“I can’t get no … satisfaction,” rasped the Rolling Stones. But this lack of fulfilment experienced by Mick and his mates would have been swiftly eradicated had they simply embarked upon what I like to call a sustainable Sunday.
Sure, I’m a sucker for alliteration, but a Sunday spent sustainably goes much further than simple sibilance. Let me explain …
We’re all aware we should be doing our bit to save the planet, right? But somehow our busy lives always seem to get in the way of those good intentions. That’s why Sundays are a great place to start – partly because most of us have a slightly shorter to-do list, and partly because we often have more flexibility around when and how we do those things. Let me walk you through my typical sustainable Sunday, in which I make easy and enjoyable eco-friendly tweaks to my routine, and you’ll see what I mean. Mick, you might want to pay close attention.
Pay attention to packaging
For me, there’s no better way to start a Sunday than with a bunch of fresh flowers – as pink as possible to match my house. Where once I drove to the supermarket to grab a plastic-wrapped bunch plus a crackly pack of croissants, my sustainable switch-up now sees me cycling to the Columbia Road flower market, in east London, where I have a far greater choice of rosy-hued blooms. A friendly stallholder wraps them in recyclable paper and I carry them triumphantly home in my rucksack, along with cinnamon buns – my children’s favourite – from a nearby bakery. By the time I return, I’ve done my exercise for the day too. Seriously satisfying I’m sure you’ll agree. And the cinnamon buns are perfect bribery to get the kids off the screens.
Drink (coffee) responsibly
You might have noticed that despite discussing a Sunday morning routine I haven’t yet mentioned coffee. But this is an essential part of the day, given that at least one of my boys is likely to be involved in a football match and I am a vociferous (read: embarrassingly loud) sideline supporter who needs all the help I can get.
You’re probably anticipating mention of a reusable coffee cup at this juncture. But no. Because in fact research shows that one of the most energy-efficient forms of coffee is actually the aluminium coffee pod – as long as it’s correctly recycled. This is because the pod uses a very exact amount of coffee, and capsule-coffee machines flash-heat only the amount of water needed for one portion. In comparison, a drip filter machine is less efficient and barista coffee uses a lot more energy to brew just one tiny espresso. So as part of my satisfying Sunday, I’ll simply enjoy a Nespresso coffee or two using my Vertuo machine, and smugly recycle the pods using the industry-wide Podback scheme afterwards, dropping off the Podback bag at my local CollectPlus store, picking up a couple of low-energy lightbulbs as I go, my environmentally friendly halo shining so brightly that fellow shoppers must avert their eyes.
Next, it’s time to stand in a far-flung rainy field shouting: “JUST KICK IT IN THE GOAL,” and other helpful advice at a load of eight-year-olds. To get to the football match, which can be a bit of a schlep, I car-share with the mum of my kid’s teammate. This is not only more sustainable but has the added advantage of letting me catch up with my friend, while our sons chat tactics/the likelihood of ever meeting Messi, in the back.
Grow your own grub
By this point in the afternoon my green-fingered husband likes to practise a bit of sustainability one-upmanship by unearthing a few carrots from our urban planters and perhaps even chopping a couple of courgettes from the plant he cultivated in an old plastic compost bin, to have with the Sunday roast. Obviously the kids refuse his misshapen produce, but luckily there’s a leftover cinnamon bun for them to eat with the chicken instead; and I don’t argue because we wouldn’t want any waste on sustainable Sunday, would we?
What a day! In fact it’s a blessing that Mick et al knew nothing about the joys of such a Sunday, or one of the most famous rock songs of all time might never have been written.
Discover what’s next for Nespresso’s journey to carbon-neutral coffee here
