Q1: Tell us a little about your business.
At Oz Baby Trends, we work with
dedicated retailers, helping them bring sustainable parenting products to
families across Australia
Over in my other business – Eva Van Strijp – I help mothers
thrive by teaching strategies that they can implement to create change that really
lasts.
Q2: When did you decide you wanted to go
green?
My
decision to “go green” probably began way back in primary school when I started
collecting items for recycling. Back then, we didn’t have a fortnightly curb side
pick-up for recycling so we had to do it the old-fashioned way. Each week, we
took our buckets of recycling and deposited it at the nearest recycling depot.
Our family needed to reduce the amount of garbage that was going out each week,
and to be honest, rather than being about “being green”, I think it just had
more to do with the practicality of it. It just made sense to recycle whatever
we possibly could. It seemed a shameful waste to throw away something that
could be reused.
Q3: What prompted you to make the move to
go green?
When
I started my own family, I knew I wanted to use cloth nappies. I was called a
hippy and a greenie but while the eco factor was a great bonus, again, my
reasoning was practical. I wanted to be more self-sufficient and using cloth
nappies meant I wouldn’t need to rely on the supermarket for a staple baby
item. I also just had a gut feeling that they would be better for my baby’s
skin.
Got
a new baby on the way? Eva has a free mini eCourse to help you choose, use and
love cloth nappies from the very start.
Q4: What difficulties have you found with
going green?
I
honestly don’t find it to be difficult. Because being green ties in with lots of
our other life decisions, it doesn’t feel like a big drama or some extra stress
on our lives.
For
example, many decisions that we’ve made for our family budget have also been,
by default, the “green” choice. All of the decisions we’ve made in terms of self-sufficiency
have also been “green”. Everything we do to live more simply is, naturally,
“green”. It just goes hand-in-hand with our lifestyle and I love that.
Q5: Is there one area you’re still yet to
go green?
I
still have lots of little food fails. While we do really strive to be
self-sufficient, I also know that life with a big family is hectic sometimes, and
heavily-packaged frozen food gets a look-in during those times!
Q6: Can you list some of the benefits / positive
effects going green has had on your life?
I
love that for our family being green also means being more self-sufficient.
Whether it’s simply growing lettuce in a pot on the verandah or avoiding excess
packaging by curbing the purchase of consumer goods that we just don’t need,
it’s highly empowering to be able to make choices that have a healthy impact on
our family and on the environment.
Q7: What suggestions would you make to
those wanting to go green but not knowing where to start?
Start
at home. There are numerous small steps we can take around the home to “green
up” our lives. Just start by making the switch on one thing (serviettes for
reusable napkins, tissues for hankies, paper towel for old towels, baking paper
for butter wraps… the kitchen is a GREAT place to start!). You’ll find that
within a few days you’ll have hardly noticed the change and will feel motivated
to continue.
Q8: Any other advice / comments regarding
going green you’d like to share?
Start
small. It’s better to begin with baby steps and actually have them stick than
to bite off more than you can chew and find yourself falling promptly back into
old habits. Begin with one small, simple transition. Do it till it’s second
nature, then take on another one. It’s all about changing our habits through
changing our mindset – and mindset changes can take time.
But
keep at it - it’s worth it!
When
Eva isn’t hanging out with her family or running a business, she’s eating
chocolate, listening to podcasts or tending her veggie patch.
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