{"id":71506,"date":"2025-01-23T10:05:01","date_gmt":"2025-01-23T10:05:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/?p=71506"},"modified":"2025-01-23T10:13:59","modified_gmt":"2025-01-23T10:13:59","slug":"new-year-new-zero-waste-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/new-year-new-zero-waste-you\/","title":{"rendered":"New Year: new zero-waste you?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Happy New Year! <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Does the idea of starting the year plastic free appeal to you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Whether or not you do New Year&#8217;s resolutions, perhaps you\u2019re thinking of trying new ways to live more sustainably in 2025? Let us help you by suggesting one way to make it easier, more convenient and more fun. Introducing\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.refillablevan.com\/\" title=\"\"><strong>The<\/strong> <strong>Refillable Van<\/strong><\/a>, a mobile, zero-waste pop-up shop that comes to us right here at CCCU.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-4-1.jpeg\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1862\" height=\"1536\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-4-1.jpeg\" alt=\"Photo of the side of the Refillable Van\" class=\"wp-image-71650\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-4-1.jpeg 1862w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-4-1-300x247.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-4-1-1024x845.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-4-1-768x634.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-4-1-1536x1267.jpeg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1862px) 100vw, 1862px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>The Refillable Van arrives at Augustine House Library. Photo credit: @ccculibrary (Instagram)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ever thought of swapping out your toothpaste or deodorant for a plastic-free one? Would you like to be able to refill your bottles of cleaning products rather than buying (yet another) plastic bottle each time? Or maybe you fancy trying your hand at making your own cleaning products from natural ingredients?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-3.jpeg\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-3-768x1024.jpeg\" alt=\"Photo of a range of bottles, packets and powders on wooden shelves for sale from the refillable van.\" class=\"wp-image-71542\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-3-768x1024.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-3-225x300.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-3-1152x1536.jpeg 1152w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-3.jpeg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>So many intriguing and tempting personal care and cleaning products on sale. Photo credit: @ccculibrary (Instagram)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Saving you time and giving you peace of mind<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Whilst reducing our consumption should <em>always<\/em> be the number one goal, there are inevitably going to be many things that we need to buy. However, with a bewildering array of products out there &#8211; and so many companies making expansive eco claims &#8211; how do you know if their credentials are genuine or if they\u2019re just greenwash? It takes time to research products to discover what alternatives exist and to reassure yourself that your choices will make a genuine difference \u2013 time many of us just don\u2019t have in our busy lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The good news is that there is somewhere you can access right here you at CCCU, where the research has already been done for us. Where all the products have been chosen so that we can make purchases safe in the knowledge that things genuinely are plastic free, environmentally friendly and vegan. What a relief to know that our money is going to support companies that are committed to doing \u2018the right thing\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-2.jpeg\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-2-768x1024.jpeg\" alt=\"Sign displayed outside the Refillable Van displaying various products for sale. \" class=\"wp-image-71546\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-2-768x1024.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-2-225x300.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-2-1152x1536.jpeg 1152w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-2.jpeg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Photo credit: @ccculibrary (Instagram)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let me introduce you to Sue and her amazing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.refillablevan.com\/\" title=\"\">Refillable Van<\/a>! As part of our commitment to championing sustainable futures for all our students, staff and alumni, CCCU has partnered with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.refillablevan.com\/\" title=\"\">The Refillable Van<\/a> to help make zero waste shopping easy and accessible for everyone. It may be small, but Sue\u2019s van is an absolute treasure trove and Sue herself is a very friendly and happy to share her extensive knowledge of her products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In this video, Sue introduces you to some of her products:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe title=\"The Refillable Van at Augustine House\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/vUHEzxbs3sQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Video footage credit: @ccculibrary (Instagram)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-5.avif\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"980\" height=\"458\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/Refillable-van-5.avif\" alt=\"Photo of Sue filling a bottle of product ready to sell from the Refillable Van.\" class=\"wp-image-71550\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Sue doing refills for a customer. Photo credit: The Refillable Van<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Here\u2019s a small taster of what\u2019s on offer:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Refills of cleaning products, including washing up liquid, laundry liquid, fabric conditioner<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Refills of personal care products such as hand soap, shampoo, conditioner<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Plastic free toothpastes and deodorants<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Loose dry foods, herbs, spices<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>White vinegar, oils, citric acid, bicarb of soda<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Ecofriendly dog shampoo <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Plastic free homewares and gift ideas <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>And much, much more! (Top tip: the dark chocolate brazils are amazing, and Fairtrade too!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/My-pic.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"481\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/My-pic.jpg\" alt=\"Board displaying a list of dried foods available to buy from the Refillable Van.\" class=\"wp-image-71554\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/My-pic.jpg 481w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/My-pic-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 481px) 100vw, 481px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>The huge range of dried foods available from the van. Photo Credit: Angela Starey<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Refillable Van ethos<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Sue only stocks products from individuals and brands who share her vision to reduce waste and create a positive environmental impact.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>All products are vegan and eco friendly<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Sue strongly believes in supporting small, local producers, which helps keep your environmental impact as low as possible. She only works with UK based producers and suppliers and has a growing list of Kent based suppliers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/My-pic-3-2.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"510\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/My-pic-3-2.jpg\" alt=\"Photo of Sue sitting in the Refillable Van with goods and signs displayed ready for people to buy.\" class=\"wp-image-71634\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/My-pic-3-2.jpg 510w, https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/My-pic-3-2-239x300.jpg 239w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 510px) 100vw, 510px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Photo credit: Angela Starey<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, if <em>y<\/em>ou\u2019ve resolved to try living more sustainably in 2025, here are some words of encouragement from Sue:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left\"><em>\u201cEveryone that makes a change to zero waste, no matter how small, makes a positive impact on our environment. No change is too small &#8211; every change counts\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">When and where can I find <a href=\"https:\/\/www.refillablevan.com\/\" title=\"\">The Refillable Van<\/a>?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>For ultimate convenience, on the last Thursday of every month the Refillable Van visits Augustine House (right hand side of the building, in the Goods-In Loading Bay) 11.30am \u2013 12.30am and Verena Holmes from 1-3pm. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Alternatively, if you live locally you might be able to catch Sue at one of her many pop-up slots around South East Kent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.refillablevan.com\/find-us\">https:\/\/www.refillablevan.com\/find-us<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p> Just bring your empty bottles and containers (although Sue does have some spares if you forget!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Happy refilling!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>For more details about The Refillable Van and the products on offer<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.refillablevan.com\">https:\/\/www.refillablevan.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n\n\n\n<p>by Vicky Mason, D O&#8217;Donoghue and Angela Starey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Image credit for header photo: Angela Starey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Introducing The Refillable Van: a mobile, zero-waste refill shop visiting CCCU monthly. Explore the range of environmentally and vegan friendly products and reduce the waste in your life. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6229,"featured_media":71630,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,1750],"tags":[18,2002,1978,1986,1974,1970,1994,1998,78,1982,1990,1966],"class_list":["post-71506","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","category-sustainability","tag-canterbury","tag-cccu-campus","tag-mobile-refill","tag-plastic-free","tag-pop-up-refill-shop","tag-refill-service","tag-refillable","tag-south-east-kent","tag-sustainability","tag-sustainable-products","tag-vegan","tag-zero-waste-shopping"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"authorName":"Angela Starey","featuredImage":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/638\/2025\/01\/My-pic-2.jpg","postExcerpt":"Introducing The Refillable Van: a mobile, zero-waste refill shop visiting CCCU monthly. Explore the range of environmentally and vegan friendly products and reduce the waste in your life. \n","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71506","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6229"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71506"}],"version-history":[{"count":27,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71506\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":71706,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71506\/revisions\/71706"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/71630"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71506"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71506"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.canterbury.ac.uk\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71506"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}