The idea of the “eco friendly aesthetic” seems to have taken over the internet. Many people now live sustainably when it is trendy. And one thing for sure is that trends are not sustainable! For example, a lot of people bought metal straws when the “save the turtles” trend went around. You also often see people using bamboo utensils and toothbrushes because they are aesthetically pleasing and therefore trendy. While it’s nice to follow trends that help the planet, it is also important to recognize the sides of sustainability that aren’t so aesthetically pleasing. Here is my list of things I do/own that are ugly, but still help the planet.
Packaging on plant based foods- The majority of plant based food is still not packaged sustainably. However, over a year ago, I made the decision that the packaging was less important than the animals and planet. Eating a plant based diet has a much more positive impact on the planet. Unfortunately, the plant based meats (and other non-traditionally vegan foods) that are available to me come in crazy amounts of plastic.
Reusables- Not all reusables are gross, but some definitely are at least a little unsettling to me. Just the idea of reusing a tissue/ handkerchief, reusable pads, family cloth/ reusable toilet paper, etc... It just doesn’t appeal to me. On the other hand, these all help the planet so much. Furthermore, many people find reusing containers from other products, not very aesthetically pleasing, especially if the containers aren’t matching.
Being a sweaty mess after walking because you refuse to drive- This comes from personal experience. When possible, I opt for walking or riding my bike rather than driving. Unfortunately, on a hot day like today, wherever I go, I’m going to be a hot sweaty mess by the time I get there. This is not aesthetically pleasing.
Covering bowls with a plastic bag instead of saran wrap- We have a lot of extra bags and like to put them to use. Because of this, we cover bowls that don’t have lids with plastic bags. No aesthetic zero-waster would approve of this but it's helping by reducing the amount of new plastic we use while reusing what we already have.
Reusing single use stuff- We do this all the time. For example, a single use water bottle that most people dispose of will stay in our house for months to years before we are done with it. We also reuse single use plastic utensils and again plastic bags.
Using something until it is not usable in any way- When you wear a shirt that has holes in it, or then cut it up into rags, it is not very pleasing. However, this is what we do. Until a plastic bag is ripped into shreds, we keep using it. My backpack for school right now has a hole in one of the pockets and a zipper that doesn’t work. Am I getting a new one for next year? Of course not.
Partly moldy food- I’m not a fan of eating mold, but I’m a fan of eating around it. When something is in the process of going bad, I like to save as much of it as possible. Touching moldy food in general is a bit gross, but it is extremely important as we need to do everything in our power to not waste food.
My bag in bags in bags- Tell me I’m not the only person who has a bag of bags. During covid we were a bit forced to order groceries online. This means we were given A TON of plastic bags. For reasons I’ve listed above, we find plastic bags valuable and save them for when we do occasionally need them. (You can use them for pet poop, packaging, lining your trash can, etc.)
Reusing water- This doesn’t sound too bad… until you hear the whole story. I’ve said before on this channel that we try to reuse water from cooking beans and make other things with it. Unfortunately, we sometimes forget about this bean water and have a whole bunch of moldy, clumpy water. When this happens and we can’t cook with it, we simply use it to water our plants. Just a bonus tip!
Not showering enough- Sorry for the TMI, but my eco anxiety makes it hard for me to shower. This is not super aesthetically pleasing, of course. Showering uses many, many gallons of water. I don’t shower nearly as much as I should, but it is sustainable.
Holding onto trash until you can dispose of it properly- I’ve said this before as something that you can do to help the environment. This is a little gross, but we need to emphasize the idea of disposing of waste properly. I keep trash in my pockets or bag if there is no trash bin around. Another thing I do is take recyclable goods home to rinse and then recycle. I also take compostable waste with me until I get outside to a place I can put it, or wait until I’m home to compost it there.
These are just some ideas of what sustainability really looks like in my life. I clearly do some weird stuff in hopes of saving the planet. I hope you enjoyed this blog post and found it interesting. Don’t be afraid to do any of these things because they ultimately help the planet. Until next time, peace.