Ethical investing

[tinyjo]

Now that I don't get any free overdraft and have hence moved all my overdraft onto 0% cards I can finally actually move my current account to an ethical bank (rather than Lloyds, my current lot). I'm thinking of the Co-op - their ethical policy looks good and they have a high street branch in Oxford as well as internet banking and so on. Any other suggestions? Although I do my banking primarily on the internet, I do want my current account to have a high-street presence as well - it's mostly a just in case thing I think.

The thing is, the sense of inertia is huge. I find myself putting it off, thinking of silly things like the fact that I'll have to re-learn my account number and internet banking codes. Surely this is (a) not a big deal and (b) not difficult. I know that I have a huge capacity for remembering things like that if I use them regularly. I think I'm going to take the plunge this time round though - I just have to decide whether/how much any just in case cashflow overdraft needs to be.

Does anyone know any good websites which recommend stuff like this? I'm also planning to move my utilities over to greener suppliers and things like that. I guess Oxfam or Greenpeace maybe? Any ideas?

Comments

[vinaigrettegirl.livejournal.com]

We use the RSPB scheme for our electricity. Personally, I would not support Oxfam or Greenpeace via utility suppliers; their costs of administration are too high, and in the case of Greenpeace I have been really dismayed over time by the amount of sheer disinformation and material errors of fact I have had from them over the years. I support individual campaigns of theirs instead. That way I know where my money is actually going.

If you could get your office to do the office water supply from WaterAid instead of, say, Pow-wow, you would be getting genuine spring water rather than reverse-osmosed tap water, and you would be supporting an efficient system of assisting Third World community groups to acquire clean water supplies. It's cheap, too.

You can get your connectivity services from fish.co.uk, another ethical supplier.