Hi folks,
My name is Patricia - please call me Pat! I am originally from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil but I live in Dublin, Ireland with my two gorgeous boys and my dear husband.
Back a few (many!) years ago, my husband and I met in Jamaica while working for the same business over there.
We were always huge fans of the ocean and every spare time we had was spent surfing (him!) and chilling by the beautiful beaches (me!).
Years went by, we moved to Dublin and became parents. The whole parenthood journey began with a load of bottles, nappies, wipes and lots and lots of non-reusable plastic packaging. I couldn't believe my eyes!
From there onwards, I made a pledge to become more conscious when shopping for myself and for my house, avoiding waste as much as I could.
reuzi was born a few months ago out of a dream - To adopt a zero or less waste lifestyle and while doing that, to share my journey with my family, my friends and the wider community.
If you are still debating whether or not to join this movement, here are some reasons why I decided to take the plunge and why I think you should too.
Reason 1: Spring Cleaning, All Year Long!
I was always quite organised but #sustainableliving thaught me that what's good can always get better.
My motto is: continuously assess your mess!
Don't get me wrong, it didn't happen overnight: it took me weeks, months to get through every single cupboard and drawer.
I realised that we were keeping a lot of unecessary things around the house - our "bits & bobs drawer" turned out to be a "junk drawer" with so much stuff that we actually didn't need. What did I do? I selected things that were in perfect shape and donated those to friends and to people in need.
It's important for you to remember that you don't necessarily need to fill up a bin bag - what's no longer useful for you can be gold to others!
Reason 2: Plan, plan and plan
I looove planning and to get into the habit of planning ahead wasn't the hardest thing I had to do. Whether that meant packing my own lunch for work, building in more travel time if I had choosen to walk instead of drive, or making sure to pack reusable bags for the grocery – learning to anticipate my needs, and taking the time to do so really helped me manage my time better and to be more organized.
Reason 3: Save money!
I started to adopt a "thanks but no thanks" attitude - you don't need to pay extra for that single-use cup or a coffee cup sleeve or silly plastic takeaway packaging. Plus why would you buy disposable straws for your kid's party when you could invest on lovely reusable ones? Less waste means more money in the bank, think about it :-)
Reason 4: You will become healthier
By adopting certain habits you will not only contribute to a cleaner environment but you will also improve your health, trust me!
Let's talk about disposable water bottles.
Statistics show that of Europe’s top five plastic waste offenders (calculated per capita), Ireland is top of the pile (wow!), producing 61 kilogrammes per person, per year and disposable water bottles are a big chunk of that number.
I truly believe that a reusable water bottle is an essential item for #zerowasters. By doing that, you will avoid unecessary waste and also notice that your water consumption will increase! Score!!
Also, a big part of our little to zero waste lifestyle is to learn how to buy, cook and eat package-free foods. That means that you will be investing on fresher food / produce, cooking meals that are actually better for your body. I am working on a post with simple weekday meals my family and I are always going preparing and would love to hear your ideas too!
Lastly, you could be fitter! If consider yourself you’re an environmentalist at heart, you know that by choosing to walk or ride a bike rather than driving or taking public transportation to get to around you will avoid harming our little planet plus that extra movement will do wonders for your physical and mental health.
The truth is - when thoughtfulness becomes a part of your lifestyle, it begins to positively affect other areas. If you’re committed to putting in the effort to take care of the earth, why wouldn’t you do the same for yourself?
By adopting #sustainableliving you will end up building practices and routines that will also impact your life positively. And that’s something we could all use a little more of!
Love,
Pat x
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