It happens so often, that I wake up and think about how I can save the world. I get that uneasy feeling that so many things are going wrong. There is so much beauty in nature and yet we are filling the world with plastic, factories, and asphalt roads, emptying the planet of all her valuable resources. There is so much underpaid labour and band work. There is so much harm to people and animals. Ethics, justice and respect for each other and the planet don’t seem to exist. So many reasons to feel down right?
But we can make a change. Traditions and ways of living we are accustomed to are just habits. Habits can change.
Actually, there are so many alternatives today, companies that do their best to make a difference. (On the other hand, there’s also a lot of greenwashing but I’ll try to look at the bright sight of everything).
You can make a difference, the earth needs it. People need that too. You would be surprised how much you can make a difference as a person and how much joy it brings. Who wants to go shopping by car, stand in a traffic jam, buy products all wrapped in plastic thinking about the trash that you’ll have to collect when you can go to a zero waste shop, buy your products without all the advertisements and harsh packaging? Way more simple if you ask me! Shifting our focus to our health and the health of others and our planet should be the main concern of everyone.
Microplastics are becoming a big issue. The toxins in body products are definitely not doing your body a favour. For example, every woman can get toxic shock syndrome just by using tampons or pads. Crazy right? (And it’s not the worst that can happen.) We need to talk about zero waste living. It’s not nice, indeed. We need to see the harsh reality and act. I don’t recommend burying your head in the sand.
You could say I am a bit desperate and that’s partly true. I haven’t seen that much of the world yet, but the places where I have been, did leave an imprint and I don’t want to see such places disappear. Not only that, we could make the cities where we live so much more liveable.
I have no quick fix to offer, I only believe in the change we can collectively make. Step by step. And I don’t blame anyone for not acting. After all, it is not easy.
Anyway, if you are from Halle, consider buying your groceries in Lokaal Halle, it’s an awesome local zero waste shop and the people are the kindest! If you are from Leuven: Content is the place to be for your zero waste shopping. If you are from Heverlee and want to shop seasonally while enjoying the nice surroundings of Abdij van Park: plan a visit to De Wikke.
Laura van Cutsem 