Eco Voyage

keep it together

how does one keep everything together? literally or metaphorically, i love the idea of discovering how each of us holds our lives together, whether by service to others, the creation of art, physical activity, prayer or nurturing relationships in our lives. for me, i’m adamant about keeping my home space + personal space organized.

i like to think a neat, orderly space creates clear, open paths for brilliant + beautiful ideas to push through the fertile ground of my brain {that’s my story + i’m sticking to it!}.

zero waste living

to create a clean space here on planet earth, it takes just a few adjustments to our everyday living habits to shape environmentally sound practices.

remember, friends, not all that glimmers can be recycled. the answer here is not simply to recycle more, but to buy less plastic products + pre-packaged food items. according to greenpeace, globally only 9% of our plastic is recycled. where does the rest go? with landfills + recycling facilities reaching maximum capacity, the overflow ends up in our oceans.

here are four easy steps to plastic-free living:

carry a canvas or cloth tote bag to fetch groceries + run errands
use a reusable water bottle rather than single-use plastic bottles
take a set of reusable utensils + your own to-go container when heading out
invest in zero-waste products made by eco companies like reusable dishcloths, produce bags + zip pouches

by the sea

i’m holding it all together with handmade + zero waste pouches from by the sea organics. this eco home goods brand + sustainable fashion label was created with the mission to pay a fair wage + provide safe working milieus to workers throughout the supply chain while continuing to adhere to the most sustainable practices at every level of production.

it’s a great balm to my mind + heart to know that there are small, independent companies that never stray from their values + ethics to put people + planet over profit. by the sea has an entire range of lovely, zero waste zip pouches, grocery totes, produce bags, snack bags + charming notebooks made from earth friendly, organic cotton factory scraps. why toss excess fabric into a landfill when you can make magic with them?! i carry my light-as-a-feather notebook with me everywhere!

love + equal pay

shopping is indeed a political act, with our dollars we can vote to support companies that mirror our values. we can choose companies like by the sea that protect the environment by eschewing the use of plastic throughout their entire supply chain and lift up workers via safe working environments + living wages.

each of our actions matters: small acts + big acts. as consumers + citizens, we can each choose to invest in products that truly create harmony for people + planet.

wherever you may be during these uncertain times, i hope that you are close to peace + calm. and i hope that you are organizing the space in your mind, heart + home.

until next time, stay green dear hearts!

don’t forget the tip: journalist + environmentalist lucy siegle informs us in her book turning the tide on plastic, “the amount of plastic debris in the sea is predicted to increase from 50 million metric tons in 2015 to 150 million metric tons by 2025.” let this sobering science galvanize us to action. let us take up pens, my friends. let us write + call our government representatives and elected officials.

our garbage is buried in the ground, burned or sent away to be disposed of in landfills, often affecting vulnerable communities. single-use plastic bags + containers pollute land + waterways, endangering animal life on earth + marine life in our oceans. the chemicals released by these plastics make our soil infertile + our water supplies toxic. gulp.

siegle implores us as citizens + consumers, “whenever you see packaging that is totally over the top, take up the pen and write to the company responsible. It needn’t be a formal letter – a tweet [or ig post] will often be just as if not more effective. add the hashtag, #reducepackaging to your tweet, and make sure you copy in your local council and trading standards office (if they are on social media).”