New Year, New Opportunities to Change the World
Changing the world doesn’t have to mean something big or extravagant. Sure, chaining oneself to a tree or a smokestack is indeed an impactful action. But smaller actions, easily done in ones own home or community, are probably a bit more accessible. By changing our own lives, we also change the world. Fun how that works, isn’t it?
Hello dear readers, and Happy NEW YEAR! It’s 2021, can you believe it? I love, love, love the start of the new year. Everyone is all excited about everything. The word “possibility” hangs like a ripe piece of fruit, ready to be picked. If only we could keep that feeling all year long! Hey…why don’t we try?
Change the World (One Day at a Time)
In honour of this fresh, first week of the new year, these wins are focused on people, groups, and heck, even entire countries hell-bent on changing the world (for the better). By the end of this post, I hope that you’re so fired up about all this awesomeness, that you feel compelled to go out there and do something world-changing in your own life, or your own community.
Let’s get to it!
“We but mirror the world. All the tendencies present in the outer world are to be found in the world of our body. If we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change. As a man changes his own nature, so does the attitude of the world change towards him. This is the divine mystery supreme. A wonderful thing it is and the source of our happiness. We need not wait to see what others do.”
Mahatma Gandhi
1. Resolutions for Every Personality Type
Green Okanagan is a non-profit based in the Okanagan Valley region of BC. They are dedicated to spreading the good, green word! And, they encourage individuals to take action towards low-waste living (read: change the world) by offering helpful, accessible advice. Bonus: they curate a burgeoning directory of sustainable businesses throughout the region, making it ridiculously easy for anyone to find what they’re looking for.
To kick-start the new year, they’ve come up with their own version of new year’s resolutions, but with sustainability and low-waste livin’ in mind…and lest you think “I can’t do it!” fear not! There’s resolutions for every personality type, including for the food-lover, adventurer, and more.
Go forth and resolve!
2. Canada Tackles Its Plastic Waste Exports
Have you ever heard of the Basel, Rotterdam, and Stockholm Conventions?
Turns out, you might have, but maybe you didn’t know it. The Basel Convention is a multilateral agreement between 188 parties that aims to reduce the movement of hazardous wastes between nations. It goes back to the late 1980s. (change the world on a global scale, why dontcha?!) The issue at hand? Developed nations keep shipping off their toxic crappola to developing countries. Not nice, developed countries.
From the website:
“The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal is the most comprehensive international environment treaty on hazardous and other wastes and is almost universal, with 188 Parties. With an overarching objective of protecting human health and the environment against the adverse effects of hazardous wastes, its scope covers a wide range of wastes defined as hazardous based on their origin and/or composition and characteristics, as well as three types of waste defined as “other wastes”, namely household waste, residues arising from the incineration of household wastes ash and certain plastic wastes requiring special consideration.”
brsmeas.org
Plastic Update
The Basel Convention recently (as of March 2019) updated its amendments to include plastic waste within the hazardous waste category. Huzzah! It also provides resources for all signatory parties to minimize their plastic waste generation at the source. Double huzzah!
And, as of January 1, 2021, Canada has officially signed off on these amendments, meaning that as a country, it is taking very seriously the impact its plastic waste exports are having on the global marketplace. Or at least, it’s trying. (You may have heard about that mess of garbage passed off as recycling that ended up in the Philippines – that was a bit of a doozy for the country)
This is pretty huge news and will (hopefully) mean a change to the way plastic waste is dealt with after it leaves our little consumer hands.
Of course…we can all do our part to help: minimize the use of plastics in the first place, please and thank you. 🙂
3. Change the World with Toolkits!
Did you know that construction and demolition (C&D) waste account for ~23% of society’s overall waste? Did you also know that C&D waste is the greatest producer of wood waste in North America?* Yikes.
*(Stats from Construction Specifics Canada, as reported by Sea to Sky Removal)
When we think about human-produced pollution, it’s easy to focus on consumer goods like single-use and disposable plastics. And, as a regular human not in the C&D world, it feels achievable to cut back on those forms of pollution. But get into the world of C&D and your head really starts spinning.
It’s harder to comprehend the size and scope of C&D waste because it is literally happening all the time. And, the waste is so very mixed and can get contaminated so very quickly. A few recent trips to my local landfill in Kelowna, BC (for work) reminded me of this sobering fact. Imagine more bustling metropolises!
Enter In…Toolkits!
Who doesn’t love a good toolkit? There are so many kinds. Ones filled with actual tools, others more “digital” with PDF guides left, right, and centre. They’re usually created to help a certain group of people. Physical tools for construction/DIY types, digital toolkits for those needing information accessible day or night.
And for the C&D crowd, there’s a toolkit for that! Sea to Sky Removal, a C&D waste hauling service based in Vancouver, BC, recently launched a slew of resources to help construction sites better manage and divert their waste. It’s amazing, beautiful, and simple. Talk about people dedicated to changing the world. Sea to Sky is filled with world-changers!
Check out the toolkit here: Setting Up your (C&D) Recycling Station
There is a real cost to landfilling waste that could be diverted. Haulers pay big bucks to tip their loads at landfills and the less weight they carry coming in, the less they pay going out. Plus – many jurisdictions have disposal bans in place for certain items (like: recyclables like plastics and cardboard). If haulers are caught dumping banned materials in the landfill, they can be fined – a LOT.
So, it really behooves construction folks to get set up properly from the beginning. Not only is it doing the right thing, it’s protecting that precious bottom line! And, there are companies – like Sea to Sky – making it super, ridiculously easy to get started.
4. Another Refillery Comes Online In BC
Oh, refilleries. Oh, zero-waste shops. They warm my heart and lift my spirits. The people behind these operations are dedicated to the cause of sustainability. Truly! It takes a lot of effort to intentionally remove packaging from all areas of the supply chain, find vendors who are doing things the way you want. Then there’s all the stocking, organizing, hiring, marketing, and keeping these businesses afloat during a pandemic that told us single-use was safer!
People: if you have a zero-waste shop or refillery or some kind of eco-store in your ‘hood…please go give them your business. They are the ones trying to change this world come hell or high water.
Lucky for BC, we just got another one added to the list! Grounded Sustainable Grocer is set to open up shop in the beautifully stunning Town of Squamish – north from Vancouver along BC’s Pacific Coast. It’s basically a perfect spot for such a shop: nestled on the coast, surrounded by mountains. All around is a visceral reminder of why supporting this kind of business is so critical: preserving nature spaces for future generations to enjoy.
Grounded Sustainable Grocer had their opening day today (January 6, 2021) – what a way to kick-start the new year! If you’re in Squamish, please give me a full report. If you’re not, how ’bout we all just live vicariously through their beautiful Insta? 😇
2021: Go Forth…And Change the World
I’m writing this post on a day when there’s been a lot of turbulence in my home country of the US and A. It’s been…depressing. Sad. Frustrating. Somehow not surprising?
Which is why I really, really love and cherish these sustainability success stories when I find them. They remind me that there’s a world beyond crazy politics and endless media coverage of the same overly-dramatized news story. These stories prove that there are still people out there working to change the world for the better, in spite of all this.
That is powerful, people! So…despite it all…let’s go forth, and support them in that effort. We could use a distraction, anyway!
Happy 2021, dear readers! Let’s make it a good year.
