Shop Locally

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How to take action

• Check out local craft fairs and art openings to find unique gifts, jewelry, pottery, and home décor items, while supporting local artists. They also tend to be great venues for meeting new people and encountering innovative ideas.
• Frequent farmers' markets for fresh food. This is one of the best ways to find delicious, local produce and other locally crafted products; and it's a way to get more connected to your food. If your community doesn't have a market, why not get one started?
• Talk to retailers about selling local products. Most retailers want to know what you'd like to see in their stores, and are happy to sell specific items when they know there's a market for them. Asking for products made locally lets retailers know that's something their customers value.
• Read labels. Some local products do make it into larger stores. Read the labels to see where things are made and grown. It's also an important lesson in just where your food and other items come from.
• Walk to where you shop. Shop where you can walk. Another important aspect of shopping locally is minimizing fossil fuel based transportation. Try to find the things you need in the neighbourhood. In addition to reducing fossil fuel use, this will help decrease road congestion and commuter stress. Shopping locally will also support businesses in your local area, making your community a more diverse and lively place to live.

Why it makes a difference

• The working conditions and environmental standards in many regions are not equal to those in Canada or B.C. By buying locally made products, especially from the creators and producers themselves, you can get more information about these and other business practices.
• Most items that are sold locally don't need to be packaged for transport, thus reducing energy for creating the packing material, and the waste it ultimately produces.
• Local products didn't travel great distances to reach you, thus reducing their carbon footprint.
• Typically shopping locally will support local job creation, increase local services, and help your community thrive.
• Supporting local producers and frequenting local stores will help you get to know the people in your community better.
• Local products and producers contribute to diversity in your community, giving you more and better choices, and making your community a more interesting, and often desirable, place to live.

For more information

• Many cities in B.C. have a local shopping page. See if your community is listed.
• Do an internet search for your local community and see what you find.
• Research the old-fashioned way: the telephone book yellow pages are still a valuable aid for finding local goods and services; read the notice boards and posters in your area, they are a key resource for information about events and services; and ask. People tend to be the richest source of information.