1000 Flowers for the Planet - #65 Use a Metal Water Bottle

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #65 Use a Metal Water Bottle

Let’s take drinking water to a new level – let’s not buy water in disposable plastic bottles, and let’s not replace that habit with using a plastic refillable water bottle. Let’s use aluminium water bottles such as produced by SIGG. This allows us to be plastic free, save the planet’s resources, have an item that will last a lifetime if looked after properly, which reduces landfill and saves lots of money, and is good for your health.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #64 Avoid Single Use Plastic

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #64 Avoid Single Use Plastic

Okay, so living entirely plastic free sounds like an impossible task. The journey of 1,000 miles starts with just one step. If you can’t do everything, just do something. It takes a lot of guts and determination to live plastic free so try something a little easier. Avoid single use plastic. Doesn’t it seem ridiculous to buy a product to use only once, but which is made out of a material that will last forever? Can’t we be done with being stupid?

If you’re a bit of a commitment-phobic, try it for just one month. It will require some brain cells to help you through the process, but it will be worth it. Think of all the single-use plastic that comes into your life, invited and uninvited: coffee cups, straws, carry bags, packaging, food containers (both from the supermarket and fast food), water bottles, milk containers, chip packets, plastic cling-film – the list is long. All of these things can be replaced with alternatives or taken out of your life (often with incredible health benefits – you know I’m right). The following week of Flowers will help you on your way.

Take up the challenge, give it a try and be amazed at how well you do – then give yourself a pat on the back, and keep going.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #63 Live Without Plastic

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #63 Live Without Plastic

This week will be ‘plastic week’ and I’m starting with a really major suggestion – Live Without Plastic. If you think this idea is huge, you’re right. But there are people out there actually doing it – living their lives plastic free. It takes a huge commitment to a huge idea and I have to say I admire these people for doing it, because there are so many little things that have to be resolved along the way. Please do an Internet search for living a plastic free life and read some of the blogs that are inspiring, thought provoking, provocative and challenging. See what ideas resonate with you and try them out for yourself. Understand why these people are going to such extreme lengths to avoid plastic.

You may also like to research how harmful plastics can be to the human body – how they can cause health problems in many people. Plastic waste also clogs up the waterways, kills marine and bird life, adds to landfill, and causes health issues for many living creatures.

It fascinates me that we’ve had a few ‘oil crises’ over the last few decades, that there is concern about oil running out and that we desperately need to find more oil to take out of the earth, to run our cars etc. Walk into your local shopping centre/mall and take a look around – you will see plastic everywhere. And the next time you’re at the supermarket, try to find food that doesn’t come with plastic – you’ll find this a very hard task. Plastic is made from oil, but there doesn’t seem to be any outcry that we need to produce less plastic to save our oil reserves. This doesn’t make sense.

The world has produced as much plastic in this past decade as it did for the entire 20^th century. So live without plastic, or live with less plastic, and save not only the planet, but yourself.

P.S. I don’t agree with everything the plastic free proponents put on their blogs. I particularly disagree with purging plastic from one’s home in order to replace it with plastic-free products. I do understand they are concerned about their health, but the down side is that perfectly useful product is being tossed into landfill, or given to charity shops where someone else can buy it and have their health affected. I suggest replacing plastic items after they have completely worn out or become useless. There are more arguments for being plastic-free than health, including but not limited to saving the planet’s resources, preventing landfill, saving money and reducing consumerism.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #62 Bring Clothes Pegs Inside

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #62 Bring Clothes Pegs Inside

This probably seems like a strange suggestion, but I’ve always done this because it lengthens the life of my pegs. If I leave them outside, the rain rusts the metal hinge and the sun deteriorates the plastic, shortening the productive life of the peg. It means a long useful life for your tools, hence less need to replace them so often, which saves you money and the planet’s valuable resources. There’s an even better choice for your pegs, but I think you’ll be able to work that one out for yourself (or look out for another Flower suggestion coming soon).

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #61 Use Phosphate-Free Detergent

 

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #61 Use Phosphate-Free Detergent

Phosphates become detrimental when they over fertilize aquatic plants and cause stepped up eutrophication. Eutrophication is the natural aging process of a body of water such as a bay or lake. This process results from the increase of nutrients within the body of water which, in turn, create plant growth. The plants die more quickly than they can be decomposed. This dead plant matter builds up and together with sediment entering the water, fills in the bed of the bay or lake making it more shallow. Normally this process takes thousands of years. (source: http://www.water-research.net/Watershed/phosphates.htm)

So in turn, this causes the death of fish and other marine animals because the oxygen in the water is depleted. In Australia, think of our beautiful and unusual platypus – every time you wash your clothes, are you causing the death of our platypus?

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #60 Wash in Cold Water

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #60 Wash in Cold Water

Washing clothes has become so much easier with modern technology. We no longer need to boil water and use a mangle, a very physical, exhausting process that took our ancestors a whole day to attend to. Now we can chuck our clothes into a machine, push a few buttons and walk away while the machine does the work for us. How wonderful!

Let’s put a bit of thought into what we do, though. Try washing with cold water. The laundry detergents are designed to wash modern materials in cold water, so we can still get good results.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #59 Keep Balloons Indoors

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #59 Keep Balloons Indoors

Did you know that one balloon can kill a whale? (http://www.savethewhales.org/balloon.html) In fact, balloons are dangerous to a multitude of sea creatures and bird life. These animals ingest balloons thinking they are food. The plastic can block their stomach and prevent the passage of real food. They die unpleasant deaths.

There are other things we can do to enhance our celebrations: light candles; dance; plant a tree; sing; throw rose petals; all hold hands; decorate with a little greenery from the garden (and compost it later); or simply bask in the glory of doing the right thing by our planet.

If you really, really have to have balloons at your party, ensure they stay indoors, and dispose of them responsibly.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #58 Compost Garden Clippings

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #58 Compost Garden Clippings

If you attend to your garden regularly you can manage the waste produced from weeding and clipping by putting it into your compost. If you do not have a compost, or have too much garden waste to deal with, many areas have green waste recycling centres where you can take your garden waste to be composted en masse. They’ll probably have some guidelines pertaining to what can and cannot be accepted so follow these carefully to ensure their system works correctly. Likewise, if you can’t be bothered travelling to a waste centre, start up your own compost. Here’s a site to help you on your way: http://eartheasy.com/grow_compost.html

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #57 Care for River Systems

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #57 Care for River Systems

There are so many reasons why we should care for river systems I cannot possibly relay them all here. Our rivers are like the blood in our veins. They provide us with life. Without them, we do not exist. When they are polluted they make us ill. We must care for river systems.

How do we do this? I’ve already mentioned them several times in previous Flowers. Reduce waste to landfill which often ends up in waterways; prevent urban run-off; don’t litter the streets; lobby corporations who allow poor manufacturing processes that poison rivers systems; don’t build in certain areas; plan logging carefully to avoid soil erosion. The list goes on.

Sadly, most of what we do affects our river systems in a negative way. We need to think about what we’re doing, and use our intelligence to shift our habits and invent better ways to exist.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #56 Start a Community Vege Garden

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #56 Start a Community Vege Garden

Many people do not have gardens where they can plant some vegetables or fruit trees to enjoy the freshness of home grown produce. By being part of, or starting, a community garden you can have your veges and eat them too. One website to help you on your way to becoming a self-sufficient city farmer is at: http://communitygarden.org.au

Here you will find a multitude of ideas and support links to help you get started and be successful in your venture.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #55 Recycle Plastics

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #55 Recycle Plastics

Every area will be different when it comes to this opportunity for recycling. Plastics in Australia are not recycled as well as in some European countries. It’s important that you check what plastics you can put into your recycling bin/collection for your area, bearing in mind that mindlessly putting out everything made of any type of plastic only creates problems for the recycling plant if they can’t deal with it, and will add to their processing costs – which you will pay for in the long term.

Of course the best action would be to avoid purchasing plastic in the first instance, and thereby have no need to think about recycling it. Most plastic ends up in landfill and we all know now that it doesn’t break down for a very long time.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #54 Reduce Personal Waste

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #54 Reduce Personal Waste

The best person to determine how to accomplish this is you. Only you know how much you waste. You will need to think about what it is you waste and how you can avoid it. But here’s some food for thought: waste isn’t just the stuff you throw in the bin/trash. You also waste time, money, resources, opportunities, energy and experiences. Find yourself a quiet spot – go to your local park – where you will be away from the distractions of home, and write down all the things you waste, then consider each one in its turn and discover how you can prevent/reduce that waste.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #53 Reject Racism

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #53 Reject Racism

Racism is a nasty word and a nasty activity. Sadly the word is over-used these days and there is even the new phrase 'reverse racism' which implies that racism can only be instigated purely by white people. I reject the phrase, I reject the idea, and I reject racism. Until we can ALL learn to get along, be tolerant of different views, cultures, colours, creeds and any other differences, we shall not be civilised, and we prevent our own growth. Let's learn to GET OVER IT and move forward in love and peace.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #52 Reject Dictatorships

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #52 Reject Dictatorships

I'm so grateful I don't live under a dictatorship, and probably I don't know very much about them, but in my opinion, no one should live in a system where they do not have a say in how they live. Freedom of speech is a precious gift and I would have all my fellow human beings be the bearers of such a gift. A nice thought - something for the world to work towards.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #51 Reject Child Prostitution

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #51 Reject Child Prostitution

I can't even bear to think about this one. Child prostitution should not even be on the list for discussion. It shouldn't exist. I reiterate that we MUST care for our children properly. We must protect them, nurture them, teach them well. They are our investment in the future. Cherish them.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #50 Reject Animal Cruelty

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #50 Reject Animal Cruelty

Animal cruelty happens in so many different forms - farming practices, social practices, medical experiments, private abuse. None of this should be acceptable. We are supposed to be intelligent. Surely we can devise farming methods that will feed the masses without having to resort to animal abuses. Surely we can devise experiments that do not require the abuse of defenseless creatures. Surely we can find better ways for people to earn their living than by the exploitation of animals. And as for abuse of pets by their owners - abomination! They should be jailed for abusing their privilege. None of this is acceptable. Let's repair the damage and respect all creatures of this earth.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #49 Reject Consumerism

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #49 Reject Consumerism

Every time I walk into a shopping centre/mall, all I can see is LANDFILL EVERYWHERE. I think about how much stuff is being purchased and taken to homes that already have so much stuff, and it will be hoarded, or used briefly before being tossed 'away' (that place we now know is called landfill), or worse, not even used at all before being tossed into landfill. MOST stuff people buy is not needed, yet whole economies are built on the idea of supply and demand - manufacture, purchase, toss away. The more people toss, the more manufacturers can sell, the bigger the profits, the bigger the corporations, bigger, bigger, more more more more ....

Can't you hear the balloon bursting?!!

We, the people of this planet, need to shift our focus. It needs to move from 'having' to 'giving'. We need to create workforces that concentrate on cleaning up the mess we've made. There IS enough for everyone, but it's enough of stuff we need, not of stuff we don't need. Let's reject consumerism and start a new movement. Let's begin 'planetism'.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #48 Reject Rape

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #48 Reject Rape

It doesn't make any difference whether it's female rape or male rape, it's not acceptable under ANY circumstances. War, culture, peer pressure, lewd behaviour - none of these are reasons or excuses for rape. Until we stamp out such barbaric, violent, disgusting, demeaning, animal behaviour we cannot call ourselves 'civilised'.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #47 Reject Poisons

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #47 Reject Poisons

Chemicals can be good and they can be bad. Poisons are obviously VERY bad. The planet needs to be cleared of these dreadful chemicals. You can play your part by not using them. Stop using poisons in your garden where they are washed into the soil and the waterways. Stop cleaning your house with poisons that are transmitted to your family and washed into waterways. THINK about what you are using and how it affects the planet. Be aware of corporations who use poisons to make record profits (such as Bayer who don't care if they kill bees) and protest against them. Reject poisons.

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #46 Reject Slavery

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #46 Reject Slavery

Slavery still exists in our world, and it shouldn't. The next time you brag about buying a shirt for $5, think about how little the person who made it must have been paid, and how many shirts they must make to feed their family. Damn your $5 shirt! 

No one group has the right to enslave another. We can, and should, all work together for the benefit of the whole. Empires grow on the back of slavery. Reject that concept, and let's look after each other.