“Every sustainable swap makes a difference and actually saves you money. We hope this challenge encourages you to minimize your waste for your health, your wallet, and the planet!”says Carly and Brenden, founders of #FuturisticFebruary
Founded by Carly Bergman and Brenden Fitzgerald (@sustainable_duo), Futuristic February is now a worldwide campaign followed by millions of people who are trying to adopt a zero-waste lifestyle.
It started in 2017 when Carly went to Nicaragua on a month-long program to educate rural communities on environmentalism. During his time there, she understood that they didn’t have a proper waste disposal system and instead just burnt their waste. She realised that if she left his waste there, it would cause a bigger environmental problem, so she collected all her waste over the month in a bag and brought it back on her flight to the U. S. for proper disposal.
This got the duo thinking and soon the campaign ‘Futuristic February’ started taking shape.
The Concept of Futuristic February
The basic idea behind the campaign is to collect all the plastic and non-biodegradable waste over the month of February and on the 29th, gather all the waste and post a photo with your accumulated waste. You must also visualise the waste and multiply the waste by 12 to truly understand the amount of waste that you generate annually.
Onto their 4th year of the campaign, the eco-conscious duo encourages everyone to try out this challenge. “It’s hard to go completely zero-waste because you’ll have to break loose from all your old habits but the important thing is to try it out and get an understanding of the amount of waste you accumulate,” they say.
Mahima T P, the ‘girlwithgreenboots’ on Instagram has been trying out this challenge for the past two years and although Mahima has taken up a lot of eco-challenges on social media she says that ‘Futuristic February’ was a real eye-opener.
If you’re planning to try out #FuturisticFebruary, here are some things you should keep in mind.
Don’t Hold Back
The whole point of the campaign is to understand the amount of waste that is accumulated in our homes on a monthly basis. So while you’re taking up the challenge, don’t hold back. Use the same amount of plastic you would use on a regular basis, only then will the challenge be completely effective.
Document Your Trash
During the challenge, remember to collect all your plastic and non-biodegradable waste in a bag/bags and on the 29th of the month remember to post a picture of your pile of waste with the hashtag #FuturisticFebruary. You can talk about your journey throughout the month and this way you’ll be more accountable to follow through the challenge and get on the zero-waste path.
Walk Into A Minimal March
Once you’ve completed the challenge, remember to take in the insights you’ve got into the next month and try to adopt a minimal and zero-waste lifestyle. Don’t get eco-anxious and take it step by step. It could be as simple as refusing plastic bags, cutlery when you’re out or even purchasing your groceries in bulk.
So if your New Year’s resolution included a zero-waste lifestyle, this is definitely something you should try out.
“Every sustainable swap makes a difference and actually saves you money. We hope this challenge encourages you to minimize your waste for your health, your wallet, and the planet!” says Carly and Brenden.
Check out a range of products that are going to be awesome for your zero-waste lifestyle here.
Also Read: TBI Green Influencers: How To Deal With Not-So-Sustainable Friends
(Edited by Saiqua Sultan)
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