Hello everyone! I am Christoph, Environmental Scientist, passionate Authorand sports enthusiast Animal and nature conservationists.
I have been living for many years vegan, waste-avoiding and minimalist wherever possible.
I would like to take this opportunity to to welcome you to CareElite and you my personal story to tell.
![Christoph Schulz](https://www.careelite.de/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/christoph-schulz-careelite.jpg)
![Christoph Schulz in the unpacked store](https://www.careelite.de/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/christoph-unverpackt.webp)
![Christoph Schulz from CareElite](https://www.careelite.de/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/christoph-cleanup.webp)
About CareElite
With this blog, I would like to raise our awareness of the uniqueness of nature and the ecological problems of our time and show how each of us live more sustainably and consciously can. You'll also find everyday tips, helpful tools and products - and clear answers to all sustainability questions.
Since I am here Absolutely transparent holistic solution approach, the Variety of topics from zero waste, plant-based nutrition, animal welfare, gardening, mobility, travel, fashion, finance, do-it-yourself, work, technology and minimalism to personal development.
Good to know: The word part "Care" is derived from the English word for care & mindfulness and fits perfectly with what we want to achieve. And the term "elite" stands for a group of great people and therefore for our sustainable community.
My story: How it all began
Since 2015, I have been actively committed to protecting our planet and all the creatures that roam it. But that wasn't always the case, of course.
After training as a banker and studying online marketing, I was initially quite surprised to realize that I lacked a real, long-term goal in life. What do I want to achieve, what do I want to stand up for and what could be my mission in life? I didn't have an answer yet - but I wanted to find one.
The decisive moment in Sri Lanka
With a Backpack trip in Sri Lanka, I gave myself 3 weeks to think about the answer. And on my first casual walk along the beach in Arugam Bay, a wave of individual flip flops, crumpled straws, cups, juice packs and lots of disposable plastic bottles came crashing down on me. On one of these plastic bottles - still easy to read - was an expiration date of 1986. The contents had of course been enjoyed long ago - but the bottle itself still looked as if it had only been thrown into the water a few days ago.
While questions such as "How is it that the bottle still looks so brand new?" and "What is the cause of this? Waste wave?" were running through my head, I first got myself a few garbage bags and started to tidy up. And not just the one wave, but also all the other disposable garbage I could find on the beach.
Just twenty minutes later, there were already four of us, as a local resident and two tourists lent a hand. Only 2 hours, six more participants and twelve bulging garbage bags later, the beach then looked again as one knew it from the typical vacation catalogs. A truly satisfying moment.
Question marks become exclamation marks
Incidentally, the garbage then disappeared at a local recycling company, which I had contacted after our action. However, the questions kept piling up in my head"Why hasn't anyone done anything, even though the garbage has obviously been sloshing around here for decades?" and "To what extent am I actually part of this problem?".
After a well-earned after-work beer with the helpers, I started researching on my laptop: Plastic is eternalbecause it is not biodegradable. I wasn't aware of that until then. I also found out that a plastic bottle takes about 450 years to decompose through sun, wind and waves into smaller plastic bottles. Microplastics has decomposed - and that no one was doing anything about it because waste was omnipresent and single-use plastic had become a permanent, convenient part of everyday life. Waste that I also produce in large quantities at home - and which at the time was also exported from Germany, mainly to Asian countries without functioning recycling systems.
So I had found all the answers to my questions. Also to the really big one regarding my mission in life. I had understood that it is not enough to hope and wait for someone else to save our planet. Instead, I have to become part of the solution myself if I want to see positive change.
What has happened since the trip
Back in Germany, I then got my analyzed personal waste from one week and specifically looked for waste-free alternatives to bottles, straws and other disposable plastic products. I also founded my Blog and the global CleanUp community on Facebookwhich now involves over 5,000 people from all over the world actively collecting waste from nature.
CareElite has been growing steadily ever since. The Store with plastic-free, sustainable products was added. In addition, the "mvg Verlag" me - so that together we could some books published and the odd appearance on TV and other media followed.
I then also went to Indonesia and India to More CleanUps and to raise even more awareness of the human waste problem. I am now traveling the world less often, but I am still too 100 percent focused on my mission and my work as a blogger.
I am also no longer as dogmatic as I was at the beginning, as I have realized that nobody has to do everything perfectly in their life. Striving for positive change is much more important.
Driven by my work for environmental protection and my love of animals I have also been vegan since 2019. A step that has made me much happier, as I can now in line with my personal values (including respect and compassion) - and no more animals are killed for my lifestyle.
Accordingly, it is hardly surprising that the plastic-free blog will inevitably become a sustainability blog over time developed with a more holistic approach ๐
And now have fun at CareElite!
I hope that with these lines inspire and motivate to do something for our planet ourselves and simply live more naturally and consciously.
Simply use CareElite as a constant contact point and devote yourself next to these, for example Core topics of the blog:
And here you can also find out how you can Join our community simply by following your heart.
Thank you for your support and I look forward to fighting with you to protect our planet - and all the creatures that live on it.
Do you have any questions?
Then use the Comment function below - or contact me personally via the Contact form with me. I look forward to your message and will try to answer you as soon as possible.
hi unfortunately I could not find anything about the country of production. evtl you can help me there with the toothbrushes. Is the statue biodegradable to 100 % somehow certified? look forward to answer.
Hi Anna! Danke fรผr deinen lieben Kommentar! Die Holzzahnbรผrste wird aufgrund des Bambusholzes in China produziert und kommt mit dem Schiff nach Deutschland. Was meinst du genau mit Statue? ๐
Best regards and a happy holiday season,
Christoph
your bamboo toothbrushes are quite woody
Hi Jeff! Hoffe du meinst das im positiven Sinne! ๐
Hello Christoph,
great praise and respect for your actions! I appreciate your attitude to our earth and environment very much, that you are already so farsighted as a young person makes me hope and motivates myself. I am 46 years old and deal only for about 3.5 years with the issue of plastic and initially it was really hard for me to find alternatives to the plastic, which nevertheless do not eat up all my time. First it was also only the classic, the plastic bag, which we replaced and have and always took cotton bags then the shower gel and shampoo would have to give way here found fragrant natural soaps the way in in our bathroomโบ๏ธ Then we bought no more packaged sausage and cheese. Then no more drinks in plastic and no more yogurts, my 13 year old son was sad at first because he didn't get his favorite yogurts anymore because with those in the jar the selection isn't that great, but he quickly realized that and now it's not a problem anymore? I now make him his favorite yogurt itself with muesli and fresh fruit, so I have then also directly killed two birds with one stone, because of healthy eating.
Thanks to various blocks, I now also make our mouthwash toothpaste ( by the way, we have already tried your recipe, is SUPER!!!) laundry detergent, detergent, dishwashing detergent and the cleaner for the dishwasher itself. There are no more stupid spray bottles in our household, whether bathroom, or kitchen, or window cleaner, soda, vinegar essence and the power of lemon is my weapon against dirt ?
so I also avoid toxic ingredients that are contained in all cleaners, and it still gets everything clean.
It's crazy, once you get started and devote a little more time to the topic, how much plastic you can avoid. Even our plastic apple bin used to fill up really fast, that has changed now. Cheers to your bamboo toothbrush, which we now use all 3, here we have only recently switched. My son loves them, my brothers and his daughter also use bamboo toothbrushes for a long time, I will bring yours times in the conversation?
The decision to avoid plastic and to deal consciously with our environment is something that everyone has to make for themselves, and many people unfortunately don't give it any thought at all because they think that they can't do anything on their own anyway, some are only concerned with themselves and still others simply don't care. And it is also clear that politicians and industry have to take much more responsibility. But many small ants? also form an army and thus you and I and many others are not alone and we simply infect the others and become bigger and bigger.
In this sense, thank you and I wish you continued strength and perseverance in all your actions and always sun in your heart.
Best regards from Wuppertal
one of the small ?
Hi Miriam! Thank you for your message!
Dann lebst du schon echt vorbildlich und kannst anderen die Grรผnde fรผr deine persรถnliche Einstellung zum Thema Plastikmรผll weitergeben. ๐
Best regards
Christoph