Last summer, we held the Green Challenge, a contest that allowed you to show your friends and family that integrating simple green actions in our daily lives is easy and effective. You participated in great numbers, but some entrants set themselves apart by their remarkable involvement. That is why we asked these people to give us an insight into their lifestyle by drawing up short portraits of themselves.
We encourage you to follow their example, and if you have ideas for simple green actions that you would like to share with the Simple Green Action community, please go ahead and submit your suggestions here.
Today we are happy to acquaint you with Sylvie Boisvert.
Describe yourself in a few words.
I am a social work technician and currently a stay-at-home mom. I discovered my green inclination these last few years, especially since I decided to use cotton diapers for my children and realised that it’s not difficult to think, act and buy in an ecologically-responsible manner.
You were among Cascades’ Green Challenge Contest’s most active participants. What was your favourite challenge? Why?
It is strange but this question is not easy to answer for me because I did not really run into any serious hurdles. Perhaps recovering used oil because I had some and did not know what to do with it. Then I learned that expired salad dressing can even be brought to my local Éco-Quartier.
What simple green actions do you practice daily?
Recovery, composting, reusable bags, biodegradable cleaning products and laundry detergent, using products made out of recycled fibres, buying local, ASC organic baskets, driving the least possible, a partner that uses public transportation for getting to work (single car for our family), used item recovery for repurposing, donation of objects I no longer need to my neighbourhood family centre, laundry done in cold water, stopping the dishwasher before the drying cycle, recycling of computer items (ink cartridges, used batteries), using rechargeable batteries, etc.
Have you changed your consumer/buying habits in order to help take care of our planet? Do you use Cascades recycled products?
Yes, I am always looking for ways to lessen my ecological footprint and that of my family. I use Cascades products, unless I am really caught in a bind, I don’t buy any other brands.
Environmentally speaking, do you consider yourself dark green or light green?
Dark green.
Do you have any green resolutions?
Setting up a water recovery system this year (two years on project status already!), reducing the amount of hot water I use in the shower (something I have been working on for a long time but there is still progress to be made).
If you had to convince someone to embrace environmentally-friendly habits, what would you tell this person?
That no matter how great or small a green action is, it has a positive impact on our environment, our health and that of our children. Although the task may seem insurmountable at times - not only the environment but many other things as well - it is the accumulation of all these actions that matters.
