We all go through life with our heads focused on different things. Families, relationships, work, study, world events, social media and on it goes. But have you ever had the experience where something you never really noticed before becomes like a beacon? A light has been shone and things don't look the same anymore.
I'd like to think I've always been aware of environmental issues. At heart I'm a tree hugger. I grew up with an appreciation for nature and learnt to be quiet and still and watch birds and animals in their natural habitats. I've never understood those kids who screamed and chased sea gulls on the beach or throw rocks at ducks. Silence is golden when it comes to nature. Maybe it's a happy place for all introverts?
I've been a keen recycler and have enjoyed tending to a little vegie patch and herb garden, and composting my vegie scraps. Over time I've learnt to always have at least one spare cloth shopping bag with me. Peter and I started accumulating lots of cloth shopping bags and now we have many wonderful designs from markets or from events we've attended. After going vegan we started buying lots of oats, seeds and nuts. Each came in plastic packaging. Peter looked at me and the pile of plastic and suggested we try something.
We began going to CERES to buy our food. Organic fruit and veg and everything else we can bulk buy in paper bags, take our own small cloth bags, or fill up jars or bottles. It felt a bit awkward at first, as we didn't know how it all worked. But the lovely staff helped and now we grab a coffee, look at the chooks running around, view their vegie patches and breath while we shop. Our membership has given us so much more than an ability to reduce our waste. We've become regular faces and enjoy friendship and chats with the like-minded staff.
We were really pleased with ourselves. These little changes had meant we were consciously reducing our plastic consumption. Then we watched the War on Waste on the ABC. It horrified me. It highlighted something that we all seemed to be confused about. Were take away coffee cups recyclable? I'd always thought so. To my horror I found out they aren't. I had begun taking my own coffee to work to save money. Life was hard and it was a simple way to save some cash. Now I view people with their take away coffee and it makes me feel somewhere between angry and upset. On the flipside, since the War on Waste I see more and more people taking their own coffee cups everywhere. It tells you the power of information, when we are forced to look reality in the face, and assess our own environmental impact. I just wish everyone had watched the show.
You begin to look around the house and notice things. Double check your shopping cart. Is there something better, more sustainable that I can be buying? Learning that biodegradable plastic bags are just as crap for the environment as they break into small pieces and are more easily digested by birds and animals was another horrific realisation. Wondering how many decades it would take for my toothbrush to decompose, I followed Peter and have bought a bamboo brush! We are trying to cut down on glad wrap too and bought bees wax wraps. The reality is that there are alternatives out there. You just need to look and change some of your habits. Many friends online did Plastic Free July. They shared their tips and information via Facebook and it felt exciting to learn more and see what other people were doing. A groundswell was happening.
And we started stockpiling all the plastic we can't escape from and take it to the recycling drop offs at the supermarket. We keep our fingers crossed that these will end up being made into plastic seats etc rather than in landfill. With the support and interest generated by the War on Waste I hope the options increase for more environmentally sound products and packaging. I am hoping for a tipping point where plastic bags are banned and the market will dictate sustainable products succeed over future landfill. Consumer pressure is the best way to lobby for this as money always talks. I hope so anyway.
All this information made me realise another couple of things. I turned vegetarian when I was 14. I just never really like the taste of meat or fish and bones and fat in my food made me feel ill. I love animals and this also played a part in my change of lifestyle. About 3 years ago Peter and I went vegan. There is a lot of debate out there on the internet, but I do believe that a plant based diet is not only better for me, but also for the environment. Here, the Guardian says so. Even reducing your intake of animal products can help, so why not start with Meat Free Monday as every single thing you do can help.
And more recently I've been seeing articles about the impact of having children. I always thought it would be something I would do, but life had other plans for me. It just didn't happen. I have friends who made choices either to have children or not to. Circumstance has meant that at 47 I'm childless. Interestingly, the one thing that wasn't a conscious decision on my part could have the greatest environmental impact of all. Read this article about one woman's decision not to have children because of environmental reasons.
I've always believed that we should strive to leave the planet in a better state than we found it. The next generation shouldn't have to clean up our mess. With climate change looming large I fear we have failed. But each of us can still try to have an impact. Make change. Be better. It reminds me of this saying "Society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in.” It's never too late to leave a lighter footprint.
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