Lunapads Blog

Yesterday’s Slate.com “Green Lantern” article questioning the environmental impact of reusable menstrual products begged for more than a brief comment in response. Is making the switch a mere drop in the bucket as far as waste goes, or part of a larger ripple effect?

Fence sitters and skeptics often ask us how green our products really are, along the lines of the so-called diaper “debate”. How green is washing your menstrual pads after all, once you factor in the raw materials, soap, water and energy (not to mention the hassle?) Some prominent green bloggers (including Grist.org’s Umbra Fisk) don’t see the impact of disposable menstrual products as being overly worth fretting about, a position quasi-supported by the Green Lantern herself, Nina Shen Rastogi.

Rastogi starts her post by referencing (from the book Flow) some compelling information about the amount of solid waste generated by disposable pads and tampons (62,415 lbs, or 0.5% of a woman’s gross lifetime landfill contribution) but quickly concludes that there are bigger fish to fry, suggesting that highlighting women’s monthly eco impact may constitute yet another source of shame for women, on top of that typically used to sell the products in the first place - why give women yet another guilt trip?

Rastogi is also quick to dismiss the environmental and health concerns that green feminine hygiene producers often raise about conventional products; namely what the long-term consequences of exposure to dioxin and the host of other chemicals, surfactants, plastics and perfumes that may or may not be present in pads and tampons might be, chlorine bleached or not.

While the US FDA and Health Canada claim that exposure to “trace” amounts of dioxin is safe, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) looks at the matter differently, asserting that there is no safe or acceptable amount, period.  The bottom line is that nobody actually knows - yet. Having just read this article about the effects of “trace” amounts of hormone disruptors such as phthalites and Bisphenol A, I can’t help wondering how long it might be before we see similar research exposing what many of us have long suspected about dioxin and other chemicals used in the manufacture of disposable pads and tampons.

Rastogi suggests if you are worried about your garbage output, you are better off buying bulk food and planning your grocery shopping to reduce food waste.

Hey, how about this crazy idea: why not do as much as you reasonably can? Why the cop-out on greening your period?

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I feel a bit conflicted about this post, as I am typically a huge fan of women-owned businesses. So what happens when the businesses in question are marketing products that I don’t feel are necessarily in women’s best interests? Let’s talk!

The products in question are basically cosmetics for your vulva - one to make your girlparts “clean, pure, soft and fresh” with the help of a 4-step collection of soap, lotion, spray and wipes, and the other to lighten the color of the outer labia. Leaving questions around the safety and rationale for these products aside for the moment, what’s particularly troubling about these new takes on what the marketers of Lysol and Massengil have schilled in the past is that they have adopted (some might say co-opted) the language of empowerment and enlightenment in order to do so, presenting the case for vulval “freshening up” as a bold act of savvy self-love.

While the cheeky brand name “I Love My Muff” on its own is eerily reminiscent of a Lunapads standby: “I (heart) my period”, who can argue with its wisdom? Ideally women “love” (or are at least at peace with) our muffs, but do we need these products in order to get there? Of course not, and yet ILMM’s copy tells us that “informed” (if only I knew the “truth” about feminine hygiene!) “modern” women are literally clamoring to make this “savvy and empowered” choice.  And how’s this for courageously breaking the taboos that have kept the topic of “feminine care” locked away in the closet? “It’s no longer taboo and with it’s (sic) clean packaging and bold message these products are a statement of confidence and a must have for every woman.”

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When I was much younger (and more foolish!), I used to think that business was a soulless activity that occupied itself exclusively with money, to the exclusion of all other forms of profit.  In many ways, Lunapads’ growth as a business is representative of my own journey in understanding that not only can be business be about way more than financial profit, but that business, like practically anything else, ultimately comes down to being about relationships.

While our recent trip to the Green Festival in San Francisco was planned primarily around attending to receive our Shining Light Award from Green America (thanks again to all our fans and customers who voted for us!), we extended our trip to attend the Green Business Conference.  The conference was a valuable reminder of the importance of establishing and building relationships.

At the conference, the first woman we heard speak was Margot Frasier, founder of Birkenstock USA .  After having met her several years ago, I was thrilled to see her still going strong.  Margo, along with another powerful woman entrepreneur Lisa Lorimer, she has just written Dealing With the Tough Stuff: Practical Wisdom for Running a Values-Driven Business.  Reminder to any friends who happen to read this: my birthday is coming up soon!

My choice of title for this blog post is a play on the name of a wonderful company: Life without Plastic, whose co-founder, Jay Sinha, we had the excellent fortune to meet at the Green Business Conference.  “Plastic-free” is an apt description for Jay on a metaphorical level as well - his authenticity and passion for a cleaner, healthier, more “plastic free” planet are indisputable and contagious.

Jay in turn led us to another anti-plastic superhero, blogger Beth Terry (aka Fake Plastic Fish).  Beth is one of those deceptively humble people who are in fact deeply powerful.  An accomplished activist, she single-handedly created the North American campaign to pressure Brita water filters to start taking back and recycling used filters.  Thank you, Beth, for being a living inspiration for how one person can make a massive difference. Here is a picture of Jay and Beth at the Green Festival.

I was also deeply impressed with Joshua Onysko, founder of Pangea Organics, who gave a rollicking presentation about his entrepreneurial journey: “7 lessons in 7 years.”  His all-organic line of skincare products is amazing, and his success as a leader in a crowded category is a credit to his chutzpah as much as his commitment to “eco-centric” skincare products.

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As some of you may know, in my prior life before Lunapads, I worked in the field of Finance and Accounting, and got a small taste of what shareholder value and corporate profits meant in the mainstream world of finance.  It was my dissatisfaction with the type of work I was doing that prompted me to leave for ‘greener’ pastures, which, coincidentally, coincided with meeting Madeleine!

Over a decade ago, there was a small collection of organizations who promoted the idea of ethical investing and created ethical funds which consisted of companies that had been screened for their ethical business practices.  What emerged was a niche Ethical/Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) category in the financial sector.  However, many of these funds did not attract the interest of mainstream investors because they didn’t perform adequately (because it’s all about maximizing financial returns in their world).

Fortunately, there seems to be a change in the tide of what investors are looking for, which isn’t all that surprising given the financial meltdown in the past year. (How many millions of people have been affected by the financial market collapse and wondered, where, besides our mattresses, should we be putting some of our hard earned dollars?) During these tumultuous times,  it appears that more and more investors are looking for investments that will not only provide a fair return, but do the right thing for people and the planet. (more…)

Suzanne and I are just back from a whirlwind trip to San Francisco to attend the Green America Business Conference and Green Festival. It was an action-packed 5 days in which we connected with some extraordinary people and organizations, as well as taking in the energy of one of the world’s most beloved cities.

But first, a drumroll…. for those of you who may not have heard the news, we are thrilled to tell you that yesterday Lunapads received the “Shining Light” award at the Green America People’s Choice business awards!  Before I explain what this is all about, I want to thank all of you who voted for us, tweeted and/or blogged about it, or have provided us with any form of support ever.  It was a very big moment for us, and it’s thanks to the enthusiasm of our customers and fans that we were able to celebrate ourselves and in turn the accomplishments of green/progressive/mission-based businesses in general. Thank you!

Without getting into the details, while we didn’t come first in the voting (Care2.com took the top spot - more on them in a later post in case you’re not already a member), our showing was so strong that the fabulous folks at Green America wanted to acknowledge us regardless. “We were really impressed with Lunapads’ showing in our People’s Choice contest.  Up against some larger, broader businesses with vast Internet reach, Lunapads mobilized their customers - a truly passionate following who had nothing but high praise for Lunapads - to pull them within striking distance of the top spot.  For a smaller, niche business to do that, while shining a light on the fact that there’s a green option for literally every product we use, we decided to present Lunapads with our Shining Light Award,” said Andrew Korfhage, Green America’s online editor and coordinator of the People’s Choice Award.

I for one love the idea that there is really an unlimited number of “winners” in the progressive business world, and to just hold up the number one spot leaves out what may well in fact be a majority of the picture - smaller businesses that collectively are making a huge impact. Speaking of which, Suzanne has been crunching some numbers lately, and has come up with the inspiring calculation that thanks to our customers having made the switch to reusable menstrual products, 1 million disposable pads and tampons are now being diverted from landfills every month. Way to go, everyone!

Because of their repeat finish in the voting race, A Lifetime Leadership award also went to Reuseit.com/Reusablebags.com (video interview with founder Vincent Cobb coming soon!) who were recipients of the 2006 People’s Choice Green Business of the Year award.  Many thanks to Alisa, Denise, Andrew, Shireen (who gave a very moving and thoughtful introduction to Lunapads) Misha, Desiree and the entire Green America team.  The conference and festival were awesome events that we will encourage others to attend. See you next year, we hope!

Whether you’re planning on going camping, attending summer music festivals, doing some long-distance adventure travel, or just heading to the beach this summer, personal hygiene is always a consideration.  Here are some ideas on how to manage menstruation and elimination while enjoying summer adventures.

An aspect of travel that can often be a source of frustration is simply staying clean.  While it may be a stretch to imagine for the first time, being able to urinate while standing up (like a man!) can actually make things a lot easier.  Imagine rather than having to squat in scratchy underbrush, or hover above a toilet, simply being able to relieve oneself without having to completely remove one’s pants, shorts or undergarment.  The pStyle is a small, durable plastic funnel that enables this process with a minimum of fuss or hassle – just point and shoot, as it were.

Most of us will also need to think about how to manage our menses while away from home.  Depending on the length of the trip, heaviness of flow, and availability of supplies at the destination, it can be tricky, not to mention taking up valuable luggage real estate.  Supplies may not be available locally, and can be easily damaged and rendered useless if not packed carefully.

And then there’s the question of disposal – where does one put used pads and tampons in the wilderness?  Given today’s “leave only footprints” camping credo, one could well be faced with the dilemma of packing along used supplies versus burying or burning them, hardly eco-friendly alternatives.

Reusable silicone menstrual cups such as the DivaCup obviate these dilemmas, and are becoming increasingly popular with female travelers as a result.  Add the bonuses of not having to change a cup for up to 12 hours, financial savings and reusable eco-friendliness to boot, and you’ve found your new best travel buddy.  They’re also ideal for sports and swimming.

Caring for these products properly is of course an important consideration, which brings me to yet another travel wonder-product: Wysi-Wipes. Wysi-Wipes are compressed, biodegradable personal wipes that require only some water and a bit of soap to become a “wet wipe”, perfect for cleaning cups, pStyles, or even you ;-). For a complete travel kit, team up all of these products, plus a peri bottle to hold some water or a cleansing solution, and put them in one of our new travel pouches.  And to top it off, it’s all on sale this month, plus ALL orders this month get 2 FREE Wysi-Wipes (while quantities last.)  Happy trails from all of us at Lunapads!

We love the irreverent tone of National Post columnist and Green as a Thistle blogger Vanessa Farquharson’s new debut memoir, Sleeping Naked is Green: How an eco-cynic unplugged her fridge, sold her car, and found love in 366 days.  She is a major Lunapads and DivaCup proponent, and has a particularly humorous story to tell about Lunapads, excerpted below:

september 29, day 213
Eat ice cream in a cone rather than a plastic cup. I thought that writing about Jake Gyllenhaal was the best way to get
more hits on my blog — man, was I wrong. Turns out, there’s another subject that’s guaranteed to get twice as many hits as Jake, and that
subject is menstruation. It’s totally bizarre — I mean it’s not as though
the only people procrastinating in the blogosphere are women, let
alone women who are very in touch with their bodies and like talking
about how in touch with their bodies they are. Or is it?
Either way, I realized this at some point yesterday, when my post
about using Lunapads reusable cloth pantyliners got upward of forty
comments, many of which revolved around topics like how to
clean them in the sink or a bucket, whether to subsequently empty
the bloody water into one’s potted plants, and so on, going into
enough detail to spoil my homemade lunch.
A funny back story to the Lunapads, though: I’d already bought
my own but the company who makes them found my blog and
decided to send me a bunch for free. They asked for my address,
so I decided to use the one at the National Post. The day they arrived,
I wasn’t in the office, but my editor was. Ben ended up making
dinner plans that night with Kelly, one of the reporters who
used to work with us, who was in Toronto for a brief visit to see his
old friends. Ben decided to bring him some sort of welcome-back
present and went rummaging through the Arts & Life swag pile.
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We are all too aware that dealing with something as benign as one’s own menstrual blood is more than some people can stomach.  At Lunapads we kind of enjoy pushing the envelope a bit about stuff that we are collectively uptight about (myself included - it’s called personal growth!), which brings me to a new product - Family Wipes.  Yes, friends, that would be reusable toilet paper!

If you happen to be the kind of person who is not totally weirded out by cloth menstrual pads, DivaCups or cloth diapers, then I’m hoping that you’re still reading and that you’ll at least consider trying it.  Here is a good overview of the benefits of using family wipes, which are very similar to those of switching to Lunapads or using cloth diapers.

The wipes are made of 70% bamboo and 30% organic cotton fleece, and are each about 6”x 8” (15 x 20cm.)  You’ll need two containers in the bathroom - one for fresh, the other for used (try different color containers so you don’t get them mixed up!)  To wash them, choose a hot water wash using your regular detergent as well as a shot or two of hydrogen peroxide.  If you’re currently cloth diapering, then just put them in the same load using whatever works for you on that score.

But wait - the uses for these products don’t stop in the bathroom - Suzanne swears by them as makeup remover wipes, and any Mom with half a wit will tell you that they’re just the thing to have on hand for runny noses (who needs throwaway tissues?).  Sound good to you?  Be among the first to try them out (only $3.99 for 6 or $7.99 for 12!) and let us know what you think.  Thanks to everyone who requested these!

As regular readers of this blog are already aware, Reusablebags.com is one of our most-admired businesses.  So it will come as no great surprise to learn that when I received a telephone call from their VP of Operations letting me know that Lunapads had been chosen as new products on their site, I was so happy that I pretty much rolled around on the floor.  Plus, he actually called - who does that anymore?  The new business chivalry, I love it.

While I was excited at the prospect of having recruited a possibly-substantial new customer,  the deeper feeling that I was having was one of validation.  We live in an odd little world here at Lunapads, and at times feel misunderstood with respect to why we do what we do (Redbook, anyone?)  So getting the order from one of our business idols was about far more than just the value of the order - it was really about feeling seen, understood, and respected by someone who gets it.  For anyone new to Reusablebags.com, it was the 2007 People’s Choice Award winner from Green America (formerly Co-op America), is cited in Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth, and was recently featured on the Oprah show.

Want to help us to make this a beautiful, long-term relationship?  Do you need any new super-skookum shopping bags or water bottles?  (Suzanne and I are lusting after the hemp napkins, sandwich bags, and more of our favorite shopping bags)  Here is a discount promo code for 15% off Lunapads (case sensitive!): Luna15.  Go crazy from now until midnight CST on May 28, 2009. As an added incentive they are offering $7 flat rate shipping for US domestic orders - I may have to do a little shopping myself!

Whether you need anything or not, please take a minute to write a review of Lunapads while you’re there

I thought that this was an interesting video, pointing out that we often treat the Earth the same way that our culture objectifies and disrespects women.

It was with interest that I learned of Grist.org’s “Screw Earth Day!” campaign, as I agree (at least in principle) with the idea that our collective responsibility is a 24/7/365 commitment, not just a day.  Same goes for Earth Hour, which, although impressive with respect to its results, in my mind can engender the idea that it’s enough to do it just for an hour, rather than making a permanent practice of reducing our energy consumption (SED!’s premise.)  The neo-eco movement can feel at times like a form of cultural greenwashing, what with all the new dubiously “green” products and marketing campaigns that seem to be cropping up everywhere one turns these days.

But then I take a second look - where does my cynicism come from, is it useful, and how does it square with my belief in small efforts and gestures having a potentially enormous impact?  Isn’t it better than doing nothing, or at least worth trying, considering what’s at stake?  Maybe if I stopped debating whether or not it’s a perfect solution or not and just got on board then we’d all be the better for it?  Seems a timely question, given the current political debate here in B.C. over carbon tax. Further to the “not arguing about perfect solutions and just getting on with it as we are able at the moment” observation, as a parent I appreciate the critical value of educating our children and being role models to them (Suzanne is doing this as I write, and I feel certain we will be hearing about it here!)  Events like Earth Day and Earth Hour are great ways to do this, particularly in participation with our communities.

For me, in the end it all comes back to personal responsibility.  Am I an eco-perfectionist?  Not by a long shot.  But I also believe that we can all try harder.  On that note, a little shout-out to the Lunapads staff, all of whom are great examples of various green practices: as cycling activists and commuters, vegetarian and veganism advocates, conscious consumers and DIY crafters.  Thanks ladies - you’re making a difference in so many important ways.

As a final antidote to my skepticism, I’d like to highlight some of my favorite green organizations and reading lists.  The Environmental Working Group is a vast repository of information about everything from safe cosmetics to pesticide use in commercial produce, and has an excellent newsletter.  The Vancouver Public Library has compiled an extensive list of books about sustainability, and our pal Annemarie Templeman-Kluit (aka Yoyomama - Vancouver’s source for everything anyone with kids needs to know about in this town) has posted some of her family’s fave green reads in her new blog here.  Our friends and colleagues over at SPUD and NatureBag have teamed up with Lavish and Lime to offer an incredible eco-products giveaway contest - find out more here.  Last but not least, Mindful Mama has just launched a great new natural parenting website in honor of Earth Day - way to go, everyone!

I hope that you all find a meaningful way to celebrate Earth Day - today and every day.