Sustainability: What is it?: meeting our needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
Since my divorce In 2018, I have been finding a more simple and sustainable lifestyle. Not only out of wanting to help the environment, but out of necessity as well. My divorce left me in several thousand dollars of debt and with a choice: do I continue buying the items over and over again or do I find different options? How will I afford these items that seem so expensive? Is it really worth the price over convenience? By finding alternative options to items I was frequently buying over and over again, I was able to find the world of sustainability: the world of reusing, the world of reducing, and the world of financial freedom. By finding these different options, my eyes were opened to a different type of life.
My first initial switches were items that helped preserve my food. According to USDA.gov, between 30-40% of all food is discarded. Most of the time, this food could have gone to help feed families that need it, but went to the landfill. The wasting of natural resources such as: land, water, labor, and energy and to grow, produce, process, transport, prepare, store and ultimately dispose of the discarded food is being increased due to negligence at every stage of production and the supply chain. During my divorce I became a single mother nearly overnight to a rambunctious 2 year old who loves fresh fruit and vegetables. I felt privileged enough to be able to continue to purchase her these fresh fruits and vegetables instead of purchasing from cans. Sometimes, she did not eat the food fast enough and the food rotted. With the food rotting, my money was being wasted. I knew something had to be done about our food waste and other general waste that was coming out of the house. And I was determined to reduce my food waste by not buying as much and finding different alternatives to preserve my foods.
As individuals, it might not seem that we can do that much. But with a little innovation, the individual can make a difference. Once large companies start to see where people are putting their money, the large corporations will make the changes.
Purchasing these items that seemed expensive at first, the cost analysis shows that it is much cheaper. For example, the cost of the leading quart baggies are $8.84 for 75 baggies (approximately $0.12 per bag). These items are generally utilized as single use items.
The cost of the leading silicone quart baggie is $22.50 for a pack of 2 (approximately $11.25). These items are able to be used multiple times. Depending on the brand, many of the silicone based bags are able to be washed in the dishwasher, microwaved, used in the oven, used in the freezer, and to store food as well. For myself personally, I made the switch in 2018 and the products are still intact. I use my collection every day for various uses, but mostly for my daughter’s lunch. She goes to a school that does not provide a hot lunch, so we have to provide a packed lunch for her. By using these silicone baggies, we have reduced the waste that would have been due to my daughter’s lunch such as individual sandwich baggies, plastic containers for fruit, items like that. When we were doing back to school shopping, I made sure to include these items in our budget.
I purchased approximately $80 worth for 7 of these items. Making each item approximately $11.43 ($80/7=11.43). Since my daughter started school in September, she has used these products every single day. She goes to school 22 times per month and that makes the cost to use each time for the month $0.52 ($11.43/22=0.52. She has gone to school for 4 months
($0.52/4=0.13) making our overall use for these silicone baggies comparable to traditional plastic baggies and none of those products have gone to a landfill. When she finishes school for the year (September-May=8 months), our total cost per use for each baggie will be less than six cents. ($0.52/8=0.06)
From a financial standpoint, sustainability is the best way to ensure your money is kept with you. For example, instead of buying the same plastic baggies week after week, only to use the product once and then throw away, it financially makes more sense to purchase one product to use over and over again. When a person is in the mindset that sustainability is part of a “trend” or too expensive, they are immediately turned off to helping the environment and would rather use convenience over the alternative.There has been a growing concern that has been voiced in recent years that unless overconsumption of natural resources is stopped, and that the world employs efforts to maintain sustainability, modern civilization could collapse just like ancient civilizations. There has been a tight connection between economic growth and the environment. Looking at the American Great Depression, this was the worst economic downturn in the history of American economy, unemployment rose between 23-32% percent and Americans had to find ways to scrimp and save on basic necessities. The Depression Era tips to Save Money are very similar to the ones that the sustainable community explores today.
Tips such as: Make your clothes last New clothes are expensive and fast fashion is detrimental to the environment. It is the second largest consumer of the water industry and uses synthetic fibers which take hundreds of years to biodegrade.
Use it up Use all of your personal care products, cleaning products, and food items so it isn’t wasted.
Make it yourself Make your food from scratch, you can even make cleaning supplies and personal care products from ingredients you likely already have on hand. Additionally, these products have less chemicals and could generally be better for you.
Borrow instead of buying Libraries, Kindle Unlimited, Amazon Prime, Netflix, Hulu among others are great places where you can pay a small subscription and have unlimited access to thousands of movies you can watch over and over without buying the DVD for it.
Reuse everything you can I love using jars for storage, clothes that I can’t mend anymore become rags. There is almost always a way to give something else a second life. It’s only single use if you use it once. By extending the lifespan of something, you’re reducing a little bit that might go to a landfill.
Use Less By being mindful of the items you already have, you only need a small amount. You don’t need 4 different types of shampoo and conditioner. It leads to more money being spent and more clutter around your home.
Grow your own food Gardens, especially Victory Gardens, were vital during the Depression Era. Gardening can still help people save money and help the environment by reducing requirements for food. By having a “garden to table” approach, less production is needed
In conclusion, while sustainable items might seem like they are overvalued or cost too much in general, think about the environmental impact and how much change these products bring. Then, instead of thinking about the value in dollar figures, think of the investment towards how much you could be helping the environment. If you’re not in a position to make that large investment, use other ways to reduce your carbon footprint and to make the world a better and healthier place.
“I cannot do all the good the world needs, but the world needs all the good that I can do”- Jane Stanfield
Kealy Parrish is an Active Duty Navy Sailor and Finance major at the University of Maryland Global Campus. Additionally, she is a sustainability blogger with a focus on finances where she has devoted her time to budget consulting and teaching about the low waste lifestyle. She resides in Portsmouth, VA with her partner and daughter, Hadley. She can be contacted at the following: Instagram: @sustainablefinances Email: sustainablefinances1@gmail.com
Sustainability & Finances: Food Waste by Kealy Parrish
Sustainability: What is it?: meeting our needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
Since my divorce In 2018, I have been finding a more simple and sustainable lifestyle. Not only out of wanting to help the environment, but out of necessity as well. My divorce left me in several thousand dollars of debt and with a choice: do I continue buying the items over and over again or do I find different options? How will I afford these items that seem so expensive? Is it really worth the price over convenience? By finding alternative options to items I was frequently buying over and over again, I was able to find the world of sustainability: the world of reusing, the world of reducing, and the world of financial freedom. By finding these different options, my eyes were opened to a different type of life.
My first initial switches were items that helped preserve my food. According to USDA.gov, between 30-40% of all food is discarded. Most of the time, this food could have gone to help feed families that need it, but went to the landfill. The wasting of natural resources such as: land, water, labor, and energy and to grow, produce, process, transport, prepare, store and ultimately dispose of the discarded food is being increased due to negligence at every stage of production and the supply chain. During my divorce I became a single mother nearly overnight to a rambunctious 2 year old who loves fresh fruit and vegetables. I felt privileged enough to be able to continue to purchase her these fresh fruits and vegetables instead of purchasing from cans. Sometimes, she did not eat the food fast enough and the food rotted. With the food rotting, my money was being wasted. I knew something had to be done about our food waste and other general waste that was coming out of the house. And I was determined to reduce my food waste by not buying as much and finding different alternatives to preserve my foods.
As individuals, it might not seem that we can do that much. But with a little innovation, the individual can make a difference. Once large companies start to see where people are putting their money, the large corporations will make the changes.
Purchasing these items that seemed expensive at first, the cost analysis shows that it is much cheaper. For example, the cost of the leading quart baggies are $8.84 for 75 baggies (approximately $0.12 per bag). These items are generally utilized as single use items.
The cost of the leading silicone quart baggie is $22.50 for a pack of 2 (approximately $11.25). These items are able to be used multiple times. Depending on the brand, many of the silicone based bags are able to be washed in the dishwasher, microwaved, used in the oven, used in the freezer, and to store food as well. For myself personally, I made the switch in 2018 and the products are still intact. I use my collection every day for various uses, but mostly for my daughter’s lunch. She goes to a school that does not provide a hot lunch, so we have to provide a packed lunch for her. By using these silicone baggies, we have reduced the waste that would have been due to my daughter’s lunch such as individual sandwich baggies, plastic containers for fruit, items like that. When we were doing back to school shopping, I made sure to include these items in our budget.
I purchased approximately $80 worth for 7 of these items. Making each item approximately $11.43 ($80/7=11.43). Since my daughter started school in September, she has used these products every single day. She goes to school 22 times per month and that makes the cost to use each time for the month $0.52 ($11.43/22=0.52. She has gone to school for 4 months
($0.52/4=0.13) making our overall use for these silicone baggies comparable to traditional plastic baggies and none of those products have gone to a landfill. When she finishes school for the year (September-May=8 months), our total cost per use for each baggie will be less than six cents. ($0.52/8=0.06)
From a financial standpoint, sustainability is the best way to ensure your money is kept with you. For example, instead of buying the same plastic baggies week after week, only to use the product once and then throw away, it financially makes more sense to purchase one product to use over and over again. When a person is in the mindset that sustainability is part of a “trend” or too expensive, they are immediately turned off to helping the environment and would rather use convenience over the alternative.There has been a growing concern that has been voiced in recent years that unless overconsumption of natural resources is stopped, and that the world employs efforts to maintain sustainability, modern civilization could collapse just like ancient civilizations. There has been a tight connection between economic growth and the environment. Looking at the American Great Depression, this was the worst economic downturn in the history of American economy, unemployment rose between 23-32% percent and Americans had to find ways to scrimp and save on basic necessities. The Depression Era tips to Save Money are very similar to the ones that the sustainable community explores today.
Tips such as:
Make your clothes last
New clothes are expensive and fast fashion is detrimental to the environment. It is the second largest consumer of the water industry and uses synthetic fibers which take hundreds of years to biodegrade.
Use it up
Use all of your personal care products, cleaning products, and food items so it isn’t wasted.
Make it yourself
Make your food from scratch, you can even make cleaning supplies and personal care products from ingredients you likely already have on hand. Additionally, these products have less chemicals and could generally be better for you.
Borrow instead of buying
Libraries, Kindle Unlimited, Amazon Prime, Netflix, Hulu among others are great places where you can pay a small subscription and have unlimited access to thousands of movies you can watch over and over without buying the DVD for it.
Reuse everything you can
I love using jars for storage, clothes that I can’t mend anymore become rags. There is almost always a way to give something else a second life. It’s only single use if you use it once. By extending the lifespan of something, you’re reducing a little bit that might go to a landfill.
Use Less
By being mindful of the items you already have, you only need a small amount. You don’t need 4 different types of shampoo and conditioner. It leads to more money being spent and more clutter around your home.
Grow your own food
Gardens, especially Victory Gardens, were vital during the Depression Era. Gardening can still help people save money and help the environment by reducing requirements for food. By having a “garden to table” approach, less production is needed
In conclusion, while sustainable items might seem like they are overvalued or cost too much in general, think about the environmental impact and how much change these products bring. Then, instead of thinking about the value in dollar figures, think of the investment towards how much you could be helping the environment. If you’re not in a position to make that large investment, use other ways to reduce your carbon footprint and to make the world a better and healthier place.
Kealy Parrish is an Active Duty Navy Sailor and Finance major at the University of Maryland Global Campus. Additionally, she is a sustainability blogger with a focus on finances where she has devoted her time to budget consulting and teaching about the low waste lifestyle. She resides in Portsmouth, VA with her partner and daughter, Hadley. She can be contacted at the following:
Instagram: @sustainablefinances
Email: sustainablefinances1@gmail.com