When you are an equestrian (or even just a regular busy person), its easy for sustainability to fall down to the bottom of a very long list of priorities. BUT we should care about it for a whole bunch of different reasons.
I grew up with a mum who refused to buy those cute little individual packs of yoghurt because there was way too much plastic, so I like to think that the environment has always been at the front of my mind. But the reality is that I have not been anywhere near as contentious as I should have been. My desire for convenience overshadowing what I knew was a more environmentally sound decision on several occasions.
The riders on a mission sustainability challenge is in its second year and is the brain child of Zoe Kiff whose business Honest Riders is founded on her passion for sustainable equestrian fashion. Her goal was to inspire riders to make simple changes in their everyday life for 30days, which they would then hopefully continue on with.
Louise (@induehorse) sat down with Zoe for The Equestrian Pulse podcast to find out more about the riders on a mission challenge. You can listen to the episode on your favourite podcast platform or via the website.
I completed the challenge last year and managed to implement most of the changes that I had said I would, but I only managed to keep a few of them going forward. This year I was keen to get on board again, however I knew that whatever changes I made, I wanted to be able to stick with in the long term.
Switch
I am going to replace my bottled shampoo and conditioner for a bar version. I am also going to switch my regular electric toothbrush head to an alternative that is recyclable.
Ditch
While I never buy water bottles, I do buy diet soft drink in plastic bottles on a semi regular basis. But no more! Did you know that just 3% of that plastic bottle that you threw in the recycling bin will actually be reused vs around 68% from a can!
The other thing I will be ditching for the riders on a mission challenge is… Fast fashion. I’ve never been the biggest buyer of clothes but I have bought a few pieces for work. I have enough clothing and I would much prefer to purchase clothes second hand from my favourite label that will also for years to come!
Commit
Moving forward I am going to be doing my main shopping online and eating vegetarian meals only for at least two days a week!
You can learn more about the riders on a mission sustainability challenge on the Honest Riders website or Instagram.
