How recycling was part of India?
Part-1: how footwear were sustainable ! NO B.S. blog
Currently the world pollution is due to abundance.
We want more shoes than needed, more clothes than needed, more fashion than needed, more items than needed.
More than what we need = abundance
Q: Abundance causes ______ ?
Answer: pollution
How is that ?
We own more shoes or footwear than needed. Once they become old, we might discard them, or donate them to someone else.
If we discard them , look what happens.
If we donate them , what happens? The same thing: they will again be discarded.
These discarded shoes are dumped into the oceans. Look at that:
This kills or negatively affects the ocean’s flora and fauna.
What are the alternatives?
- recycling: buy only recyclable footwear
- reduce abundance: buy only as much as needed.
- go back to the old ways: is it possible, barefoot ?
How recycling was part of India?
This is the story I listened from an 80-yo person I know, who lived and still lives in an Indian village. I had a few questions for him.
Lets go back to the 1940’s … >>>>
Q: How people had footwear when there was no technology ?
The technology wasn’t available in the 1940’s in India to make shoes/footwear at scale. In those days, people used to walk 20kms/12miles every week to go to school - without any footwear = barefoot.
they’d walk barefoot, everyday
Their feet is fine today. It works perfectly fine, and they still walk a lot without any disabilities. They didn’t wear any branded footwear that would give an “activ” “cushy” “push” to enhance their “performance” like an “athlete”.
Q: was there any footwear at all , in the ‘40s?
yes, there was.
Q: how was that possible , without any technology?
animal husbandry was part of ancient India , for centuries. whenever cattle dies (example: a buffalo dies) , the cobbler who would live in the village, would come home, and take the died buffalo, for no cost.
the cobbler would dry the buffalo under the sun, until the skin remains. this skin is then made into some pairs of footwear. this footwear is sold in the market in the nearby villages. as a token of gratitude,
one pair is given to the owner of the buffalo
The narrative ends here !
Recycling was part of India and it was on steroids when there was no technology available.
- Recycling on steroids: died animals were used for footwear
- No additional animals were killed for footwear.
- No chemicals or dyes released into lakes or ponds
- No industrial gases into air
- No abundance
- No pollution
- People live longer with no medications and hospitals
In 2020s, Can everyone learn from this?
I don’t know.
But, we can reduce the abundance in the world that we’re living in. We can limit what we are buying, we can switch to more recyclable items. We can certainly live in a less polluted world. We deserve to live more happily !
More recycling stories coming
