Tempted to buy extra stuff today? The pressure is on, the ads are running, and it’s hard to avoid all of the sales. Here are a few ideas to manage the shopping frenzy:
Buy nothing.
Step outside and get some fresh air.
Visit your favorite green space.
Call or visit a loved one.
Spend time with yourself or a pet, with your favorite seasonal drink.
Really need an item? Consider buying just essential items that need to be purchased anyway.
Support a local and sustainable small business, instead of big-boxed stores.
Instead of purchasing something new, see if you can buy it second-hand, borrow it from a friend, or rent it.
Feel free to take the pressure off today (if you can), and buy nothing.
Yes, we all can make a difference. Small changes can lead to big changes.
A great thought for the day. How can we have more control? The world can be a discouraging place. Especially when we have elected officials that are taking us in the wrong direction and wasting taxpayer dollars. The only thing we have control of is our own behavior, and instead of being angry we can use that energy to make a positive difference. Below are some ways you can make a positive impact without much effort. Good Luck. Below is from the Carbon Almanac:
When countries and companies lessen their commitment to targets and activities for climate change, it can be disheartening as systemic change is critical for big impact. If you feel powerless to influence systemic change, you can start where you are.
Some ideas of how to start:
Start by having a conversation with friends
Start by taking one less trip in a combustion engine vehicle
Start by shopping at a thrift store
Start by buying produce that is not wrapped in plastic
Start by bringing a reusable mug to your favourite cafe
Start by finding a local environmental group
And my list to get you started:
*Always carry reusable shopping bags
*Never idle the engine of your car
*Write letters to elected officials and newspapers expressing your opinion (positive and negative)
*Plant a native plant or a native tree
*Listen, smile and be kind
The key is to start (or keep) taking action. One action can lead to another and then another. And by sharing what you are doing, you can inspire others to join.
I wanted to share an invite to Zero Waste Fest on Saturday, October 11 at Burroughs Community School in Minneapolis. It’s a free, all-day community event with panels, food, music, kid’s activities, and lots of hands-on ways to get involved in building a future without waste. Zero Waste Fest — MN Zero Waste Coalition
The day runs from 10am to 4pm and includes:
Inspiring panels on:
Building a Zero Waste Future in Minnesota
Plastic is a Justice Issue: Fighting Pollution from Production to Disposal
From Throwaway to Reuse: Reclaiming Culture, Creating Systems
Tabling from organizations around MN supporting zero waste
Clothing swaps and mending
Food, art, and music!
It’s free and open to everyone. I’d love for you to join us and help spread the word!
A Tribute to The International Day of Peace. Please Live Peace, Be Peace, Push Peace, Vote for Peace and Meditate or pray for Peace. These wars in Ukraine and Gaza just can’t continue!
Last night I had the Strangest Dreem by Ed McCurdy
Last night I had the strangest dream I ever dreamed before I dreamed the world had all agreed To put an end to war
I dreamed I saw a mighty room The room was filled with men And the paper they were signing said They’d never fight again
And when the papers all were signed And a million copies made They all joined hands and bowed their heads And grateful prayers were prayed
And the people in the streets below Were dancing round and round And guns and swords and uniforms Were scattered on the ground
Last night I had the strangest dream I ever dreamed before I dreamed the world had all agreed To put an end to war
Sun Day
Sun Day is a day of action on September 21, 2025, celebrating solar and wind power, and the movement to leave fossil fuels behind. Solar energy is now the cheapest source of power on the planet – and gives us a chance to actually do something about the climate crisis. But fossil fuel billionaires are doing everything they can to shut it down. We will build, rally, sing, and come together in the communities that we need to get laws changed and work done.
Every year the countries of the world produce more plastic, and there is no end in sight. Production. of plastic keeps growing.
The list below is composed by the Plastic Pollution Coalition. Let’s work every day to reduce our consumption of plastic. Never use plastic utensils, plastic bags or straws
Plastic never goes away. It doesn’t break down; it only breaks up into smaller and smaller pieces. These microplastics and nanoplastics are harmful and are everywhere now, including in our bodies.
Plastic pollutes the environment, wildlife, and people.
Plastic is not safe. Plastic leaches toxic chemicals and sheds plastic particles at all stages of its existence.
Plastic especially harms communities living near petrochemical and plastic infrastructure.
The more plastic companies make and we use, the more we contribute to pollution and climate change.
Plastic was not designed to be recycled, and most plastic does not get recycled in the way we’ve been led by industry to believe.
To solve the plastic pollution crisis, industries must stop producing so much plastic. Instead of single-use plastics, we need to use nontoxic reuse and refill systems and regenerative materials.
Taking action on an individual level, using less plastic, and demanding policy action to hold producers accountable can help support the systemic changes to shift away from society’s reliance on plastics.
On July 24, we had used all the resources that the Earth can generate in a year. We are using more resources than we can replace, or living on borrowed time. The day we want to reach is December 31.
How can we use ;ess resources
From the Carbon Almanac. On July 24 we hit Earth Overshoot Day for 2025. Earth Overshoot Day is noted every year and the date is announced on World Environment Day. It marks the day when “humanity’s demand for ecological resources and services … exceeds what Earth can regenerate in that year”. Global Footprint Network, a research organization focused on the operation of the human economy within the Earth’s ecological limits, hosts and calculates when Earth Overshoot Day will occur, with this year showing that humanity is using the planet’s resources 80% faster than ecosystems can regenerate. July 24 is the earliest in the year that Earth Overshoot Day has fallen, with past dates going back to 1971. In those 54 years, humanity reached its overshoot day on December 31 once, in 1972.
Calculations for overshoot day are based on the National Footprint and Biocapacity Accounts, and this year’s calculations revealed that due to the ocean’s reduced capacity to store carbon, an increase in per capita Footprint and a reduced per capita biocapacity, Earth Overshoot Day fell eight days earlier than it did in 2024. In addition to Earth Overshoot Day, Country Overshoot Days are also calculated each year, seen here. These dates represent when the planet’s ecological resource budget would be used up if every place on Earth consumed at the same level as residents in that particular country.
A campaign working to reduce the strain on the Earth’s resources and bring humanity’s consumption into better balance is #MoveTheDate. The goal is to move the date of Earth Overshoot Day to December 31 or later every year, ensuring that the resources taken from the planet can be sustainability regenerated by the ecosystems. Solutions range across five major areas: planet, cities, energy, food and population. This solutions map tracks solutions being implemented across the world. Check it out to see if there are any near you.
Visit the Earth Overshoot Day website to learn more about how it is calculated, as well as the economic and ecological implications of humanity’s continued overuse of resources.
My Five things you can do:
Strive for zero waste–Reuse, Reuse, Reuse and Refuse!
Drive Less
Reduce your plastic footprint–No single use plastic!
Plant native plants and raingardens without chemicals!
The last half of July is here. Remember it is Plastic Free July.
Beyond Plastic has a calendar of ideas to work on your Plastic free journey. I strongly suggest you visit a food coop where you can fill your own containers, day 16.
Reduce, reuse and refill are the only real solutions to the growing plastic pollution crisis outside of policy change so find and visit a refill store near you, and get to it!
Invite friends, family and neighbors over for a sewing party to create produce or shopping bags to donate to a co-op or food pantry, or to give customers outside of a larger grocery store before they enter.
Summer is a great time to host a postcard party and postcards are a great way to deliver a short note to your elected officials about a particular bill and how you’d like them to support it.
This summer, while the grill and air are hot, host a plastic-free BBQ or other event. Download our guide on Hosting a Plastic-Free, Low Waste Event to help you prepare.
Give out this one-page handout on reducing plastic to your favorite restaurants, cafes, and bars. If you want extra credit, you can offer to conduct a plastic audit for the establishment using the template from our guide, “Hold the Plastic Please, A Restaurant’s Guide to Reducing Plastic”.
Are you part of a faith community? Download the Beyond Plastics Toolkit for Houses of Worship, share it with the leadership, and offer to help them take the practical steps it lays out.
We hope you’ve made some progress toward your plastic-free goals and would love for you to share them with us. Follow Beyond Plastics on your favorite social media platforms, post a photo of your action and tag us!
Join the growing grassroots movement of people working to reduce plastic pollution in their own towns and cities! Check out our map to see if there is a Beyond Plastics Local Group or Affiliate near you. If not, find 2-3 people who want to start one.
Take today to assemble your plastic bag monster from the bags or single-use items you collected all month long. Snap a photo, post on social media and tag both @beyondplastics and @plasticfreejuly.
Health4earth 