Recycling: The Great Green Illusion?

Right off the bat, let’s get one thing straight. Recycling is not the sustainability saviour we were promised. For decades, we have been told a lovely narrative: that recycling is the key to sustainability. We’ve been encouraged to sort our waste, rinse out our plastics, and drop our empty cartons into the right bin, believing that we’re playing our part in saving the planet. Hate to be the one to break it to you, but this whole system is flawed. “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” was always meant to be a hierarchy, yet somehow, we’ve been conditioned to skip the first two and jump straight to “Recycle” like it’s a get-out-of-guilt-free card. Who’s to blame? Let’s take a quick history lesson….

 What if we told you that this narrative was designed to shift responsibility away from the real culprits—corporations and manufacturers—and onto us, the consumers? What if, instead of being the solution, recycling is actually a very cleverly marketed disguise for the...

The way you communicate your green initiatives to your customers and stakeholders plays a huge part on spreading sustainability, and more importantly, in creating real impact and change of mindsets.

Take, for instance, my recent stay at a 4-star hotel. In the bathroom they had a little card telling me to “Help them save the planet by reusing my towel” – yet right beside it, there were six plastic mini toiletries and two individually wrapped plastic shower caps.

I felt cheated. The scenario smelled entirely like greenwashing.

And if there is anything more annoying to a green traveller than mini toiletries, it is greenwashing. Please don’t tell me reusing my towel will help you save the planet, when on the other hand you are polluting the environment with unnecessary single use plastics.

Greenwashing can alienate eco-conscious travellers more than any other faux pas in the hospitality industry. So, it’s critical not to undermine genuine green efforts with mixed messages.

3 Green Mar...

The other day, I encountered an advertisement for Mout Cider on television. The add simply highlighted three compelling aspects: a fully recyclable glass bottle, the cider’s vegan status, and the company’s partnership with World Wildlife Fund that protects endangered species. While lounging at home, this ad struck a chord and I thought to myself ‘ well that sounds like a nice cider’—not for its taste or the fruits used, but for its commitment to sustainability. These highlighted features instantly aligned with my values.

Aligning your business values with customer expectations

In today’s rapidly evolving society, consumers demand that companies adopt new mindsets towards environmental sustainability. This shift presents a significant opportunity for businesses willing to embrace change and actively promote their efforts towards climate change mitigation and planetary protection.

The impact of Mout Cider's ad was so profound that it compelled me to visit their website the next mornin...

Many of our hospitality clients have asked what the best carbon offsetting projects are in Ireland, particularly as these businesses strive to become carbon neutral.  In a previous Opinion Piece, I have highlighted how I find carbon offsetting problematic: Carbon Offsetting - who can I trust? (fiftyshadesgreener.ie).

I do however understand that there is a need for offsetting to exist for businesses who cannot reduce that small remainder of carbon emissions to become neutral or achieve net zero figures by themselves.

The issue that arises for me is understanding the different options for businesses and the language around offsetting.  I feel it is not very accessible or transparent.  As I delved into some research, I find myself in murky waters and asking many questions – are there any other offsetting projects available in Ireland apart from the popular tree planting?

How are these projects regulated? What credits are the government buying and why are we not able to have more ind...

Prenote: I am not saying Recycling is a bad thing, but our current main stream systems of recycling have failed us.

In July 2019 The Guardian shared an article titled “Humans have made 8.3 billion metric tonnes of plastic since 1950” If you missed it the link is at the end of this blog.

The Current Situation

The article stated that up until then we had no idea how much plastic we had created and now that we know, the picture is not pretty.  8.3 billion metric tonnes of plastic has been created from 1950 to 2015, that is a terrifying statistic. It is the equivalent to the weight of 1 Billion elephants!

However the worst element of this, is that only 30% of the plastic created is still in use. The rest has been disposed of in three ways: 79% is in our landfills and environment, 12% has been incinerated and only 9% has been recycled. Amongst all this dismal data, what really got me thinking, is that half of the amount of plastic generated since 1950, was actually made in the last 15...