4 Sustainable Companies You Really Need To Know About
* Updated August 2025 *
In my work as a sustainability copywriter, I come across lots of incredible companies working day and night to make our world a better place.
But despite their ethical conduct and unique enviro-benefits, they generally all face the same problem: not enough people know about them.
And frankly, with consumerism running rampant and carbon emissions still on the rise, we need to do something about that.
Now, as you’ve probably seen, the words “sustainable”, “eco”, and “green”, are thrown around far too willy-nilly these days.
They’re the “quality” and “fresh” of the climate change era.
Greenwashing is a terrible thing, but sadly, it’s also proven to be good for business. That’s why it’s everywhere.
However, to help you cut through the noise, here are four amazing companies I personally recommend. Why? Because they all have their heart in the right place, and they’re all striving to be sustainable in the most meaningful sense of the word.
(And no, I don’t get paid for recommending them - they’re just doing great work! But if you want to spread the word - feel free to share this article.)
1) Ecosia: The Search Engine That Plants Trees (No, Really)
Let’s start with an easy one first, shall we?
If you want to help the environment without putting in any extra effort (and let’s be honest, who doesn’t?) then you should make Ecosia your default search engine as fast as humanly possible.
When you search on Ecosia, it displays adverts like any other search engine, but then uses 100% of the revenue to support tree-planting projects around the world. On average, it takes around 50 web searches to plant a new tree, and there’s a handy counter on the site that tracks how many web searches you’ve made.
As of the time I’m writing this, Ecosia has planted over 238,000,000 trees. And being as its counter goes up every 1.3 seconds, it’ll no doubt be much higher by the time you’re reading these words.
(I’m just passed 20,000 searches myself, which is 400 new trees - not too shabby, eh?)
Ecosia uses the Microsoft Bing search engine (the second most popular after Google) and adds its own algorithms and customization on top. It has a desktop site and now also has an app you can download from the Apple or Android app stores.
In addition to planting millions of new trees, Ecosia is also 200% powered by renewable energy, meaning it produces twice as much clean electricity as it uses.
“Now hang on just a minute,” you interject. “That’s all well and good, Matthew, but is Ecosia actually a good search engine?”
Firstly, thanks for your question. And secondly: yes it is.
From my own use over the last few years, I’ve noticed that Ecosia is constantly improving. The search results are getting more accurate, the news articles more current, and overall, I think it’s now good enough to use as a default search engine.
I probably use Ecosia for about 70% of my web searches, and Google for the rest. I find that you quickly learn the types of searches Ecosia is good for, especially if you know you’re going to end up at a major website like Wikipedia or something.
Honestly, if you want to make a positive environmental difference without changing your day-to-day life, Ecosia is the perfect place to start.
2) Good Citizens Eyewear: Sunglasses Made From Recycled Plastic Bottles
It’s such a simple idea, yet Good Citizens is the first company to really make it work.
I’m an Australian, which means I come from the land of shorts, thongs (the ones that go on your feet), beaches, BBQs, and cricket.
Notice a theme here? All of these things are related to lots of bright, glorious sunshine.
That’s why every Aussie needs a good pair of sunnies, just like every Canadian needs one of those furry hat things with the long flaps on the sides.
And down under, our appetite for sunglasses is growing: in 2021 alone, we spent over $3 billion to shade our eyes from the harsh Aussie sun.
But while sunglasses are a necessity in Australia and many other countries, they’re pretty terrible for the environment.
They’re typically made from virgin plastics and often last less than a year or two before they’re broken or thrown away (or both) and end up in landfill or our precious waterways.
Thankfully, one Aussie brand is doing something about it.
Good Citizens Eyewear is a sunglasses manufacturer from Sydney. It started with one very simple idea: to turn one 600ml plastic bottle into one pair of awesome sunnies.
The sunglasses have 100% UV polarised lenses and a screwless modular frame that allows you to replace parts or swap them out as you go along.
And if you send your broken or old frame parts back to them – they'll recycle them for you and make them into a new pair of sunnies for someone else.
Yes, these are sunnies that you’ll keep (and will want to wear!) for a very long time.
In addition to recycling plastic bottles, Good Citizens also removes 1kg of plastic waste from the ocean for every pair sold and uses completely recycled paper and cardboard packaging.
This brand really has thought through every aspect of its production.
So, If you’re after a new pair of shades that look great, last ages, and are actually good for the planet - go check ‘em out.
3) Seads: Sustainable Espadrilles
Seads is a company I was fortunate enough to work with during its official website launch.
The company makes sustainable espadrilles, which, if you’re not familiar with the name (I wasn’t at first - I’m from thongs country after all) are casual slip-on summer shoes. Now that I live in Europe, I see them all the time.
I love this brand because it makes genuinely cool footwear AND it does it in the most sustainable way possible.
Working with the founder, Agnes, it was clear from the get-go she’d really thought about every aspect of her footwear’s lifecycle - from the materials used to make them, to their delivery and returns and their final disposal and recycling.
The result is that Seads espadrilles have a completely circular model, with sustainable and recycled raw materials, and a design that allows old pairs to be broken down into raw components that can be reused in other manufacturing.
The footwear features upcycled marine PET plastic, recycled leather, natural rubber and jute, and Seaqual yarn made from recycled marine and post-consumer plastic.
And trust me, it’s not easy to make footwear from all these sustainable materials. A lot of time and effort went into identifying suppliers, assessing their supply chains, and building the ethical foundations the brand needs to grow.
To top it all off, Seads are also shipped via RePack, meaning your espadrilles come in a package you can return, ready to be reused for another delivery.
So, if you're after some snazzy (yeah, that’s right, I said snazzy) casual shoes for this summer and many others to follow, Seads really does set the new standard in sustainable footwear.
4) Fairphone: The World’s Most Sustainable Smartphone
Fairphone 5: the world’s most sustainable (and repairable) smartphone.
I’m a sucker for consumer tech, and I love keeping up-to-date (or at least trying to) with all the latest smartphone developments. Honestly, the amount of innovation these companies cram into one little handheld device is pretty astonishing, and it’s far too easy to take it all for granted.
But, like most technological advancements, most smartphones are the exact opposite of sustainable.
As I’ve written about before, e-waste is a looming problem that’s wreaking havoc on people, animals, and the environment.
And, even as a very Earth-minded person, I’m aware that I’m just as culpable as anyone else. Right now, I’m typing this article on my Macbook Air, with an HP desktop computer right behind me, a big Samsung flatscreen TV and Xbox Series X in front of me, a OnePlus phone to my right, and my wife’s Huawei to my left.
Good lord - that’s a whole bunch of consumer tech in one small lounge room.
Thankfully, the Dutch brand Fairphone is one of the few tech companies with sustainability at its core.
“At Fairphone, we give an Amsterdam about the environment.”
In June 2025, the company launched the Fairphone 6. The newest model boasts some pretty reasonable specs:
A Snapdragon® 7s Gen 3 Processor
8GB of RAM
A 6.31 inch Full HD LTPO P-OLED display
1116x2484 resolution with a 120 Hz refresh rate
256GB of internal storage
A 50MP Sony Lytia 700C sensor main camera, and a 32MP Samsung KD1, AF sensor selfie camera
A 4415 mAh removable Li-ion battery
Android 15 right out of the box
The phone also comes with a five-year warranty and eight years of guaranteed software updates - which is basically unheard of in the smartphone world.
Now, these aren’t flagship-level specs, and a Fairphone 6 isn’t going to be as blazingly fast and smooth as a new model from Apple, Samsung, or Google.
But do you know what it does offer? Everything you need.
The Fairphone is also modular, which means if you need a new display, battery, camera, speaker, or charging port, you can order one online and replace it yourself with basic tools. The Fairphone 4 received a 10/10 score from iFixit, meaning it’s as good as it gets for repairability, and the company also offers a phone recycling program.
Recently, Fairphone also launched sustainable wireless earbuds made from 30% recycled plastics and fairtrade gold. On an environmental level, they’re not perfect - and you could argue that wireless earphones probably never will be - but they’re a damned sight better than virtually all of the alternatives out there.
According to Wikipedia, Fairphones are made in China by Hi-P International Limited. As part of its commitment to improving working conditions and ultimately, lives, Fairphone pays higher wages to factory workers.
For example, it pays workers an extra $1.99 USD for each Fairphone made - a pittance by most people’s standards - but up the three months’ extra salary for workers earning minimum wage, according to Fairphone. Again, it’s not some miracle cure for all the world’s ills - but it’s a big step in the right direction.
So, if you need a new smartphone and want something that’s far more sustainable, ethical, and made to last five years or more - the Fairphone is worth a look.
Know Some Great Sustainable Brands? Share the Word
There you have it: four amazing companies doing wonderful things for the environment that ultimately benefit all of us.
Do you have any great sustainable companies you can recommend? If so, please let me know in the comments below, or shoot me an email with the details. It would be great to hear from you.
Until next time: take care of the planet, and each other.