As consumer awareness of the cosmetics industry's environmental impact grows, more businesses are introducing sustainable products, ingredients, and packaging to their practices. One strategy used by companies to lessen their influence on the environment is the development of waterless products, such as foundations and shampoo bars.

Chemicals in cosmetics and packaging hugely impact climate change, pollution, and habitat destruction. Recent research by Beyond Plastic shows that by 2030 plastics will release more greenhouse gas emissions than coal plants in the U.S. 

If you’ve gone for takeout recently and received your food in cardboard-like takeout boxes, then you may have met “bagasse” in real life. Many eco-friendly restaurants and companies are prioritizing sustainability within their single-use containers, choosing packaging that is made from environmentally-friendly materials. While bamboo is well-known for eco-friendly packages, bagasse is a lesser-known material.

No matter the size of your holiday gatherings this year, you’ll probably be going through a lot of paper products and plastic. As presents and letters make their way to family and friends via mail and package delivery, it’s time to make a plan on how to keep your holidays sustainable and recycle packaging waste the right way.

If you’re mailing out Christmas cards or wrapping up presents to ship across the country, consider the materials used to wrap your gifts, construct your Christmas cards, and keep your holiday gifts safe on their journey to your loved ones.

Ordering takeout or picking up dinner curbside has been a staple of the pandemic thus far but comes with a flood of harmful plastic and styrofoam packaging. But a new startup is trying to reduce damage to the environment by highlighting takeout options that use Earth-friendly packaging.

One-hundred companies are responsible for more than 90 percent of all global plastic waste, according to new research from The Plastic Waste Makers index. And twenty of those companies are responsible for a whopping 55 percent of the world’s plastic waste. 

All change starts small and has the potential to ripple into a much larger movement. While large issues like climate change and plastic pollution require large solutions, starting small and locally can inspire the big waves needed to save the planet. This is precisely what happened with a group of five middle schoolers in 2015. 

You may have noticed that quarantine-cuisine and to-go coffee orders come with a lot of plastic utensils, single-use straws, and styrofoam containers. What were once sustainability sins are now quarantine commonplace as we navigate the realities of COVID-19. 

Efforts to reduce plastic consumption do not need to go out the window. There are still plenty of things you can do to reduce your own plastic intake and spread the socially-distant word to your friends and family. Here are a few ideas to get you started.