Buying sustainably reduces your carbon footprint and, more immediately, your money spent. In the summer of 2016, the top three favorite activities for Americans across three generations was noted as picnicking/barbecuing, hiking, and going to the beach. Coming out of the pandemic, things are looking different as we renavigate social activities, but with 2022’s new gadgets we can save money while staying safe and reigniting the feeling of Summer of 2016.
Whether you’re planning to hike, picnic, or barbecue, today’s gadgets can help you save money and energy, sustainably. In America, the average carbon footprint for each person is 16 tons, but buying from a trusted source and reducing overall consumption is a great way to make an individual impact. Not sure where to start? A non-profit that helps to verify trusted sources for consumers is B Lab, an organization that certifies companies with a “B Corp Certification”. A company awarded the B Corp Certification must follow three criteria; they “demonstrate high social and environmental performance,” remain “accountable to all stakeholders, not just shareholders,” and exhibit “transparency by allowing information about their performance” x. A certification that verifies a corporation’s care for its employees and consumers and follows a structure of sustainability before profits. We can follow that structure in our own purchases.
For our picnic and barbecue lovers, look to switching to reusable plates and utensils or save your extra food in a reusable food-storage wrap. Using beeswax instead of plastic reduces your carbon footprint and saves you money, as the washable wraps last for a year. Plus, before you throw them away, you can use your old food storage as a fire starter for your next barbecue.
Into summer activities with more movement? Off-set your carbon footprint while moving with a backpack made from the plastic in our oceans. The plastics used in the backpacks were ocean-bound, mostly taken from the 1000 lakes that contribute 80% of ocean plastic. Solgaard sells packs in hopes of reducing our impact now and into the future, saving 229 plastic bottles from entering the ocean with any product. So, while you hike up your next trail using your solar-powered, plastic-saving backpack to charge your phone and keep your water cold, you can feel the weight of your carbon impact lifted from your back(pack).
While a third of Americans enjoy hikes, half start their day with a cup of coffee y. Yet, as we start each day with coffee, coffee production actually emits more carbon than processing chickens, regardless of the following activities. Our solution: Overview Coffee. With regenerative agriculture, Overview prioritizes the health of the soil while maintaining high standards for animal welfare and worker fairness. Or well priced, Peace Coffee is a B Corp Certified company with a variety of coffee flavors.
Don’t need these products? Great, reducing our consumption is an excellent step towards sustainability, but when you do need your next pool floaty or a s’more stick, buy from a company you can trust. So, while you enjoy the outdoors or the indoors, you can know you’re helping to sustain our hikes and picnics and beach days for now and the future.
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