Posts

Showing posts with the label sustainability

Know Your Plastics: Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET or PETE)

Image
Different PET products For every container used for soft drink and water, shampoo and liquid soap, cooking oil, food dressing and spread and; For every oven food tray, roasting bag, curtain, upholstery, thread, tyre cord filament, industrial fibre, and industrial filtration fabric, you are more than likely looking at a plastic product made of Polyethylene terephthalate. Still in doubt? Look for the inscription “bubble” or the recycling code “1” encased in a triangle of chasing arrows on the container or the item itself and, there you have it! You have identified a polyethylene terephthalate AKA PETE AKA PET! Polyethylene Terephthalate recycling code and acronyms Background The very first preparation of PET was made during a 1940 study of phthalic acid by Rex J. Whinfield and James T. Dickson of the Calico Printers Association, England. However, the war at the time delayed the publication of its patent specification. This stalled the production of the Terylene fibre by Imperial C

Our Environment in Poem

Image
     Poetry - Literature that evokes a concentrated imaginative awareness of experience or a specific emotional response through language chosen and arranged for its meaning, sound and rhythm. (Britannica) The International Day for Education 2021 was celebrated on January 24 with the theme “Recover and Revitalize Education for the COVID-19 Generation”. In her message to mark the occasion, the Director-General of UNESCO Audrey Azoulay pointed out that the pandemic proved that “...education was a global public good and school was more than just a place of learning: it was also a place that provided protection, well-being, food and freedom.” She went on to emphasize the immense power of quality education as a tool for achieving global peace and development by reducing hunger and gender inequality. What better way to promote education and the right to a sustainable future than through written word, skillfully coined to create an awareness of our collective environmental experience? Th

Saving Earth with Hemp Toilet Paper

Image
HAPPY NEW YEAR! Is it too late for me to be saying that? Naaah! I firmly believe that as long as we are still in January and interacting for the first time, we should start with that. So again, I wish you a Happy New Year people! It is a new year! Like most people, I have spent part of this first month reflecting on the last year. The main feature being the progression of the pandemic caused by the Corona Virus and I remembered how hard I laughed every single time, I listened to international news updates and there was always talk about the shortage of toilet paper in Europe and the Americas. I can understand if food items and soap are classified as “in shortage” but, toilet paper?! Huh? Why? Anyway, with the impending lockdown due to a second wave, the COVID-infused shortage piqued my curiosity. I started looking up articles, videos and anything really about toilet paper as we know it and its alternatives. These delivered me to the doorstep of hemp toilet paper and shared enthusiasm f

The Ultimate Guide to Giving Sustainable Christmas Gifts in 2020

Image
“Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas” – Calvin Coolidge The year 2020 has been very trying to say the least. And for a lot of people, there is really nothing to celebrate or be merry for this Christmas. While I agree that the year has been challenging on various levels, these challenges can be said to be a good thing, in a way. “How can the pandemic and its consequences possibly be a good thing?” One might ask. I will tell you why. For one, it has tested and proven the overwhelming will of humankind to survive. Also, it proved that when the chips are down, we will be willing to sacrifice partially or even completely our most treasured possessions and privileges. In essence, we all want to live, and we will do anything and everything to stay alive and healthy. Well then, if you are reading this… CONGRATULATIONS! You are alive! Count yourself lucky and get in

Overpopulation: Myth or Truth.

Image
At the height of the lockdown, I found this really awesome group of people from all over the world who share ideas and experiences on how individuals and communities can live more sustainably using the resources at their disposal. From the simple DIYs of making your own oat milk to the more complicated business of building houses from shipping containers and eating only what you grow and rear, the group has been a steady source of what I now call “ DIS ” AKA Daily Inspiration in Sustainability! ;) Well in the last week or so, the eternal debate on what is a myth and what is hard fact truth in the race towards sustainability sprung up. One person made a list of over (15) things that they termed ‘myths’ which a large number of the population world over believes as truth.   As can be expected when challenging what is perceived as common knowledge, one of the ‘myths” blew up! It got so huge that it broke off into a stand-alone conversation with arguments and counter-arguments. Care to ha