4 Small Steps to Becoming More Sustainable
SUSTAINABILITY AND ZERO WASTE LIVING ARE BECOMING THE HOT BUZZ WORDS LATELY AND FOR GOOD REASON. MY ONLY ISSUE WITH IT IS, THE IDEA OF LIVING ZERO WASTE CAN BE DAUNTING FOR MOST —MYSELF INCLUDED — BUT I READ A QUOTE THE OTHER DAY THAT REALLY RESONATED WITH ME, ‘WE DON'T NEED A HANDFUL OF PEOPLE DOING ZERO WASTE PERFECTLY. WE NEED MILLIONS OF PEOPLE DOING IT IMPERFECTLY.’
So with that in mind I’m going to start trying a little harder to reduce my environmental impact, one less disposable coffee cup at a time.
These are the small steps I’m starting with to try and live a little closer to zero waste.
Ditch disposable coffee cups
Ok, so I try on this one but I often find myself at the farmers market without my reusable coffee cup and in desperate need of a warm drink and cave but we’ve added our reusable mugs to our market list so we can’t forget them when we’re packing up in the wee hours on market days. It’s now right there next to our cash float and customer orders so they don’t get missed.
Grab myself some mesh produce bags
I always say no to plastic bags at the farmers market and instead juggle my purchases back to my stall where I can put them into one of our bins to bring back home but I always reach for the paper bags my fellow farm vendors supply for bulk veggies like brussels sprouts and potatoes. Then I went and watched this and am questioning whether paper is actually better… so now I need to get myself some reusable produce bags like these pretty options that are BC made.
Try zero-waste shampoo options
This one might be a doozy given the texture of my curly hair and the fact that as a farmer in animal agriculture it sometimes smells a little less fresh (yup I’m talking about poop in my hair) but I’m giving it a shot anyways because I cringe at the number of plastic bottles that I’ve gone through all in the name of clean hair. I’m starting with products made by my farmer friend Stacey at Coghlan Cottage Soap because I use her soap and love it, plus she’s just a wonderful human and farmer.
Switch to zero-waste food storage
So I’m part way there with beeswax wraps and mason jars but getting the rest of the family on board has been a bit more of a struggle but we’re getting there. I’m going to need to buy a few larger options but I recently noticed a bunch of zero waste food storage options available over at our butcher Lepp Farm Market so next time I’m in there I’m going to grab a few more options.
I know, it’s only 4 little steps but I think we’ve spent so long focused on what’s happening with sustainable farming practices that we’ve slipped a little on the home front so it’s a start. That’s the key to sustainability is everyone doing their best and making one small improvement after another.