Blog Action Day: Climate Change

This year’s Blog Action Day topic is so appropriate, it’s about Climate Change. No one living on this planet today can say they have not felt the climate changed these few years, and how climate change itself had brought about catastrophic events to what is supposed to be natural.

In Malaysia, we don’t even have four seasons, but even we feel the drastic crazy unpredictable weather. What used to be the rainy season, is now very hot, what used to be the drier season can sometimes have flood.

There is SO much we can do to care about the Earth, but I believe it’s the little that we do that makes the difference. The little things like, deciding not the take the plastic bags offered when grocery shopping. I am so glad that major hypermarkets here in Klang Valley are promoting the usage of reusable shopping bags, places like Tesco, Jusco, Ikea and more and all heavily encouraging the customers to bring their own bags or just buy one at the counter. And it’s great that these bags are so affordable and come in great designs. We use this bag when shopping in Tesco.

When I first used it, I was pleasantly surprised at how much can go into it! Everything fit really well in it. Plus it’s really tough and sturdy, no worries of heavy stuffs breaking the bag.

What else can we do? Well, as a mother, I am an ambassador of Cloth Diapers. If you think plastic bags take the longest to biodegrade, think again. Take a look at this chart:

Check out how long each of these products take to decompose in the environment…

• Banana Peel: 3-4 weeks
• Paper Bag: 1 month
• Cardboard: 2 months
• Wool Sock : 1 year
• Tinned Steel Can: 50 years
• Aluminum Can: 200-500 years (But if recycled, it can be reused within 6 weeks!)
• Disposable Diapers: 550 years
• Plastic Bags : 20-1000 years
• Plastic Jug: 1 million years
• Glass : 1-2 million years
• Styrofoam: 1+ million years

Whoa, and an average baby probably uses 7-8 diapers a day, and every diaper thrown takes 550 years to biodegrade, long after you have gone from this Earth, your baby’s pooed diaper is still trying to rot? NO, stop using those disposables, it doesn’t matter what those brands tell you how convenient it is, nothing is more convenient than cloth diapers! Once you use it, you’d wonder why you never tried it in the first place. After reading some blogs, I found that some people just can’t see too far ahead and don’t think the length of time of decomposition of such things ever affect their lives coz they don’t SEE the land fills. That’s when every one should go WALL-E and get an idea of what COULD happen to the EARTH if we keep the disposable mindset.

I’m also really liking the idea of cloth pads! Now, most people think, oh HOW can you use that…but why not? Here’s a really good company making and selling them, I’m telling everyone who ask about this to buy from Chin Nee’s Mamapatch.

We also use less electricity in the house by having electric saver lights in all rooms, and never sleeping with the air-cond on through the night. In fact, I haven’t use our room’s air cond in a long long time, not since after my confinement. Just open the window and let the cool air come in. Another thing we do is use biodegradable cleaners, like dish washing liquid, shampoo etc.

Well, there are still many things that I’m not doing yet that I really want to do eventually. But what I realise is, we have to start somewhere, even if it’s something small, like getting into the habit of declining plastic bags especially when buying just one thing at 7-elevens or a dress at the boutique. Change comes when we first change our mindset, our habits. Your little bit can stop Climate Change. Above all, continue to pray!