Circular Futures RSA brief

Eco-Efficency vs. Eco-Effectiveness Linear vs. Circular

Our current industrial model is a linear one. Materials are taken from the earth, made into products, used by consumers and then thrown away. As our planet has finite resources this model can not continue uninterupted. The linear economy is leading to a shortage of materials and therefore rising costs. The basis of growth in a linear economy is coupled with resource consumption. Eco-effiency is a linear flow of materials through a system. It is a cradle-grave dynamic where downcycling occasionally happens.

The circular economy is based around a restorative industrial system geared towards designing out waste, it goes way beyond just recycling. Recycling is just an outer circle of it, as it requires a lot of energy. The inner circles of the circular economy are repair, reuse and remanufacturing. The goal of ecoeffectiveness is not to minimise the cradle to grave flow of materials but to develop cyclical “cradle to cradle” systems that enable materials to keep their status as resources and furthermore accumulate intelligence over time (upcycling).

Upcycling, downcycling, recycling.. What’s the difference?

The first ever recorded recycling of materials was in Japan in 1031. They began reusing waste paper, pulping it down into new paper and selling it once again. In England recycling began in 1865 when the Salvation army was founded in London. The idea of recycling has been around for a while. (Systems, B. 2014) The idea of recycling has been around for a while and some countries seem to have adapted to it better than others. Sweden is a leading country today when it comes to recycling, the cities power up a quarter of their homes with burnt up waste. They’ve even run out of waste and have had to import some from Norway! (Xong, T. 2008) Other European countries such as Denmark and Germany have a system in place where you get a small amount of money back when returning your bottles to the recycling plant. This acts as an incentive for people to recycle.

Recycling is returning something to a previous stage in a cyclic process Downcycling is the process of converting waste materials or useless products into new materials or products of lesser quality. Upcycling is reusing a material in such a way as to create a product of higher quality or value than the original.

Researching the FMCG sector made me become a lot more aware of the waste I was personally producing. Something I had noticed for a while in particular was the amount of waste created by feminine hygiene products. I wondered where they ended up, did they all end up in landfill? (Mercola, 2013) I had heard of an alternative solution called a menstrual cup, but never really considered using one. If I personally was producing so much waste every month how much was being collectively produced by women over the world? I contacted Sorpa, the biggest waste management facility in Iceland and asked how these disposable products, sanitary napkins and tampons were being

“One pad equals four plastic bags in waste” disposed of.

They replied saying it all went into landfill although a small percentage of it could be considered to be organic matter and that could be used to produce metan which is then used as petrol for cars.

Existing solutions: Pads

The average women uses 16.800 pads in her lifetime. Pads have more of an environmental impact than tampons because of the amount of plastic in them. The modern pad is made from 90% plastic materials. The plastic is made from crude oil which is a nonrenewable resource. 4.5 billion pads are disposed of every year. Every pad ever made still exists today, it doesn’t break down in the earth for hundreds of years. The pads are often picked up by birds in landfill or blown across lands and into streams. Eventually many of them end up in the ocean where they break down into smaller pieces which marine animals think is food and attempt to eat it. The cycle then continues as the fish can end up on our plates.

“4.5 billion pads are disposed of every year. Every pad ever made still exists today.”

31% of women in the U.S. use only pads. Not only are pads bad for the environment but they also contain toxins which can be harmful to a woman’s health. Proctor and Gamble are the leading producer of disposable feminine hygeine products with brands such as Always and Tampax. They are not required to release the ingredients of their pads as it is considered to be a medical device and can therefore be kept as a trade secret. Most pads are bleached using chlorine which results in the production of dioxin, a chemical linked to breast cancer, endometriosis, immune system suppression, and various other ailments.

Existing solutions Tampons

The average woman will go through 11 - 13.000 tampons in her life. Tampons are made out of bleached rayon, cotton and plastics. They can leave behind fibres in your body and they are known to not only absorb the blood but also the natural fluids that help the vagina clean itself. Toxic shock syndrome is a rare but life-threatening bacterial infection. In 95% of incidents it is related to women using extra absorbent tampons. A box of 20 tampons costs on average £2,90. A woman uses on average 4 tampons a day for 5 days. That’s 20 tampons per cycle, £2.90 x12 = 34,80 per year

“Tampons are made out of bleached rayon, cotton and plastics. They can leave behind fibres in your body”

That’s just tampons, most women use a combination of both pads and tampons. A pack of 12 pads is £1,99 assuming a women buys one pack every other month that’s £11,94 per year. 47 pounds per year on just pads and tampons is a lot of money to spend on “sanitary” products.

Existing solutions Menstrual cups

The first menstrual cup was invented in 1884, it was later patented in the shape and form it is in today in 1932. (Coughlin, 2015) The mooncup is a British menstrual cup company based in Brighton. An already great alternative to disposable products the mooncup is: Healthier - the mooncup respects your natural balance where tampons can cause dryness and leave behind fibres in your body. Convenient it holds 3x more than a regular tampon and is nonabsorbent. It collects the fluid rather than absorbing it. You don’t need to carry any spares with you or worry about disposing of anything, one mooncup is all you need for light or heavy days. Money-saving the cup lasts for 7-10 years and you can

“The cup lasts for 7-10 years... and holds 3x more fluid than a regular tampon”

make up for the cost of disposables within 6 months. Cuts waste no more tampons or pads going into landfill or ending up in the sea. So if this great product exists why aren’t more women using it?

Education How were you taught about periods?

“I don’t think I really was.. Or at least nothing stuck I just learnt it through trial and error I guess” (Lucinda)

“I don’t think I was taught about periods, we were taught about sex ed.. about condoms but not about sanitary pads”

Sexual education is a delicate subject to both teach and learn. Through interviews with girls on the topic I found out that the majority of them felt that it wasn’t handled properly at the time. They learnt how to deal with their periods from either their mother or from their friends who had started before them. Most girls also said they had felt it was a taboo subject to talk about and remembered the feeling of wanting to hide it from others. Wanting a different perspective Janaki and I interviewed guys on the topic as well. Traditionally boys are seperated from girls when it comes to sex-ed. The guys had different reactions depending on their exposure and relationship with girls and women around them we found. The ones who had grown up with sisters, had a girlfriend or had lived with girls later on knew a lot more about the products and the issues girls face when it comes to that time of the month.

“We had PSHE lessons and they went over it... briefly but it was mostly just chatting about it to my parents” (Zoe)

As we had products to show them the guys who had little exposure to this whole phenomena tended to not want to touch them or even pushed them away. Seeing that all of the guys received a similar education (a very basic anatomic one) their reactions differed severely depending on exposure later on. “They were really awkward about it... we went through the whole STD bit and then we talked about what it looks like but never got too into periods she just said “girls have this..”” (Amy-J)

What I personally thought was lacking from the education I received was the emotional side of it all, we were mostly just taught why and how it happens, not how to deal with it on an emotional level. The issue of feminine hygiene does not only effect women, if it carries on the same way the environmental impact of it will effect everyone.

What are girls using? And have they heard of the menstrual cup?

Do you know what this is (mooncup)?

J: Yes it’s a cup something.. menstrual cup?

Do you know the pros and cons of using one?

J: No

Have you ever considered using one yourself?

J: No I haven’t actually, probably because I don’t know much about it

What do you currently use now?

J: Pads

Are you aware of the drawbacks of using pads?

J: No

What would it take to get you to try a mooncup?

J: Just knowing more about them, I’m tempted to try one now, after this.

Have you heard of the mooncup?

I: I have, but I think the concept is just so scary because it’s not something that’s talked about a lot. Maybe you’d be more open to it if it were more of a mainstream thing. The concept of a tampon is scary but it’s something that’s so prevalent in society we’re all so used to it.

Do you think you would you consider using one if you got more information on it?

I: Yeah I’d be more likely to consider using it if someone spoke to me about it

Have you ever considered the waste that comes from using disposable products?

A: Yeah I have, it is a lot and I have thought about switching to cleaner greener solutions.

So you’ve heard of the mooncup then?

A: Yeah I just don’t like the idea of having to reach up and... I don’t know it’s just kind of gross when it comes to that, I don’t want to touch blood.

But if you were told it had the potential to change the future?

A: I would really consider that as an option I just haven’t come round to buying one

Do you know what this is (mooncup)?

N: Hmm a feminine product? something for periods

Do you know the pros and cons of using one?

N: I don’t know any cons but pros are that it’s reusable and you’re saving money and it’s better for the environment

Have you ever considered using one yourself?

N: No I haven’t actually, but my housemate just got one

What do you currently use now?

N: Tampons

Are you aware of the drawbacks of using tampons?

N: I know they’re not that great

What would it take to convince you to try a mooncup?

N: Not a lot, they are quite expensive but I guess the other

stuff adds up as well

Have you heard of the mooncup?

H: Yeah

Would you ever consider using one yourself?

H: Yeah.. maybe, I think they’re not widely available enough you know when you go to boots and there’s pads and tampons, it’s not even marketed as an option. I don’t know for some reason I feel like there’s a stigma against it like these (pads and tampons) are really normalised and mooncups aren’t.

Generation Y And how to reach them

A big target group for the mooncup is “Generation Y” or people born between 1978-1994. These women are now between the ages of 22-38 which means they are menstruating. This generation is particularly hard to reach with traditional marketing methods. The rapid advancement of technology during their lives has made them accustomed to making quick decision and multi-tasking all the while being bombarded with endless brands and people trying to reach their attention. In order to reach them you need to get to know them. Generation Y or “Milennials” value connection they are socially conscious and optimistic, craving constant connection and communication. Social media is a very successful platform. They have values they value equality over thoughtless consumerism. They also have a higher tolerance for diversity and are more socially aware.

Milennials like individuality something with personality, being fake is much worse than being uncool. Their lifestyles suggest they value convenience, shopping with the click of a button. Amazon and eBay have become huge with this generation. An important factor is their distrust, they are very distrustful of mainstream media and cautious of their own personal safety. What they value most are peer-reviews, word-of-mouth and testimonials. (Nahai, 2013) By making an educational video with girls their age talking about the mooncup its advantages and the disadvantages of other disposables I will hopefully be able to incorporate a sense of social responsibility and give them an incentive to share it with their friends.