After the celebrating has slowed and life continues to carry forward, the transition into a new year is a natural time to pause and decide what will come next. It’s common to feel pressure and the temptation to want to overhaul your entire lifestyle, or create a whole new routine all by the end of January. 

Before you rush forward toward creating resolutions, we encourage you to take a moment during this potent time to get grounded, reflect and prepare your intentions. As a company our intention is always to help others practice sustainability by educating and inspiring purposeful change. 

Energy flows where our attention goes and our thoughts and emotions influence our actions. 

When you’re looking to create meaningful shifts that align with your values, the practice of setting intentions creates deep insight into where we want to be, who we are, and how we would like to show up in the world. It can offer a sense of clarity and help to guide you throughout the days of the year. 

Allow your intentions to support your goals and your goals to magnify or illuminate your intentions. Let the experiences from 2021 fuel your curiosity and inform your growth so that you can design and create 2022 to be a year that you love and one where you can be of greater service to the planet and your community. 

If being more environmentally conscious is something you would like to focus on, we are here for you and we appreciate you! Starting something new can be stressful when you are unsure where to begin. Rest assured, you have already completed the most difficult step – deciding to make a change. 

We have found that one of the biggest mistakes when goal / intention setting is believing that efforts have to be all or nothing; flawless or failure. 

Any form of action, especially collectively, is better than no action. Here are some of our favourite ideas to get you going and help you to turn those intentions into reality. 

Simple Switches

Start small and keep your resolutions realistic by looking for ways you can make easy swaps around your home. Try challenging yourself to switch one thing in every room of your home to reduce waste or save energy. 

Plastic toothbrush → Bamboo 

Toothpaste tubes → Toothpaste Tabs 

Plastic bottle of dishwashing soap → Dishwashing cube 

Disposable dish rags and scrubs → Copper Sponges, Reusable Swedish Dishcloth

Shampoo + Conditioner bottles → plastic free shampoo + conditioner bars 

Ziplock bags → silicone stasher bags 

Plastic food wrap → beeswax wrappers

Coffee filters → reusable coffee socks 

Toxic chemical cleaners → Non toxic + natural cleaning products 

Toilet paper → Cascade's 100% Moka Recycled Toilet Paper [or a bamboo alternative]

Plastic Garbage bin liners → biodegradable garbage bags 

Disposable razors → Well Kept safety razor 

Laundry dryer sheets → 100% wool dryer balls or hang your clothes to dry 

Traditional Laundry detergent → TrueEarth laundry strips 

Incandescent lights → LED light bulbs 

Buy in Bulk 

This is the best option for our environment, your time and money! Having a station at home means less trips to the grocery store, and most importantly, much less plastic bottles in the recycling bin. You can set aside a small area in your home filled with everyday products from bathroom tissue to dish tabs. 

Buying in bulk is also effective when it comes to basic pantry items and dry food goods as well! 

Learn more + Find out how to get started here – https://thedenucluelet.com/blogs/news/at-home-refill-stations

Consciously Consume

Every time you spend money, you’re casting a vote for the kind of world you want. Consumption-dominated life-styles or "mindless consumption" practices are shown to be detrimental to personal happiness, quality mental health, financial security, and lasting well-being. Making great choices needs our full attention and awareness.

Before you buy, mindfully consider: 

1. Connect to your WHY and the reasons for purchasing 
2. Do your research: Think about where the item came from and where it will go
3. Choose local + ethically sourced brands with aligned values 
4. Think about the packaging 
5. Buy less + higher quality items 

Reduce , Reuse, Recycle + More

While these original 3 R’s are still great practices, there are some new ones to get familiar with; Remove, Refuse, and Rally. 

Remove. Pick up trash in your neighbourhood, when visiting parks and beaches, really anywhere you are outside – if you see it, pick it up. Make sure to check local safety guidelines first, and always use gloves.

Refuse. This one’s simple: Just make a habit of saying “No straw, please,” and “I brought my own cup, thanks.” It’s a small step, but an easy way to see what you can live without. It also leads by example, when other people see you saying “no thank you” the seed is planted that maybe they, too, could refuse some of these things. 

Rally. Does your city or province have bans on single-use plastics? Send a letter or call your local elected leaders, urging them to ban plastic bags and other single-use plastic items. Many places already implement these types of restrictions, all it takes is someone to get the ball rolling.

Everyday efforts 

To really commit to an eco-conscious lifestyle, make it sustainable in both senses of the word. It not only needs to protect natural resources but also be something you can sustain for weeks, months, and years to come — not just the next few days.

Store your reusable grocery bags in your car or at your front door

Unplug Unnecessary Electronics

Keep a reusable water bottle with you to refill 

Turn off lights when you leave a room 

Go paperless - Receive And Pay Your Bills Electronically

Use Reusable Plates and Flatware

Down With Disposable Coffee Cups / straws + bring your own

Increase Walking & Cycling

Conserve water 

Repair instead of replace 

Opt for reusable feminine products 

Dispose of pet waste responsibly

Shop Secondhand as Much as Possible

Upcycle or donate used goods

Look For Compostable versions of daily essentials

Find new uses for food scraps

Eat less meat + dairy products

Support and buy from local farmers markets 

Swap to natural cosmetics 

Say no to fast fashion 

Choose tea towels and reduce paper towel usage

Living with intention requires maintaining a deliberate and ongoing connection to our present moment experience. It also involves guiding our thoughts and actions toward the qualities and experiences we most wish to embody. You might have major compassion for our ailing planet, but don’t forget to have self-compassion too. 

 “We don’t need a handful of people doing zero waste perfectly. We need millions of people doing it imperfectly.” – Ann Marie Bonneau.  

Extend kindness, understanding and comfort to yourself as you grow and evolve and eventually your efforts create a ripple effect that will continue on into other aspects of your life and even into the lives of those around you.

Words by Jess Leblanc