“Ravaging hurricanes, extreme weather, increasing cancer rates, growing global poverty. Lions and Tigers and Bears! Oh, My! But, unlike Dorothy’s irrational paranoia in The Wizard of Oz, the ecological, social, and health problems rising in our global community today have been documented by science….Conventionally grown and manufactured cotton is the most chemically processed crop in the world and has been found to be a major contributor to a wide variety of global problems.” Yep, global problems like environmental pollution, cancer, and poverty. Want to take the low hanging fruit in our efforts to change the world for the better? Take on cotton for high impact change.

While a mere 2.4% of the world’s arable land gets covered in cotton, that crop accounts for roughly a quarter of the world’s insecticide market and 11% of global pesticide sales. It is the most pesticide-intensive crop on Earth. “The next time you throw on your favorite T-shirt, consider this: Approximately one-third of a pound, or 17 teaspoons, of chemicals—many of them known carcinogens—were used to grow the cotton to produce it. And it all adds up fast. The USDA claims that in one year US cotton fields applied over 50 million pounds of pesticides.

Organically grown cotton doesn’t use toxins or synthetic fertilizers; it gets produced without harsh chemical bleaches and dyes. Lotus Organics explains in clear and thorough details the seed to shirt experience of both nonoprganic and organic cotton side-by-side. They also provide some startling information about the impacts of pesticides in farming practices and uplifting examples of organic farming successes.

Additional Resources:

• Organic Trade Association Developed standards for the processing of organic fibers.
• Organic Consumers Association Campaigns for food safety, organic agriculture, Fair Trade, and sustainability.
• Institute Of Science In Society Provides articles on hazards of genetically engineered cotton and other agricultural products.
• Unified Sustainable Textile Standard Offers an emerging standard to provide a market-based definition for a Sustainable Textile, establish performance requirements for public health and environment, and address the triple bottom line, economic-environmental-social, throughout the supply chain
• USDA Organic
  Implementing standard for the word “organic” on U.S. products to mean that ingredients and production methods have been verified by an accredited certification agency as meeting or exceeding USDA standards for organic production.

Have you seen the latest issue of Utne out in newstands this week? Check out the article, “Supersizing Organics,” where I’m Organic is included in the discussion about organic going mainstream (most recently, Walmart has announced it will be carrying organic food and products). Utne asks, “Can organics survive in the mainstream?”

What do you think?

As I sit here writing this, I am covered in poison ivy. They say that it is the ‘poor me’ plant, because no one pays attention to it if not to rip it out of the ground or to curse its name. Some also say that each plant holds a special message for us and poison ivy comes to us when we are harboring some sentiment of ‘poor me’ in our lives. Okay, yes, I admit, I am prone to self pity every now and then. Maybe it is a message from the gods that I better get my thinking back on track. While I meditate on this, let me take you down memory lane to other times I caught the lovable plant’s attention…

The first time I experienced the blistering compassion of this poisonous plant I was living in the mountains of Oregon at Trillium Farm. I was finding a rough adjustment period in the rustic wilderness- peeing in the woods, sleeping with a bat, and continually trying to avoid all of the seemingly constant threats to my safety. I once stood absolutely still on a backwoods path for five full minutes because I thought a large rock was a mountain lion about to attack. After arriving from a life of city living, the romantic ideas of wilderness boiled down to fear, uncomfortableness, and allergies.

And then one day I began to itch… Well, anyone who’s had poison ivy (or oak, as it was in this case) knows how the story goes. After a week of suffering, my friend Susanna offered me the height of compassion- she bathed my entire body in witch hazel, Calagel, and some other magic that finally brought relief and rest. After that, it seemed I finally accepted the wild’s ways and began to find comfortableness in nature- poison oak made her point.

The second time I caught it, I was helping my then-boyfriend, Zak, take down some dead trees in his parent’s yard. Feeling ever the strong woman, I took that chainsaw and reveled in getting my hand’s dirty. A word to the wise- when getting one’s hands dirty, remember to wash them within 30 minutes of exposure! It quickly became full body poison ivy. Hesitant to try any non-organic remedies, I sought out poison ivy’s companion plant, Jewel Weed. Since jewel weed and poison ivy grow next to each other, they are said to be homeopathic remedies. So, we harvested a bunch of jewel weed, brought it home, ground it up into a paste with some olive oil, and applied it. For days I left a trail of green everywhere I walked. Though it did relieve the itching somewhat, after a few days, I just couldn’t stand looking like the jolly green giant anymore, not to mention it seriously impacting my ability to do anything else but feel sorry for myself. So, to Rite Aid I went, and bought my favorite elixir, Calagel.

This time it was pure and simple yard work that got me. Remind me next time to shower within 30 minutes of touching anything resembling a three leaved plant.

Please share your stories of meeting this enchanting plant!

Several things converged on me this week reminding me of the tragedy in New Orleans. Yes, the anniversary. And, a dear friend of mine, Anne Marie, visited the city last week for work. She stopped in to see another friend of ours, Rose Vines. Rose blogged about her experience of surviving the hurricane, the breach, her evacuation, and then her return. Anne Marie received a personal tour of the city. She came home and couldn’t find the words to express her sorrow. I could hear it in her stumbling voice.

I received a CD in the mail today from Seva Venet, a jazz musician Jill and I met in Chicago. So I sit here listening to it, and hoping for him and his fellow musicians that this deep rich artistry will go on in the city we all associate with jazz.

A new friend in my online better worlding community, Christophe, lives in St. Louis temporarily, one of the American internally displaced. He invited me to visit the great jazz city when he takes the city back.

And the blogosphere. Grist today posted an article, Life after Katrina. Upon a simple search for “Katrina environmental disaster” I discovered this gem of news compiled by Laura Erickson, a birdwatcher and blogger, who lists articles about the environment and Katrina. Chock full of stories about how our environment was damaged by the disaster and how a lack of environmental care exacerbated the situation. We must take care of the environment we have left.

At times like this when we have to acknowledge the environmental damage as well as the humanitarian crisis, is my choice for being organic making a difference? I have to believe it does. Every bit(e) counts. I send my love to all who help, who struggle, who live with the tragedy that is New Orleans. Perhaps I should redouble my efforts. I mean after the environmental disaster there, we need to be doing all we can to save the environment! Spread the word about caring for the environment and the role of being organic.

Technorati Profile

What happens when influential social and environmental NGOs, business sector, and public sector members convene to engage around making the world and our practices more sustainable? With such diverse participants, be sure to add a great facilitator!

Check out The Sustainable Food Laboratory. They state, “No matter where the food comes from, the way we get it from field to fork should build, not deplete, social, financial, and environmental value.”

Which certainly sounds like something I personally believe in. While I am skeptical of the big corporate players, I see deep value in bringing all the full range of players in a system together to see what they can create.

One of their projects around commodities includes a meta-standard. They explain, “A Meta-Standard would leverage the current certification and labeling schemes and act as a tool for commodity buyers, producers, retailers, investors, financers, shareholder activists and others to activate market forces to improve instead of degrade the productive capacity of the planet.”

Hmmm, looks interesting. I look forward to seeing how they develop.

Pouring myself the last of my organic soymilk today, I tossed the box into the garbage. I looked for a recycle sign on the box. There wasn’t one. So I thought about it. I might drink fair-trade organic coffee, but I still toss the foil-y bag into the garbage. Aren’t these two things connected? Recycling and organics? Both are efforts to care for our environment. Hmmm, I would like to see much more crossover between them. So I will be keeping a closer eye on which organic foods come in recyclable containers.

At I’m Organic ™ they must have been thinking the same thing. It is the only place you can find 100% recycled wristbands. And check out the interesting biodegradable travel mugs too. Cool.

I loved about the CSA we belonged to because if we used their little containers to bring food home, we could bring them back the next week. Well, that and the scrumptious brilliant food. Bring your own bag, pick your food from the guy who grew it, shake his hand, return any containers you take home. Recycle. Re-use. Save everyone money and save the environment some. I like that. Seeing that they are enviornmentally aligned, I wonder what else we can do to connect recycling with organics?

For the past four years, I’ve found it absolutely essential to drive a mini-van. My requirements? No seats besides the driver’s and passenger’s, minimum interior dimensions of 4′ wide and 8′ long, and a diagonal opening in the back hatch of at least 4′ 6″. Why? Well, in addition to being an entrepreneur, I am an artist. I paint oil paintings and build my stretchers (the frame the canvas is stretched on) to the maximum dimensions of my car. I’ve driven most routes of the East Coast with my van stacked to the top with paintings en route to openings and unveilings.

Only recently, as my time has shifted almost entirely to I’m Organic, have I felt the burden of driving around a very empty gas-guzzling van about 4 times bigger than I’d prefer. Not to mention, craving something a wee bit more ‘sexy’ than a Dodge Caravan. I mean, I’m young and single for goodness sakes!

But still, as I think about trading in and trading up to something more eco-friendly and suitable to my identity, that manic twinge in my stomach appears and says, “You need the space!” I was raised on art festivals, trade shows, and all things requiring heavy duty shipping. I’m a gemini and love to move about the country- “what if the mood strikes and I need to throw everything in the van and go?” I ask myself. My name tag should read- Jill Palermo, shipping included. I’m always the friend that has lent the van for the outing, the move, or the shipping. Who am I if I am not able to haul?

As I go through my own little identity crisis here and fantasize everytime I step up to that driver’s seat about maybe stepping down into a little Smart Car or zippy little Mini, at least I have some solace on the financial side of it. It seems hybrids are becoming more affordable in the long run because of tax incentives and rising fuel prices. I know eventually, I’m going to get to reality and realize that even if that mood strikes or that painting needs to be delivered, there’s always my friends over at UHaul to help. At least that’s what my therapist says…

We can move toward something we value—a cleaner environment, a healthier lifestyle, and better nutrition. And we can move away from something we don’t value—smog, pollution, wastefulness. Being organic can be a combination of moving toward something we want and away from something we don’t want.

And when we consider ourselves to be honoring our values and working toward a cleaner environment and a healthier lifestyle, we might feel encouraged and uplifted by our actions and our progress.

But I have also seen the heavy side of the awakening to organics. The dawning realization of what happens to our food, to our meats, to our lands, to our bodies. And it begins to weigh heavily. “What can be done? This is not enough! We must do more, more people need to do more! I am not doing enough. I can’t bear to be complicit in any of this!”

So what can you do when you hit that complicity hurdle? Leave society? Refuse to participate? How do we find our strength when we can’t escape that something we do, no matter how we try to avoid it, ends up going against our values. One of my dear friends is very concerned about her footprint on the planet. She is organic vegan. She founded and runs an international nonprofit doing fabulous work to improve communities. And she often ends up flying. She knows her flying is not good for the size of her footprint. But it is important and necessary work to her vision of a better world.

How do we make choices about that compromise? Sure it would be great to be in some ideal world where we could make pure choices that didn’t leave us complicit in something we don’t believe in. My answer? Do what you can. Leaving society doesn’t do enough to change it — strong and respectable stand that it might be. Change from the inside. Pick your issues. Choose organic. Share with people that you choose organic. Tell it like it is. Say to folks, “I would rather listen to your leafblower than walk on your toxic lawn.” Or “Eat non-organic at your own risk.” Charge ahead. Get Real. Go Organic.

Together, if we each pick our issues, share our awareness, and try to have as much integrity as we can, we will change the world.