It's complicated! The Elephant left the room, but the Orangutan is still there...

Environmental issues are complicated and it would be much easier if someone could just say "palm oil is bad" or "boycott xxxx store" but it doesn't really work like that. There are nuances. And I think it is important to be honest about that, even if it does complicated the simple "DON'T DO X MESSAGE" because people need to be able to trust us... or else they will stop listening. 

Try google "palm oil" and "environment" and you will find some of the controversy on this subject. There is this Smithsonian article about how giving up palm oil might be bad for the environment. There is also an IUCN article about how boycotting palm oil will lead to an increase in the use of other more land-hungry oils... Of course you will also find articles entitled "What is Palm Oil and Why it's Killing the Environment"  and "Why is palm oil bad and what happened to the Iceland advert" (which is much more likely to get clicked on than "Saying ‘no’ to palm oil would likely displace, not halt biodiversity loss – IUCN report" - a note to scientists on getting clicks!!!!)

Source: https://phys.org/news/2014-11-great-apes-threat-palm-oil.html 

I like Orangutans (well, I like the idea of them existing, I haven't met one), so I definitely don't want their homes destroyed, ditto other things that live where we are now growing ridiculous amounts of oil (well, palm fruit for oil).  Cutting down forests or replacing peat lands, also not awesome. Large scale monocultures (one type of crop) are pretty much never going to be awesome. We are probably not going to make as much fuss about turning over huge swathes of continents to wheat production, because the grasslands had their large herbivores hunted out ages ago and small things are cute and all, but they just don't get the same kind of press orangutans are going to get... (am I sounding cynical?) The issue is large scale monoculture more than any particular product, although some products are certainly worse than others. 

For me, I almost think it is just easier to not eat palm oil so that my food doesn't have to be flavoured with any kind of guilt or orangutan tears... and if you feel like that there are some lists for palm oil free products in South Africa here and here. 

Of course, then I need to also make sure there isn't some other oil, that is potentially worse - so maybe I just shouldn't be eating chocolates, biscuits or chips (or a huge amount of other stuff) and I will be healthier for it too. BUT, that is probably not going to happen. So what is the solution here? (In my humble and not at all expert opinion) Well, firstly, as far as possible we should be making our own stuff... but life is busy so... 

Engage with the industry and ask them what their policy is about sourcing sustainable palm oil (it is possible, and hey palm fruit is native to Africa so would have less environmental impact and could have important positive economic impact to poorer regions). Our evil consumer-driven society means that if consumers say they will only buy things from sustainable sources, I am pretty sure that companies will make sure that they source things from sustainable sources? I am hopelessly optimistic about this but I believe in nagging! And I know that there are issues with the eco-labels and whether or not things that are labeled environmentally friendly really are, but I think we should encourage companies to keep striving for improved transparency and excellence and we should be supporting organisations who can legitimately provide neutral labels of sustainability.... Peer pressure is powerful - they taught us that at school! I like the Marine Stewardship Council, although I know they have also been criticized recently, but I think they are genuinely trying to encourage the fishing industry to be better - let's have similar rigorous and transparent standards for other industries. And we definitely shouldn't say that a company switching to environmental sources now is too little too late... we should be asking why on earth all the other companies aren't doing the same!!!! 

I love Cadbury's Wholenut... and I tweeted and asked them about their palm oil policy and they didn't reply :( so I stopped buying their brand for a while, and obviously I must eat a lot of chocolate because next time I tweeted they did reply and with good news - so I went out and celebrated with some Wholenut! Next stop Bakers because... well... Salticrax. 

First I highjacked someone else's tweet about Cadbury's Christmas range having too much packaging and asked "we would also like to know about your palm oil policy". That's when I had the first reply from Cadbury UK but I really wanted a reply from Cadbury SA, so I asked them too. They also had a positive response... I replied with "Great, next stop, recyclable packaging" because, well... you know... nagging... 

However, the most important thing we should be doing is consuming less, LESS OF EVERYTHING. Less stuff. We should all be buying less stuff, we really don't need it. And in an ideal world the stuff we would be buying would have been produced locally, recently... that would be nice (because once upon a time, in my life time, we really did survive when avos and strawberries weren't available all year round). It isn't an ideal world and they don't grow cocoa in the western Cape so I can't really judge, but really, on this Black Friday... think Less is Really More... Please... for the sake of the orangutan (you know, they make umbrellas and display regional greetings - they really are very cute and deserve to have a home).

P.S. Wondering about the elephant?? I think there is only one simple environmental message - have fewer children - but it is one we are not allowed to say aloud... or maybe the Elephant has indeed left the room and we can (although I still don't feel like I can, because I don't have children which is a conscious decision, BY THE WAY, based on the awareness of ridiculously high population levels but people won't believe that anyway because I am also single.)

Our wild coasts

Port St Johns 

Since the beginning of last year (2017), we have been running a project at work that has taken me to places I am sure I wouldn't otherwise have been. And even in some of my favourite places, it has introduced me to a world of perspectives I hadn't stepped into before. 

Port St Johns

We are working with small scale fishing communities in the four coastal provinces of South Africa. If you want to know more about the actual project, you can check out the website. It is a great project, (which I am allowed to say because I didn't design it so it isn't arrogant) we have trained members of various communities to run the workshops, so the workshops are held in the local language, our trainers have a source of (intermittent) income and the participants have someone who understands them and their challenges speaking to them and encouraging them to be more environmentally responsible (and why - which is crucial because one comment I have heard often is that people tell them what to do, but don't explain why).  

En route to Kleinmond

Meeting the people from these communities has been an amazing and humbling experience. Many of the people who come to our workshops didn't finish school, struggle to read and write and almost all are unemployed (at least in any formal sense), and yet they are all so eager to participate and learn and share their own knowledge.  

Mtambalala, the rondawel was the kitchen of the home we
used for the Mtambala course (there was also a modern
kitchen in the main house). 

The communities face challenges I can't even imagine, and yet they welcome us and in at least one case - literally opened their home to us to hold a workshop (see picture alongside). I have stood, feeling very small and undeserving, while women have hugged me, with tears in their eyes, and thanked me for the workshops we have held (mostly women hug - men mostly express gratitude with handshakes). I think their gratitude isn't about the content of the workshop, so much as the acknowledgement of their community as being worthy of visiting and having workshops in. It makes me feel awkward and embarrassed because they deserve so much more.

Hole in the Wall (near Coffee Bay)

I very quickly want to add that there are organisations and people who have been doing amazing work in communities around South Africa since before I had even heard of small scale fishing and meeting them has also been an honour and inspiration. There are so many people out there living lives that are so far removed from my own, and they all deserve acknowledgement and it is impossible to get to everyone. Indeed, one of the most frustrating things about this project is that we visit for a day, provide an interactive workshop about some basic ecosystem concepts, but we aren't really able to contribute to their well being beyond a good lunch.

Port St Johns does have waste management,
but it isn't without its mess

It is so humbling seeing how some communities have been forgotten by government and many of us who live in cities with running water (well... if it rains this year) and electricity (sometimes, if ESKOM doesn't stuff up...) (It is particularly frustrating, given my plastics interest, to realise that there is no waste management in huge sections of our country - talking about single use plastic, microbeads and straws seems redundant when you realise many people's only strategy for dealing with waste is throwing it into the garden - and this includes all plastic waste). 

En Route to Port Nolloth

It is also interesting to speak to people and hear how differently they see the world. From believing (I think seriously - but sometimes I wonder if they say things to shock the white girl) that tornadoes are giant snakes sent to punish sinners (tut tut JHB), or that rock lobster eggs will make your cows extra fertile. It is a big leap to adjust my science-biased thinking to be relevant to these communities. And it is so hard for me to put away my emotions and privilege to not judge someone saying they eat albatross, turtles or seals, after all, if you are hungry, how is there a moral difference between that and eating fish? (Even if you aren't hungry - there is a sustainability difference, but an animal is an animal, cow or turtle or dolphin...) Having said that, once we explain that albatross live long lives, mate for life and breed slowly, the albatross-eater did say he wouldn't eat them again... We can hope. (The mate for life thing impresses people).

Dogs, goats, chickens, even horses and donkeys are
common features of the workshop venues. 

It is so wonderful to be meet people from such a different South Africa to mine. And it is such a privilege to work with our wonderful trainers, who have such big hearts. I recently watched possibly my first ever Carte Blanche episode, (house sitting and enjoying the novelty of  TV) only to see one of our trainers featured for work she is doing with to uplift community spirit in Port St Johns. Our trainers are wonderfully passionate, caring and kind people and I feel honoured to have had a chance to get to know them this year (all of them are looking for work too, if you need articulate passionate people to liaise with communities around South Africa - give us a shout). 

South Africa is big, diverse and beautiful and I love getting to see it in a different way (frequently fairly rushed and with little time for exploration beyond the workshop venue). I look forward to what else it has to offer (and please feel free to plant trees on my behalf, I am having serious carbon-footprint-guilt.) Next stop Boesmansrivier...

Conscious Consumerism

I haven't blogged in ages, or even written anything more creative than a workshop report in ... forever. This is weird because I love writing, but haven't felt like I had anything profound to say. But, meh, it is a blog, who needs to be profound... I did go to a SANCOR seminar recently that has stuck in my mind and keeps poking the inside of my skull.  

Leslie Petrik of UWC has been working in a multidisciplinary group to study the environmental pollutants associated with the Green Point sewage outflow. OK, so a quick Google (see here, here, here for examples) shows mixed reports about whether the sewage that gets pumped out to see if treated or not, but testing the water around the outflow has come up with loads of chemicals, many above recommended concentrations. Here is the stunner... we (South Africa) doesn't actually have recommended concentrations, so Leslie uses international guidelines. This means, that when the city says that the water quality is within recommended limits, it doesn't actually mean anything - who's limits?

I think the reason it has been on my mind is because I was feeling guilty about my artificial chemical footprint in any case. I have zero interest in researching the impact of all the random ingredients in products I use because that's what people like Leslie are for... but I do have guilt, and uneducated guilt to boot. So, I have been phasing out some of my mainstream products for stuff from Faithful to Nature and Lush (although not cheap options - I want to trust that I can trust them to do my thinking for me). And I think a lot of people are also looking for natural alternatives - particularly those who are using their grey water effectively. (Upsides to the drought???) Although I do like bleach - and that can't be good so I have been trying to resist and clean with Triple Orange instead. 

Terrible quality, I know. Always feel awkward doing this
during a presentation... 

We are a long way from living biodegradable lives, for instance, there is very little I can do about the prescription drugs I now take, but I still think every small change we do make, makes a difference. I am so tired of people blaming everyone else. In a workshop recently, I tried to make the impassioned speech that every small action taken by the 7 billion people on earth adds up to 7 billion actions. To be honest, it fell a little flat on the workshop's participants. Still, I stand by this, it might not change everything, but every single one of us has the power to make small changes that can add up to big differences, because rivers shouldn't end up like this one in Guatemala and nothing will change if we don't start right now. 

I just needed to add a pretty picture to make up for the bad
quality phone photos of Leslie's slides. 

See: https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2018-04-10-rivers-worldwide-threatened-by-pharma-waste-studies?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=First%20Thing%2011%20April%202018%20Kulula%2060&utm_content=First%20Thing%2011%20April%202018%20Kulula%2060+CID_f8291ce1701eebc7edbe5d469fef84ea&utm_source=TouchBasePro&utm_term=Pharmaceutical%20waste%20threatens%20rivers%20worldwide#.Ws27ci6uwdV

Post octopus

It feels like forever ago that I was wheeled away by my hospital “Uber” driver (his joke) to have my “nose job”. I was wearing those fabulously fashionable hospital gowns which really put paid to the question of what to wear to the hospital. (I have a couple of hints about making hospital a better experience – one is to remember to bring a bag for all the clothes you wore to the hospital. This fairly obvious point didn’t occur to me, and my poor mom had to find a way to carry all my MANY winter layers home – and of course we had walked to the hospital).  

Thankfully, I got to sleep through the bit where they picked my nose with many (the neurosurgeon mentioned that there are about 30 that they use - he drew helpful little pictures of a couple of them) very specialised little tools. I woke up without even a bruise. I did wake up with a weird nose-blood-catching-contraption, strapped around my face, but the hospital gown ruined any style competitions I was going to win anyway. I also woke up feeling pretty much normal, groggy, cold, very cold but normal (and then I think I may have fallen asleep again – I am foggy on the details).

Is it weird to post this? I think the science behind seeing
inside your head like this is amazing even though I hated
the MRI process itself. The dye highlights the octopus that
is looking a little like a bird from this angle. 

It truly is amazing what the doctors did and I am ridiculously grateful. Not least of all, am I grateful for the fact that the neurosurgeon called my mom to tell her I was awake and well as soon as I woke up from surgery so she didn’t have to worry a moment longer than necessary. Every doctor I have dealt through this whole thing has been amazing, given what they do I definitely feel more sheepish about putting the Dr in front of my name (seeing I just ruined the lives of way too many innocent fish) but, of course I still will because I (irrationally) blame the PhD for the whole octopus thing in the first place so figure I should at least get the title and I don't really like the Ms/Miss thing!

I was in the high care unit for the first night which meant I had people there all the time just making sure I was OK, which is pretty crazy if you think about it. I also had my first bed bath and catheter which is a good way to put the hospital gown awkwardness into perspective.  The staff at Kingsbury were awesome; friendly and helpful and concerned and you can’t imagine how much that makes it all a little easier.

There are a couple of other things I would recommend that also made it a bit more pleasant - I had stuff from people I love with me once I was back in the ward e.g. a facecloth from my aunt (I have never really understood face clothes, but it is a very handy thing in hospital), Harry Potter PJs from my sister, Body Shop soap from a wonderful friend and a brand-new toothbrush. 

All alone in the ward, and this is the
sugar packet they give me

They should really check the sugar
packets before handing them out.

The best thing about the hospital was visiting times (which were at terrible times, very silly policy) when I had my fabulous mom and many, many friends come in to say hi, bring snacks, magazines and flowers and, most importantly, make the days more interesting. I really didn't expect that a side-effect of being in hospital is presents, I felt very spoilt! 

I also had a lovely lady sharing the ward with me for one night, so I managed to make a friend for the non-visiting hours’ time (there was also a guy singing in one of the other wards, which kept things festive). My neurosurgeon also came by every day, twice a day to check on me, so I felt very spoilt and well cared for. 

Charley's Bakery cupcakes! So pretty!

Two things I would recommend you avoid (I mean, in addition to tumours and having to go to hospital in the first place) are a drip in the bendy bit of the elbow (it made bending my elbow ridiculously sore and it’s been two months and you can still see the point of entry) and weekends in the hospital - the ward was empty towards the weekend though, and the sounds from emergency were a bit disturbing. 

It wasn’t all peachy of course (the food lived up to expectations), but it really is amazing what science, paracetamol (was totally hoping for better drugs) and, most importantly, a wonderful support network of awesome, lovely, fabulous (I don’t have the words) friends and family can do. I have struggled to write this blog, I didn't know what to say and I think people are bored of hearing about the octopus but I couldn't not say thank you for all the amazing support and love so many people have showered me with. It made me feel so special and so unworthy - if you can feel both of those things at once. It would have been a very different experience without all the support and thank you is too small to express what I want to say, I hope that if anyone I love needs me I will be even a tiny bit as awesome as you all have been, and continue to be, to me. I need to invent a whole new word for how grateful I am to my wonderful mom.

I recently met someone who said that he also has an octopus in his pituitary gland and, instead of having surgery, has opted to trust to an alkaline diet to try combat it. I obviously think everyone needs to make their own choices and I don’t know his case history, but having the surgery was the best (and only, if I wanted to keep my eyesight) decision for me. I feel so lucky to have been diagnosed (my GP is still very humble about that, but all the other doctors I have spoken to have been impressed) and treated by such caring, considerate and thorough doctors that I would recommend any of them without hesitation. The pre-hospital worry about it time was horrible and even though it isn't all over, I am glad that bit of it is! Having said that, I would rather no one I know ever has to deal with an octopus - not least of all because you would really be undermining my playing that card and I am hoping it still has some traction even though my life is just about back to normal now!

Pre-op thumbs up

Ward thumbs up

Cheese!

High care thumbs up

Octopus Garden

I recently read "Lily and the Octopus" by Steven Rowley. Lily is a dog, and one day her human notices she has a tumour which he visualises as an octopus (a talking, malevolent octopus).  The previous book I read, "The Comet Seekers"  by Helen Sedgewick also features a brain octopus (although not referred to as such). It is weird that the two books that I have picked up recently, to avoid thinking about my own octopus, have had this in common. As my sister succinctly put it: "the universe is weird sometimes". 

So, it seems I have an octopus hidden in my head. It is on my pituitary gland so is not a brain octopus, just brain-adjacent which is much better. It is small for an octopus - 3.5cm - but big for the inside of my head (as far as I am concerned). It turns out, it has probably been there for years, and I am very lucky to have found it before experiencing the truly bizarre and horrible side-effects associated with this kind of octopus - headaches really don't seem too bad when compared to some symptoms.  

M's artwork

It seems a weird thing to blog about, but maybe other people have had some of the same questions and can relate? Like, what do you wear to hospital? Why do they tape your eyes shut when under anesthetic? (That seems really weird). And has the octopus changed me in slow subtle ways that I didn't notice because it has been growing there for a number of years? (OK, that one is just for me and is an irrational fear, but I stand by the anxiety about what to wear) And why haven't I thought to ask how long the surgery is? Why do they make you go to the hospital at such an uncivilised hour (6am - in Winter!!)? And, possibly what keeps me up more than the octopus itself, how will I be able to afford octopus management? 

Is stressing about this and, worse, writing a blog, a little dramaqueen-esque? This is especially true in light of the crazy disasters happening in the country, the storm, the fires, the Zuptas and the world... This personal drama seems small by comparison. But blogs are inherently self-indulgent, right? Anyway, I started out not being sure about who to tell, or how to tell people, (it doesn't come up naturally in conversations) or whether I come across like someone desperately-seeking-attention, but now the news is out there and spreading without my help so I figured I could indulge a little.

Adult Sardine otolith (slightly chipped).
They are very pretty, delicate structures

Firstly... I am fine, I am obviously stressed/scared but I would be weird if I wasn't, right? The octopus has been there for years, so right now the only thing that is different is that I know about it. I had a totally freaked out weekend where I didn't really know what was happening (sorry to the poor people who dealt with me over that period) but am feeling calmer now. I have since seen my brain - which is pretty awesome (seeing it, that is, the brain itself is pretty average looking). And I have had everything explained to me and seen pictures with way too much detail. I have also seen up my nose - which is an experience I do not recommend (and I am not sure how children get stuff stuck up there - it hurts to shove stuff up your nose). I have seen my inner ear bones which I got a weird kick out of, although I reckon sardine otoliths (inner ear bones) are probably prettier. 

I know that the octopus has kindly shoved important brain-things out to the side rather than wrapping its tentacles around them, which means it will be easier to operate. Oh, and I know that, despite my family's teasing, my nose is not too small! The neurosurgeon and everyone I have spoken to have all been incredibly kind, and careful about explaining things to me. I now know words and facts that I didn't know before and can casually throw them into conversations... but I won't. I can now also blame the octopus when I do something dumb - even though this octopus doesn't work like that, I am going to anyway. I am tired of the anticipation of it and stressing at 3am - although I have gotten through a good number of books which is a bonus. Tuesday is both too far and too near. 

I am very grateful to know about the octopus, (NOT so stoked about it's existence, but c'est la vie). I am incredibly lucky that my GP took my headaches seriously and sent me for a scan. I will never find words to describe my gratitude to him - he is a very good doctor and not just on this occasion (Dr Parr - Brampton Family Practice - he is one of those rare doctors that doesn't give antibiotics when you have a virus and diagnosed my gall stones when others didn't). I am grateful to have such a supportive boss - who also dealt with me kindly in the panicked stage. Obviously, you all already know that I have the best family in the world (I am very grumpy about missing our family holiday,  and Kulula ripping me off, but am pleased that it means the next family holiday will also include T!) And am also incredibly lucky to have had so much support and so many people wishing me well from far-flung corners of the world. I feel kind of embarrassed and humbled to be the recipient of all those good wishes. So, I want to say thank you although those two words are really too small for what I really want to say. Don't worry I am in good hands and they will downsize this octopus and stop him getting any crazy ideas! And then, I will be back, with another self-indulgent, overly-long blog. 

Adorable frog...

If you want to do something to make me happy, sign our petition to ban microbeads or send an email to appeals.southern@capetown.gov.za asking them to do a FULL EIA before allowing (or rather, not allowing) development on the Kenilworth Racecourse Conservation Area - home of adorable frogs (and other important species and rare/endemic stuff). 







Also, I really love actual octopuses, they are among my favourites - despite the fact that the plural is a less than awesome word.  And they definitely are too smart to be eaten (another book I have been reading, Last Days of the Bus Club by Chris Stewart, said that you shouldn't eat octopus because they love beauty and use shells etc. to decorate the entrances of their burrows - the boring scientist in me thinks there might be a sexual selection aspect at play, but I do try shut her up occasionally).

"It's Rex Manning Day"

Rex Manning Day doesn't start off well. $9000 is lost to a bad dice throw (double that really, because he had actually won the first throw), Debra tries to slit her wrists, Gina and Corey have a huge flight and Corey is outed as a 'closet speed freak', Gina is called a slut and sent home from work. Poor A.J gets his heartbroken. Joe is about to lose his store... oh and Warren gets arrested and then causes a hostage situation.

"What's with today, today?" We ask ourselves... We might not have the opportunity to tell the arrogant man with bad hair to get out, his hair is stupid and that we think he's a has been. We don't get to throw a 'Damn the Man' party and sing from the roof tops. (Although if I had thought of this earlier and was more of a party person, today would be the ideal day for a 'Damn the Man' party!) We don't get to buy the thing we love back from the evil corporate minions with a vase full money... but the doesn't mean we can't do anything.

Ahhhh Mark...

I'm going to shift gears now, keep up. I haven't been sleeping well this week, and last night I had the added annoyance of a mozzie - the bane of the insomniac (I am not an insomniac it just finished the sentence better than "people who don't sleep well"). The mozzie was buzzing around my head at an indecent time of morning and I moved, as you do, to get it to shut up. And I thought, in my dreamy fuzzy way, that my huge body moving (relative to mozzie) must be really scary for the mozzie, and how brave the tiny mozzie is, to take on creatures so much bigger than themselves and how amazing that something so small can be so annoying. (Sleepy and fuzzy, remember)

So I call on all of you to be mozzies and 'damn the man' with bad hair... or no hair/shower head. Buzz... and keep them awake and uncomfortable. Because we can't kick the man with bad hair out of our store, but we can buzz.

The man isn't always the man with bad hair, he's the Clicks store that wraps each item you buy from the pharmacy in individual plastic bags and uses a cable tie that will get cut 3 minutes later when you pay; he's the restaurant that presume you want a straw or clothing shops that presume you want a bag. He's the people that discriminate against "others" whether because they are a different colour, nationality, or have a different sexual preference to them. He's the people watering their lawns in a drought. He's the climate change deniers and the senators that want to restrict the use of renewable energy. We need to be relentless and consistent in our buzzing because one guy with bad hair should not have the power to make the world a worse place. We need to be brave and persistent - like the really annoying mosquito.

Things aren't all bad. here are many more good people than bad presidents (and he might not be that bad), it's just easy for people to get overwhelmed or caught up in the busyness of surviving. I'm begging you to be active citizens in any small way you can. (Slacktivists: sign here, or here, or support what the Centre for Biological Diversity are doing or support the firefighters and other heroes making a difference). 

Finally, I apologise (but don't understand) if you haven't seen Empire Records (and therefore aren't sure what I am going on about). It's a 90 s cult classic with an amazing sound track and I guarantee that it will make you smile. Watch it. Be inspired by it. It holds up to the test of time. (Although adult me is less keen to marry Mark than teenage me was).

Damn the man... save the empire! 

P.S. Rex Manning day is supposedly on the 8th of April - according to the all knowing internet. 

Mozzie bites and memories

Do the holidays seem like they happened ages ago? Does it feel like all you have left of the holiday are mozzie bites and memories? Or are you still feeling upbeat and energised? For me, this has been a very long seeming week... and I miss having my family around. BUT, it is a whole new year!

It is 2017 and (that's ridiculous and insane and where does the time go?) the New Year gives you the opportunity to reflect on life and decide what you like and what you would like to change. It puts a full stop on the previous year, whether good or bad (even if it is a totally artificial full stop given that the 2016 day isn't extraordinarily different to the 2017 day). It gives people, organisations and countries a chance to reset their stats and try better for the year and stops the list of famous people that have died in 2016 (thank goodness). 

If you are looking for New Year's Resolutions (it really is never too late) think about becoming a revolutionist by cutting out/down on meat.  If you haven't already (and I can't imagine why not) commit to eating only sustainable seafood (check out SASSI green list or look for the MSC logo). And of course, you have already stopped using personal care products with microplastics but maybe you now want to make sure you diligently use reusable shopping bags or stop using straws (which I am all for, but it is tricky with milkshakes, so if anyone wants to buy me a reusable steel - one that's actually washable - my birthday is coming up... and so are most people's because there have only been 13 days of birthdays this year.)

Don't forget to use water as if you were paying for it - which you ARE but people don't seem to think like that (seriously, who leaves the tap running when brushing teeth - why does that even come up as a water saving tip?) You really learn to value water when it is no longer available... and that will be the reality if we don't meet the water saving targets. (El Nino might be over, but climate change isn't, and less rain is a reality of our future and "water-shedding" might be too.)

And, if you are already a Planeteer...  resolve to not let the horrible people get you down and focus on being a good example of inclusivity, tolerance and kindness. There would be less Trump in the world if people took a step out of that rat race and opened their arms to life. Do new things, open your mind to possibilities that are different and engage in conversation with people who think differently to you, or just chat with your uber driver - their lives might give yours perspective.  It's a brand shiny new year and there are loads of reasons to be hopeful and happy (just ask Bill Gates - Also, what is bubble tea?)

Find happiness in the small things like a walk on the beach!