Trash talk is trending — in a good way. People all over the globe are looking for solutions to living more consciously and eco-friendly. If you’re thinking about going waste-free, then we applaud you. It’s not the easiest route, but the staggering fact that every day 38,356,164 pounds of trash are dumped into our oceans and 8 million pieces of plastic pollution finds its way into our oceans is enough to make us all want to give up our single use conveniences and opt for a more conscious and earth friendly lifestyle.
At home, we’re looking for solutions to leave a smaller footprint. Our parks and recreational areas are asking us to “leave no trace” and companies are constantly searching for ways to make packaging and products more healthy for our environment. For example, Raw Sugar bottles are made from 25% recycled plastics and bamboo tops. Formulas are made with plant-derived ingredients with no sulfates or parabens and items like bar soap are completely zero waste.
If you need a few ideas on how to start producing less trash and more thoughtful action, here are some top tips to get you started. Thank you for being aware and conscious of our beautiful planet.
Things to Give Up:
- Plastic Straws
- Plastic, single use water bottles and soda bottles
- Plastic food containers (Your body doesn’t want the BPA leaching into your food anyway)
- Plastic utensils
- Plastic bags and take out containers
- Plastic toothbrushes
- Tossing food leftovers in the trash (see composting below!)
- To-Go coffee cups
- Plastic Tooth Floss
Instead, Opt for:
- Glass bottles and containers
- Refillable water bottles
- Reusable, or fabric bags
- Bamboo toothbrushes and other brushes (They’re compostable!)
- Buy in bulk, store in glass containers
- Composting organic waste (organics can’t decompose in a landfill because they aren’t properly aerated. 20% of all methane emissions are from landfills. One of the best things you can do for the environment is compost your food scraps!)
- Coffee mugs instead of to-go cups
- Silk floss instead of plastic coated tooth floss
Ways to affect change:
- If you can, start a home composting station or better yet, if you live in a multi-unit building, get your neighbors involved!
- Participate in ocean or neighborhood clean up days
- Spread the word. Knowledge is power!
