In the ‘sustainability’ community, most people focus on activities associated with minimising environmental impact by reducing waste and switching to eco-friendlier habits such as composting kitchen scraps, avoiding single-use plastic items, carrying zero waste kits, offsetting carbon and even investing money in ‘cleaner’ projects. What many often overlook is the importance of self-care as a...
Participating in Veganuary? Don’t Forget to Consider Herbal Medicines
It’s Veganuary once again, an initiative that encourages people to embrace a vegan and cruelty-free lifestyle for the month of January as a means to protect the environment, animals and human health. Veganuary began in 2014 and participation has doubled every year since. Last year, 400,000 signed up for the 2020 Veganuary challenge. If you’re...
5 Key Takeaways From The Social Dilemma Documentary on Netflix
Last month Netflix released a 90-minute documentary on the darker side of our continual dependence on social media titled The Social Dilemma. Jeff Orlowski’s documentary focuses solely on the dangerous human impacts of social media, how addicted many have become to it and how social media companies design their apps to adversely affect our lives....
How to Rebuild After COVID-19 Pandemic? The Answer Lies in Community
In retrospect, I think you would agree with me that this year started innocently enough. We all screamed “Happy New Year” at the stroke of midnight, celebrated with our loved ones and laid out all our plans and personal goals for the year. By the end of January though, we had already survived a World...
6 Ways I Look After My Mental Health (As An Empath)
Note: This letter from the editor was originally published in our weekly newsletter and is being republished here. Hey guys, A couple of days ago, September 10, was World Suicide Prevention Day and R U OK Day. With droughts and fires impacting communities, pandemic lockdowns resulting in economic decline and financial insecurity, widespread job losses and stress (and unfortunately,...
How Nature Brings Green Calm in the Midst of Urban Chaos (and COVID-19)
In the more than two years I have been living in Hong Kong, the pockets of green dotting the city have served as a balm to my soul amidst my usually very busy life. With the stresses of COVID-19, it has become even more of a refuge. To most of the world, Hong Kong is...
5 Ways to Get Mental Health Help Without Having to Talk on the Phone
Access to mental health support has never been more important, as Melburnians are hit with a stage 4 lockdown and much of the rest of Australia braces for a potential second wave of COVID-19. This year, many mental health professionals have moved to providing telehealth services via phone and video calls. But what options are...
The Beginnings of a Clean Beauty Brand: Meet Emma Lewisham
Having written about clean beauty before and also understanding the green washing that comes with the industry, it’s often hard for consumers to get it right when purchasing products. There are loopholes that beauty brands can jump through and buzzwords that can greenwash and often natural skincare products are anything but. Which is why a...
Finding Zen in Lockdown: Living Slow, Yet Living Better
How many times have well-meaning family and friends said to you, Breathe; take a break. And how many times have these words of wisdom fallen on deaf ears as you continue forward trying to set a new record pace in your life? Now many of us will identify with ‘being busy’; with our jobs, our...
Menstrual Hygiene Day: How Embracing the Sacred Feminine Enhances Women’s Empowerment
I didn’t get into the habit of minding my ‘flow’. I don’t even know anybody who tracks their cycle unless they are either trying to fall pregnant or trying not to. We just weren’t programmed to embrace or embody our inner cycle. All we know is that it comes every month and we can’t wait...
6 Self-Care Tips From Famous Women – That They Actually Swear By
By Stacy Walden Self-care is currently in the spotlight as many of us are home 24/7 during lockdown and are armed with a little extra time on our hands. The importance of prioritizing healthy habits has only been amplified since the start of the pandemic as preserving mental health and physical wellbeing is essential when...
Why Social Media Detoxes Are Necessary to a Sustainable Life
I was about to start writing this blog, but then I got writer’s block. So, I went on Instagram for a few minutes, came back, then my phone ‘dinged’, so I checked it, decided to reply later, and I went back to writing. But before I wrote this sentence, I made the decision to reply...