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4 Reasons Not to Celebrate Single Use Plastic Bans
It’s encouraging to see many places in the world, including Canada, adopting single use plastic bans. Plastic is a huge problem for the planet since it doesn’t break down and disappear. According to the BBC, over 400 million tonnes of plastic is produced every year and 40% of that is single use plastic. Clearly something needs to be done and banning single use plastics is great, but there are a few reasons I hesitate to celebrate the single use plastic bans that have been put in place. 4 Things to Consider About Single Use Plastic Bans I’m in no way against single use plastic bans. I think it is a…
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A Second Try at Making DIY Beeswax Wraps
Plastic Free July: Simple Actions As we continue through Plastic Free July, I’m revisiting a project that I had attempted previously, but failed at: DIY beeswax wraps. I moved away from regularly using cling wrap some years ago but still had a couple of things I would use it for — and cringe every time. Thankfully I found beeswax wraps as an alternative, which are made of natural and biodegradeable ingredients such as cotton cloth and beeswax. However, purchasing them can be expensive, so I decided to try making my own budget-friendly version. Making my DIY Beeswax Wraps The more complicated versions of these wraps blend beeswax, jojoba oil, and…
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Plastic Free July: 3 Years On
Plastic Free July: Background Plastic Free July is a month long event that encourages people to examine their plastic use and minimize plastic in everyday life. Plastic Free July started with a small group of people in Western Australia and has since become a part of the Plastic Free Foundation. Events are held worldwide with millions of people participating. The great thing about Plastic Free July is that anyone can participate and that you can join in at your own pace. You don’t have to ditch 100% of your plastic right from July 1st – small, continuous changes over a period of time make a huge difference. To get started, simply…
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Plastic Free July: 5 Best Posts from the Month
What a month! Plastic Free July is always a great time of reflection on our personal plastic use and a time to gain more awareness of plastic’s impact on the environment. We’ve been reading a lot of great posts and articles online this month and have some of our favourites here to share with you. Plastic Free July Recap Last year for Plastic Free July, we walked through different rooms in our homes to find out where we were using plastic. It was an eye opening experience because plastic is everywhere! This year, we looked at some more niche areas of our lives to see how we could swap out…
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Plastic Free July: Plastic In Our Clothing
Take a peek into your closet – have you ever stopped to think about the plastic that might be hiding in your wardrobe? What are most of your clothes made of — are they synthetic or natural fibers? Do they have an elastic waistband or stretch material? Do they have plastic snaps, buttons, or zippers? It turns out there is a surprising amount of plastic in our clothes and it has a potentially larger impact on the environment than even straws or other single use plastics! Types of Fabric How often do you look at the fibre content in the label on your clothes? I grew up buying fabric and…
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Plastic Free July: Personal Care Products
So many of the personal care products we use are wrapped in plastic, stored in plastic, and even contain chemicals toxic to ourselves and our environment. However many of these products – such as foundation, eyeshadow, eyeliner, lipstick – are wrapped up in our identities. They help us to look how we want to look and we have long associations with brands, colours, and scents that make us feel ourselves. I (Krista) don’t wear a lot of makeup, but still have had a difficult time getting around transitioning from traditional eyeliner and mascara. However, as noted above, there are compelling reasons to consider alternatives that are better for us and…
