by Allison G. S. Knox

Making significant changes to our daily lives can be difficult, especially when the results don’t appear immediately.  In thinking of the state of the environment, I believe that most of us want to help, but aren’t sure how to do so.  Often, it may seem like a daunting task and we perhaps feel that our small changes can’t possibly make enough of a difference to make the effort worthwhile.  It is important to realize, however, that even the smallest changes to our daily activities, can make such a difference to the overall health of the environment. 
 
It is no secret that our environment is polluted.  You drive down the highway and notice garbage all over the side of the road.  You see the garbage truck leave your driveway filled to the brim with endless trash bags, only to meet other garbage trucks also filled with trash bags at a landfill.  We also receive endless amounts of junk mail advertising something that we throw out almost immediately after classifying it as junk mail.  The environment is greatly impacted by the choices we make in our daily lives.

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by Allison G. S. Knox

When I think of the environment and issues affecting sustainability, I think of Al Gore’s movie An Inconvenient Truth and garbage in landfills. I never think of the tea industry and what it is doing to lessen its impact on the environment.
 
Tea has made a huge impact in the history of the world and the history of the United States.  Most Americans recall the story of the Boston Tea Party – patriots dressed as Native Americans dumping the newly imported tea from England into the Boston Harbor.  The tea industry has been very influential and at least one tea company is now working to impact the health of the environment in a very positive fashion.
 
Yesterday, I enjoyed a mug of tea by Celestial Seasonings – a highly regarded tea company based in Boulder, Colorado.  As I was preparing the mug, I noticed a statement regarding their commitment to the environment on the box.  The statement read, “Our unique pillow-style tea bag is the result of our commitment to doing what’s best for the environment.  Because these natural fiber tea bags don’t need strings, tags, staples or individual wrappers, we’re able to save more than 3.5 million pounds of waste from entering landfills every year.”  

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