Bamboo Body clothing is made sustainably with the deepest respect for both our planet and its people. Sustainability is at the heart of everything we do, including the way we design our collections. From the raw materials we use to how we deliver them to your door; we take every opportunity to reduce our impact on the environment.

Learn more about our sustainable practices here.

We’ve all heard this tip before, however it’s now time to act on it! Make it a habit to bring a reusable water bottle everywhere you go. Luckily in Australia, there are many places to refill your water bottle and most of our tap water is drinkable. According to Plastic Oceans, we are producing almost 300 million tons of plastic every year, and half of it is single use. This year we are staying hydrated, sustainably!

Make it a habit to keep reusable grocery bags to the grocery store with you so that you don’t need to buy new ones. We recommend keeping a pile in your car to avoid forgetting. Even if you forget a few times and need to buy new ones, these bags will still be able to be reused. Even single use plastic bags can be reused for multiple reasons after purchase. For example, they would be used as bin liners, pet waste bags or for storage. Here are 25 brilliant ways you can reuse plastic bags. Reusable bags that you can buy in stores or online are now made from sustainable materials such as jute, hemp, cotton and bamboo which makes them more renewable than plastic and paper bags.

This is another small and easy way you can reduce waste and opt for a more sustainable lifestyle. There are many stores that now have the ability to email you your receipt. Receipts are not recyclable, and the chemicals used to make the receipts can actually be toxic. It may seem like receipts are too small to consider, however the numbers do add up. According to Melissa Breyer from Treehugger, the annual waste from receipts in the U.S. is 686 million pounds of waste. It’s best to say no to a receipt at checkout!

Our food intake is one of the biggest contributors to our carbon footprint, and sometimes the smallest changes make the biggest difference. Meal prepping gives you the time to organise your shopping. You will find that you will buy less and waste less because your grocery trip will be a lot more purposeful. You will also be saving money and petrol as you will find that you will go to the grocery store less.

Cooking from home means you control where your ingredients come from, as well as how food is stored and how the waste is disposed of. A home kitchen also uses less energy than a commercial kitchen, and you will find that you are saving so much more $$$ by cooking more at home. This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t eat out at all! However, reducing how much you go out and choose takeaway over a home cooked meal will be better for you, your bank account and the environment overall.

Did you know that you can compost food, even if you live in an apartment? Up to 40% of household waste is actually food waste and when organic matter like these rots in landfill, it emits methane. In fact, food waste in landfill is responsible for over 3% of Australia's greenhouse gas emissions annually. Home composting is one of the most effective and easiest ways we can reduce these emissions into the environment. It not only reduces methane and carbon emissions but also saves water, saves you money and makes you more sensitive to the amount of food you waste. You'll begin to think of ways to use the banana peel before throwing it away! Here is a simple guide to composting at home.

Learn more about composting here

Exfoliating is an important part of anyone’s skin regime but unfortunately many products contain microbeads, harmful small pieces of plastic that find their way into our oceans. These micro pieces of plastic are then digested by fish making permanent damage to our ecosystem.

Sugar, honey, oats and olive oil are all commonly used ingredients in homemade exfoliators. A fun and natural alterative to exfoliators would be to mix these ingredients together until they form a paste, ready to rejuvenate your skin. We would also recommend doing some skincare research, choosing products that use a natural exfoliant instead.

Reducing your meat consumption is another small step that can ultimately create huge environmental change. Eating less meat helps the environment because it lowers the demand for meat products, and in turn reduces the land use and environmental damage of the meat industry. According to this report on meat and dairy production, we produce more than 340 million tonnes of meat each year. Animal farming is also the single most significant driver of habitat loss, water, and nutrient pollution. Reducing meat consumption also saves water and lowers greenhouse gas emissions. You can learn more about reducing meat consumption here.

Not only is this step good for preserving the health of your computer, but it is also one of the easiest things that you can do to save energy. Especially if you are working from home, this will cut down your energy use immensely.

Just like the last point, the smallest actions can impact your life drastically, as well as help the planet. Only run the dishwasher and laundry when absolutely necessary in order to reduce the amount of times you use it per month. This will help you save energy and water. Good for you and good for the planet!

Trans seasonal fashion refers to the pieces in your wardrobe that you can wear all year round by adopting pieces that blend seamlessly with each other so that you are styled and ready for the cold, the heat, the night or the day. Trans seasonal fashion can often be tied in with ‘capsule dressing,’ referring to a capsule collection of clothing that you can mix, match and wear all year round.

Capsule wardrobes not only help us de-stress our relationship with clothes and bust decision fatigue, but also reduces our footprint on the planet. By reducing the amount we spend on fast fashion, we help reduce its effect on our environment. You can easily build a curated sustainable capsule wardrobe that will last years!

Learn more about creating the ultimate capsule wardrobe here.

Home heating is one of the biggest energy expenses rhat you personally can be accountable for. Did you know that even a 1 degree increase in heat can raise your energy spending up to 15%, according to Sustainability Victoria. Unfortunately this is not doing any good for the planet either. Coal, oil and natural gas all cause extreme environmental impacts, but it is not our only option. Taking small steps such as eliminating drafts, taking advantage of daylight and layering up makes all the difference. Read more on the 6 steps to take before turning on your heater here.

We’ve probably all heard this one before but it's so simple! If you’re a regular coffee drinker then you would be aware of the amount of disposable coffee cups one can go through. Simply swap your disposable cup for a reusable one, it’s that easy.

This may not be possible for some - however if you live in an urban area and have the means to - avoiding driving can make such a huge positive impact on the environment. According to Vix, by eliminating one car per household and taking public transportation instead of driving, a savings of 30% of carbon dioxide emissions can be achieved. Opting for public transport also reduces the need to fill up. It will also reduce traffic congestion and slow traffic in your city.

This could be as easy as reusing ruined clothes as rags. Recycling is a creative and fun way to reuse old or worn out garments and other household items to transform them into something else. Here is a fun upcycling guide. This encourages a more circular alternative to fashion in order to avoid things going into landfills. There are also many brands that utilise the upcycling method to create new products. Just make sure you do some research on the brand before you buy.

When you decide to shop more sustainably, often it makes the process of shopping a little bit more tedious. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. This just means that you need to be more aware of certain certifications and the characteristics of greenwashing that fast fashion brands do to trick you into thinking their pieces are more sustainable than they are. This is not just with clothing, but also on food packaging. Click here to learn more about the different ethical fashion certifications.

Learn more about Bamboo Body's certifications here.

We hope these 15 tips will be of use to you in your everyday life. We aren't perfect either, but it is important to reflect and make those small changes here and there to help reduce the waste we create and to be more responsible. There are many small, sustainable practices that you can incorporate into your life in the new year. By making simple changes in your daily routine, you can reduce your environmental impact, save resources, and improve your overall quality of life. What other ways do you practice sustainability in everyday life?