I know I've already declared my gratitude that we decided to take on a family learning project focusing on plastic...and this has evolved to joy as we continue to build on the project (our full report, when it's done, is going to be pretty darn cool)...and as we continue to limit our plastic intake. Taking action to learn more about the substance that fills our world and our senses, and searching for alternatives has introduced us to great info...and more importantly great people!
We've had folks tell us they think this project of ours is inspiring...and we love that we're providing some positive energy to others...but now I'd like to introduce you to two other faboo folks who have taken on big challenges as well - for they have inspired me to persevere and make our experience the best it can be!
First I'd like to introduce you to Earthwoman. A fellow vancouverite who made a new years resolution to live plastic free for 2007. Her blog, plasticfree.blogspot.com allows you to follow along on her journey of hard core plastic free existence here in our fair city. I have learned a few good tricks from her and the folks who post comments on her site (such as a plastic free shampoo alternative using honey and baking soda) that we want to try out. I also love the way she writes about the sinners and saints of plastic, and the level of detail she gets into trying to share her experience of finding products with no plastic.
Her challenges have been good learning experience for us, and I admire her conviction to attempt this for the whole year. I also find she has a great witty style to her writing which really makes it enjoyable to follow along and keeps you waiting for new stories to come.
I feel our adventure compliments Earthwoman's experiment for a few reasons:
- it seems we live on opposite ends of town which could provide a great outlook on vancouver as a whole when it comes to consumer choices and plastic alternatives.
- her efforts to be plastic free are in the corporate world of investment banking (not your typical eco-warrior...which is why i've never been a fan of stereo-types!). This is a different reality than I live in as a worker at Britannia community centre. (though we have some family members who work in the corporate world...)
- Earthwoman is a vegetarian (and I believe kid-free at the moment) so she is not dealing with our biggest challenges which are baby food and other baby and kid things, and being omnivores we have dairy and meat to make choices about
If, like Earthwoman, you have a cruelty-free chromosome...well I think you're gonna love her story! And we look forward to following along throughout the year.
One of her great links led me to the second person I want to introduce you to - No Impact Man.
Visit his site to follow along with his family's adventure to live a no impact life in New York city! Talk about a challenge ;)
To make it even more interesting, he and his wife also have a baby...so needless to say we're learning alot from their experience so far. To attempt a year of living no impact in a large urban city, as a family unit to boot, is a very inspiring experiment.
I enjoy that he wants to bust the myth that it is just not possible to do such a thing! and I love that they see this as a valuable experience for the way forward it will provide them.
At the end of this attempt to rise to the challenge of leaving no impact for a year...I'm sure we'll all learn fantastic ways we can continue to decrease our own footprints too!
Sasha and I are off to Ontario in a few days...and the plastics we encounter will continue to pop into my consciousness - it seems once you really notice it (and even spend a day taking pictures of the litter it creates in your neighbourhood) you'll never see it in the same way again.
Thank you to those of you who reminded me that this is a voluntary project and that the world will not come to an end if I don't get it done "on time"! I was feeling anxiety at being behind on my goals...but the weather has been nice...and other things have taken priority for now. We are continuing our efforts to eliminate plastic from our purchases as much as possible and are enjoying finding positive alternatives.
...and thanks to all of you - including Earthwoman and No Impact Man - for the inspiration to continue to get the report done...when I get back ;)
for now I hope we've provided enough food for thought for a bit. enjoy the links here so far...perhaps I'll find time to post while we're living the gypsy life around ontario for a couple of weeks.
on the plastic front we're not done yet folks...stay tuned for more!
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