Reduce, Reuse, Recyle

I have been thinking of this slogan/mantra/motto...philosophy recently.  I think a lot of people, although not enough get the recycle part.  Honestly that is the easiest part of this statement.  But notice the recycle part is the last of the three concepts.

Problem is recycling should not just stop with what your local recycling plant will accept.  Recycling needs to apply beyond paper, plastic, metal and glass.

What about the other items the recycling center won't accept?  This is where the Reduce and Reuse notion comes into play. 

Reduce
Recycling still requires energy to make the old product into something else.  It requires fuel for the truck that picks it up and takes it to the recycling center; it takes energy and fuel to put that new package on the shelf for purchase.

So, yes that item did not end up in the landfill, but it is still using up resources to become another package.
If you can eliminate, or reduce the amount of packaging in the food items and other purchases, then you are making a greater impact on our planet. That is because the idea is to reduce the amount you consume, reduce the amount you waste, reduce your foot print, reduce, reduce, reduce.  So how am I trying reduce, reduce, reduce?

As Jaime said, we are taking on a local challenge.  This challenge is about many different ideas.  The idea is that local items require fewer resources to get to your table, you have more knowledge of what is on or in what you are eating and you can reduce your waste of food and packaging.

Do you need an individual plastic bag for each of your various produce items?  Do you need a bag for that one book you just purchased?  Do you need to go to the store for something for dinner, or can you with a little imagination make something with what you have at home?

These are all little things that have started to invade my brain and change the way I think.  The result is my family wastes less food, gas, and packaging.  We are reducing our impact and consumption.

Reuse

So what happens when you cannot avoid the packaging, and we are trying to avoid tossing it in the trash and sending it to the recycling center just yet?

Is there not another use for the item you have?  I know containers and jars are the easiest to find a use for but there are only so many sour cream containers and glass jars you can keep before your cabinets are over run.  So why not make luggage tags out of your yogurt containers.  Use the bag from the cereal box as wax paper for freezing meat or for cooling your no bake cookies. There are a million and one ways to reuse everyday items.  All you have to do is one little thing ...Google it!  Seriously how did we know how to tie our shoes before internet search engines?

Recycle

So after you have reduced your consumption and packaging, etc, and you have reused all of these items to the max, then you can recycle the rest.  This is how the concept is supposed to play out.  That is why the words are in that order.  I have not given much thought to the two proceeding ideas until recently.  I have to tell you I truly believe the answer is in the concept as a whole.  Not one part of the three.  The whole idea is what makes a difference.

This will be one of the main ideas on my brain while I embark on this challenge with Jaime.
I will be referencing this concept as I add to the content on the blog.  I am excited to find new ways to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle the items in my everyday life.

I hope that anyone reading will become inspired to change the way they think about this concept and to embrace it as Jaime and I will during our eco exploits!

Welcome to the Moonflower Chronicles!

Jennifer

What blog isn't complete without a challenge...

When Jennifer and I first started talking about doing a blog we were hung up mainly on a name and some content, many text messages later we are in buisness. While my brain was buzzing about my first post I thought "What Eco blog isn't complete without a challenge?" We are both embarking on locavorism as well as being more eco friendly and non-toxic in our lives, why not kick it up a notch.

Enter the Local Foods challenge. I know, been done 100 times, but not by us and hey we like a challenge and love to torture those around us. So we have decided to progressively go to as many local food stuffs as possible purchasing things within 100 mile radius of our homes starting with our gardens and working our way out. There will be "freebies" such as chocolate that you can't get locally or bananas for the toddler. On these items however we will seek out the best fair trade and organic option out there. For other items we can not find we will have to consult our panel (me and Jennifer) on what is the best option or if we should just give it up. Can I give up Chocolate...no, Avocados...maybe. We are going to be realistic while getting as local as possible.

I think if anything we are going to have a blast looking for local options for our favorite foods. We may even review a few things to encourage our small local audience to do the same. Buying locally is not only good for your local economy but it also supports local farmers and is good for the planet.

I hope you enjoy reading about our fun times...it should be interesting!

Jaimelee <3