YOUR SUSTAINABLE LIFE WWW.YOURSUSTAINABLELIFE.COM.AU THE ECO FRIENDLY MAGAZINE ONLINE ONLY
JAN 16 ISSUE #2
INTERVIEWS Sustainable Table Buon Viaggio Travel
BONUS Freebie - 5 Steps to Overcome Emotional Eating... CLICK HERE
The Big Picture What's your purpose?
We are all a part of an incredible world... What is your purpose on this planet?
PLUS Our Top Pinterest Picks!
Issue 2
YOUR SUSTAINABLE LIFE
Featured Article The BIG Purpose - What's your purpose? pg 5/6
Travel Interview with Buon Viaggio Travel pg 13/14
Creativity I AM an Artist pg 8
Wellness Crazy Sexy Confidence Comes from being Completely Comfortable with ALL of you! pg 18-20 BONUS FREEBIE 5 Steps to Overcome Emotional Eating
Interviews Sustainable Table pg 11/12
STAPLES 03 Editor's Note 09 Pinterest Picks 10 Seasonal Eating 11 Sustainable Brands 16 Did You Know?
Photo by Julia Caesar
EDITOR'S NOTE
Kelly Petering EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Welcome to the second edition of Your Sustainable Life The EcoFriendly Magazine. We trust you enjoyed our last issue and that you continue to find inspiration and motivation to lead a more sustainable life here in these pages. The feedback we have received so far is fantastic, and would love those suggestions to keep rolling in! If you have something you feel would add value to this magazine please feel free to email us at info@yoursustainablelife.com.au. One thing I would like to mention we are about raising awareness and opening the door for every day people to gain insight into how they can live more sustainably in all areas of life. We are NOT here to judge or make people feel guilty it’s about doing what you can, when you can, with the resources you have available to you. We are a starting point and acknowledge that there are organisations out there who focus more specifically on certain aspects of sustainability we LOVE that there are others out there with passion for our environment. We are NOT experts and certainly do not claim to know everything we believe there is always more to learn… We invite experts to write for us and encourage those who are learning to contribute too… We want to create a movement of people who are on the same page maybe you’re not at the stage of political activism or would ever consider living off the land out in the bush maybe you are ready to make a few small changes in your life… and we want to acknowledge you for that! Please share the subscription link to your friends and family and send us your feedback! Simply CLICK HERE to subscribe it’s 100% FREE!!!
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Photo by Julia Caesar
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We are all such a small part of an incredible world… Rather than seeing ourselves as individuals, let’s think for a moment about how we are all connected yes it is a rather big picture image… For some it may be difficult to fathom. It all comes down to the circle of life… but let’s not get too deep and mushy about it let’s keep it real. It is now impossible to deny that the human race is having a detrimental impact on our planet. It’s not only that 2014 and 2015 have just been reported the warmest on record by "more than 20% higher than the previous highest departure from average," CNN reported. It’s also the fact that “data compiled by the World Resources Institute reveals that the planet has already lost 80 percent of its forest cover to deforestation…” World Preservation Foundation AND… “The average Australian family of four people makes enough rubbish in one year to completely fill a threebedroom house from floor to ceiling.” Source http://www.transpacific.com.au/asset/cms/Documents/Australian%20Waste%20 %20The%20Facts.pdf When we hear things like this, the large scale impact we are all having on mother earth, its often easy to think ‘What difference can one person, like me, make?’ The fact is that it’s the little things that really count. Imagine if every single person made one small change for the benefit of the environment in their lives, what a massive difference that would make. Whether its using an ecofriendly shopping bag when you buy groceries, or shopping at your local farmers market, recycling properly, taking shorter showers, purchasing ethical and ecofriendly products, installing solar panels in your home, remembering to turn the lights out and appliances off when you are not using them… all these small changes make a big difference. WWW.YOURSUSTAINABLELIFE.COM.AU
We are often reminded of these small changes that can be made, and sometimes take them on board for a while… until life get’s the better of us and we lose hope, interest or momentum. So HOW can we make these changes sustainable how can we embed them into our every day practice? How can we make these thing habits? I want to share with you what I believe to be a sure fire way to ensure the changes you want to create are long term not just here or there… The way we THINK about Sustainability has a lot to do with what we actually ACT upon. Our mindset is an important part of creating change in our lives, and it’s something many people ignore or simply forget about. In general, we are much more willing to take action when we understand WHY we are doing it, and when we think something is difficult, expensive or just ‘too hard’, it becomes that way and we end up doing NOTHING!!
This is a great exercise to do with your family getting everyone involved will also assist is creating a bigger impact on how your family lives. With the idea of living sustainably in mind, start by discussing these questions and write down some common answers… The simpler, the better, especially if you have children they will love that their input is written down! These are not designed to be easy questions they will take some time to nut out… and your answers will most likely change and evolve over time. What do you believe you were put on this planet to do? What is your vision for the future? How are we going to make our vision for the future a reality? What emotions have been most important for you to feel to you up until now?
Our brain is a powerful piece of machinery… A slight shift in the way we think about living a more sustainable life can open us up to creating the changes we would like to. The way I see it, leading a more sustainable life is not about becoming a Vegetarian (although it could be), or reducing your waste to absolutely nothing (although that’s certainly something to aspire to), or living off the land out in the bush (unless that’s what you’re in to)! It’s about making small changes, day by day, that are achievable, affordable and will, in the long run, make a difference. So where do we start? Becoming aware of our purpose, our vision for the future, our mission and our values will go a long way in assisting you to create long lasting change in your daily habits and ultimately create a more sustainable way of living for you and your family.
What do you think needs to be made important in your life for you to achieve your vision for the future? What is one big thing we could accomplish throughout this whole year? What are some simple things we could do right now to move closer to that one big thing? What habits will we need to adopt to make sure we achieve this one big thing? How will we know we are on track to achieve our goal for the year? Even if today, this is the ONE small change you make starting a discussion and writing down the answers as a family (or individual) you are one step closer to making a difference to the wonderful world we live in. By Kelly Petering
Gaining clarity around the bigger picture, about WHY you are choosing to respect the world we live in by adopting simple, sustainable practices will assist you to follow through on your promise. I find it best to have this important stuff written down somewhere that is very visible maybe on your fridge written in whiteboard marker so that it can be modified as you learn more and as not to waste paper.
We would love to hear your ideas post your answers to the questions above on our Facebook Page by clicking the Facebook icon.
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Photo by Julia Caesar
I AM an Artist BY HELEN COLLINS “I can’t” is a phrase that too easily comes out of the mouth of a child, or an adult for that matter. Selfbelief doesn’t seem to always come a easily as we may wish. Tests, comparisons, scores, exams, rankings, levels life is full of them from the moment of birth. Yes, in some cases, they are necessary, good for building resilience, pushing us to achieve and making us a stronger person, but sometime there can be so many ratings and rankings that we start to believe we don’t have what it takes to ‘be’ anything, or feel like it is impossible for us to ‘do’ well enough. From a simple scribble on a page, to crazy colourful drawings, so many children love to create. There are two simple steps to use these opportunities in their every day life to build their selfworth, pride and belief in their ability: Sign your name to it! I don’t mean ‘label’ it so we know who it belongs to, I mean ‘sign it’ because it’s your work, your creation! It may sound crazy, but when you ask a child to sign their work, because thats what an artist does, you will be amazed at how all of a sudden they sense importance in what they have done. Frame it!
Helen Collins is a artist with over ten years teaching experience, a degree in early childhood education, training and experience working with special needs students, and the director of a creative arts company THE FOX BOX, a company that specialises in encouraging children's creativity and selfesteem through art. It delivers monthly art pack subscriptions to children as well as runs weekly art classes for primary school students at THE ART ROOM a place where everyone can create. www.foxbox.com.au
From the messy finger paintings to the detailed drawings, all mums and dads, and maybe some grandparents, aunts or uncles, know that these get put in pride of place on the fridge…well, for a little while at least! But take a moment sometimes to actually put their work in a frame. Firstly, you’ll surprise yourself with how nice it looks, but that is nothing in comparison to how it will make them feel when they see that their work is in a place reserved for nice photos or important pictures or artwork by adults. It doesn’t have to be a masterpiece, and doesn’t have to be limited to just children. Try it. Give it a go. Sign that crafty creation and put it on display. It will create a smile, and brighten maybe more than just one persons day!
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PINTEREST PICKS Click >>HERE<< to follow Your Sustainable Life on Pinterest
Click on the images to visit the attributed website.
SEASONAL EATING Benefits of Seasonal Eating It’s no surprise that eating food that is in season in your local area is both the healthiest and cost effective way to live. But there are many other benefits that come along with it! 1. ECOFRIENDLY The obvious, right? When we eat from our own gardens, or farmers markets, we are producing less waste (no packaging or horrible plastic bags), we are supporting local businesses and the economy (rather than putting our money into the overseas market) and we are saving on fuel emissions that it takes to actually get the food from either overseas or interstate to the large supermarket chains. 2. TASTE Try the taste test challenge! It is a known fact that fresh fruit and veg from a farmers market is fuller in flavour than what you can get from a large chain supermarket. Head down to a local farmers market and buy a piece of your favourite fruit, then head on over to your general supermarket and purchase that same piece of fruit compare the two and I have no doubt which you will find to be much tastier and full of flavour! 3. VARIETY When you decide to eat seasonally (which we know is not always 100% practical or possible by the way it’s about doing your best with what you have), you will begin to notice a jump in variety throughout your year of eating. This also has huge nutritional benefits as the range of fresh fruit and veg you will be eating may increase dramatically. If you think back to the days before chain supermarkets and on demand availability of pretty much whatever we please, people were eating in the way mother nature intended from the earth. I’m sure it’s no coincidence that certain foods are available naturally at different times of the year our bodies need balance and the more we can get back to eating from the earth, the better. Whilst there are many more benefits to eating seasonally these alone should be enough to inspire you to make the decision to use local farmers market OR better still plant your own veggie garden! See our PINTEREST PICKS for some funky ideas! To find out what foods are in season and where to locate your local farmers markets head to http://seasonalfoodguide.com/ By Kelly Petering *** As this is such an important message I decided to republish this article just in case you missed our last edition!
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SUSTAINABLE BRANDS
CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE SUSTAINABLE TABLE WEBSITE I had the privilege of speaking with a representative of Sustainable Table, Maria Hannaford, about their organisations philosophy and their upcoming campaign, Give a Fork! Sustainable Table is an innovative not for profit organisation that was founded by two high school friends who wanted to make a difference and to contribute to the conservation of the environment. They wanted to spread the message that our actions have a universal impact. What better way to spread their message than through something simple that is a part of every person’s life… FOOD! Their mission is to connect to the everyday person to a mainstream audience who may not normally go out searching for information about environmental conservation. Sustainable Table is all about engaging and educating people about how their food choices impact the environment. They really are making it cool to care! With initiative like the Give a Fork! campaign which will officially kick off in April, Sustainable Table are paving the way making environmental sustainability common place with their innovative and fun filled #Grexy Challenges. With the tagline “Because taking care of the planet is way sexier than trashing it’… The campaign is a great way to raise awareness and funds for educational programs, the #Grexy Challenges are about making a commitment (at your own level) to some form of sustainable living.
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Photo Matt Bourke Photography
The guidelines and challenges can be viewed at http://giveafork.com.au/grexychallenges/ #Grexy really will be the flavour of April and is sure to become a common annual event in years to come… As well as the #Grexy challenges, Sustainable Table have rounded up over 100+ dining venues around Australia that have pledged to follow their 4 Food Rules during the month of April with a Give a Fork! Special. Sustainable Table is a small not for profit organisation that need support from both individuals and organisations who are passionate about making a difference. Their funds go to raising awareness and educating people about how our industrialised food system impacts the environment and what we can do to create change. Because at the end of the day, if we don’t know what we don’t know, how will we ever create the changes that are needed to help save our planet? Here is Sustainable Table’s Maria Hannaford’s Top Tip on living a more sustainable life; “Find a Farmers market or an Organic Green Grocer and buy you groceries there…”
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She says there are many reasons that this small, simple change can make a difference you support the local farmers, there are often less or no harmful chemicals used by the farmers, mostly unpackaged (saving waste), the produce is ethically farmed, and you don’t have to think too much about reading the labels!!! It’s a simple change that can have a powerful impact… If you are interested in taking part in the Give a Fork! campaign or in a #Grexy challenge visit http://giveafork.com.au/ or if you would like to learn more about Sustainable Table and how they are making it cool to care head to http://www.sustainabletable.org.au/ where you will find some incredible resources to point you in the right direction to do your bit for our world. It's cool to care these days help Sustainable Table spread the word! #Grexy CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE GIVE A FORK! WEBSITE! Want to find a Farmer’s Market near you? Check out http://farmersmarkets.org.au/markets INTERVIEW BY KELLY PETERING
BUON VIAGGIO TRAVEL Enjoy The Journey Article by Kelly Petering Click here to visit buonviaggiotravel.com Barbara Cafagna from Buon Viaggio Travel was kind enough to spend some time with me today to speak about her company’s vision, to create a travel agency that felt like an old suitcase, and where they are heading in the near future. Speaking with Barbara over Skype instantly gave me the feel for the brand personal, caring, genuine and tailor made. Buon Viaggio Travel truly care about their customer’s happiness and experience… every moment of the day! I personally have a passion for travel and this was one of the reasons that prompted me to contact Barbara. I also have a keen interest in health and fitness so when I heard that Buon Viaggio Travel were introducing a ‘little sister’ facet of their company, called The Nomadic Fitness Society, I was intrigued to say the least! Buon Viaggio Travel has teamed with Personal Trainers to create custom made health and fitness holidays in various destinations to give clients a personalised holiday whilst bringing an element of health and wellness education. A fantastic and increasingly popular concept for travellers. Being able to go on a vacation whilst keeping in shape and feeling fantastic is an opportunity that is not to be missed. This is a truly sustainable concept in the world of travel... Look out for more updates on Buon Viaggio Travel's Facebook Page Click HERE Barbara believes that “Sustainability is a way of life and being able to live in a way that you can sustain your relationships… it’s so much bigger than what a lot of us can articulate. It comes down to the products I use on my skin, the food that I eat…”
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Whilst the internet provides us a way of booking our own travel destinations these days, the idea of Travel Consultants is certainly not a thing of the past. For those who want a highly personal experience and want to be taken care of on their travels Buon Viaggio Travel can provide just what you are looking for. To have the peace of mind, knowing that if you have a problem in the middle of the night while you are overseas, there is someone there to help you, every step of the way! Built on a referral basis, Buon Viaggio Travel, spends quality time with each and every client to ensure they have a truly personal trip. They are all about creating Happiness and that’s exactly what their clients experience! One thing Barbara believes people can do to live more sustainably is to be more mindful and and work towards educating themselves around how to live a better life and to remember that what one person does impacts the greater community… I loved reading about Barbara's personal journey to the Kimberly region on her travel blog... Here's a taste!
"The blog you're reading today has been one I've tried to write for the last few years, it's the one I wanted to be absolutely perfect and the one I wanted everyone to read. This blog is about how one holiday changed my life and the way I saw myself, forever. Back in June 2009, just a few weeks before my 35th birthday, I had a stroke that almost took my life. I wasn't you're typical candidate for a stroke. I was fit, healthy and loving life. Things could not have been more perfect. Then, in the blink of an eye my life as I knew it was to change. I went from being outgoing and confident to someone who was afraid and just wanted to fade away. I went from being so sure of myself to someone who doubted every move I made. I had no idea who this person was that I had become overnight but what was worse was I had no idea how to get back to my old self. Fast forward 5 years, my partner and I are making final plans for a camping trip up to the Kimberley region of Western Australia that we'd spent the last few months talking about and organising with some dear friends of ours. Now, I need to make something very clear here and that is, I don't camp. Well at least I never use to camp. Holidays for me were always about relaxing by a pool at a 4 star to 5 star hotel, ordering room service and visiting the day spa. Holidays for me were always about being pampered, sleeping in a luxurious bed and having a pillow that I'd carefully selected from the hotel's "pillow menu". That's right, I said pillow menu..." Read more...
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Photo by Barbara Cafagna WWW.YOURSUSTAINABLELIFE.COM.AU
DID YOU KNOW... By recycling 1 plastic bottle, we can save enough energy to power their computer for 25 minutes. Glass can be recycled over and over again. Today approximately 25% of your new glass jars and bottles are made from recycled materials. If you instead put your glass in landfill, it can take 1 million years to break down.
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If your family recycled 2 plastic milk bottles every week, you would almost have enough recycled material to make your 140 Litre wheelie bin. If you instead send your plastic bottles to landfill, they can take up to 500 years to break down. One tree makes approximately 3000 pieces of paper. If you use 10 pieces of paper a day, that’s more than one tree pulled down every year. If you are using recycled paper, there is 99% less water and 50% less energy used in the production process compared to paper created from new raw materials. More HERE...
Photo by Julia Caesar
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Crazy Sexy Confidence comes from being completely comfortable with YOU! By Sabrina Muller - The Body Love Coach In case you’re still wondering what I actually do these days whilst travelling the world, I thought I’d give you a little insight into why I’ve created the Body Love Movement. As a Body Love Coach I empower women to create crazy sexy confidence by being completely comfortable with all of you, though healing the relationship to food, your body and yourself! Honestly I’m so sick of women just trying to lose weight for the sake of having that perfect body! Women trying to do whatever is takes, but not in the good way, compromising who they are as a woman and deep down not even knowing exactly who they are and who they are truly meant to be. Because all these years they’ve been hiding behind their weight, which has translated into an unhealthy relationship to food! Let’s face it we all know what to “sort of” do in order to lose weight: eat healthy, move your body and have happy thoughts. But losing weight isn’t as easy as it seems on paper because there are emotional, biological, social and environmental factors that play a huge part but no one seems to talk about them. That’s why we see most women either put the weight back on (plus some) or still find them selves unhappy in their bodies and in life after achieving their weight loss goal.That’s because it’s not even about losing weight, is it? I mean sure you want to have a rocking body, who doesn’t? But what does rocking mean to you? When did you decide that this was the type of body you truly want? Do you just want it because that’s what society tells you is “hot and rocking”? When was the last time you asked yourself what you truly want in terms of health, happiness and body love and what getting that rocking body actually means to you? Because let’s be honest, whilst looking hot on the outside surely has its advantages – think being able to wear what you want and feel amazing – I need you to dig deeper and think about why it’s important to you to feel amazing in what you want to wear?
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I am a Body Love Advocate specialising in Mind Body Nutrition & Body Image Issues through healing the relationship to food & yourself. With a background in health and fitness as a Personal Trainer, Group Fitness Instructor and Transformational Coach, I have always been passionate about the mindbodyconnection and creating change from the inside out. Studying Human Behaviour and having dealt with my very own share of weight, food & body image issues, including dabbling in eating disorders, I truly believe that we all have our own unique story that unfortunately doesn’t always serve us to be the best & healthiest version of ourselves. Instead of eating our emotions, I provide the strategic tools to “Revisit, Reframe & Recreate” your own story. In other words, how to get back in the driver seat of your emotional mind wellness by “rewriting your own food story”! Sabrina’s programs offer a very unique take on educating women on the psychology of weight loss and has a strong holistic focus on creating lasting changes in their clients transformation: physically, mentally, emotionally & spiritually. The message is simple “Eat to Live & Live to Love’.
Perhaps you’re looking to attract a new man? Maybe you want to reignite the passion in your current relationship? Perhaps you lost yourself after becoming a mother and are looking to get your confidence back! Confidence that allows you to live your best kick ass life, go and pursue the opportunities around you, to experience the world and create memories that last a life time! The thing is, confidence is not an external thing. That means, confidence does not purely come as a result of you achieving a weight loss goal! Don’t get me wrong achieving goals is great but that feeling doesn’t last forever, neither! > Confidence comes from within, something you feel when you’re completely connected to who you are as a person! > Confidence means being completely comfortable in your own skin, accepting and loving yourself, all of yourself, body mind and spirit! > Confidence means to stop comparing yourself to everyone else, because it’s not only the root of all evil but also you are you and not them! > Confidence means you truly realize that it is enough that you are! > Confidence means to stop chasing and to start appreciating! > Confidence does not come from you weighing a particular numbers on the scales or just having a rocking body!
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The chase to get that “perfect body” is costing you more than it is worth! And deep down you already know it! That’s why you give up, that’s why you don’t seem quite make the finishing line, don’t finish first not get to keep the trophy. And that’s why eventually you end up going back to square one. When trying to lose weight becomes a chore and you can’t stop thinking about food and feel like you’re forcing your body into submission then perhaps that’s a sign that things are not right. It’s certainly doesn’t sound like you’re in flow because you forgot to have fun. If there is no fun involved then why even do it? Sure not every gym work out has me cheering with delight but I honestly have come to love exercise (emphasis on have come to love it as it wasn’t always the case). I have found a way to make my body love lifestyle fun whilst giving myself permission to eat myself beautiful! In fact I make my own rules and it works! Why? Because I’ve been there and got the Tshirt! I’ve tried to fit in, I’ve tried to force my body into submission by overexercising, thinking that I could out train a bad diet! I’ve tried endless of diets and spend shit loads of money on books, programs, tools and magic pills that didn’t work. I realized that there is no quick fix! There is no magic pill! At worst, when dabbling in bulimia as a PT I realize that things were pretty fucked up! Who I was portraying to be on the outside didn’t match the person I was on the inside!
So I went on a self discovery journey, opened “pandora’s box” and dealt with my “emotional baggage”. I’ve learned to rewrite my own food story and come full circle to a place of selfacceptance and body love (and self love). It’s been an interesting journey for which I’m eternally grateful for. Of course, I’m still learning and will always be but what I have now is powerful! I’m grateful because it took a lot of courage to go within and deal with “me” and my shit, but honestly I wouldn’t have it any other way as who I’ve become and am becoming is all because of my courage to say yes to me and my shit is priceless! I have the confidence to be me, all of me, let everyone see me for who I am because I stopped caring! I stopped caring what others thinkg of me and stopped trying to fit in when I already knew deep down that I was born to stand out in the first place! Stop hiding and start shining! Don’t hide behind your weight, don’t use food as an emotional crudge! Be brave to take a chance and figure out what’s really going on for you! Find out how you can rewrite your own food story so you can eat yourself beautiful and have the crazy sexy confidence because you, body love queen, are more than enough! You’re already worth it, always have been and always will be! Time to stop chasing skinny and time to start chasing confidence! Always remember: Eat to Live & Live to Love! Sabrina The Body Love Coach http://www.sabrinamuller.com.au/
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