The very first Earth Day was April 20, 1970, and it was created by a senator named Gaylord Nelson as a way to get environmental issues on the national agenda. This was before there was an Environmental Protection Agency, Clean Water Act, Clear Air Act, or any real sense of urgency for initiatives to protect the planet.
Fast-forward 53 years and we live in a completely different world. Although we have made major environmental strides, plastic is literally filling our landfills and oceans. As global temperatures rise, we’re seeing extreme weather all over the globe. Needless to say, we still have a long way to go. Now more than ever, one Earth Day each year isn’t nearly enough—and we all need to do our parts every day as individuals and companies to improve the health of the planet and help it thrive once again.
SEEN has embraced the shift to more sustainable practices that are helping us minimize our environmental footprint and make the world a better place one day at a time. Beyond our mission to deliver gorgeous hair and healthy skin, our goal is to support our communities and the planet as a whole to ensure a more beautiful future for all of us.
We have a comprehensive sustainability agenda that continues to expand and evolve as more eco-friendly options become available. We have been committed to offering clean, vegan, and cruelty-free formulas since day one, and our efforts have grown significantly from there.
In perhaps our most exciting sustainability development to date, SEEN now offers Eco-Refill pouches that use 75% less plastic (by weight) as compared to traditional liter bottles. (Use them to refill your regular-size or liter pump bottles!) We are proud to give our customers this packaging option for our scented and fragrance-free Shampoo, Conditioner, and Deeper Conditioner—and Body Wash is on the way. (Stay tuned for updates!)
We also continue to make the transition to packaging that includes at least 25-50% post-consumer resin (PCR). PCR is derived from previously used and recycled plastic and replaces the use of “virgin” plastics, which are first-time processed petrochemicals. PCR offers a double benefit by reducing both the demand for new plastics and the amount of plastic that ends up in landfills and oceans. And as a bonus, PCR lowers the amount of energy needed to produce new plastics. (You may have noticed that our newer PCR bottles have a slight gray or yellow tint.)
In addition, we only purchase recyclable paper and boxes that are certified by the Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC). This means the raw materials are sourced from forests that are responsibly managed, socially beneficial, environmentally conscious, and economically viable.
Beyond taking steps to reduce our use of virgin plastic, we are also committed to gathering plastic before it gets to our oceans. We have an ongoing partnership with CleanHub, an organization that has built a network of projects that collect non-recyclable plastic. SEEN has been supporting a project called Green Worms, which collects household plastic waste door-to-door in South India since recycling is not available in these communities. Collections are coordinated by women-led groups, and this project provides 300 people with much-needed employment. With the help of CleanHub and Green Worms, SEEN met its 2022 goal of recovering 6,500 pounds of non-recyclable plastic! We have set our sights higher for 2023 with a goal of capturing 7,800 pounds of non-recyclable plastic.
SEEN views sustainability as an ongoing journey, and we wouldn’t be able to do our part without our customers’ support—and suggestions. If you have ideas about how we can continue doing better for the community and the environment, please send an email to sustainability@helloseen.com. Have a beautiful Earth Day!
