Overwhelmed reading the latest article about climate change, plastic pollution or any of the other numerous ways our planet is in trouble? It’s easy to throw your hands up and think that short of moving to a shack in the woods, wearing hemp clothing and eating only nuts and berries, there’s nothing we can do.
So here’s five easy changes you can make today that will help you sleep better tonight:
Photo Credit: Honeybee Wrap
1) Beeswax Wraps: Lose the plastic cling wrap and reach for a beeswax wrap the next time you need to cover food. Jack discovered these sustainable, non-toxic wraps from HoneyBee Wrap on her last trip to Byron Bay. She brought one back for me (sweet friend that she is) and I love it. Handmade from 100% organic cotton fabric, beeswax and various natural oils, the heat of your hands softens the beeswax so it moulds around the food you wish to store. It then cools and remains in shape to keep your food safe. They come in cute colours and are easy to clean. I’m about to order a few more for my kitchen.
Photo Credit: Ever Eco
2) Stainless Steel Straws: We discovered these space-age, plastic-free sippers at a vegan restaurant in Bali (Bali is fighting its own plastic war- check out the work of these Balinese teens who are leading the charge against plastic pollution). We’re smoothie drinkers in our house so these straws get some use. We like the Ever Eco brand found at Flora & Fauna (although they are dishwasher-safe, be sure to buy a set that comes with a cleaning brush).
Photo Credit: Keep Cup
3) Reusable Coffee Cups: We love a good takeaway coffee but it struck us last year that the number of takeaway cups piling up in our office rubbish bin was not a good look for us, or the planet. Keep Cup is a Melbourne-based company that has taken off around the world and for good reason. Their colourful reusable coffee cups are easy to use and brighten your morning with their vibrant hues. Our favourite part? Our local barista no longer has to ask us for our morning order; we place our reusable cups on the counter and they get right to work.
Photo Credit: KleanKanteen
4) Reusable Water Bottles: Bottled water is costly to your wallet and the environment, but that doesn’t stop Australians from spending more than half a billion dollars a year on bottled water. Only 36% of plastic bottles are recycled which leaves way too many polluting our land and waters*. This is an easy fix; keep that reusable water bottle handy and fill it from the tap. We like bottles from Klean Kanteen for both their stainless steel designs and their philosophy of sustainability.
5) Reusable Shopping Bags: Our personal favourite, those single-use plastic bags from the shops are filling our landfills and waterways by the billions. It is currently believed that there are 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic debris in the ocean and counting*. We’re losing this battle right now, but this doesn’t have to be the case. Reusable shopping bags are an easy way to go plastic-free. Of course we love Jack+Jules reusable bag sets: convenient, washable and strong reusable shopping bags that will reduce the number of plastic bags in the environment.
There you go: five easy ways to save the planet. Now you can sleep like a baby.
*All plastic facts sourced from www.oceancrusaders.org.