Why
What we buy and how much we buy have a huge impact on the environment. Although we don’t always see the direct effects, we know that every product comes from the Earth and must return to it in one form or another. Your buying choices make a difference and can send a message to companies. By buying differently, you can tell corporations that there’s a better way—one that uses less water, trees, and fossil fuels; decreases air and water pollution; and protects wildlife habitat.

The Campaign
What do teens, shopping, and protecting the environment have in common? Lots. You wouldn’t think so at first. After all, we hear about global warming…endangered species… pollution—in fact, there’s so much depressing news about the environment, it’s easy to get discouraged and think you can’t make things better. So can one kid really make a difference just by buying differently? Absolutely. And we can prove it.

ibuydifferent.org is part of Be, Live, Buy Different—Make a Difference, a national campaign from World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the Center for a New American Dream (New Dream). The goal is to help young people learn how they can make a difference by buying differently. For example, did you know that if just one out of every ten middle and high school students each bought just one recycled notebook this year, they would save over 60,000 trees, conserve 25.5 million gallons of water, and stop 5,250,000 pounds of global warming gases from being released?

Tools for You
Exploring how your purchases affect the environment may seem hard, but it’s not. We’ve made it easier by developing a variety of tools and materials to help you learn about the connections and take actions that make a difference. Along with all the other information on the Web site, you’ll find a Community Action Guide with 30 activity ideas and some step-by-step advice on organizing projects to make a difference in your community. The Buy Different Action Center provides you with an opportunity to register and find out exactly how many resources you save when you take four simple actions. You can also create a team to see your total impact, or find out the global impact for everyone registering their actions. The Action Center also offers a message center and an icard you can pass along to friends.

In a few cities (Seattle, Baltimore, and Pittsburgh) you may find some Be, Live, Buy Different—Make a Difference special events, such as contests and info on your favorite local radio station. We hope to have events in more communities in the future. And we’re also creating a toolkit with activities and information for schools and youth groups.

Who We Are
Be, Live, Buy Different—Make a Difference is a joint initiative of World Wildlife Fund and the Center for a New American Dream made possible by the generous support of the David and Lucile Packard Foundation.

Center for a New American Dream
The Center for a New American Dream helps Americans consume responsibly to protect the environment, enhance quality of life, and promote social justice. New Dream works with individuals, institutions, communities and businesses to conserve natural resources, counter the commercialism of our culture, and promote positive changes in the way goods are produced and consumed.

World Wildlife Fund
Known worldwide by its panda logo, World Wildlife Fund (WWF) is dedicated to protecting the world's wildlife and the rich biological diversity that we all need to survive. The largest privately supported international conservation organization in the world, WWF has sponsored more than 2,000 projects in 116 countries and has more than one million members in the United States alone.