In 1972, the United Nations held the first world conference on the environment. Since then, a lot has changed on the global stage – including huge increases in deforestation levels, pollutant emissions, marine pollution, among other problems. But the date of the meeting served as an inspiration for the creation of the World environment day, celebrated annually at the June 5.
Every year, the UN chooses a theme to be debated, in addition to talking about all world policies related to the Environment. In 2019, talked about air pollution, and in 2018, the theme was the plastic garbage in seas and oceans. For this year, the choice was to talk about biodiversity, and Brazil will be a major agenda at the meeting more than ever.
This is because we are the most biodiverse country in the world – according to data from the Ministry of the Environment, Brazil has 20% of all the world's biodiversity. However, we are also country that consumes the most pesticides, more deforests (and kills eco-activists) e one of the biggest producers of garbage, being also one of the least recycle. Difficult, right?!
But there are data and positive actions that can minimize our aggression to the environment. Here at Uliving, some of them are part of our philosophy and permeate all phases of our projects, even the daily lives of our residents. Want to learn more and see how you can help? So check out this data, what we do and how you can contribute:
What Uliving does and how you can help the environment with us:
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We produce less waste – and recycle more
We hope you've already seen that in all Uliving units there are specific drums for disposing of recyclable waste. This material is later collected by specific companies in the cities we are in – and fortunately all of them have selective collection companies.
According to some studies, if we separate our garbage, up to 92% of it could be recycled. This would mean a much lesser aggression to the environment, both due to the reuse of materials and the smaller amount of garbage being wasted. During the first few weeks of the quarantine, São Paulo registered a 25% increase in the separation of recyclable waste. Who knows, maybe this will become a habit from now on?
Brazil recycles just over 1% of the garbage produced. Taking into account some of our neighbors, such as Colombia and Peru where the recycling percentage exceeds 10% (and it's still little), we're bad.
But before we install these services in the building, we think about the waste produced during the refurbishment of our buildings. According to surveys, Brazilians produce, on average, half a ton of construction waste every year. The fact that Uliving's units are located in retrofitted buildings, that is, refurbished, minimizes damage to the environment. The use of existing materials generates a huge economy in the production of waste, and it is one of the ways we contribute to the environment. We're in this together!
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We are well located – so public transport is the best alternative
Os cars produce more than 70% of greenhouse gases in Sao Paulo. The time lost in traffic, according to some studies, causes a loss of BRL 290 billion for our economy.
A very practical solution for this – which can even help you to have more time and health – is to use public transport. Uliving units are very well located, with easy access to various means of transport, such as trains, subways, buses and bicycle stations. This way, you guarantee an improvement in your commuting, waste less time and find it easier to use means of transport that are less harmful to the environment – including bicycles, since you can store your bike in our buildings. 🙂
> Coliving: a guide to the new way of living and sharing spaces
What you can do to help the environment:
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be careful what you eat
Maybe you don't know, but our eating habits are directly linked to our ecological footprint. In 2014, it launched the Food guide for the Brazilian population, a free and incredible book that addresses all the social and ecological aspects related to our food.
Did you know that when buying from small producers in your region you are less harmful to the environment? This is because the emission of pollutants with long-distance transport is very high. In addition, the chances of a small product not using pesticides are greater, and that means less damage to the environment with chemicals and, obviously, more health for you. Only benefits, right?
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Think about what and who you consume
We know that organic and/or sustainable vegan products tend to be more expensive. But there are some small initiatives that can reduce this trail, such as T-shirt brands that use pet bottles in their production and jeans brands that reuse materials that are no longer used by their own customers for future clothing. There are some lists on the internet mentioning some, as you can see here, here or this other here.
In addition, there are small everyday actions, such as using reusable bags, avoiding disposables, straws and overly packaged products. This is because, although there are several alternatives for recycling as mentioned above, improper disposal will cause even By 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in the oceans.
