#reasons to go no waste
There are a lot of reasons to go green and do your part to preserve the environment, but sometimes you don’t have to look far to find them.
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We have produced about 8.3 billion metric tons of plastic since its invention. Of that, about 79 percent of plastic waste is not recycled or burned — just left to sit in landfills or our oceans.
This is a massive health risk for humans and a deadly hazard for animals who think plastic waste is food, not to mention the broader environmental impacts. And yet, the solution may not be to ban plastic outright — it’s complicated.
Source: Kurzgesagt
Before I get too far along in documenting my journey to live sustainably, I’d like to talk a little more about the concept of a “no waste” (or “zero waste”) lifestyle.
The first real exposure I had to the concept was when I heard about an NYU student who could fit all of her trash in a mason jar. I vaguely remember reading news articles about her, but at the time didn’t give her much thought other than thinking how hard it must be to live like that.
A few years later, I watched a TED talk by Lauren Singer — the same person I’d read about previously. I considered a no waste lifestyle with a little more interest this time around.
And now, finally, in 2018, the message is finally resonating with me. I rewatched her TED talk this year when I started thinking more about going no waste.
Essentially, the no waste lifestyle just means you aren’t contributing trash to a landfill. The way Lauren practices, and the way I aspire to practice, however, allows for recyclables and compost.
This is an important clause. After all, most of us don’t live directly off the land, so buying the food you need to live a healthy lifestyle will involve some packaged goods. But if you are conscientious about the packaged goods you buy and make sure they are recyclable, you’re still offsetting (albeit not eliminating) your impact on the environment.
Since that TED talk, Lauren’s Instagram shows that her mason jar has gotten a little more full, but all her trash over the past five years still fits in that 16 ounce container.
I’m still a ways away from carrying around a mason jar of my own trash, but I hope to transition to that possibility as quickly as my current lifestyle allows.
If you have a second, I’d highly recommend checking out Lauren’s website at http://trashisfortossers.com/. It’s got a ton of helpful resources, which I plan to consult frequently.
You can also check out the website of Bea Johnson, who Lauren references on her blog. Bea has been in the waste-free lifestyle game since 2008, so you know she’s got the low down on doing the damn thing: https://zerowastehome.com/
Know of any other helpful resources? My ears (and asks) are open.
Today, I received the following package:
I didn’t remember ordering anything, so I had no idea what was inside. I went to open it.
Then I remembered: I’d ordered a camera battery for my new Canon M50.
And that’s it. That’s all that was in the box.
A whole big box, for one tiny thing.
I felt real bad. That’s a whole lot of waste for one little battery pack. Especially considering the conversations and discussions I’ve been having recently about waste, I felt like a complete hypocrite.
I aspire to produce no waste. It’s an overwhelming idea: to be someone who creates absolutely no trash in a world of plastic packaging, trendy clothes that are in one day and out the next, and cyclical technology trends that send us running to the Apple store every year.
How do you escape waste? I have no real idea. But I’d like to figure it out.
So this blog is really just accountability for me. It’s a way for me to think more consciously and take the time to write about my efforts and missteps in my quest to go no waste in a town that might make that difficult.
I think waste is inherently illogical. Even if thinking about waste from the standpoint of someone who doesn’t particularly care about the environment, we should question why and how we got to a point where trash is normal, an integral part of modern life. Why wouldn’t we try to minimize instead of accelerate the depletion of finite resources? We were only allotted so much, and we humans have known that for awhile — so why would we entertain a system so irrational, one that blatantly supports the constant production of waste?
Anyway, I’ll try to stay off my soapbox, because truthfully I’m still thinking through the philosophy of it all. But I will continue to question and learn about my own habits, and if you feel like joining in along the way, I’d love to hear about it.
I’m always looking for more educational materials so if you have any, please send them my way! For any of you who might already be on this path or for those just starting, I’d love to use this blog as a space to connect and share inspiration.
It’s going to be tough, and I’m not sure I will ever be able to say I live an entirely no waste lifestyle, but I’m going to try.
Here goes nothing.
