How To Make Your Beauty Routine More Mindful Of The Planet

Living a more sustainable life can come down to the small changes you weave into your daily habits. One of the easiest and most effective adjustments to make is to reappraise your purchasing habits – by shifting to brands that maintain mindful practices to minimize their impact on the environment. Here are the five brands you need to know about right now…

This regenerative science-led brand is renowned for its skin-healing formulas and A-list following, but, remarkably, Augustinus Bader is less known for its sustainability credentials. Every ingredient in the label’s lineup is sustainably sourced and, where possible, formulators bioengineer their own ingredients to eliminate the need to source from nature altogether. Additionally, between 80% and 90% of the packaging is recyclable, depending on your local recycling schemes; 70% is plastic-free; and all paper packaging is FSC-certified.

Makeup packaging is notoriously difficult to recycle. Unlike the bottle a serum comes in, for example, it can be challenging to separate the packaging into separate components – and the likelihood of recycling parts is very much at the whim of your local recycling authority. Makeup artist Gucci Westman decided to bypass the system altogether, and in turn simplify the process for her brand, Westman Atelier. To recycle your makeup, including lipstick, blush and foundation packaging, you simply clean everything, pop it all in a box, and attach a shipping label downloaded from the brand’s website. Finally, send everything on its way so it can be reused and repurposed.

One of the greatest sustainability challenges faced by the beauty industry is balancing the need to constantly launch newness with environmental commitments. Vintner’s Daughter is mindful of this and has limited its new products to just three in 10 years. Each product has been designed to deliver a host of benefits, rather than target a singular concern, helping to eliminate the need for additional products. What’s more, the ingredients that go into those three products are sourced from responsible producers, who use sustainable and organic practices. Today, 80% of all packaging comes from post-consumer recycled materials or FSC-certified board, while 2% of profits are donated to charitable organizations and non-profits, such as The Conservation Fund.

As natural sources become dangerously depleted, it’s imperative that brands look more towards bioengineering. Biotechnology is the foundation of Gezeiten, which essentially means growing or engineering ingredients in a lab that are identical to those sourced directly from nature. That way, only a tiny sample of the original natural ingredient is needed. In the case of this pioneering skincare brand, the process offers ultimate control over the quality of ingredients that make up its products, too – enabling them to be free of pesticides, GMOs, pollutants and solvents.

Founded by dermatologist Dr. Macrene Alexiades, Macrene Actives is underpinned by DNA repair research and plant-based ingredients to target skin from three directions: prevention, restoration and treatment. Charitable organizations receive 10% of profits, and the brand also funds educational and research grants for up-and-coming scientists alongside supporting environmental projects. Plus, the label’s formulas are vegan and cruelty-free, while the plant-based ingredients are all ethically sourced and non-GMO. On the packaging front, Macrene Actives uses recyclable glass packaging, recycled paper and cartons, soy-based ink, and forgoes cellophane packaging to cut down on waste.