Sustainability Lifestyle Q&A with Amanda Luberto

Sustainability and living a less impactful lifestyle is something that has come to the forefront in recent years. And, it got me thinking. How do everyday people live in a sustainable way? How do you begin to make more environmentally-conscious choices?

So, I decided to ask around...that brought me to Amanda Luberto. She's one of my best friends and was also the first person in my life to bring attention to how easy it is to shift your choices to reduce your carbon footprint. She's passionate, bad ass and hell bent on reducing human impact on this planet.

Q: What do you think is a sustainable lifestyle?

A: I think a sustainable lifestyle is doing what you can every day to help the Earth stay clean & natural.

Q: How long have you been working to reduce your carbon footprint?

A: Almost 2 years.

Q: What inspired this change?

A: Buzzfeed has a series with a writer named Auri Jackson, who also leaves a limited carbon footprint life, and she made a video challenging her workmates to stop using single use straws for a week. The video really caught my attention and I wanted to see if I could do it as well so I said no to straws. Then I started realizing all of the other changes in my life and the whole thing snowballed into what I do now.

Q: What do you use in your everyday life that reduces your carbon footprint?

A: Lots of things. I live in a very driving heavy city but I bike when I can get somewhere reasonably. I try to choose or make vegan options whenever I can.

My main focus is plastic usage so I use reusable coffee cups (one of the biggest contributors to single use waste), straws, lids, grocery bags (not limited to groceries though, bring it everywhere like Target or Petsmart), items in bulk (from coffee/cold brew to protein powder and oats), reusable tupperware, and silicon sandwich & snack bags (I like Stasher but there's tons of options online). I have a container of metal utensils in my purse so I can always decline plastic silverware. 

I also switched to glass bottle toothpaste, refillable deodorant and a bamboo toothbrush. I use dryer balls instead of single use dryer sheets and bulk laundry powder in a mason jar instead of pods wrapped in plastic sold in big plastic containers. I use bar soap instead of face wash in plastic tubs or body wash. I luckily found shampoo that I really like in glass jars and I buy lotion from Lush because you can return your plastic containers when you’re finished with them.

I started cleaning out old candles for bowls and containers and try to reuse any plastic containers that I can’t avoid. And a big one for me is that I buy nearly everything that I eat at the farmers market to avoid the carbon emissions of factory farms and reduce food waste because I can buy exactly how much I need and no more.

Q: What is one thing you want everyone to know about making sustainable life changes?

A: A big thing I try to tell people is that any little bit helps but if you see something that can be replaced, look into it. But don’t believe that if you’re not doing every single thing all of the time every day that it’s not worth it. It’s all worth it. Start with one thing (for me it was giving up straws) and see where it goes. Just start. 

Q: Anything you'd like to add?

A: I understand the argument people have against the straw ban. I think a solution could be reusable silicone straws at public places for people with disabilities who need them and children. Silicon is reusable but squishy so its okay if you chew on them. This being said, I don’t have nor have taken care of someone with a disability or a child so it may be more complicated than that. 

I also understand that I am in a position of great privilege to have the time, energy and money to worry and switch to a sustainable lifestyle. I understand that people have much bigger issues than I do and may not have the ability to worry about plastic over metal utensils. 

I also understand that it will take so much more than banning plastic bags. We need change at an industrial and global scale in order to see real change. But I also value the power of the consumer: if people stop using plastic grocery bags (or whatever) then the demand for plastic grocery bags go down and thus the supply of them must go down because they won’t be selling as many. It’s not even a 50/50 policy to consumer but there is a power in taking certain things into your own hands.

Lastly, read and inform yourself. It’s going to be a long battle and if this is something you want to see change or are passionate about, read/listen to anything you can on the reality of the situation. I recommend starting with chef David Chang’s podcast interview with New York Magazine writer David Wallace-Wells and his book the Uninhabitable Earth. Take a listen.