Ditching Zero Waste?
A few zero waste vloggers that I follow have recently decided to ditch the term 'zero waste'. They're not giving up on the whole idea, but there's been a lot of talk around the eco warrior online community about how unhelpful the term can be. The thing is, as I'm sure we are all aware, to live completely waste-free is a pretty unattainable lifestyle for most people. It's not impossible, but because we live in a society that has become pretty dependent on single-use plastic, trying to avoid it can be very hard work. It can also make quite the dent in our wallets, particularly when shopping in supermarkets. Why is it that fruit and veg is so much cheaper when it's wrapped in plastic?! The fact is, those who have the time and can afford to shop around are privileged. It's not an option that's viable for the masses.
Also for people (like me) who are lucky enough to be able to attempt to change their lifestyles in this way, the guilt is real. I have particularly experienced this guilt recently when trying to find a zero waste deodorant that actually works for me. Over the past few months I have tried several different types with varying degrees of success, but in the end found that the most eco-friendly deodorant that actually worked for me came in a plastic container. I avoided it for a long time and felt seriously guilty about it, but ultimately decided that although I don't mind being called a hippy, I don't want to be a smelly one! The deodorant's container is fully recyclable, and it's 100% natural so it doesn't add any nasty chemicals to the environment. At the end of the day this product choice is much more sustainable than the one I was using before, and it's lowering my impact on the environment. (If you want to read about my struggle to find a zero waste deodorant click here.)
This leads me nicely to the low impact movement, coined by vlogger Sustainably Vegan. Its basically about lowering our environmental impact in whatever way we can, be it big or small steps, and not feeling guilty or judging ourselves when we don't do this. Like I've said before, small changes can make a big difference. Imagine if we all ditched plastic toothbrushes and replaced them with bamboo, a small swap like that could change the world! That's why I started blogging about this stuff, because if I can inspire anyone in my small sphere of influence on the internet to make just one of these small swaps, then that's a great thing for the planet. There's a fine line between inspiring and preachy, though, and I don't want anyone to think I'm claiming to be perfect in this area because I am far from it! When I see people who are doing amazingly at zero waste, I can get discouraged because I think that I will never manage to be that sustainable. Equally, I think many people get put off when seeing extreme lifestyles like that, and think that it's not for them. It's not all or nothing, though, we can't change the world overnight but we can reduce our impact step by step.
I think it is true that whenever we spend our money we're casting a vote for the type of world we want to live in, as consumers we have a lot of power, and choosing sustainable options when we can speaks loudly to the big companies that are producers. Our voices are powerful too, something as simple as posting a question about plastic packaging on a supermarket's social media page can spark change. They listen to what their customers want, because they want our money!
So, protecting the future of the planet is a huge task, but change can happen. Lowering our impact on the environment doesn't have to mean extreme lifestyle change, it's not all or nothing. The small changes and swaps we make should be celebrated.
Also for people (like me) who are lucky enough to be able to attempt to change their lifestyles in this way, the guilt is real. I have particularly experienced this guilt recently when trying to find a zero waste deodorant that actually works for me. Over the past few months I have tried several different types with varying degrees of success, but in the end found that the most eco-friendly deodorant that actually worked for me came in a plastic container. I avoided it for a long time and felt seriously guilty about it, but ultimately decided that although I don't mind being called a hippy, I don't want to be a smelly one! The deodorant's container is fully recyclable, and it's 100% natural so it doesn't add any nasty chemicals to the environment. At the end of the day this product choice is much more sustainable than the one I was using before, and it's lowering my impact on the environment. (If you want to read about my struggle to find a zero waste deodorant click here.)
This leads me nicely to the low impact movement, coined by vlogger Sustainably Vegan. Its basically about lowering our environmental impact in whatever way we can, be it big or small steps, and not feeling guilty or judging ourselves when we don't do this. Like I've said before, small changes can make a big difference. Imagine if we all ditched plastic toothbrushes and replaced them with bamboo, a small swap like that could change the world! That's why I started blogging about this stuff, because if I can inspire anyone in my small sphere of influence on the internet to make just one of these small swaps, then that's a great thing for the planet. There's a fine line between inspiring and preachy, though, and I don't want anyone to think I'm claiming to be perfect in this area because I am far from it! When I see people who are doing amazingly at zero waste, I can get discouraged because I think that I will never manage to be that sustainable. Equally, I think many people get put off when seeing extreme lifestyles like that, and think that it's not for them. It's not all or nothing, though, we can't change the world overnight but we can reduce our impact step by step.
I think it is true that whenever we spend our money we're casting a vote for the type of world we want to live in, as consumers we have a lot of power, and choosing sustainable options when we can speaks loudly to the big companies that are producers. Our voices are powerful too, something as simple as posting a question about plastic packaging on a supermarket's social media page can spark change. They listen to what their customers want, because they want our money!
So, protecting the future of the planet is a huge task, but change can happen. Lowering our impact on the environment doesn't have to mean extreme lifestyle change, it's not all or nothing. The small changes and swaps we make should be celebrated.
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