If You Must Shop Black Friday, Make a Difference

If You Must Shop Black Friday, Make a Difference. One of the most powerful ways we can vote is with our wallet. We make a choice with every purchase. I might also add that like voting in an election, there is voter suppression. Due to circumstances beyond their control (living in poverty , the accessibility of options, etc.) people are denied their right to vote with their wallet. This makes it even more vital that those who shop Black Friday, choose to make a difference while doing it. If by the end of this post you are inspired, try to opt out of Black Friday. Alternatively you can support local business on Saturday and help build your community. #SmallBusinessSaturday #ShopSmall

Here are some ways you can vote with your wallet:

Buycott

Buycott is a free app to vote with your wallet. Use UPC Lookup or barcode scans to boycott bad products and find sustainable alternatives. It can help you avoid products that support Nestle, the Koch Brothers, Trump, Palm Oil Production, Child Labor, etc.

Think About the Clothing You Buy

From The Little Black Book Blog, A rag factory in Panipat, India.  Photo courtesy of Meghna Gupta and Soul Rebel Films.

Clothing should not be designed to be disposable or be made in bad labor conditions. If you buy a $4.99 black v-neck shirt at H&M or Forever 21 and it last you a year or two before it is too shabby to wear, it is not a good deal on a shirt. We need to start looking at the life cycle of the clothing we buy. Where does the material come from, who is making it, in what conditions, is it long lasting quality, where will it go when I am done with it. Do I really need a new shirt? The answer may be no.

So where should we by our clothing. Thrift stores are a good alternative, but they do not help to create demand on more responsible clothing. You might still end up with a black v-neck shirt from H&M or Forever 21 that will wear out quickly and it's next stop will be the trash. I think it is better for those who can, to spend a bit more money buying fewer clothes that are ethical and will last. That being said, I am not on the wealthy side, but I save up to buy these articles of clothing. This also insures I am only getting what I need. Here are some companies I like to buy from when I need a new piece of clothing:

Everlane - Good Quality and transparent in sourcing.

PACT - Organic Apparel and Fair Trade

Darn Tough - Lifetime guarantee on socks. “nobody ever outsourced anything for quality.”-Darn Tough

Patagonia - Last long and you can send items in to be mended (On Black Friday they are donating 100% of sales to grassroots environmental groups.)

HP Boycott

The International Boycott HP Network and the Palestinian BDS National Committee are calling for an international week of action against HP over its role in Israel’s occupation of Palestinian land. The week of action will take place November 25th - December 3rd, which will include the UN Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People on November 29th.

Global BDS Week of Action Against HP

Boycott Trump

Join #GrabYourWallet to boycott Trump and Trump family products. Below is a guide and list to help you do so, but also make sure to ditch the hate talk when you do it. You do not overcome hate with hate.

#GrabYourWallet Action Guide

List of Companies that Do Business with and/or Back the Trump Family

Support Standing Rock

What you buy is important but so is the bank that helps you buy it. Food & Water Watch’s Hugh MacMillan's investigation has uncovered the banks that are backing the North Dakota Access Pipeline. If you look down at the image below and see your bank listed, it may be time to change banks. I understand that the people who work at your branch may be great people who really do care about you but they are not the ones that decide the large impact the bank has on the world. The people who do decide do not care about you or the people you love. There is no need to support them.

So where can you bank. My suggestion would be credit unions. Credit unions are cooperatives, owned and operated by members. I prefer having a say in what my money does once it is in my account. I prefer having a voice. I prefer banking with a non profit. I prefer that the benefits go to the members and the employees of the credit union and not the pocket of the 1%. Stand with Standing Rock. Make the switch. #HonorTheTreaties #NoBakken #SacredStoneCamp #STOPDAPL #MniWiconi #SacredWater #NoDAPL #RezpectOurWater #StandWithStandingRock

More Sustainability

I am back because there is still more sustainability to share. And I'm super excited!!!

New to ASustainableWay:

1. I will be posting a sustainability topic at least once a week.

2. I will have a Favorite Share Of the Week for things shared by friends and readers.

3. I will also have a Guest Blog for fellow sustainability obsessers.

ecotastic: A Sustainable Idea

Rewarding Sustainable Behavior...a brilliant idea!

Today I would like to spot light my Friend Fabian Lindenberg and his team who have come up with a brilliant Green application, ecotastic. ecotastic targets 11m smartphone users in Germany (and many more in Europe/globally) that already think green but need the extra push to act accordingly. It is a reward system that gives individuals an incentive to act sustainably by offering them a selection of gift vouchers from its various partner companies. Users accumulate points for performing eco-friendly actions, such as forming carpools, reducing one’s energy consumption, or simply replacing the coffee-to-go paper cup with a reusable mug.

Coming up with innovated solutions is necessary to a sustainable future. Ideas like ecotastic light the way.

And here's where you can help. Please visit http://nextberlin.eu/pitch/ecotastic/ and vote for ecotastic!

Sustainable Gift Wrapping: Used Paper

Sustainable Gift Wrapping

When it come to wrapping gifts most of us all ready reuse bags and tissue paper to save money. That is awesome don't stop. But it becomes more tricky when it comes to the use of wrapping paper. Though most of us have that one friend or family member that slowly, neatly unwraps the gift leaving the wrapping in mint condition (or maybe some of us are those people). Most people terr the wrapping apart...

 

and lets face it, its way more fun that way. But this means the next time a gift need to be wrapped, it will need to be in a new piece of wrapping paper. 

Ohhhhh the poor trees that get turned back into trees on wrapping paper during the Christmas season.

There are several ways to wrap gifts sustainably. 

1. Wrapping paper that was made from recycled paper. The down side to this is that some times it gets expensive and energy has to be used to reproduce it before it can be used again.
2. Used paper. For example News Paper which is my personal favorite. This is because there is so much you can do.

 The ways of News Paper wrapping

Comics

Fun Headline Pics

Painted Newspaper

I don't have paint to do this my self but check out this blog with instructions: http://www.erikajean.com/2008/12/green-wrapping-paper-diy.html

And Magazine Wrapping

If you have any ideas you would like to share please do!

Sustainable Gift Wrapping: Recycled Paper Bows

Sustainable Gift Wrapping: Recycled Paper Bows

Matrials Needed:

1. Glue or tape
2. Recycled Paper: news paper, used flyers, ect. (I used left over tabs from work)
3. Stapler
4. Scissors

Step One:

Cut Strips from your recycled paper.(the longer or thinker they are will determine the size of your bow)

Step Two:

Fold strip into the infinity symbol and attach with glue or very small piece of tape.

Step Three:

Begin to stack the pieces.

Step Four:

Staple the center of the bow and BAM awesome bow ready to be attached to a gift.

New Reusable Makeup Remover Kit Posted on My Etsy

New Reusable Makeup Remover Kit Posted on My Etsy

https://www.etsy.com/listing/117323563/reusable-makeup-remover-kit-in-lavender

25% off coupon code: zerowaste

The Energy Blues

Watch "Schoolhouse Rock!: "The Energy Blues"" on YouTube

Reusable Makeup Remover Kit

Today's Sustainable Solution is a reusable makeup remover kit. Many women wear makeup every day and have a need to remove makeup every night. The most common products for removing make up are makeup remover wipes or makeup remover solutions with cotton swabs. When these products are used every day they can add up in COST and in WASTE.

How to put together a Reusable Makeup Remover kit

https://www.etsy.com/listing/115970637/reusable-makeup-remover-kit-in-lavender

Items Needed:

1. one yard seersucker
2. one yard fleece flannel 
3. empty small liquid container
4. olive oil
5. witch hazel
6. machine washable mesh bag

Reusable Cloth Pad Tips: 

1. cut seersucker and flannel into 2" squares
2. put one of each fabric squares together
3. sew three sides
4. turn inside out 
5. sew opening together
6. awesome reusable pad finished

 Natural Makeup Remover Solution 

1. fill 1/2 your liqid countaer with olive oil
2. fill the other 1/2 with witch hazel
3. shake before every use

 Machine Washable Mesh Bag

Throw your reusable cloth pads in the mesh bag and throw the bag in with your next load of laundry.

Also Available in My Etsy Shop!

If crafting is not your thing you can also find a kit for sale in my Esty shop at 

http://www.etsy.com/shop/ASustainableWay

They make great gifts for the holidays so here my 

Holiday 25% off Coupon Code: zerowaste

Etsy Store Open!!!!!

I would like to announce that my ASustainableWay Etsy shop is now Open!!! 

http://www.etsy.com/shop/ASustainableWay 

Please Visit. I will be blogging about each simple sustainable substitute product that I put up for sale. This way if it is something you are interested in incorporating into your daily life, you can make it your self or purchase it from my Etsy store. Also keep a look out for coupons for my blog readers.
Hope you have a Sustainable Day!

HOME

I found it on youtube. This is one of my favorite documentaries. HOME incubuses what I think about every day. This is why I feel sustainability is so important. Feel free to share what you think.

Recycled Paper Tray

This may seem like an ordinary empty shipping label box because it is or was in its past life. It has been transformed into a paper tray.

Today the Sustainable substitute for buying a new plastic paper tray is a label box. 

It does not have to be a label box. This design could be altered for another card board item that needs to be recycled. If you come up with another design please do share.

Step One:

 Cut off the front flap with an exacto knife.

Step Two:

Cut the top off the bottom.

Step Three:

Pick out recycled paper of your choice. (I like news print...well and news paper is easy to find.)

Step Four:

Glue the recycled paper around the edges and, if you would like, the bottom as well but it is not as important. (I like to use regular school glue)

Step Five:

With a sponge or your finger if you have nothing else. Apply a thin layer of glue to the surface of the recycled paper. Let Dry.

Step Six:

Take the front tab you cut off earlier and tape it to the bottom of the tray you would like to be on top.

Step Seven:

Place one side of the box over the other. Then tape the flaps on the inside of the bottom tray. (I would have taken a photo of this step but it would have been a bit complicated.)

Step Eight:

Be proud and enjoy. :)

Spookie Sunday Support Smoothies

I would Just like to talk about something I found a week ago in my Room.

Cait is my friend and roommate and she is clearly Awesome. I am posting about this to prove two things.

1.  PEOPLE READ MY BLOG!!! YEAAAH. (Thank You for the support of those who read and comment)
2. There are people who will want to support you on your sustainable journey!
   
   There are many simple solutions and sustainable substitutes that we can try in our daily life that can make a big difference.I believe that supporting some one who is trying to make their life more sustainable is just as valuable as using a reusable water bottle. My simple solution for today is to support those in your life who are trying to make a difference. It can make a big difference!
   

I can Now feel the holiday spirit while being more sustainable. Behold SPOOKY SUNDAY SUPPORT SMOOTHIE!

Strawberry smoothie, hold the styrofoam please

Almost every Sunday before work, I get a smoothie at this small juice places right next door. It is the best way to start out my Sunday morning except it comes in this container:

AAAHHHHH!!!!! STYROFOAM!!!!! 

This bothered me of course. if i have a smoothie every Sunday for a year that is 52 Styrofoam cups and thats just me. How to enjoy my strawberry goodness and not create more Styrofoam waste? The solution was simple. Tin Tin...

Yes my Tin Tin Cup (And yes the Cup has a name thanks to my best friend). This Reusable Cup with a lid and straw is a great Substitute for a Styrofoam cup. So I went to try it out. 

Attempt 1:

I walked in and asked for a regular sized smoothie. I then asked nicely if I could have it in my own cup instead. He said yes of course but after pouring my smoothie in my Tin Tin Cup he then pulled out a small Styrofoam Cup and poured the rest of the regular sized smoothie into it. He then handed them both to me and smiled sweetly as if he had done me a nice favor. He was trying to make sure I got my whole regular sized smoothie. He must have thought I had a special love for my cup because he clearly missed my attempt at reducing waste. 

Attempt 2:

I once again went in with my Tin Tin Cup but this time asked for a small sized smoothie. He finished pouring my smoothie into my cup and asked nicely if I wanted the little bit of smoothie still remaining in a small Styrofoam Cup. I said sweetly, "No thank you" and "Have a great day". Attempt 3 will include me striking up a conversation on how I am trying to use less Styrofoam in my life.

My Simple Suggestion for Everyone:
 

These Reusable cups can be found any where and can be used just about everywhere. The hardest part is remembering them so I suggest keeping them in your car. Then you are more likely to have it when you need it. If you decide to try this out and have an interesting or educational experience please do email me and share.

  

Why is Styrofoam such a problem? 

(Information from Earth Resource Foundation at http://www.earthresource.org/programs/youth/youthagainststyrofoam.html )

• Polystyrene is one of the top three items found on our beaches. There is six times more plastic than plankton by weight in the Pacific Gyre (www.algalita.org). 86% of ocean trash is plastic. Polystyrene is made from natural gas and oil, which are nonrenewable resources.

• Polystyrene is very difficult to recycle, especially when contaminated with food. 25,000,000,000 Styrofoam cups are thrown away each year! Styrofoam cups break down into smaller and smaller pieces, taking hundreds of years to biodegrade and making it very hard to pick up on our beaches. Less than 3% of all plastic is recycled.

• Over 1,000,000 birds and sea mammals die every year from plastic ingestion or entanglement. There are enough Chlorofluorocarons (CFCs) embedded in a single Styrofoam cooler to destroy all the ozone over an area the size of 20 football fields.

•   As for health effects, styrene can mimic estrogen in the human body, possibly causing developmental defects and increased frequency of spontaneous abortions. The World Health Organization considers styrene to be a carcinogen.

 

• Styrofoam is a harmful product that is not only costing businesses funds to provide their customers with single use products but also costing our society money for clean public areas and increased trash disposal. Orange County spends $350,000 per month litter clean up!

What Else Can We Do?

To learn more you can do to reduce Styrofoam waste you can support restaurants that do not use Styrofoam pruducts. Another way you can help is to see if your city has Band Styrofoam in their food industry yet. Many cities have done this and if your city has not they might just need some one to show interest. 

Thank You for reading and giving your time.

Introduction

I am going to start this blog the good old fashion way by introducing my self. Hello my name is Faith. I am a recent graduate from University of California, Irvine and I majored in Urban Studies with my focus in Urban Sustainability. I will be starting my Masters in Urban Sustainability in LA this next fall and am very excited. I have fallen in love with the practice of simple solutions to reducing waste. I find that if you give someone a simple sustainable solution or substitute, they don't feel as overwhelmed but rather inspired to live a more sustainable way. In this blog I will be posting different sustainable solutions and substitutes that I have found and love. Some of these will be substitutes you can make your self and for those who are not as into sewing and crafts you will be able to find many of theses substitutes at my Etsy store http://www.etsy.com/shop/ASustainableWay . I will also sprinkle in some sustainable news an education. Nothing here should stay a secret so please share with people you know and love or don't know and don't love.