Until a lot of people understand that our environment plays a huge part in our existence, they might not see the need to seek the well-being of their environment. I am sure Elon Musk's space project is not new to anyone, that man is working effortlessly to create a home out there just because he understands how much damage humans have caused their immediate environment.
We are all guilty one way or the other despite the effort we are putting into making our environment a safe place. Achieving this isn't something a few people can do, it really needs the collective efforts of people globally.
I always said we can't blame the government for every predicament happening globally. Although they have their fault but we also have our faults as well. My regular practices for achieving harmony in minimalism for an environmentally friendly lifestyle are quite simple and they are all aimed at making the environment a safe place.
It's disheartening to see how much pressure many industries put on our environment just to meet the demands of people across the world. Sometimes ago, I was at a mall in Lagos and it was shocking to see how much packaging they gave to fruits that can just be displayed ordinarily.
I once said that nature is perfect but many people don't understand. Nature knew those fruits needed protection from dust and germs, that's why the things we consume in them are properly covered while some of these fruits without cover just need to be thoroughly washed but all in the name of packaging, we spend more just to litter the environment with the papers and plastic bags used to package these things and we are also empowering the industries that cause harm to the environment when we can actually get these items from our local shops at a cheaper price without causing harm to the society.
Shopping locally is one of my regular practices for things I can get locally and these are food items. I believe it's a good practice to keep the environment free of litter and a way of supporting local businesses.
Whenever I go shopping, I have bags depending on the size of what I am going to the market for; big bags for big shopping and small handy bags for small shopping.
My traditional shopping bag
Before now, I realised that I paid too much for these bags that I ended up just throwing them anywhere but it got to a time when I realized that I wasn't helping myself or the environment so I kept some and have been using them for every shopping.
I don't know if this is done in other countries but it's a common practice in Nigeria that has become something of the past. When I was younger, we bought the majority of our drinks in bottles and these bottles were perfect for controlling plastic waste.
Back then, a small amount of your money was kept by the drink vendors so you have to return the bottle if you want to get your balance but these things don't exist anymore and you could barely get bottled drinks in some environments. I am not the type who consumes soft drinks often and whenever I do, I purchase the ones in bottles but I don't keep my balance with the vendor because I have my bottles already and just exchange them.
Whenever I go to a store to get drinks in bulk, I go for bottles as well and the moment I notice I am having too much, I just give them out to the drink vendors around me since they can trade with it.
Another thing I would like to mention is the habit of shopping for things I truly need because purchasing things I practically don't need will end up cluttering the spaces in my home. I am very mindful with my shopping and I go for quality which means I don't have to keep buying a product repeatedly.
All these practices aren't just for the benefit of the environment and it helps me to save a lot of money for myself as well. Whenever I educate people about these things, they find the minimalist lifestyle boring.
Someone once asked me why a big boy like him would go for a bottle of drinks when he can afford the plastic even though it's sold twice the price. This isn't about wealth or class and it's just the right thing to do.
I am not perfect though, I have my shortcomings but I always put my environment into consideration. It's my home and if it's destroyed, the problem will be mine.
