Progress #5. Go greener

The trouble with Depression is that it will, without fail, creep in to tell you that the things you are doing -- even the good ones -- are not good enough.

Joining Zero Waste communities is, if you let it, a good way to feel bad about yourself. Of course, it will never be enough.

Therefore - having finally mastered in the past few days tasks that Depression deemed improbable for a week or more, such as showering and doing laundry and grocery shopping, the teacher in me has tried to focus on positives, areas for improvement, and next steps with regard to "going greener". It's realistic and it is tangible. It's where I'm at, and it's places to go.

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Positives

- I grow my own food and herbs in the summer, and continue to experiment with counterside veggies in my Aerogarden

- I make my own soymilk / almond milk in my wondrous SoyaBella, which reduces store packaging and production

- I do not shower excessively

- All year, biweekly, I order local food and Fresh produce from Fresh City Farms

- When not roasting my own beans, I do fair trade and low waste coffee. (Get yourself a pour over and a French press. You're welcome.)

- Via Saponetti, I am moving toward low package soaps/shampoos

-I reuse packaging (keep plastic containers for arts&crafts / bathroom&cosmetics, keep glass containers for pickling and milks, use plastic packaging for garbage/wet waste, Geoff uses our mailing boxes and packages for his eBay business, I save all gift packaging for future use)

- I use my Excalibur dehydrator for leftover milk pulps, turning almond and soy pulp into delicious granola and crackers

- I have consumed a vegan diet for 15 years, and a vegetarian diet for 5 years beforehand; this contributes very well to waste reduction

- I shop and use almost exclusively cruelty-free products (save for deodorant -- help?)

- I use Bunz to trade things I do not need for things I do

- I seed save from veggies I have grown

- I always use my reusable water bottle at work

- I do not shop at malls

- I went almost entirely digital with Writer's Craft course

- I save all coffee grounds for gardening in the summer

- Sometimes I make my own soaps

- I often cook from scratch (low to no packaging)

- - -

Areas for Improvement

- cruelty-free products (ie textiles) are often made with plastics (bad for the environment)

- I buy products from China (AliExpress)

- I sometimes buy products from Walmart

- I often drink bottled water at home

- I often use paper towel

- I sometimes throw things out that probably could be recycled

- I drive a long way to work (gas)

- my house rental is heated by oil
- fashion is the 2nd least eco-friendly industry and I have a lot of clothing

- sometimes order delivery, which is a lot of single use packaging

...

Next Steps

- continue to travel more often with coffee mug, reusable containers, bags

- buy a tap water filter and stop using bottled water

- buy less/no paper towel

- go as long as I can without buying anything material (non-essential): so far, so good

- go digital with ALL courses

- use Toronto recycling app if unsure of where something goes

- stop buying black plastic bags (I do not do this very often, but I won't ever at all in the future)

- use the things I have (craft supplies -- DIY) before buying anything else

- stop buying new clothes

- learn more about making my own products (soaps, shampoos, makeup, etc) and do that exclusively

- go back to Bunz for winter break

- buy hybrid/electric car for next purchase

- next house: no oil heating + fireplace

- take out less money over digital or card payment (Canadian cash isn't vegan or eco-friendly)


Any other tips? I'd be happy to hear.



Original goal list posted here