Looking outside of my current Airbnb window, I see a beautiful mountain covered in snowy white trees. It makes me wonder. Do we still have time to save the trees? Since 1950 and 2016, the world lost an area bigger than South Africa to deforestation.
That is 1000 football fields per minute. ~ according to worldbank
How can I make a difference in this world?
How can I reduce waste on this planet? What can I, as one small individual, do? Then I remember I have to start with myself first before I can help others. I know we are running out of time, and changing our lifestyle to a more sustainable way is crucial for us to survive.
But is it really enough if I replace my paper towels with reusable ones?
Is that going to save the trees?
I don’t think so! It is starting to have an impact if 100 or 1000 or millions of people start doing it.
I hear this quote in my head.
We don’t need one person doing zero waste perfect we need millions doing it imperfectly.
This is so important to know, I think. It takes the pressure off you when you end up buying something that is wrapped in plastic. I know I still sometimes do, and I used to beat myself up about it, but that makes me miserable and doesn’t really help anyone.
It is ok to be making mistakes and not to be perfect.
Perfect is boring anyway. So I encourage you to go zero waste imperfectly.
In fact, I want to break up the word “zero waste” here because it actually is a bit misleading. If you look at it, we can’t actually be 100% zero waste. It doesn’t exist. Even when you eat a banana, you create waste. Of course, in this example, it is biodegradable waste, and that is ultimately the goal.
You see, mother nature has this way of balancing everything perfectly, and for some reason, we decided to interrupt this balance. However, it is not too late to gain control.
But giving up plastic doesn’t seem like it is going to happen. What about reinventing this stuff? Surely we can use a more resourceful source than oil? Could it be sourced from a biosphere and, after its lifetime, go back and biodegrade?
That would be the ultimate circle of life. Going from a linear economy to a circular one.
Now you might say, hang on, there are companies already making biodegradable packaging and bags. Well, if you are talking about PLA, then I have to disappoint you. Those PLA products are unfortunately only biodegradable in a unique facility that applies enough heat and the right cocktail of microorganisms,
Learn more about PLA in this article.
Plastics need to be reinvented into something that behaves just like plastic but doesn’t stick around for thousands of years to come. And what I learned from this video by seeker, we are not too far away from reaching this goal.
This is probably the best news for the new year. Having plastic that is sourced from a bio source and that is 100% biodegradable. I am very excited about the future.
Sure we have lost much wildlife and made the oceans more acidic and heated the planet in just under 100 years, but do you think mother earth won’t recover in a million years? Perhaps she will blow up, and there will be another earth somewhere else, where humans prosper in harmony with the planet. Who really knows?
Remember the earth doesn’t need us to live, we need the earth.
The important thing is right now; we are on this amazing planet, and right now is the time we can make a difference in our health and the future of our children. So replacing your paper towels with reusable paper towels to save some trees is a good move in the right direction.
Changing your life to be living a more sustainable lifestyle is vital.
