Fri Jul 05 2024, 2 mins

Sustainable Changes You Can Make This Year

With the new year comes resolutions that you are really excited about!

We've got the perfect rundown of sustainable changes you can make that are easy to continue on for the whole year!

1. One room at a time

It is so easy to get overwhelmed with sustainability products, methods and advice. Take it one room at a time. Pick the bathroom, or kitchen, or even just a drawer and figure out how to make it more efficient and low waste.

Grab an aluminium conditioner bottle with a shampoo bar, or swap to re-useable towels instead of paper towels to wipe up kitchen spills.

Switch to LED bulbs, and switch off the taps when you are brushing your teeth or soaping your body.

2. The Cost of Clothing

The time has come to boycott fast fashion completely. Not only do they create tonnes of waste with 57% of clothing ending up in landfills*, but the fast fashion industry is also responsible for 20% of chemical, toxic wastewater that finds its way into our water systems.** This obscene amount of water usage and waste can be placed into perspective: it takes 10,000 litres of water to produce one kilogram of cotton and approximately 3,000 litres of water for a single cotton shirt.**

Did you know that East Africa alone imports over $150 million worth of used clothes and shoes, mainly from America and Europe?*** This is an incredible diversion from landfills and allows clothing to get the long life it deserves.

Not only is it a great boost for the economy, but the cost of labour, useage of raw materials and natural resources is not wasted as the clothes are discarded.

However, should you choose not to purchase second hand, a wonderful alternative is to shop locally and physically. It is a wonderful way to guarantee that clothing not only fits you well, looks beautiful but also prevents you from purchasing things you don't absolutely love while supporting our local textile businesses.

3. Carbon offsetting!

Carbon offsetting is a great way to evaluate how much carbon your activities are releasing into the world. You can donate to reputable organisations that support renewable energy, tree planting, marine conservation and various other carbon offsetting projects.

We have previously partnered with The Oblique Life, and invited our followers to listen to an incredible episode titled "Re-thinking Our Ethics" from their podcast library. Every listener who subscribed got to offset one kilogram of carbon through a program called Tree Points.

You can gift your friends trees, use search engines like Ecosia.org, and even encourage the integration of renewable energy in your area!

4. Buy less, Choose well, Make it Last

Food waste is a large contributor to carbon emissions as it does not have the facilities to decompose correctly in landfills. A great way to prevent food waste is to purchase fresh items and store them correctly. This will ensure that they remain fresh for longer, giving you more time to cook with them. Clear out your fridge with wholesome chilly and soup recipes to ensure that you've used up all the vegetables that you have before you buy more.

You can even buy weird looking fruits and vegetables- preventing them from heading off into the landfill and shop with a list! Meal planning and buying accordingly is a great way to ensure that you aren't buying more than you need, which equals less food being thrown away!

What sustainable resolutions are you going to make this year?

* source: commonobjective

** source: princeton.edu

*** source: theconversation