The new roaring 20s. And oh boy, what a roar!! 2020-2021. What a time that will go down in history! As a bad year for social interactions? Yes. Terrible for travel? Unfortunately, yes. Stressful for your safety and health? Definitely yes. It’s safe to assume that 2020 will not go down as humanity’s top 10 favourite years, but there are still some chances for 2021 to pick up some slack!
Amidst all these negative vibes, some good things happened for our beloved planet Earth. This past March, the International Energy Agency’s report announced that a drop-off in global CO2 emissions of 6% occurred in 2020, an equivalent of around 2 billion tons of warming gasses. 'That’s about the same as eliminating the entirety of the European Union’s annual CO2 output' [Time, 2021].
Doesn't this feel great to hear? One can only hope the situation keeps on improving further and that people see this achievement as a wake-up call to their capabilities of caring for our planet.
Yes, those are side-effects of massive lockdowns and industries slowing down as a result thereof. You might want to argue that things will go back to how they were, once life resumes like before. But what if there’s something we can do to keep up this good work?
Earth Day is just around the corner (22 April, 2021) and we thought we could share some tips you can implement in your daily routines to slowly contribute towards a positive change, to take a small step towards a more sustainable and ethical way of living.
Have you heard of the 6 Rs of sustainability? 6 simple approaches that can help you reduce your impact on the environment.
1. REDUCE: did you know that out of the 70% of water on our planet, only a tinsy, tiny 2.5% is actually freshwater? Mind blowing! [National Geographic, 2021] So let’s close that tap when we’re brushing our teeth, or stop taking long baths or showers just because we want to stay in for another song and karaoke as if no one hears us, or because the warm water feels so good on your skin. Let’s be honest. Who really wants to look like a dried plum? But this measure is a drop in the ocean when we understand the resources engaged in order to produce only one cotton t-shirt, which uses 2,700 liters of water, enough 'to meet the average person’s drinking needs for two-and-a-half years' according to the World Resources Institute. Water is one of the most precious resources we have on the planet and according to WWF 70% of it is used for agriculture. So let’s not waste it! Shop local, buy small, avoid waste! Imagine what you could do if you started swapping plastic bags for your own groceries bags; or used your own cutlery, reusable water bottles and cups instead of opting for the single-use plastic version? As for shopping? We have 2 words. Buy Local. It’s far more sustainable and think of all the CO2 emissions you would reduce in the process! Not to mention helping and supporting your small local community.
2. REUSE: 10 to 20 million tons of plastic end up in our oceans every year [Sloactive, 2021]. Some can live there for up to 500 years! Guess what accounts to nearly 35% of that? You got it! According to academic estimates, the culprit is synthetic clothing. The fashion industry’s side effects are not just plastic pollution, or even excessive water use. It’s also air pollution. 'The apparel industry accounts for 10 percent of global greenhouse gases as it produces and transports millions of garments yearly', making the fashion industry the 2nd largest polluting industry in the world! [Forbes, 2021]. And of course the huge energy waste. 1 lorry of clothes is either burned or landfilled every second. That’s almost 3,000 kilograms per second! [WRI, 2021]. There is good news on the horizon though, because as of 2020, 60% of consumers consider the environmental impact of their purchases as a decision-making factor. Isn’t it better to invest in those few pieces made with care that could last you a lifetime which you can reuse day after day? Who doesn’t like mixing that vintage dress with a modern jacket? Or for when you really want to treat yourself to something new, because let’s face it, we all like to do that every now and then, make sure to opt for a slow fashion, sustainable brand like ours. Have you seen our environmental contributions and transparency costs for each product? You’d be amazed at what goes on behind the scenes for a company who actually cares about the environment and the consumer.
3. RECYCLE: whenever you can. Always try to sort your plastic, your cardboard and general waste, and send those bad babies to their respective recycling bins.
4. REPAIR: let’s give all our belongings a second chance at life! With so many DIY videos available to us nowadays, we can all become a handyman/handywoman. We’ve all had that one thing we loved so much and thought we couldn’t fix and ended up saying goodbye to when maybe we could have said “hello again!” We might not be able to bring that one thing back to its former life, BUT you can always...
5. REPURPOSE it! Creativity has no bounds but the sky - if that! - so go out there and have fun with what you already have, play with it and make something new. It can be very satisfactory. The planet can only be grateful.
6. REPLANT: This last one varies, but here we’ll talk about “planting a new seed”. The earth with its fauna and flora nourishes us, it gives us our much-needed oxygen and water to satiate our thirsts. Let’s give something back in return. You’ll not only be rewarded with a nice tree in your garden, or park, or forest - and be proud of your own labour - but you’d have also contributed to making your planet healthier. A single average-size tree produces enough oxygen in a year to sustain a family of four. Imagine if every single person on this planet did the same? Crazy, right? We try to contribute to that by sending all our customers a seed to plant for each purchase they make with us. In our effort to contribute to the environment, we’ve made all our hang tags compostable and biodegradable and filled with a little bit of extra love: seeds! Go on, pop them in your garden or in a nice pot, give them a little bit of love and watch them grow! If you want to find out more about what trees do for us, have a look here, you might be surprised how much we depend on them.
The 6 Rs are some of the little steps you can take to improve your environmental footprint. Speaking of feet - in its more literal sense - how about walking and cycling? It’s good for your health and makes for good exercise - especially after so many months without gyms - in view of that future summer silhouette. And, oh hey! Say bye to pollution too, because yes, fuel combustion from motor vehicles is one of the most contributing factors to ambient air pollution according to WHO [2021].
But let’s bring things into an even more accurate and current perspective. Sure, when we think about the dangers we suppress the environment to, what usually comes to our mind is the pollution generated by cars or by heavy industries. However, one aspect which is usually ignored is the amount of products we consume, from plastic bottles to even the clothes we wear. The environmental problem became even more accentuated due to the current pandemic situation, where it is estimated that 'we use an astounding 129 billion face masks globally every month -- that is 3 million a minute. Most of them are disposable face masks made from plastic microfibers.' [Science Daily, 2021]
One way we can reduce this plastic consumption would be to utilise reusable masks, and we have the best alternative to disposable masks available in the UK, the ADKN 4 Layer Reusable Bamboo Face Mask with Filters, made from premium quality organic materials - a hydrophobic (water-repellant) bamboo blend outer layer, double filter media from 100% bamboo and 100% tencel and a hydrophilic (water-absorbing) bamboo blend inner layer - developed in accordance with WHO guidelines and AFNOR specifications and locally produced in our London studio with the utmost environmental care.
Some final words of wisdom: Let’s give ourselves a chance at a healthier lifestyle by caring for our little blue planet. She’s unique and she’s ours to care for. Let’s cherish it together!
