GLASS – THE ENVIRONMENT’S CLEAR WINNER

Protecting the environment has become has become a daily mission for many people these days. With global warming becoming a more and more prominent issue within society, people have been increasingly dedicated to being green and sustainable, wanting to leave a greener and safer world to their successors.

Steps include conserving the energy used in households, planting more trees, and reducing, reusing and recycling everything you possibly can.

Pollution and waste management are two issues our society is faced with today. People are constantly coming up with different initiatives to bring these problems to light and demonstrate to others how exactly their actions are impacting our environment. One thing that most of these initiatives have in common; is that they are proponents of the belief that preventing the problem – as opposed to fixing it exclusively – is a far more efficient and economical solution.

Many different environmentally friendly campaigns have been initiated on this note – ranging from the ‘One Beach’ trash mosaic, which promotes turning garbage into gold, and the ‘Catch of the Day’ campaign, which calls to attention waste which has been hazardously abandoned in the ocean, causing severe pollution to our ecosystem.

Celebrities have also given a voice to this issue, such as Jeff Bridges, actor, being a strong proponent of the ‘Resolve to Refuse!’ campaign, which calls on people to stop using one-use plastic packaging. Actor Jeremy Irons has also come on board the issue, calling for people to stop their habits of “unadulterated consumerism” in order to restrain the waste problem in Europe.

Ultimately, these campaigns and positions have a core key message; if you reduce, reuse and recycle your waste we can all play a very definite part in ensuring a sustainable and environmentally friendly lifestyle.

What can you do?

Everyone wants to help ‘save the planet’, but many people can feel overwhelmed by the enormity of the situation. Recycling, ‘Upcycling’, Carbon Footprint – all these terms can be confusing and overwhelming to even those with the best intentions.

So what can you do to make a difference? When it comes to living a more ‘eco-friendly’ lifestyle it’s better to think small. Simple changes, like donating your old clothes instead of throwing them away or opting for the most sustainable packaging when you’re doing your weekly shopping, are easy and painless ways to start living a more ‘green’ lifestyle.

Unlike many other packaging materials, glass is 100% recyclable and can be recycled endlessly without a loss in quality or purity. Did you know that recycling just one glass bottle saves enough energy to light a 100 watt light bulb for four hours? Not only does recycling glass help save energy, but the turnaround from recycling centre to the store shelves is quick too. A glass container can go from a recycling bin to a store shelf in as little as 30 days. All these little benefits add up quickly, and you’ll be surprised how easy and fun it is to live sustainably!