We live in a consumer society in which aspects such as the environment and animals have suffered or been neglected for many years. For some time now, we and our fellow human beings have been rethinking things and the intrinsic urge for more sustainability in everyday life and a respectful approach to nature is increasing.
The word "recycling" has been playing a role here for several decades, while many people still have little idea of what the newer term "upcycling" means. In this article, you will find out what "upcycling" means, how it differs from "recycling" and why we at BE THE CHANGE attach great importance to sustainable packaging and resource-saving product cycles.
What is upcycling?
In short, the term “upcycling” means the reuse of existing materials or objects to create something new by not throwing them away but recycling them.
A particularly well-known example of “upcycling” in recent years is the use of Euro pallets for bed frames or outdoor seating.
If you use the coffee grounds to make a cosmetic peeling, that is also upcycling.
The aim of upcycling is to limit your own consumption and thereby protect the environment. If we do more upcycling, we throw away less and in the long term we also buy less “new”.
But what exactly is the difference to recycling?
How is upcycling different from recycling?
Recycling usually involves breaking down materials and objects into their original components, such as the recycling of aluminum. In special waste treatment plants, aluminum is melted back into its original form and reused as aluminum in packaging or for other purposes.
In upcycling, materials or objects are used as they are. Upcycling improves the quality or repurposes the object/material. The energy required for upcycling is often much lower than for recycling, which is why upcycling contributes significantly to climate protection and is sometimes seen as a “greener” version of recycling.
Reintroducing resources into the value chain are common principles of recycling and upcycling.
Meanwhile, commercial companies also want to use the principle of upcycling to create a new generation of products that require fewer new raw materials to manufacture and can be produced with less energy consumption. This not only serves the consumer-driven demand for sustainable products, but can also potentially increase companies' margins.
Why is upcycling important
A look at nature and our environment shows us why environmentally friendly approaches such as upcycling are so important:
Our consumer behavior and today's throwaway society have a massive impact on our environment and have an impact on it. Large companies want to increase/satisfy demand and access resources without being adequately regulated.
Because there is a lot of money at stake. The necessary resources are often obtained from developing or third world countries because environmental authorities there can be more easily corrupted.
We see mountains of garbage in African countries piled up with our old refrigerators, discarded cars, last season's smartphones and countless discount store clothes.
More than 50% of the South American rainforest has been cut down since 1950, leading to the extinction of animal species because we have taken away their habitat. And why is all this? Mostly out of greed for profit and our greed for consumption.
In Western countries, clothing and furniture are offered to consumers at cheap prices, which is why the cheap goods are often replaced after a short time with the next cheap piece of furniture or clothing. This describes our throwaway society.
Another particularly big culprit in the discussion about environmental protection and the need for upcycling is plastic.
Plastic – The Curse of Our Time
There are currently an incalculable amount of macro and microplastics in our oceans. Plastic waste is washed up on almost every beach in the world.
In addition, plastics are chemically very stable. This means that plastic is difficult and very slow to break down. Plastics remain in the seas and on land for a long time. These unnatural materials and foreign bodies kill countless animals every year.
The plastic-heavy consumption of our throwaway society kills around 135,000 marine mammals and an estimated 1 million seabirds every year – straws in the nostrils of turtles, plastic debris in the stomachs of birds and plastic rings painfully digging into the necks of seals are just a few cruel examples.
Once a blessing, plastic has now become a challenge as carelessly discarded waste. The correct and careful handling of plastic would make a decisive contribution to the solution. Inventiveness is required, on the one hand to counteract (micro) plastic waste and on the other hand to innovate alternatives.
After us the deluge? – Resources are finite
Another important aspect of why upcycling should be done is to look at our resources. The United Nations has predicted that we may exceed the 8 billion mark in the world population in November of this year (2022) - we humans are not decreasing and need resources to survive.
Not all resources that we take from nature grow back or regenerate quickly enough to be available for future generations.
These resources include fresh water, coal, copper, petroleum, lithium and nickel.
The latter in particular are important resources for the batteries of many green technologies.
For this reason, we should use the resources available to us consciously and with a view to the future and give nature the chance to regenerate from our demands and interventions.
Overfishing is a good example:
If a certain area of the sea is overfished so that people can eat as much fish as they want, in the long term there will no longer be enough fish in the sea to reproduce - the fishermen's next catches will be smaller or even unproductive. The fishermen have not used the resource "fish" sustainably.
The same principle applies to deforestation and over-fertilization of soils. There are numerous other examples from agriculture and livestock farming, as well as from modern technology companies that do not operate in a resource-saving and sustainable manner.
Solutions such as regenerative agriculture will play a pioneering role in the future. There are viable paths that can lead to the well-being of all and work equally for the world population and the environment, as well as bring economic added value.
How does BE THE CHANGE support the environment?
Our earth is home to wondrous and multifaceted life – we humans are a part of it and should treat it and its resources with respect and reverence.
We use biodegradable packaging and do not use plastic at all in order not to burden our environment and its living creatures. This protects and preserves resources and the natural and healthy cycle of life. Our packaging, such as our vitamins , is filled into Mironglas containers that can not only be refilled but also upcycled.
The regenerative agriculture that we promote allows the soil and nature to recover. We consciously work with farmers who farm organically, sustainably and with consideration for animal welfare.
In addition, with our own innovative projects, such as our Swiss Wow Cow, we also generate our own food sources that set new, sustainable standards internationally.
For us, sustainability means that our food is healthy and nutritious in the long term and that we not only preserve nature but also regenerate it. To do this, we need new ways, such as upcycling, which are being paved step by step in cooperation with farmers in long-term partnerships.
Sources:
https://www.greenpicks.de/de/recycling-upcycling#:~:text=When%20Upcycling%20%20used%20item%C3%A4nde , but%20how%20they%20are%20used.
https://www.swissrecycling.ch/de/aktuell/detail/konzept-upcycling#:~:text=Als%20Alt%20mach%20Neu%3A%20Zu, %2DSofas%20aus%20Euro%2DPaletten .
https://sauberhaftes-hessen.de/was-bringt-recycling/#:~:text=Recycling%20protects%20resources%20and%20the%20climate! &text=Recycling%20will%20reduce%20resources,and%20provide%20new%20life .