A new magazine emerged this month into the increasingly crowded field of "alternative lifestyle" publications. And, based on its inaugural issue, it’s not half bad.
If that sounds like damning with faint praise, it’s not. Most of the other magazines in this space -- a deafening drumbeat of titles like Alternative Medicine, Body and Soul, Healing Lifestyles and Spas, Natural Beauty, Organic Living, Organic Style, and (my all-around favorite) Vegetarian Baby -- are as humdrum as their names. They’re graphically slick, to be sure, and filled with generous helpings of good-living advice. But they somehow ignore the fact that underlying all these helpful tips, vivacious-looking fashion models, and conscientious consumerism are some pretty serious global issues.
The newest entry, called Plenty, is just as slick as the rest. And like the others, it, too, offers copious counsel on fashion, nutrition, travel, design, and other “lifestyle” topics.
But Plenty begins its life with an intriguing proposition: “If we make the right choices, we can have a world of Plenty.”
That is, it unabashedly tries to celebrate both sustainability and abundance.
Read my recent essay on Plenty in the November issue of The Green Business Letter.
Also in the November issue: The Kyoto Protocol has been ratified by Russia, meaning it will take effect next February. What does that mean? Everything, and nothing. This month, we look into some of the key concepts companies should become familiar with over the coming months.
And more: A new study looks at how corporate boards are failing to disclose to financial investors how environmental and social issues pose strategic risks and opportunities for their businesses. Starbucks' new cups. And a study on what U.S. companies are doing about climate, even without Kyoto’s requirements.
Dear Joel: One magazine you didn't mention in your litany of alternative lifestyle publications is Natural Home magazine, now becoming Natural Home & Garden. Read the news about the name change, just announced today, at www.naturalhomeandgarden.com.
I think you'll appreciate our editorial--and we're decidely different from the rest. Could I add you to our comp list for an advance copy of the re-launched March/April issue (available in early Feb)? Just let me know your preferred mailing address. Cheers, Jaime Guthals, Natural Home & Garden.
Posted by: Jaime Guthals | December 06, 2004 at 10:58 AM
I'm working with Gaudet Log Homes, a green builder in California (www.gaudetloghomes.com), and we were just looking at Plenty the other day. We agree that the alt.mag category is going upscale and not always for the better.
It's as if the editors are saying, "You're green if you eat Kashi." A little too slanted toward lifestyle aspects IMHO.
We'll be watching to see how this market shakes out and hope you keep covering this topic.
~Claudia Logan
Editor, The Gaudet Green Report
Posted by: Claudia Logan | April 25, 2006 at 11:38 AM