Yesterday a number of news sources reported that Starbucks announced it will be removing four toxic ingredients from its packaged nail polish. That news is meant to be heartening, a sign that multinational corporations are finally taking some steps to address the rampant pollution and danger that is threatening the planet. But although news organizations are peppering their coverage with low-hanging fruit like a big name like Starbucks, this announcement is so minor it makes me wonder if cleaning up nail polish isn’t more of a kindergarten project than an adult problem.
By “leaving plenty of teeth in the mouth” I don’t mean Starbucks still selling one of its beloved inks, ammonia, and methylene diphenyl ether (usually known as MDE), but rather, that companies that sell nail polish should see this as a step in the right direction. It’s like the majority of beauty companies. At a certain point, all of these new multinational companies deciding to eliminate chemicals in their products automatically promises to signal that this is also one of the best decisions their brand will make.
If nail polish companies don’t see lipstick as a business opportunity, who will?
This probably does sound like a case where incremental change will lead to major change, and I get it: thanks to my nosy editor, this was the #1 most Tweeted-about story of the day. But let’s be honest: removing the four toxins from Starbucks’ products is just one of the things we’re going to have to do to reverse decades of damage we’ve done to the environment. As someone who’s dedicated the majority of their 20s to caring for this planet, I understand that it can be intimidating to try to change things. While wearing a microfiber cloth on your hands instead of paper towels in restaurants can reduce plastic usage and pollution by something like 25 percent, I’m not sure I can do both. It’s like that basset hound I once adopted: she’s a remarkably loyal pet, but I know her special place will always feel a little less sweet because I share it with others.
I got over my casual neglect of the planet for the sake of my beauty routine because I started reading magazines like Allure that focused on chemical transparency and ozone filters. I read about everything from allergen-free mascara to compacts that would muffle my shoo sting. When I recently moved, my aim was to eat grass from the yard and garden from the vegetable plot next door to my house. The green thumb that I now own is a lot bigger than a chickadee, but I feel like I’m gaining a tiny slice of my missing wildlife.
Don’t get me wrong: I don’t want to go on a crusade to make all non-toxic nail polish illegal. This is a problem that needs to be addressed at a broad level. But I could start a little businesses in my neighborhood, like my local nail salon, and I wouldn’t have to abandon the industry that’s been in my family for decades to do so. It’s starting to be OK to respect the earth and put my time and resources towards things I love that contribute to the ecology, but there’s still a long road ahead and it might take years.
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