A new month is here, and with it comes my favorite sustainability challenge all year — Plastic Free July.
What is Plastic Free July? Simply, it’s 31 days of making an effort to avoid single-use plastic that contribute to pollution and waste.
Plastic Free July is a global movement that helps millions of people be part of the solution to plastic pollution – so we can have cleaner streets, oceans, and beautiful communities.
This is my third year trying this challenge, and I’m excited to see how I might have improved as I’ve been incorporating different sustainable swaps at home over the years that have helped me immensely to live as low impact as possible.
And while July is a great month to audit my environmental impact, I also want to use this month to make other home and wellness improvements. So to keep myself accountable as much as possible, I’m listing my goals and expectations for this month. I’ll also try to post at least weekly updates on my wins, fails, and the sustainable lifestyle journey.
My Goals for Plastic Free July
Avoid and refuse any and all single-use plastics such as straws, plastic bags, coffee cups, takeaway cutlery, etc.
Always bring my zero waste kit with me when I leave the house.
Choose to buy local when possible.
Eat less meat.
Discover more sustainable swaps to incorporate into my home.
Minimize material things, and declutter my home.
Be more mindful of my wardrobe, and shift my clothes to slow fashion only.
My Expectations for Plastic Free July
I expect that I’ll be able to avoid a lot single-use plastic because it’s what I already do in my day to day life. I do expect that food shopping will definitely be difficult because so much of our food on island is imported in plastic and styrofoam. I expect I’ll fail sometimes, but I won’t dwell on those because it’s all about making the effort and moving forward.
My “zero waste kit” goes through iterations of essentials to curb my plastic consumption, but my go-to basics are my reusable water bottle, a sturdy tote bag, and utensils I already own. My expectation is that I’ll do a decent job at taking my zero waste kit around but I anticipate some honest mistakes like forgetting to request “no straw, please” when at restaurants.
Buying local is obviously the first choice because it supports our local economy, but unfortunately a lot of local produce comes packaged in non-renewable plastic. I expect that this will likely be our exceptions to the challenge because we love local produce but we’re still thinking of ways to improve.
I’ve already eliminated beef and pork from my diet, and have been getting more into plant-based products, so I think I’ll do pretty good on that this month.
We’ve transitioned our home into a much more conscious environment — composting our food scraps, sorting our glass, and aluminums for recycling, and have made various changes to little things like using cloth napkins instead of paper towels, using soap and shampoo bars, etc. There’s a lot more of the little stuff that are harder for us, like how to get a more eco-friendly toothpaste option since it’s not readily available on island. I’ve tried DIY’ing toothpaste, and it did not turn out. So I’ll be looking for other swaps that we can make and even if there’s just one or two little things we change, that will make a big difference.
I just started on decluttering my home today, and have already culled more than 20 miscellaneous items from my home, and that was just in one hour of decluttering! There’s probably about a hundred more things I could get rid of… my neighbor is hosting a clothing swap in the next few weeks, so I’ll be organizing my stuff to a giveaway pile, and donate pile. I hope that by the end of the month, through daily decluttering, I’ll be able to minimize my material possessions to only things that are functional and bring me joy.
If you’ve seen some of my recent blog posts, you’ll see that I’ve started sewing again and making my own clothing pieces. It was my goal last year to not shop fast fashion, and I think I did okay but this month I will go more thoroughly through my wardrobe and try to repair some pieces that need TLC, and think about how much I wear and rewear pieces to identify my favorite essential clothing and get rid of ones that I don’t need or wear.
Overall, I feel like my mindset is in the right place. My sustainability journey has been eye opening over the past three to four years. My habits are continually shifting; I’m more mindful of my consumption; and I am enjoying every step of the way.
I’ve never put much thought or care into how I’m supposed to clean and condition my wood cutting boards, bowls or utensils… but this super easy homemade wood butter is everything I need to get shiny buttery wood! Lollllllll
~
Ingredients:
Natural beeswax
Cold pressed coconut oil
Lemon
~
Mix 1 part beeswax with 3 parts coconut oil in a bowl. Heat in microwave for ~30 seconds until it’s all melted. Squeeze the juice of a lemon in the bowl and stir. Pour into a wide glass jar. Let it cool for a few hours, and voila! Apply a thin layer to condition your wood to give it a brand new sheen so it lasts longer and prevents mold. Plus it’s totally food safe!
Feast your eyes on this tropical zero waste party idea!
My best friend Gabby Faaiuaso hosted a sustainable baby shower party for her oldest sister Siumu (who works for the local Environmental Protection Agency), and I was so impressed with the ingenuity of it all! Also impressive is the fact that she planned it all within a week’s time and got everyone together to make it eco-friendly.
A couple of weeks ago, Gabby told me she was planning her sister Siumu’s surprise baby shower and she might need some help. She said she was inspired by what I’ve been doing to live a more sustainable life and decided on an eco-friendly tropical theme for the party. What?! How cool!! This made me very excited to hear her list out all the ways she was opting for a zero waste event. I immediately offered to provide cloth napkins (instead of paper towels), and before I knew it, Gabby came over to my house with a giant bundle of orange fabric. I just had to cut and hem. But it seemed too plain, and Gabby was already pulling all the stops, so I had to level up (yassss to Ciara + Parri$).
I finally had a good reason to use this elei stencil I bought in Samoa over New Year.
It took a looooong time but once I set up my workbench and did a couple of test prints, I found my groove. I cut the long fabric into pieces that could fit 4 napkins, taped the stencil down and placed two 2×4 blocks to keep the fabric from warping, poured and painted with a roller, took it out to the balcony to dry, and repeated this… about 15 more times! With less than 24 hours before the event, I couldn’t leave them out to dry, so thankfully Ian helped and ironed all the pieces to heat set the fabric paint. Then I cut out the 4 napkins from each strip, and took it to my sewing machine to do a raw hem edge.
Like I said, it took foreverrrr. I started on Friday afternoon and finished at 5am the next day, just a few hours before the surprise baby shower! Oh man, if it weren’t for Gabby, I don’t think I would have done any of this but I’m glad they turned out. I’ll be posting photos from the beautiful baby shower super soon!
Please welcome the newest addition to my zero waste kit – this 100% cotton cloth bento bag!
I love the florals, the elephants, the colors and the paisley pattern. And it’s so so soft. I’ve been loving my lime green cloth bento bag that I made several months ago as a draft but the seams are messy. I’ll continue to use it as a backup bento bag and for grocery shopping. This new bento bag is extra special to me because the fabric is from an upcycled circle skirt that I bought from a market in India back in 2012. I’ve always loved the soft cotton material and the earthy tones so I kept it over the years even though I almost never wore it.
Cloth bento bags are useful for carrying leftovers in containers, produce from grocery stores (instead of plastic), and I’ve even used it for pizza takeaway (the only time I ever had to wash it). They’re also great as reusable gift wrappers.
STEP 1
Measure 10 inches x 30 inches of fabric and cut with some space for seam allowance. Width to height
STEP 2
From bottom left corner of your rectangle, fold up so it’s aligned with the top of the fabric, making a triangle.
STEP 3
From top right corner of rectangle, fold down so it’s aligned with the bottom of fabric, making another triangle.
STEP 4
Now from bottom right edge, fold up diagonally so that your folded fabric looks like the photo above.
Finally
Sew up where the edges meet on the front and back so you have this open box shape. Swipe right to see the finished project above.
And voila – you’re done!
To use, simply put your tupperware/ produce/ gift inside and tie a knot. It may not look like much but the knot will hold and you can easily carry it around in your lunch bag or tote.
Thanks to everyone who wrote me about my sustainable living posts!
I was so stoked to be part of #PlasticFreeJuly, and started strong! I brought my own cutlery to church (we usually have a big potluck lunch with everyone after church) and after I commented on the paper bowls, my dad said they would only use paper plates/bowls from now on! After church, I got real crafty! Courtney and I got starfruit from a tree outside, made some pretty drinks using our metal straws and put on some tunes, then I made a new batch of natural deodorant and filled a reused mini sunscreen stick (looks like an old glue stick) for my upcoming trip and gave her a reused mini deodorant container for her to try out. Then we got help from our neighbor to make coconut bowls with fallen coconuts in the yard.
2/Monday
Not today, plastic! However it was pointed out to me that l was munching on edamame packaged in plastic, but in my defense, it was already in my pantry from a previous grocery run. Note to self: look for a plastic free alternative in the future!
3/Tuesday
I made vegan curry and quinoa for Courtney’s birthday (though 100% credit goes to her for hand-squeezing her own coconut cream from Sunday’s coconuts!) and again, the eggplants and quinoa were packaged in plastic. I got these before I decided to try #PlasticFreeJuly. Also, I’ve made peace with the fact that I can’t always go 100% plastic free. What I can do is try my best to make sustainable choices.
4/Wednesday
Happy 4th of July! The struggle is real. I worked all afternoon and evening at the Fireworks event and avoided plastic and styrofoam takeaways until the end of the night when I took home a Samoan-style food platter (made of plastic) and drank out of a plastic cup which was handed to me for a toast to my coworker’s birthday.
5/Thursday
Sometimes you try, and sometimes you fail. At a work lunch, I ordered a drink and remembered to ask “no straw please”. A few minutes later, my drink is delivered… with a plastic straw. I took it out of my drink and then realized it was already used and it would go into the trash anyway at this point, so I put it back in my drink and used it. I also went to Turtle & Shark gift lodge and purchased mostly plastic free gifts for friends. It wasn’t until after I paid and I was going through my purchases that I realized a pair of lopā seed earrings were cased in clear plastic and my usual favorite travel-sized Mailelani coconut oil was packaged in a plastic bottle. At first I bummed myself out that I didn’t even realize they came in plastic. But I thought about it, and I’m actually okay with these because I’m supporting local business and handicrafts, plus I can reuse/recycle the plastic bottle!
6/Friday
I mentioned before that zero waste travel was hard for me. I was on the Hawaiian Air flight and the free meal service came around. I thought about refusing the meal since there was a lot of plastic, but I was so hungry and I have no idea if they’re just going to throw out the food anyways, so I got it. BUT I made sure to use my own utensils, opted for the aluminum juice can instead of a plastic cup, and neatly organized my tray so it was obvious that the cutlery and water were still good to use.
7/Saturday
I love the idea of farmer’s markets but unfortunately barely ever get to go to any, so when my friend Kristine said she was going to one near her house, I jumped at the opportunity. They’ve got such a good vibe to them! I hadn’t eaten breakfast yet and it was almost noon so I searched for a sustainable option and set my sights on a “fawaffel” spot with compostable takeaway containers. It was delicious, plant based, and guilt free! I caught my connecting flight to Phoenix and the free meal service came around. Ahhh, I forgot again! It was a 6 hour flight so I cut my losses and devoured my sandwich and sweet Maui onion chips. And the free rum punch. Oops.
LESSON LEARNED
Don’t be too hard on yourself.
I felt inspired on my own accord by the #PlasticFreeJuly movement and I used that feeling to motivate and propel my decisions to go plastic free as much as I could throughout my first week. I failed a few times already in the last 7 days, but I won’t let that prevent me from continuing to try. I still take every option and choice as a win as long as I’m learning and making conscious decisions.
was to lessen my waste and strive for a zero waste lifestyle. I’ve made small habit changes over the months that help reduce my footprint but now it’s almost July and I’ve accepted the challenge to action this goal every day for 31 days!
If you haven’t heard about #PlasticFreeJuly,
it’s a social movement (which started in Oz I believe) I found online that encourages people all over the world to try to go plastic free for a whole month. You can sign up to accept the challenge here! What this means is that I’ll be reducing and refusing single-use disposable products such as plastic bags, plastic cutlery, plastic and styrofoam plates, plastic water bottles, etc.
I’ve been doing a pretty okay job at this so far, but there are definitely times when I forget to say no straw please, or forget my grocery totes at home, or drink out of plastic water bottles when I should have just refilled my own Nalgene. So for the next 31 days, I hope to make a low waste/ high quality impact!
But as always,
it’s a work in progress and I’m excited to try my best to go plastic free all month.
The biggest challenge…
I’m anticipating is that I’ll be traveling for most of July, and as I’ve learned in other recent travels–avoiding single use disposable products can be difficult because they’re just so readily available and sometimes seem to be the only option. I’m looking at you plastic wrapped airline food!
In preparation for #PlasticFreeJuly,
here’s a list of changes I’ve made in my life since late last year when I became more acutely aware of my environment and learned about zero waste living:
/ I leave all my tote bags by the door so I don’t forget it when I go grocery shopping
/ I’ve switched to bamboo and metal straws and always politely ask for “No straw please” when I’m ordering a bevvy
/ Made my own zero waste kit (carrying my own cutlery). You can check out my
/ Sewed a cloth bento bag from scrap fabric to carry my said tupperware
/ Also sewed a black cloth trash bag liner so I no longer use plastic trash bags. *This always confused me because I felt like I was making more trash by throwing my trash in plastic trash.
/ Switched to homemade cloth napkins using scrap material
Ok ok ok… is it weird that I’m kind of nervous to start this challenge? Well, I’m excited mostly! But also slightly nervous. Ah!
To keep myself accountable,
I’ll be posting on my instagram stories every day in July and will post weekly updates here on my blog! I hope you follow along in July and I also encourage you to accept the challenge and try #PlasticFreeJuly!
If you’re interested in learning more about how you can live more sustainably, check out my post: 20 WAYS TO LIVE MORE SUSTAINABLY
*Cue the birds chirping, the wind rustling through the leaves, and the sound of waves crashing*
I totally meant to post this on Earth Day (April 22nd) but I’m posting this just a little late, though still in time for Earth Week. Go outside and enjoy the sunbeams on your face, dig your toes into the earth, and think of as many things you’re thankful for that the Earth provides.
But also remember that every day is Earth Day! Which is why I wanted to share some things I’m doing as I progress toward a more sustainable lifestyle. Here are my 20 ways to be kinder to our environment.
1. SAY NO TO PLASTIC STRAWS
Instead, invest in a bamboo, metal or glass straw. It’s way more hip, and way better for the environment. Did you know that millions of plastic straws are used up every single day? And did you also know that they cannot be reused AT ALL! I saw that famous video of a turtle with a straw stuck in it’s nose and I cried. Now whenever I go to a store or restaurant, I have to remind myself to say “No straw, please” and use my own bamboo straw.
2. REUSABLE GROCERY BAGS
This one is a bit obvious, but say no to plastic bags. Opt for brown bags, or starch bags. I was so elated when American Samoa banned plastic bags (A.S.C.A 25.2034) for commercial use, and all shops are now required to use only bio degradable bags which decompose in about 180 days! Still I try to avoid single use bags altogether and bring my own tote bag. Which, by the way, are so functional! And so cute. Why would you want to walk out of the grocery store with an ugly plastic bag? You can make your own tote bag out of fabric scraps, or an old t-shirt! Add your personality to it if you want, and bring it with you everywhere.
3. THRIFT/CLOTHING SWAPS
I have always been a thrift lover. Most of my favorite clothing I got from thrift stores. It always feels like a treasure hunt, finding something that fits me and knowing that I’m not taking part in fast fashion. Did you know that fast fashion as an industry is one of the major sources of pollution on the planet? I saw this quote somewhere said “If you want to see the upcoming color of the season, just check the color of the Yangtze river”. It’s horrible but so illustrative of how bad the fast fashion industry has become. Clothing swaps are so much fun too. My first clothing swap was here in American Samoa. Because it’s such a small island with limited shopping options, my group of girl friends hosted a clothing swap, and it’s genius! We all brought our gently used clothes and a bottle of wine to share and it turns into a costume party and catwalk all in one. We grab our favorites, and donate the rest to our local charity, Hope House.
4. TUPPERWARE
I’m still an amateur at cooking so not gonna lie, I eat out every so often. And because I don’t always finish my food, I end up getting takeaway. BUT ever since I learned that I could bring my own tupperware, I am so much more conscious of the waste that goes into food takeaways! We’ve invested in some glass tupperware that we take with us to restaurants (or leave them in the car just in case we need them), and pack our food if we have leftovers. This saves us from using styrofoam plates, and saves the restaurant money so they can focus on high quality food instead of spending money on takeaway boxes. Koko Bean and Double Z’s get thumbs up for never judging me when I do this lol!
5. OPT FOR GLASS
When you’re buying drinks from the store, instead of getting plastic bottles, look for glass or aluminum options. These are more readily recyclable than plastic.
6. BAMBOO TOOTHBRUSH
Did you know that over 1 billion plastic toothbrushes are used a year in America ALONE?? And these are almost never recycled. They take well over 500 years to decompose. I never thought about something as innocent seeming as a toothbrush could make such a huge impact on the environment. I made the switch to bamboo, and I’m never looking back! I bought this pack of 8 Juvale bamboo toothbrushes on Amazon.com for only about $16.
7. BYO- coffee cup/water bottle
Never before has coffee culture been so popular. It’s cool, it’s hipster. So why settle for the standard disposable coffee cup? Bring your own super cool mug or tumbler and show off your personality at coffee shops! Also, try your best to avoid foam cups and the plastic tops. Ask to use their mugs instead. Same goes with water. Stay cool (literally and in the style sense, duh) and stay hydrated. Fill up at any community water dispenser.
8. Zero Waste Kit
Now this is basically just carrying all your sustainable to-go items such as reusable spoon/fork and straw around with you (in your cute tote bag!) so you won’t ever need to use plastic or styrofoam. It’s made such a difference for me to have this on hand when I go out, and it’s made me realize how often I encounter single use disposable items that I can now avoid. See my zero waste kit here.
9. Water filter
If you’re like me and you live in a place where drinking water sources may be contaminated, you should invest in a water filter instead of constantly buying bottled water. I use the Gravity Works Platypus water filter. It is amazing. It uses microfiber filaments to filter out most bacterium. We’ve had ours for 2 years, just filling it with sink water (which we can’t safely drink on its own) and then filtering to fresh drinking water. We also have a LifeStraw which we’ll take when we travel.
10. Recycle glass, aluminum, plastics, and e-waste
In American Samoa, you can take your recycled beverage containers like coke cans, Vailima bottles, Dasani water bottles, etc. at GHC Reid or PPTC, and ASPA also collects glass recycleables and crushes them for their cement mixes. There are more opportunities for recycling on island than you might realize!
11. Reef friendly sunscreen
Did you know that most sunscreens contain chemicals that harmfully affect fish and coral reefs? While it’s important to protect our skin, it’s also super important to consider the ingredients in your sunscreen. With summertime around the corner, many people will head to the beach lathered in sunscreen but please remember that most sunscreens are not reef-safe. Some reef-friendly sunscreen brands include Badger,All Good, and Raw Elements.
12. Rechargeable batteries
Don’t toss out old batteries! Make sure to take them to an e-waste center (in my case, ASPA). As an alternative, rechargeable batteries are not only sooo convenient, they’re also cost effective! You’re not constantly having to purchase new batteries, you leave less impact on e-waste materials, and you can reuse them multiple times. I use the Energizer rechargeable AA and AAA batteries and Universal charger for my external camera flash which uses up batteries quickly, and it’s saved me so much money.
13. Refillable pens and pencils
We use pens and pencils every day, and billions are produced every year. Have you noticed that almost all pens you see now are plastic? These go directly into land fills, they do not biodegrade, and they can turn into microplastics that poison soil. Instead, try to opt for pens and pencils made of sustainable sources, or you can also purchase pens with refillable ink so you’re reducing waste.
14. Carpool / Public Transport / Ride Bike
There are so many pros to this. Social interaction in carpool rides, people watching in the aiga bus and public transportation. Riding your bike doubles as exercising. And of course, you’re reducing your carbon footprint!
15. Menstrual cup
The average woman uses about 240 tampons a year. Can you imagine how many applicators/pads/plastic lining waste this creates with millions of women around the world? This is something that I’m still researching and have on my wish list because I live so remotely and I don’t want to purchase something that doesn’t fit me properly. I have heard lots of great things about menstrual cups though – they save you money so you won’t need to purchase anything else, and prevents a lot of waste on other feminine period products.
16. Eat less (or no) meat
Did you know that it takes up to 2,500 gallons of water just to make 1 lb of meat? Plus think of all the greenhouse gas emissions! I am slowly adapting this to my life because not gonna lie, I love bacon. I have over the years though, been better about my meat consumption. And really even one meal a day without meat makes a huge difference.
17. Grow your own food
This one takes a bit of commitments and time, but if you love basil and peppers as much as I do, you should really grow your own! Herbs and leafy greens make your meals colorful and provide rich nutrients for your body. I make sure to stay away from harmful pesticides because I don’t want to be consuming food with poisonous pesticides. To start, you can find seeds at a local store, and if you live in American Samoa, you can stop by the Land Grant and pick up plant starters to get your mini garden going!
18. Shop local
Support your economy (and the environment) by shopping at local stores that sell local produce and handicrafts. When you shop local, you’re supporting people and jobs in your community, and at the same time cutting down on pollution from transporting things like your organic bananas from somewhere in Mexico all the way to you.
19. Care for your animals
I never used to consider myself much of an animal person, and believe it or not, I used to hate cats. I thought they were jerks. Now I have a cat and a dog that I absolutely adore! But Nerelle, how is this related to sustainable living? Well, because by caring for our animal friends, you’re showing compassion for all living creatures. Besides- they’re super cute and are the best companions!
20. Go digital.
Opt to go paper-less as much as possible, especially with bills! In American Samoa, did you know that you can opt for emails instead of paper bills on your Bluesky cable and internet bill, as well as your ASPA water and electricity bill? Pay your Bluesky bill online here, and your ASPA bill online here. And my favorite part – paychecks! Ask your employer to set up automatic direct deposits instead of receiving paper pay stubs. So you’ll automatically get your money in the bank!
BONUS TIP!
REFUSE. REDUCE. REUSE. RECYCLE.
And there you have it! Those are my tips for a more sustainable lifestyle.
I know that I’m not perfect and I mess up ALL THE TIME but I’m trying –
and boy does it feel good to try! I hope that this was useful to you too!
So it’s currently midnight and I’d normally be in bed already buuuut I felt the urge to craft and make myself a new card wallet!
As you may know, I’m doing a bit of traveling to a few different countries starting next month and I was thinking about how to keep my things as minimal as possible since I’ve only got one carry on bag(!!!! One carry on bag is all Ian’s idea!!). I used to have this envelope shaped card wallet that a friend brought back from Fiji, and I loved it. I used it for about 2 years before the woven button fringed up and came undone.
I have a bunch of other wallets and wristlets—my most recent was the Lalelei fabric wristlet—but they’re all on the larger types of wallets. I’ve also been trying to downsize what I carry around in my bag daily and so wanted to go back to a card wallet.
ENTER: my past-bedtime-10pm-DIY-sewing-adventure card wallet! I love it so much already. I’m swooning over the bright yellow linen-y fabric (which I hand dyed naturally with turmeric). The sturdiness of the canvas fabric. The way my cards fit so perfectly. And mostly because I wasn’t expecting to like it. But I do. I like it a lot!
It’s a super simple design. I could have added more pockets but didn’t want it to get bulky since I’m using canvas, and besides, I can fit probably at least 14 cards in there. Hmm, I should do a test to see how many it can hold.
Anyhow, I just thought I’d share this highlight bit from my day. What do you think of this fabric card wallet? Should I post a tutorial on how I made it?
Leave a comment below and let me know!
Have a wonderful tomorrow
It has been a busy past few weeks! Between my growing hectic work life and social events having to say say goodbye to island friends, I haven’t had a lot of time to do much else. I’ve been blogging more but there have still been several developments worth mentioning:
I’m officially booked for travel in May! I’ll be going to a few different places; some of which I’ve never been to! I’ll first be going to Samoa for a friend’s wedding, then stopping over in Arizona to visit my sister’s family for some much needed quality time with my nephew and niece, and then… I’m off to Dominican Republic for another friend’s wedding! Love is in the air, and I’m so excited for the good times to be had! I might also be swinging through Puerto Rico to meet up with some friends there, so fingers crossed things all work out!
Another new development: Matcha green tea. I know there was a craze about it in the mainland, and I’ve never really been one for trendy fads, but I just happened to see a box of Matcha green tea at my local grocer and picked it up for $12 (because it’s normally ~$30 on Amazon for this particular tea). I had no idea what it was or how to even prepare it, but I tried it late one evening and was so caffeined out I stayed up until 5am. And I didn’t mind. I was so productive that night and even though I slept late, I had a good sleep. So now I have a nice hot cuppa matcha almost every day hahaha. I’m a convert! It’s purported to be good for you as it’s 10x higher in antioxidants than regular green tea, but who knows, maybe the buzz will wear off.
And speaking of matcha and health goodness, I’ve started experimenting with a new health supplement – marine collagen. My inner asian girl has come out looking for more ways to keep my skin and bones young and healthy. I had been curious about collagen effects and found marine collagen peptides at my local drug store, so decided to give it a go. We’ll see how well it works in like 25 years haha. Hoping it works well with my asian genes.
Other inner discoveries – I’m fine tuning my inner hippie. You may have seen my zero waste kit for beginners (if you haven’t, please check it out!), and this isn’t all that new. I’ve been using a zero waste kit since November 2017, and I’ve been avoiding plastic and styrofoam more actively since last January. It was one of my resolutions last year. So in line with more sustainable living, I cut out deodorant 4 months ago and detoxed all the harmful chemicals for a month. Did you know that most deodorants contain cancer causing chemicals? Look at this insane list of toxic ingredients in an average deodorant, or pick up your own deodorant and have a quick read through its ingredients. We apply this on our bodies daily, so it’s important to know what you’re messing with. All that being said, I made my own natural organic deodorant and I use it most days, but I also love using lemons/limes. It actually works. I’ll be expanding more how I made it in another post.
What have you been up to lately?
If you’re a hippie, I’d love to hear some pointers on more sustainable living! lol thanks
Living on a remote island, you would think that sustainable living comes naturally. And it should. That’s the beauty of a simple island life, right? However, these days so much waste is generated for the ease of convenience. For example, fast food culture has become the norm here, and so even at a Sunday to’ona’i (family feast gathering), you’ll commonly see styrofoam takeaway plates. These are single use items that do not decompose, cannot be recycled, and have a life span of a few hours. Then it’s off to the dump where it will sit forever – along with the plastic spoons and forks and straws that are also used for convenience – and seep harmful chemicals into the soil.
PS- Did you know that American Samoa’s landfill is unlined?
What is zero waste?
Zero Waste (or ZW) is a lifestyle practice of eliminating or minimizing single use disposable waste.
There are a lot of reasons to consider going zero waste. For me, it’s because I have always been interested in all matters of going green, recycling, and sustainable living, but putting it into practice daily is the challenge.
Which is why I put together this Zero Waste Kit for Beginners. It’s something I take around with me as much as possible to prevent waste.
Zero Waste Kit for beginners:
Drawstring bag
Spoon and fork
Chopsticks
Reusable straw
Tote bag
Optional:
Tupperware
Water bottle / Mug
Baby steps.
Being 100% Zero Waste is very veryvery difficult. Just doing groceries creates waste. Local cherry tomatoes are sold in a ziplock bag. There are times when I forget and I’m already in line at Koko Bean and the lady is scooping my BBQ chicken into a styrofoam plate. Or when I order an Arnie Palmer and forget to say “no straw please” until the glass is sitting in front of me with a plastic straw. Then I think of the turtles. Teardrop.
But that’s why this ZW kit is so great!
It’s easy. It’s convenient. It makes sense. And it’s something I can do NOW to make a small but meaningful impact. And I hope you try it out too! The best part is you can make it your own. Carry a cute tote bag around. Sew your own drawstring bag (I dyed my own fabric using turmeric!). Pick your favorite utensils. Drink out of your most loved mug. And you’ll make the world a better place.
