JIDIENNE IBANEZ

Can you tell us a li le bit about yourself and what you would want our readers to know about you?

I am actually a Filipino who has been living in Malaysia for pretty much all my life. I grew up and studied here, Bahasa is my second language and Malaysia has always been a home to me. I have always been a little against the social norms so I didn’t focus too much on furthering my education, mostly because I didn’t know what exactly my passion was and in what industry. So I wanted to start work immediately to find it. 4 years of corporate work experience allowed me to discover that I have a knack for anything creative and a little bit of management. I’ve always had issues with my skin since I was a teenager, even today at 26 years old. I have my good and bad skin days like everyone does. I think the older you get, the more comfortable and accepting you are of your skin (and yourself) that you learn to live with it and be ok with it.

What motivated you to sta The Mineraw? Tell us more about the journey

I started The Mineraw with the motive of helping others out there who are going through similar skin issues. Not just the physical appearance but also the impact it can have on your own self confidence. The mental and emotional strain can affect our outlook on life, how we feel about ourselves, how we view the world, and how we deal with certain situations. I went through years of not being happy with my skin that I tried everything you can imagine with no results. Then one day I just thought maybe I’ll let my skin breathe. Maybe I’ll try a more natural remedy route that our past ancestors tried and tested. I played with some natural ingredients and did a bit of DIY in my kitchen to formulate a few products to create a basic skincare routine. I slowly started seeing results and stuck by it for 2 years. During that time my skin started to calm down and I became happier with it. Family and friends begged me to make some more of the products for them which eventually led me to starting a little business from it.

As a conscious lifestyle advocate, what are the most pressing sustainability challenges in the industry today, and how could they be addressed?

The main challenge I find today is proper transparent recycling initiatives, system / procedure as well as education. The issue I find is that recycling isn’t normalised here in Malaysia as much as other Western countries. We should be able to recycle our plastic containers as well as glassware with the knowledge that they are going to a proper recycling centre that will 100% recycle them into smaller particles to then be moulded into new plastic or glass containers. The responsibility should be on the government to make recycling a nationwide habit so that it is normalised instead of putting the responsibility on charitable organisations. Imagine a future where our future generation just knows...

Now that people are more aware of the environmental issues and want to reduce their influence on the environment. What advice can you give them and where should they sta ?

Start small for starters. Never begin with big drastic changes. Something easy like carrying a water bottle with you everywhere so you don’t need to buy a plastic water bottle when you’re thirsty. From there you can slowly make other changes to different aspects of your lifestyle. This steady approach will allow yourself to ease into sustainability while not causing such a big change in your life. You don’t want to find yourself stressing if you forget to do this or that, we often become so hard on ourselves. Remember it’s not a race or competition. Sustainability is awareness and doing what you can as a human being.

What are your future plans and goals for your commitment to sustainability?

My future plan and goal for sustainability within The Mineraw is to open our very own flagship store with our own recycling programme, as well as refill stations for our products. We hope to find a recycling centre that is committed to reusing every bit of plastic, aluminium and glassware. If anyone has a suggestion, please let me know!