What changes have you started to make to be more envormentally friendly?

[GlamGiraffe]

I was just wondering?
People I meet seem to be split between 2 distinct camps, those who are making a real effort and those who don't care/dont have a clue in the slightest.
We,(nagged by me) are on a mission- albeit starting small , I wondered about other people.

I'm using a mooncup and bubble bars. 90% of mine and the kids clothes are second hand (and probably 75% of their toys). I also just stopped eating meat and am reducing fish and dairy gradually (started having soy milk on cereal and in tea). I have a refillable coffee cup and water bottle.
It's not enough though - almost all of the veg in my fridge is in plastic packaging. I do feel like that needs to be something that is changed at a supermarket level - as a consumer I find it hard to find the time and money to shop plastic-free.

Almond milk , huge problem

80% of Almonds grown in California , a state that has seen drought for years . Almonds need huge amounts of water 6098 litres of water to make 1 litre of milk , that is completely bonkers , and then there is of course the pesticides , and packaging and shipping

I am a veggie , half arsed vegan btw
we really dont need milk in any form

@pelirocco123 but almond milk is not the only non-dairy milk! Oat milk is great!

-Trying to cut down on plastic drink bottles

• bars of soap instead of shower gel

-bulk buy shampoo/conditioner in larger (750ml - 1l bottles)

• walking /taking public transport instead of driving where possible or car sharing.
• hiring new outfit for parties/weddings instead of buying.
• buy second hand and sell on things/recycle instead of throwing away.
• taking reusable shopping bags
• trying to reuse product bags at work

Having said this there are lots of people on MN who say that any of the small changes are pointless as they wont make a difference.....

Reusable nappies and wipes
Loose fruit and veg from the local weekly market
Reusable water bottle/coffee cup
Only have a tiny garden so can’t grow my own fruit and veg but have just enough space for a herb garden and growing salad.
Walking everywhere (lucky to live in a town so everything is within walking distance)
Bar soap (always have used it though)
Washable facial wipes
Clothes and toys only from charity shops or eco friendly small businesses, avoiding synthetic fabrics as much as possible
Repurposing things eg turning worn out adults clothes into kids clothes
NOT FLYING ANYWHERE!

Next step for me is using the newly opened plastic free shop in town and finding plastic free ‘curly girl’ approved hair products

Also don’t eat meat and minimal dairy consumption

Good thread as it gives you ideas. I'd never heard of toothpaste tablets

Bought an electric car and my electricity comes from a renewables supplier.

Fully electric car
Eco home with air source heating

Baby due this year and using cloth nappies/wipes

I reuse shopping bags.
Recycle practically every piece of plastic that comes into my house - if it can’t be conventionally recycled it gets chopped up for ecobricks.
I used cloth nappies with DC2, but didn’t fully commit - kept switching back to disposables. But for DC3 I’ve invested in a full cloth nappy kit to use from birth.
Stopped using disposable sanitary products a few years ago.
We’ve cut down our meat consumption as a family quite a lot.
That’s all I can think of off the top of my head!

Oh yeah I’ve got reusable wipes for this baby too - might as well get to grips with them before the all out ban on conventional wipes is rolled out🖕🏻

Didn’t not mean the “🖕🏻“
I hit the wrong emoji!!!

@pelirocco123 but almond milk is not the only non-dairy milk! Oat milk is great!

at milk
The good news is oat milks appear to have the lowest environmental impact, says Hadjikakou, particularly those derived from Australian oats. “Oats are mostly grown as a winter cereal and are largely rain-fed – although there is supplemental irrigation in certain cases – but they appear to me as an option that doesn’t really suffer from that water contribution scarcity as almonds and rice would, and it also has the other benefits like lower CO2 emissions, et cetera.”

Where it does fall down, however, is its nutritional value. While oats are largely a healthy grain to include in your diet, the milk is highly diluted with water, giving it little nutritional value. Hadjikakou suggests most oat milks would need to be fortified if they are to make a nutritional contribution.

Oatly - in the blue or grey carton - is the best non-dairy milk for coffee. Also one of the lowest carbon foot prints for a non-dairy milk.

Lots of the above, plus I'm planning to offset the carbon for any future flights I take - does anyone know the best way to do this?

Also looking to get an electric car next time we update.

Bamboo toothbrushes for DD.

Paper bags for sandwiches, etc. if carrying a tupperware box is awkward.

Collapsible silicon coffee cup - always in my bag.

Solar panels and battery storage to power house
(Fully) Electric Car or walk/cycle everywhere
Vegetarian household
Reuse everything we can or recycle
Growing our own veg or buying local produce
Buy second hand or repurpose where possible..
Making kids conscious of environmental impact of plastic toys/paper wastage/food wastage etc...

We could be doing more, of course but I have -
Stopped buying soap, shampoo, conditioner in plastic bottles and buy the hard versions and have bought soap dishes.

Washing powder, in cardboard box rather than plastic pack of the capsules. Cheaper too!

Reusable glass boxes for food storage.

Don't buy fruit / veg that comes in plastic and shop at a local greengrocer. Also cheaper and tastier.

Reusable wipes instead of wet wipes.

Few more little things like this but agree I could be doing much more.

Having no kids.

We also have a massive water butt/tank (about the size of 6 regular water butts) that we use to pump water to water vegetables/plants in the garden.

Having no kids.
A tricky one for most of us to get started on in retrospect.

Sadly in the area I live there are only a couple of green grocers and these take complete advantage of the current situation, their prices are absolutely astronomical. I sometimes buy there but for the amout of fruit and Veg we eat it's not do able.

I only eat local, pastured meat and dairy. (Also take my own tupperware to the butcher's, so zero packaging). Regenerative farming actually sequesters carbon and nutrients into the soil via animal “deposits”… what’s known as the “golden hoof”. Whereas, plant monocultures such as soya, wheat and corn rely on chemical and fossil fuel fertilisers (Haber-Bosch) and pesticides. That, combined with machinery, causes multitudes more death to field animals and insects. Chemical and sediment run-off into river systems. Tilling the soil also releases vast amounts of carbon stored within. Almonds and avocados are sucking places like California and Chile as dry as parchment. Mixed farming is closed loop, whereas arable crops rely on an unsustainable depletion of soil fertility and external inputs. Look out the books, articles and youtube talks of people like Isabella Tree, Lierre Keith, Joel Salatin and Allan Savory.

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/aug/25/veganism-intensively-farmed-meat-dairy-soya-maize

www.ted.com/talks/allan_savory_how_to_green_the_world_s_deserts_and_reverse_climate_change/transcript?language=en

I don’t buy any fruit or veg from Spain, due to practically the whole of the Almería region being covered in polytunnels and much of the plastic ending up in the Mediterranean. I try to buy local & seasonal as much as possible (local farm market stall), failing that, UK produce. I refuse to buy plastic punnets of mushrooms/veg… I just buy simple produce like carrots, onions, cabbage, cauliflower etc. Local strawberries are a lovely summer treat, not a staple. Otherwise, my berries are from blackberrying in autumn and stored in the freezer.

www.facebook.com/BBCOne/videos/2098354883561494/?v=2098354883561494

I buy refills of shampoo etc and washing up liquid from the health food store.

I only use bar soap.

I use bicarbonate of soda as a deodorant, just dab a bit on with a damp cloth.

I mainly use simple products such as vinegar and bicarb as household cleaners

I try to only put the dishwasher/washing machine on when it’s sunny, as we have solar panels, to minimise draw from the grid.

In the colder months, I put a vest, woollie jumper, hat and fingerless mitts on before putting the heating on.

98% of my clothes & shoes (apart from knickers, socks and tights) are from charity shops/Ebay. I also mend small holes.

I don’t have any children.

I don’t drive… I walk and cycle locally and catch the bus when I need to visit other towns.

I use the internet mindfully… watch youtube at a much lower resolution (360p), deleting emails from the server, unsubscribing from marketing emails, using the bandwidth for eg learning a language rather than mindless social media scrolling or cat videos. Home electricity use for running your own computer is only a small part of the energy footprint of the internet. Billions of KWH are used by servers keeping the internet running.

www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/dec/11/tsunami-of-data-could-consume-fifth-global-electricity-by-2025

Always carry a camping coffee mug, cutlery set and cloth napkin when I go into town. Love the 49p mugs of filter coffee from Pret when I'm passing.

I'm a member of local environmental groups, as whilst personal lifestyle choices are important, they're not sufficient... only collective political action will effect the necessary changes.

Ooh yes thought of some more
Menstrual cup/cloth pads
Bamboo toothbrushes
Layers instead of heating
Refill old bottles for laundry/washing up liquids (lucky enough to have a good selection of eco shops locally)

Shop at greengrocers (walk there)
Buy loose stuff at supermarket where possible
Reusable nappies 70-80% of the time
Reusable wipes almost always
Laundry on line outside 90% of time
Make meals based on 'bits o have leftover' to reduce food waste
Hot water bottle on lap rather than heating within reason
Soap over shower gel mostly
Recycling as much as poss, including bathroom stuff
Take water bottle out
Take packets lunches and snacks out for all to avoid meal deals (also: health!)
Milk delivered, foil lids recycled

Am considering taking Tupperware etc to butchers each week. Also supports local biz which I'm well into.

Would love some toddler friendly meat free meals that aren't pasta.

Is there such a thing as a 'bit load of bread' reusable tub? Even the bakery uses a plastic bag.

Splosh for refillable laundry powder and household cleaning products.
Who Gives A Crap for toilet roll.
Washable kitchen roll.