My senior project combines three things I care deeply for: Portrait photography, small/local businesses (especially those that are led by women) and sustainability.
I seek to highlight three local, sustainable and women-led businesses in hopes of bringing awareness to their efforts. Malia, Maryam and Melissa are promoting positive change on the North Shore. In their businesses, the three encourage plant-based diets. They also promote sourcing locally grown and organic produce, going green by shifting from plastic to eco-friendly products, recycling, waste reduction, supporting local, and thrifting.
Buying local saves money, supports farmers, preserves farms, promotes a safer food supply, benefits the environment, and supports the local economy. Choosing to shop thrift helps to divert more than 700 million pounds of used goods from landfills each year. Almost 100 percent of clothing and textiles are recyclable, yet 85 percent go to landfills. Thrifting also helps provide a stable source of revenue for more than 120 local charitable organizations and saves the consumer 70 to 90 percent on gently-used clothing, household goods and accessories.
My encouragement is this: Pursing knowledge and practices that lead to more environmentally friendly and ecologically responsible decisions and lifestyles can help protect the environment and sustain its natural resources for current and future generations.
