Earth Day Special: what has amika done to support sustainability

Climate change and sustainability have been at the forefront of many of our minds. With Australia’s wildfire that happened last year and Greta Thunberg’s amazing action-taking, global warming is something we can ignore anymore. But the question remains: What is sustainability? Keep scrolling to learn more about what sustainability means in terms of individuals, businesses and what amika has done to be more earth-friendly as a company.

what is sustainability?

Sustainability, according to the Environmental Science Organization, is “the study of how natural systems function, remain diverse and produce everything it needs for the ecology to remain in balance. It also acknowledges that human civilization takes resources to sustain our modern way of life.” I found this definition quite complicated to understand so I went to our Assistant Purchasing Coordinator and recycling enthusiast, Jamie Richards, for help. She broke down the definition and explained, “essentially when talking about sustainability we’re talking about balancing and maintaining a system/function/process whatever really so it’s the same for future use. It’s about creating a business that gives and takes an equal amount so it can be operated indefinitely.”

What we need to do here is to close the loop, which means to minimize the impact on earth, we need to continuously reuse the materials in our supply chain. Closed-loop systems are formed when all the materials in the manufactured goods can be recycled. Not only is this beneficial for our environment and natural resources, this is also beneficial economically wise. Scientists and environmentalists have been actively asking world leaders to address climate change more seriously. As the Institute of Industrial Engineers has stated, “a commitment to more sustainable practices will save money by mitigating the damage to people, infrastructure and systems.” The more serious this issue is, the more likely natural disasters are to happen and the world will not be able to cope with it when it gets out of hand. 

how is amika trying to be more sustainable?

Now that we know sustainability should deserve more of our attention, let’s see what steps amika has been taking so we can be more sustainable as a company. 

composting
Our office now composts! We collect compostable material with separate bins and send it to a golf course. It’s then transformed into fertilized soil and sent back into the ecosystem.

recycling
Through training as a company, we are now active recyclers and have understanding on what is recyclable and what is not. We’ve also learned about what the waste management process in NYC looks like. 

clothing collection
We encourage office mates to donate/ recycle clothes on an ongoing basis.

These might be just small steps, but together as a company, we are thrilled about the journey ahead. Here is how we are going to into 2020 with sustainability in mind:

TerraCycle collection program
TerraCycle is an organization that aims to “recycle the unrecyclable.” By closing working with them, we strive to reduce our carbon footprint effectively by practicing cradle to cradle recycling, which means it is essentially a closed loop. By collecting empty bottles from customers and salons, these bottles will be given new life by getting used to make other materials.

Green Circle salon partnership
Getting our amika salons on board is important too. We aim to provide a stream recycling service for our salons by collecting everything from amika products to hair so there is no hassle to them. 

Sourcing more sustainable materials
Jamie and her team are working to source innovative green materials that will work best for both our products + the environment. 

We are excited to take more steps on our journey to sustainability and show more love to our Mother Earth!

Adapted from article written by Becca King, community manager

Image via @thedewyscientist who resued our holiday tin