Sustainable September 2016 - Day Fourteen

Good day wonderful people, 

How are you? 

How did you go with a new coffee adventure ahead of you? No pods I hope?! 

I decided to actually take myself up on the Kindness idea for today and take some time for me. I stopped at a cafe for 10 mins to have some lemongrass and ginger tea, a paleo caramel slice and people watch. 

 

 

So today is all about women. So gentlemen, you have a day off, or you could still take up the kindness challenge part of this if you want. Or even support the Front Liners. This is a super important one for supporting all women, everywhere. 

Sustainable September Day Fourteen - buy/use reusable feminine hygiene products. 

Periods are a bit of a taboo in many countries but to help with equality and helping young women grow up knowing how their bodies work, we need to talk about periods and feminine hygiene. 

So in Australia there are two standard options for dealing with periods safely and hygienically. The standard feminine hygiene products are disposable tampons and/or pads. Not only are these destroying the environment but if they end up in septic tanks or toilets they can ruin those as well. 

There are two options for reusable and environmentally sustainable feminine hygiene products. Reusable and washable menstrual pads and menstrual cups. 

 

 

I bought these pads from a woman who makes them from home in Australia. I didn't realise how many people buy/make these feminine hygiene products. But I love that it supports small businesses and families. 

I am yet to give the menstrual cup a go, but I know people who swear by them. It also helps women measure the amount of blood they are loosing during their cycle. 

I, personally, have suffers with endometriosis for several years. It is where the lining of the uterus bleeds both inside the uterus as it is supposed to do and externally, which it is NOT supposed to do. I like to think I just have a super enthusiastic body who likes to go above and beyond its call of duty. Thinking lightly about it is one of the only things that keeps me sane. 

I have had two lots of surgeries to help remove the endometriosis in my abdomen but it has grown back in the past. Talking about periods and any pain that comes with it is important because it could indicate the disease. 

But these discussions first start with talking about periods in general. 

Scarily enough a lot of young women do not know how their bodies work, or why they bleed. 

So here is a short TEDed video to explain it better...

If you want to see what some people thought about using a Diva cup, which is one brand of menstrual cup, for the first time then check this video. 

And here is a story and pattern for making reusable cloth menstrual pads. I love this one! 

So many cool fabrics and patterns that could be used to make fun menstrual pads. I purchased some wonder woman and StarWars reusable pads. They are my favourite. But I haven't photographed them. 

Kindness idea: buy/donate single use tampons and pads to homeless shelters. 

Yes, I know. I have just spent the last 5mins explaining how bad these are for the environment. And yes it is not ideal. But they are still needed for women on the streets. Often there is no place to wash reusable pads or menstrual cups out to keep them sanitary for women who need them to be. That is where the single use ones come into play. But women with access to fresh clean water and regular showers have no excuse to use these products when it comes to the environment. 

Also feminine hygiene products can be expensive. So providing them for homeless shelters reduces their costs so they can run more programs and ultimately help more people. :) 

Front Liners: <--- this title seems oddly appropriate for this topic. Hahah. The group I will be focusing on as our feminine hygiene front lines are Days For Girls. 

I have spoken about this amazing group of people before. They achieve so much and help the lives of so many young women around the globe in third world communities. 

My family and I met a lovely lady here in Perth a few years ago who came and talked to our CWA group. She told us all about Days For Girls and how this amazing community of people around the world are making a difference. I have bought supplies for and supported this amazing group of volunteers as much as possible for these last few years. 

My thoughts were that (because of the endometriosis) if I had been in a third world country and had to be sitting on a cardboard, I would have been on that cardboard for two weeks every month. In other words, I wouldn't have graduated primary school nor high school. It makes me realise just how blessed I am. 

Here is a 13minute summary and story about the start of the Days For Girls movement. I hope you like it. 

I know that this is often an uncomfortable subject but it really is important. 

Have a great day tomorrow. 

Cheers, 

Daena X 

Sustainable September 2016 - Day Thirteen

Hi everyone, 

So I am back home in Perth and it's been wonderful to see my family again. 

I was even able to cook for the family for Meat Free Monday today! Did anyone else have a delicious MeatFree Monday meal? 

 

We had Sautéed Leek, Cabbage, Celery, Garlic and Cauliflower on a bed of Zoodles (noodles made out of zucchini) with crunchy Gluten Free onion rings on top. It was surprisingly delicious and yet super easy!

The challenging Sustainable September idea for today has been all about tea. Using loose leaf tea instead of tea bags. 

So, naturally, I had some of my local Australian loose leaf English Breakfast Tea in an infuser. 

 

 

I am usually pretty keen to get out my beautiful teapots and gorgeous cups but this morning I was so knackered from my trip home last night I just needed a wake up cuppa. So I'm afraid it's not so pretty. 

In my research yesterday I was fascinated to learn that apparently Tea bags were created by accident. A tea merchant, Thomas Sullivan, would send out little silk sample bags full of tea to customers to taste test. The customers often got confused and just dunked the whole little tester bag and all into a tea pot instead of pouring the contents into an infuser. So Thomas saw his opportunity to create a new product and began selling the tea bags as more than samples. Clever really. 

From The History Of Tea

Today's is less about tea and more about the worlds other favourite hot beverage... coffee. 

Now for me this is almost a day off because I do not drink coffee but I still think there are enough coffee drinkers out there to make this a very important Sustainable September idea. 

Sustainable September Day Thirteen - Change coffee sachets or coffee pods to bulk coffee beans and grind them yourself or start using a coffee plunger and bulk coffee. 

Last year I talked about how bad these coffee pods are for the environment. 

"One “press button, get coffee” at a time, we’re clogging up the world’s landfills with tiny containers" 

SBS News 2016

Until last year I didn't realise what a huge environmental issue these cute little pods actually were. So I began my investigation into Coffee Pods last year, if you want to check it out you can 

here

"When you only use a couple of small coffee pods a day, it’s hard to see how these might amount to a growing environmental problem. Fast, efficient, and relatively cheap, these disposable capsules are continuing to invade caffeine-dependent households and offices accross the country. Which means they add up - according to some reports, Australians consume around 3 million single-serve coffee pods every single day.

Even though individual pods look tiny and innocuous, millions of kilograms of aluminium have potentially ended up in landfills since Nespresso introduced their colourful pods into the market."

SBS News 2016

It's pretty bad when even "...the guy who invented one of the world’s most popular coffee pods has slammed his creation as expensive and bad for the environment" 

News Limited 2016

Kindness idea: treat yourself to a decent cup of tea/coffee. Take a moment to yourself. Breathe. Take off your shoes and go for a walk on some grass. Hug a tree. Do whatever you need to get your strength and energy back whilst being kind to yourself, others and the environment. 

Often when we talk about kindness ideas we forget to think about ways we can be be kind to ourselves. And sometimes taking a moment to ourselves, doing something we enjoy and breathing is just as important as getting everything done. 

Front lines: for those who like comedy to fight injustice you might really like this next one. When I was researching this one I found a really funny/dramatic video about coffee pods that I think you may like: however there is a Language Warning. 

I hope you had a little giggle, like I did... See you tomorrow. Have a great day! 

Cheers

Daena xx

Sustainable September 2016 - Day Twelve

Welcome back!!! 

How are you liking this blog this month? How is sustainable September going for you so far? 

Today I left Canberra and my good friend who has been hosting me. 

 

I have been so spoilt. I am sad to go and yet so pleased to have seen our nations capital and had a chance to see my good friend. 

So where to next? 

Let's stay with small useful ideas for now 

Sustainable September: buy/use loose leaf tea instead of tea bags. 

Many who know me know that I have a rather large love of tea. I have about 40 different varieties in both loose leaf and tea bags. What I didn't know when I was purchasing the bags originally was that many tea bags contain plastic. That's right. I said plastic! Crazy huh? 

So if we want to reduce the amount of waste we are putting into the environment, why not go for the one without extra packaging and that will complexly biodegrade in the garden. If we use loose leaf teas we can compost or throw the old leaves straight in the garden, meaning it is given back to the environment to use and breakdown. Instead of going into landfill where it might not break down for years. 

There was a report done 6 years ago about plastic in Teabags in the UK. Many tea companies have actually started addressing the plastic component, which was what they used to seal the bags up, because of concerns from their customers. If you wish to see an article about it check 

here.

Mind you there is an additional environmental concern about the food miles your tea has to travel to get to you. So if you can get the local tea or one from the closest country to you that reduces the food miles. There is only one company in Australia I have found which grows their own tea here and sells on the commercial market. Most other tea is imported from India, China and other such places. 

Kindness idea: buy a box of tea for a homeless shelter. 

This is pretty self explanatory. Tea can be an added expense to those providing services to the homeless. 

Alternatively you could buy one for a local charity or church. Often churches and charities will have a system where their staff and visitors pay a couple of cents/ dollars for morning tea and those coins go to a special charity. Even if they don't donate extra money you could be supporting groups of people who want to help others. Which is pretty awesome. 

Front Lines: there are small communities around the world that are using Sustainable practices to provide safe and welcome areas for people of all varieties to come together and drink tea. 

Check out this one from the UK: 

I love this one. 

Hope this finds you all well. 

Love Daena xx

Ps. This didn't post on the day of the actual sustainable September because I had issues being on and off airplanes. When I thought I had actually finished and posted it, It didn't work. But I have back dated it to the time it should have worked. X

Sustainable September 2016 - Day Eleven

Hi again Kindness lovers, 

So today was all about OP-SHOPPING!!! Or thrift shopping! And today I got to see the super fancy and super expensive kind and then the not as expensive type. 

 

Now, to explain, I was wandering the hip and with it streets of Canberra today, as its my last full day here. I found some very expensive op shops, think expensive & designer second hand goods! 

Tomorrows idea is another simple switch: 

Buy/use a wooden or bamboo toothbrush. 

I bought some last year, some for me and some for the rest of the family. Whilst they are not to everyone's liking they are much better for the environment. 

I have only just recently thrown my first bamboo toothbrush in the compost and I just love it. 

If you are also looking for a way to get rid of your old plastic toothbrushes consider recycling them. 

Kindness idea: donate toiletries to a local homelessness shelter or emergency relief centre. 

Toiletries are needed by so many places not just the ones mentioned. Because toiletries are used by everyone they are often the first things to go and so lots of charities and community services are always needing more. 

Front Lines: micro-beads in toiletries. 

One thing you might like to know about when you are purchasing your toiletries is plastic micro-beads. 

These are in everything from shampoo to toothpaste. These are really bad for the environment. And get into our waterways and into all types of water creatures. Here is the video from the UK about the micro beads and how and why we need to prevent the use of them in all of our things. 

 

I hope this finds you all well. 

I leave Canberra tomorrow and I have really enjoyed my stay. 

Much love to you all, 

Love Daena 

Sustainable September 2016 - Day Ten

Good day lovely ones,

Today I was at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra. It occurs to me how heartbreaking all the names on the walls are. 

 

What a great waste of life War is?! I found about a dozen with the same last name as I have. And it was so eerie having the voice of children, played over the speakers, read the names from the walls with the age at death. A lot of those who died in the wars where often more than a decade younger than I am. So scary. 

 

I definitely used my Hankys in there today. 

 

How did you go with today's sustainable September idea? Using reusable shopping bags?! 

Today is another simple one and is my favourite every year. 

Sustainable September Day Ten:  go op-shopping/ thrift shopping. 

Tomorrow is a Saturday and is my last FULL day in Canberra. Sadly. So I spent some time today hunting down the awesome op-shops in this town. A few just near the Canberra Centre and the bus station. Pretty cool really. If I could have fit an amazing singer sewing machine in my bag or even a rocking chair, I would have. I Loved the way they made the place fun and inviting. 

Check out the photo from the walls of their in house coffee shop...

 

LEGO!!!! Cool huh? They had little scenes and everything. :) 

There are so many reasons one could go op-shopping/ thrift shopping. One is reducing the amount of stuff already in the world by finding what is already been made. It reduces the amount of pressure on our landfills. It helps us find often hard to find bit and pieces that aren't made any more. It helps us get over the necessity of having everything brand new. 

Huffington Post shared their reasons for shopping at a Thrift Store and you can check that out 

here. Or this one from One Green Planet

Kindness idea: donate what you don't need to a charity op/Thrift shops. There are so many charities that do amazing things for the community and many of them (at least in Perth) have an opshops or thrift shop attached to them. Supporting these charities helps them do more for communities. It also makes your house easier to live in with less stuff!! 

Front Lines: there is a movement that is happening all over Australia and the world where...  pop up stores for the homeless. The movement started with "The Street Store". A South African idea that took off and ended up on social media around the globe. 

But here is one of the reports from Australia 

In Victoria the Herald Sun reports

It is so nice be able to help people and be able to Op-Shop/thrift shop at the same time. 

So if you are keen to act with kindness you could either hold one of these free stores yourself or find one already in your area and donate to it. 

I hope this finds you all well. 

Love Daena X 

Sustainable September 2016 - Day Nine

Hello wonderful people,

Today was all about using a reusable straw or saying no to using straws at all. 

 

This is a photo of me using my metal straw whilst hanging out at the National Museum of Australia. Notice I didn't get a plastic bottled drink either. Glass is much better for the environment. :) 

It can be quite difficult to say no or remember too. But that skill or habit could be a lifesaver for a sea animal or other forms of wildlife. Not to mention helping ourselves and our children in the future. 

Today is all about bags. 

Sustainable September Day Nine: buy/use a reusable shopping bag and say no to plastic bags. 

I must say this is one of the easiest for me to do every time I shop. I have these small roll up bags that go into my handbag. I pull one out whenever I need one and then re-roll and put it BACK into my bag as soon as I finish this. I probably have about 15-20 of these little roll up bags in total around my house. I probably only keep 4-6 in my bag at any one time. My sister has 4 in her hand bag. And mum has a couple too. 

This leaves a few extras so that some can be chucked in the wash (best part about having cloth bags) and some can be filled with bits and bobs on their way somewhere. It also means I can cycle out the ones that need repairs, but thankfully I only have to do the repairs occasionally. And it's usually the elastic that keeps it all rolled up nice and tidy that dies first. 

Kindness Idea: learn how to make plastic mats for the homeless. 

if you have a horde of plastic bags at home or you know where there are a lot, think about this as an idea... Using those single use bags to make something reusable and long lasting. This could be the idea for you. However, if you can't yet crochet, maybe you could learn. Or maybe you could do the cutting and "making of the plastic yarn" for someone else to use to make mats. 

Front Lines: there is a gorgeous TED talk by two young people in Bali who are wanting to ban the use of plastic bags in their country. What amazing champions of their country. 

I have visited Bali myself and it will make a huge difference to the place to be plastic free. :) I can't wait to go back and see the difference in a few years! :) 

I hope This finds you all well! 

Love Daena 

 

Sustainable September 2016 - Day Eight

Hello Sustainable September-ers. 

How is it going? Simple ideas seem to be the go. Didn't you just love the "Forest Man" video? So good. 

I talked about replacing tissues for Handkerchiefs today. When I packed my bag to come to Canberra, Australia, I packed as many handkerchiefs as I did underpants. Having been sick I wanted to be prepared for anything. And so far I am please I did. We used a couple as napkins after I managed to spill a whole bunch of stuff everywhere on a picnic. I've used them to blow my nose after reading too many beautiful stories about kindness (my favourite reason to cry). I have even used them to wipe the sweat off my fave after going for a run! Yay. Go me. 

I thought I would show you one of my favourite handkerchiefs. 

 

It used to belong to my dad. His initials are embroidered on it. Every time I use it I think of my dad. He was an amazing and environmentally minded man, so it seems so appropriate that I share it with you all this month. 

I also love how handkerchiefs are making a come back. Has anyone seen the movie "The Intern" with Robert DeNiro and Anne Hathaway? Well amazingly handkerchiefs play a pretty cool role in that movie. Bringing them back into fashion. 

So today is another K.I.S.S. Principal. Remember it's Keep It Simple Sweetheart. We don't have any stupid people here!

Sustainable September Day Eight: use a metal or glass straw instead of a plastic one. 

A few days ago we watched clips from the Zero Waste front liners. One of them pointed out the stupidity of straws. Something that you use once and then goes in the bin because it's useless after one use which may only be seconds. Then these pieces of plastic end up in the bellies and noses of someone of our most precious wildlife. Hopefully you all remember the video from last year of the turtle with the straw stuck in its nasal passage. It was seriously heartbreaking and more than a little gross. 

For Christmas last year I bought my family 10 metal straws between six of us. I usually keep 2 on me, in my handbag. One for me and one for whoever I am with. Usually mum and I. It works well. But often we really don't need to use straws at all.  

I know there exceptions for using straws. Some people have to for face or teeth surgery. I couldn't have done without a straw when I had my wisdom teeth out. Then there are the elderly (like my dad used) because all their food is liquid. And it helps regulate how much they consume in one hit, stopping them from choking. Dads nursing home has special cups with built in straws so he didn't need to use throw away ones. 

When you think about it, most places you would use straws are related to soft drink or cocktails. 

If you think about the straws from fast food venues, they use those stupid plastic caps for the straw to go through too. That is more plastic going to landfill and it even has the potential to end up in the ocean and stomachs of wildlife. Mind you, even if you swap out the straw for a metal or glass one, then you are still making a huge difference. Make sure you tell them no straw when you order your drink/meal. 

If you think about cocktails or soft drinks from restaurants, you need to talk to the bartender before they make the drink because if they have already been added to the drink they won't use it again, they will just throw it without it ever having been used. Which is a stupid tragedy all of itself. 

Asking for no straw is something that takes a bit of time to get used to but once you do, it's just like any other habit, it happens naturally. 

Kindness idea: purchase a glass or metal straw for a friend. 

I decided this was a good kindness for me after last year. I ended up saving them to give as Christmas gifts. My niece and nephew love using the metal straws I bought them. They particularly love to drink their smoothies or milkshakes through them. Best thing about the metal ones is that they won't break if dropped, which is the best option for kids. 

The glass straws are very pretty and you can SEE how clean they are. Usually all reusable straws come with a cleaning brush so it's easy to clean. It's also cool to see the water/juice/cocktails/milkshake/soft drink go through the glass straws. 

Front lines: all I can say is... This kid is awesome! I just love how kids are the ones fighting for the small changes that will make big differences in the long run. 

This interview is even better with more statistics.

Well done Milo! Now we just need to get something like this off the ground here in Australia! 

I hope this finds you all well. 

Love Daena X