The Sun has finally made her way back to us so we think it’s safe to say that summer is finally here! After what felt like the longest year, we can safely go out, see friends, have barbecues and go on holiday.
Spending all that time at home must have meant a lot of admin was done - click here if you missed out on our top picks for sustainable services or find a moment to sit down and make impactful (but incredibly easy) changes in your life.
The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.
Robert Swan, Author
Let’s run you through our perfect (and low-waste day) in the Sun, Beagle style. WOOF.
Getting Started
Our first port of call would be a morning yoga or meditation session. The NHS has reported that yoga supports mindfulness that in turn helps maintain a healthy mind. Our favourite yoga mat and yoga block are made of cork and are non-slip! These are from CorkYogis who contribute a portion of sales towards literacy and sewing courses for women in India who have survived the human trafficking trade, providing them with skills for employment.
Now that our minds are clear and we’re ready for the day, there’s no better time for a cuppa (plastic-free of course) or some delicious, organic and fairtrade coffee from Yallah Coffee. Yallah only works with small-scale and family-focused farmers as well as using their waste products from making their coffee as biomass for their boiler.
What’s in our (doggy) bag
If we’re going to pop into that one local, small nearby cafe that we love, here’s what we’ll be sure to have in our reusable tote bags : A reusable coffee cup, from Yuggen, that has a cork sleeve and is 100% plastic-free as well as a foldable, reusable and recyclable bag made from recycled plastics by Kind Bag (just in case we see something else we like - we’ve learnt our lesson from many spilled coffees). We can’t be too over-confident, even with our vaccines so we’ll also be fully equipped with vegan hand sanitiser from Delphis Eco as well as reusable and recycled cotton face masks.
If we’re going on to the park we definitely won’t forget these essentials in our bags : A reusable bottle from WakeCup to stay hydrated - 10% of profits from every sale is donated to the Marine Conservation Society and Plastic Oceans. We’ve always got this vegan and plastic free lip balm handy, from Pura Cosmetics, a woman-run and UK based company. Protection from UV rays is always a top priority for us so best believe we’ll have a hat and a pair of 100% recycled plastic sunglasses to protect us from those UV rays!
We’ve made it back home and are preparing to go back out for a picnic with some friends (that’s right, with other people)! We’ve packed our picnic basket full of vegan goodies packed in plastic-free boxes like this stainless steel lunchbox and bamboo lunchbox. Our beverages of choice are the carbon negative gin from Arbikie and the vegan, low-waste alcohol free beer from FreeStar. Lastly, knowing that the weather could turn chilly at any point, we’ll have this recycled cashmere scarf handy.
P.S. The team at Beagle only suggests swapping to these products when you’ve used your single use products until the end of their lifespan.
Why have we decided to write this blog? Have you ever noticed how much plastic is incorporated into your everyday life? We’re here to help you be as sustainable as possible without making you do all the long winded research! We know that 50% of the plastics in our ocean are from single-use plastics and from that, only 9% is being recycled. We use a plethora of different single-use plastic products in our lives and listed below are our favourite alternatives, from items that contain zero plastic to others made from recycled plastic.
There is no such thing as ‘away’. When we throw anything away it must go somewhere.
Annie Leonard, Proponent of Sustainability
Who are we again?
Beagle is here to help you make the switch to more sustainable and eco-friendly goods easier. We will act as the middle-man between you and the perfect sustainable alternative you’re after by doing all the research for you. From fashion to homeware to foods, you can pick ‘vegan’ and more as one of your preferences and we’ll notify you whenever we find a “better” option for the product you’re looking at.
By downloading the Beagle Button, we can continue to help you find great products like these, helping you make more informed and conscious decisions, paving the way for a more sustainable future. Sign up ahead of our launch on our homepage
A note on affiliate links
Every product we feature has been thoroughly researched and is often used by our very own team. Some of the brands we work with will provide a commission when our reader or users buy their products. Some of the links in this blog may be such affiliate links - but this is paid by the brands, so you won’t pay more as a result!