While in London on Wednesday the Team at MoreEco decided to make a quick visit to Grand Designs Live at Excell in London. Are main aim was to have a look at the Eco buildings which were being showcased at the event.

We visited the future-build theatre by ECO2H2OUSE.  This eco house
demonstrated the techologies being used in the building of a low/zero
carbon home. In the UK today, an average new house which uses the technology
involved will consume 77% less energy for space heating when compared with one
built to standard building regulations.

The Eco House uses
innovative low-energy technology that has been designed to meet the
passive house energy standards and levels of air tightness. The Passive
house standard is as follow;

• Compact form & good insulation
• Southern orientation & shade considerations
• Energy-efficient window glazing & frames
• Highly efficient heat recovery form exhaust air using and air to air heat exchanger
• Energy-saving household appliances
• Total energy demand for space heating and cooling of less than 15kWh/m2/yr

The second eco house we toured was the ‘EcoHub’. This cute mini dome-shaped eco pod offers teh last word in super energy efficiency. Clad in sustainable wooden or recycled tyre tiles, this tw-bedroom, double pod home uses mirco-renewable technology to achives a zero carbon rating. The people at EcoHub are committed to dramatically reduce our carbon footprint. We got on well with them as this is the same aim at we have at MoreEco.

The third eco house we were inspired by, was the landARK. If you have a scrap of land, maybe a back garden, a hillside, a coppice clearing, or maybe eveen a corner of somebody’s car park (plus a few weeks holiday) then this i agreat fun eco house to have. All you need is a rubber mallet, a tape measure, screwdrives, a powerdrive drill and enough peace to read the manual. Checlkout the pictures we have taken.

Finally the last house we visited was the Cloud 9 stand. These timber eco homes are again made with sustainable timber and come with solar panels, heat recovery ventilation, large windows and open space plan. energy bills for these house are less than £400 per year.

We have uploaded pictures of the Grand Designs Live event taken from the trustworthy MoreEco iPhone to Moreeco Flickr account. The slide show is below.

ScienceDaily (2009-04-29) — Satellite images show that icebergs have begun to calve from the northern front of the Wilkins Ice Shelf – indicating that the huge shelf has become unstable. This follows the collapse three weeks ago of the ice bridge that had previously linked the Antarctic mainland to Charcot Island.

Read more here…

Produced daily by the Social Enterprise Coalition

Triodos or Unity
should run social investment bank, says academic

New financial model
‘will allow charities to compete with construction companies’

Help for small
businesses

Continue reading for lots more…

National

Social enterprise
going ‘over the heads’ of NHS mavericks

Gemma Hampson,
Social Enterprise Magazine

The ‘right to
request’ social enterprise initiative is failing to attract the
interest of frontline health staff dedicated to driving change in the
NHS, according to a leading civil servant at the Department of Health
(DH). Right to request was introduced as part of Lord Darzi’s Next
Stage Review Final Report last year giving all NHS staff the right to
ask their primary care trust board if they can set up a social
enterprise to provide NHS-contracted services.

http://www.socialenterprisemag.co.uk/sem/news/detail/index.asp?id=947

Triodos or Unity
should run social investment bank, says academic

Henry Palmer,
Social Enterprise Magazine

An existing bank with
experience working with social enterprises should run the proposed
social investment wholesale bank, according to a leading third sector
academic. Professor Paul Palmer, professor in voluntary sector
management at City University’s Cass Business School, said any new
financial institution would risk creating yet another level of civil
service-style bureaucracy. Palmer was speaking following the Budget
announcement that the Office of the Third Sector (OTS) would launch a
consultation about the much mooted plans to create an investment bank
using unclaimed assets in dormant bank and building society accounts.

http://www.socialenterprisemag.co.uk/sem/news/detail/index.asp?id=946

Expert Eye: Law

Catherine Rustomji,
Social Enterprise Magazine

Collaborations and
mergers could help social enterprises win new business and battle the
recession – but take care. Catherine Rustomji, of Hempsons
Solicitors, offers expert advice. The intense press reporting of all
things recession-related has not left social enterprises untouched.
Recent reports from the Charity Commission refer to more than half of
charities feeling the effects of the downturn with 64 per cent of
largest charities concerned that future work will be affected. An
increase in the number of third sector organisations choosing to
merge has long been predicted as an immediate response in a
recession.

http://www.socialenterprisemag.co.uk/sem/features/detail/index.asp?id=945

Ethical Property
Company promises part-time office space for charities

David Ainsworth,
Third Sector Online

Hive Network planned
for London, Manchester, Brighton, Oxford and Bath. A third sector
landlord is planning to help start-up social enterprises and small
charities to escape from working in cramped coffee shops and draughty
village halls. The Ethical Property Company is launching a scheme to
offer the sector affordable part-time use of meeting rooms,
conference facilities and shared spaces. The Hive Network, to be
launched in June, will initially have buildings in Oxford and Bath.
More are planned for London, Manchester and Brighton.

http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/channels/Finance/Article/901162/Ethical-Property-Company-promises-part-time-office-space-charities/

New financial model
‘will allow charities to compete with construction companies’

David Ainsworth,
Third Sector Online

A Scottish housing
association is pioneering a new financial model it believes will help
charities to compete with construction companies for public building
contracts.
….Hugh Rolo, head of assets and investment at the
Development Trusts Association, said ideas such as this could help
retain more investment in local communities.”The problem the
third sector has at the moment is one of scale,” he said. “We
can’t bid for the biggest contracts. But that will come in time.”
Rolo said his organisation was keen for more charities and social
enterprises to get involved in such contracts.

http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/channels/Finance/Article/901063/New-financial-model-will-allow-charities-compete-construction-companies/

Work scheme targets
young jobless

BBC News Online
Scotland

A new scheme aimed at
creating work for thousands of young Scots has been announced by the
UK Government. Scottish Secretary Jim Murphy said the £95m project
would aim to provide six months paid work for 15,000 young, long-term
unemployed. It is part of a UK-wide initiative called the Future Jobs
Fund announced in last week’s budget. The package will be open to
organisations which prove they can create long-term jobs or training.
 They apply through the department of Work and Pensions
outlining how many and what kind of jobs they hope to create. It is
expected councils and social enterprises will be among the first to
bid for the money.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/8021226.stm

Help for small
businesses

BiP Solutions

Public bodies should
take six simple steps to give small business better access to public
contracts, John Swinney said today. Steps include requiring suppliers
to pay sub-contractors within 30 days and using the free web portal
to advertise contracts – Public Contracts Scotland. Finance Secretary
John Swinney has written to Chief Executives and Heads of Procurement
throughout the public sector to promote access to public sector
contracts for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), social
enterprises and third sector bodies.

http://www.bipsolutions.com/cgi-bin/newsroom/newsroom.cgi?action=full_story&act=view_news_list&act2=view_news_list&id=208588&strt=0&searchCriteria=&searchChoice=&sectorToSearch=&startMonth=&startYear=&endMonth=&endYear=&storiesPerPage=10

Darzi invites GP
‘innovators’ to bid for new cash

Gareth Iacobucci,
Pulse

GPs have been invited
to bid for a £220m war-chest of new Government money to encourage
innovation and financial savings in the health service. The cash
injection, first promised to SHAs in Lord Darzi’s next stage
review, has been ring-fenced for projects that deliver ‘a health,
social or financial benefit’.  
….Bids are being welcomed
from the likes of PCOs, GP practices, and social enterprises or
universities if they bid in partnership with an NHS organisation.

http://www.pulsetoday.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=23&storycode=4122534&c=2

Recession proof

Jenny Clark and
Karl Wilding, Charity Finance

How will the recession
affect the voluntary sector?
….Much of the orthodoxy in recent
years around sustainability has been to increase earned income, a
message the sector has clearly taken on board. Social enterprise
activity is now the norm, with earned income becoming increasingly
important in the funding mix. Although changes in accounting
practices are partly responsible, we estimate earned income increased
from £10.2bn (43 per cent of income) in 2001/02 to £17bn (51.2 per
cent) in 2006/07.

http://www.charityfinance.co.uk/home/content.php?id=2762&pg=17&cat=78

RBS SE100: Health
and social care

Gemma Hampson,
Social Enterprise Magazine

You just have to
compare this month’s growth figures with the last issue of Social
Enterprise, which featured the fastest growing companies in retail
and fair trade. Only three of the top five retail social businesses
had grown, in stark contrast to this month’s top five which have all
grown by at least 30 per cent. Collectively, the top five have an
average growth of a massive 68 per cent. In fact, only two of the 20
social businesses that completed the growth section of this month’s
survey had reduced in size, and even then their reductions were less
than ten per cent.

http://www.socialenterprisemag.co.uk/sem/features/detail/index.asp?id=942

From the Horse’s
Mouth: PR

Lily Lapenna,
Social Enterprise Magazine

Social enterprises are
often forced to do PR on a shoe-string, especially when starting up
but MyBnk founder Lily Lapenna is proof that you can get results with
minimal resources and here she shares her tips. We have chosen to do
our PR in house – we think it’s cheaper and we think we know our
business best. That doesn’t mean we don’t accept help and we’ve used
consultants for advice. We’ve found this really helpful and some will
spend a bit of time with you initially for free. This can be enough
to get some good ideas.

http://www.socialenterprisemag.co.uk/sem/features/detail/index.asp?id=943

Liam’s Got Issues:
April

Liam Black, Social
Enterprise Magazine

Can we really make a
difference? As if, says Liam Black.
….I’m with late leftie
Antonio Gramsci: ‘I’m a pessimist because of intelligence, but an
optimist because of will’. Expect the worst, but work for the best.
We know deep in our hearts that we have grievously hurt our earth.
The hard truth is, it’s worse than when I started. So why keep going?
Partly the answer is ‘what’s the alternative?’. Staying in bed,
getting out only to top up the Jamesons? No. Being involved in social
enterprise is about choosing to live as if we can make a difference;
as if greed and indifference are human aberrations, not the default.

http://www.socialenterprisemag.co.uk/sem/tradingplace/detail/index.asp?id=940Local

Local

East Sussex mental
health service could go

Emily Walker, The
Argus

Mental health patients
could be stripped of a vital service that one patient says saved him
from suicide.

….A spokesman for
the PCT said: “In conjunction with East Sussex Adult Social Care we
are re-organising mental health day services across the county so
that they offer local people much improved care and support which
focuses on recovery, inclusion and a return to employment. “Under
the new set up we will no longer commission day services at New Road
Nurseries as we consider that it does not fit in with the new look
services we plan to offer.  ”However, we feel that the nursery
could have a long term future as a social enterprise, with the
potential for commercial activities at the site to support and
develop the services it presently provides.

http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/4323089.East_Sussex_mental_health_service_could_go/

Plan to build
crematorium in Buchan

Jamie Buchan,
Aberdeen Press and Journal

A crematorium could be
built in the Buchan area to help fund a new strategy group, it has
emerged.
….Peterhead Projects has been established to look at
ways of improving the local economy and making the area more
attractive to visitors and businesses. One of its first projects will
be a radical revamp of the town’s under-used Lido. Derek Jennings,
a director of the group, said: “For the first two years we receive
core funding from Aberdeenshire Council, but after that we need to
generate income through social enterprises. “We need to ensure that
the company is self-sufficient and be able to plough profits into the
community.”

http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/1185384?UserKey=

Blogs

Community cohesion
is alive and well – no thanks to the government

Dave Clements,
Guardian Joe Public Blog

Are we really living
in a broken society? When we wrote The Future of Community: Reports
of a death greatly exaggerated, we came to a very different
conclusion. As one promotional blurb put it, communities are “alive
and well despite the government’s best efforts”. We were
suspicious of the motives of those who tell us our communities are
broken and that everything is getting worse. As we tried to get
across in the book, this is more an expression of the political
class’s own sense of dislocation from society than an accurate
reflection of real world problems.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/joepublic/2009/apr/28/community-cohesion-race-ethnic-minorities

Why the public
sector needs to improve its contractor handling

Jane Dudman,
Guardian Joe Public Blog

Today’s scathing
report from the Commons public accounts committee (PAC) about the
failure of central government organisations to address the most basic
aspects of getting good value from the £12bn they spend on services,
highlights just what a tough job the Treasury has on its hands as it
attempts to drive through its agenda of greater efficiency and
savings. The report from Edward Leigh’s committee rehearses a
depressingly long and all-too-familiar list of failings. It says
relationships between central government and its external suppliers
remain “too cosy” despite years of competitive
tendering.
 http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/joepublic/2009/apr/28/policy-public-finance

Of
general interest

Politics:

Flawed attempt to
force social change

Nicholas Timmins,
Financial Times

The equality bill
suggests it is possible to legislate to “narrow the gap between
rich and poor”, as Harriet Harman put it on Monday. But at a time
when the government is already set to miss other self-imposed targets
for improving social and economic conditions, lawyers were sceptical
that public bodies could be ordered to help change society. The
legislation forces public sector organisations to “consider
reducing socio-economic inequalities”. It comes as the government
is introducing a statutory requirement for future governments to
eliminate child poverty, yet Labour is likely to fall well short of
its own interim target of halving it by 2010.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/055cb88c-3382-11de-8f1b-00144feabdc0.html

Business:

Tesco is ‘losing UK
market share’

BBC News Online

UK supermarket giant Tesco has lost market share to
discounters Aldi and Lidl as consumers cut back on spending. Tesco’s
share of the UK market dropped to 30.4% in March, from 30.8% a year
before, according to research firm TNS. Tesco’s share has dropped on
an annual basis in every month this year. Of the other “big
four” Sainsbury’s was flat while Asda and Morrisons gained
share. Wal-Mart-owned Asda moved to its record share of the UK
market, up to 17.5% from 17.1%.  Meanwhile, Waitrose saw its
market share fall.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/dorset/8023250.stm

Environment:

Unlikely allies at
last: Prince and Pope

Peter Popham, The
Independent

Throughout the last
500 years the Vatican and the Royal Family have had their share of
disagreements. Not least about wives. But yesterday they were as one.
Both about wives, and perhaps more importantly, about the future of
the planet. Protocol would normally dictate that Prince Charles, on
his third visit to the Vatican, would initially meet Pope Benedict
without the Duchess of Cornwall. But protocol was waived to enable
them to meet the Pope together, instead of the Duchess coming in at
the end.
http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/unlikely-allies-at-last-prince-and-pope-1675177.html

Natural mattresses may be the answer for allergy sufferers says buyOrganics

 Top luxury organic lifestyle gurus buyOrganics 
now offer people the chance to sample fabric swatches of their organic
mattresses in response to increasing numbers of customers with
allergies buying them from the online store. Maybe one reason for this
is the growing realisation that avoiding the synthetic materials and
chemicals present in regular mattresses can actually exacerbate not
only skin and sleep problems, but also even perhaps other conditions
such as ME.

As the average person spends one whole third of their life in bed, many people are unaware that what your mattress is made of could also be affecting your health?

Sonia Kalia-Sagoo of buyOrganics explains: “Organic mattresses are made from materials which have been created by traditional farming methods, thereby avoiding the use of highly toxic fertilisers, pesticides, fungicides and herbicides, which would otherwise leave residues in the final product.   Organic mattresses are made with 100% unbleached untreated cotton, coir (coconut) and wool products, meaning no health risks to the sleeper.   Sleep disturbances and neurological conditions such as ME have been linked with exposure to such toxic chemicals, as well as skin allergies such as eczema, so it is particularly important for example, for babies to sleep on organic bedding.”

As well as being safer for the end user, organic products are less harmful to the environment and for the growers and workers harvesting the crops, meaning that choosing an organic mattress will not only be healthful for yourself, but an ethical choice as well.  The pocket sprung and cot mattresses on the buyOrganics site are both Soil Association certified.

buyOrganics is very happy to send fabric swatches to potential customers to try before choosing which mattress they wish to buy.

ENDS

Media enquiries: Lisa Jackson, Eurydice PR ethical communications
lisa@eurydicepr.co.uk  01440 709460  /  07702 415187
Stockist details:  www.buyorganics.co.uk   0208 952 1424 

Article 13 focuses on emerging trends within the scope of business
responsibility.  In this update, we identify the current issues
surrounding sustainable investment, also known as ‘socially
responsible’ investment (SRI) or ‘responsible’ investment. This form of
investment has grown enormously in the past decade, with an increase in
sustainable funds and sustainable options. Sustainable investment has
been interlinked with developments in areas such as corporate
governance, corporate accountability, and sustainable development.

Socially responsible investment is a broad-based approach to investment, offering a way for ethically conscious investors to avoid investing in organisations which directly conflict with their values (i.e. organisations which present a conflict of interests). Socially responsible investors can include both individuals and institutions, such as corporations, universities, hospitals, foundations, insurance companies, and public and private pension funds. It is an investment strategy which not only seeks to maximise financial return, but also combines meeting social, ethical and environmental criteria. SRI can take the form of many methods of investment, such as:

• Socially responsible funds and durable performance funds (“best in class”);
• Thematic funds, such as green funds;
• Human rights funds.

SRI recognises that corporate responsibility and societal concerns are valid parts of investment decisions and consider both the investor’s financial needs and an investment’s impact on society. There is a large variety of socially responsible investments available that appeal to socially responsible investors based on topical, and relevant ethical issues. There are a number of leading indexes used to identify sustainable investments; these include the following:

• Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (www.sustainability-index.com)
• FTSE4Good (www.ftse.com/Indices/FTSE4Good_Index_Series/index.jsp)
• Innovest Strategic Value Advisors (www.innovestgroup.com)

Benefit from SRI
The increase in sustainable investment is leading to an increase in inspection and monitoring of companies’ business practices, in order to hold them to certain environmental and social standards and create portfolios for an individual investor. There are ethical funds that use shareholder pressure to bring about changes in company policy. By joining forces with other investors some ethical funds have successfully influenced several companies to change their practices. For a comprehensive expert view on SRI see:
http://www.article13.com/A13_ContentList.asp?strAction=GetPublication&PNID=110

For more information please contact Fiona Banyard on fionab@article13.com or call 020 8840 4450. Please also see Article 13’s website www.article13.com.

As part of Article 13’s values and principles  we feel it our duty to do everything we can to reduce our environmental footprint. Therefore on a monthly basis a dedicated member of the Article 13 team monitors; the levels of fuel use; electricity and paper consumption; air travel; and public transport. Furthermore, Article 13 has inserted a standard rate Carbon Clause into client contracts which contributes £20 to offsetting carbon emissions.

We have recently published our annual Environmental report  which details;

1. Our monthly usage of fuel, electricity, paper, air travel emissions, public transport;
2. The 2008 percentage change on our 2007 levels;
3. Our targets and actions for 2009 to further improve our
   environmental practices and impacts of our business activities and
   operations.

Due to the day-to-day individual efforts of our team, as well as a
Company concerted effort up to and including 2008, Article 13 has
monitored and the following changes in our; in our fuel consumption
(14% increase on our 2007 levels due to increasing attendance and
therefore use of car travel to and from the office); electricity
consumption (a 27% decrease); paper consumption (a 10% decrease); and
business related air travel emissions (a 144% decrease) on 2007 levels.

To continue to push our targets and thus efforts, for 2009 we have
committed to further improvements to our environmental practices and
actions, mainly by; changing behaviour (e.g. reducing business related
car travel), promoting responsibility (e.g. advocate and raise
awareness through our vast network and website), and actioning measures
(e.g. annual offset of our carbon footprint)

These actions, alongside our existing and longstanding Environmental
policy , exemplify Article 13’s continual striving to improve its
environmental performance and advocates responsible business in the
area of environmental and social sustainability.  

For more information regarding Article 13’s environmental practices and policy, please see our UNGC pages.

For information on how Article 13 can assist you in auditing your
companies practices, developing action plans, and reducing your
business related effects on the environment, contact Fiona Banyard on
0208 840 4450 or mail fionab@article13.com

Agro-Ecological sustainable farmland investment company offers a secure, ethical alternative to commodity markets

Despite the current economic climate, one company focusing on the future not only of their investors but that of the planet as a whole, is new ecological investment management company Agro-Ecological.  It is the only organisation currently wholly committed to providing ecological asset management and investment solutions in the farmland sector.  This previously inaccessible asset class is now available thanks to the vision and insight of this team of highly experienced organic farmland asset management professionals.

Agro-Ecological offers a professional investment capability in the
sustainable, responsible and ecological management of farmland, for
institutions, investment/wealth managers and HNWI’s in particular for
those with an SRI (sustainable and responsible investment) focus.

The company exclusively acquires and manages farming properties in an
ecological and organic way. This is a timely and cogent investment
opportunity designed to generate a sustainable and profitable future
for both investor and the global environment as a whole.  Says Geoff
Burke, Managing Director, “Investment in farmland and its
organic/ecological management provides an incredibly powerful and
synergistic combination of both positive investment factors, such as
security, stability and performance, with essential sustainability
factors, such as food and health, ecology and climate change.”

The global food supply chain is currently in a state of flux due to
increased demand, climate change and resource constraints; causing
droughts, supply disruptions and increased conventional farming input
costs.  The agriculture sector will inevitably need to adapt to these
changes by redirecting its approach towards a more ecological and
environmentally sound way of farming. In this adaptation lie
significant investment opportunities.

Geoff Burke continues, “Agro-Ecological recognises the investment
opportunities in farmland, understands its increasing and long term
attractions such as stability, inflation hedging and uncorrelated
investment performance and is able to open up this entire outperforming
and secure asset class, hitherto unavailable to the rapidly expanding
demand for genuinely sustainable and responsible investment.”

Agro-Ecological is a member of The Ethical Junction and newly
relaunched UKSIF (Sustainable Investment and Finance). The company has
been in business since September 2008 and between them the team members
have over 50 years’ experience in the organic farmland sector.

www.agro-ecological.com

“Your Calendar of Climate Change is unbelievably striking and poignant and His Royal Highness admires you more than he can possibly say for using your skills to communicate the message so brilliantly. Your support for the Prince’s Rainforests Project is utterly invaluable.”

Click here to get your friends, your family, your school or even yourself a copy of the 2009 Calendar of Climate Change with £2 off the RRP of £10.99. Truly a right royal bargain!

Set up in October 2007 by HRH The Prince of Wales, The Prince’s Rainforests Project recognises the global role played by the forests in both promoting and mitigating climate change, and the acute pressure put on the rainforests by the worldwide rises in commodity prices and soaring global demand for beef, soya and palm oil.

The Prince’s Rainforests Project works with governments, business, NGOs and individuals to increase global recognition of the contribution of tropical deforestation to climate change and to find ways to make the rainforests worth more alive than dead.

Currently The Prince’s Rainforests Project is developing educational resources so that teachers may engage and inspire the children in their care to consider the vital role played by the remaining rainforests on the planet, and to involve them as active stakeholders in a sustainable future. The 2009 Calendar of Climate Change was selected by the Project team as one of these resources.

Barchester Green Investment has published a 3 page article, Sustainable investment Fund Performance 2008, which is downloadable as a PDF.  

Extract: There was great excitement this time last year within the sustainable investment industry as the Investment Management Association (IMA) figures for 2008 announced record levels of new investment into socially responsible investment funds with the total in assets under management increasing to £8.9 billion. We also saw a number of new funds entering the market place and increased media interest in ethical and socially responsible investment.

Download the whole the article.

Nigel’s Eco Store is proud to today announce the winners of the Nigel’s Green Web Awards 2008.  Given the rapid rise in the number of green websites and the amount of coverage of green issues and climate change this year, we felt it was time to draw attention to the best websites involved in the effort to create a greener future.

The Judges

Over the past few weeks we have collected the opinions from leading Green bloggers and experts – people like Bonnie Alter from treehugger.com, Adam Vaughan from Smart Planet, Ed Gillespie from Futerra and Tracy Stokes of EcoStreet – all people with great green credentials who also know what makes the web tick.

A full list of judges on the awards page can be found at: http://www.nigelsecostore.com/green-web-awards/#judges

The judges voted on their favourite Green and Eco sites, in a number of different categories. Our mission in creating the  Green Web Awards was to find the people and organisations who are in the vanguard of creating a greener future online and not just to reward the sites with the biggest budgets, but to find websites that are hidden gems, community-based sites and ones that make use of the power of the internet.

"The web is now a central part of our lives. We expect the sites we visit to be authoritative, dynamic and talking to us in ways that we understand. I hope we’ve been able to shine a light on some of the very best green web sites there are. I was pleased to see some of my favourites come up," said Nigel Berman, MD of Nigel’s Eco Store.

More than any medium today, the web has the power to create communities that can change the world, to inform, and to shape opinion. We believe that what we can achieve online today will have a massive influence on what the world becomes tomorrow.

And the Winners are…

The judges voted for sites in 12 categories, with winners and runners up in each. The  winners in each include:

Green Travel                          Responsible Travel

Green Site for Kids                  Recycle Zone

Ethical Health and Beauty         Green People

Eco Blogs and News                  Tree Hugger

Online Campaigns                   Green Thing

Online Communities                Freecycle

Green Energy                          Good Energy

Ethical Clothing                       People Tree

Greenest companies                Method

and

Worst Greenwash                     Barbie B-Cause

For a full list of winners, see http://www.nigelsecostore.com/green-web-awards/