Mr Rob Penn, a renowned journalist and author who has cycled around the world traveling through over forty countries on five continents, we couldn’t have been more excited when we found out he wanted to test ride our Spencer Ivy electric bike.

As well as writing several tomes, Rob also produced his own BBC documentary that followed his world-famous book “It’s All About the Bike: the Pursuit of Happiness on Two Wheels”.  The book entertainingly tells the history of the bicycle, its evolution, and leads to Rob’s journey around the greatest bike parts manufacturers in the world to build his perfect bike- two of which, we are proud to use ourselves -the UK’s very own saddle makers, Brooks, and tyres from Germany’s Continental.

Having left the bike with Rob to use in between his busy filming schedule, we asked him what he thought about our Spencer electric bike-

‘Sharp looking and lovely to ride’,  Rob Penn.

Spencer Ivy Electric Bicycles is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Following an invitation to attend the launch of this year’s START and Bridgestone Eco-Rally at Clarence House, hosted by HRH The Prince of Wales, Spencer Ivy Director, Va Hua obliged, taking with him ‘Ivy’, the unisex step-through version of Spencer Ivy Electric Bicycles.

Hua arrived at the event on Ivy, in his lounge suit (as per invitation guidelines), sweat-free, to show His Royal Highness that Spencer Ivy electric bicycles truly are the perfect way to commute.

The Prince made his way around the gardens, inspecting the eco-vehicles and sustainable garden displays.  He paid particular attention to Ivy.  He admired her low step-through frame, tan leather Brooks saddle and matching handlebar grips and wanted to find out what this electric vehicle was capable of.  After quick instructions from Hua, the gravel path was cleared of VIP guests and off he shot, even going off-piste onto his royal lawn.

A fantastic and enjoyable moment for the Prince and all spectators, most of all Ivy, having a Royal bottom perched on her!

For pictures of the event, visit the Spencer Ivy Blog.

Spencer Ivy Electric Bicycles is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

 This week I had an opportunity to take the Kalkhoff Sahel Pro Disc electric bike for a long ride for the first time.

Kalkhoff introduced the Sahel range this season because… actually, I’m not sure why, but I can say why it’s great fun to ride.

First thing you notice when sitting on the Sahel Pro is how the very posh-looking saddle moves down and back a little. Hmm, that feels rather good, you think, and you’re not even moving yet. It really makes sense when you encounter your first pothole.

The usual ‘Gdunk-UNGH!’ sensation is missing. It’s more of a ‘GDunk-aah’ as both the initial bump and the brief deceleration from slowing down on impact are damped by an ingenious two-way spring mechanism supporting the seat. It’s quite unlike other suspension seatposts I’ve tried and makes the Sahel Pro a memorably comfortable ride. Generously yielding, expensive-feeling hand grips help mop up any vibration from the front wheel. The overall effect is magnificent.

As do the balloon tyres. They’re awesomely chunky and contribute a lot towards the Sahel Pro’s macho looks. Along with its brooding, dark, matt olive paintjob, twin disk brakes and wafer-thin composite mudguards, it looks like no other electric bike in the Kalkhoff range.

So there you go, racing down the road in a great deal of comfort, looking very good indeed. But where best to ride it?

Well, my first ride was a brief tour of the streets surrounding our new electric bike shop in Richmond. Very hill in parts, particularly Nightingale Lane, it tackled all available gradients with ease in high power mode in the middle gears. Unusually for Kalkhoff, the Sahels come with 26-inch wheels, so they’re not the best bikes for long-distance, high speed commutes through well-surfaced roads. Where the Sahel Pro feels best is on trails and tracks, parkland and open countryside. It looks like it wouldn’t mind getting dirty.

Like all the 2010 range, it packs the new spec 250 Watt Panasonic motor which provides extra assistance in the high power mode, the superb Alfine 8-speed hub and a great set of lights.

Come and feel the quality and maybe take it for a spin at either our newly-opened Richmond shop in London or at our premises in Loughborough, Leics.

50 Cycles LTD is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Article 13, the consultancy
and think tank focused on achieving real behaviour change in the CSR
and sustainability agendas, has released a new batch of case studies
profiling three organisations’ efforts to embed and integrate responsible
organisational practices in their mainstream organisational strategies. 
The organisations showcased in this edition are very diverse: 3M, The
Medical Fair & Ethical Trade Group and Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire
Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust. 

3M, previously profiled
for its approach to product lifecycle assessments http://www.article13.com/A13_ContentList.asp?strAction=GetPublication&PNID=1312, also takes a leadership stance on education. 
The company will shortly launch its second web-based learning tool,
FutureWise, designed to engage children in sustainability and environment
issues.  As well as highlighting the complexity of sustainability
issues, 3M hopes to encourage the uptake of science, technology, engineering
and maths, thus securing its own business sustainability.

Read more…

http://www.article13.com/A13_ContentList.asp?strAction=GetPublication&PNID=1492

The second case study
focuses on the work of the Medical Fair & Ethical Trade Group (MFETG). 
The MFETG was established by a single individual, bringing along other
like-minded individuals within the Department of Health and NHS to promote
and facilitate fair and ethical trade in the production and supply of
commodities to the healthcare industry.  This group provides a
forum for consideration and building evidence bases for action on complex
issues including child labour, health & safety and workers rights. 

Read more…

http://www.article13.com/A13_ContentList.asp?strAction=GetPublication&PNID=1493  

The third case study
in this set focuses on an innovative communications and social marketing
campaign called ‘Stamping Out Mental Health Stigma’.  The Oxfordshire
& Buckinghamshire Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust’s communications
team produced this award-winning campaign to target the elimination
of discriminating behaviours towards mental health patients, their treatment
in the workforce and their access to opportunities. 

Read more…

http://www.article13.com/A13_ContentList.asp?strAction=GetPublication&PNID=1494  

The latest Article
13 CSR case studies can be accessed from the Article 13 home page (http://www.article13.com).  The CSR and sustainability case study
archive is also a useful tool for sustainability and CSR practitioners,
containing a large range of case studies within the categories of community,
education, environment, governance, new product development, strategy,
supply chain and workplace.

Article 13
are experts in business responsibility, typically in the areas of corporate
social responsibility (CSR), sustainability and governance.  Article
13 seeks to embed and integrate responsible business practices
in organisations by means of consultancy services, training, coach-mentoring
and thought leadership.

For further information
on these case studies or to have your organisation’s CSR initiatives
profiled, contact Jane Fiona Cumming on janefionac@article13.com or phone +44 (0)20 8840 4450.

Five million regular cyclists may be putting themselves and others at risk because they do not have basic third party cover, according to research by cycle insurance provider ilovemybike.co.uk

Director at ilovemybike.co.uk, Andrew Davis said: “It’s risky for a cyclist to assume that their household insurance policy will cover road traffic collisions, as many do not.”

“Third party insurance is compulsory for motorists, but we know of only two per cent of regular cyclists who have insurance that would pay out if they caused damage to a person or property.

Susie Hewson, winner of
the 2008 Women in Ethical Business Award from ethical bank, Triodos,
and founder of Natracare, the organic and natural range of feminine
hygiene products, is embarking on a new adventure, this time to raise
funds to improve the health of women and babies around the world.

Susie (56) will be
joining other inspirational women on a gruelling 300km cycle ride
through the Jordan Valley to the shores of the Red Sea to raise funds
for the ‘Women for Women’ charity challenge.

The 5-day challenge takes
place in October this year and TV presenter, Fern Britton, will also
be taking part – her fourth ‘Women for Women’ challenge.
  The popular women-only cycling challenges have seen
thousands of women raising money over the past nine years. 

‘Women for Women’
is part of an international charity chaired by Professor Robert
Winston, registration number 292518, which finances medical research
into the causes, and therefore the cures to many conditions that
effect the health of mother and baby.

Funds raised from the
‘Women for Women’ cycle rides are specifically used to
train women scientists and clinicians to specialise in this area of
medicine – thereby empowering more women to lead in this field.

Susie says: “Natracare’s
ethos is one of care and consideration for the wellbeing of women and
the environment, and the development of our organic and sustainable
feminine hygiene products reflects that concern. The giving of my
time and energy to help raise funds for the charity is one of my
biggest challenges but I am really looking forward to the adventure
and meeting all the other charity bikers”.

To celebrate Myakka’s 10th Birthday, our biggest ever summer sale from Friday 7th August, with between 10% and 60% off absolutely everything!   In addition, our warehouse clearance starts on Saturday 8th August.  We’ve got some amazing prices on customer returns and clearance furniture, available exclusively at our Warehouse Outlet in Wincanton, Somerset.  Doors open at 10am and it’s strictly first come, first served so arrive early for the best bargains!

Over the past ten years we have proved that doing business
ethically pays, especially in the last twelve months with the tougher
economic environment.  Myakka has grown into one of the UK’s leading
furniture and home accessories retailers. We follow Fair Trade
principles as a member of BAFTS the British Association of Fair Trade
Shops.

“We created Myakka 10 years ago and it has been an
exciting journey to where we are today. We are proud of what Myakka has
become and what it stands for.  Here’s to the next decade, Happy
Birthday Myakka!” commented Georgie Hopkins, Director.

Read more about the good work Myakka has done during their 10th Birthday year by selecting this link:  Myakka’s 10th Birthday Year 

Somerset based fair trade furniture and homewares retailer Myakka demonstrates that an ethical approach to business benefits everyone. Despite the recession, the directors have increased the amount of support they are giving, both to Myakka’s suppliers in India and now local communities in Somerset.

“Supporting our suppliers and their local communities is very important to us,” commented Georgie Hopkins, director of Myakka. “When we visited our main furniture suppliers in northern India at the beginning of the year we set a number of community projects in motion.  Providing new desks for the children at SKSN school is the second project to be completed so far and represents a collaboration between Myakka and our main supplier.”

Myakka has donated £2,000 towards the cost of materials with their
supplier covering the cost of production, enabling SKSN school to
receive 70 new desks and benches for students who previously studied
sitting on the floor.

As a member of the BAFTS (British
Association for Fair Trade Shops) the focus is on supporting suppliers
and their local communities. Myakka has chosen to go one step further
and join the Somerset Guardian Scheme operated by The Somerset
Community Foundation. This allows the directors to support their local
communities in Somerset, as well as Myakka’s supplier’s and their
communities in India.

The Somerset Community Foundation
supports local children, youth groups and older people, those with
special needs or disabilities, sports groups, art and drama projects;
aiming to build stronger communities for the benefit of everyone in
Somerset. As a Guardian, all monies pledged are invested as part of the
foundation’s endowment fund. The income from the fund is then used to
provide a long term sustainable source of grants to address local
needs. Currently the Somerset Community Foundation is the only
charitable body in Somerset administering the government ‘Grassroots
Grants Scheme’ whereby the government will top up funds by 100%.
Therefore Myakka’s financial support is worth much more to the
Foundation and those it supports in the locality.

Simon
Whitehead, director of Myakka commented. “We are proving that operating
a business ethically is more profitable for everyone, even in this time
of recession. It’s important to us that we support our local community
as well as those of our suppliers. The Somerset Community Foundation
offers the most accessible method for us to support small-scale, local
projects.”

Myakka specialises in solid wood furniture and
tailors the designs of each piece for the British market.  The
furniture is made in northern India by skilled craftsman using the
latest German computer controlled machinery ensuring the quality is
second to none. With a sophisticated ecommerce website, a Warehouse
Outlet in Wincanton, Somerset and a comprehensive mail order catalogue,
Myakka has a large database of loyal customers across the UK.

This summer Myakka is celebrating a decade of business with a huge 10th Birthday Summer Sale.

For more information about one of Somerset’s leading ethical businesses visit the Myakka news blog at www.furniture-home.myakka.co.uk or the online shop at www.myakka.co.uk. Select this link for further details on The Somerset Community Foundation: www.somersetcf.org.uk.

Application deadline 30 September

From the 9-16 December 2009, a Christian Aid team of 50 cyclists will take to the road and ride 140 miles from London to Copenhagen to highlight the start of the UN climate change summit and raise vital funds for Christian Aid projects in the developing world.

With three days cycling between 25 and 65 miles a day, the bike ride is open to all levels of cycling fitness. The group will leave London on the morning of 9 December, cycling through the English countryside to Harwich and, after the ferry ride, through the Danish islands to Copenhagen. Participants will cycle for no more than six hours a day and there will be two free days in the Danish capital before the group returns to the UK.

In Copenhagen, the cyclists will have the chance to make their ‘green’
presence count by joining thousands of climate change campaigners from
all over the world at a mass rally calling for a fair and effective
deal to combat climate change and to help the millions in the poorest
countries already suffering the effects of climate change.

“Cyclists have always been at the forefront of the green movement.
This an amazing opportunity to make a real difference by making your
voice heard at the crucial climate change talks in Copenhagen and at
the same time raising money to help some the world’s poorest people,”
said Alison Gregory of Christian Aid.

The cost of the trip is
£875 per person which you can either pay yourself or raise in
sponsorship as part of a commitment to raise £1,900 for Christian Aid.
There is also an initial £99 registration fee. The price includes all
accommodation, the ferry, transport back from Copenhagen and most meals.

Participants will get full support from Christian Aid’s
dedicated events team with lots of training, preparation and
fundraising advice and a free Christian Aid T-shirt.

For a
brochure, the full itinerary, route profile, registration form and
fundraising tips log on to www.christianaid.org.uk/events call 020 7523
2248 or email events@christian-aid.org.

Forget double glazing, triple glazing should be the new standard!

Award-winning
sustainable building products supplier Green Building Store believes
triple glazing should become the standard choice for windows and doors
in the UK to help combat climate change. Triple glazed windows are
around 30% more efficient than double glazed and can significantly
improve the energy efficiency of homes, saving money on energy bills
and reducing CO₂ emissions.

As part of Green
Building Store’s commitment to promoting ultra low energy building
design, the company has switched its own Yorkshire based Ecoplus
window production to focus on triple glazing and, from 1st June 2009,
will be making argon filled triple glazing more affordable by offering
it at the same price as double glazing¹. Currently,
buildings can lose 10-25% of their heat through windows but this can be
considerably reduced by using energy efficient glazing. Ecoplus argon
triple glazed windows have a window U value of 1.0 W/m²/K,
which is 50% better than the requirements of current building
regulations. They are also Forestry Stewardship Council certified (FSC
Pure) in redwood or oak, as well as being hand finished using natural
paints and borate based timber preservatives.

Already
commonplace in regions with colder climates, such as Scandinavia,
triple glazed windows are also popular in countries such as Germany and
Austria where low energy buildings and Passivhaus² design
are encouraged. Chris Herring, Director at the Green Building Store
said, “In order to fight climate change we urgently need to improve
energy efficiency standards in UK buildings but necessary energy saving
measures also need to be made affordable. By increasing our production
capacity and absorbing the extra costs of triple glazing we hope that
this will allow more people to consider ultra efficient windows and
doors as a viable option when designing and refurbishing buildings.”

Green
Building Store has just won a Queen’s Award for Enterprise: Sustainable
Development 2009 for providing ‘cutting edge sustainable products’ and
for its ‘pioneering approach to sustainability’. As well as making
ultra efficient timber windows and doors, the company supplies:
water-saving sanitaryware (toilets, taps, showerheads etc); Passivhaus
products (windows, ventilation, airtightness products etc); and natural
building materials (sheep’s wool insulation, natural paints and
finishes etc). For more information, go to www.greenbuildingstore.co.uk or ring 01484 461705.