natjtan This year’s Earth Day theme is Invest in Our Planet and I might get a little soap boxy. Just warning ya.
Earth Day has been celebrated globally since 1970 and is held on the 22nd April each year to promote awareness and demonstrate support for environmental protection. To be honest I think this message has been lost with the rise of influencers posing in fields of flowers, backdrops of mountains, beaches saying oh how we should protect this earth with using my discount code for xyz sponsor. Earth Day isn’t about the influencer, the main focus of those photo. It’s about the fields of flowers being the focus, tall majestic mountain ranges, the blue oceans and seas. They’re the focus. They’re the ones paying the price for human consumerism. I’m guilty of it, the buying into items! I’m not perfect. However every 22nd of April I roll my eyes at the wanna be influencers, made it influencers, brands with never gave a crap to start with suddenly caring about the environment. Honestly I check out of it. The message has been lost.
But it’s not all lost. According to Earth Day many Gen Z’s purchase with ethics and have stopped buying from brands that don’t promote sustainability or help the environment. Hence this year’s Earth Day’s theme: Invest in Our Planet.
So many of us can’t fight corporations, the big money, however we can with the choices we make with our money. I know it’s not easy. Goods still need to be transported and that requires lorries, trucks, shipping both by air and sea. That I don’t think will change. The type of fuel for them maybe. Sometimes I don’t think this is taken into account purchasing items. Sometimes look local before buying online. The shipping will have been less in terms of destination. Items still need to be shipped and people needs jobs. I always think if I really need the item before ordering online. Could I get it locally, do I really needed it, what’s my mood today? Is it a quick fix to feel good? I think this way regardless of it’s from a sustainable brand or not. A sustainable brand still wants you to buy its item, they still need to market it attractively, it still needs to be shipped, it’s still part of consumerism. Just because it’s sustainable, doesn’t mean you need it.
I might be jaded from watching Climate Town on YouTube! Carbon offsets aren’t always the answer or carbon footprint! Carbon footprint was made up by the petroleum industry to pass the ‘blame’ on! Scam!
I think you get the idea of Invest In Our Planet with money. Do research on brands that line with your ethics. I love beauty products. They are often my most used plastic consummation. I’m always trying to reduct the amount of plastic I use which I share here on natjtan with Recycle Less finds. Food and beauty items being the top plastic consumption.
I use cotton produce bags when I can, however pre packed dry goods are the plastic number one. With beauty products I go for brands that have been cruelty free since the start, no being cruelty free as that’s what the consumers wanted when previously they didn’t care. I opt for brands that use natural, clean ingredients, give back the environment and community. Some of the bands I love Sioris, Urang and Benton, 3 amazing Kbeauty brands and *Honest Beauty and Freshly Cosmetics. Always research the brand! *Jessica Alba’s book The Honest Life is actually what opened my eyes up to ingredients not just in beauty products, ingredients in every household items. Previous I’d been all about cruelty free products. I owe a lot to that book! Caring and investing in our planet also means household items, furniture, clothes, transport etc. It’s also about what we flush and rinse down the drain, the impact on ingredients and chemicals in the water systems.
Another way to invest your time is actively helping the environment through clean ups; cleaning beaches, trials, parks, lakes, neighbourhoods. It’s not glamorous and you’ll be surprised by what ends up in the sea or in bushes! Well, maybe not after a few cleanups by what you find. You’ll be surprised too how many clean up groups there are locally if you start looking! If not, create your own! I regularly participate in a beach clean up and thought nobody did them locally. Turns out there are quite a few groups dividing the beaches between them! My ‘payment’ are the beautiful shells I find hidden amongst polystyrene, wet wipes, cigarette butts, pens, drink can and lighters to name a few items that wash up every week. I also pick up litter running aka plogging. I feel conscious sometimes, other times I’m whatever. Instagram is a great place to find out clean ups in your area!
Another way is to help plant trees native to your area and provide plants in gardens and balances to attract bees and other pollinators. No bees no food! Bees are the number one pollinator for most our food. Even better if the plants are native like the trees to your area! Earth Day’s Canopy Project is a great place to find local tree plantings schemes.
Another way is to invest in the items you already have at home, repurposing and upcycling many them. For example jam, honey and legume jars can become storage for dry goods, make up brush holders, candles holders, vases to name a few uses. If not, glass like tin is infinitely recyclable saving on new mines being opened up for raw material (again I understand the need for jobs with mines. A little YouTube rabbit warren leads to if you close mines, you need another industry nearby that will provide jobs so anger isn’t held local jobs are being lost that starts a them vs us attitude. It also makes you think how damaging technology is for the environment). Last year’s t-shirt can become this years house t-shirt.
Nobody’s prefect. I’m not! I still buy from the big consumers every now and then. It’s unavoidable. I still buy without thinking! Sometimes Primark is where I shop and not a more sustainable clothing brand as the price is right. The more sustainable options are too expensive. I do know though that big brands that are 1% for the Planet are more environmentally friendly and might have less expensive products than smaller sustainable brands. I vote with my money in other areas. However with a little research into what we’re buying, both with money and with ethics we can make small changes that collectively add up to bigger changes. Earth gives so much to us. She provides with shelter, food, water, cats, dogs, fields of flowers, tall majestic mountains ranges, oceans so beautiful and scary to what’s in there, minerals for the device you’re reading this on, the minerals and materials that host the information on the device your reading this on. She’s provides a home to animals and insects that play a role to keep the balance so we can have food, water, cats, dogs, fields of flowers, tall majestic mountains ranges, oceans now dry aka the Sahara desert that provide fertiliser via wind and rain to a rainforest the other side of the world, the Amazon that’s one of the biggest providers of oxygen on the planet and we’re chopping it down for cattle for food, because people eat way too much meat than ever before. The more we take from Earth, the less she has to give us, the more we mess up the balance she’s created to sustain life. Small changes on our part may seem peanuts, a drop in the ocean against an ever changing climate, both financially and physically, however they add up like the changes that set off climate change in the first place. With a little investment of time and spending power, great changes can be made for Planet, to keep cute cat videos on YouTube and fields of flowers for the influencers. Like a little thank you to Earth.
K, off my soap box!
For more information on how you can help celebrate, please check out Earth Day’s:
Sioris, Urang and Benton un Europe: Miin Cosmetics
1% for the Planet. Consumer brands from yogurt to winter coats that help the environment.
Thank you for stopping by and Happy Earth Day!
