Procrastination

While we here at #worldsuckless are no experts on procrastination or ways to prevent it, we thought we should share an approachable and easy to follow look into why we procrastinate. The video isn't too long either so don't wait just watch!

Why we procrastinate by Vik Nithy @TEDxYouth

Palm Oil is an oil derived from the fruits of the Oil Palm tree. Where this oil is most commonly being produced; Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines, it's plantations are not only destroying rainforests and pushing Orang-utans into extinction, but are also exploiting extremely poor workers. Many workers flee from the city to travel off to giant Oil Palm plantations run by multi-national corporations. They are paid below the already low minimum wages and close to 25% of the workforce are children who get paid next to nothing. If this isn't already enough to turn you off of the oil, Orang-utans are murdered in the process, small farms are taken over with little compensation and the governments push for and support this giant Corporate industry. Palm Oil is in everything from your food (ie chocolate) to your cosmetics. There is pushback though, and this can stop, but only if you as well as other like-minded rational individuals employ the same caring and support for ending an industry responsible for deplorable atrocities.

If you want to learn more or learn how you can fight back then check out these links: 

Rainforest Action Network on Palm Oil

Lush North America "Palm-Free Cosmetics"

COLTAN MINING, WHY SHOULD YOU CARE?

80 percent of this resource which is heavily used in electronics and touch screens, is located in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It is a vital and rare earth metal that is required in the functioning of these electronics. What is not vital however is the child labour and murder that is involved in the harvesting process. Corporations like Apple, Microsoft and Samsung all decline to reveal their sources of this metal but it is almost definitely from this volatile region on the continent of Africa. Yes, we know that it is not realistic to say throw away your iPhone, but what you can achieve is helping to make a plea to these companies directly supporting rebels that harbour, train and brainwash child soldiers. Help us take a stand against child labour in the mining of Coltan!

For an amazingly educating and powerful documentary click here.

THINKING GREEN?

Classic home cleaners use harsh chemicals that burn your skin upon contact. Think about what that does to everything green! These products have a negative impact on our water supplies and just a little can taint thousands of litres of the good stuff. Try replacing the harsh chemicals with more environmentally friendly alternatives like the ones here.

The sad reality is that almost every single person reading this has a product at home that involved animal testing. It is hard to understand what happens behind close doors because we are not often exposed to the process. Many people do not feel that they have a personal connection to these animals or that they have any power to help end the suffering. Those people are dead wrong. The first step is to get educated and not to avoid the problem simply because it's too graphic. Watch the video above to get started.

Some cosmetic companies promote their products with claims such as "CRUELTY-FREE" or "NOT TESTED ON ANIMALS" in their labeling or advertising. The unrestricted use of these phrases by cosmetic companies is possible because there are no legal definitions for these terms. Some companies may apply such claims solely to their finished cosmetic products. However, these companies may rely on raw material suppliers or contract laboratories to perform any animal testing necessary to substantiate product or ingredient safety (FDA). What this means is that the individual batch that you're holding in your hand wasn't tested on animals, but part of the process to create the product involved animal testing.

Can you imagine if your dog or cat was pinned down and injured because they had cosmetic products rubbed into their eyes? It's a cliche example, but seriously stop for a moment and think about what millions of animals are put through. Is it really worth skinning, wounding, burning and spraying toxic chemicals on animals just so that a product can be approved? There are alternatives that exist and many companies do not test on animals, so why is this still happening?  By purchasing products from these companies you are helping to fund this cruel and unnecessary practise. Here is a short list of companies you may be surprised to know test on animals:

- Aquafresh      - Aveeno     - Axe     - Band-aid     - Bic     - Chapstick                                - Clean & Clear     - Clinique     - Crest     - Dove     - Downy     - Easy-Off                      - Estee Lauder     - Febreze     - Garnier     - Gillette    - Glad     - Head & Shoulders     - Johnson & Johnson     - L'Oreal     - Listerine     - M.A.C     - Maybelline                         - Mr. Clean    -  Nair     - Neutrogena     - Olay     - Old Spice     - OxiClean                       - Pantene     - Ponds     - Purell     - Raid     - Revlon     - Tide     - Vaseline                         - Vichy     - Vicks     - Windex     - Yves Rocher     - Zest

Want something to smile about? The EU is implementing a ban on all cosmetic products or product ingredients that are tested on animals. This is wonderful news for all the animals who are horribly abused while testing these products.

Want to shop cruelty-free but don't know where to start? Check out these great lists by our friends over at PETA:

http://www.peta.org/living/beauty-and-personal-care/companies/default.aspx

Want to read more about this topic? Check out this article:

The University of Guelph made the world #suckless

RECYCLE YOUR BATTERIES AND OLD PHONES 

FAIR TRADE SHOES 

FAIR TRADE APPAREL. FOSTERING HOPE.

Worldwide, over 75 million animals are killed each year for their fur. Despite what many people think, the majority of these animals are killed for fur trim, not full-length fur coats. In Canada, over 3.3 million animals are killed for their fur each year, either by trapping or on fur farms. Please take a moment to check out the Fur Trim is a Trap campaign and get educated on what's going on around you. Click here to have a look around.