Sustainable September 2017 - Day Twenty Two

SEPTEMBER 22 (FRIDAY)

CLEANING - CLOTHES DRYING 

Hi everyone,

Apologies for the late Sustainable September post. I've been a bit unwell and I've been unable to get my post out as early as I would have liked. I'm always working to be the best I can be. I always talk about being Kind to yourself, so I'm taking time now and being kind to myself. Whilst also getting this done! Hence being late. 

I went to the Wasteless Pantry today and bought myself some Soap Nuts. If you are interested in finding out more, look at yesterday's post. 

This little jar should last me quite a while! And when the nuts get brittle they can go in my compost bin, so they are basically Waste free. Yay! 

Today's idea is again on this weeks theme of cleaning. 

Sustainable September Day Twenty Two: dry your clothes in the sun. 

Did you know that the sun has the ability to disinfect your laundry? Well you do now! It is great to simply & safely kill bacteria without the use of harsh chemicals. 

It is also a really a simple power saving (& therefore money saving) tip. 

Want more reasons to dry your clothes on the washing line? Check out this website... The Spruce. It has some awesome ideas too. 

ACTIVITY: Hang your washing out to dry. If not outside (it's been raining here this week) then inside on a drying rack! By reducing the amount of power you use by putting on the electric dryer you are helping the planet by reducing the amount of fossil fuels needed to power it. 

Not sure how to hang something? Then here is a handy little guide to help you line dry your clothes. 

Hope that's everything you need for today. I love keeping it short and sweet. 

Like me, I hope you are being kind to yourself. Look after yourself. Eat healthy, do some exercise, drink plenty of water and get some sleep. Like I plan to do... right now. Please don't forget that the reason we do Sustainable September is because we want to be kind to our planet and all those who live here! That includes ourselves!

Enjoy. 

Love Daena 

Sustainable September 2017 - Day Seven

SEPTEMBER 7 (THURSDAY)

TINY CHANGES - STRAWS

A week peoples, we have made it a whole week!!! What an achievement! I'm so glad you are still here reading this (and if you are new here... WELCOME!!!!). Kindness to this planet is so important to all of us. Treating the world with greater respect and kindness means that we are able to also treat ourselves, our friends and family with greater respect. PLUS, we are being kind to so many people we do not know! Like those in far away places (like islands that are slowly sinking below rising sea levels) and those we may never meet (those in the future), who will be greatful for every little thing we do now to reduce the amount of waste we produce. Together we are making life a little kinder for our planet and all those who live here.

Yesterday was all about Hankies... one of mine came in handy today. I've got one in my pocket as I write this but thankfully its clean. A lot of people have come down sick in the house... so im doing my best to be environmentally friendly, whilst remaining well!!!

Thankfully i am well... and i hope to stay that way!

Sustainable September Day Seven - Buy & or use a glass, metal or bamboo straw instead of using plastic single use straws.

I own and regularly use a metal straw. I bought it (and more for my family) a few years ago... during Sustainable September. I still have it and still use it all the time. I keep it in a cutlery case in my handbag all the time (Except when i wash it after use of course).

I do rmeember to take my straw with me everywhere... however this kind of leads me to my next point.

REMEMBER, any time you purchase a drink – even if you think I shouldn’t have a straw- specify that you don’t want one.

This part is harder for me. I have been to two different restaurants this week that i forgot to specify that i didn't want a straw, and each time the little plastic stick of uselessness was present in my beverage.

One time recently I remembered to ask not to have a straw, then only realised just as they put the straw into the drink that they had forgotten i didnt want one. When i pointed out i didnt want it they just threw out the straw. I felt even worse... because that single use item... well it didnt even get used once!!! So I need to be vigilent and remember that whenever I go places that I need to specify that I do not need a straw and if possible catch them before they do it out of habit.

If anyone on here is reading this and owns a restaurant or bar, maybe you could consider offering staws only upon request. That would save a bunch of needless waste and im sure it would help the hip pocket too!

It seemed perfectly times that i came across a perfectly timed documentary about Straws too. The Western Australian Premiere of Straws the Film: A documentary about a sea of Change by producer Lisa Booker is a short documentary about plastic straw litter and how community activists are making a sea of change one straw at a time. For those in WA, check out the above link for information about the screening in Fremantle. Its upstairs (@ Yogalab) from one of my favourite restaurants in Freo, the Raw Kitchen. Its being help on Sunday 17th September 2017, (that's 10 days from tomorrow). There are a range of ticket options (some of which include sampling some food from the Raw Kitchen!) but tickets start at $15.

ACTIVITY: Amazingly if, like me, you REFUSE straws, and yet still end up with a bunch, that you didnt ask for, maybe you could turn them into Jewellery or art. Hopefully you can turn a single use item into something you can REUSE, after you have gotten your REUSABLE straw... after all straws cannot be RECYCLED.

If after watching this video you were a bit surprised i had posted it... i understand. Don't get me wrong, I know some of these ideas are really great for the environment. I mean why would you cut up little pieces of straws for the base of your potplants?! Honestly... WHY?!. But some of the other ideas could work if you are looking for a way to upcycle straws you already have or have accidentally received. Or maybe, you are into a craft soloution. Or maybe if you have kids some of these might be fun activities! I just ask that you think carefully about which ones you choose. Normally i wouldn't post something like that... But this one had the most exciting ideas with the least (yes i know that is unbelieveable really) environementally harmful ideas.

I guess the main thing here is to REFUSE plastic single use straws, or in the least, REDUCE the number of straws you use.  

If we can do that... it will make a world of difference.

Hope you all are well.
Love Daena x

Sustainable September 2015 - Day Twelve

Good day fellow Sustainable September-ers (that is totally a word),

So how did your walk to work go? Did you get wet? Did you share an umbrella with someone? Did the sun shine?

I hope you took the time out to have a beautiful walk even if it wasn't to work or school.

The below pictures were of a walk I took through the State Botanic Gardens and park lands. Kings park is bigger than Central Park NYC. It is beautiful.

Getting back to nature is a wonderful reminder of what we do Sustainable September for.

The Spring Festival at Kings Park, Perth, WA, opened this month with this awesome tree. Its called "The Queens Tree" because Queen Elizabeth planted it on her trip a few decades ago. For the Festival her tree was dressed up just like her. :)

The Reflection pond and Flame of Remembrance at Kingspark.

The View of Perth City from Kings Park.

Such a beautiful Spring display of Native Australian Flowers

The state emblem of the Western Australian Kangaroo Paw on the path from the car park to the views.

The rare Black Kangaroo Paw

Our environment has such a powerful impact on us. How we treat it, has a greater impact on us all.

At the beginning of Sustainable September I shared that i would be reading the book by Bea Johnson called "Zero Waste Home: The Ultimate Guide to Simplifying Your Life by Reducing Your Waste". So far I haven't finished it, but I have learned a lot already. The first chapter is called "The 5 R's and the Benefits of the Zero Waste Lifestyle".  This chapter has been an eye opener for me. Often we see the 3 R's Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, however Bea Johnson adds another two things to that list.

Diagram: Zero Waste Home: The Ultimate Guide to Simplifying Your Life by Reducing Your Waste (Page 15).

I thought that one thing that we forget to mention is to refuse certain items in our attempts to be environmentally friendly. Think about all those times you have been handed pamphlets on the street or a free voucher to some place you know you will never go. Think about when you stay in a hotel and you get those little Shampoos and Conditioners. Do you really need it? Or will the papers and the little plastic bottles, just end up in land fill? 

I had my first trial by fire with this when I was in Sydney. I had managed to forget to bring my Shampoo, so ended up using one of the, several, little bottles that were available to me at the hotel I was staying at. I used what I had to. The hardest part was leaving the rest of them behind. I really didn't need them. In fact they would have been more trouble than they are worth. Not to mention the environmental cost of more plastic in land fill.

So today's Sustainable September idea is based on this premise...

September 12: Refuse any thing that you do not need. e.g.. Pamphlets, show bags filled with stuff you won't use, little bottles of shampoo or conditioner, business cards, pens, plastic bags, cups, double bagged items, extra receipts (unless needed for tax purposes for course), etc. 

This is about stopping "needless waste". Often the pamphlets are on shiny paper that some councils do not accept as recycling. So best to avoid them completely.

I know for some people they collect pamphlets for Kindergarten classes or art classes. At least there is one type of use for these things. Or its does seem like a sad waste. 

Bea Johnson beautifully points out that 'refusing', often unconsciously, "condones and reinforces wasteful practices". She writes "Every bit we accept, or take, creates a demand to make more... When we let waiters fill our glass with water that we wont be drinking and a straw that we wont use, we are saying: "Water is not important" and "Please make more disposable Straws". When we take a "free" shampoo bottle from a hotel room, more oil will be rigged to make a replacement. When we passively accept an advertising flyer, a tree is cut down somewhere to make more flyers, and our time is unwisely spent dealing with and recycling something trivial" (Pg. 16).

This really had me thinking. I mean I know there are plenty of times I have taken pamphlets I don't need. Or show bags filled with crap I don't want to look at. It all ends up in my bin. So I love the idea to refuse, so that we are conscious of what we are receiving in our lives. And we can then be conscious of helping the environment. 

As always remember to be kind in all your interactions.

"Nobody wants to go against the grain or be rude when some thing is offered with no ill will. But a little practice and short justifications make it easy for us to decline the politest entreaties. All you have to say is "I am sorry, but I don't have a trash can," "I am sorry, but I have gone paperless," "I am sorry, but I am trying to simplify my life," or "I am sorry, but we have too much at home already." People usually understand or respect a personal choice and will not insist. In some cases, we  found that pro-activity - such as taking ourselves off mailing lists before junk mail is sent out - works best" (Pg. 18).

When I first wanted to focus on this Sustainable September I didn't expect people to radically change anything in their lives, to the point of being 100% waste free. I am not brave enough to try that myself... YET! Like me all I hope for is small changes. Small changes that can make a huge difference. I love the little ideas that cause you to be conscious of how your actions affect the environment. If that means refusing some stuff you don't want or need... awesome! I also didn't realise the saying 'no' could be so good for the environment.

I hope you learnt something today like I did. 

Oh and...

KINDNESS IDEA FOR TODAY: Donate old magazines to school or kindergartens. Or if they are current, please, please, please donate them to a doctors clinic. It is a special thrill finding a magazine from this year in a doctors surgery. So any time you have a magazine, pass them on to good homes. 

Much love to you all, 

Love Daena x