Amanda Elser Murray

Image Source: Getty / Iryna Veklich, Westend61, Anthony Lee, Iana Kunitsa, Anna Efetova and Illustration by Becky Jiras While "natural beauty" was all anyone could talk about in 2015, and "clean beauty" was all the rage in 2019, these days, the beauty industry seems squarely focused on "sustainability" - a term that can feel vague and encompasses a lot of different marketing buzzwords and initiatives. The reason sustainable beauty is so hard to define is because it's often used as an umbrella term for a lot of different subcategories, including clean and natural beauty, making a stroll down the beauty aisle a very overwhelming experience. And while the cosmetics industry is still on the rise - the US market alone is worth $60 billion, per a McKinsey report - 67 percent of shoppers today have reported trying to make a positive impact on the environment, according to Euromonitor. This means "sustainable beauty" not just a conscious choice for the consumer but also a very important business move for brands. So while some companies are focusing on packaging and others are simply rethinking their marketing campaigns, below are a few sustainable beauty practices experts predict you'll see more of in 2024 and beyond. Prediction: Gen Z Will Lead the Change A report from Unidays describes Gen Z shoppers as "a generation with high hopes and high expectations. They want retailers to be sustainable so they can be sustainable - without compromise." This tracks with what brands are seeing when it comes to consumer trends. According to James Park, president of skin-care brand Herbivore, the demand for sustainability by Gen Z consumers is one of the main reasons sustainability is becoming more top of mind across all markets. "The Gen Z consumer is more conscious and environmentally aware than any other generation based on the consumer research we've conducted," Park says. Kristin Wolf, Ulta Beauty's senior vice president of enterprise strategy and transformation, agrees, adding: "Our guests - especially Gen Z - are growing more interested in products that align with their beauty needs, values, and lifestyle practices, and brands are evolving to better meet them where they are. This includes evaluating how ingredients are sourced, formulated, packaged, and eventually disposed of - as these are all key factors for conscious-minded beauty enthusiasts." Prediction: Brands Will Address the Beauty Packaging Problem The hard truth is that the beauty industry has a huge waste problem. In fact, the beauty and wellness industries alone generate more than 120 billion packages every year, and most of it ends up in landfills, according to a report from Averson Dennison. Packaging is too small, too flexible, or made of too many materials to be traditionally recycled. Additionally, more than 10 percent of beauty and personal-care products go to waste from either overproduction or spoiling. It makes sense, then, why so many companies are getting more innovative with their packaging to combat the crisis. Some newer brands like Ethique and Superzero are entering the space with products that are completely plastic-free - no refillable cartridges, no glass, just the formula. Others are focusing on zero-waste solutions. , plastic-free solutions, biodegradable formulas, or zero-waste packaging. Then there's Plus, a solid body-wash sheet that comes in a dissolvable wrapper made from wood pulp, which activates into a foamy lather when it comes in contact with water. Once you're done using it, you can just drop the sachet to the drain and watch it dissolve within 10 seconds. The tricky part facing legacy brands, on the other hand, is how to repackage existing products to be more sustainable. The reason this hasn't always been a focus in the past is two-fold: it's hard to get consumers to understand the impact, and it's not easy to do, production-wise. Take MAC Cosmetics, for example. When it first launched back in 1984, there was little education around recycling best practices and how plastic usage might impact the planet. Understanding this, in 1990, the company launched the industry's first take-back program Back to MAC, where you could bring your finished tube of lipstick to any MAC store and they would recycle it for you. "That was 34 years ago, and it was revolutionary at the time, but it was merely taking what we can and making it better," says Aida Moudachirou-Rebois, general manager for the brand. "Even today it's hard to recycle cosmetics because each part is made of many different pieces and materials. But now when we design the product we make sure we have sustainability in mind. We use post-recycled material and all our secondary packaging is made of FSC carton boxes. We have designed our store to be sustainable with the energy that we use, and we've [prioritized] our direct-to-consumer business to reduce our carbon footprint. We are constantly looking for ways to improve." Image Source: Getty / LUIS ACOSTA/AFP To that end, there is the reality is that shifting to more sustainable packaging isn't easy. According to Caliray brand founder Wende Zomnir, it's easiest to implement sustainability when you build a product that way from the ground up, which may mean consumers will start finding sustainable substitutes for their favorite brands versus waiting for them to reformulate. "Brands can definitely evolve existing products to be more sustainable, but I think there's more creativity and freedom to make sustainable choices when you are looking at a new product 'holistically' and not just trying to make substitutions," she says. "However, everything counts, so even if a brand can't make huge changes, staying open to opportunities for small sustainable swaps can have an impact and can be easier to scale in the short term." Others who may be looking to incorporate more sustainable packaging into existing product lineups have been experimenting with refillable cartridges, like Drunk Elephant did with its new Protini Polypeptide Cream Refill or Dove's 0% Refillable Deodorant. Wolf says whether companies are embedding sustainability into their DNA during inception or reformulating packaging after years in the market, it's a conscious choice and an element of beauty that will only continue to become increasingly more important to customers. Prediction: Circular Impact Will Be a Bigger Focus It's easy to think that the most telling part of sustainability in the beauty industry translates to the physical product you see on shelves, but it's important to consider the wider impact of the process from start to finish. This can look like many different things, including how and where the ingredients are sourced, the labor practices of a brand's manufacturing and production, and how communities at large are effected. The best way to determine the latter in particular is to consider where companies invest their resources, such as in outside organizations or charity groups with an emphasis on ethical working conditions or environmentally conscious business practices. Global beauty brands like MAC Cosmetics and Garnier, for instance, have partened with Plastics For Change to drive change beyond tangible product, but within local communities as well. According to the company's co-founder Shifrah Jacobs, PFC do more than collect plastic waste to convert to recycled raw material for brands' packaging needs (although that is part of its mission). "We are based in emerging countries where 90 percent of the plastic picking is done by the informal sector, which are very low income groups of people," she says, adding that they employ and invest their development to "ensure that they're taken care of in the value chain of recycling." Again, looking at a companies' approach to circular change is just important as the material they choose to house their product. "We must be able to create the livelihoods for the people who are picking up the material and make sure that they're able to have a consistent livelihood and human rights," says Andrew Almack, PFC co-founder. "We must also bring the infrastructure for collection and segregation, as that's really the key to getting the material back into the circular economy. Then, we must find a home for this material to be able to replace the demand on the fossil fuel intensive first use or virgin material." Prediction: Transparency Will Reign Supreme Guided by TikTok reviews and their Instagram discovery page, Wolf says social media will play an important role in influencing sustainable beauty, driving more accountability and action from brands and retailers alike. Wolf says Ulta Beauty uses its ever-evolving Conscious Beauty assortment to provide its consumers with more transparency when it comes to making an informed shopping decision. The assortment features brands and products that are vegan and cruelty-free, have clean ingredients, are sustainably packaged, and leave a positive impact. "Within this work, we made a commitment to have 50 percent of all packaging sold at Ulta Beauty be made up of recycled, bio-sourced, or refillable materials by 2025," Wolf says. And with 70 percent of shoppers considering TikTok a helpful resource when purchasing beauty products, the opinion of the masses definitely plays a role in the success of a brand or product. Alexis Androulakis is one half of the duo behind the educational beauty brand Fempower Beauty. Her partner initially started their TikTok account, @thelipsticklesbians, as a way for the founders to share behind-the-scenes moments. This included one trip to Sephora, where Androulakis was prompted to blindly guess where her favorite beauty product was made, a video that went viral. Now they use their platform to educate their community on the importance of breaking away from conventional beauty norms. In her opinion, brands that prioritize transparency and educating consumers about their sustainable practices can help build trust and demonstrate their commitment to sustainability. "Sustainability is a movement towards a more environmentally conscious approach taken in both the production and disposal of beauty products. Notice how Sephora went from Clean to Clean + Planet Positive. This is very intentional to communicate the synergy I describe above," Androulakis says. "I personally like to include the idea of diversity, equity, and inclusion under this umbrella as well, as it's ultimately about being socially conscious, too." Another brand doing it right, according to Androulakis, is E.l.f. Cosmetics with its "Fair Trade Certification" stamp that lives on its shelf as well as its website. While "fair trade" is considered another buzzy term that lives under the sustainability umbrella, in this case, it's a certification that is very costly for brands and takes a significant commitment. Prediction: Companies Will Look to Scale Their Efforts Experts agree that implementing more sustainable practices can be the more expensive route. As a result, you can expect larger beauty companies to aim to scale these efforts across their business to make the most impact. Garnier, for example, was already one of the first brands under L'Oréal to popularize organic products in the mass market and recently announced its Green Beauty Initiative as a way to radically reduce its global impact on the environment. Citing unprecedented global events and consumer habits, the brand is focusing on plastics and packaging, product formulations, and factories and production. Prediction: More Brands Will Focus on Education While Gen Z prioritize sustainability, they don't often know what that actually entails, so brands are in the unique position of being able to educate their consumer. A way some brands are engaging in this type of educational marketing is by partnering with third parties. "We also believe we have a role in educating our community about sustainability, which is why we make it a point to raise awareness and provide education via campaigns like We Are Allies and Planet A," Park says. For big retailers, like Ulta Beauty, it often takes curating leading voices in the industry to guide change. "Our Conscious Beauty Advisory Council, which is composed of change-makers spanning industries and brands, helps inform, elevate, and evolve product development and packaging," Wolf says. "This March, we'll begin piloting our Packaging Collection Program in partnership with Pact Collective in select stores across the Northeast. We're excited to test and learn through this program and encourage guests to conveniently discard their hard-to-recycle beauty empties at select locations to be properly processed and prevent additional landfill waste. She adds: "While there is always more work to be done, we're proud of the role we play as a beauty retailer, helping to elevate and provide more access to brands that are propelling sustainable beauty forward." - Additional reporting by Kelsey Castañon Related: 8 Tiny Beauty Tweaks You Can Make to Be More Eco-Friendly Amanda Elser Murray was the director of branded content at Vox Media, where she oversaw style, fashion, beauty, and home decor content on behalf of Vox Media clients. As a mother of two, she contributed parenting content across brand portfolios. She has more than 10 years of experience in the print and digital world. Kelsey Castañon is a Brooklyn-based writer, editor, and content strategist with more than 13 years of experience in publishing. She is currently the senior content director at PS, where you can find her stockpiling (and reporting on) everything from skin care to wine. Previously, she has worked with the teams at Refinery29, Seventeen, Shape, Allure, and Teen Vogue, and has appeared on TV segments on "The Dr. Oz Show" and "Good Morning America."

Smoking doesn't just wreak havoc on your lungs; it can also have a severe impact on your skin. It's a side effect that many people don't consider. According to board-certified dermatologist Corey L. Hartman, MD, the founder of Skin Wellness Dermatology in Birmingham, AL, smoking ages the skin and causes dryness, dullness, and unevenness. If you walk into your dermatologist's office as a smoker, he says the signs are apparent: skin looks weathered and leathery, with enlarged pores and a rough, bumpy texture. As if those symptoms weren't harsh enough, someone who has been smoking for a long time can suffer from premature aging, fine lines and wrinkles, and overall saggy features. In fact, according to a study published in 2012, "It has been observed that the skin of smoking addicts at the age of 40 years resembles skin of non-smoking [70-year-old] adults." "Smoker's skin" is what Dr. Hartman calls this phenomenon. "You can almost tell it at the door," he tells PS. But the impact smoking has on your skin goes far deeper than just surface level, wreaking havoc on your skin's overall health. To learn more about smoking's effects on the skin, including how it puts you at a higher risk for skin cancer, keep reading. Smoking Compromises Your Skin Barrier Research has found that long-term cigarette smoking may affect proteins and lipids in your skin barrier. "A healthy skin barrier is essential for radiant, plump skin," Dr. Hartman says. "In the long term, if you have a compromised skin barrier, you will see more pronounced signs of aging." Your skin barrier, which is the outermost layer of the skin, acts as a protective shield. "[It] protects deeper skin layers and your organs from environmental threats like UV exposure and pollution," he says. In addition to protecting your body, a healthy skin barrier is essential to keeping moisture in your skin. "You can think of the skin barrier like the bricks and mortar of a house, with a healthy skin barrier not having any cracks or breaks in the mortar." Smoking Leads to Wrinkles, Sagging, and Crepey Skin We've already determined that an unhealthy skin barrier can lead to earlier signs of aging, but why else is a damaged skin barrier so detrimental? Kseniya Kobets, MD, the director of cosmetics dermatology at Montefiore Einstein Advanced Care, explains that a healthy skin barrier function means the skin is optimized and skin-barrier lipids like ceramides, free fatty acids, and cholesterols are functioning correctly. "[The same 2023] study showed that the skin directly exposed to smoke is more affected, but they saw that skin on the rest of the body tried to compensate for the smoke damage," Dr. Kobets says. "A disrupted skin barrier can manifest as worsening rosacea, sensitive skin to creams and serums, and not being able to tolerate topical retinols, as well as possible itching, scaling, and red skin." This can lead to premature wrinkles and lax skin. Dr. Hartman explains that smoking over time can cause the "mortar" holding your skin barrier in place to break and crack, which then gives UV rays, pollution, and other environmental threats, like smoke, easier access to deeper layers of the skin. Once these environmental factors penetrate your skin barrier, it can cause premature skin aging in the form of wrinkles, fine lines, sun spots, and uneven skin tone. "Skin is normally more irritated or sensitive since a compromised skin barrier lets more irritants in," Dr. Hartman says. "In the long term, if you have a compromised skin barrier, you will see the signs." Skin Conditions Caused by Smoking Some research suggests that nicotine can increase your risks of dermatologic diseases like psoriasis, hidradenitis suppurativa, alopecia, and more. Dr. Hartman contributes this to the link between skin health and the barrier. "Anytime you compromise the skin barrier, you make yourself more susceptible to chronic skin conditions because you are harming your skin barrier and weakening that natural defense system," he says. This means that if you're predisposed to certain autoimmune skin conditions, smoking can either cause a flare-up or aggravate your condition. Another side effect of smoking is impaired wound healing, according to Dr. Hartman. Smoking affects the skin's ability to heal wounds, cuts, and bruises effectively, leading to delayed healing and increased risk of infections. Smoking Increases Your Risk of Skin Cancer While studies show that smoking is responsible for 90 percent of all lung cancers, there is also a direct link between smoking and skin cancer. Dr. Hartman says that there is research to suggest that smoking increases your risk of a form of skin cancer called squamous cell carcinoma. What Can Help? To be honest, not much. "My best advice is to stop smoking," Dr. Kobets says. There are in-office treatments - like lasers and microneedling - and topical products that can temporarily moisturize the skin, lighten age spots, and lessen the signs of aging, but as Dr. Hartman says: "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." Amanda Elser Murray was the director of branded content at Vox Media, where she oversaw style, fashion, beauty, and home decor content on behalf of Vox Media clients. As a mother of two, she contributed parenting content across brand portfolios. She has more than 10 years of experience in the print and digital world.