Bag Lady Bags

Vital Stats

qorianka k

Culver City, CA

  • people helped100
  • People Doing It 17

The Problem

With so many environmental and social issues out there... it is easy to get overwhelmed... so to me its important to try to merge some of the many issues out there... like merging environmental preservation and homelessness ... and connect the dots... More and more people find thems self's ending up living on the streets... More and more pollution is facing our world... in fact.... The world consumes almost 1 million plastic bags per minute. The U.S. alone consumes 100 billion plastic shopping bags annually – and is throwing them away at an estimated 8 billion pounds every year. Only 5% of all plastics are recycled !!! 40% of plastics end up in landfills, and 55% are unaccounted for !!! (That means that the majority of plastics ends up in unknown locations…unknown locations like the OCEAN!) Plastic bags layer huge parts of the ocean floor, choking all ocean life… and are mistaken as food by hundreds of thousands of birds, fish and marine reptiles and mammals who ingest plastic bags and microscopic plastic bits and die, only to be eaten themselves by yet another animal…passing the toxins up the food chain. Some marine animals contain so much plastic toxins that their bodies can legally be classified as toxic dumps! This problem is clearly not confined within regions or species… Sooner or later poisoned water and soil affects the entire food chain. Toxic molecules from plastics are now found in human breast milk, and in the blood of babies, children and adults. Of course there are many causes of ocean pollution, but undeniably, one of them is the “harmless” plastic shopping bag. In fact, the problem is huge!!!!!!!!!! And this problem runs deep — all the way to the depths of the ocean … and all the way up the food chain! Just like the Ocean, this problem is not confined within borders! The ocean covers 71% of the Earth’s surface and supplies up to 85% of the world’s oxygen and nitrogen. There is no quick fix… Sometimes it is easy to feel overwhelmed by the seemingly endless assortments of environmental and social injustices in this world. In fact the problem of plastic bags is quite depressing and runs deeper than landfills, contaminated oceans and beaches or even recycling. It is rooted so deeply that we have to take an honest look at our culture, our habits, our laws and our lifestyle. Like everything else, it comes down to taking a good look at how we think, because positive change starts inside… in our hearts and mind and with our own actions. We have to ask ourselves: “How do I need to be, in order to see the world I want to see? What can I do to bring about the changes that our world needs?” You see, the challenge with plastic waste found littered and dumped all over the world is that this problem will not just go away by itself. Plastic does not biodegrade – it breaks down into smaller but persistent particles. That’s why we call our flag ship BLB bag which is made out of strips of used plastic bags the “FOREVER BAG!” In the long run, the key is to stop the problem at the source — right at the production level and by eliminating irresponsible over-use of these toxic plastic materials. But for now… we have created Bag Lady Bags … it’s our way to try to do our part in making a difference.The idea is simple ... homeless bag ladies are now my "eco princesses" ! ...BLB is the first ever hand bag line, created entirely by homeless ‘Bag-Ladies’ and Woman in homeless shelters! Bag Ladies turn into Eco warriors… reusing and recycling todays waste into high end fashion!

Plan of Action

Bag Lady Bags seeks to raise awareness about important environmental and social issues , while empowering homeless woman in our communities , in shelters and on the street of America. Through our innovative approach,we strive to provide woman in need not only with fun, creative and meaningful ways to earn a living , but encourage them to come on board as BLB team Members. Bag Lady Bags is a collaborative effort of youth and environmental activists,Highshools,Celebrities, Homeless and domestic abuse shelters and the creative woman who make our bags. What We do: BLB is a non profit ‘on-Q initiative’ community project inspired by the need for a permanent solution to homelessness of woman on the streets and within our communities.We are currently in the outreach and training stages, working directly with homeless woman and woman in homeless and domestic abuse shelters as well as senior citicens who have a need for additional income to prevent homelessness.