Do you call yourself a passionate conscious consumer, but feel guilty about how you eat and what you buy? Do you ever find yourself checking to make sure no one is witness to your daily hypocrisy against the earth? In this panel, moderated by Alden Wicker of EcoCult, we’ll discuss the perfectionism running rampant in the environmental community, break down what’s really going to help the planet versus what feels righteous, and lay out some pragmatic tips for advocating for Mother Earth without burning out.

Panelists:

Alden Wicker – journalist and blogger, EcoCult

Founder and Editor-in-Chief of EcoCult, the leading sustainable lifestyle blog that covers fashion, beauty, and travel. A freelance journalist as well, she has written for Fast Company, Quartz, Newsweek, Refinery29, Racked, Rodale’s Organic Life, and Narratively. She is a co-founder and president of Ethical Writers & Creatives, a group of 90+ creatives focused on improving the world through their work, and member of Travel+SocialGood.

Summer Rayne Oakes – author, model, and sustainability advocate

With over a decade of experience infusing sustainable-thinking and practices into the heart of the fashion, beauty and food industries, Summer most recently has been focused on sustainable food systems. She has worked closely on the launch of numerous companies including Good Eggs, a farmers market meets online grocer and Foodstand, a food-savvy community app that helps people eat better. In 2014, she founded SUGARDETOX.ME to help people come to terms with their sugar tooth. She has released her first cookbook and guide based on the website in March 2017 and launched the blog and YouTube Channel, Homestead Brooklyn, to help people become more attuned to nature in the city.

Nicole Rycroft – environmental activist and founder of Canopy

As founder and executive director of the nonprofit Canopy, Nicole is safeguarding the biodiversity and the long-term survival of ancient forests by shifting businesses away from products that originate in the ancient rainforests of British Columbia and endangered forests globally, while simultaneously creating the market demand for ecologically viable alternatives. She is the woman responsible for the commitment by large fashion corporations such as Gap, H&M, and Zara to go rainforest-free with their textiles. Not sure what rainforest-free textiles means? Come to the panel and find out!