one year of low waste

Untitled 1967 by Mark Rothko

It's officially one year since we started our low waste journey, so here are our reflections..

It both does and doesn't feel like its been one year since we started this journey, but either way its crazy to think about how far we've come. This started as a challenge that at the time was only set for a month, but now we are on a life long journey of sustainability and zero waste. It also started with just single use plastic, and now we are tackling all the waste we create. Every individual’s journey is different, and ours was very up and down. We had months or weeks when we'd say there was no other alternative to the plastic option, would chose not to think about the plastic because we wanted an item (For example during the summer in Helsinki we desperately wanted to try their berries, and because we didn't have containers we used their plastic ones), or were simply unaware of the many other ways in which we created waste, other than plastic, specifically single use. We are by no means perfect, and 2018 poses another year of learning and changing, which we are both super excited for. The past 12 months learning about sustainability, and specifically the past 5 months learning about zero waste, have been absolutely life changing. We are so excited to continue to share our journey and experience whilst expanding our knowledge and community!

Remember that it is a life long commitment, and will probably not become perfect in a day. Zero waste, low waste, and sustainability all take time, effort, and practice. Don't be discouraged if you feel you aren't doing your best at every moment, and understand that there will be ups and downs. Most importantly, know that whatever change you make, big or small, is making a difference, and is worth it! Not everyone has to be 100% zero waste, but if we all try a little harder in 2018 to lessen our waste, we will be helping our planet. So, for the upcoming year we challenge you to chose one thing to start with that will lessen your waste, that can simply be not using plastic bags or it could be going fully zero waste, either way, good luck!