03rd Mar 2008
Ceramic Mug v. Disposable Cup
Are ceramic cups more ethical than disposables? I thought the answer was rather obvious. However, in order to overcome, the amount of resources and energy used to make a ceramic mug, you need to use it daily for a couple of years. Hmm. Read more specifics here.
After reading the article, I would add: buy ceramic mugs at the Goodwill or other used goods places. There are usually a lot of interesting and handsome options. I never accept “promotional” mugs because I just don’t need them. Donate old mugs to the church or used goods shops. Use mugs for more than just tea or coffee - they work just as well for juice, milk, and water!
Used mugs seem to automatically increase the number of uses too.
I tend to have mugs that were gifts and are art.
Oh, I meant to add - this reminds me a bit of the “Prius” argument. Michael was jonesin’ for a Prius really badly. I don’t tend to care much about cars, except to hate car payments, so my attitude was, “Do whatever you want, but think about the money!” Well, being the kind of person he is, he spent about a week researching the environmental costs of buying a Prius, and comparing that to other vehicles. At the end of the week, he came to the conclusion that the Prius actually had a very high environmental cost; the car he found with the least impact on the environment was the Scion. Incidentally, it’s a much cheaper car than the Prius. I don’t know if we’re going to get one, but he stopped wanting the Prius so much.
Mugs are great for soup, too, especially when you have limited bowls. I still have coffee mugs that I was given when I left for college — not just a few years ago. The only ones I’ve ever bought were from Ravinia in Chicago, which was a big tradition for us while we were there, and a set for my then-boyfriend now-hubby when we were first dating because he had no way to drink tea in his apartment. We still have those, too.