MUNI at ADB No Impact Week's Forum on Taking Action Against Waste
- Team Muni
- Jan 21, 2013
- 3 min read
Muni on this:
What if the trash you produce is actually so much more harmful than you think? And what if the ways to drastically reduce your garbage production are really pretty simple?
Last January 15, Muni PH had the unique opportunity of being a part of the ADB No Impact Week‘s Trash Day forum on Taking Action Against Waste On A Personal Level And Beyond. Trash Day was the first of a 5-day series of discussions on how we can live a “No Impact” life in our daily trash/consumption, transportation, food, energy, and water.
For the forum, we were honored to be in the company of such inspiring, like-minded individuals whose big hearts and humble dreams for a better planet helped them find solutions for us to live lives of lower impact on the environment and higher impact in our communities.
From left to right: James Bernardo of Styro Project, Emy Aguinaldo of the National Solid Waste Management Commission, Dr. Lei Camiling-Alfonso of Caleb’s Closet, Jen Horn of Muni.com.ph, Reese Fernandez-Ruiz of Rags2Riches and Anna Oposa of Save Philippine Seas. Photo c/o Dr. Lei Camiling-Alfonso.
James spoke about The Styro Project‘s use of orange peel to extract limonene, which can be used to gently recycle Styrofoam without inducing a chemical reaction, and therefore being safer for the environment.
Dr. Lei shared her personal story how motherhood and the realization of the mounds of waste produced by disposable diapers (the average baby uses 3,000) and infant formula tin cans inspired her to start up Caleb’s Closet and advocate for the use of cloth diapers (only 24 or less are all a baby needs), breastfeeding, and eco-friendly parenting in general.
Reese engaged the audience with her passionate delivery of focusing on not just 1, 2, or 3, but 4 bottom lines (people, planet, profit, positive impact) in her social, eco-fashion enterprise. Rags2Riches uses fabric scraps and works with communities and high profile fashion designers to create beautiful, buzz-worthy products that make a great style and social change statement.
As a diver, Anna reminded us that the Philippines is worth diving for and that we should do our part in preserving our the national gem that is our seas. One way she suggests we do this is by stopping global whining and putting an end to the world’s biggest problem – apathy. Save Philippine Seas aims to raise awareness on the richness that lie in our country’s waters, the ill-doing of both foreign and domestic entities, and what we can do to mitigate that.
For our part, Muni PH shared our mission to raise awareness on conscious consumption through the Muni Pop-Up Shop. It’s really about knowing more and asking yourself and producers where goods come from and how they are made. And it isn’t just about products we buy from social enterprises, but everything we consume on a daily basis without so much as a second thought. Other ideas we shared include:
Use recyclable bags (see our flour sack bags here)
Bring your own water bottle (see the impact of disposable plastic bottles here)
Bring your own chopsticks (see the impact of disposable chopsticks here)
Dine in vs. Take out (see how Slow Food helps the self & the planet)
Rethink calling cards (minimize waste through a new design)
Buy pre-loved, local & eco-friendly (more on conscious consumption here)
These are all simple ideas we can easily apply in our daily life. But another important thing is to recognize your power as a consumer, as a thinking being, and as an influencer. Purchasing power lies not in the amount of money you can spend as an individual, but in the power you have to make entrepreneurs reconsider how their goods are made by demanding more mindfully-created goods, and in the power you have to influence your own friends, family and social network.
Muni PH spoke in the voice an ordinary citizen talking to fellow citizens, with the belief that us coming together to enact one small change can make an extraordinary difference. In a reflection written after the forum, Jen reemphasizes the idea that you don’t need to be a “go-getter” to do better.
What small change will you make today?
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