Although England is not particularly sunny, eye doctors say that everyone should protect eyes from UV rays (caused by the sun’s radiation) to prevent cataracts and macular degeneration.
Eco-Friendly Materials
Materials are the backbone of eco credentials for sunglasses. Here are some you’ll often see:
- Bio-based acetate: Unlike regular plastic, this comes from renewable sources like cotton and wood pulp. It looks and feels like classic acetate but breaks down much faster.
- Bamboo and wood: These grow quickly and are biodegradable. They offer a natural look, and no two pairs are the same.
- Recycled plastics: Old water bottles and fishing nets get a new life. Brands clean and reshape them into frames, keeping rubbish out of landfills and oceans. However these don’t biodegrade, so don’t choose if at risk of losing them at the sea or off boats. They would still break down into microplastics, in the oceans.
Ethical and Responsible Manufacturing
It’s not just what sunglasses are made from, but also how they’re made:
- Brands that offer fair wages and safe work conditions look after the people making your glasses.
- Short, transparent supply chains limit pollution and human rights abuses.
- Factories using renewable energy further reduce their impact on the planet.
How to Identify Sustainable Sunglasses
Third-party certifications show a brand’s not just talking the talk:
- FSC (Forest Stewardship Council): Proves wood or bamboo comes from responsibly managed forests.
- Fair Trade: Ensures fair pay and good working conditions.
- B Corp: Assesses overall social and environmental performance, not just one product.
If a brand can’t point to any of these, be wary—they might be greenwashing.
Tips for Choosing Sustainable Sunglasses
- Look for 100% UV protection (to protect against UVA and UVB rays). This is the only label to look for (tinted and polarised lenses may offer some protection against glare, but it’s the 100% UV protection label that’s important).
- Sustainable sunglasses usually have frames made from wood, metal or bio-plastic (only industrially composted) and plastic lenses. So keep them in a case (or use a silicone strap to secure) when not in use. To avoid them breaking into microplastics, if they fell down drains, off a boat or got lost in a wave by the sea.
- Choose wraparound styles to protect your skin at the sides of the eyes. This can help to prevent skin cancer, and crow’s feet.
- Never use tanning beds, as UV levels are up to 100 times more than the sun. They can damage the eyes and eyelids.
- Avoid wearing sunglasses on your head, as this stretches the frames (your head is wider than your temples).
- Most sunglasses include a cleaning cloth made from recycled plastic bottles. So if laundered, use a microfiber filter.
Where to Buy Sustainable Sunglasses
Buy Me Once offers a carefully curated collection of the two major eco-friendly sunglasses brands.
BIRD Eyewear makes sunglasses mostly from bio-plastic (plus a few versions with wood or aerospace alloy frames). In a wide range of styles and colours for men and women. If the hinges are loose, give a turn with a 1.5mm screwdriver.
All these sunglasses are comfortable to wear, sold in beautiful cork carry cases (no trees are chopped down to make cork – the bark is simply stripped from the tree every 9 years or so, to give a durable ‘vegan leather’ effect).
Some frames are made from recycled aerospace alloy, with in-built micro hinges that flex with your head. They are also faux tortoiseshell sunglasses (real tortoiseshell is now banned for sale in England, to help prevent wildlife crime of an endangered species).
The company is involved in a program to plant 10,000 trees in the next 2 years. And donates a portion of sales from each purchase to SolarAid (which provides alternatives to dangerous expensive kerosene in Africa – often used for light or cooking).
Waterhaul is a Cornish company, best known for its ‘2-minute beach clean stations’ (with picking tools and bags, to pick up and deposit litter you find on seaside walks).
This company turns recycled fishing waste into beautiful sunglasses for men and women in a wide range of styles, again you can send them back for recycling (though they carry a lifetime guarantee, so you shouldn’t need to).
These sunglasses often contain flecks to reflect the recycled material, and are naturally coloured (depending on the colour of fishing waste collected – usually grey, navy or aqua).
Should Children Wear Sunglasses?
Eye doctors say yes, as their growing pupils are larger, so need extra protection. BIRDIES is the children’s range of eco-sunglasses from BIRD eyewear, made from strong but lightweight castor bean oil (which grows organically).
Sold for various age ranges, choose from several colours. These frames are almost indestructible. Sold with comfortable small or large silicone straps, to stop them falling off.
How to Recycle Sunglasses
You can send any brand of unwanted sunglasses to BIRD Eyewear, and this company will take care of recycling for you. And you’ll also receive a discount voucher, if you buy a new pair.
Terracycle Eyewear Zero Waste Box is for communities or offices. Available in small or large sizes, this like an ‘amnesty box’ to get all eyewear waste out of your area for good.
It’s then made into items like outdoor furniture/decking, shipping pallets, watering cans, storage containers, flooring tiles and playground surfaces.
A one-off purchase (just pool a few pounds each, if not sponsored), the box is placed in a local shop or community centre, then when full it’s sent off using the prepaid label. This box accepts:
- Sunglasses
- Spectacles
- Safety glasses
- Swim googles
- Ski goggles
Why Don’t Other Cultures Wear Sunglasses?
They used to. Sunglasses have been around for over 2000 years (they were originally made from wood, to protect against snow blindness in Arctic countries).
People who live in simpler cultures also tend not to bake on a towel, staring up at the sun (like many western tourists). But World Health Organisation says that around 20% of people in Africa with cataracts, is due to UV rays from the sun.
Some native tribes have eyes, that have adapted to the sun. And in some areas of Scandinavia, people have developed ‘reindeer’ vision where they can see in the dark (but often babble nonsense, due to vitamin D deficiency!)
