Newsletter #38
To eliminate the concept of waste means to design things- products, packaging, and systems- from the very beginning on the understanding that waste does not exist.
Hello Friends,
Welcome to all new subscribers and a big thank you to all new and ongoing paid subscribers!
The problems brought on by waste are just one of the many issues our planet is burdened with (fossils fuels still the #1 cause of climate change). We struggle to deal with the excess of trash, and then the harm it inflicts from land to oceans, and ultimately, back to us. The opening quote from William McDonough, an architect and global leader in sustainable design, makes complete sense to me. Don’t you feel that all manufacturers of things- products and packaging- should be designing them with reuse in mind? As much as I try to be as creative and industrious as I can in reusing and repurposing as much “waste” as possible, there are still certain items that I just can’t do anything with (yet). In another issue, I’ll share some of my repurposings.
One of the stories in this issue is about turning waste into something useful, which I hope will inspire many other communities to do the same. You will also learn about a plant that I always have in my kitchen; what The Library of Things is; why Patagonia is collaborating with Samsung to solve a problem and a film about a dress made from a foraged material. Onwards!
#1- Aloe Vera
-the healing plant-
I always find it so interesting learning about a plant, like aloe vera, that has a 6,000-year history of use – it was known in ancient Egypt as the “plant of immortality,” and was depicted on stone carvings and given as burial gifts to pharaohs. Aloe vera was used then, as it is today, for medicinal purposes.
I keep an aloe plant in my kitchen, because it’s so useful for treating burns. Just take a clipping off the end of an aloe leaf and spread the gel like juice on the wound. Aloe has antiseptic properties as well and aids in wound healing by improving blood circulation through the affected area and preventing cell death.
Aloe is excellent for treating sunburns as well.
Aloe vera is available as whole living plant, and also as a gel you can keep in the fridge. I can tell you from experience that the coolness is very soothing on a burn.
When buying an aloe vera gel, choose one with the highest percentage of aloe gel.
The one I use and keep in the fridge (Badger unscented Fair Trade organic aloe vera gel) isn’t available on Amazon, but if I needed to buy another brand, I would get this one, which is in my Amazon store ( I receive a commission).
In the event you find yourself in the Hudson Valley, in Upstate New York, and you would like an aloe vera plant grown with a lot of love, I have several available in my tiny shop, The Rabbit Hole. It’s open by appointment from 11 to 4 on Fridays and Saturdays. Email me at pwstorestudio@gmail.com to make an appointment.
Source of aloe info at dr.andrewweil and from my medicinal plant course at Cornell University.
#2- The Library of Things
- a great idea that has taken root-
What is a library of things? It’s any collection of objects loaned, and any organization that practices such loaning.
Objects often include kitchen appliances, tools, gardening equipment and seeds, electronics, toys and games, art, science kits, craft supplies, musical instruments, and recreational equipment. Especially appropriate are objects that are useful occasionally but cumbersome to store, such as specialized cookware or niche technology items. Collections vary widely, but go far beyond the books, journals, and media that have been the primary focus of traditional libraries.
The library of things movement is a growing trend in public, academic and special libraries in many countries. These library collections are part of the sharing economy.
As an example of what A Library of Things looks like, the Curtis Memorial Library in Brunswick, Maine has a large inventory of things to borrow.
Sixty participating libraries in Maine share the online catalog minerva, where you can not only find a vast inventory of what is available to borrow but you can also conveniently reserve an item you plan on borrowing.
I would love to see the New York Library system become a participating library and build their own Library of Things!
#3- Finally! Enfin!
-Recycled Plastic Chairs in Paris-
At last this is happening and I don’t just mean the Olympics coming to Paris in 2024, but the use of plastic waste to create something else useful, like in this case, chairs or/and seating.
Due the shortage of raw materials needed to make seating for the Olympic venues, organizers came up with the idea to recycle the plastic that accumulates in the local waste bins and turn it into seats in the name of circularity. This became a great opportunity to come up with sustainable solutions.
Spectators of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris will be watching the aquatic events from seats made of plastic collected in recycling bins from around the area.
These 2024 Olympic Games are meant to be the greenest in history, by prioritizing reducing its carbon impact. The production of the recycled plastic seats (some 11,000 of them) is an example of this approach, from reducing energy consumption by taking waste away from incinerators which reduces carbon emissions.
#4- Patagonia & Samsung
-working together to solve a problem-
Are you concerned about microfibers ending up in our sources of water? Did you know that Samsung is releasing a wash cycle and a new filter, which will dramatically shrink microfiber pollution.
As environmental challenges go, microfiber pollution practically came out of nowhere. It was only a few years ago that scientists first suspected our clothing, increasingly made of synthetic materials like polyester and nylon, might be major contributors to the global plastic problem. With every load of laundry, thousands (even millions) of microfibers, wash down the drain. Fragments of your favorite fleece vest might now be floating in the Arctic Ocean.
In a collaboration that began two years ago, Patagonia helped to inspire Samsung to tackle the problem by rethinking its washing machines. Samsung unveiled its solution: A new filter that can be added to existing washers and used along with a “Less Microfiber” cycle that Samsung also designed (which anyone with a Samsung washer can download as an update for their machine). To tackle the remainder, the company designed a filter that can be added to existing washers at the drain pipe, with pores tiny enough to capture and compresses the microfibers, which only needs to be emptied once a month. You will receive an alert via an app when it needs to be changed!
The combination makes it possible to shrink microfiber pollution by as much as 98%.
The filter, which is designed to be easily installed on existing machines, will launch in the U.S. and Europe later this year. The cost will vary by market, but will be around $150 in the U.S. The “Less Microfiber” cycle, which began to roll out last year, can be automatically installed on WiFi-connected machines.
Other companies are also beginning to work on solutions, spurred in part by new regulations. In France, for example, all washing machine manufacturers will have to include filters on their machines by 2025.
Patagonia is also continuing to look for solutions. Each season, as the brand develops new products, Patagonia studies how much each fabric sheds. If a new fabric comes through their doors that sheds too much when washed, the designers go back to the drawing board and redevelop the fabric. As the company and a handful of other apparel brands try to work on the upstream challenge, updating washing machines can fill a huge gap.
#5- Movie to See
The Nettle Dress
Considered one of the best films of 2023 by The Guardian, this feature documentary by Dylan Howitt is about a man who made a dress from nettle fiber over seven years.
Allan Brown makes a nettle dress by hand just from the fiber of foraged stinging nettles. It’s a modern day fairytale and hymn to the healing power of nature and slow craft.
This film is a handspun labor of love and follows him every step of the way.
“This is an exquisite film, extremely beautiful and helpful for anyone suffering loss or grief. It’s an inspiration”.
Sir Mark Rylance
Watch the trailer here
For info about when the film will be available in the USA, click here
To host a screening, click here for info
Follow the film on Instagram
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Hope that you enjoyed reading this issue. I am trying to keep them as short as possible so that you actually have time enough to read them all the way through.
Going forwards, I will continue sharing information on topics that are of great interest to me and hopefully to you as well. I am a forever student of life and in particular about making healthy choices, ways of reducing waste, making my voice heard (by getting in touch with my local representative) and my vote count, supporting people and organizations that are working hard at bettering the planet, adapting to climate change and being climate resilient… to mention a few things.
Follow me on Instagram to get all my news and if you would like to join my workshops at my climate resilient mini farm at River’s Edge Farm, NY, there are spots available in the August 26th and September 23rd workshops. Info available in my online store at https://www.priscilla-woolworth-store-studio.com or for inquiries, you can email me at pwstorestudio@gmail.com
Wishing all the best for the rest of July, to you and your loved ones,
Priscilla