As published in The Beast magazine - Oct 2016 

Ever had the feeling money flows through your hands like water? If you haven’t fixed your leaks or installed water-saving appliances in your apartment, you may be literally pouring money down the drain. With three-quarters of our local population living in units, that’s a lot of wet dosh.

Contrary to popular belief, it’s not a block’s pool or large gardens that are the thirsty culprits.  ‘Most people are surprised when they find that over 85 percent of all water used in an apartment building is used within individual apartments (not common facilities),’ says Andre Boerema of Sydney Water.

The good news is that it’s often easier to save water in apartments than houses, with significant consumption cuts for the whole building. A recent review of 30 apartment buildings in the City of Sydney showed the potential to reduce apartment buildings’ water use by 25 per cent. 

As published in The Beast magazine - Sept 2016 

You’ve probably heard all the ‘hoo-ha’ about the scourge of plastic on our planet. About how an estimated eight million tonnes of plastic enter our oceans each year, where it entangles and endangers wildlife.

Single-use plastics, like straws, take a whole heap of resources to make, are used within minutes and then take hundreds of years to leave our environment. It’s sobering to think that every bit of plastic ever made still exists somewhere (and hopefully not in the gut of a poor unsuspecting turtle). This very real and scary problem has gained much deserved attention lately, especially with Plastic Free July.

Check our A-Z list of simple ways that we can try to curb our plastic addiction every day, even beyond July.  

When the Beatles sang ‘here comes the sun, and it’s alright’, they weren’t wrong. Neither are the 1.5 million sun-powered households across Australia that are sourcing carbon-free energy and enjoying reduced electricity bills.