Save the Orangutans and the Environment!
Care2 Petitions is a great website if you're looking for causes to support on the regular. Recently, They have put out a petition that urges President Obama to "prohibit the import of any palm oil and palm oil products that cannot be verifiably sourced to operations that do not contribute to deforestation." Check out their petition here and contribute to saving these amazing beings and their habitat!
Not sure why it's so bad? Palm oil production, once thought to be an economic breakthrough, is now known to be destroying rainforests, endangering species and even negatively impacting our health. With the volume of social and environmental issues it causes, we have lots of incentives to phase out palm oil from our economy.
Want to make a more immediate impact? Boycott groceries and household products (cereal, bars, shampoo, ice cream, cleaning products, etc.) containing palm oil or palm oil derivatives. It's in a surprising number of products that you probably use every day. The following is a list of sneaky ingredient names to watch out for, compiled by the Philadelphia Zoo:
Cetyl Palmitate Elaeis Guineensis Epoxidized Palm Oil (UV cured coatings) Ethylhexyl Palmitate Hydrated Palm Glycerides Octyl Palmitate Palm Oil Palm Fruit Oil Palm Kernel Palm Kernel Oil Palm Stearine Palmate Palmitate Palmitic Acid Palmityl Alcohol Palmitoyl Oxostearamide Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-3 Palmolein Saponified Elaeis Guineensis Sodium Kernelate Sodium Palm Kernelate Sodium Palmate
