Oct 17, 2007
ImagiPLAY makes Green Pages list

Boulder, CO – Just as children are the offspring of human beings, human beings are the offspring of the earth. And it’s her passionate belief in that philosophy that drives Barbera Aimes, founder and President of Boulder-based toy company ImagiPLAY. Her desire to make toys that will enrich the lives and imaginations of children is inextricably tied to her need to make those products in a manner that shows respect to the larger toy box into which children are born.

ImagiPLAY’s extraordinary efforts to make sustainable and environmentally friendly children’s products were recently recognized and rewarded by their approval to appear in and carry the Seal of Approval of the National Green Pages. In order to qualify for a listing, ImagiPLAY went through 9 months of lengthy interviews and detailed questions in which it successfully demonstrated that the company:

  • Actively uses its business as a tool for positive social change;
  • Runs a “values-driven” enterprise that operates according to principles of social justice and environmental sustainability;
  • Is socially and environmentally responsible in the way it sources, manufactures, and markets its products and runs its offices and factories; and
  • Is committed to developing and employing extraordinary practices that benefit workers, customers, communities, and the environment.

About the Green Pages

The National Green Pages is a directory listing nearly 3,000 businesses that have made firm commitments to sustainable, socially just principles, including the support of sweatshop-free labor, organic farms, fair trade, and cruelty-free products.

For every category of conventional consumer goods and services, there are green businesses that can meet your needs. The National Green Pages lists baby care products, organic, fair trade, flavored teas, and fuel-efficient cars for rent among the thousands of products. With each purchase made through the National Green Pages, people know they’re supporting truly green businesses.

About Co-Op America

Co-op America is a not-for-profit membership organization founded in 1982. Its mission is to harness economic power—the strength of consumers, investors, businesses, and the marketplace—to create a socially just and environmentally sustainable society. Its vision is to work for a world where all people have enough, where all communities are healthy and safe, and where the bounty of the Earth is preserved for all the generations to come.

Although she’s won plenty of them, lists and awards are not Aimes’ goal, she is extremely proud to be included in the National Green Pages. “We are making toys that are safe for children, for their planet, and for all of the people and animals who live on it, including safety for the people working on our toys,” Aimes said. “We were one of the first environmentally-friendly toy companies, and we want to be the foremost leader in this area. It is the most important thing to us.”

ImagiPLAY’s process of producing toys is unique in the toy industry because it considers much more than profit, marketability and price. All of the company’s wooden toys are natural, made of rubberwood, bamboo or managed forest basswood preservative free and lead free. They are triple tested for safety by the paint company who makes non-toxic paint for toys, by the Chinese government when it leaves the country and by ImagiPLAY when it arrives in the U.S. Additionally, they are produced and packaged in family-run, small factories personally inspected by Aimes (she actually interviews the workers to make sure they are happy, well-paid and adults).

Aimes was taking steps to create her toys in a sustainable and eco-friendly manner long before it was deemed “hot” to be green. In the wake of a recall-battered toy industry, her responsible way of doing business is a model for anyone who cares about our planet. And if you care about children, then you must care about the world in which they will grow and play.

About ImagiPLAY

ImagiPLAY products have been recognized for their outstanding quality, design and ability to inspire imagination by the media, children’s advocacy groups and parents’ organizations. It has received awards from Parenting Magazine, Creative Child Magazine, Dr. Toy, Parents’ Choice Foundation and many other well-respected groups. But most importantly, ImagiPLAY’s products have helped thousands of children to discover themselves and their world as they navigate the waters of the human Age of Exploration.

To get more information about ImagiPLAY or its award-winning toys, call 800.822.0217 or visit their website at ImagiPLAY.com.




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