Beauty products are more environmentally friendly than you think. Sustainable practices are changing the world. The Earth overshoot crisis is beyond imagination. Humanity's depletion of Earth's resources is occurring earlier and earlier each year. Did you know that last year, humanity exhausted Earth's resources in just 7 months? Implementing green sustainability is more important than you think! With global warming and climate change intensifying, we can't help but worry whether Earth Overdraw Day will occur earlier this year. "Earth Overdraw Day" refers to the date on which the total amount of Earth's natural resources is exhausted in a given year. It was initiated by the Global Footprint Network (Note 1). According to statistics, Earth Overdraw Day has occurred earlier for 7 consecutive years since 2011. From October 26, 2007 to August 1, 2018, Earth's resources were exhausted a full 2.5 months earlier. It would take 1.7 Earths to meet the current resource needs of humanity. Humanity and the Earth coexist and prosper together. If we can avoid wasting resources on single-use items in our daily lives and reuse everything wisely, we may be able to slow down the depletion of Earth's resources and bring a more beautiful and better environment to humanity and the Earth. According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), more than 330 million metric tons of plastic are produced globally each year, and production is projected to triple by 2050. More than one-third of global plastic waste impacts the environment, entering the oceans and causing pollution. The global marine debris problem is worsening. Properly reusing resources and avoiding the production and use of single-use plastics can not only reduce the generation of plastic waste and lower the likelihood of it entering the ocean, but also truly reduce the impact on the Earth's environment. WWF predicts that by 2050, there will be more plastic than fish in the oceans, and 99% of seagulls will ingest plastic. Sustainability is a current trend and an environmental issue that humanity must face. Internationally, the EU will ban the use of single-use plastics in 2021, and European countries are also setting carbon neutrality targets. Reflecting on your daily habits, have you ever considered reducing your use of single-use plastics? Avoiding single-use plastics isn't just a thought; it's about using reusable tableware, cups, and shopping bags. Reducing our burden on the environment can potentially solve the fundamental problem of waste. The beauty industry has historically been perceived as environmentally unfriendly, even blamed for ocean pollution. However, the beauty industry can also contribute to environmental protection. O'Right, a domestic green hair care company, pioneered a zero-carbon solution for beauty products. They use discarded milk bottles and food containers, recycling, sorting, crushing, and cleaning them to create recycled plastic. This recycled plastic is then reused in the bottles and pumps of shampoo, body wash, and facial cleanser. Not only is the outer packaging made from 100% recycled plastic, addressing the issue of single-use plastics, but they also created the world's first shampoo bottle that can naturally decompose and even grow trees, simultaneously practicing industrial and bioeconomic cycles. I've never seen the beauty industry implement such a sustainable transformation before—body care products that decompose naturally in rivers, even more sustainable than you think! This company not only conducted a carbon footprint assessment of its products 10 years ago, but also launched the world's first zero-carbon shampoo. The product's ingredients contain no substances that pose a risk to the environment or humans, and the shampoo can decompose naturally within 28 days if it flows into a river. Recently, the international beauty and fashion industry has been calling for sustainability goals and has established eco-headquarters. As early as June 2012, World Environment Day, O'Ride built Asia's first gold-level green building cosmetics GMP plant, and last year joined the RE100 renewable energy initiative, pledging to achieve 100% renewable energy use by 2025. It strictly adheres to environmentally friendly and sustainable production in both ingredients and packaging, and positions itself not just as a beauty company, but as a zero-carbon brand that is good for humanity, society, and the planet. This innovative and sustainable mindset and approach has earned O'Right numerous international sustainability awards, including the UK Global Green Award, the Paris Global Sustainable Beauty Award, and the Katerva Awards. Founder and Chairman Ge Wangping has also delivered the opening speech at Cosmoprof, the world's largest beauty trade fair, for two consecutive years. In front of numerous renowned international brands, he urged beauty brands to find new zero-carbon solutions, making O'Right the only company at the fair to discuss zero-carbon issues. Internationally, few beauty brands have achieved such a completely green lifestyle. Nature is facing a precarious environment due to climate change. Various forms of carbon consumption and emissions are impacting global warming and climate temperature. In the past, humanity has depleted Earth's resources for many years. These natural resources include clean water, food, and air. Last year, a year's worth of natural resources were exhausted in just seven months. Earth's overdraft day is occurring earlier and earlier each year. If we reuse everything more efficiently, can we slow down the depletion of Earth's resources? Implementing carbon reduction and sustainability in daily life is actually quite easy. It simply requires making small changes and reflecting on existing habits, such as reusing plastics and choosing environmentally friendly products. These actions contribute to the sustainability of our planet and give the earth a chance to recover. (Source: Taiwan English News, July 3, 2019)
