Many families don't know where to begin with living sustainably, in waste-free homes that help (not harm) the environment and its wildlife. We will focus on learning to be self-sufficient and conscious of our choices while working with others to learn together.
We will work from within our own homes to make change a little at a time. We will reach out to others to help one another and share information, materials or resources. We currently organize clothing and toy exchanges and want to grow our group to share some more! We will learn to garden to grow (and cook!) our own food while also helping native species. We will start container gardens to make it more feasible for those who rent to grow fruit, vegetables and herbs. We will phase out plastic (particularly single-use plastics) from our home and help others to do the same; distribute food that would otherwise be thrown away to reduce food scarcity and waste; and grow our own food through garden projects.
We are still continuing our work, but it is going well! We are distributing food to many families. We have discovered sustainable products we have been able to purchase and share to replace single use material or plastic (hello toothpaste tablets!). Our garden has several new vegetable plants as well as a couple of fruit trees growing.
We learned what is easy to do and what requires more time and learning. We learned how to connect with people and reach out to our community. We are learning how not to kill our plants! Our new silicone bags have replaced plastic sandwich bags and they are great! We are excited to share what we have found useful such as substitutes and ‘hacks’. We learned how to make our own kitchen staples, such as bread and tomato sauce. Next, we are working on making personal care items!
We might narrow our scope down a bit so we have one project per field to work in (such as plastic free living, gardening or sharing food items). Having one big project for many ideas made it difficult to keep track or stay focused on certain aspects.
We loved replacing the plastic bags in our house! Our new freezer bags store all our cooked beans and chopped vegetables so nicely! We have also really enjoyed getting to know more people and being active participants in our local community.
Stasher bags are expensive, but worth it! They go on sale often so try to take advantage instead of buying at full cost. Toothpaste tablets (we tried Georganics) are much nicer than toothpaste in a tube! Taking part in clean ups (not just at the beach!) is a great way to meet your neighbors and community members! It’s a great way to make friends!
