Chalk up another victory for Greenpeace, who recently released a report about the environmental effects of leather from cattle in the Amazon, titled “Slaughtering the Amazon”. In response to the report, Nike has established a new leather policy that explicitly states they won’t use leather sourced from the Amazon—although they already say that they don’t use such leather—and will start working with the other leaders in the industry to establish a leather tracing system.

Greenpeace estimates that Brazil’s cattle industry is responsible for 80% of the deforested areas in the Amazon and it can be hard for shoe companies to trace where exactly the cattle their leather came from were based because of the complicated chain that leads from cattle to store. Click here to read more

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If you’re a regular Greenzer visitor, you know by now that we made the list of Time magazine’s Green Design 100 (you can find us in the Websites category) and that we’re rather excited about it, but we thought we’d take a moment to give you a very brief overview of some of the other names on the list (you can check out the full list on the Time site or in the Time issue on newsstands now).

Under the Pioneers category we were happy to see David de Rothschild, who was recently featured on the Greenzer blog for his upcoming Plastiki Expedition from San Francisco to Sydney on a boat made of 100% recycled materials (mostly in the form of two-liter plastic bottles), and who’s been raising environmental awareness all around the world.

Nike securing a spot in the Companies category may have some surprised (few have forgotten the issues the company had with child labor), but they’ve been steadily greening for awhile now and made our blog repeatedly for their eco-friendly products like jackets made from recycled polyester, organic cotton tees, and athletic shoes made with recycled materials. Their Reuse-A-Shoe program has even helped create public basketball courts and athletic tracks worldwide. Click here to read more

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Now that below freezing temperatures seem to be behind us, it’s time to dust off those sneakers and hit the pavement. Running outside is one of the greenest ways to workout. Besides the fact that you’ll get to enjoy the great outdoors, think about all the energy wasted at the gym powering up treadmills and other cardio equipment. Why not make your run even more eco by dressing the part?

Nike gave one of their iconic spring staples a green makeover. Now the Windrunner Jacket is made with eco-friendly materials and available in both men’s and women’s styles. The jacket is made from 98% recycled polyester. While polyester isn’t a green fabric on its own—it’s made from oil—you’re doing good by choosing clothing that gives the material a second life. Recycled polyester means new fabric doesn’t have to be made from more oil, old clothing gets repurposed instead of being sent to the landfill and the manufacturing process creates less water, air and soil contamination. Click here to read more

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