Take a break - catch a wave

Long hours are not good for us; they cause stress; they're bad for our health; they wreck relationships; they make caring for children or dependents more difficult; and tired, burnt-out staff are bad for business. [worksmart.org.uk]

We need more time for surfing,
more time for snowboarding,
more time for scuba diving,
more time for life.

We need more time for living, less time for working.
We need a three day weekend

Al - Zoozoo2

Endangered

'Until recently, humankind seemed to view the ocean as a source of infinite resources. Its vast size and depth and unexplored frontiers made the ocean appear invulnerable to overexploitation. The truth is that the populations of many species are decreasing at an unsustainable rate, and the number of species listed as endangered from marine life families such as whales, dolphins, manatees and dugongs, salmon, seabirds, sea turtles, and sharks to name a few, are on the rise.' [quote taken from marinebio.org]

In recognition of the ever increasing strain on our world's marine populations from the destructive efforts of global corporate and government exploitation zoozoo2 have designed a new t-shirt.

ZooZoo2 is deeply committed to marine conservation. Our new 'Endangered' t-shirt is a simple reminder of just how many species of marine creatures are in danger of extinction.

Click here to see a close up of our new 'endangered' t-shirt

To buy click here

Al-zoozoo2

Surfwear Award Nomination

What a surprise to hear that we have been nominated for a 'Green Wave Award' by Surfer's Path Magazine alongside some very big guns like Quiksilver, O'Neill and Patagonia.

The award is for excellence and achievement in promoting sustainability and environmental consciousness in the world of surfing.

Praise indeed. Thanks to everyone who voted for us. Not bad for the smallest company on the planet.

Al-ZooZoo2

Been Skiing

Skiing appears to be the perfect environmentally sustainable sport, nothing but two tracks in the snow and you're gone. However, in reality, there is little doubt that the ski industry boom of recent decades has had a significant impact on the environment.

In the past a skier would have had trouble squaring the circle when it comes to skiing and protecting the environment. The ski industry itself has a less than perfect record when it comes to taking damage to the environment into consideration when developing ski resorts.

Today maybe the piste is a different place?

The cutting down of forest tracts, the destruction of wildlife habitats, mountain erosion, artificial snow makers draining and polluting local water resources, a disregard for local communities may all be a thing of the past. There is evidence that some ski resorts are turning green. There seems to be a new willingness by some companies to give the environment a higher priority when planning or extending developments.

Today it is water and energy conservation, water quality protection, waste reduction, habitat protection, forest and vegetative management, and air and visual quality protection that are the new buzz words. However, due to the impact of climate change we may find future ski resorts moving to higher altitudes in search of snow, this will inevitably have a negative impact higher up the mountains. Climate change and global warming will also increase the use of snow machines by resorts to counteract reduced snow levels.

What can we do?

Skiers and snow boarders must take responsibility for their actions and the impact they have on the environment. You may feel you are powerless to make a difference, what can one person do. However, it only takes one, then another one to follow that one, then before you know you have million making a difference.

If your planning on skiing in the US, make sure the resort has signed up to the National Ski Area Association Sustainable Slope environmental charter. For more information see: www.nsaa.org

Give ski touring, cross country skiing or even snow shoeing a go. These all have less create less environmental impact on the environment and are not dependent on graded slopes and ski lifts. There are many companies offering this kind of alternative

Take all your litter home, or at least back to your chalet or hotel.

Al - Zoozoo2

Snowboarders can change the world

We all talk about being concerned for the environment, it's the buzz word of our time, but what can the ordinary person do about it?

Lobbying your local government official, writing letters to all those greedy corporate giants or taking to the streets in protest probably all seem a little daunting. Maybe we should make it easy on ourselves and start with the small things. All the small things will add up to big things. If we all start doing it just think of the possibilities.

Where do we start
Start shopping locally
Start avoiding unnecessary packaging when you go to the supermarket
Start using energy saving light bulbs. You could just go to sleep when it gets dark
Start driving more efficiently. Apparently you can make a 30% saving on fuel by driving at 50mph instead of 70mph
Start using less cosmetics. That goes for the boys too
Start walking the kids to schoolStart leaving that big 4x4 in the drive. You probably don't even have to drive it to impress the neighbours
Start vacationing in your own country-most Americans do. You'll be surprised at what you'll find
Start taking notice of what you are wear

By making more informed consumer choices we can definitely change the world.

What do you wear
In these days of global brand loyalty, with snowboarders the world over covered head to toe in those big brands we all know and love, how many of use even care how they were made, who made them and what they are made of. Are we really only interested in how cool we think we look. If we are what we wear we must not leave it to the big global brands to do the right thing on our behalf. It's not going to happen.

Let's face it - profit, profit and more profit is still the mantra of the world's global brands. It's still good old corporate greed that rides the global snowboard market. They will only change when there is money to be made doing so. Sustainable production methods and fair trade practices are where they should be putting their profits, not just a token sponsorship to some high profile environmental campaign. Call us cynics but it smacks of cheap PR.

How long will it take
Most business models are still destroying the planet. Corporate greed still rules. It's going to take the next generation of snowboarders and environmentally and fair trade minded entrepreneurs to make a difference. There is an old African proverb that goes something like 'If many little people, do many little deeds, in many little places, they can change the face of the earth.

A few unsavory factsConventional Cotton is one of the world’s most intensively sprayed crops.[According to organisations such as the Sustainable Cotton organisation]
Cotton uses approximately 25 percent of the world’s insecticides and more than 10 percent of the pesticides (including herbicides, insecticides, and defoliants). The Environmental Protection Agency considers seven of the top 15 pesticides used on cotton in the year 2000 in the United States as “possible,” “likely,” “probable,” or “known” human carcinogens.

The average 100% cotton T-shirt contains only 73% cotton. The remainder consists of chemicals and resins used to increase production levels. We all think 100% cotton is exactly that, unfortunately the truth seems to be a little different.

In America last year, farmers applied something 53 million pounds of toxic pesticides to cotton fields. Out of the world’s total insecticide usage, 25% is used just to farm cotton

Where do we go now
The lifestyle enjoyed by those living in the world's industrialised countries comes at a cost. ‘In the wake of development and prosperity we see acid rain, greenhouse gases, global warming, toxic waste, water and air pollution, and a global dependence on chemical fertilizers and pesticides. As today's patterns of growth and consumption continue to deplete the environment, our future welfare is at risk.’ [extract from eartheasy.com]

Go organic
As snowboarders we can play our part in determining what happens to our planet by the consumer choices we make. ZooZoo2 is committed to reducing environmental damage through the use of organic cotton snowboarding and surf clothing. Unlike many of the big mainstream retailers ZooZoo2 have decided to sell only organic cotton T-shirts and clothing. This does mean they cost a little more to produce but it has got to be worth it. Tomorrows generation will judge us by the choices we make today.

If we are what we buy then next time we buy let’s make it count.
Al - zoozoo2.com