Greentalk: Mau, creator of the blog mylilEarth

In this series of articles, we are discovering different “ecofluenceurs” throughout interviews. An ecofluenceur is a content creator that raises awareness among a community about sustainability and how to switch to an eco-friendly lifestyle. Today, we are meeting Mau, from the blog mylilEarth. He’s going to introduce himself and share his experience with the ecological transition.

ABOUT HIM

Can you introduce yourself in a few lines? Who is behind Mylilearth?

I’d like to thank you and your team at Ecograntie for collaborating with me. Also, I do admire your innovative thinking of providing customers with natural and organic products that are sustainable.

I’m Mau, originally from the UK and for the past 3 years, I have been living in Japan. We all know that travelling opens up your mind to new cultures and experiences. Hard to believe it’s during the longest pandemic we’ve ever experienced but people travelled. Whilst I was travelling around Australia, South East Asia and Europe, I grew a connection and a better understanding of our world and how our actions impact the environment.

When did you start Mylilearth and why?

MylilEarth started as an eCommerce store in 2019, as a plastic-free one-stop-shop for home and personal care products. mylilEarth loves a lot of things in life sprung out of frustration and dismay. During my travels, one obvious thing I noticed was plastic pollution and how our actions are having a destructive impact on the environment.

Earlier this year, mylilEarth transitioned into a blog. Although I saw strong demand for plastic-free products, I noticed people were more interested in seeking information that could help them live a more sustainable lifestyle.

There is plenty of information about climate change and there are incredible people who are sharing expert knowledge about our changing world. Equally, there is a lot of false information out there and many companies that attempt to greenwash their brands which can be misleading.

Over time my blog gained recognition and became of great value to people who are searching for tips and fact-based information. So, I saw this as my calling and continued spreading awareness through my blog posts.

INSTAGRAM & HIS BLOG

Do you have another activity/job in addition to Instagram and your blog? If so, is it difficult to combine the two?

Currently, I’m teaching English in Japan, but mylilEarth is definitely where I feel I can share my passion for advocating climate actions around the world and sharing information that helps people live greener and healthier lives.

There are days when I feel I’m lagging behind or not doing enough, but I firmly believe taking small steps is better than doing nothing at all.

Where do you find inspiration to write about so many subjects?
What are your favourite “green” Instagram accounts?

In regards to my favourite “green” Instagram accounts, that’s a difficult one. As I said, there are some very talented people doing incredible things in the field of climate action and environmental activism. Right now, two of the “ecofluencers” I follow and take great inspiration from are being mindful. living.a by Ally and The Zero Waste Guide.

I’m big on gardening and being self-sufficient, mindful. living.a certainly provides herb growing ideas especially if you live in a small apartment like me. Whereas The Zero Waste Guide I’ve recently got into and has a huge follower base. Their tips and information are comprehensible and learn simple techniques that we can incorporate into our daily lives without making drastic changes.

ENVIRONMENT & ECOLOGY

According to you, what’s more difficult when you try to reduce your waste and adopt an eco-friendly lifestyle? And conversely what’s more simple?

Making any big decisions or changes in life is difficult, as we get older we become custom to familiar routines and habits. Therefore, it becomes much more challenging to change our way of thinking. Like a lot of people, in the beginning, I was bogged down by information on how we should live our lives eco-friendlier, and it became challenging to differentiate what is fact-based advice from false information. And that’s why I realised that I needed to create mylilEarth, to share real-life journeys from everyday people, and you’ll be amazed how much good advice there is beyond a Google search.

What I found the most challenging to reducing my waste and transitioning to a more sustainable life is cutting back on plastic. I think your readers would agree with me on this. Avoiding plastic altogether is practically impossible with the current system, however, we can start by eliminating single-use plastic.

Furthermore, every country has its policy when it comes to plastic waste reduction and management. Some countries are more proactive when it comes to plastic waste management, such as Rwanda with its shift towards environmental priorities after the horrific genocide in 1994 or more recently Canada announced they would focus on transitioning towards a circular economy.

Policy changes and the governments’ that will make environmental protection a priority would make things easier for us to adopt an eco-friendly lifestyle. However, as we know, policy changes are slow, we can’t sit around and wait for governments to enact.

The key is to take small steps. For example, carrying your containers instead of using single-use containers provided by takeaway shops or swapping out single-use razors for stainless steel razors.

And remember it’s your journey, the most important thing is consuming sustainably and consciously.

Do you pay attention to eco labels when you buy hygiene products, detergents, or cosmetics? Why? Do you pay more attention when it’s food?

To be honest, I didn’t pay much attention to labels for hygiene or personal care products, but after learning about the wonderful work Ecogarantie does, it has opened up my perspective.

I certainly pay more attention to food labels because I want to know what I’m consuming and whether the product is organically sourced. However, I think paying more attention to the chemicals and ingredients that go into making hygiene products is something we should care about.

I appreciate your strong campaigning to raise awareness about the ingredients used in our everyday products. We are not always aware of how some products have damaging consequences on our environment and health.

If you could give some advice to people who want to start changing their habits and take care of our planet, what would it be?

Small steps eventually lead to bigger achievements. They do say bad habits die hard, you’re not going to be an eco-warrior overnight, there are going to be obstacles and you’ll face plenty of climate change deniers.

However, focus on being a conscious consumer by using Ecogarantie labelled products that are eco-friendly. Be an inspiration to others and the rest will follow.

Thank you very much Mau for this interesting exchange! You can find him on Instagram and on his blog.