As beauty professionals, we shape more than just hair—we shape habits, set trends, and influence how people engage with their own self-care rituals. With World Ocean Day reminding us of the urgent need to care for our planet, it’s the perfect time to reevaluate how our daily salon practices impact the environment, particularly our oceans.
From rinsing chemical-laden hair color into the drain to using plastic-heavy tools and packaging, salons can unknowingly contribute to marine pollution. But the good news? Small, intentional changes can add up to a major impact. Here are five simple but powerful ways your salon can protect our oceans—all without sacrificing your artistry or client experience.
1. Rethink Product Ingredients & Packaging
Instead, choose professional products made with biodegradable, plant-based ingredients that break down safely and nourish both hair and the planet. In addition, plastic packaging, when discarded, can take up to 500 years to decompose. At Holistic Hair Tribe, we proudly support brands that protect both people and planet—and we make it easy for stylists to align their purchases with their values. Check out the brands below that are committed to ocean-safe formulations, transparency, and sustainable sourcing.
Intelligent Nutrients: The perfect marriage of beauty and science, I-N is leading the way on environmental stewardship. With help from the leading environmental organization BWE, they’ve measured packaging material’s impact on human health, resources, and ecosystems and opted for infinitely recyclable glass, as well as post-consumer recycled and plant-based materials. This helps to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and produce less waste.
Viori: Their emphasis on sustainable sourcing and eco-friendly packaging is what sets Viori apart from the pack. Organically grown by the Red Yao Tribe in China, Viori’s hero ingredient, Lonsheng rice water, is known to balance, soothe, and repair for stronger hair at the root.
Because Longsheng rice is at the heart of their all-natural care bars, Viori is deeply committed to a sustainable, respectful partnership with the Red Yao Tribe. They purchase their rice at a premium and give back a minimum of 5% of profits to directly support their community. Plus, all of their packaging is plastic-free and recyclable!
2. Minimize Water Waste
You can also educate your clients on water-wise practices at home by recommending concentrated formulas that require less rinsing.
3. Reduce Microplastic Pollution
Bonus: Educate your team and clients on how these sneaky ingredients can show up in beauty products under confusing names.
4. Switch to Reusable or Recyclable Tools
5. Join Green Circle Salons
For the waste your salon inevitably generates, there’s Green Circle Salons. Since 2009, they’ve kept over 8 MILLION POUNDS of beauty waste out of landfills by recycling and repurposing a multitude of products sent in by their salon partners. They even repurpose hair waste and leftover hair color. Here are just a few of the ways salon waste is repurposed.
- Excess hair color is turned into clean energy
- Metals are sorted and used to make products like bicycles
- Paper and cardboard are recycled into cellulose insulation
- Hair clippings are turned into bio-composite plastic
Final Thoughts
Because clean beauty should leave everything—including the ocean—a little better than we found it.
