365 Sustainable Decisions Challenge

Life is change. Not yet sure it is? Then imagine yourself finding out whether a snake you see is still alive: you know it is when it changes its position. So why not doing it the other way around:  changing by living more environmentally friendly? You will feel more alive.

As toilet paper is made of paper and requires cutting trees, I can be careful with how much I use. I try to use as little as possible.

Yeah, finally! What a beautiful basil plant! It took a lot of trial and error and several plants didn't survive. But now I know how to let it flourish and be able to put fresh leaves on my pizza every week: I give a little water every day or put its feet in a container with water.

On one of my walks, I found this bottle in the fields. I looked very lonely and asked me to be recycled. So, I picked it up and rescued it from being buried alive.  

Not one, not two, three! That's how many glass panes my window has. Between each pane is a special gas. It insulates the house well. So although I have large windows, the heat stays in in winter and out in summer. One great way to help push back today's Earth Overshoot Day and my electricity bill loves it!

I recently found a shopping bag outside with a lot of glass in it. The bag was left next to the street by someone. I decided to bring the glass to the glass container and clean the bag so that I can use it.

Lifequake A great word by Bruce Feiler describing an event changing our life completely and affects us at least a year. It can be chosen or happen. Example: I chose to give up my job for sustainability, but would happen when a flood caused by climate change leaves me homeless.

I found a spot with a many of nettles. As I make tea from the leaves, I decided to make a tea supply. For the glasses, I used old pizza glasses, so happy to be able to reuse it instead of throwing it away!  

Do you feel stressed? If yes, visit nature such as a park or forest. Already 20 min in nature reduces the stress hormone cortisol. That's worth it: cortisol weakens the immune system when chronic, meaning you get ill quicker. So, nature helps to feel good and stay healthy.

I found this quote written by Anne Frank. As it is so true, it inspired me to keep on going with this Challenge.

A frame with moss! Doesn't this look great? I saw this in a restaurant. The waitress told me that they don't have to water it as the moss gets its water from the air. So, no maintenance and beautiful view!

I wanted to go for a walk and noticed these package fillers scattered all over the street. I decided to clean them as soon as I got back. But as I continued walking, I found many more. When I turned the corned and saw another street covered, I decided to skip my walk and do a cleanup instead.  

Where I live is a special bakery. It's name is "Pastries from the day before" but often called "Day before bakery".  They sell bread that would otherwise be thrown away, for example because it's from the day before or it doesn't look good enough. A great way to reduce food waste!

When I do shopping, I always write a list. I have blocks with paper that I could use. But I prefer to use paper waste as it saves paper.

A long road, only a few trees and a car crashes against one of them. How's that possible?  Because we look at what to prevent and therefore go there. That's why I feel repeating disaster scenarios is counterproductive and I prefer a bright vision such as  https://transfermagazin.steinbeis.de/?p=10425&lang=en

At home, I have an adult coloring book which is meant for mindfulness and relaxation. It is nice, but I realized it is also possible to take an old envelope, make a simple drawing on it and color it. As I can still use the envelope, I will be able to surprise someone with it one day.  

Water is magical! We are made up of 60% water, but it can also kill us. Sometimes it feels solid, sometimes it flows around us. Sometimes we are in it, some on it. And importantly: we can live only about a week without it. So we'd better take care of this precious resource!

In this cold time of the year and being someone who freezes rather quickly, I tend to be cold at night. Instead of putting the heating on, I’m using a second blanket to stay warm.

This is so exciting! Recently, I met Prof Dr Michael Weiß (@mweiss_tue) on Twitter. He's an expert on topics including fungi and sustainable agriculture. Today, we met and shared thoughts and insights for 2.5 hours! It was a first meeting one of you in real life! Great!

When I bought my glasses many years ago, I got a little cloth to clean it. I just realized that these cloths are way more environmentally friendly than to often use single-use cloths. Not only because of the cloth itself, also because it attached the coating of the glasses.  

"I don't think you did it"  This sentence can be read in at least 6 ways. Try it by reading the sentence out loud 6 times as if someone says it to you, stressing a different word each time. Do you feel the difference? That's how easy it is to misunderstand or be misunderstood.

I have a dispenser at home with liquid soap. I found out that instead of having to buy a new dispenser, I can also buy a refill package. Even though it is not zero waste yet, it helps.

Do you want to plant free trees when shopping online? If yes, I suggest installing this browser extension. Each time you shop in one of over 40,000 shops, they plant trees without extra costs for you. I installed it too, which was quick and easy. https://www.treeclicks.com Although, it's best not to shop at all, sometimes you might still need something. In those cases TreeClicks comes in handy. #treeplanting #trees #treeclicks #ad

When I vote, I vote for a political party that has the environment as one of its top priorities.  

O no! I didn't think of putting the bins with paper waste out this morning. As it is collected every 4 weeks, I had to rent a bus (I don't own a car) and drive about 2 miles/3,3 km to recycling. Very inefficient! So, I'm grateful that normally a truck collects it for us all!

People often laugh at me for eating the core of an apple. But I don’t care as it is just as much apple as the rest. So I eat it - without the pips - and reduce food waste.

698 days in a row! On August 20th 2019, I started my 365 #Sustainable Decisions Challenge. Since then, I've shared ideas that make it easy to live more environmentally friendly every single day. Tomorrow, I do it differently: I take a day off. So, see you on Monday day 700!

When I have documents with sensitive information, I shredder it, so that this information doesn’t get into the hands of other people. But as the shredder requires electricity, I only do so when really necessary.

What you give is what you get: When I started my Challenge, I had the prejudice that most comments on social media are critical. But this is not necessarily true: I get mostly wonderful comments.  That's why I believe:  when we give love to the world, we get love back.

When I am traveling, I of course also have to buy food to-go. I usually get a bag or some other kind of container. As they are always one-way, I decided to bring my own box. And the bakery in this case was happy to use it.

I have no idea when it happened, but the handle of this brush broke off years ago. And as I love this brush so much, it is non-negotiable for me that I keep using it as long as possible.  Also without handle.  

Okay stop. I know scrolling to the next post is tempting. Who knows what you might miss if you stop here. This is also called FOMO: fear of missing out. But nature has so much to give: what if you enjoyed longer what you already have? Doesn't that make you feel good too?

I unfortunately noticed that some of my grapes had gone off. So I quickly ate the ones that were still okay to make sure that they wouldn’t go off also.

Who do you love a lot? Have you told or shown them today? If not, let them know. Because my smile to you is obvious to me,  but you're not able to see. PS: We have to use such single-use masks here in Germany.

During the menstruation phase, it is very easy to create a lot of waste. That’s why I think these mooncups are a great idea! This way, it is not necessary to throw away anything.  

"The hreat stores a lot of wisdom" As the brain uses experience to speed things up, I guess you read heart. But earth works with these letters too. So, to change a habit and live more environmentally friendly, you only need to 1. go back 2. have another look 3. do it differently

When I clean my ears, I can use a cotton swab. But as it is not possible to recycle these, I have decided to clean my ears with my fingers. It works very well and haven’t had any problems.

We all have different personalities in us without having dissociative identity disorder. Sometimes we are a loving friend sometimes a do-er sometimes an adventurer.  Which personality in you loves and cares for nature? Lets allow that personality to take over more often.

I have been using this broom for years. As is doesn’t work very well anymore, I needed a new one. But instead of buying a whole new brook, I only replaced part of it. Now it works perfect again, and saved me waste.  

Cycling is the way forward! In The Netherlands, cycling is a common mode of transport. It's estimated that 17 million people own 22.8 million bikes. That's 1.3 bike per person. That's why this railway station has a bike garage. With 3048 free spots when I took the picture.

When I wash my hair, there always remain hairs in the bath. I used to rinse the bath, sometimes with the water I gathered (#10), but I now decide to merely pick up the hairs without water at all.

You probably recognize this when you own a dog: When walking a dog, it's easy to start a chat with another dog owner: you have something in common.  It also works when doing a cleanup:  someone who picks up litter too started a chat with me  AND gave me beans from his garden!

When eating in a take-away restaurant, I often get these single-meal wrappings for mustard, ketchup or mayonnaise. As these involve a lot of wrapping, I prefer to eat these sauces from a large bottle whenever possible.  

Fun = fun, right? So, if one fun doesn't work out, or is environmentally unfriendly, why not choose a different fun? For example: I went canoeing with a friend. We intended to paddle a certain route, but couldn't: it was blocked. We went a different way,  and had fun too.

As often as possible, I refrain from printing something. But sometimes I have to. In that case, I prefer using recycled paper. The color is less white than ‘normal’ paper, but the color often doesn’t matter. I hope this saves trees being cut down.

Did you know we have 2 brains? The second is our gut. It's responsible for digestion and - like our first brain - acts autonomously and influences behavior. Interestingly, my gut feeling says it's strongly influencing decisions concerning sustainable living. Does yours too?

While cleaning the stairways, I found some paper clips that I had collected with my broom. Instead of throwing them away with the rest of the dust, I decided to keep them and store them with my other paper clips.

Are you scared of what will happen when climate change progresses? If yes, then it is good to know that action is the cure-all to fear. So, by taking action, for example by living more environmentally friendly, you not only help our planet, you also help yourself.

Doing this challenge takes a lot of spare time. So to relax a bit, I considered taking a bath. But as it takes a lot of warm water to fill the tub, I decided to take a shower instead.

Good news! A new European law is put in place,  prohibiting certain single use plastic products to be produced, including  - drinking straws  - cotton swabs  - cutlery and plates  - stirrers  - balloon sticks. So, item #65 is outdated in Europe!  Yay!