by Alanna Ketler, Collective Evolution
There once was a time, back in the day where everything that was purchased was either in bulk, or came in a reusable container or sack, and there was virtually no trash produced whatsoever. Everything was reused in some form, and there was hardly any waste. And then came the introduction of plastic, and around that same time, mass consumerism. Everything then became all about convenience and everything that you bought was likely wrapped in plastic packaging of some kind.
We were producing and consuming insane amounts of garbage with little to no regard for how that might in fact impact the environment, and although in the grand scheme of things this only went on for a short period of time, we have seen the massive devastation it has caused to our oceans and forests, and to the ecosystem in general. Luckily, people are beginning to wake up to the fact that this isn’t sustainable and we need to change how we are doing things, and fast.
Luckily, in more recent years there have been some incredible recycling efforts put forth by many cities and municipalities around the world, but in essence, unless we change our ways of mass consumerism, this isn’t really going to help very much. So, what can we do? Stop consuming so much. Blunt, plain and simple. This is the single most important thing you can do right now to directly impact the massive footprint we as a species are putting on our planet.
Earth-friendly options are becoming more and more widely available, but it is up to you as the consumer to seek them out and choose to use those products and support those companies. If you truly want to impact the environment in a positive manner, you will put your money where your mouth is and vote with your dollar.
Choose packaging with little to no plastic wrapping, buy used, fix the items you have purchased that have broken, buy in bulk, make your own personal care products, use reusable shopping bags, don’t buy pre-cut fruits and veggies that come in plastic c0ntainers, buy products that come in glass and re-use this for other things, buy products that are built to last and even borrow what you need (if your community has a “Library Of Things”). As you can see, there are so many options available that you can choose to positively impact change on this planet; you just have to look.
Below is a video of an excellent example of a waste-free store. Everything in this store is either recyclable or compostable, and you can bring your own containers to fill up. This sort of thing is likely to catch on in the upcoming years as more and more people become aware of how to shop more consciously.
The Package Free Store
We can all do our part.
Much Love
