the fully recyclable shoe.
Adidas is no stranger to sustainability innovations. In 2015, the company partnered with Parley for the Oceans to create shoes whose uppers were made entirely of yarns and filaments reclaimed and recycled from marine plastic waste and illegal deep-sea gillnets. This year, they will produce 11 million pairs of these wonderfully "trashy" shoes through intercepting plastic waste on beaches, remote islands and in coastal communities.

At the Futurecraft Loop event, Eric Liedtke, Executive Board Member at Adidas and head of Global Brands, said that an "army of innovators" had been working on the new shoe for more than six years - and described how much of a challenge it was. These are performance shoes, afterall, and have many parts that need to best serve the athlete/wearer.

What has made the recycling of shoes - and most things - difficult is that the various materials of an item need to be separated prior to recycling. How did Adidas solve this problem? They figured out how to make the shoe with a single material (100 percent reusable thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU)) - and it is constructed without the use of adhesives or other chemicals. The TPU is spun to yarn, knitted, molded and clean-fused to a midsole.

Once the user is done with the shoes, they are returned to Adidas, where they are washed, ground to pellets and melted into material for components for a new pair of shoes, with zero waste and nothing thrown away.
© Melissa Breyer | Design process
"Futurecraft Loop is our first running shoe that is made to be remade," said Liedtke. "It is a statement of our intent to take responsibility for the entire life of our product; proof that we can build high-performance running shoes that you don't have to throw away."

Liedtke also says that the company is aiming to be using only recycled polyester in all of their products by 2024.

"Taking plastic waste out of the system is the first step, but we can't stop there," said Liedtke. "What happens to your shoes after you've worn them out? You throw them away - except there is no away. There are only landfills and incinerators and ultimately an atmosphere choked with excess carbon, or oceans filled with plastic waste. The next step is to end the concept of "waste" entirely. Our dream is that you can keep wearing the same shoes over and over again."

For now, the first generation Futurecraft Loop has been rolled out as part of a "global beta program with 200 leading Creators from across the world's major cities," to take the shoes for a spin. This was the part of the event where 200 pairs of sneakers magically appeared - I was wondering why they wanted my shoe size beforehand.
© Melissa Breyer
Now those of us with the shoes will put them to the test before returning them with feedback ahead of the second generation drop. The target for the wider release is Spring Summer 2021. In the meantime, I am planning on testing mine hard ... and finding solace in the fact that this will be just one of the many lives they'll lead. Stay tuned for more...

More at Adidas.

The Futurecraft Loop performance running shoes can be returned to Adidas, where they will be ground up to make more shoes, again and again..

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Adidas unveils running shoes that never have to be thrown away

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The Futurecraft Loop performance running shoes can be returned to Adidas, where they will be ground up to make more shoes, again and again. So, recycling is a mess. Manufacturers have sold us on the idea that it's the consumer's responsibility to recycle the manufacturer's product, ostensibly relieving the manufacturer of responsibility for all the trash their products generate.

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Belgian brand Komrads is set to market the first trainers made from the fermented pulp of apple peel.

The textile industry is one of the highest polluting in the world, from the raw materials to the manufacture, not forgetting the transport of the finished product and recycling. A number of initiatives are gradually being created to make the fashion industry ethically and ecologically responsible. One of these is Belgian, namely apple leather trainers. No, you are not dreaming!

This is an innovation by the Belgian brand Komrads, which has been producing sustainable trainers, among other things, since 2015. Komrads worked on this new product for a year and a half and now has a prototype, which will soon be ready to market. These new trainers, the Komrads World, have a limited ecological footprint whilst also being fashionable and affordable. "It looks like traditional leather, but is 100% vegetarian and ecological," explained Mark Vandevelde, the brand's founder.

Production does not require the extraction of raw materials. The sole is made of 100% recycled leather from car tyres, which is then coloured with organic paint. The apple leather is made in Italy, where the apple peel pulp is fermented into high-quality leather. Lastly, the shoes are made under fair conditions in Portugal.

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Trainers made from apple leather: a Belgian invention

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The textile industry is one of the highest polluting in the world, from the raw materials to the manufacture, not forgetting the transport of the finished product and recycling. A number of initiatives are gradually being created to make the fashion industry ethically and ecologically responsible.

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MarinaTex

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MarinaTex is a home compostable material designed as an alternative to single-use plastic films. The material is comprised of waste material from the fishing...

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For Bill Gates, toilets are serious business. The billionaire philanthropist kicked off the Reinvented Toilet Expo in China and unveiled a new toilet that does not require water or sewers, and uses chemicals to turn human waste into fertilizer, Reuters reported.

"We are all here for one reason: because more than half the world's population doesn't have the safe sanitation they need to lead healthy and productive lives," Gates said in a speech on Tuesday in Beijing.

Gates tweeted a video Monday that described his and his foundation's mission to improve sanitation for countries that do not have or cannot afford to build the sewer infrastructure to remove waste.

To drive home the importance of safe sanitation, Gates brought a jar of feces with him during his keynote in Beijing.

"You might guess what's in this beaker-and you'd be right. Human feces. This small amount of feces could contain as many as 200 trillion rotavirus cells, 20 billion Shigella bacteria, and 100,000 parasitic worm eggs," the Microsoft co-founder said.

He kept the jar on the podium for nearly 10 minutes before removing it, the Associated Press reported.

Poor sanitation kills nearly 500,000 children under the age of five annually and costs an estimated $223 billion a year in the form of higher health costs and lost productivity and wages, Reuters reported, citing the information from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The untreated sewage can also negatively impact the surrounding environment.

"Some of the untreated human waste is in unlined pit latrines that contaminates groundwater around people's homes," Gates said in his speech. "Some is collected manually, or by trucks, and is dumped into nearby fields or bodies of water. And some is collected in sewers but never gets treated. The point is that we are far from the goal the world set in 2015 of everyone using a safely-managed toilet."

The aim of the expo is to "launch a new category of innovative, decentralized sanitation solutions that will benefit millions of people worldwide," Gates said.

Several of these "reinvented toilets" are currently being tested in Durban, South Africa.

"Durban is a good place to run these tests because the city is growing fast and many people there don't have a modern sanitation, which means that, even if they have access to a toilet, the waste can get into the environment and make people sick," Gates said in the video.

"A typical toilet needs water, but many of the new approaches don't require any water at all, some of them don't need electricity either, others run on solar power," he added. "All of them remove the pathogens from the waste and, most importantly, they don't have to be connected to the sewer system."

The next step for the project is to pitch the concept to manufacturers, Gates told Reuters. He estimated that the market for the toilets will be more than $6 billion by 2030.

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Bill Gates Unveils Toilet That Transforms Waste Into Fertilizer, Doesn't Require Water or Sewers

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For Bill Gates, toilets are serious business. The billionaire philanthropist kicked off the Reinvented Toilet Expo in China and unveiled a new toilet that does not require water or sewers, and uses chemicals to turn human waste into fertilizer, Reuters reported. "We are all here for one reason...

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We can’t sustain this ‘take-make-dispose’ model – what’s the solution?

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The Linear System - Seeing the Bigger Picture

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France considers making clothes recycling a law - article

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Clothing at a flea market | Source: Shutterstock

By Victoria Berezhna May 18, 2018 05:29

PARIS, France - Two years ago, France was the first country to pass a law preventing supermarkets from throwing away or destroying unsold food. Under the country's circular economy roadmap, lawmakers are planning to do the same for clothing.

Spearheaded by prime minister Édouard Philippe, by 2019 new regulations or incentives could prohibit brands from discarding unsold clothing into landfills or through incineration, instead requiring sustainable measures like recycling or donating to charity shops.

The initiative forms part of the proposed Circular Economy Roadmap, which outlines 50 measures for France to become a circular, sustainable economy - one that moves away from a linear "take, make, dispose" model towards a model of restoration and regeneration.

Europeans consumed over 6.4 million tonnes of clothing in 2017, according to the European Clothing Action Plan. France alone discards 600,000 tonnes of clothing and accessories per year, says a case study by the Ellen MacArthur foundation, of which only a quarter is collected in recycling bins or charity shops.

While the detailed terms of the proposal have not been outlined, legislators say it may include potential tax breaks for companies that re-use or recycle clothing, rather than dump them in a landfill, thereby linking sustainable practices with profit. Regardless, it is not likely to be a fully-fledged law, but rather an incentivised proposal.

It may include potential tax breaks for companies that re-use or recycle clothing.

"Now is the time for the fashion industry to ensure their products are used more," says Francois Souchet, lead of the Circular Fibres Initiative at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. "Whether it's through pressure from legislators or consumers, a lot of signals say the time is right for the industry to rethink their business model."

The country's circular economy roadmap offers a direct incentive for brands to rethink their supply chain model from the ground up. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation, which worked with the French government on the scheme, outlines three areas of action that brands can take. First, set up new business models that move away from a classic retail model. Second, innovate and use recyclable materials. Third, make clothes to be made again by incorporating recycling into the design process.

"We avoid [the practice of disposing of unsold clothing] and do everything we can to eradicate it," said French luxury house Chanel in a statement. "Chanel's strategy of [producing] collections only when we receive orders from our buyers cuts down considerably on unsold stock. We are also currently thinking about the best way of recycling unsold items."

But other companies may find it tougher to implement the new measures. Last year, was accused by Danish television programme Operation X of burning 12 tonnes of new, unsold clothing per year (although the fast fashion chain denied the claims). Meanwhile, Louis Vuitton has long been rumoured to burn all unsold bags to avoid lowering brand cachet by selling discounted items in outlet stores. The company was not available for comment.

While the new circular economy incentive only addresses textiles, it's likely that luxury brands will consider alternative recycling methods, rather than donating unsold clothing, to avoid brand dilution.

"The opportunity is to disconnect revenues from resource consumption and satisfy changing customer needs," said Souchet. "Brands need to align the design and business model."
Related Articles: Fashion in 2018 | Sustainability Credibility Swedish Plant Burns H&M Rags Instead of Coal The Cost of Dead Inventory: Retail's Dirty Little Secret

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What Should French Fashion Do With Its Unsold Clothing?

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Clothing at a flea market | Source: Shutterstock By Victoria Berezhna May 18, 2018 05:29 PARIS, France - Two years ago, France was the first country to pass a law preventing supermarkets from throwing away or destroying unsold food. Under the country's circular economy roadmap, lawmakers are planning to do the same for clothing.

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Patagonia - A circular approach to clothing

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Patagonia - A circular approach to clothing

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Article

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LONDON, United Kingdom - In recent days, Patagonia has been making headlines for its effort to protect Bears Ears National Monument in Utah from being developed for oil and gas. In an open letter, the outdoor apparel brand's founder, Yvon Chouinard, voiced his opposition to Utah governor Gary Herbert's plan to reverse recent protections brought in by outgoing US President Barack Obama.

Patagonia's position on such issues is a reflection of the deeply-held philosophy of environmental responsibility embodied by Chouinard, who famously wrote "Let My People Go Surfing" - a manifesto that encapsulates his laid-back approach to life and has helped him build a multimillion dollar business.

The concept at the very heart of Patagonia's business is to manufacture, repair and recycle products in order that they last a lifetime, and the reason why the company is to be presented with the Accenture Strategy Award for Circular Economy Multinational at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, this week. To coincide with the award, the company is announcing the launch of an e-commerce platform for its Worn Wear initiative, which will sell used Patagonia clothing and equipment online, sourced from its customers.

The so-called circular economy, when applied to fashion, is a system whereby everything in the process of making garments - including the garments themselves - is re-used or recycled, a rejection of the more traditional "take, make and dispose" model, in which products are cheaply made, consumed voraciously, then disposed.

"The whole idea of [the circular economy] is creating no waste," says Julie Gilhart, a creative business consultant who counts Amazon and LVMH among her clients and has worked with the CFDA to establish a sustainability initiative. "There should be no end of life of anything. Nothing should just sit in landfill."

Patagonia applies these principles by carefully thinking through each step of the process, says Rose Marcario, chief executive of Patagonia. "It's really taking end to end responsibility for the product."

There should be no end of life of anything. Nothing should just sit in landfill.

By designing durable products that can be repaired, Patagonia ensures that garments stay in use for as long as possible, something the brand encourages by providing a lifetime guarantee for all of its wares. If a product can no longer be repaired, Patagonia will recycle it and reimburse the customer with gift vouchers for the value of the item.

Patagonia has also reduced its environmental impact in its sourcing. In 1993, the company devised a fleece material made from plastic bottles - then shared its knowledge with other companies in a bid to encourage use of the recycled textile.

"We are living in a world where there are going to be fewer resources, and there won't always be a wealth of virgin materials. So you have to start working now to figure out how you are going to address those issues as a brand," says Marcario.

"If a product is totally worn out, we are going to take it and recycle it. If it needs to be repaired, we are going to have a mechanism to repair it. If it can be resold but they don't want it any more, there's a mechanism to do that," she adds.

While Patagonia declined to share the cost of the company's investment into sustainable, circular practices, Marcario says developing the company's current business model has been a decades-long process and one that relies on communicating its message effectively with its consumers.

"For us, we engage with our customers because it's a relationship. They need to understand that, as a brand, we are invested in this responsibility for the product from end to end and we are going to help them in each stage of the process."

Brands that don't face these realities of the true cost of apparel and fast fashion, I think they will be left behind.

Patagonia's circular business model is one that many fashion companies can learn from. Indeed, if they don't, it could cost them. "I think the real cost to business is possibly your customer, because if [a company is] not addressing it, they are not innovating," Gilhart says. "For big companies to change the way they speak and to change some of the ways they do things, there is risk involved ... but the greatest risk is not being relevant."

As a privately-held company, Patagonia has been able to implement circular practices to its business model without the pressure to report quarterly sales increases to appease shareholders, an expectation faced by many publicly-traded companies. However, that hasn't stopped Patagonia from achieving an estimated $710 million in sales, 1 percent of which it donates to hundreds of environmental organisations each year. Since 1985, the company has donated $78 million to environmental causes as a way to compensate for its impact on the environment.

As more consumers question brands' environmental policies, many companies are being forced to consider a more sustainable operating model.

In 2013, for instance, launched a global garment collection initiative, which aims to address the issue of used clothing waste by re-purposing garments for re-wear, re-use or recycling. It has gathered more than 32,000 tonnes of garments since its launch. It is also working on new technologies to recycle clothes from different textile blends into new clothes.

Likewise, , which owns , Bottega Veneta and Puma, recently published the results of its sustainability report addressing how it has tackled its own targets, with an emphasis on investing in new materials.

"There is a lot of innovation in this space," says Marcario. "We don't have to all reinvent the wheel, but brands that don't face these realities of the true cost of apparel and fast fashion, I think they will be left behind."
Related Articles: Sustainability Is Out, Responsible Innovation Is In How can the fashion industry become more sustainable? Just Fix It: How Nike Learned to Embrace Sustainability

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LONDON, United Kingdom - In recent days, Patagonia has been making headlines for its effort to protect Bears Ears National Monument in Utah from being developed for oil and gas. In an open letter, the outdoor apparel brand's founder, Yvon Chouinard, voiced his opposition to Utah governor Gary Herbert's plan to reverse recent protections brought in by outgoing US President Barack Obama.

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Linear Case Study to match with case study 3

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Linear Case Study to match with case study 3

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Styrofoam - How its' made

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Discovery Channel's How It's Made - Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) Products

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Case Study 6 - Clothing that closes the loop

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Case Study 6 - Clothing that closes the loop

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The North Face closes the loop

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Clothes the Loop stems from our commitment to reducing the environmental impact of our products at all stages of their life cycle, even those stages out of our direct control. All program proceeds benefit The Conservation Alliance, which funds community-based campaigns to protect our shared wilderness and recreation areas.

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Case Study 5 - Circular use of resources 

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Case Study 5 - Circular use of resources 

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Lego style houses! Circular buildings

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Case Study 4 - circular use of resources

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Case Study 4 - circular use of resources

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Splosh! - Washing detergent, circular design

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Case Study 3 - Circular use of resources

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Case Study 3 - Circular use of resources

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Ecovative - Mushrooms to replace styrofoam

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Case Study 2 - Circular Use of Resources 

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Case Study 2 - Circular Use of Resources 

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Headphones - Technological cycle

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Case Study 1 - Circular use of resources 

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Case Study 1 - Circular use of resources 

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Black fly larvae - Agriprotein

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Why buy when you can rent?

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Danish brand rents baby clothes to tackle waste | Astro Awani

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An environmentally friendly Danish brand is aiming to tackle waste by letting parents rent its baby clothes, rather than buy them. Copenhagen-based Vigga h

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Oyster shells

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Producing up to 500 million pounds of oysters each year, the Gulf Coast region of the United States is a shellfish haven: The area accounts for 67% of the oysters consumed in the U.S. But each oyster slurped down leaves behind a shell, and recycling those shells- instead of sending them to landfill -could actually be the key to rebuilding a coastal region decimated by natural and manmade disasters.

Last October, the Alabama Coastal Foundation (ACF), a nonprofit dedicating to protecting the state's coastal environment, teamed up with the waste-management company Republic Services to launch an oyster-shell recycling program in the region. It began with just a few restaurants: A designated representative from Republic Services would drive out at 3 a.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays to collect shells left over by diners, and bring them to a nature preserve where they can aerate and "cure" for several months before being returned to the ocean. The program has since scaled up to 29 restaurants, and Mark Berte, the executive director of the ACF, tells Fast Company that interest keeps growing.

While it's common practice among seafood restaurants to send their empty shells to landfill with the rest of their waste, a handful of regions are beginning to put the shells to more productive use by returning them to the ocean, where they become the building blocks of restored oyster beds.

For oysters to grow, they have to be able to attach to a firm substrate like rock. Along the Gulf Coast, oyster reefs form when young oysters attach to the left-behind shells of other oysters. But decades of over-harvesting, disease, and pollution have begun to decimate oyster reefs, 85% of which globally have disappeared. And in the Gulf region, disasters like the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill have further wrecked the habitats.

By working with Republic Services to collect the discarded shells from restaurants, the ACF wants to contribute to the effort to revitalize the Gulf Coasts' oyster reefs. In 2012, The Nature Conservancy (TNC) launched an effort to repair the Gulf region following the Deepwater Horizon spill, and as part of that has called for a $150 million investment in oyster-reef restoration, including the rebuilding of 100 miles of reefs. Doing so, TNC claims, will bring jobs to the region and ensure its shellfish industry will continue to thrive.

"The more shells they give us, the more oysters they can keep serving," Berte says.

The ACF and Republic Services partnership is working toward that goal. Funded by a $243,000 grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the program has collected over 2.8 million oyster shells-enough to cover 7.2 acres in the Gulf. Each oyster shell returned to the ocean, Berte says, can become the habitat for 10 baby oysters. Additionally, adult oysters can filter around 15 gallons of water a day-significant for a region plagued with water-quality issues. Because oysters filter out sediment and algae from the water, they support a healthier marine environment for other species. By sucking up excess algae and nitrogen, for example, oysters clear the water and enable more seagrass to grow, which in turn will lead to healthier fish and crab populations.

The grant will last the ACF through the spring of 2018, by which time, Berte hopes to have scaled the program sufficiently to operate without the additional funds. While Republic Services is currently collecting shells without charging the restaurants, they'll likely attach a fee to the service going forward, says Jennifer Eldridge of Republic Services. "With so many restaurants buying into the program, they'll likely be willing to pay for it, like they pay to have their trash or recycling collected," she says.

The idea of oyster-shell recycling programs, Eldridge says, has been around for several years, but only recently took off. The ACF initiative, which centers around Mobile, Alabama, was inspired by a similar project in New Orleans, run by the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, which has, to date, collected nearly 3,000 tons of oyster shells since launching in 2014. They, in turn, were inspired by a program in Galveston, and Fast Company has previously covered the efforts of the Billion Oyster Project in New York to use reclaimed shells to restore the city's waterways and ecosystems.

But as these programs expand across the country, Berte says they're remaining in close communication, and learning from each other. The ACF, in launching this program, also requires participating restaurants to join the Green Coast Council, which promotes sustainable business practices in the region. The oyster recycling program is one element of how the Gulf Coast's restaurants can begin to work more cooperatively with the environment that fuels them. "We want to make sure they have skin in the sustainability game beyond this program," Berte says.

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Restaurants Are Returning Their Empty Oyster Shells To The Ocean To Rebuild Decimated Reefs

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Producing up to 500 million pounds of oysters each year, the Gulf Coast region of the United States is a shellfish haven: The area accounts for 67% of the oysters consumed in the U.S.

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How much does it cost the environment?

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The life cycle of a t-shirt - Angel Chang

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5 INCREDIBLE Eco-Friendly Life Changing Inventions

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Do you really need a new phone?

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Special report:  Inside the Congo cobalt mines that exploit children

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Who exports what?

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Using data from the CIA Factbook, we labeled every country in the world by its highest valued export - the commodity that makes the country the most money in the global market. Click on any of the maps below to see an enlarged version.

Unsurprisingly, much of the world runs on oil, particularly the Middle East and Central Asia. Europe is the world's workshop, where most of the machinery and motor vehicles are made, from optical instruments to BMWs. Latin America brings a blend of food products and oil to the trading table. Asia is the world's manufacturing center, where the world's clothing, wood products, and semiconductors are made. Africa is extremely rich in natural resources, particularly precious metals and oil. A substantial part of the continent makes its money on diamonds, gold or oil.
This article, by Simran Khosla, originally appeared at GlobalPost. More from GlobalPost...

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This map shows which export makes your country the most money

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Using data from the CIA Factbook, we labeled every country in the world by its highest valued export - the commodity that makes the country the most money in the global market. Click on any of the maps below to see an enlarged version.

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What really happens to the plastic you throw away - Emma Bryce

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This artist has spent twelve years researching how best to recycle landfill materials; and his results have already become a great help to the environment.

After twelve years of research and development, Uruguayan designer Juan Muzzi patented the world's first bike made entirely out of recycled plastic.

Muzzi's Sao Paulo-based company, Muzzicycle, produces 10,000 bikes per month - and the expansive waiting list is an indicator of the bike's ever-growing popularity. According to the company's website, the company uses almost 16 tons of wasted plastic every year, translating to well over 5 tons of CO2 emissions saved from the atmosphere.

RELATED: Student Invents Biodegradable Packaging From Seagrass That Washes Up on Beaches

The bike's construction requires 90% less energy than regular bike frames. They are also designed to be rust-resistant, more shock-absorbent, and even less jarring on the prostate and spine.

According to the designer, the next steps for Muzzicycle are increasing production capacity and developing a wheelchair with the same material. He plans to sell the wheelchairs at the same production costs to manufacture.

The company is also worried about generating income for the poorest of Brazil - currently, the plastic comes from different NGOs that collect the materials from the streets. These NGOs employ city residents - usually homeless - who make their living collecting these kind of recyclables.

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Pedal This Story Over To Your Friends: Click To Share

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Bikes Made With Recycled Materials are Saving Tons of Plastic Every Year - Good News Network

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This artist has spent twelve years researching how best to recycle landfill materials; and his results have already become a great help to the environment. After twelve years of research and development, Uruguayan designer Juan Muzzi patented the world's first bike made entirely out of recycled plastic.

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About Rothy's | The "Go To" Shoes for Versatility Comfort & Style

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Read the story behind Rothy's and our comfortable ballet shoes & pointed toe flats. Made from recycled plastic bottles and using an eco-friendly manufacturing process.

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Companies already on their circular way! Yah!

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Companies already on their circular way! Yah!

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We're always looking for ways to save money, and one surefire way to do that is to buy products that last.

You can also buy products from companies that will repair or replace them if they break.
You may spend a bit more up front, but quality items - and ones with awesome lifetime warranties - can end up saving you money in the long run.
From backpacks to knives, here's a list of 22 brands that offer lifetime warranties with no strings attached - plus 31 that cover manufacturer's defects forever.

Companies With Lifetime Warranties

Yes, even for normal wear and tear.

1. Polar Bottle

" Every bottle goes through several levels of quality control before it is shipped out and our products are designed to last for years," according to the Colorado-based company's website.

"That being said, we understand that things happen, so we offer a lifetime guarantee on all of our products."

Polar Bottle also offers a free replacement if you lose or damage your water bottle cap.

"Cutco knives have been handed down from mothers to daughters, grandfathers to grandsons and between friends," according to the company's website.

"If at any time you are not satisfied with the performance of your Cutco product, we'll make it right."

"If your pack ever breaks down, simply return it to our warranty center," Jansport says on its website. "We'll fix it or if we can't, we'll replace it or refund it."

A Manduka PRO yoga mat will cost you $108, but the price tag may well be worth it if you practice regularly and your mat wears out.

Feetures! is a family owned sock-maker in North Carolina. This company makes high-performance socks for runners and other athletes, and it'll offer you a replacement pair or refund at any time.

6. Eddie Bauer

This outdoor gear and clothing maker stands behind its products so much that it offers an unconditional lifetime guarantee.

This warranty was implemented by founder Eddie Bauer in the company's early days. After 50 years in business, Bauer said it was his greatest contribution to customers.

7. Craftsman

Talk to someone who uses tools on a regular basis and you've probably heard about Craftsman's warranty.

Many of the company's tools, including wrenches, hand tools, gardening and pruning tools, are eligible for replacement, free of charge, over the lifetime of the product.

You'll need to present proof of purchase when asking for a replacement item, according to Craftsman's website.

The brand's motto: Any reason, any product, any era.

"Osprey will repair any damage or defect for any reason free of charge - whether it was purchased in 1974 or yesterday," Osprey's website says.

"If we are unable to perform a functional repair on your pack, we will happily replace it."

9. Lands' End

"If you're not satisfied with any item‚ simply return it to us at any time for an exchange or refund of its purchase price," Lands' End promises on its site.

10. Vermont Teddy Bear

VTB has some fun with it too, and encourages you to send your bear to its "Bear Hospital."

"Every once in awhile, a tragedy will strike - a dog attack, a chance meeting with a lawn mower," the company says. "We are talkin' FREE, full coverage health care for your bear's entire lifetime."

11. Duluth Trading Company

Duluth Trading Company, which makes clothing, outerwear, footwear and other items, offers a "No Bull" lifetime warranty on all of its products.

Owners must register their umbrellas to be eligible for the lifetime warranty.

"We don't make that promise lightly," Zippo says.

"We know that behind every Zippo product sent for repair is an owner depending on our promise to get it back in working order. Whether a windproof lighter is five years, 25 years or 50 years old, it will serve as a dependable source of flame for years to come. We guarantee it."

The company will replace its products - whether you're the original owner or not - forever.

"You don't need proof of ownership. Or a warranty card. And there's no time limit," the company says.

"We do this because we believe in superior quality and craftsmanship, and we're confident your Leupold won't let you down."

This unconditional lifetime warranty is completely transferrable and applies to any product made by Red Oxx at any time in history. The warranty also extends to bags you buy used.

16. Darn Tough Socks

"If you were able to wear out a pair of Darn Tough socks, we'll replace them. At any time," according to the company's website.

The company says its warranty has no strings and no conditions.

"We make pieces that last, and if they don't, we want to know about it," reads the L.L. Bean website. "If something's not working or fitting or standing up to its task or lasting as long as you think it should, we'll take it back."

You can send back an item purchased from L.L. Bean for any reason, at any time. The company will send you a refund or a replacement item.

XIKAR, which makes cigar accessories, offers a lifetime warranty on all products. Simply drop your lighter or cigar cutter in the mail, and the company will repair or replace it for free.

It'll also sharpen or replace the blade of your cigar cutter for free.

"If you feel that it fails to live up to our promise of fit, finish [and] function, simply return it to us [and] we will cheerfully repair or replace your product."

19. Snap Circuits

This Illinois-based company makes kits for kids to build FM radios, digital voice recorders, alarms, doorbells and more.

Each kit comes with a lifetime warranty on all parts. Simply fill out a replacement part form and get a new part for free - it's pretty simple.

20. Dover Saddlery

Jim and Dave Powers founded Dover Saddlery in 1975 in Massachusetts. The company offers a 100% satisfaction guarantee on its saddles, riding clothing, boots, horse blankets and stable supplies.

" We stand behind the quality of our products, and should you not be satisfied with your purchase, simply return it and we will refund, replace or exchange it for you," according to the company's website .

This outdoor gear and apparel company offers a 100% satisfaction guarantee, which means it'll return your money or replace an item for any reason, at any time.

Away, a company that makes suitcases with high-capacity batteries for charging your cell phone and other devices, offers a lifetime warranty for the non-electronic components of its luggage. If your bag's shell, wheels, handles or zippers stop working, the company will fix them or replace the bag for free.

You must be the bag's original owner and have used it for travel by "air, car, train, boat and foot" for damage to be covered. To qualify, the problem must "impair the functionality of the product."

The company won't hang you out out to dry if the battery dies, either. Away guarantees the electronic components inside its suitcases for two years.

Brands With Warranties for Manufacturer's Defects

They might not cover regular wear and tear, but these companies will fix or replace unsatisfactory items.

23. Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC)

The company offers a "Rocksolid Guarantee" on all of its products and the advice its employees give you.

"If the quality of an item hasn't met your expectations, you can bring it back," according to the company's website.

"We also guarantee the product selection advice we give. If something you purchased based on this advice turns out to be unsuitable, you can bring it back for an exchange, refund, repair or credit. "

The company says it charges a "reasonable fee" to repair products damaged by normal wear and tear.

24. Columbia

Though the company won't replace an item for normal wear and tear, Columbia will replace items with manufacturer defects.

If the zipper breaks, for example, you can send your jacket in to have it inspected. If the folks in the warranty department determine the defect is covered by the warranty, they'll fix it and send it back, or send you a credit for the value of the item so you can buy a new one.

The company offers a one-year warranty on shoes and sportswear.

25. Patagonia

"We guarantee everything we make," according to the company's website. "If you are not satisfied with one of our products at the time you receive it, or if one of our products does not perform to your satisfaction, return it to the store you bought it from or to Patagonia for a repair, replacement or refund."

Patagonia says it will repair damage due to normal wear and tear "at a reasonable charge."

"If your item has a manufacturing defect in its materials or workmanship, you can return it at any time," according to the REI website.

REI will also let you return an item for any reason for up to one year after you bought it.

27. Nordstrom

The department store has a famously liberal return policy. Technically, it doesn't actually a return policy - but what the company means is that it'll take back or exchange nearly any item, for any reason, at any time.

"We stand behind our goods and services and want customers to be satisfied with them," explains the company's website.

"We'll always do our best to take care of customers-our philosophy is to deal with them fairly and reasonably; we hope they will be fair and reasonable with us as well." There's no time limit for returns or exchanges, so use your best judgment.

28. Vortex Optics

The company has a "VIP warranty," which says that it will repair or replace any Vortex product if it becomes damaged or defective. The warranty doesn't cover theft, loss, deliberate damage or cosmetic damage.

The warranty is fully transferable and you don't need to hang on to your receipt.

"You see, it doesn't matter how it happened, whose fault it was, or where you purchased it. You can count on the VIP Warranty for all Vortex Optics riflescopes, prism scopes, red dots, rangefinders, binoculars, spotting scopes, tripods, and monoculars," according to the company's website.

Sportswear company Adidas will replace or repair any returned item that has a manufacturer defect or a "deviation from factory specifications."

It'll resize, refinish, polish, clean and replace some types of stones for the life of the ring, as long as you're the original owner. You can also purchase an extended warranty in case your ring gets lost or stolen.

31. Le Creuset

This maker of multicolored cookware products offers a limited lifetime warranty on cast iron, tri-ply stainless steel and forged hard-anodized items.

The company offers five-year warranties on other products, including stonewear, kettles, stockpots and bakeware.

If its staff determine, after an inspection, that an item has a material defect or a problem due to workmanship, the company will replace it for free.

However, the warranty does not cover normal wear and tear, improper care or abuse.

The company notes that the knives are "not indestructible," so the warranty does not cover bent tips, chipped or broken blades, melted handles or damage caused by inappropriate use of the products.

34. Rainbow Sandals

"The sandals will be eligible for warranty until you have worn through anywhere on the top or bottom layer of the sole."

The warranty covers manufacturing defects only. If the strap pulls out from the base of the sandal or if the sandal's sole layers become unglued, the shoes are likely covered by the warranty and the company will repair or replace them at no charge.

This Seattle-based company has made luggage, watches, outdoor gear and other items since 1897.

Filson offers a lifetime guarantee that covers failure of workmanship and materials for the life of its products. Normal wear and tear is not covered by the warranty.

In addition, Filson will let you return any item, for any reason, within the first six months for a full refund.

" In 1897, C.C. Filson said, 'Your satisfaction is the sole purpose of our transaction.' We've held that standard ever since. It's gotten us into hot water on some days, but over a hundred years later we stand by those words," according to the company's website .

36. The North Face

Most North Face products are guaranteed for the lifetime of the item against defects in materials and workmanship, with the exception of shoes, which only have a one-year guarantee.

Your winter coat isn't covered for normal wear and tear, however.

37. Skullcandy

The company offers a limited lifetime warranty on all products for manufacturing defects.

Even if your earbuds get broken for some other reason, Skullcandy will take care of you. For non-manufacturing defects, the company will give you store credit worth 50% of the price of your product - it call this its "Aggressive Listener Credit."

38. Hydro Flask

The company will replace your flask or bottle if it has a broken or leaking cap, if it has lost its insulating properties or if it has rough welding along the rim. It will also replace your bottle or flask if it rattles.

Dakine's limited lifetime warranty protects its backpacks and bags against manufacturing defects, but does not cover normal wear and tear.

According to the company's website, manufacturer defects include things like a straight-edge tear along a seam, a stitching defect that inhibits your ability to use the product and zipper malfunctions.

40. Cascade Designs

The warranty covers manufacturer defects, but the company will also repair any item that was damaged by normal wear and tear for a fair rate, according to its website.

Cascade Designs wants to keep products out of landfills, which is why it encourages customers to get their items repaired.

The warranty does not cover normal wear and tear, problems with fit or sandals that have been worn past the point of repair.

Timbuk2 makes messenger bags, backpacks, laptop bags and duffel bags. The company offers a lifetime warranty on all of its bags (but not its shirts and hoodies) that covers defects in materials or workmanship.

43. Camelbak

"Got Your Bak isn't just a group of words to us," according to the company's website. "It's a culture. It's a state of mind. It's who we are. That's why we put our products through the most rigorous testing in the industry. We want to make sure that product failures happen in the lab, not in the field."

How to Save Money When You Buy These Brands

While these companies offer stellar lifetime warranties, the upfront costs can be a bit steep. Here are a few ways to save money on their products.

Sign Up for Email Lists or Take Surveys

Right now, Polar Bottle is offering a 30% discount if you've purchased one of its water bottles before and you take a survey .

Zippo will send you exclusive offers and sale information if you sign up for its email list.

Watch for Regular Sales

Eddie Bauer holds a semi-annual sale offering up to 60% off many products.

Look for Free Shipping Offers

You'll get free shipping on orders over $100 when you buy a lifetime-guaranteed Davek umbrella.

Eddie Bauer also offers free shipping on orders over $99.

Get Credit Card Rewards or Cash Back

Use Coupon Codes

Some of these brands, like Red Oxx and Cutco, don't care if you're the original owner of their products - they'll guarantee them anyway.

Be sure to read the fine print to learn a company's warranty policy on used items before purchasing.
Your Turn: Do you buy from brands that offer lifetime warranties? Did we miss one of your favorites? Sarah Kuta is an education reporter in Boulder, Colorado, with a penchant for weekend thrifting, furniture refurbishment and good deals. Find her on Twitter: @sarahkuta.

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