Hey Canadians!! 🇨🇦💚🇨🇦 How do you do Sustainable?

[Jennifer3225]

Hi all After the success of Earth Day 2023, I am excited to see just how everyone is doing for their sustainable efforts at your property here in Canada.🇨🇦 🍃

Compostable packaging

Earth Friendly Cleaning?

Collect Food Waste

What is important to you?

1. Culture? Do you recognize nearby Indigenous Communities? In Canada we have 94 actionable items for truth and reconciliation. It’s every Canadians commitment to make and facilitate peace!
2. Language French/English/Both
3. Do you use Solar lights?
4. Do you up cycle your furniture?
5. Do you make a point of what packaging you bring into your listing?
6. Nature -How do you support Mother Earth? Do you showcase local trails?
7. Economy- Do you support local? Do you do local gifting? 
8. Do you grow food? Do you collect Food Waste?

Please let me know. We are compiling a list of items that Canadians 🇨🇦 are already doing to promote their sustainability in their homes?

Let me know!

[Catriona57]

We provide a page in our house manual about how our guests (which are all long term - 30 days minimum) can join us in composting all kitchen waste, including paper waste. We provide an under-the-counter bin and show them where to empty it for pickup.

We explain to guests how to clean and place their nonorganic recyclables in their own outdoor recycling bin. In Vancouver, almost everything is recyclable, and what City trucks won’t pick up, we sort, collect, and take to our neighbourhood “Zero Waste” facility. Easy-peasey:)

[Shanel31]

I forgot to mention our REUSE CENTER here in the Shuswap.

You know that saying, one person garbage is another treasure... well that is exactly what the reuse center is based on!

At our local landfill, there is an area where you can leave old furniture, toys, household items such as dishes or small appliances. You may just upgrade something in your house and instead of throwing out the old one people can bring it down to the reuse center and the best part is it is completely FREE for anyone to leave items and to take items! Not only does this keep unnecessary garbage out of our landfills but it also helps people find treasures they might not have the means to purchase themselves. 
Seriously this is such a great program that people rave about in our small towns. 
My husband always gives me a hard time and says I always go to the garbage with a truck full of recycling and then come home with a whole truck load of furniture. We have gotten all our outdoor chairs for around our firepit for our Airbnb from there, replaced all the dishes in the Airbnb and I usually always score a new toy for my kids too!

If you do not have something like this in your home town I strongly encourage bringing the idea to your municipalities. The program really is  win win for everyone!!!

[Carol8224]

@Jennifer3225 We have recycled for many years. In our new location:

We installed low flow fixtures and LED lighting throughout the whole house.

Almost all of our furniture is gently used second hand.

Our cleaners and weed maintenance products are natural or enviro friendly. 

We have a recycling cabinet and a composter for household food waste.

We have electric heat in the suite and a monitor that keeps track of Radon levels, temperature and humidity levels which has been very useful.

We have Brita water jugs and reusable water bottles and travel mugs for guests.

We don't use Kuerig or other pod system coffee cups. Grounds can feed the composter.

I like @Karen1100  idea of a passport sheet to get guests more involved if possible.   

I would have posted a picture of our recycling cabinet but couldn't figure out what "source" means.

Carol T 

[Karen1100]

I LOVE this initiative!  Way to Go @Jennifer3225 and the others who have spearheaded this!

Great ideas from everyone
Mine are fairly basic, but trying to do more.  

- Switched from Electric baseboards and Invested in an Eco Heat Pump that gives both Cooling and Heating. 

- I weed our yard instead of using harmful pesticides. 
- Provide Shopping Bags for guests to use.

- Providing Recycling Bins for our guests.

- Use Low Flow shower head and toilets 

- Use Eco-Friendly products as much as possible. 
For Cleaning, I love this brand of cleaning system called Enjo! 
They are amazing and you only use water with the cloths, and leave surfaces sparkling!  (Let me know if you want some products I can get a deal🙂) 

- I share all the get outdoors, nature, Eco-Friendly ideas for things to do in the area, I have been creative with "Locals Only" suggestions!  My guests love it!  
Local Hikes and biking, we have SUP for our guests. 

- I added in our listing acknowledgment of Indigenous Lands we are on 

***We would like to acknowledge that the land on which we gather is the traditional territory of the Sinixt, the Ktunaxa, and the Syilx peoples, and is home to the Métis and many diverse Indigenous persons. We honour their connection to the land and rivers and respect the importance of the environment to our strength as a community.***

I am working on a Passport Sheet of Fun Eco-Friendly Activities for our area.  I think many guests would be interested in doing less environmentally impactful activities.   
Karen

[Jacqueline639]

Thank you for all the work you're putting into this Jennifer!

At our listing we:

1.  sort recyclables

2. use LED lightbulbs

3. naturalize our shoreline (no fertilizers, lawn cutting, shallow rooted plants)

4. pump out our septic tank annually

5. locally source firewood

6. use low phosphate cleaners

7. use a wifi based thermostat

8. offer metal straws

9. do not offer any single use plastics

Haven't quite cracked the code on organics/composting as the counter top models are expensive and our local municipality does not support this and will need to change out our furnace at the end of its life as it uses fossil fuels (for now).

[Jennifer3225]

HI @Jacqueline639  I do like that one. Sourcing Local Firewood. That is very relevant and something I had not thought about. Good one. 

Tell me more about pumping out your septic annually. What are the benefits of this? If you are talking about the Vitamix Food Cycler. I got one recently second hand for $54.00. Keep your eyes out. Sometimes people don't know what they are. If I see one again, I will scoop it up for you.

Found this beauty second hand

[Jacqueline639]

@Jennifer3225 If you can believe it, I just found a gently used Food Cycler on FB marketplace and am picking up tomorrow.  Let the composting adventure begin!  Thx for the inspiration!

[Jennifer3225]

@Jacqueline639  Did we just become best friends? 

[Jacqueline639]

I think so! @Jennifer3225 

[Jacqueline639]

The annual septic tank pump out is to prevent system overload and potential leeching into our lake after extra volume due to guests, laundry, etc.  Many of our guests have no experience with a septic system so it's also a precaution against build up of non bio items that may get flushed in error.

I found this article comparing countertop composters that I thought you'd find interesting ... now also on the hunt for a used one:  https://chatelaine.com/living/countertop-composter/

Have a great day!

[Shanel31]

Hello @Jennifer3225  and all other Canadian hosts. 

I love that this is being a topic that has been getting so much attention lately!

We are out here in the Shuswap area of British Columbia and we are all about finding new ways to part take in sustainability. In addition to the annual Spring Clean up we have been organizing additional clean ups for Earth Day and now a monthly beach clean up!

We have several rentals in the area and try to source out recycled or upcycled products. We always try to buy second hand furniture, or take old furniture to turn into flower boxes which is a unique niche our guests always enjoy. We source out recycled products like recyclable coffee pods for our rentals with Kerigues (Tim Hortons recently started selling recyclable pods and the guests really like the Tim Hortons Coffee as they see them everywhere in their Canadian travels) 
We recently sourced out a table cloth for a rental recently that was made from recycled materials!
I also had a client who recently purchased a new house and wanted to buy all new furnishings from IKEA although I pushed for upcycle I was pleasantly surprised to see larger companies like IKEA that had a whole section on their website about sustainability. I think the more people that talk about it the more people will become mindful. 

We started a program in our community a few years ago called "The Seed Exchange" we have a carving of a canoe at the end of our driveway made from recycled wood, the exchange allows community members and travelers in our Airbnb to "take or leave seeds"
You can just stop and browse through all the seeds people have left and take what you want to use in your garden or you can leave seeds if you have left overs after planting your own garden. Not only does it get more people excited about gardening, people are saving money and I have so much fun watching people coming by or getting to chat with other gardeners. 

Lastly we are in a region that is surrounded by Indigenous cultures, the closest being the Secwepemc First Nations. We provide reading material in our Airbnb so people know the best places to learn about the culture and history. The Quaaout Lodge is only minutes away from our Airbnb so we can direct guests to take cultural tours, visit the sweat lodges, explore the lands by foot, boat or take a snowshoeing tour. They also have amazing lessons to learn in Ethnobotany (medicinal plants and food). Learn about drum making, paddle painting, dreamcatcher making and more!

We are also home to one of the largest Salmon Run's. We encourages our guests to visit Tsutswecw Provincial Park for  "Salute to the Sockeye" festival which runs late September to 3rd week of October. This is such a great opportunity to learn about the cycles of the Salmon and the importance of sustainability though our First Nation cultures. 

Salute to the SockeyeSeed ExchangeQuaaout Lodge Cultural ExpierenceRecycled table cloth

[Karen1100]

@Shanel31 Very inspiring ideas! 

[Jennifer3225]

@Shanel31 Old Furniture to garden boxes.. tell me more! Coming out in September, may just work to understand the sustainability of the cycle of salmon while also hitting some of those big 5 golf courses on the Shuswap. 

I remember attending your community event with @Sher1100  and the way you all talked about the sustainable efforts, that are really effortless for you all in the west are inspiring.

The learnings and the culture that can be found with the engagement with the Secwepemc First Nations would be inspiring.  If I am coming I will bring tobacco from the Wahta First Nations here or The Moose Deer Point First Nations, whom we are neighbours of.

The more you talk about the west...the more I look for ways to get there.

Inspired. #shuswap #sustainable 

Thanks for the great content in your post. 

[Shanel31]

Yes @Jennifer3225 ! Garden boxes out of anything!!
We have turned an old drink cooler into a flower box, old dresser where we staggered the drawers open and planted different vegetables.  I even had some old gutters around our property that I planted strawberries in and they loved that.

I have seen people use old applicances like an old stove or even a bath tub and one time seen someone use an old toilet as a planter haha

Basically anything you can put dirt in you can mostly repurpose into a planter

[Sheila667]

Morning Canadian Hosts and @Jennifer3225 ! Plants improve indoor air quality and I love how they look in my home! @Sher1100 I'm also thinking about solar lights to hang in our trees at the cottage - what do you think?

 

 

 

[Jennifer3225]

@Sheila667  Plants.. you can never have enough and they are so on trend right now, that the perfect gift for a hospitality event may just replace the wine bottle.... Wait a minute... maybe not.. how about a plant and some wine.

Thanks for reaching out on this topic. Canadians are really into the importance of Sustainability and as a country we are well poised to showcase our ability as Canadian Hosts to make choices that matter to our guests, the planet, people and of course the bottom line behind hosting on Airbnb.

Keep sharing the good story of Sustainability, and the importance of the 94 actions in the Truth and Reconciliation Report,  as it relates to First Nation Communities, which based on @Shanel31 's post is important to Canadians Coast to Coast. 

Jennifer

[Sher1100]

Yes, solar string lights in trees look so amazing! I have some solar pathway lights and a string of solar 'bumble bees'. You need to make sure that the solar panel for the string lights gets enough light during the day to keep them lit up at night.  My back yard is under a canopy of trees and gets little direct sunlight.  A nice 'cool' area when it gets hot out.  

[Jennifer3225]

@Sheila667 Would love to hear your ideas!

[Sher1100]

@Jennifer3225 This is such an important part of hosting.  I encourage my guests to leave their vehicle parked and enjoy the area on foot, or by bike.  As my guest studio is located right downtown in the middle of it all there is no need to start the engine. I give my guests trail recommendations to our over 300km of single track biking trails which are all accessible without taking a vehicle to the trailheads.    I recycle all my towels that are no longer usable in the studio by sending them to the local SPCA.  Shampoo, conditioners and body wash are in refillable containers, some of them are filled with locally made soaps. A basket of 'clean rags' for guests to use instead of paper towels is always helpful.  LED lights of course.  Low pressure faucets....no complaints on this yet....!  No plastic water bottles - a filtered jug instead.   Little gifts from local businesses like our own 'Fernie Brewery' and Chocolatier.   Some of the furniture in my studio has been re-purposed from my own collection of stuff!  And a little 'herb' patch in my garden if guests want to use.  Every little bit helps!!

[Jennifer3225]

@Sher1100 I love your ideas and the basket of rags is a good one to get rid of paper towel. 

You posting here will help us shape a tool kit for hosts in Canada and really ensure that what needs to be promoted and recognized is on point for us here in the great white north.

Question. Do you do anything  with the indigenous neighbours? Let me know

Jennifer 🙂