Words by Smiley Team
Since living on a rubbish tip for a TV show, Jarvis Smith has dedicated his life to promoting sustainable living. He and his wife, Katie Hill, founded a pioneering ethical, eco-friendly online marketplace to offer people an alternative to mainstream, more profit-focused outlets.
It was 2006 when Jarvis appeared on the Channel 4 series, Dumped. For the series, he had to live and work in a rubbish dump. Seeing the end-point of all our household waste had a significant impact on him, leading him to create My Green Pod with Katie.
“Our agenda has always been to tap into the way masses live and shop,” Jarvis tells Smiley News.
He elaborates: “So what My Green Pod is and has always been, is an influencing educational resource. If you’re buying something that’s bad for the planet’s health we show that you can switch to something that’s better for you and the planet’s health.”
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Their approach is to prioritise people and the planet in every aspect of their business. So for every product sold, they plant a tree to absorb carbon emissions and help nature to flourish.
Katie explains: “We consider ourselves to be the ‘eco alternative to Amazon’. Not only do we plant trees for every purchase made via our site via TreeSisters, but we also ensure the 400 plus vendors in our carefully-curated product list are fully vetted to reflect their sustainability credentials and ethical values.”
On the My Green Pod website, customers can browse eco-friendly products ranging from organic clothing to household products, food and drink.
While Jarvis runs the business side of things, Katie edits My Green Pod magazine and online articles, which spotlight climate solutions and spread environmental awareness. They also offer sustainably, slow videos of nature and a podcast for environmental discussions.
SUBSCRIBE: To get a free newsletter containing top environmental news stories, products and entry details for competitions, subscribe to My Green Pod.
