Green Credit Cards: Get Your Money's Worth
by Erin Courtenay - Madison, WI on 05.20.06
Those of us who depend on e-commerce to shop for much of the eco-hip fashion, gizmos and accessories featured in TreeHugger also depend on credit cards to make the transactions. Unfortunately many credit institutions are known to finance some rather un-TreeHuggeresque activities (like illegal logging and dirty gold mining), so even though the end (product) is good, the means (credit) we use to get there isn't so great. There are options however, and taking a cue from Ideal Bite's informative financial tips featured during Money Week; we've gone looking for the perfect plastic…
Affinity Cards
Major credit card companies offer "affinity cards" like the RED Amex card Lenora told us about in March. These cards provide donations to nonprofit organizations whose logo or image is featured on the card. Donations usually run a half a percentage point from every purchase, balance transfer or cash advance made with the card. On the plus side, this is a dependable revenue stream for the nonprofit - on the minus side, purchases made with these cards still may support nefarious projects. Annual Percentage Rates (APR) for these cards can be 15-22 percent (though some are much less) and many have an annual fee. The credit card company MBNA offers the most affinity cards, they even have a PVC-free WWF card available in Europe.
Working Assets Visa Card
Considered the "greenest" affinity card by financial experts at Co-Op America, the Working Assets card donates ten cents with every purchase to your choice of one of 50 nonprofits. It also has a reasonable 9.9 APR and no annual fee. The card is issued by MBNA.
Salmon Nation Visa Card
Provided by eco-friendly lending institution Shorebank Pacific, the Salmon Nation Visa Card offers the biggest eco-bang for your buck. Half of the income generated for Shorebank from the card goes to "Salmon Nation" an economic, cultural and ecological community collective in the bioregion that contains Pacific salmon spawning grounds.
Check out Co-Op America's Real Money article, Responsible Credit Cards: Myth or Reality? To read up on the ethics (or lack thereof) of various mega-banks.
During the last election cycle I remember reading something about MBNA being one of the largest donators to the republican party and so I wonder what the net effect of a Working Assets card is. I've got one anyhow.
http://www.hugg.com/story/Corn-Credit-Cards/
From http://www.coopamerica.org/pubs/realmoney/articles/creditcards.cfm
Michael Kieschnick, Working Assets president, believes that the good his company does offsets any negatives from its association with MBNA: “Even though we did not select MBNA and have explicitly opposed their primary legislative agenda, we do believe that our program contributes significantly to progressive social change. Our credit card itself, since inception, has generated about $6 million in donations to progressive causes,” he says.
Not necessarily "green" but... I like my Juniper "Dem Card"
They've changed the offer a bit since I signed up two years ago; the APR was lower then. But it's still neat, Juniper's not a bad bank from what I can tell.
(Also, as a tip, if you want to support a Dem party in another state (say, one like Ohio that needs it more), you can do that, you don't have to select your own state.)
I had a Linux credit card through MBNA up until a few weeks ago when MBNA was purchased by Bank of America.
All the discussion of MBNA being less-than favorable may have just gotten more favorable. No megabanks for me.
http://www.mbna.com/customer_information.html
I'm getting an Albina Community Bank Visa.
Dear all,
I would like to congratulate Tridos Spain with their new credit card concept! We - at GreenCard Visa - launched our carbon neutral credit card in 2004 and are currently expanding internationally. The GreenCard Visa calculates the carbon emissions throughout the entire life cycle of all GreenCard purchases and 100% offsets these for the cardholder free of extra charge. The GreenCard business is profitable, proving that sustainable businesses really pay off! Tendris - the company that initiated the GreenCard Visa - has advised Rabobank and WWF in the development of the new credit card concept and hopes more will follow!
Kind regards, W
Working Assets (MBNA) has turned the management of its cards over to BANK OF AMERICA. They immediately raised my APR to 29.9%, even though I'd held a 4 digit balance over 2 years, with never a late payment. I cancelled my card and have written Working Assets; I suggest you all do the same.
I again looked at Working Assets credit card after reading about Bank of America's involvement (along with Citigroup) in supporting companies that are mining the hell out of central and south america plus ravaging the countryside so they can plant soybeans and corn (think goodbye carbon eating forests and empowered farmers). I think I'll switch to my credit union's Visa.
I am trying to switch credit cards to avoid Citibank. As I looked into Working Assets and the Nature Conservancy I was astonished to learn both are underwritten by BANK OF AMERICA! Yet, Working Assets still says MNBA on their website.
Does anybody know of a green credit card that will allow me to keep my mileage for air travel (not that I do a lot of air travel, but it is nice to have that to use once a year) and not support Citibank or Bank of America?
The enlightment card seems pretty good - but doesn't offer miles.
On the treehugger.com website, they list the Working Assets credit card as, "Considered the "greenest" affinity card by financial experts at Co-Op America, the Working Assets card donates ten cents with every purchase to your choice of one of 50 nonprofits. It also has a reasonable 9.9 APR and no annual fee. The card is issued by MBNA."
The reason I was looking for a new "green" credit card is because I have had this working assests card for 2 years now and want a more "green" card. When my husband and I got the card, it was through MBNA. However, now it has been sold to Bank of America. Today I found out that Bank of America is majorly funding coal companies that support mountain top removal.
So, is there a more true "green" credit card out there? I don't want to support Bank of America.
Thanks
Mary
The Working Assets Card, issued by MBNA, is my favorite one out of all the cards you have mentioned because its financial organization donates 10% of purchases.