FOR THE LOVE OF
SUSTAINABLE SELFTHIS IS FOR YOU
The person trying their hardest with the tools they have been given to be a force for good in the world. A person who does things that might seem strange, weird, gross or out of the ordinary in the name of sustainability. You are a lover of people, planet, animals, and living a life that’s streamlined to focus on the things you really care about.
Your efforts to do good for people and the planet are tireless. There are days when you wonder if there’s any point. If anyone really cares. If the things you do matter. You might doubt yourself. Feel tired. At worst- you might get eco-overwhelmed or burnt out.
This message is a reminder.
What you do matters.
That big changes start from paradigm shifts in self. Changing the way you think, feel, or perceive the world around you to act in thoughtful new ways. Sometimes on the surface, mindful reflection can look like in action. We might be fearful that this time we take for our Sustainable Self is accomplishing little. But each time we stop, reflect, and recharge our batteries, we make space for greater insight and understanding.
We reinvigorate our why, take stock of what we are grateful for, and move forward with clarity and purpose.
You are invited to make space for you.
For the love of Sustainable Self.
Now take a moment to pause, breathe deep, and allow your shoulders to drop away from your ears. Feeling better already?
Let’s get ready for Sustainable Self exploration with love and focus.
Katie
Thirty Ways to Get Your Eco On!
I’ve had a few comments, messages and emails lately asking for easy eco-tips to get your green credentials up without having to spend a fortune or move to a commune.
Eco On The Go
- Bring your own shopping bags and use them. Australians use 3.92 billion plastic bags a year, that’s over 10 million new bags being used every day. A reusable shopping bag makes shopping more comfortable (those plastic ones cut into your hands) and result in less waste. While a reusable bag automatically results in less waste it’s manufacturing has it’s own impact. You need to use your reusable bags at least 50 times in order for their environmental benefits to be realised.
- Get some reusable produce bags. Shopping for produce or bulk foods can be made greener by bringing your own produce bags along for the trip. If you don’t want to buy produce bags you can make upcycled ones by following this easy tutorial (as pictured).
- Bring your own coffee cup. Did you know the average take-away coffee cup can’t be recycled? This sends 50,000 single use coffee cups to landfill every 30 seconds! Bringing your own coffee cup along cuts this waste at the source.
- Carry a reusable water-bottle. Bringing your own water bottle with you saves money and the environment. Refill your water bottle and avoid binning single use bottles. You can learn more about single use plastic water bottles and their impact here. Check out this post to build your own Zero Waste kit
- Start conversations. When you are out doing your eco-thing make sure that you start a conversation with people who ask. When you use your own water bottle, bags, produce bags etc. people will ask you about it. Use this as an opportunity to share your passion with them.
- Get a reusable straw. Spend a week being plastic straw aware. Notice how many you see littering the street and how often you are given one while dining out or visiting a bar. Plastic straws are a huge environmental problem that you can solve by bringing your own stainless steel or bamboo straw and saying no to single use. Want advice and inspo? Sign up to The Last Straw.
- Opt out of junk mail. Buy or make a sign for your letterbox and up your eco-kudos with minimal effort. You may also save money because the temptation to buy items from junk mail catalogue will no longer be there!
Green Kitchen
- Certified organic? If you can’t afford the certified organic price tag shop your farmers markets instead. You can ask the local farmers how produce is grown and often by spray free for a much more budget friendly price. Many farmers can’t afford to certify organic but use more environmental and health friendly farming practices.
- Compost. Around 47% of Australia’s household waste is made up of organic waste like food scraps and garden cuttings. Creating a compost pile, worm farm or by using a bench top composter you can feel smug about putting your bins out for collection less and also stop harmful methane gases escaping landfill as organics decompose in an anaerobic environment.
- Wrap it up. Ditch that horrible plastic wrap by making your own reusable wax wraps, or buying ready made ones (vegans shop here).
- Reduce your meat and dairy. You don’t have to go vegan overnight but reducing your meat and dairy intake is an easy way to save money and reduce carbon and methane emissions and land degradation caused by hard hoofed cattle.
Make friends with plants
- Get a houseplant. Getting a pet houseplant will give you a daily connection with nature. It’s been shown that greenery can boost your mood, and plants have air cleaning properties. Check out this post for more.
- Grow something edible. You can get as extreme as you like with urban gardening but having something as simple as a potted herb of your choice will help keep your costs down and reduce waste (herbs come in annoying plastic wrap at the supermarket).
- Adopt a tree. When you are out in your neighbourhood choose a tree to make friends with. Make sure that every time you walk past the tree you keep note for any litter in the vicinity. Pick up the litter around your tree, say thanks for it’s oxygen producing powers, and feel good for the rest of the day without spending a cent.
- Research community gardens in your neighbourhood. If you can’t find a way to grow your own plants try visiting a community garden for inspiration, workshops or to register for a plot.
Green Office.
- Check your office waste flow. While you might not have the authority to change the whole waste stream for your workplace checking out how things are dealt with and employing at least one waste reduction strategy can really add up over the whole year.
- Choose a eco minded stationery. Nearly everyone buys pens, pencils and paper for work. Why not go for recycled and carbon neutral options. Most recycled options are around the same price as conventional paper. If choosing pens try to find a refillable option to avoid throwing out the pen every time the ink runs out.
- Shut down your computer. When you finish your day at work switch off your computer to save on energy use and carbon emissions. Even a plugged-in power pack for a laptop with no laptop attached to charge can be using energy. Switch off and save!
- Share some eco-friendly treats. Most people aren’t going to want to hear about your eco-friendly mission but bringing in some packaging free treats to share over morning tea can help you share your planet saving mission with co-workers without sounding pushy. This is a great way to show people your values and avoid awkward discussions about why you don’t want to chip in for an office coffee pod machine in the future.
Fashion and style.
- Shop secondhand first. While the secondhand clothing market is fraught with social and environmental issues of it’s own (the global second-hand clothing market, lack of recycling options for end of life garments, and the opportunity cost of having supported an ethical or sustainable designer), it is one of the most cost effective ways to be an eco-fashionista.
- Swap. Get together with your friends and host a swap-shop event. You can check out some details on how to host one here.
- Make do and mend. Check out your closet for items that need repairs. You will often find that it’s your favourites that are on high rotation that need some TLC. It’s WAY cheaper and easier to invest some time and a little cash into fixing favourites than it is to find replacements. Check out this post for garment love tips and this one for DIY repair ideas.
- Rethink and restyle. When it comes down to the crunch there is a good chance that the items or looks you are lusting after in magazine or online are pretty simmilar to things you already own. Check out this week long styling challenge I did to prove this theory to myself.
- Borrow formally or informally. You can either rent an item from an online rental store or a label that offers rental items. Or alternatively you can borrow from friends or family members. I borrow Ged’s stuff all the time and it’s a fun way to mix up your regular outfits.
- Wash infrequently. Believe it or not most clothing doesn’t need to be washed with every wear. Laundering is one of the most energy and water intensive parts of garments lifecycle, so washing only when a garment is visibly dirty or still smelly after a full day of airing in the sun is a good way to reduce your eco footprint and enable your laziness.
- Use green laundry powder. Eco friendly laundry detergents aren’t all that expensive any more. Choose an earth friendly option with recyclable or biodegradable packaging. If you have a bulk food place that doesn’t detergent refills try this option instead! Feeling extra green? Try soap nuts.
- Green your beauty routine. Try to buy beauty items with minimal packaging. It’s usually pretty easy to find soap without a package, and if you are lucky enough to have a bulk food place with refillable shampoo and conditioner within your budget use this option.
- Ditch the disposable. Do you do cotton pads or make up removal wipes? Ditching these for reusable and washable alternatives saves money and the environment. A terry-cloth cotton face towel with a eco-cleanser or an oil cleanse is cheap, washable and compostable.
- Smile often. This sounds like a cop-out but being a friendly, approachable and happy person is far more powerful and memorable than having the fanciest shoes or most impeccable makeup. A smile doesn’t cost a thing and it can make or break a first impression.
- Ask questions. No matter what you choose to buy and where you choose to buy it from asking questions is a must. Some good questions to ask are ‘what it it made from’, ‘where was it made’, ‘what are your factory working conditions’, ‘are there sustainable, environmental, fair trade or charity initiatives’ and ‘is there animal content or testing’.
OUR FREE MAGAZINE
It’s the comprehensive monthly highlight of the suite of tools we have designed to help simplify sustainability so you can take action on the things you care about (minus the eco-overwhelm). The content ties together our ‘Take Action’ focus theme. In a fast-paced media-saturated landscape, we hope that this way of sharing will provide you access to all our useful tools, without feeling lost or overwhelmed. Each month the latest copy of the magazine and our most recent resources are sent to your inbox (you will only receive one email a month from us). You will get reminders via our social media channels of what content we’re championing throughout the month.
We hope that you enjoy getting your Sustainable Style fix in this easy-to-read format and that it gives you a break from the abundance of social media updates and overflowing inboxes we now navigate daily
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WHAT IS SUSTAINABLE SELF?
For real understanding of Sustainable Self feast your eyes on this read
Our macro scale world has social/governance, economic, and environmental sustainability considerations. These larger picture issues may be global climate change, oceanic plastic pollution, civil unrest, global governance, world trade, and measuring economic success (to name a few). These are big picture problems to which there are no easy (yet) solutions. Our Sustainable Self operates in a smaller level of influence.
AVOID BURNOUT
AND ECO-OVERWHELMSTRESS LESS, ACHIEVE MORE
No matter where you’re at in your sustainability journey, it’s challenging to find ways to research, care, reflect, and take continued action (big or small) without some high and low points. For every animal rights petition we sign, community group we found, or piece of litter we remove from the beach, there will be a news story about an endangered species, a member who can’t make it to group meetings and drops out, or another ten pieces of litter on the beach next time we return. These events and stories can cumulate into a sense of eco-overwhelm. A feeling that no matter how hard we try, or how much we care, the problems are too large, we aren’t making an impact, or that nobody really cares what we are doing.
While it can be tempting (especially during these low points) to give up on your sustainability mission, the World really needs each of us to care and act in a self-responsible way!…. KEEP READING
Use our worksheet to help pick up on stressors and find ways to care for yourself, be your own personal support crew, and ensure you learn from challenges or minstakes. Symptoms of this can appear in multiple ways.
Spirit: When you’ve worn out your spirit, it’s like the cheerleader or coach within has taken a holiday. You’ve lost your faith that what you’re working towards will have a favourable outcome. For some faith can be derived from science, action, or nature. Others may have a set spiritual practice or religions they look to for guidance.
Mental: Stress or burnout can impact our cognitive function. You might find yourself with brain fog, fatigue, or impaired… KEEP READING
Use our worksheet to help pick up on stressors and find ways to care for yourself, be your own personal support crew, and ensure you learn from challenges or minstakes. Symptoms of this can appear in multiple ways.
Spirit: When you’ve worn out your spirit, it’s like the cheerleader or coach within has taken a holiday. You’ve lost your faith that what you’re working towards will have a favourable outcome. For some faith can be derived from science, action, or nature. Others may have a set spiritual practice or religions they look to for guidance.
Mental: Stress or burnout can impact our cognitive function. You might find yourself with brain fog, fatigue, or impaired… KEEP READING
SHORTCUTS
LEARN WHAT SUSTAINABLE SELF is
PERSONALISE YOU NOTEBOOK FOR REFLECTION
MAKE YOUR OWN NATURAL BEAUTY CONCOCTIONS
CONTEMPLATING SELF-WORTH AND SUSTAINABILITY
This musing from our founder Katie is an open and honest exploration of self-worth and sustainability. This post is shared to help others consider taking a deep dive into their psyche to understand better how our past can open doors or create gridlocks...Keep Reading
30 Ways you Can CHANGE THE WORLD (CHEAPLY)
Does your budget prevent you from taking action in Sustainable Style? Eco-switches can seem expensive or inaccessible. Especially if you’re on a student budget, live in a rented home, or struggle to pay your bills on time, however they can be affordable… Keep Reading
PROGRESSION OF SUSTAINABLE SELF OVER TIME
Sustainable self isn’t static. As we move through, our life change is inevitable. To be responsible citizens of earth, critical thought, mindful reflection, and self-assessment are essential for change in the right direction. This means continually…Keep Reading
Wow! This is such a great post with some wonderful tips. Thank you so much for taking the time to write it.
It’s my pleasure 🙂 xx
There are so many good tips to be used from here. Thank you for writing this. I like the idea of making friends with trees. I will go make friends with one now.
Anne
Great! Thanks so much for this.
It’s my pleasure Mel. Thank you for stopping by to comment.
xx
Katie
Ask questions is a great one; while you may not get the real answers from staff in stores, if you contact the producer/manufacturer directly, you can get the answers you seek!
I was once told by a staff member that cauliflower has to be wrapped in plastic, which I found shocking and did not find information online to support this response. Someone in the house sadly tossed the packaging before I could get the company name, but I go to that market regularly so when I do go again, I will be able to get the company name and they will be receiving an inquiry!