Sustainability v. Greenwashing with IKEA Live Lagom (not sponsored, although I am totally down with sponsored sustainability posts!)

Two years ago, I got an email from IKEA asking if I'd like to apply to their Live Lagom sustainability project.  I applied, but I did not get picked.  Bummer.  But I applied again this year and got picked!  

Image Description:  12 smiling people seated around a white table; it's us -- this year's Glasgow IKEA Live Lagom members and our lovely and gracious IKEA hostess standing in the very back.  Some of us are masked.  We were masked standing up and some of us unmasked when we were sitting down (socially distanced) at the table.

Lagom comes from the Swedish phrase “Lagom är bäst” (the right amount is best), which IKEA believe is the secret to sustainable living.  Each year, 12 Lagommers are chosen for each UK store from thousands of applicants.  There are 6 workshops, each with a different sustainability theme.  Lagommers each get £100 in IKEA products from a curated list which jives with the sustainability theme.  

Previous Lagommers have had full on camera crews filming short documentaries for youtube, etc. and previous Lagommers have appeared on in-store banners.  It doesn't sound like this will happen to us, but HEY IKEA, I'M TOTALLY UP FOR IT!  

As part of the Lagom application process, you have to write a very brief paragraph about why you would be a good candidate.  I forgot what I wrote two years ago, but this year I wrote some hokey but honest stuff about being a Yoga teacher and how the kids and I are involved locally with litter picks, the community garden, a local sustainability in fashion project (which was fab, and totally brought my sewing skills to the next level), etc.  

If you're already a follower of my blog, you've read my essay on plastic.  Sustainability is totally my jam.  I'm excited to level-up my sustainability credentials and to see whether or not IKEA really is as focused on sustainability as the Live Lagom project leads one to believe.  I approach everything with skepticism, especially large businesses, because greenwashing is totally a thing and large businesses can be super crappy, but so far, IKEA seem to be keepin' it real.  (They also claim to pay living wages to all employees, regardless of age, etc.)  They have implemented a buy-back policy for some of their furniture, which they re-sell along with the discounted returns and discontinued items in that fun area by the check-outs (the name escapes me and google is not helping!).  IKEA have also announced their intention to become "a fully circular and climate positive business by 2030."  (At the most recent Lagom workshop, I also learned there are solar panels on the rooftop!)

You probably just want to know about the project and whether or not we get free swag, so here is my recap of the Orientation Meeting:  

Image description:  The Sauchiehall Room in the employee area:  featuring 2 white tables pushed together, 2 pens, hand sanitiser, a photo frame, and a fake plant in a white bucket.  In the background is a wall-mounted flat panel TV, which says, "Welcome to the Live LAGOM Community".  On the wall is a striped wall panel and small sign, which says, "We believe in people."  

We got to go upstairs in the employee-only area.  I love a good sneak-peek behind the scenes.  It's super clean and well-lit and the floors are (fake) beech.  (I am getting the gross gross carpet out of my flat (blog about that coming soon!), so I have been noticing flooring everywhere.)  The orientation was more fun than you would expect.  The slide show had a sustainability quiz -- one of the topics was saving money by being sustainable (this is one of my favourite topics!) and another was about plants and air quality (another favourite topic of mine!).  We all introduced ourselves, and the other Lagommers are a really interesting bunch.  We all commiserated about council rubbish and recycling collection (Colin had a hilarious story about the overpriced and rickety 3-tiered bins required in his area that I keep randomly remembering and laughing), and about excess packaging in shops.

One of the IKEA Live Lagom objectives is to teach us, the Lagommers, how to live more sustainably, and we are encouraged to pass this knowledge on to others.  I'm already super sustainable, but believe it or not, the most recent workshop (my next blog) suggested a few things I could do around the house to save energy that I hadn't considered.

Image description:  The Snack Cart.  A 3-tiered brown wheeled metal cart holding a tray of pastries, 2 red thermal pouring flasks, soya milk, white cups, white paper napkins, and slender white cans of water.

There was a whole snack cart, with delicious-looking pastries, plus tea, coffee, milk, and soya milk.  Lisa the Lagom Hostess kindly brought out some IKEA vegan oaty biscuits when she found out I'm plant-based!  Another Lagommer talked about how he became vegan during lockdown, so I am not the only one.  I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but I know more vegans now than ever before.  I became a vegetarian in the 90s and have been vegan for over 20 years.  The UK is so much more vegan friendly these past few years, but the greater Glasgow area is especially vegan friendly!  

Image Description:  A slim white aluminium can on a pale teal background.

Also on the drinks cart was this groovy resealable can of water!  I took mine home to test the water seal and to show my kids.  The opening is plastic, but the rest is aluminium.  Fun fact:  Aluminium is the only commonly recycled material where it is way more profitable to recycle than to make new!  Here's a close-up of the resealable tab:

Image Description:  The top of a slim aluminium can with a black sliding plastic tab.

Tune in next week, for a much more interesting Lagom-themed blog, Cosy Homes!  I even got a peek at the employee cafeteria!

You've made it to the end!  I'm not talking shiitake when I say IKEA seem to be fairly sincere in their Sustainability efforts rather than just greenwashing to look good.  I'll keep investigating and keep you posted.  But anyway, I always try to have a fun or funny tidbit at the end, so here is today's:  So I'm a yoga teacher and I teach at a few places, including an on-line yoga school.  An astute viewer noticed I was wearing a bulgy-looking top in my latest video.  I laughed and explained that even though I'm not pregnant, all my workout tops are maternity wear!  Part of the reason for this is that I am trying to be sustainable with my fashion choices by making do with what I have, but also, it is really hard to find long athletic tops in 100% natural materials.  I don't like synthetic materials because they pill, don't breathe, and are bad for the environment (microplastics).  Suggestions and sponsors welcome!  XD