The health benefit count of a bicycle can easily cross 20+ and reduces an individual’s carbon footprint significantly. Somedays alone, somedays accompanied but ideal of all, tall trees coupled with vivid colors of the sky. Minutes and kilometers passed jovially when I was on my bicycle. On the happy days used to pedal slow and enjoy the cool breeze imagining hypothetical situations. On the low ones used to go some extra kms on flash mode like pedaling away from problems as it would solve everything. Somehow magically it worked for a year but then the next summer the excuses overpowered this hobby. I still mention it as my hobby and after a year of procrastinating and avoiding any sort of regular workout the long lockdown gave me the opportunity to reconnect with something I used to call my constant. It started as an alternate to expensive gym and tennis membership. Being an underweight according to the BMI a regular workout for me is as important as to anyone else. It is giving me break from the parasite mobile phone and just capturing the views from eyes and storing it in the brain. This soul which now wishes to commute to work and college on bike, going back 5 years it was embarrassed to cycle to tuition. As all the friends were driving their active and bikes. All I had was my purple friend. Yes, a lavender colored bike with a basket in front but no frills from the handlebar. Rightnow my bond with cycling continues to be smooth unless we are on a break!
Sustainability means more than being eco-friendly, it means you are in it for the long haul. It could be your business, relations or lifestyle. The Japanese concept of ikigai meaning ‘a reason for being’ emphasizes on a person’s mission i.e. what the world needs. if you brew all the notions together and distill its contents, you practice sustainability. Environment gets talked about but not respected enough. Being the denizens of planet earth it becomes our soulful duty to use the resources sagely. A kid learns by watching their family hence it is important to be worth observing. So here is a list of habits one can easily adopt-
Ditch the single use items– Be it the disposable plastic cutlery, straws or utensils Plastic water bottles, plastic bags, unnecessary packing The menstrual products, the sheet masks, the wet tissues all are disastrous. Instead do carry or keep a reusable cup/bottle, basic cutlery, a carry bag. A reusable sanitary napkin or a menstrual cup is eco friendly, saves a lot and goes a long way.
Don’t waste food– Plan your meals well so that everything from your plate goes to your stomach and not the bin. Simply because around the world 821 million people do not have enough of food they need to live an active and healthy life. 1 in every 9 people goes to sleep hungry every night.
Research for organic and toxin free alternatives– A simple and in depth research of the ingredients used in a product will give you more confidence and loyalty towards your favorites.it is so much better than being trapped in the marketing rattraps of organic/natural label.
Shopping rationally– Learn to distinguish between needs and wants. (definition of demands begins by explaining these two concepts). More use of cash to pay for shopping than credit card. Impulsive buying is your enemy. Don’t buy because its on sale, 70% off sounds so lucrative but its not worth it. Remember ‘less is more’.
DIYs are your best friends– Some DIYs take you to a nostalgic childhood trip and some to the kitchen. These are the natural dupes for the high end chemically rich skincare. Now I don’t get embarrassed when my mom says to me I can make this at home because homemade is the new cool.
Everyone is on survival mode in this pandemic but it is giving us time to introspect ourselves and our habits. So let it be sustainable to whatever extent possible.
A perfect weight loss solution for big fat Indian weddings.
With modern gender roles in play, the traditional generation’s role also needs to be altered. In a parallel universe – gone are the days when parents used to save a big chunk of their hard-earned money for their child’s ‘wedding fund’. Apparently it is high time for the “NO longer kids” soon getting hitched, to realize the value of money and bear the financial burden of their big day. This transformation shall surely put a check on the blind and wasteful expenditure. Weddings in general cost a fortune and generate around 3 tonnes of waste from leftover food items, water, plastic utensils used, discarded decorative items etc. and contribute to air, water, noise and light pollution (just for 400-1000 guests). These tonnes can be prevented by having a green and minimal wedding.
A green wedding is wherein the couple plans the special day in an eco-friendly and sustainable manner considering the ecological impact on the planet and global community, at large. Minimalist wedding is adopting the ‘less is more’ approach and a simple yet joy sparking trend for the D day.
Here’s how to do it: Wedding trousseau Having high quality sustainable attires that can be worn again are better than the heavy glittery pieces which will rest at the elusive end of the wardrobe. Such an investment just for a bunch of pictures to share on the ‘gram with people who don’t genuinely care is not wise, after all. Another way can be borrowing traditional family piece and styling it up your way. Same goes for jewellery, one can accessorise their outfits with ancestral heirlooms or simply rent. Voila! bills, heritage and vogue well reclaimed.
Catering and décor Food is one of the main reasons many people dressup to dig into their favourite delicacies. Buffet and wastage goes hand in hand, a la carte system or a buffet of limited items should preferred. Organic and locally sourced produce should be a chosen over and above expensive gourmet from 7 stars. Local NGO can help in the distribution of the leftover food and that too for free in most mega cities. Food should be served in glass/ceramic/steel utensils and use of plastic disposables can be effectively replaced by using banana leaves, bamboo/steel cutlery. Plastic water bottles can be substituted by glass bottles (can act as takeaway souvenir too), steel tumblers or kullads. Decoration should comprise of articles which can be easily reused like flowers, plants in beautiful planters. DIYs can be easily created, arranged or ordered.
Invitation and gifts Digital invitations came and disrupted the traditional card and sweets tradition. They fit more practically as the heavy cost of the boxes and distribution was time consuming as well. Wedding specific website can also be created giving the guests a tech savvy interaction. The exchange of gifts can be made eco friendly by giving organic skincare products, saplings, locally sourced desserts/ edibles in glass/tin collectible containers. Google provides endless options for every pocket.
Venue and guest list An outdoor venue with built in décor like a vineyard, a garden or a farmhouse. One may like to go simply for a temple, gurudwara or church wedding according to the belief system of the couple. Ceremonies should be kept on a single venue as it will save the guests from heavy commute and environment from pollution. A trend of confirmation to invitation about 2-3 months prior to the wedding can be very effective in reducing unnecessary expenditure and keeping the ceremony as intimate as possible. The covid-19 restrictions have limited the guests upto a count of fifty. This filtration should be there with or without the virus as its your special day and you have every right to be surrounded by only the people who don’t jinx your happiness. An intimate affair will add to the esteem of the guests too and help in building lasting relationships based on mutual love and understanding. Although, this might take some time to become a status quo and one might end up losing “relatives” and “friends” but a private wedding will help you save money, the planet and have a compound positive impact on the society in form of an action against dowry and debt by solely choosing sanctity of the institution of marriage than unwanted exhibition of wealth.
Raw Resistant 