Ethical living for beginners

[Karlwho]

Hi guys, admittedly I'm new to this. I mean, I've always recycled (or did my best to, whether it actually gets recycled idk), and only recently I've really thought about making a commitment to living as plastic -free as possible.
My kids are like real-life Lisa Simpson's, and for years my eldest has been encouraging everyone to think about the environment.
Basically, I'm trying to go plastic free. And I'm struggling.
There's a plastic free shop about an hour's drive from my home, which looks beautiful and it stocks everything I need (in terms of cupboard foods like pasta, cereal, rice etc) but I don't drive, and getting there is very difficult for me.
I'm starting small, howev er like I said, I want this to be an ongoing lifestyle change, and frankly I'm sick of seeing cheapplasticcrap filling my home.
Any tips? Advice?

Interesting review in Saturday's Guardian (which I've just got round to reading) suggesting that people eat vegan for breakfast and lunch to cut down on emissions from animal product production.

Are all pod coffee machines bad? Nespresso provide bags & free labels so you can return them for recycling

I'd say so Crumple
Better not to have used up resources to create the pods in the first place. Plus recycling takes energy and resources and doesn't create something equally usable at the end of it.

Crumple I have the cheapest old school coffee percolator from Argos and I ADORE it. It has a timer so we wake up to hot coffee, and it is so much tastier than the pods, I think. (We switched from Tassimo)

It sounds like you're making amazing changes!

If you're close to one, Morrisons supermarket has started doing zero-waste 'fill your own' areas for things like pulses, oats, nuts, coffee etc. Fantastic to finally see that in a UK supermarket!

My worst habits around plastic use were when I was out and about, so I made some changes there and I'm noticing such a difference in the amount of waste I make. I switched single-use coffee cups to a 'Huski Home' reusable cup, switched single-use plastic bottles to a reusable metal one and make sure I always carry a reusable carrier bag, metal spork and straw with me to avoid picking up the single-use plastic ones when out and about!

Not plastic related but- I also donate to 'MyTrees', who plant and protect trees with Conservation International. They also have a weekly prize-draw to thank their donators so it's fun and win-win! I don't have a garden to plant anything so by donating I feel like I'm also making a change to combat climate change by planting trees. Here's their website if you're interested: bit.ly/My-Trees

Hope these help!

I make my own cleaning products, sometimes using a kitchen cleaner Which we buy from our local organic suppermarket15% of which I mix with 50% water, lemon or bergamot or old t tree essential oils in an old spray bottle..

Sorry I didn't explain that we take an empty bottle to be refilled by our local organic coop.

Using a compost heap is wonderful for your waste. I even use the cat litter which is clay and means that our pot plants can cope with going without water for longer than they might in hot weather.

Use compost toilets!