We believe that it is our responsibility to care for the earth so that it can meet the needs of today’s generation and those to come. To do this, we are measuring, managing, and reducing our environmental impacts throughout our entire company. Like parenting, we are constantly learning and doing our best to put these lessons into practice.
Here’s what we’re doing:
1) Designing For Comfort, Durability, And The Environment
For decades we’ve been designing products that are loved by parents and babies for their ergonomic comfort and durability. Today, we are taking steps to include environmentally preferable materials and production processes in our designs. Our Aerloom™ carrier utilizes the production technique of 3D knitting with the use of 87% post-consumer recycled polyester yarn that is certified by the Global Recycled Standard. Each Aerloom carrier is made up of up to 26 plastic water bottles and each panel is knit-to-shape to help reduce material waste.
The Aerloom carrier is made in small batches to reduce waste so every color story is limited and not restocked.
Aerloom is made with FormaKnit fabric – engineered to have the right amount of stretch, support, and breathability in the right areas. Aerloom is the first baby carrier to apply seamless knitting technology in a meaningful way for real families like you.
2) Ensuring Healthy And Safe Working Conditions For Producing Goods
We are proud to have long standing relationships with suppliers that put environmental responsibility at the top of their priority list. We work collaboratively to ensure that the people producing our products are treated fairly and work in safe and healthy conditions. This includes forbidding the use of forced labor, child labor and discrimination. To provide accountability, Ergobaby’s factories hold social compliance certifications.
3) Measuring And Reducing Our Carbon Footprint
With the help of a third-party agency, we are currently measuring our company’s entire carbon footprint — including emissions generated under Scope 1, 2 and 3 of the GHG Protocol to establish a baseline for our CO2 emissions.
4) Taking Responsibility For Keeping Our Products In Use
In 2020, we launched Everlove™ through which we buy back Ergobaby carriers, clean them, safety test them and resell them on our website at a significantly lower price.
Sustainable Baby Brands to Support
If you’re interested in learning more about other brands that have a commitment to sustainability, we’ve got you covered! Here is a list of a few brands that have either sustainably made products or practices.
Pretty Please Teethers – As an online shop, Pretty Please Teethers uses environmentally friendly and recycled materials to ship your orders to minimize waste of plastic. Their products use durable, non-toxic, and recyclable materials like silicone and beechwood.
Pact – Pact’s roots run deep in organic farming. They use sustainable crops, organic farms, and chemical-free dyes to ensure their fibers are supporting Mother Earth from seed to tee.
Green Toys – All of Green Toys are creating using 100% recycled milk jugs! Made safely and made for play.
Swoondle Society – Swoondle teaches the importance of sustainability by choosing trading over fast fashion. For just $3 you can trade out something as valuable as what you traded in. “Swoondling” instead of buying new reduces manufacturing pollution and textile waste. They do all the work, you just send your items in a pre-paid bag and trade out what you want!
Other companies that have resale programs:
- REI
- Patagonia
- Worn Wear
- REI Good & Used
- Levi’s Secondhand
- Allbirds ReRun
More We Can Do Together
If you’re interested in creating a more circular and sustainable approach to outfitting your family, here are some ways to adjust how you shop and consume:
- Start with asking if you really need it. It’s easy to see a seemingly great product on social media and want one of your own. Or maybe you’re desperate for sleep/a break/an uninterrupted meal and MAYBE, JUST MAYBE this THING will deliver that! Before you buy it, text some friends to see if they’ve tried it with success — maybe someone already has one and can lend it to you to try for free. Bottom line, ask yourself if you really need this thing or if it’s going to end up in the back of the closet/garage/toy bin before long.
- Can you buy it used? The most sustainable purchasing option is used because the impact of making that item has already happened to the planet so now it’s best to wrangle as much use out of it as possible. A great option for kids clothing is Swoondle Society (which we mentioned above).
- Invest in quality, durability and repairability – it can be challenging to read labels and learn about different materials as an effort to pick the most sustainable product. Even sustainability professionals will tell you that it can be confusing to compare materials, it’s like apples to oranges — some use less water but generate more GHG emissions and the other is vice versa. Here’s a less complicated approach: once you’ve decided that you truly need something, do a little research to find a high quality version of that item. You’ll know you’ve found it when the brand stands behind a generous warranty and/or offers repair services. These companies also often have resale programs as well so you can trade-in it when you’re done so someone else can use it. If you’re interested in practicing informed consumption, check out this neat guide from Patagonia.
- Share and pass it along– When you’re done with a purchase, be sure to keep it out of the trash by giving it away, lending it out and sharing with another family, reselling it or donating it.
