Category Archives: Facts and Stats

Facts and Stats, General ramblings

Anxiety, Sadness and Deforestation: How the Earth Shifted in 2016

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It’s almost the end of 2016 and I can’t help thinking that something really big has just happened. And I don’t just mean Trump, Brexit and the final nail in the coffin for the Great Barrier Reef.

It feels like the ground has shifted beneath my feet, and the sturdy soil I once stood upon has switched colour, texture and smell. It feels as though the ground has literally changed its own reaction to my clunky feet stumbling across it, and I am no longer welcome.

The world around us feels anxious, resentful and fatigued. Meanwhile the Earth itself is warming up (quite literally we know) as though it’s firing up for a fight that we all know it will win (but potentially at the cost of humans in the process). Something big has definitely happened this year, and this shift is only going to continue into 2017.

Can you feel it too? Continue reading Anxiety, Sadness and Deforestation: How the Earth Shifted in 2016 →

Facts and Stats, Green health, Nature

5 Easy and Natural Ways to Beat the Winter Blues

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I’ll be honest with you, I’m feeling pretty blue right now. And it’s not just an average case of autumnal lethargic disengagement. I am sleeping badly, eating badly and watching bad TV.  I’m even struggling to find the motivation to move from the sofa to make myself a cup of tea. I haven’t been writing, have barely exercised, and have gotten a little too aquatinted with packet noodles for my liking. Things are bad.

This situation is familiar to us all, and completely expected. Whether you’ve just returned from an epic holiday back to reality (check), in-between jobs (check), frantically house hunting (check) or simply getting used to the colder season (check); the blues are a natural way our bodies and minds tell us we need to slow down, acclimatise to our surroundings, and give ourselves lots of love and TLC.

I have so much in my life to feel grateful for right now, but I still need a lift to make myself feel happy, healthy and confident for the winter months. My mantra for October has certainly been: ” It’s OK to admit you’re not OK”. Continue reading 5 Easy and Natural Ways to Beat the Winter Blues →

Facts and Stats, Green health, Green Home, Green news, Sustainability

Is Toilet Roll Giving us a Bum Deal?

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Toilet roll. The essential item on our shopping lists, and one of the only things we spent hundreds of pounds on a year, only to intentionally throw it away! We use it several times a day – more often if you’re a vegan, lets face it – and an empty loo roll holder instills a frantic panic amongst the best of us, leading to a feeble cry of helplessness: “what do I use now?!” It’s an underrated champion for something so simple, yet most of feel that we couldn’t live without it!

And it’s not just our delicate regions which require the trusty toilet roll. From blowing noses, wiping dirty children faces and removing last nights make up, to using it in lieu of kitchen roll (yes, hands up, I have been known to do that!) it’s estimated that an average person uses at least 30 rolls (or approx 39 lbs) of toilet roll every year. Seem’s a small price to pay to make our bums, faces and…ummm…kitchens happy, right?  Continue reading Is Toilet Roll Giving us a Bum Deal? →

Facts and Stats, Green Living, Green news, renewable energy, Sustainability

20 Facts & Stats Inspiring Us to Live Greener

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Been meaning to get a handle on some of the facts surrounding climate change,  carbon emissions and everything else sustainability? Or simply want to have some planet trivia to whip out at the pub to impress your friends? You’re not alone!

There are far too many facts, stats and research out there to keep up with – unless of course you live on your Twitter feed and read every article posted on the internet (if so, we salute you!) But for us mere mortals who want to know the facts in a nutshell, and in easily sharable form, I have pulled together 20 of the most pressing facts which inspired me to go green.
 Continue reading 20 Facts & Stats Inspiring Us to Live Greener →

Facts and Stats, Green Living, Green news, Green travel, Sustainability

Eco Driving: Why Green Cars Still Aren’t Commonplace

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For the environmentally conscious – few things can feel as guilty as owning a petrol powered vehicle. Yet, for most of us, this is just the reality we live in. Petrol based cars are still the most common vehicle, even though hybrids and purely electric cars are actively available.

Why is this the case? If electric vehicles represent a greener way to drive – and are supposedly cheaper to run, too – why are we so slow in mass-adopting this new technology?

Here mechanic, and passionate green bean, Giles Kirkland shares his know how on the green car industry and why it hasn’t yet gone that extra mile:

Continue reading Eco Driving: Why Green Cars Still Aren’t Commonplace →

Facts and Stats, General ramblings, Green food, Green Living, Green news, Green travel, Sustainability, travel, Vegan

10 Things Travelling Teaches You About Green Living

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oh how times flies! It’s been over a month since my last post, and in that time I have passed through 6 countries, climbed 4 mountains, and eaten more varieties of tofu and tempe than one vegan can dream of in a lifetime.

But what have I learnt on my travels so far? And more importantly, how has it helped me on my path to sustainable living?

To give you the quickest snapshot of my round the world trip so far, and ease myself back into writing (my typing skills are rusty after months lying on the beach…) here are the 10 top things travelling teaches you about green living: Continue reading 10 Things Travelling Teaches You About Green Living →

Facts and Stats, Green Living, Green travel, Nature, Sustainability, travel, War on waste

Hikkaduwa: hippy heaven or polluted beach hell? 

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Luscious valleys, breathtaking mountains and more stunning waterfalls than you can shake a stick at; Sri Lanka certainly has it’s fair share of natural beauty. Outside of the hustle and bustle of big cities, like Colombo, this small island just south of India is the closest you’ll find to a living showcase of how beautiful and diverse planet Earth truly is.

But it’s Sri Lankas beaches – with their clear blue waters and sweeping white sands – which draw thousands of people to the island every year for surf, sun and copious amounts of rice and curry!  Continue reading Hikkaduwa: hippy heaven or polluted beach hell?  →

Facts and Stats, Green Home, Green Living, Green news, renewable energy, War on waste

Technology Is Secretly Making Us Greener

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Manufacturers are making it easier than ever for environmentally conscious consumers to live a greener life and they’re doing in it such a way we don’t have to make big sacrifices or shun cutting-edge technology.

Smart technology is turning the everyday, mundane, energy hungry appliance into cost effective and eco-friendly must haves. In 2012 LG unveiled an entire line of smart appliances including a diet tracking refrigerator and an eco-friendly washing machine with a bigger drum and ultra-fast cycles and in the three years since then every appliance manufacturer has followed suit including self-diagnosing washing machines designed to cut down on costly call-outs for easily fixed problems. Continue reading Technology Is Secretly Making Us Greener →