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These are tips from our friends at Easy Eco Tips. They are all about going green and finding the easiest ways we can help the planet. To get more laughs and hundreds of more great tips, follow them here. ~ Ed.
Greenwashing is the practice of marketing a product or a brand as being greener or more environmentally friendly than they really are.
As people are increasingly aware of their impact on the planet, many companies have seen this as a great business opportunity.
Unfortunately, many of them just try to appear eco-friendly through their image and marketing rather than through real changes. It is called greenwashing.
Learn how to identify greenwashing and how to avoid it. Here are a few tips:
1) Be cautious of products making generic claims like “100 percent natural” or “environmentally friendly” without information as to how or why.
2) Avoid products that make irrelevant claims, like “CFC-free.” (CFCs were banned more than 20 years ago.)
3) Look for a seal or certification mark from a recognized, independent third party specializing in green claims.
4) Look for the packaging: While a product may be green, is the packaging green as well?
5) Don’t be misled by pretty pictures or use of earth-friendly colors on product labels. McDonalds or Coca-Cola might have a green color on their logos, but that doesn’t make them eco-friendly!
6) Question percentage claims, such as “This product contains 50 percent more recycled content.” Fifty percent more than what?
Finally, have a look and follow our profile and find many tips and ideas to reduce your footprint and be more eco-friendly!
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This is a fun initiative.
The East-West Market in Vancouver is pushing customers to think twice before asking for a single-use plastic bag.
The grocery store only provides plastic bags with embarrassing mentions like “Into the Weird Adult Video Emporium” or “Wart Ointment Wholesale.”
The objective is to shame customers asking for plastic bags and to encourage them to bring their reusable bags.
Will this funny initiative work?
Well, it raises awareness, and that’s already a good thing.
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It’s time for us to take action!
The signs and impacts of global warming are speeding up, according to the most recent data compiled by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
The study revealed the five-year period from 2014 to 2019 is the warmest on record.
Sea-level rise has accelerated significantly over the same period, as CO2 emissions have hit new highs.
The study revealed the amount of gas going into the atmosphere between 2015 and 2019 grew by 20 percent compared with the previous five years!
While global temperatures have risen by 1.1°C since 1850, the WMO notes they have gone up by 0.2°C between 2011 and 2015.
Wherever you look on the planet right now, global warming is impacting the scale and intensity of extreme weather events such as heatwaves and wildfires. Sea-level rise and intense tropical storms led to humanitarian and economic catastrophes.
What can we do to help?
Take a look at our selection of eco-tips to help the planet.
These are simple but impactful actions you can take to improve your carbon footprint and make your voice heard.
Easy!
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Canadian researchers found that plastic tea bags can release billions of microplastics into your drink.
Plastic tea bags are generally used by premium brands, and contain polypropylene. These are generally the ones with a pyramid shape.
Researchers found that a single plastic tea bag can release about 11 billion microplastics in your tea.
Even if most tea bags are made from paper, they still contain a small amount of polypropylene used to seal the bag which makes them non-recyclable and non-compostable.
Although some brands are starting to create compostable teabags, they still produce a huge amount of waste due to individual packaging.
So what can you do?
Buy your tea in bulk (loose), and use a tea infuser or tea strainer. Zero-waste, zero plastic? Easy!
Source: BBC
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For this tip, you can stay in front of your screen, or your phone, and still help the planet with zero effort.
Ecosia is a Web Search Engine (like Google or others), but the difference is that they use part of their profit to plant trees.
So far, they have planted more than 68 million trees, and they keep going!
Their servers are powered with 100 percent renewable energy.
And on top of that, they care about your privacy and never sell your data to third parties.
Overall, for every web search you make, you help clear one kilogram of CO2 from the environment.
If you need more evidence, you can have a look at their financial reports, published every month for full transparency.
Oh, and by the way, it’s free.
So what are you waiting to make the switch?
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Go zero-waste and refill your reusable bottle easily with this great app.
Wherever you are, find fountains, bars, or restaurants near you where you can refill your bottle with Findtap.
Remember, every minute, one million plastic bottles are bought in the world.
According to National Geographic, 91 percent of all plastic is never recycled.
So instead of buying plastic bottles that will end up in the ocean, or in a landfill, just get your reusable bottle and refill it!
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Did you know?
Two of the largest hotel groups in the world have banned single-use plastic toiletries like shampoo and liquid soap bottles.
Marriott group is the world’s largest group with around 7,000 hotels worldwide and brands like the Ritz, Sheraton, or Westin. They use 500 million single-use plastic toiletries each year.
The IHG group has more than 5,000 hotels worldwide, with brands like Crown Plaza, Holiday Inn, and Intercontinental.
This ban is expected to reduce plastic waste in hotel chains. Hopefully, other hotel chains will follow!
What can you do to reduce your plastic waste when travelling in a hotel that still offers plastic toiletries?
Bring your own toiletries—no need to use the ones they give you.
Choose soap, deodorant, and shampoo solid bars instead of plastic bottles. Remember, 80 percent of the content of a shampoo bottle or a liquid soap is water anyway!
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It is almost impossible to recycle the following items:
Toothpaste tubes, suncream, and other squeezable tubes are difficult to recycle because they often contain a thin layer of aluminum and various types of plastic, which makes it challenging for recycling plants to separate and process them.
Paper straws contain recyclable material. However, paper straws are almost never recycled because they would need to be collected separately in large quantities before being able to recycle them.
Paper receipts are often printed on shiny, thermal paper, which is not recyclable because they are coated with a substance called bisphenol A (BPA) or bisphenol S (BPS). Many stores now send you an email receipt, or give you the choice of whether to take a printed receipt.
Pringles boxes are difficult to recycle because they combine five different materials including a metal base, tear-off foil top, a plastic lid, silver foil lining inside, and a cardboard outer sleeve.
Crisps packets can’t be recycled because of the grease and crisp residue that cling to them. Try the scrunch test: If the item springs back into shape after you have scrunched it up, then it shouldn’t be recycled.
Cotton pads are often blended with synthetic materials, such as polyester, so are impossible to recycle. If 100 percent cotton, they can be composted but only if they have not been used to remove make-up or other chemicals such as disinfectants.
Sticky notes cannot be recycled in most cases because the glue on the adhesive strip can’t always be removed during the recycling process, so many centres refuse to accept them.
For all these products, always remember: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse!
For more eco-tips and the good, the bad, and the ugly about climate change follow us.
~
To get more laughs and hundreds of more great tips, follow them here.
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