PB + J Monday

Today is "Family Day" in Canada.   The government decided that February was too long and that we needed some sort of break and so they came up with Family Day.

My 7 year old son asked me yesterday how many family days there were, since it means he doesn't have to go to school.  I told him that according to the government there is only one.  But depending on the family, every day could be family day.   It really just depends on how you spend it.

Speaking of family, I came across this, on Facebook again, by chance.  It's called the "Complete Disapearing Packaging Family".  I love the ingenuity and creativeness of Designer Aaron Mickelson.  

He has come up with http://disappearingpackage.com.  A project where he took five common household products and came up with solutions to reduce or eliminate packaging waste.  Take a look at his ideas here.  They are all physical prototypes that he himself made by hand to show that it was possible.

Every year, Americans generate a lot of solid waste. In 2010, 250 million tons, according to the EPA. A full 30 percent of that (about 76 million tons) comes from packaging — it’s the biggest culprit.

As awareness grows about this problem, many companies and designers are looking for solutions to green their packaging by either making it more recyclable, or reducing the amount. Mickelson wants to take that initiative all the way to its furthest extent and eliminate packaging waste entirely.

"My goal with The Disappearing Package was to expand the conversation on sustainable packaging,” Mickelson says. “I hope, at the end of the day, I have shown that sustainability can still be beautiful. I leave that up to my audience to decide.”

I really hope he (and other creative designers) continues his quest to solve the problem of excess packaging.  These ideas are brilliant.  I especially like the Glad garbage bags and Tide pods that are their own packaging.   The tea and soap are pretty cool too.

What do you think?  Is there a product you don't like to buy and bring home because of the extra packaging?