Our Climate Mamas and Papas are committed to live by our ClimateMama mantra: “Tell the Truth, Actions speak louder then words, and Don’t be afraid.”
We are therefore thrilled to be part of the latest component of the Safer Chemicals and Healthy Families, Mind the Store campaign: demanding that furniture manufacturers and retailers rapidly phase out toxic flame retardants from furniture. The campaign has been wildly successful; big furniture companies are now telling the truth about flame retardants. Many companies are taking this very seriously and agreeing to phase out these chemicals quickly and expeditiously. Many companies as well, are showing us that they are not afraid to be heard on this serious issue, and in fact are telling others in their industry to join in and follow their lead.
The Mind the Store Campaign has been so successful that industry leaders like Ashley Furniture company, the #1 furniture manufacturer and retailer in the US has stated that they too, will begin actively phasing out toxic flame retardants. As the biggest furniture retailer in the country, they have tremendous power to transform the marketplace. So, while Ashley has made this commitment, we are joining forces with others in the Mind the Store Campaign to get Ashley to finish the job by adopting a public timeframe for eliminating these harmful chemicals.
Does this sound familiar? For those regulars to ClimateMama, you may remember that we worked on a very similar campaign last year with the Rainforest Action Network where we have been trying to get another industry leader, PepsiCo, to agree to responsible palm oil production. While they have made commitments to do this, they haven’t included detailed time bound commitments with a traceable supply chain. Through a letter that we authored with two other eastcoast Climate mamas, we received over 100,000 signatures calling on PepsiCo to go farther. Unfortunately, PepsiCo still hasn’t made a full commitment.
We regularly partner with campaigns and organizations that come together to help right wrongs and work with industry, communities and political heavyweights take on the responsibilities that comes with being a leader in their sphere of influence. These responsibilities must include going all the way on promises they make that will help our planet, our homes, and our communities be safer and more sustainable places for us to live and thrive.
Our involvement with the Safer Chemicals Healthy Families Mind the Store Campaign dates back to 2013 when we worked with Safer Chemicals Healthy Families to ask some of our country’s biggest retailers to get harmful toxins out of products we buy and off of these retailer’s store shelves.
The Mind the Store campaign continues to expand and is working tirelessly to get toxins out of the products we use and consume, and out of our living rooms, bedrooms, and all of the places our families gather. Some things, which “seem like a good idea at the time” ie. creating rules for flame retardants in everything from furniture to our children’s pajamas, aren’t in hindsight a good idea after all. As we have now discovered the chemicals that many of these products contain, which act as flame retardants, do infinitely more harm than their intended good.
So, please join us. Send a letter to Ashley Furniture, thanking them for the steps they have taken so far, but help us remind them that we expect them to be a leader, by setting a clear timeframe for their commitment to remove these harmful chemicals. Learn more at the campaign here.
We need to connect the dots and not assume that “someone” is “minding the store for us.” Our children are watching. When it comes to our health, clean air, clean water and a sustainable future and now, we all must step up. At ClimateMama we firmly believe that it’s our job to remind those that have the potential and the ability to have a powerful influence in creating change – like Ashley Furniture and PepsiCo – that they have a leadership role to play.
Yours,
Climate Mama
