Recycling
Into: Food and drink 
How do we prepare food? Food preparation
In the UK, it is estimated that 6.7 million tonnes of food is thrown away each year, which could have been used or eaten. This waste has a huge environmental impact as all this excess food and packaging can end up in landfill. Also many businesses argue that the volume of food they produce is consumer led and they are trying to meet the demands of the consumer. Making sure the food that you have bought is used, will help to reduce the amount of waste that goes to landfill and will give (...) Read more
Recycling
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Waste reduction
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Shopping
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Food preparation
Into: Food and drink How do we choose food? Impact on the environment
When consumers unpack their shopping bags there can be a lot of food packaging in the bags, made from a number of materials. A typical shopping bag may include:
fruit, vegetables, salad and dried herbs in plastic bags
apples or potatoes in polystyrene trays which are then covered with plastic cases
cereal in plastic bags which are then in cardboard boxes
foods that are in tins
tomatoes in plastic trays
drinks in tetra boxes or plastic bottles
corks in wine bottle
Most (...) Read more
Packaging
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Reusing products
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Recycling
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Waste reduction
Into: Food and drink How do we prepare food? Food preparation
Consumers are presented with many different forms of packaging, including:
Glass – comes in varying shapes from jars, wine bottles, tub shapes, fizzy drink bottles. These can be very advantageous storage containers as they can be reused, they are chemically inert, impermeable and non-porous. They will not degrade or leak chemicals into their contents. However, glass can be easily broken and it can be dangerous to clear up broken glass. Food or drink from a cracked or broken bottle (...) Read more
Packaging
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Reusing products
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Recycling
Into: Looking good Sustainable personal care Disposal of personal care waste
Disposable technology has been effectively developed over the last 30 years. New disposable products are continuously being invented which are designed to make life easier for consumers. Examples of the types of personal care and health products that are available in a disposable form are:
Razors Face wipes Nappies Contact lenses
Disposable or single-use products have a number of advantages, such as reducing the need for cleaning and reducing the potential spread of infections. (...) Read more
Packaging
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Reusing products
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Recycling
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Waste reduction
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Personal care
Into: Looking good Introduction Being sustainable when looking good
Environmental sustainability is the dimension of sustainability which is concerned with the natural environment, the context in which all human activity ultimately takes place.
The natural environment is the physical setting within which people live. Sustainability requires that the limits of this environment are recognised as the quantities of natural resources which exist on this planet are not limitless.
It is important to realise that when buying goods and services to look good they (...) Read more
Water efficiency
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Energy efficiency
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Recycling
Into: Looking good Sustainable personal care Disposal of personal care waste
A lot of consumers recycle in the kitchen but they forget about items in the bathroom that can be recycled too. Items such as plastic shampoo bottles and aerosol cans are often forgotten but they can be recycled.
Why not go to your bathroom now and start looking at what you can recycle?
You could even put a recycling bin in your bathroom so that you do not forget to collect your empty containers. While you are looking, don’t forget about the cardboard tubes inside toilet rolls - these can (...) Read more
Packaging
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Recycling
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Personal care
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In the home
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Recycling
Into: Looking good What to wear Sustainable style and clothing
It is very common place in the UK for parents to hand down children’s clothes to their friends or other members of their family.
This is a good way of reusing clothes that children have grown out of, however, it is important that more adults do the same with their own clothes when they no longer want or need them.
More and more people are starting to consider how they can recycle clothes they no longer want. There are more options becoming available for people to help them dispose of (...) Read more
Recycling
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Children’s wellbeing
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Teenager’s wellbeing
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Recycling
Into: Looking good Sustainable personal care
In most households, a range of products are flushed down the drain. Many of these products end up having an impact on our lakes and our seas.
It is, therefore, important for consumers who want to be environmentally friendly to think about what they flush away and consider whether it would be suitable to throw it in a bin. You may also be able to recycle products in the home instead of flushing or throwing them away.
You can find further information in our ‘disposal of personal care (...) Read more
Tip
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Recycling
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Waste reduction
Into: At home Maintaining and keeping a home Regular cleaning
Soap is known to have been around for thousands of years, initially made up of components such as vegetable or animal fats, herbs, plant leaves and other fragrances. Soap technology has inevitably advanced since then with many varieties now available on the market, including:
Fragrance free products
Dermatologically tested soap
Products free from animal fats or not tested on animals.
During World War I, synthetic products were developed as it was difficult to obtain soap ingredients. (...) Read more
Biodiversity
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Packaging
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Recycling
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In the home
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Recycling
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Natural environment
Into: At home Maintaining and keeping a home Waste
Government initiatives and more environmentally conscious consumers are helping to reduce the levels of waste created by UK households. Media interest and documentaries about the global impact of waste and pollution are helping to educate consumers about why reducing waste is so important. Local councils also offer advice and initiatives on ways to reduce household waste.
Some local councils now offer different bins for refuse and recycling, free compost bins, easily accessible recycling (...) Read more
Packaging
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Reusing products
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Recycling
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Waste reduction
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In the home
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Recycling
Into: At home Designing, building and renovating a home Sustainable building materials
When building or renovating a home, you should consider using green building materials as these help to improve the conservation of reducing non-renewable resources.
Nowadays there is a huge range of recycled building materials on the market, as well as products that are made from a plentiful or renewable resource. If you want to be green when you build or renovate a home, consider the following issues when you are choosing and buying products:
Is the product recycled or does it contain (...) Read more
Recycling
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In the home
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Recycling
Into: At home Living with my family Examples of sustainable family living
It is estimated that up to two-thirds of household rubbish can be recycled, so it is important to know how different objects can be disposed of. You can contact your local authority as they will be able to provide information around doorstep recycling services, nearest recycling points in your area are and where to dispose of certain items such as batteries and wood. Further details are also available on the Directgov website.
When recycling try to encourage your children to join in: (...) Read more
Packaging
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Reusing products
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Recycling
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Waste reduction
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In the home
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Children’s wellbeing
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Teenager’s wellbeing
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Recycling
Into: Getting there Buying a car End of vehicle life
Many parts of a car can be recycled at the end of their life span. There are many parts of a car that only have certain life spans so will need to be replaced. It is essential that used parts are disposed of in the correct way or if possible take them to places that will be able to recycle or reuse them.
Engine oil - this can be recycled by contacting your nearest oil bank. You can find this information on the Directgov website or by contacting your Local Council who will be able to (...) Read more
Recycling
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Travel and transport
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Recycling
Into: Concepts Sustainabilty in action
Definition
Sustainable living can be defined as:
“a lifestyle that makes minimal possible use of natural resources. In general its adherent to a use of transport, housing, energy, food and other consumables which is sustainable”.
Examples
There are a number of examples of sustainable living in action:
Volunteering Opportunities with ‘Action for Sustainable Living’
Action for Sustainable Living (AfSL) is a charity that helps people to live more sustainably, focusing on simple changes (...) Read more
Recycling
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In the home
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Recycling
