Sammy is perhaps our most remote Biome Brand Ambassador living in a remote town in Western Australia’s Pilbara region. Adopting a sustainable lifestyle as a new mum in the outback takes some creativity, read on to learn more about how Sammy does it.
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Can you share some insight into the challenges you face living in remote WA?
Living in a remote town has so many challenges! Sustainability is tricky when you don't have easy access to everything you're used to in the metro area. I can't just duck out to the shops to buy something or replace something - I have to really think it through. Anything I buy has to be long lasting, easy to dispose of responsibly, multi-purpose, and be able to grow with the family.
The biggest thing for us to adjust to was the lack of curbside recycling. Realising every single thing we use up becomes landfill, really makes us rethink what we use up! We're minutes from one of the most beautiful National Parks in Australia, but also minutes from a landfill site, and that doesn't sit well with me. Choosing biodegradable or reusable packaging whenever I can is crucial to reducing my impact out here.
We've also got really limited buying choices out here with a single supermarket, where it's so hard to avoid plastic packaging. We buy a lot online from plastic-free bulk food stores for all our pantry essentials, and of course from Biome for everything around the house.
What are some of the most creative solutions you’ve come up with to meet some of these challenges?
They say necessity is the mother of invention, and thats so true of living remote. I think our biggest trick is finding multiple uses for EVERYTHING. For example, we use our stainless steel pegs everywhere! Not just the on clothesline - pinning back curtains, sealing food packets and boxes, keeping baby outfits together, hanging paper and kids' art from hooks - I've got a stash of wire pegs in nearly every room of the house and boy do I use them!
I also keep everything we could possibly reuse, so I'm pretty proud of our jar stash. We get ants everywhere here, so keeping nearly everything sealed in jars and canisters is so important. Eventually we want to make jams and preserves from the citrus trees in our yard, and then it'll be the jar collection's time to shine!
Lastly, we are always meal planning really carefully (and flexibly!) around here because fresh produce and refrigerated products, when available, tend to have really short use-by dates. It's become a bit of a personal challenge to get as close to zero food waste as possible by getting creative with our pantry essentials and making the most of absolutely everything we buy.
What is your favourite Biome product or brand?
I love Raw Nature, and their solid perfumes are divine. I was looking for a non toxic fragrance because my little baby's hands get everywhere when I'm holding or feeding him, and I was worried about the various chemicals getting all over him.
I tried Raw Nature's products, because they ticked all the boxes and I especially loved the biodegradable packaging. They make me feel beautiful, clean and put together - especially on days when I am none of those things, and I've had every baby bodily fluid on me at some point.
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