The climate change report unhinged me this winter.
For months, I’ve been reading about sustainability, plastic pollution, and my own carbon footprint realizing it’s time to make a massive change in my life.
As a travel writer, it’s hard to ignore the truth about the effects of my work. Those airplane rides, the extra impact on the earth, my trash.
Plus, I travel with my kids who are probably like yours–they like stuff: new soccer trading cards, slime, books. While they know to recycle and compost, they’re still learning that maybe having stuff is not the ideal way to engage with our planet.
But after reading the devastating facts about plastic pollution, I knew we had to try to lessen the impact of our footprints this summer. If I can’t give up travel just yet, then I definitely need to do something.
A Zero Waste Trip to Colombia
That’s why this summer we’re trying to go zero waste on our trip to Colombia. This will prove super challenging as water is not always safe to drink, and we’ll need to lather ourselves with sunscreen and bug repellent throughout our time exploring the Amazon and the Cartagena coast.
So in an effort to try, our goal is to pack as much reusable goods as possible–shampoo bars in tins, bring our own water bottles. The plastic we must take (bug spray and sunscreen) we’ll recycle with organizations like Green Apple.
Ideas about how to lessen our waste?
But I’m on the prowl for ideas about how to use less and ultimately become zero waste when traveling.
Other than unwrapping all our toothpaste and Indiana Jones gear at home, what ideas do you have?
I’ll keep you posted on how it goes.
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