Everyone wants to be sustainable, just not where it hurts.
I like that quote. And I have to admit, it's from a Netflix series I watched yesterday 😅. But it's actually true – it's easier to avoid flying if you're afraid of flying. It's easier to give up meat if you don't eat much meat anyway. And it's easier to use public transport if you have good connections.
Sustainability becomes difficult when you have to make drastic changes, altering rituals and routines. I tried eating vegetarian and vegan for years. It didn't work. But when there were acute health problems in the family in 2019, which can be prevented by healthier eating habits, we changed our diet overnight. In Berlin, this was no problem; there are plant-based alternatives on every corner. But after moving to Lake Constance, it suddenly became an issue. Cheese spaetzle is often the most plant-based dish on our menu.
The birth of our child also provided a strong motivation – health and the planet on which this child would later grow up. So, we used only natural materials (finding a suitable mattress was our ultimate challenge) and no plastic toys. Cloth diapers, of course. We even went on vacation with cloth diapers. But only once, because the diapers (we used Ai2 before we developed our own) filled an entire suitcase. And on the flight to the US for Christin's Harvard reunion, we had to save on luggage. Using disposable diapers on vacation has become the norm.
We understand the struggles; we know how quickly habits can change, and sustainability rarely fits into our fast-paced, hectic daily lives. It requires conscious choices and often sacrifices. That's why we developed Lybbie – not an all-in-one (Ai2) diaper, as originally planned, but an all-in-one (AiO) because they're even easier to use than Ai2s. We didn't want a diaper that you consciously choose and leave at home on car trips because disposable diapers are more convenient. We wanted a diaper that's better and more absorbent than disposable diapers. One that can withstand the most stressful everyday life and can even come along on vacation.
Because sustainability shouldn't be a conscious decision, but rather something that happens naturally. As naturally as possible. We all want a healthier planet for our children, and we all have so much mental load and unnecessary stress in our lives, so we want to make the switch from disposable to reusable diapers as easy as possible.
