Zero Waste ambition, with a realistic approach.
We live in a world built on plastic.
It is impossible to be perfect.
That’s okay.However, if we try our best to reduce our use of it, we can have a large and positive impact.
_Me
Articles.
Reusable Water Bottles
What is the right bottle for you? Find out why chemicals like: BPA, BPS, and BPF are harmful. Plus, find out which is healthier, stainless steel bottles or aluminium bottles.
Reminders.
Zero Waste is not about perfection, in fact “low-waste” is probably a better name for it.
In order for Zero Waste to be sustainable, it is crucial to give ourselves some wiggle room, kindness, and forgiveness. Every shopping trip, I allow myself some plastic “fails”. When I do buy plastic, I don’t see it as a failure, I see it is an opportunity to find a new way of doing things. This wiggle room allows me to feel empowered rather than defeated.
Values.
Transparency. I try to be as transparent as possible with the Zero Waste products I recommend. I make it clear if I have or have not used a product and I do my best to credit information and sources. However, if I have missed anything in terms of sourcing, please get in touch. I want to make sure everyone gets the credit they deserve.
Additionally, I try to highlight my short-comings often. I am not perfect, because I am constantly growing. This goes for you too, so treat yourself with kindness on your journey, nobody is doing everything right.
A Story.
Why Zero Waste is important.
Here in New Zealand, a large rain storm hit my town, Fox Glacier, in March of 2019. Over the course of two days, one meter of rain fell. This is more rain than most places in the world will get in multiple years. The heavy rain caused the Fox River to swell bigger than ever. It eroded the river banks and flooded the roads. The river eroded so much of the riverbank that an old, buried landfill, that was 100 meters inland, was now exposed and spewing rubbish into the river. The river swept away 200,000 tons of rubbish and deposited it along the 24km-long riverbed and even spit rubbish out into the sea, and into a marine reserve. A devastating disaster.
See the photos of the event below.
Plastic overwhelmingly littered the land, river, beaches, and sea.
Thankfully, volunteers rallied to clean-up.
Thousands of individuals.
Put in hours of clean up.
Over the course of 6 months.
To save this beautiful place.
Unfortunately…
While it was uplifting to see HOW many people volunteered their time, the whole clean-up felt very “ambulance at the bottom of the cliff.” Sure, it felt great to pick up the plastic before it could reach the ocean and harm marine life, but it certainly highlighted the fact that we still have no good method for managing our waste today, in 2020. All the rubbish we picked up was shipped and moved to a another landfill. Worldwide, we either burn or bury our rubbish, both of which harm the environment. Meanwhile, plastic is still being produced at astronomical rates.
These are the reasons why practicing Zero Waste or Low Waste is so important. We need to stop mass-producing the plastic first, and simultaneously, we need to fund research and development for waste-management. If the clean-up taught me anything, it is that a bunch of individuals showing up for a single cause can have a massive impact. This can happen for Zero Waste too. The quote, “We don’t need everyone doing Zero Waste perfectly, we need everyone practicing Zero Waste imperfectly”, sums up the point. We cannot let the fear of being imperfect prevent us from trying to be better.
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Lead by example.
Sustainability Seeker 