Although the Garden City has a liberal reputation, Missoula didn't have an organic, green-friendly department store.
Finding things such as hemp shower curtains and compostable dinnerware in Missoula was nearly impossible until Sabrina Smith and Steve Luedecke opened The Green Light at 128 W. Alder St.
“We like to think of it as Missoula's only healthy living eco-department store,” Smith said.
At Green Light, you'll find skin products that don't poison, cookware that won't emit harmful gases, natural fiber clothing that wasn't coated in toxins before production.
The majority of the products are made from organic, sustainable or recycled ingredients and textiles, Smith said.
“We see these things as a lifestyle change,” she said. “Companies are going this way because that's the way we have to go.”
“There is a responsibility people are taking on to make better and healthier choices about how they live,” Luedecke said. “We see that with their food choices and the popularity of places like the Good Food Store. Now we see people wanting take the next step, and make those same decisions with the products they live around every day.”
As individuals and communities continue to become more aware about how everything is connected, there comes an awakening, Smith said. How people spend their money has a direct effect on how other people live and how the environment is treated.
“Families are becoming more conscious about how to live a healthier life,” Luedecke said. “And I think people are becoming more mindful about where the products they buy come from and how employees at those places, and the employees who made those products, are treated.”
It's a journey and it's a choice, one step at a time, learning more about these things and how everyone has a role.
“It's definitely something to work into and toward,” Smith said. “And this store is here to educate ourselves and others as we move forward.”
So what about that compostable dinnerware?
It's made from rice hulls, formed and shaped in simple yet modern lines, and comes in a variety of earth tones. When the attractive bowls and plates get chipped or cracked from the wear and tear of use, you put them in the compost pile, not the garbage can.
They'll help your garden grow, Smith said. Really.
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Ann Root wrote on Nov 25, 2008 9:08 AM: