We at the Sustainable Furnishings Council (SFC), proud to be recognized as the leading home furnishings industry voice for sustaining a healthy future, inside and outside and very proud to have an ecolabel recognized by the EPA as preferable, are appalled at the prospect of deep cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) budget.
SFC consumer research, conducted regularly since 2009, indicates that 86% of furniture buying consumers are worried about global warming and 88% are worried that our indoor environments are making us sick. Clearly the way to grow a furnishings business is to respond to this consumer concern and offer more and more products that are less polluting in production, distribution, and use. It is clear to SFC, in fact, that there is a huge opportunity in this realm to build the entire industry. But transforming the furnishings industry will not do it all. Government's role is key.
We need a strong EPA to maintain a position of global leadership. The US will not maintain our standing as the largest economy in the world unless we take responsibility for protecting and maintaining the ecosystems we depend upon for natural resources, and that includes the air and water we depend upon as communities as well.
The SFC Exemplary label is recognized by the EPA because it represents a triple bottom line standard. This is significant because it is well known that stewardship of ecosystems depends on communities of people who are economically empowered, whose livelihoods as well as environments are protected. We at SFC believe it is not possible to build an economy without protecting ecosystems and communities as a part of the strategy. Here in the US, a strong EPA protects home furnishings as an industry as well as all of us as consumers.
Further, as SFC Founder Jeronimo Cooklin points out, the EPA has a strong track record in supporting the development of important new technologies. "Green technologies exist,” he points out. “Our job at SFC is to make our industry aware and educate people on these technologies. We are happy to be a bridge and to help provide assistance and guidance as companies walk their individual paths toward sustainability, so that one by one we shift the collective.”
We encourage all citizens to contact their representatives today and express their resistance to any proposed cuts to the EPA. The future we hope to share depends upon our working together in environmental protection today.
Sincerely,
Susan Inglis, SFC Executive Director, for SFC Staff, Board, and Members
About the Sustainable Furnishings Council
Sustainable Furnishings Council is dedicated to promoting healthy environments inside and outside, providing the most comprehensive information on environmental, safety and health issues in the home furnishings industry and championing initiatives that improve products and processes. The SFC and its qualifying members respond to environmental and social issues and offer specific information to consumers, the media and other partners. SustainableFurnishings.org | @SFCouncil | Facebook | Instagram
