4 Sustainability Trends to Watch in 2018

Trends come and go in the fashion world, but when it comes to the environment? We’re looking ahead to 2018 to see what’s on the horizon for protecting Mother Earth … and are excited about what we see blossoming!

1- SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION

Have we been misled on GMOs? The new documentary Food Revolution is shedding light on how GMOs might actually be the sustainability answer we’ve been looking for, and not actually something to fear. Far less pesticide use, greater crop yields in smaller spaces (ie, less land needs to be cleared) and the need for less water? While they might not be perfect yet, keeping an open mind on technology in agriculture could help the environment out in the long run. With 107 Nobel Laureates and many other well respected scientists across the world on board, GMOs certainly deserve a second look. Nobel Laureate Randy Schekman, a cell biologist at the University of California at Berkeley, told The Post, “I find it surprising that groups that are very supportive of science when it comes to global climate change … can be so dismissive of the general views of scientists when it comes to something as important as the world’s agricultural future.”

2- ZERO-WASTE

Eco-packaging, or no packaging at all, is set to ramp up in 2018. Plastic bags, layers of cellophane, glossy cardboard boxes and non-recyclable plastics just might be a thing of the past! Grocery stores are turning to the “zero-waste” method, which is really just going back to how things used to be for our grandparents. Letting customers bring their own packaging, and then charging prices in bulk, reduces everyone’s cost, saves one more piece of waste from the landfill, and prevents one more petroleum based plastic article from being produced in the first place. Beyond grocery stores smaller shops and (eco) brands are also starting to take notice and base their packaging in either recyclable methods or as minimally disruptive to the planet as possible.

3- SHARING ECONOMY

The sharing economy is expanding! With consumers looking to share not only save to the planet but also their budgets, websites like the Buy Nothing Project and other bartering/swapping sites have sprung up and are taking off with force. Savvy shoppers are now able to see that they don’t need to buy a brand new baby crib when someone on the Buy Nothing Project is willing to give their old one away for free if you’ll just come and disassemble and move it, in order to create some space in their garage. Reduce, reuse, recycle! Nothing greener than using something that already exists – save one from the landfill, prevent another from being made.

4- WHAT WE EAT

Alternative food sources are taking the start-up world by storm, and they’re seeking to change the future of how we eat. It’s no secret that factory farming, and any type of animal production for food, has grave consequences on our planet. With environmentalists now joining hands with scientists and entrepreneurs we are seeing promising trends in lab created meat, plant based meats, flours made from insects and algae, and much more — all to create nutritious and sustainable food sources for our growing world population. Fewer greenhouse gases filling the air, less land needed to graze animals, less water needed for animals and far fewer animals slaughtered. Far beyond your typical tofurkey, these start-ups are here to compete with your burger.

 

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