5 Simple Swaps to Live More Sustainably

1. Bring you own bag, food container, drinking bottle

This is a simple way to reduce waste around you. We are often seeing plastics surrounding us, in the street, public transportation, gardens, even probably in your body. 

Using our drinking water instead of buying single use water bottle, using food container when you buy siomay or bakso or else instead of using plastic bag, using totebag when buying some fruits or vegetables instead of using plastic big bag.

It is a smart choice.

2. Maximalize what you have

Maximalize what you have is one of simple swap ever to save the earth. Why? You no need to buy new if knowing for sure that in the end of the day the clothes you bought will be buried in your closet.

For instance, just taking what you really have for styling your appearance. If you feel boring using the same things again and again, just being creative to mix and match. Learning for doing it from the internet, ebook, etc.

That applies in many area in your life. From clothes to kitchen equipments.

3. Go thrifting

The third swap is the solution from second one, you can go thrifting. In West is easier to thrift good stuffs. But it doesn't mean here in Indonesia has not thrift stores. You can go to Cimol if you stay in Bandung, West Java (for clothes, shoes), for example. For other cities you have to ask someone in your area.

I know you will deny and asking it, is it good for taking on second hand clothes, It had been used by other people?

Well, based on the articles on the internet, bacteria on clothes are so many, but you can wash them properly, before that you must soak them in hot water. In next post I will make some tips for washing second hand stuffs (hope soon).

4. Natural and no plastic personal care

Forth is an important thing to make us doing less plastics on daily basis. You can use bar soap instead of liquid soap which comes with plastic bottle, or you can change your cotton pads with reusable cotton pads which made of your old t-shirt, for instance.

Just being aware and thinking first when buying personal care products. You can ask yourself, is it good for the environtment if I buy many products at once? Or I just buy what I need with big size so I can give positive impact to my earth?, etc.

5. Menstrual gear

The effect to swap disposable menstrual pads to reusable menspad is totally enlightenment. You can imagine how disposable menspad comes along to the river and ends stop in the ocean covering up the water and making fish can't breath or eat that kind of disposable menspad's material which consist of plastic and plastic.

Can you imagine at the end in the process of food chain ends in humans? We eat plastics, microplastics. Our body is full of wierd stuff which makes us no-natural-humans again.

There is another choice so far that I know to swap disposable menspad besides reusable menspad, that is menscup. You can use what is perfect for you.

At the end, our choice determines who we really are.

-a