April: Chemicals

This April we were diving into the topic of chemicals and challenging ourselves with some new approaches that we decided to implement as a routine.

We were almost shocked with all the statistics and numbers around the issue of chemical pollution - it was hard to imagine that every second humankind produces 13 tons of hazardous waste and this number is increasing.

Also we've learned that chemicals are everywhere in the environment and our bodies - hundreds of them are in our blood and tissues and there's no clear study about how all of them are interacting with each other.

For our monthly eco-cinema club we chose different videos that were dedicated to pesticides, hazardous waste treatment, radioactive chemistry and 'forever chemicals' and last topic was one of the most overwhelming because it had shown the ubiquity of materials that were meant to last as long as possible and almost do not degrade in natural environment and the danger that they cause.

But at the same time we came to the conclusion that anyway we still can make our own decisions on personal level and take care of ourselves and environment, choosing eco-friendly products, reducing levels of volatile organic compounds (instead of buying pressed wood we used old furniture in our summer kitchen), making and using natural home cleaning products (we spent couple of days making our own soap and detergent for washing machine), using public transport and finding solutions for the garden (instead of pesticides we use ash and ally plants to deter insects).

These easy steps affect our daily routine and prepare us as a community for bigger changes that, apparently, we should make in the future.