Any action counts, even the smallest!
Acting now and changing mindsets on a day to day basis can make a real and direct impact. Life changes will reduce the amount of waste that ends up in landfill, will reduce CO2 emissions and will reduce our global footprint. These guidelines and tips have been developed to help change mindsets:
Rethink
This is the first step to making a difference! Be aware of what you consume, what you need and what you waste: this involves changing mindsets, changing choices and changing expectations.
- Refuse – If you don’t need it, don’t use it. Do you need the plastic straw in your drink? Do you need the plastic cutlery with your delivery? Do you need a plastic bag at the supermarket for carrying one item?
- Reduce – The best way to cut down on your carbon footprint is to reduce your consumption. Can you reduce the amount of food you buy? Can you reduce the amount of clothes you buy? Can you reduce the amount of A/C you use?
- Reuse –Forget the concept of “single-use”, instead think about multiple use. For everything! Re-use your everyday essentials; bags, cups, cutlery, bottles, containers. If you do have single-use items, don’t throw them and reuse them again and again.
- Repurpose – Where possible, be creative, find new uses and repurpose items at home that you no longer need. Use un-needed clothes as cleaning cloths! Use shoe boxes as storage solutions! Further, choose products and support companies that use recycled or repurposed materials.
- Recycle – Sort your waste and packaging and recycle. If you do not have a dedicated recycling bin at home, send everything you cannot re-use to a reliable recycler. Check locally for facilities.
Carbon Footprint
This is the first step to making a difference! Be aware of what you consume, what you need and what you waste: this involves changing mindsets, changing choices and changing expectations.
- Refuse – If you don’t need it, don’t use it. Do you need the plastic straw in your drink? Do you need the plastic cutlery with your delivery? Do you need a plastic bag at the supermarket for carrying one item?
- Reduce – The best way to cut down on your carbon footprint is to reduce your consumption. Can you reduce the amount of food you buy? Can you reduce the amount of clothes you buy? Can you reduce the amount of A/C you use?
- Reuse –Forget the concept of “single-use”, instead think about multiple use. For everything! Re-use your everyday essentials; bags, cups, cutlery, bottles, containers. If you do have single-use items, don’t throw them and reuse them again and again.
- Repurpose – Where possible, be creative, find new uses and repurpose items at home that you no longer need. Use un-needed clothes as cleaning cloths! Use shoe boxes as storage solutions! Further, choose products and support companies that use recycled or repurposed materials.
- Recycle – Sort your waste and packaging and recycle. If you do not have a dedicated recycling bin at home, send everything you cannot re-use to a reliable recycler. Check locally for facilities.
Greenwashing
“Eco-friendly,” “organic,” “natural” and “green” are just some examples of labelling that can be confusing and misleading.
Sixty-six percent of consumers would spend more on a product if it comes from a sustainable brand, according to Nielsen’s Global Corporate Sustainability Report, so it is understandable that companies are so keen to market their products to be “green”!
Here are some tips to help spot the greenwashing:
- Look out for words with no clear meaning, such as “eco-friendly”
- Always check the small print, is the plastic bottle made from 100% recycled plastic or only 5% recycled plastic?
- No proof: It could be right, but where’s the evidence?
- If you don’t recognise a term, do your own research.
- Beware of scientific or technical language, claims should be in plain language.
- Look out for claims that are not actually relevant to the product.
- Beware of images and icons that are used to imply an environmental benefit and try not to make assumptions.
- Consider the whole product life cycle – a recycled product might be produced in a factory far away so that the transportation adds a large global footprint.
- Beware of broad claims such as ‘green’ which can easily be misleading.
Sustainability Tips
Here are our favourite every day tips to have an impact:
- Take your own containers and reusable bags with you to the supermarket when buying meats and chees from the deli counter.
- Take your re-usables everywhere – bottle, bags, coffee cups
- Carry your own cutlery with you and refuse single-use cutlery.
- Share food instead of wasting it.
- Shop local – reduce the CO2 impact of food transportation.
- Be sustainable with your clothes – restyle, swap, donate, re-wear
- Laundering uses a lot of energy – use cold water and line-dry.
- Buy organic and keep the environment free of toxic pesticides
- Conserve energy – make sustainable choices on lighting and air conditioning
- Leave the car – walk, ride a bike or take public transport
