Sustainability - How we're doing our bit

CLIMATE ANXIETY

A few years ago I discovered there was this thing called Eco Anxiety or Climate Anxiety. It is basically the fear of impending environmental doom. I chatted to a couple of local environmentalists and discovered that this could be exactly what was keeping me up at night, most nights and affecting me daily.

From these conversations and with much thought into how I was living my life, I began to make changes, reducing my waste, changing my diet, living more simple and minimalistic, lowering my carbon footprint and joining organisations that held the same beliefs as myself. Suddenly I was sleeping better, worrying less, and felt better about my few but noticeable daily choices.

Just over two years ago, I was presented with the opportunity to work at Arrowtown Hair Co with Amelia, who not only shared my beliefs, but was also wanting to move the salon to be more sustainable.

In the past, and in general, the hairdressing industry has not been known for its sustainable practises. We definitely, as an industry, need an environmentally friendly boot up the bum :)

I think one of the most wasteful and damaging products used in the industry is tinfoil, but it is needed daily for many hair colouring processes. Tinfoil is not biodegradable, nor does it disintegrate by degradation in landfill and nearly impossible to compost. Only 1% of salons recycle their aluminium foil. The temptation to go on about the evils of foil is pulling me, but I don't need to, as we now have an alternative!

Please enter the amazing, innovative Amanda Buckingham, the founder and creator of ‘Paper not Foil’, and all round, pretty cool chick. I'm not just saying this because she is our boss now either!

I'm so very proud to say that Arrowtown Hair Co has been using ‘Paper not Foil’ exclusively for around 18 months. Let me tell you a little about this product.

Paper not Foil is an environmentally friendly alternative to tinfoil. It is made from recycled industrial waste,it uses 96% less energy to produce than foil, no water is used in the making of it and  it degrades with no toxic waste...say whaaat?? But wait, there's more! It's easy to use, has a chalk like texture that grips well to the hair. It is lighter than foil, so more comfortable for you, the client, and I've been told that it doesn't crinkle in your ear like foil does. It is amazing for specialist techniques like balayage and placement pieces.

Each piece is reusable 3x, although I've been known to use them a couple more ;) We then soak them, till we are ready to pop them into the washing machine with a load of towels, hang em out to dry and walaa! They are ready to make another client beautiful! After they are done with colouring, we use them for note paper, shopping lists and client records. Then they are popped into general waste, they take approx. 18 months to break down to a chalk like dust. They are 100% non detrimental to the landfill, unlike tinfoil that takes hundreds of years to break down, AND leaches toxins into the land and waterways. 

It's a no-brainer!

To read more about Amanda's story go to papernotfoil.com

OK...there's also lots more ways that Arrowtown Hair Co makes a difference:

-We send as little to the landfill as we possibly can. 

-We recycle very carefully, it's generally unknown that one contaminated container can mean a whole load of recycling has to go to landfill.

-We use only natural cleaning products that we make in the salon. 

-Shall I mention again ‘Paper not Foil’?

-The products we use on your hair, both to colour and to style, are eco-sustainable organic products containing fair trade ingredients. 

All of these things… because we care! About your hair, and our planet.

Suffice to say, I'm extremely proud of what Arrowtown Hair Co has achieved in an industry where it can be extremely difficult to be kind and gentle to our precious world.

Currently the world is going through devastating times with the Covid19 pandemic. I hope that one thing that we can take away from this experience is that we could all live our lives a little kinder, be kind to ourselves, to each other, to the animal kingdom and to the planet.