Buy Nothing. Do Something.

by Jonathan Scott, Communications Director Sometimes a little conflict can be a good thing. Are you feeling just a little conflicted as the holidays loom and everything suddenly seems about to come crashing down upon us, unprepared? Our friend Annie Leonard at the Story of Stuff Project puts it like this, in their just-out video: “Tis the Season to Get Trampled” – exhorting holiday shoppers to take a break on the traditional “Black Friday” shopstravaganza we’ve been conditioned to anticipate and engage in. Instead, she boldly suggests, “Buy Nothing. Do Something.”

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OK suppose we all give it a rest on the Friday following Thanksgiving. That’s my plan.

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We will eventually end up buying some things, though. Food, for example, once the leftovers are all gone. Maybe you’ve seen this T-shirt extolling the benefits of a better path. There’s no question, in many cases buying local can be better for the planet and for the communities where we live. You know it is possible to grow your own, make your own and buy from people you know. It’s getting easier all the time, and the benefits are right there for many to enjoy. If you’re like me, this is a direction you’re already heading, and it’s something you can feel good about. You are making a difference. But if you’re reading this blog you’re probably doing it online (or you got it online and downloaded a copy to print out). That means, like me, you probably also shop and buy stuff online, too. So here are 2 quick tips you should consider:

Visit our friends at We-Care.com. Register and get the Clean Water Action shopping App for your computer. It works automatically and generates donations with your online purchases at 2600+ online stores, including travel, electronics, clothing, and just about anything else.
Use Clean Water Action’s We-Care.com search tool to generate donations from every online internet search you do.

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HOW TO GET Clean Water Action’s APP: http://cleanwateraction.we-care.com/getstarted HOW TO GET THE CLEAN WATER ACTION SEARCH TOOL: http://cleanwateraction.we-care.com/search Click the "add to search" link, and the Clean Water Action search is added to your browser's search window, where you can set it as your default search and still toggle back to others (google, yahoo, etc) whenever you want. So, You Have Choices.

You can “Buy Nothing. Do Something” in honor of Black Friday this year.
You can eat and buy local (+ organic and fair trade certified, where possible).
You can use the Clean Water Action tools from our friends at We-Care.com to generate micro-donations from your online searches and purchases.

Which are the best choices? The ones YOU choose to do. Which will I be doing? All three. I hope you will join me. Thanks for all that you do for Clean Water Action.