The word 'freegan' is an amalgamation of the words 'free' and 'vegan'. Vegans avoid products from animal sources or which have caused harm to animals. Freegans go one step further by trying to avoid abuse to humans, animals and the planet.

Sweatshop labour, rainforest destruction, global warming, displacement of indigenous communities, air and water pollution, eradication of wildlife on farmland as 'pests', corrupt dictatorships, open pit strip mining, oil drilling in environmentally sensitive areas, and child slavery are just some of the many impacts of the seemingly innocuous consumer products we buy every day.

Freeganism involves a total boycott of an economic system which is creating these detrimental impacts. 'After years of trying to boycott products from egregious corporations, many of us came to realize that the problem isn't just a few bad corporations but the entire system itself. thus, instead of avoiding purchase of products from one bad company only to support another, we seek to avoid purchasing altogether to the greatest degree we are able.'

Freegans employ alternative strategies for living, based on non-participation in the conventional economy, minimal consumption of resources, and embracing community, generosity, social concern, cooperation, and sharing in a society based on materialism, moral apathy, competition, and greed.

Find out about freeganism: www.freegan.info a site dedicated to revealing human over-consumption and waste

An excerpt from: 365 ways to change the world, by Michael Norton, available at your nearest book store.