CoolBoard and the Environment

An honest look at CoolBoard, all products, and trying to save our home & playground – planet Earth.

Firstly – what we get right

Your CoolBoard was designed to work, to solve a problem, to benefit people, as wide a range of people as possible, to spread joy, fitness and fun, and to last as long as possible.

We make the Boards ourselves, by our hands, from FSC wood, finished in water based varnish, in our workshop, and everything else is made as locally as possible.  We use as little packaging as possible, with zero package printing.

As a product person, and someone that cares for our planet, I believe every product should have to abide by these ideals.  By doing so we help to save the planet.

Too much oil, trees and mined materials are turned into too many poorly designed quickly broken, fairly useless pieces of rubbish that end up in landfill far too quickly – what a waste of material, energy and transport.

But…

Let’s be brutally honest, as I believe our planet deserves, and right now needs, honesty if it is to survive as our wonderful home and playground.

It is impossible to make and sell any product without negatively affecting the planet.  All products require raw materials, and then energy is used and waste is created to change those raw materials into what you want, and then that product must be transported and packaged.

If anyone tells you different, they are lying, and the idea of carbon off-sets etc, is an utter con that will probably get us into more trouble.  You cannot even do a google search, or read this webpage without using energy, increasing carbon emissions, and harming our planet.  Even windfarms have a big negative impact due to materials used and lifespan.

So what to do?  Globally it is a very difficult and alarming problem.  Humans do need things, and want more things, whether shelter, ability to cook, clothes, sunglasses, balance boards.  One thing we can do it to be conscious of the negatives, and keep them as small as possible. How?

Design and materials – If we make things to work very well, for as many people as possible, and to last for a long time, we instantly reduce planet abuse.

So many cheap products are there to make a quick buck, and then once the owner gets bored of a poor product, realises it doesn’t do the job, or it breaks due to poor design and material, well, that product goes in the bin, and all the energy and materials have been wasted.  I hate waste.

So here at CoolBoard I make sure design, durability and function come top.  I regularly have customers from 15 years ago asking if a modern CoolBoard Ball will work with their old board.  Yes it will.  And your new Ball will last a lifetime, never need replacing.

One purchase, one product, one shipping, one, for life.

I could go on about how our wood only comes from FSC managed forests and our varnish is water based, but then it would only be fair to say that our Balls are made from a not so environmentally friendly material, just like the tyres of every road vehicle!  I do my best to source as eco-friendly materials as possible, but no material is truly eco-friendly, it is not black and white, it is all greys.

If you have any ideas on how I can reduce CoolBoard’s impact on the planet – I am all ears!