Most of you know my lore— about six years ago, I set out to try to make sustainability less… beige. I felt hysterical, if I’m honest, about how in the face of the looming climate crisis, people could still be actively choosing to buy single-use plastic and all of the other stuff that we actively know is contributing to our impending doom.
That said, I also appreciated that using shame and guilt as tools to try to change behavior was… really not working to motivate people. Uninspiring at best, actively working against change at worst.
Sustainable products at that time— and many still now— were usually crunchy and granola looking, less efficacious than their un-sustainable counterparts, and of course, probably more expensive. (Like be so fucking for real— are you really thinking millions of people are going to switch to reusable diapers or a deodorant paste they apply with their fingertips???)
I started my online retailer because I was dreaming of a middle ground where people felt drawn to buy sustainable options because they were fun, beautiful, inspiring, luxurious, efficacious— insert any positive adjective here. I’ve written PLENTY about why that didn’t work out in the long run (you can find most of my writing about my business and my learnings here), but just because I got out of the game and sustainability has waned in popularity slightly doesn’t mean that all is lost.
In the vein of what I originally set out to accomplish with my start-up, here are some sustainable “swaps” that are better, smarter, or cheaper than their “unsustainable” counterparts. I’ve tested them all myself… probably many times!
Most of us aren’t privy to the actual mechanics of a supply chain. We don’t usually know how much energy or oil something gobbles up getting made and then getting shipped from the manufacturer to the warehouse, much less to our door. There are all sorts of surprising statistics or factoids— beverages in glass bottles are actually less “sustainable” because they are heavier to ship and break more often, meaning more energy is expended just to get a viable bottle of liquid into your hands. (Does that mean plastic is good? Well, still no, not really— aluminum would be slightly less “bad” because it can be recycled more efficiently and repeatably. A heartbreaking truth is that most recycling doesn’t actually get recycled, so any efficiencies at all are helpful.)
Basically, we have to rely on our eyes and common sense to indicate what is most “sustainable,” and we have to kind of all hold hands and accept that we’ll probably get it wrong a lot, but it’s important that we try.
There are a few easy lay-ups here though, and I think the easiest one is compostable trash bags.
In my canonical ranking of trash bags, the order of “goodness” would be:
Virgin plastic trash bags (there is really no reason whatsoever to be buying these anymore! It’s just all bad!)
In the vein of using common sense more— where do you generate the most waste the most often? For me, it’s the kitchen. Most of these are no-brainers that don’t really require more effort on your part!:
Using reusable dish towels for most things, recycled paper towels for icky stuff (I am all for reusables but there are times a dog throws up or something and you really need a disposable!)
Recycled parchment sheets, tin foil, reusable or compostable plastic wrap (yes, that exists!), reusable lids for food storage, compostable sponges, etc
Get a great dish soap and hand soap holder and refill it! I love Element Brooklyn’s refills (they smell like knock offs of popular fancy soaps) and Koala Eco’s too.
Sometimes there are the random things that just don’t occur to you. One of the pleasures of being a curator and shopkeep was encountering some of these sustainable curiosities and getting to introduce them to people! Here are a few favorites that have stood the test of time.
Plastic-free hair ties! How random, right? These are great for a very secure hold, like an intense workout or sports day, and these are a nice no-crease option.
Everyone’s got an electric toothbrush these days, but throwing away all those plastic heads kinda makes me sick. SURI makes the actual best version, with compostable brush heads— AND it actually is the nicest looking, most design-forward toothbrush on the market. This is such a great example of building sustainable products that are genuinely and undeniably better than their counterparts and completely covetable on their own.
Yes, Crown Affair’s dry shampoo is aerosol-free and refillable. But it’s also widely regarded as the best! Another brilliant example— just being refillable is not quite enough these days.
Bonus, a few products from my founder days that you definitely weren’t thinking about: sustainable volleyballs, skateboards, wrapping paper and more.
Making that email about balls with my close friend and design collaborator was my job once. And it was so fun. 🥲
We could obviously go way deeper, and at one time, I really did! But these days I’m more interested in keeping it simple, direct, and realistic.
The bar has never been higher, unfortunately: it’s hard enough for un-sustainable brands to be successful. Sustainable brands are up against their own very paradox of existence— then they need to be better, faster and stronger than their competition, essentially. They have to accomplish the un-accomplishable task of making you change your behavior. Then they have to be available in the patently un-sustainable places you do most of your shopping— Target, Amazon, Sephora, the works. Existing in those forums requires adopting some unsustainable behaviors, plus a LOT of working capital. Getting a lot of working capital requires a lot of existing success and money. The odds are so incredibly slim.
I’m curious, did I miss any favorites that you’ve come to love? Sometimes I’m a little too close to it and I miss something that’s a total “duh”!
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