Life Without Plastic Blog

India rising... above plastic!

We are just back from a trip to "Incredible !ndia" -- this is the tag line used by the Indian Ministry of Tourism to promote India around the world, and it's true, India is !ncredible.  One might argue that I'm biased because I have Indian roots, but this is a country that grabs everyone by all senses and flys away with you. It is so alive, just teeming with life.  And the colours - I love the flowers sold in the street, and the numerous fresh vegetable stands.

We were there to visit family and meet with some of our suppliers.  We visited Mumbai, Kolkata and Delhi.  Doing what we do, Chantal and I were always on the lookout for signs and info about the current state of the plastic pollution in India, and what is being done about it.  With a population exceeding a billion, over 30% of which live below the poverty level, dealing with plastic waste is a challenge by any measure.  And yet, we found many signs of positive action. 

Certainly with so many people and so much waste, plastic is a problem, and it is visible wherever one finds garbage. We even saw truckloads of plastic bottles and bags being transported to the mythical "away", likely a landfill. 

Apart from increasing overall waste, plastic bags clog drains and increase flooding - the increased flooding creates breeding grounds for malaria and dengue fever.  Bags can be a problem in the countryside where vegetables are grown as they break down into increasingly smaller pieces while leaching chemicals into the soil.  Bags and other plastic garbage are also eaten by animals, such as cows and dogs, and killing them by clogging their intestines.

Awareness of the problem is growing, and both governments and citizens have taken action over the past decade. Bans on plastic bags have been put in place in numerous municipalites including Mumbai and Delhi and Kolkata.  While implementation is an enormous challenge, the bans must be having an effect because compared to our last visit to India ten years ago, the difference is visible.  There are clearly fewer plastic bags around, in the stores and on the streets, and many people seem to carry their own reusable bags for shopping (of course, this is a practice that has always been more prevalent in Asia than in the West). 

In Mumbai, we came across a plastic bench with the following printed on a small white label attached to it, "Made from Plastic Waste-Recycled".  On the grounds of Victoria Memorial in Kolkata we noticed a sign in English, Hindi and Bengali reading, "Avoid Plastic Bags Please. It Is Injurious To Health." 

In talking to people - from shopkeepers to executives - it becomes clear that the issue of plastic pollution is one they are aware of and they understand why it is a serious issue.  This awareness and willingness to act to decrease plastic use and waste is slowly permeating daily Indian life.

This is one of the things I love about India.  As the largest democracy in the world, it is a crazily diverse country and I sometimes marvel that it even works. Yet, with such a varied, colourful and tumultuous history and existence, Indians are accustomed to embracing change and going with the flow. A change may happen overnight or become mired in the famous Indian beaurocracy and stagnate for years, but if it makes sense, the Indian people will accept it and make it a part of their lives quickly.

So as India slowly rises above plastic - and there is lots of rising yet to do because plastic pollution is still a huge problem in India, as in so many other parts of the world - we could all learn from this willingness to accept change.

Jay Sinha, Co-Owner
LifeWithoutPlastic.com

All photos by Jay.

Full Head Syndrome

Wow. What a day. My mind is full of stimulating ideas and inspiration. Here are some paraphrased tidbits from speakers throughout the day...  (photo credits:  Green America)

Bob Johansen, Author of Leaders Make the Future
Distinguished Fellow
Institute for the Future

On the future:  In today's world of volatile-uncertain-complex-ambiguous global challenges "you should be confused. The most dangerous people are those who think they know what is going on." 
"We need to learn from our kids through reverse mentoring."
"Fun can change behaviour for the better."  Check out these initiatives spearheaded by Volkswagen to prove that fun can be a positive behavioural influence: The Fun Theory

Margot Fraser, Author of Dealing with the Tough Stuff
Founder & Former CEO, Birkenstock USA

"Running a business is hard. Running a socially responsible business is harder. Running a socially responsible business in a recession is as hard as it gets."

Joey Shepp
Founder & CEo, Earthsite LLC

On the power of social media tools like blogs, Facebook Twitter:  "Sharing happens fast, so 'if you're not transparent, they'll see right through you.'"

Jerry Stifelman
Founder & Creative Director, The Change

His talk about authentic branding - making the most of yourself by understanding the relationship between thinking, feeling, doing - was amazing. For me, the highlight of the conference so far. It's really very simple, just be yourself and tell the truth. Precepts at the core of our business. His three rules for branding in an authentic way: "Don't be an asshole. Don't pretend to be an angel. Don't pretend you have no self-interest." And his final words of wisdom: "Be the opposite of bullshit." The words may sound profane and flippant, but if you think about them in the context of this era of greenwashing, they are actually profound and meaningful. OK, maybe you had to be there. At any rate, the message was: just be yourself and tell the truth.

Theresa Marquez
Chief Marketing Executive, Organic Valley Family of Farms

Our barriers are not technological. We have the technology and energy necessary. "We are just not cooperating enough."

Libby Reder
Head of Environmental Initiatives, eBay, Inc.

"The greenest product is often the one that already exists."

Be yourself. Be well.

Jay Sinha, Co-Owner
LifeWithoutPlastic.com

Local Urban Passion, Green Vibrations, Mamalution, and the Golden Alchemy of Herbs

The San Francisco Green Business Conference began this evening with Jenny McNulty of Urban Solutions talking about how her organization works with businesses in disadvantaged areas of San Francisco to help them implement sustainable business practices.  The owners of three local businesses - Small Potatoes Catering, Miss Saigon, and the under construction Passion Café - each spoke passionately about how they have embraced sustainability in numerous aspects of their businesses, thanks to Urban Solutions.

I usually find that the best part of conferences like this - or any conference for that matter - is the people you meet.  Here are a few of the fascinating folks I met this evening:

• Imani and John, owners of The Green Vibration Eco-Boutique, and Alchemy Juice Bar Café, and founders of the Growing Green Co-op, all in Hartford, Connecticut.  And Imani is also the force behind the Mamalution movement and network/blog and soon-to-be book.  As her site explains:  "Mamalution is a a grassroots movement of moms taking back the planet! We are passionate about making a difference for future generations by living simply, making sustainable choices, and empowering others to do the same."  These are dynamic folks - especially given that they have six kids too!
• Ashley Beckman and her partner created Golden Path Alchemy, which is a holistic, handmade herbal skincare company "that combines Western herbs, therapeutic essential oils, flower essences, and gem elixirs to create powerful healing blends that transform your skin from ordinary to extraordinary."  Very cool.  And of course I love the fact that all of their magical products are packaged in glass! And some of them in that lush funky deep blue glass. No plastic at all!

Amazing what others are doing all over the place, following their passions, living their values, constantly creating. Even when they have six kids. Yeah, that really impressed me.

Jay Sinha, Co-Owner
LifeWithoutPlastic.com

Getting to the GBC: From Darkness to Light

Today I spent the day travelling by car, bus, foot and plane to the Green Business Conference in San Francisco. This is a congregation of other folks running what have come to be known as 'green businesses' – businesses with an environmental-social focus. And San Francisco is certainly a natural place to meet, being one of the hearts of the green movement, and to boot, at the forefront of key plastic-reduction victories: phthalate reduction, plastic bag ban... I thought I'd share some of my thoughts and experiences over these next few days. So these posts may not necessarily be plastic-related. But that's fine with me. I've always considered blogs as streams of consciousness. And even though we are on a mission here at Life Without Plastic, that doesn't mean we can't go on tangents. How narrow life would be without tangents.

At 6 am, Chantal and Jyoti drove me to the bus station in Ottawa. I took a Greyhound to Montreal. Uneventful: sleep. I had breakfast in Montreal around the corner from the bus station while waiting for the bus to Burlington, Vermont. In one of the local events weeklies, Voir, there was an article about the recent launch of the new beer Rickards Dark. It happened at a trendy Montreal bar where they kept the lights off and served the guests up the new Dark and hors d'oeuvres in the dark so they couldn't really see what they were eating or drinking. The symbolism of this really struck me as Montreal is going through dark times. Mired in controversy over deep roots of corruption that heroic journalists have uncovered in the municipal government and throughout the construction industry. Walking to the bus station, the sky was grey and the day felt dark, but I was happy. Surely I would find light in San Fran.

Crossing the border left many of us on the bus with a sour taste as we entered the US. I was sitting directly behind a large, well-dressed black man. He hummed softly to himself for the whole trip. At the border crossing going from Quebec, Canada to Vermont in the US, we all filed off the bus into the border post. The man in front of me went first. The border guard looked at the computer screen after scanning his passport and asked him, speaking quickly, “Where do you live?” The man clearly didn't understand and didn't say anything. The border guard looked up at him. “Where do you live?!” The man tried to say something but I couldn't hear what. The guard practically screamed, “ Come on we speak English here! How are we supposed to understand you! WHERE DO YOU LIVE?” The man began to say something, but the guard stopped him and ushered him into a backroom. The rest of us got through fine, though obviously there was heavy tension. The man joined us on the bus a while later. He looked a little pale and immediately upon sitting down took a long swig from his water bottle. It took several minutes before his humming started up again. I asked him, in French (obviously his English was not great), if they were as rude in the back as the first guard had been to him. He said, “No worse than any other time. It's always the same here. I'm just going to visit my sister in Boston. But on the way back I'm taking the plane.” It's sad to know that racial profiling still happens, and disturbing to see it in action.

I like Burlington, Vermont. I've driven through before, but never stopped. I walked from the bus station downtown and people were super friendly with directions on where to catch a city bus to the airport. It has an earthy, laid back feel. The glossy Vermont tourist magazine I thumbed through at the airport while eating a veggie and hummus sandwich from the Great Harvest Bread Co. (beautifully wrapped in simple kraft paper, I might add – no plastic!) described the local fall traditions of apple-picking, cider making. You get the feeling people live pretty close to the earth and seasons here.

I had a quick stopover at Detroit airport. To go from Terminal C to Terminal A you go through this neat long underground tunnel in which the walls are lined with glass, and coloured lights behind the glass change and flow in sync with airy, electronic, bubbly music. Rather psychedelic and Austin Powersish. My other experience worth mentioning at the airport happened in the mens bathroom. They have these uber-cool Dyson hand dryers that use very little energy, are completely hygenic and obviously decrease paper towel use. They were created by James Dyson, the British inventor behind the revolutionary Dyson vacuums, and the only other place I've seen them is in London. You put your hands in the top, as though you were putting them into a bucket, to start the air flow and as you move your hands up and down, air shoots at them from both sides very forcefully. It feels like a wonderful hand massage because you can feel the air going around each finger. I had an absolute blast stimulating those hand pressure points. But I was baffled. No one else was using them. In the time that I was there, five other guys must have come through and every one took a paper towel from the dispenser and didn't even look at the Dyson dryers. Maybe I scared them off by having so much fun myself. Old habits die hard.

Now I'm in San Francisco at the historic utterly elegant turn-of-the-century Hotel Whitcomb where the conference is happening. It served as San Fran's City Hall between 1912-1915, while reconstruction was happening following the 1906 earthquake. It's dark outside and it's time to sleep. Tomorrow, in the light, I'll be exploring the city a bit. The conference really gets going on the 11th, and my plan is to post a few nuggets of gleaned wisdom from the sessions each day. There's always more to learn, and I hope to be able to share some of what I learn at the GBC with you.

Jay Sinha, Co-Owner
LifeWithoutPlastic.com

Want to Make Money with your Used Plastic Water Bottles? Go to Germany

Jay and I are just returning from a trip in Europe and I was extremely impressed with how green this country is. Not only is it literally green from all the forests they grow all over the place including lush abundant green trees and bushes along the highways, but their environmental policies are so far ahead of our own here in North America. Solar panels and windmills are everywhere. Countless individual dwellings have their own solar panels and generate their own electricity, thanks to a governmental policy that will pay back homeowners more money for the electricity they give back to the grid than what they have to pay from the grid to get electricity, so it is easy for Germans to reduce their electricity bills down to zero. I was already very impressed with the green German way of life which is so ingrained in the mainstream culture, but when a cashier at a local convenient store told us we could bring back for 25 cents the  plastic water bottles we had bought (as you can see, we are far from perfect on the plastic consumption front) -- we were flabbergasted. Way to go! I wish we could do the same here!

- Chantal