EARTH DAY 2022
8 SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2022
Small steps to become more eco-friendly By Todd Lewys W hen it comes to being eco- friendly, everyone wants to do their part. Yet, establishing the habit of
being easier on our planet can be a challenge. Colleen Ans of the Winnipeg-based Green Action Centre says an eco-friendly lifestyle isn’t developed overnight. “It’s all about making that initial effort,” she says. “Start small by doing one thing at a time. Then over time, it becomes a habit. Really, it’s all about everyone doing the little things. There’s a saying that comes from Zero Waste Chef Anne- Marie Bonneau: ‘We don’t need a handful of people doing zero waste perfectly. We need millions of people doing it imperfectly.’” That means resisting the urge to become the Guru of Green all in one fell swoop. “For example, if you have plastic bags on hand, reuse them as much as you can — that makes their life cycle longer. Or, if you’re using plastic toothbrushes, use them until they wear out, then buy a recyclable bamboo toothbrush to use after. You don’t need to go from zero to 100. The little things we do add up.” From there, it’s a matter of making a conscious effort to sit back and identify how you and your family can alter your old habits to create new eco-friendly ones. “Doing that’s a challenge because the pandemic reinforced the trend of throwing out things,” Ans says. “To combat that trend, we need to go back in time.” Going back in time means revisiting how things were done in the “old” days back in the 1950s and 1960s.
Colleen Ans of Green Action Centre showcases a reusable bag for food, along with other eco-friendly items. (Photos by Darcy Finley)
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