wellbeing
in modernity as laborious traditions with little value other than being “hard work”. But with increasing concerns for the environment, we are now realising that the Industrial Revolution has a lot to answer for. Here are a few points to consider about the amount of waste we produce… Every 2 hours we throw out enough items to fill the world's largest container ship with trash. That's 12 container ships every single day, and 4380 container ships in one year and our waste production is increasing. By 2030 the amount of household waste will almost double to 3,000 million tons annually. And this is just the tip of the iceberg. Every bag of household waste has produced approximately 70 bags of waste upstream during extraction and production processes. So where does our waste go? Most waste goes to landfills or is burned. Burning waste is the world’s largest source of dioxins, which is one of the most toxic chemicals known to science. According to WHO (World Health Organisation), dioxins are highly toxic and can cause reproductive and developmental problems, damage the immune system, interfere with hormones and also cause cancer. Sounds bad right? Well, the answer is yes, it IS bad. But with the knowledge and information at hand, we have the power to create change.
“ we have the power to create change ”
making a difference So you might be wondering how you can make an impact in reducing waste. With a modern day awareness of how much waste is produced, many have consciously chosen to have less in their life: less of chemicals, less paper, less plastic. The most common reasons for choosing less are often environmental concerns and making a conscious effort to look after the world rather than treat it as one huge dumping ground for toxins. But this is changing to a more fundamental reason. To reduce what we own is a resurgence and appreciation of traditional means of production such as handcrafted goods and consuming unprocessed foods. It wasn’t that long ago that living a simpler lifestyle was though of ‘just a hippie movement’. Now, reducing what we have and looking at how we can all incorporate living a simpler lifestyle is a topic that has become a much sought after part of modern culture. The increase of Internet sites, such as etsy.com, thrive on people selling their homemade wares. Recycling is another modern‑day example of making a conscious decision to reduce waste. Most households separate waste into general waste and items that can be recycled. Councils might provide recycling bins and even provide bmhmag.com
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