How to be eco-friendly in Japan.
Hello again from Tokyo, where the rainy season is finally letting up. It's been pretty miserable and grey recently, but we should be seeing the sun more soon. With that comes the heat though, which I'm not looking forward to at all. Hopefully when I head up north next month it will be a bit cooler there.
Today I wanted to cover something that I don't think has been talked about a lot online before, and that is being eco-friendly in Japan. Some of these will only apply to people living here, some apply even if you're just visiting too, so hopefully this is somewhat informative for all reading. It's really tough to be eco-friendly in a place that wraps bananas individually and hands out plastic covers for umbrellas on rainy days, and there have been a lot of those recently, so you can imagine the amount of plastic that's generated by this alone. Combine that with vending machines on every corner filled with plastic bottles, and you have an environmental disaster. I do my best to reduce my plastic use here, and I wanted to share my tips on how I get around it. Some of these things I've been doing since I got here, others are new things that I'm trying to implement to be kinder to the planet. So let's get started.
Ditch the umbrella covers. You may feel pressured to use them when you see them outside every store, but just don't use them. They are such a waste of plastic, and it actually makes me angry to see people using them. I do understand why they're there, but just give your umbrella a good shake instead.
Bring your own water bottle everywhere. Try and avoid the vending machine temptation by bringing your own water bottle everywhere. Even if you buy one bottle and reuse it, it's better than buying a new one every single time. The tap water in Japan is safe to drink, so don't worry about that. If you're super concerned, buy a water bottle that has an inbuilt filter to get rid of any bacteria.
Bring a reusable bag with you to convenience stores, or just use your backpack. The store clerk might give you a funny look, but you'll feel so much better walking out of the convenience store without a million plastic bags.
Carry cutlery. This is one I'm going to start doing regularly now, especially spoons as I buy yoghurts as a snack quite often. In New Zealand, I would always bring my own cutlery with me to work for lunches as I used to make my own lunch, but in Japan I got lazy as the convenience stores hand out chopsticks, spoons and forks automatically. I'd hate to think how many are handed out in a day. I've finally re-awoken to how bad disposable cutlery is for the environment, and will definitely be making a conscious effort to remember a fork and spoon at all times if I'm going to the conbini.
Have a keep cup for takeaway coffee. Again, the staff in Japan might give you a funny look, but they will probably accept it. The other day, I was at Starbucks before a hair appointment, and they asked if I was having my coffee and sandwich in the store or taking it away. Even though I said in the store, they still gave me a paper cup! I was expecting a mug, and I didn't have my keep cup with me. I was kind of annoyed that these paper cups are still the default at Starbucks in Japan, even if the customer is staying in the cafe, and I wish I'd had my keep cup on me. Not all cafes are like this, but if you plan to get takeaway coffee and you have a keep cup, have it with you and insist that they use it.
Be careful when recycling. The recycling system here is quite complicated, and the bins usually have pictures showing what is allowed and what's not, so look carefully before mindlessly throwing something away. Some bins are only for PET bottles, some are for general trash etc etc, so just be on the lookout.
This last one kind of goes without saying, and that is don't litter. The streets in Japan are super clean, despite the frustrating lack of rubbish bins, and it's one of the things I like the most about Japan. if you can't find a bin, put your trash in your bag, simple as that really. I don't think I need to elaborate any more on that one.
So there you have it, a few tips to be kinder to the planet when you're here in Japan. A little effort and forward thinking can go a long way to reduce your plastic waste and take away the guilt that comes with single use plastic.
Thanks as always for reading, I know this was kind of a short update, but I thought it would be an interesting topic to cover because it is difficult to find ways to be eco-friendly here. I really hope that one day Japan will catch on to the whole 'reduce and reuse' thing rather than relying entirely on recycling, but for now all I can do is my best to reduce my individual waste footprint, and hopefully this will inspire someone reading this to do the same.
From Japan with love,
Hannah. xx
Today I wanted to cover something that I don't think has been talked about a lot online before, and that is being eco-friendly in Japan. Some of these will only apply to people living here, some apply even if you're just visiting too, so hopefully this is somewhat informative for all reading. It's really tough to be eco-friendly in a place that wraps bananas individually and hands out plastic covers for umbrellas on rainy days, and there have been a lot of those recently, so you can imagine the amount of plastic that's generated by this alone. Combine that with vending machines on every corner filled with plastic bottles, and you have an environmental disaster. I do my best to reduce my plastic use here, and I wanted to share my tips on how I get around it. Some of these things I've been doing since I got here, others are new things that I'm trying to implement to be kinder to the planet. So let's get started.
Ditch the umbrella covers. You may feel pressured to use them when you see them outside every store, but just don't use them. They are such a waste of plastic, and it actually makes me angry to see people using them. I do understand why they're there, but just give your umbrella a good shake instead.
Bring your own water bottle everywhere. Try and avoid the vending machine temptation by bringing your own water bottle everywhere. Even if you buy one bottle and reuse it, it's better than buying a new one every single time. The tap water in Japan is safe to drink, so don't worry about that. If you're super concerned, buy a water bottle that has an inbuilt filter to get rid of any bacteria.
Bring a reusable bag with you to convenience stores, or just use your backpack. The store clerk might give you a funny look, but you'll feel so much better walking out of the convenience store without a million plastic bags.
Carry cutlery. This is one I'm going to start doing regularly now, especially spoons as I buy yoghurts as a snack quite often. In New Zealand, I would always bring my own cutlery with me to work for lunches as I used to make my own lunch, but in Japan I got lazy as the convenience stores hand out chopsticks, spoons and forks automatically. I'd hate to think how many are handed out in a day. I've finally re-awoken to how bad disposable cutlery is for the environment, and will definitely be making a conscious effort to remember a fork and spoon at all times if I'm going to the conbini.
Have a keep cup for takeaway coffee. Again, the staff in Japan might give you a funny look, but they will probably accept it. The other day, I was at Starbucks before a hair appointment, and they asked if I was having my coffee and sandwich in the store or taking it away. Even though I said in the store, they still gave me a paper cup! I was expecting a mug, and I didn't have my keep cup with me. I was kind of annoyed that these paper cups are still the default at Starbucks in Japan, even if the customer is staying in the cafe, and I wish I'd had my keep cup on me. Not all cafes are like this, but if you plan to get takeaway coffee and you have a keep cup, have it with you and insist that they use it.
Be careful when recycling. The recycling system here is quite complicated, and the bins usually have pictures showing what is allowed and what's not, so look carefully before mindlessly throwing something away. Some bins are only for PET bottles, some are for general trash etc etc, so just be on the lookout.
This last one kind of goes without saying, and that is don't litter. The streets in Japan are super clean, despite the frustrating lack of rubbish bins, and it's one of the things I like the most about Japan. if you can't find a bin, put your trash in your bag, simple as that really. I don't think I need to elaborate any more on that one.
So there you have it, a few tips to be kinder to the planet when you're here in Japan. A little effort and forward thinking can go a long way to reduce your plastic waste and take away the guilt that comes with single use plastic.
Thanks as always for reading, I know this was kind of a short update, but I thought it would be an interesting topic to cover because it is difficult to find ways to be eco-friendly here. I really hope that one day Japan will catch on to the whole 'reduce and reuse' thing rather than relying entirely on recycling, but for now all I can do is my best to reduce my individual waste footprint, and hopefully this will inspire someone reading this to do the same.
From Japan with love,
Hannah. xx
Comments
Post a Comment