Why I Do This
Hello friends, Thanks for joining me today.
I came to the decision to cut plastic out of my life about six months ago. I had stumbled across a Zero Waste youtuber, Kate Arnell, at her channel ECO BOOST, which opened my world to environmental concerns I never knew existed. Kate Arnell's channel is just one of many I now follow as she and others share about their Zero Waste journeys. (I hope to talk with you more about the Zero Waste movement soon.) As I learned more about how awful plastics are for our environment, I decided I needed to cut them from my life as much as possible.
When I made this decision I had lots of fears. I was afraid that others wouldn't understand. I was afraid my friends and family would mock me. I was afraid strangers at stores, restaurants, or other businesses would balk when I asked for their products sans plastic. I was afraid I'd be judged for going against society and accused of just wanting to make things difficult. I, however, wasn't afraid that I wouldn't succeed. I knew that I could never eliminate plastic 100% from my life but I was determined not to let that stop me from cutting out what I could.
I was right to some extent. I do have to explain myself a decent amount, but most people are happy to hear of my efforts. I find it encouraging when people I know say to me "because of you, I think twice before getting a plastic produce bag" or "I now bring my own shopping bags with me to the store" or "I'm noticing the packaging my stuff comes in now."
But I still have conversations with people who aren't supportive. The other week I was in a heated discussion with a woman at my church who pointed out the futility of my efforts. She told me that I won't change the world, that I can't prevent the oceans from filling with trash, that litter will still gather in our streets and pile up in our landfills.
I know this.
Yet, no one doctor can heal all the ailments of the world. No one scientist can unlock all of life's mysteries. That doesn't mean that no one should do what they can. I don't want to be part of a system that destroys our environment. I don't want to give my consent or approval to it. I refuse to be complacent. And yes, my individual actions won't solve this problem. But together we can.
My mother was born in the 1940s. Throughout her life she has seen many changes, too many for me to list in this post. But to give one, she has seen people rally against colored toilet-paper, that used to be very popular, due to health & environmental concerns. Have you seen any colored toilet-paper in US stores in the last few decades? No, because it is no longer legal to sell it. Because people cared. They refused to buy it and they made their concerns known to the government to stop it's production, sale, and use.
Even in my short lifetime (I'm not yet 30) I've seen a similar thing happen with grocery store bags. It has become common in the last few years for grocery stores to reward customers for bringing their own reusable shopping bags by taking a few cents off the shopper's total bill. Voters from the state of California even decided to officially ban single-use plastic shopping bags state-wide this last November, according to the San Diego Union-Times. It's not impossible for people to ban together and say "No" to something that is so destructive. We just have to de-normalize it. People have to understand that plastic isn't as innocent as we've always been told that it is.
The woman from my church also pointed out to me that my life-style isn't easy. As far as I'm concerned, this argument is completely missing the point. I'm not living without plastic because it's easy, I'm doing it because it's the right thing to do.
It's funny to me how people who've never tried to live plastic-free think it's a monstrous task that can only cause difficulty. Yes, there are somethings that I choose to live without so I don't have to use plastic packaging. There are other things that I make myself so I can avoid unnecessary plastic consumption. But after six months of significantly reducing my plastic consumption I can honestly say that this lifestyle is not nearly as difficult as I thought it would be. This is why I wanted to start a blog. I want to share with you all how easy it is to live without plastic. I want you to have someone you can chat with, to brainstorm solutions with, to commiserate with. I want to build community around a life that respects the planet we were gifted and strives to protect it. I want to encourage anyone to make any change, no matter how small, because together it all adds up.
What do you say? Are you in?
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| Kind of a heavy topic today, so please enjoy this photo of my daily morning view from my office. Despite it's beauty, this river is one of the most polluted rivers in the US. This is what I'm trying to fight with my efforts discussed below. |
I came to the decision to cut plastic out of my life about six months ago. I had stumbled across a Zero Waste youtuber, Kate Arnell, at her channel ECO BOOST, which opened my world to environmental concerns I never knew existed. Kate Arnell's channel is just one of many I now follow as she and others share about their Zero Waste journeys. (I hope to talk with you more about the Zero Waste movement soon.) As I learned more about how awful plastics are for our environment, I decided I needed to cut them from my life as much as possible.
When I made this decision I had lots of fears. I was afraid that others wouldn't understand. I was afraid my friends and family would mock me. I was afraid strangers at stores, restaurants, or other businesses would balk when I asked for their products sans plastic. I was afraid I'd be judged for going against society and accused of just wanting to make things difficult. I, however, wasn't afraid that I wouldn't succeed. I knew that I could never eliminate plastic 100% from my life but I was determined not to let that stop me from cutting out what I could.
I was right to some extent. I do have to explain myself a decent amount, but most people are happy to hear of my efforts. I find it encouraging when people I know say to me "because of you, I think twice before getting a plastic produce bag" or "I now bring my own shopping bags with me to the store" or "I'm noticing the packaging my stuff comes in now."
But I still have conversations with people who aren't supportive. The other week I was in a heated discussion with a woman at my church who pointed out the futility of my efforts. She told me that I won't change the world, that I can't prevent the oceans from filling with trash, that litter will still gather in our streets and pile up in our landfills.
I know this.
Yet, no one doctor can heal all the ailments of the world. No one scientist can unlock all of life's mysteries. That doesn't mean that no one should do what they can. I don't want to be part of a system that destroys our environment. I don't want to give my consent or approval to it. I refuse to be complacent. And yes, my individual actions won't solve this problem. But together we can.
My mother was born in the 1940s. Throughout her life she has seen many changes, too many for me to list in this post. But to give one, she has seen people rally against colored toilet-paper, that used to be very popular, due to health & environmental concerns. Have you seen any colored toilet-paper in US stores in the last few decades? No, because it is no longer legal to sell it. Because people cared. They refused to buy it and they made their concerns known to the government to stop it's production, sale, and use.
Even in my short lifetime (I'm not yet 30) I've seen a similar thing happen with grocery store bags. It has become common in the last few years for grocery stores to reward customers for bringing their own reusable shopping bags by taking a few cents off the shopper's total bill. Voters from the state of California even decided to officially ban single-use plastic shopping bags state-wide this last November, according to the San Diego Union-Times. It's not impossible for people to ban together and say "No" to something that is so destructive. We just have to de-normalize it. People have to understand that plastic isn't as innocent as we've always been told that it is.
The woman from my church also pointed out to me that my life-style isn't easy. As far as I'm concerned, this argument is completely missing the point. I'm not living without plastic because it's easy, I'm doing it because it's the right thing to do.
It's funny to me how people who've never tried to live plastic-free think it's a monstrous task that can only cause difficulty. Yes, there are somethings that I choose to live without so I don't have to use plastic packaging. There are other things that I make myself so I can avoid unnecessary plastic consumption. But after six months of significantly reducing my plastic consumption I can honestly say that this lifestyle is not nearly as difficult as I thought it would be. This is why I wanted to start a blog. I want to share with you all how easy it is to live without plastic. I want you to have someone you can chat with, to brainstorm solutions with, to commiserate with. I want to build community around a life that respects the planet we were gifted and strives to protect it. I want to encourage anyone to make any change, no matter how small, because together it all adds up.
What do you say? Are you in?
I am not sure that the government made it illegal to produce colored toilet paper. I believe it was just that so many people boycotted it that it brought awareness to the manufacturers and they stopped making it. ON the other hand, that doesn't sound like companies does it. Maybe it was made illegal to use the dyes to make the colored paper. I do believe that it became illegal to put the phosphates in the detergent which, of course, went into the waste water.
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