Sustainable shopping route through Amsterdam

Green Light District focuses on making postcode area 1012, better known as the Red Light District, more sustainable. They do this by setting up projects and working together with all kinds of small-scale entrepreneurs, positive doers and important connectors. In this way, they are greening this part of the city of Amsterdam bottom-up and setting an example for the rest of the Netherlands.

The entrepreneurs in the postcode area play a key role in all projects set up by Green Light District. They know the neighbourhood and its residents like no other and can therefore make a big difference. Besides the special entrepreneurs, postcode area 1012 also has a number of other locations where sustainability plays a major role. Think, for instance, of several city gardens and an 18th century canal house that has been made completely sustainable.

The Green Light Walk leads you along these unique places, interspersed with small-scale entrepreneurs and their special stories. The walking route was launched on Green Friday and can now be walked using Green Light District's web app. We already experienced a foretaste and will inspire you with a few of these places. Walk along for a bit?

All products in this versatile shop have one thing in common: they are fairly produced and there is no animal suffering involved.

What can you find here? Think shoes and bags made of alternative materials, cosmetics without animal ingredients and local products from local entrepreneurs. At VEGA-LIFE, you will only find organic and fair trade products on the shelves where people have worked in healthy working conditions.

This shop is truly a feast for the eyes. The most fairytale-like, hand-woven fabrics, interior pieces and fashion accessories flaunt themselves when you enter. This is the place to be for handmade fabrics made exclusively from natural materials, adorned with quirky prints. Capsicum regularly collaborates with local designers from Amsterdam, but most products come from India. Wherever the products come from, attention to craftsmanship and improving working conditions are paramount.

If you bought something at Capsicum, it will not be wrapped in a plastic bag. No, you will be given a unique bag made of newspaper. These bags are made by street children from India who, thanks to this project, have shelter and day care.

In the narrow Sint Jansstraat, you will find the surprising hat shop Mirjam Nuver Hats. In her studio behind the shop, Mirjam makes a good 90% of all the hats she sells in her shop. The most playful designs pass by, this place breathes creativity.

And sustainability is everywhere. Indeed, Mirjam produces as little waste as possible during the hat creation process. For instance, she recycles packaging material when she sends hats to customers. She uses a lot of leftover materials and works with sustainable fabrics such as recycled yarn, or PET bottles when making new hats. In the future, she would like to try out more alternative materials, such as fabric made from orange peels. Interesting!

On an idyllic corner of the Warmoesstraat you will find this cute little flower shop. With all the plants and art pieces you see through the window, it's impossible not to take a peek inside. And I would say: don't hold back, it's worth it.

Family business Jemi holds the Barometer Sustainable Florist certificate and sells sustainably grown bouquets, flowers and plants wherever possible. In addition, the shop uses green electricity and deliveries are made by bicycle. Most items in the shop are locally produced and here and there you can spot a work of art by the owner. How about a chandelier made of mussel shells, for example? Or a wreath made of dried leaves from the street?

Housed in a small building on Sint Annendwarsstraat, you will find this special soap workshop. As soon as you step inside, the most delicious scents fill your nose.

Nature Bar has a mission: to inspire people to take better care of themselves and of nature. To achieve this goal, they produce natural and circular soap, handmade in traditional and artisanal ways. Each bar of soap is unique and is made with residues from local entrepreneurs. For example, coffee from the local roastery for the coffee scrub bar and orange peels from the café on the corner for a deliciously fresh shampoo bar.

“Waste is food for creativity” – that is THE UPCYCLE’s all-encompassing motto. Here, the most playful products are designed and sold, all based on discarded materials.

For a unique gift with a great story, this is the place to be. How about a belt made from Swapfiets bicycle tyres, jewellery from the old graffiti wall of the Prinses Irene tunnel in Delft or a pencil case made from old LP records? You can also hand in leftover candles here; THE UPCYCLE simply turns them into new candles. This shop is living proof that leftover materials are never useless.

A tasty surprise during the walking route is the chocolate shop Cacao & Spice. Here you will find all kinds and brands of chocolate, all made with a heart for people and planet.

For instance, all chocolate sold here comes from a biodiverse environment. This is special because with most chocolate brands, the cocoa comes from a monoculture, which is anything but natural. The producers are paid well: often double or even triple the fair trade price. For much of the chocolate, profits are used for reforestation projects and improving the position of women in the cocoa industry. Finally, for every 200 grams of homemade chocolate sold, a tree is planted in Congo. With all this, Cocoa & Spice goes one step further than fair trade.

Finally, the chocolate is packed with biodegradable packaging materials and delivered by bicycle. Do you have dietary requirements? Then you can indulge in the vegan, sugar-free, gluten-free and even 100% allergen-free range at Cocoa & Spice.