Often, the joy that comes with the 14th of February is unexplainable. The majority regard Valentines’ as a day when love birds get to show appreciation for each other. It can be in the form of company, gifts, celebrations, etc. However, for Frankie Leach, Valentines’ is just like any other day, though worse because it contributes to environmental degradation.
How Does Valentines’ Promote Environmental Degradation?
Two years ago, Mrs. Leach states that she told her boyfriend that she didn’t want anything for Valentine’s Day. For her, a nice dinner was enough to commemorate the day. However, 24 hours before the big day, she panicked. And asked her lover for some flowers. The furious boyfriend ended up spending 50 euros on some floppy red roses from an online boutique. Leach was not pleased with the gift. She hated red roses and the whole day turned out embarrassing and disappointing.
Therefore, to date, Leach fails to understand the Americanicanization of holidays. And of all the holidays, Valentines’ happens to be her worst. The thought of packed streets, with couples marching up and about with big bouquets and tacky cards, nauseates Frankie. The pressure that comes with Valentine is overwhelming. More so for the people who wish to surprise their loved ones. Everyone usually wants to post something, even if it’s just roses with some caption.
Couples post the gifts they have bought for their loved ones because of competition. Everyone wants to be at the top, displaying their ‘measure’ of love. Nevertheless, they fail to realize that the gifts they floss over are products of child labor, air pollution, and environmental degradation.
To begin with, the expensive pieces of jewelry lovers buy their partners. They are made from diamonds mined by children who work under harsh conditions to facilitate their upkeep. The roses which lighten up the faces of many ferried from abroad contribute to the surging levels of CO2, which result in global warming in the atmosphere.
Often, the laborers working on flower farms tend to work without proper protective clothing or healthcare on meager wages. Working closely with such chemicals daily tends to endanger their health. Three weeks of flower flight deliveries result in the emission of up to 360000 metric tons of CO2 which pollute the atmosphere.
Is There A Sustainable Way of Celebrating Valentines?
Despite flowers being of aesthetic value, they are one of the most damaging environmental products one can purchase. Large scale production of flowers requires plenty of pesticides and other nasty agro-chemicals. Since after Valentines’, most of the flowers end in the bins, buying sustainable flowers is of importance.
Amid February, buying sustainable flowers might be tricky for those living in the northern hemisphere. Hence seeking advice from experts or local florists on what they recommend might be the best idea. Alternatively, Ethical Florist sites like Arena Flowers selling a Fair Trade Bouquet of roses might serve best. Also, sustainable florists guide in London can be of help. Celebrating sustainably fulfills the needs of the current generation and preserves the environment for future generations.
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