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TL:DR

  • Drew Barrymore was looking into a more eco-friendly lifestyle and ended up partnering with a company focused on sustainability.
  • She inspired me to examine where my family could change our habits, and there were many places to make an easy switch.
  • I feel good about participating in something with my kids that could help create a better future.
Drew Barrymore, pictured holding an award in 2022, is committed to a sustainable lifestyle
Drew Barrymore | Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Variety

Drew Barrymore is committed to a sustainable lifestyle, and her dedication inspired me to look into it. After going through the horror of really researching plastic and chemical pollution, my family decided to give a more eco-friendly-focused home a try. We’ve been pleasantly surprised, and here’s why.

Something to keep in mind: I chose the products mentioned in this article, and the opinions shared are entirely my own.

Drew Barrymore was on a mission for a more sustainable lifestyle

Barrymore credits her friend Cameron Diaz as her inspiration to focus on sustainability. And she had an epiphany when she began evaluating her cleaning products. “I was like ‘Oh my God, there’s so much plastic everywhere,'” she said (per Virgin.) “You have the refillable dispenser, but the refills come in plastic.”

The talk show host “spent years looking for easy, real solutions for a more earth-friendly lifestyle at home” for her family and for the world.

The result of all her searching was a partnership with a company “driven by the belief that sustainability is the only future.”

So, that’s where I started.

How sustainable products are working for me, thanks to Drew Barrymore

Inspired by Barrymore, as usual, I started researching sustainable living. I hoped to start simple: reduce my family’s plastic output and switch to earth-friendly products. And I was happy to see that Grove Collaborative, for which the legacy actor is a Global Brand and Sustainability Advocate, offers an easy place to start.

By the way, when I say my family, that includes two adults, two kids, four dogs, and many, many messes. And we’re in the house a lot because we homeschool, and I work from home.

So, from the start, our focus was on creating less plastic waste, using more plant-based products, and reducing the use of disposable paper where we are. First, we swapped single-use plastic cleaners for reusable glass bottles. We’ve done this for various products: glass, tub, shower, and counter cleaners, and even room spray.

One concern I had was that new products might create more work in the scrubbing department, but that hasn’t been the case. We use Grove’s biodegradable, mostly plant-based concentrated cleaners that come in small glass refills. And they can get the tough jobs done without a sore arm afterward.

Next, we replaced grocery store sponges with coconut scrubbers and reusable dishcloths. And the dishcloths are probably my favorite because they can be used like paper towels for spills, then go right in the dishwasher for a quick clean and reuse.

But we’ve gone beyond just switching the products we use to clean our house. We’ve gone to nearly zero-plastic laundry detergent sheets, wool dryer balls, hand soap, and dish soap. We even swapped shampoo and conditioner bottles for bars. And no one has complained!

Lastly, we’ve been using paper products made from “tree-free” panda-friendly bamboo, the fastest-growing, most sustainable plant.

Related

Drew Barrymore Took up Interesting New Hobbies Like Raising Chickens While in Isolation

Why sustainability matters

According to National Geographic, “plastic pollution has become one of the most pressing environmental issues, as rapidly increasing production of disposable plastic products overwhelms the world’s ability to deal with them.”

But sustainability goes beyond plastic reduction, though it is a primary focus. National Geographic defines it as “the practice of using natural resources responsibly, so they can support both present and future generations.”

Companies that commit to sustainability go beyond “green” or “eco-friendly” standards to achieve a broader benefit for the world. So, I feel great about our choice to make the switch where we have.

But it also feels good to talk to our children about the importance of remaining focused on sustainability as they get older, knowing that they could be someone else’s influence to do the same in the future.

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