This semester, I decided I was going to save the planet single handedly. Like most students on campus, I felt like I could save the world all by myself, and I had the perfect plan to do it. Inspired by Trash is for Tossers’s Lauren Singer, a Zero Waste Life-stylist from New York City, I decided to take the pledge to lead a zero waste lifestyle.
Lauren Singer is a recent NYU graduate who majored in environmental studies. When she was in class one day, she noticed one of the students take her plastic bag, her plastic bottle, all of her waste, and just throw it in the trash. It seemed to Lauren like an utter juxtaposition between what she stood for, and what she was actually doing. Lauren’s fury around this event turned into a passion for doing whatever she could to minimise her waste. For the sake of this article, we are referring to waste as anything that will eventually go into a landfill. This does not include recyclable boxes and plastic, but rather, plastic bags, chemicals, and inorganic matter.
I was so inspired by her story, I decided to take the zero waste pledge as well. This meant from then on, everything I bought I bought consciously thinking: “Where will this end up when I’m done with it?” Surprisingly, it’s extremely difficult to shop when you think about this. Here are some struggles I had along the way:
1. Snacks were some of the most difficult things to give up. I like buying corn chips for my room, muffins from the bakery for breakfast, cookies, chocolate. Then, I was faced with the looming fact that I may have had to give up all of it. However, I’ve found that if you look really hard, you can find fairly traded, fairly packaged foods. Chocolates that come in boxes instead of plastic, chips I’ve almost had to give up entirely on, but you can find those that come in cans. Instead of buying highly processed food, I now buy more fruits, jarred snacks, and boxed cookies and crackers which are typically better for you anyway.
2. Razor blades were a tough challenge for me as well. I used the disposable Venus Olay razors, I loved the way my skin felt, I didn’t get any itchiness or dryness. However, I did throw them away after about 2 – 3 weeks of usage. Once I finished my razors, however, I bought the Murker four inch double edged safety razor. My favourite blade is the Shark blade, and it is so much better for the environment (and your pocket). You not only get an unbelievably close shave, but you save up to about $150 per person per year on razor blades. Plus, you end up recycling and reusing.
3.Shampoo, Conditioner, and Body Wash I can cluster all together. I have yet to finish my bottled shampoo and conditioner, but I did start using Lush soap bars. These are organic and fair trade soaps that are packaged neatly in paper that can be recycled easily. However, it’s super expensive for such a small cut, so I’ll probably be switching to a more basic soap. It’s really easy to find bar soap that is organic and fairly packaged (if packaged at all). Shampoo and conditioner are much more difficult to find. Unlike Lauren, I will be trying out shampoo and conditioner bars. You can find shampoo and conditioner bars that are packaged in paper on Amazon for a reasonable price. I will be trying the Purple Prairie Botanicals Rosemary Mint Conditioning Shampoo Bar, a 4 oz. bar that is a 2-in-1 shampoo and conditioner for $9.45. Surprisingly, this is less expensive than if you were to get an equal amount of product in a Herbal Essence product.
4. Toothbrushes are surprisingly the easiest switch I’ve made. Instead of buying Oral B toothbrushes, I buy bamboo, biodegradable toothbrushes. I found on Amazon a pack of four for really cheap. It came packaged in a paper envelope, and the actual boxes are made out of recycled paper and plant fiber plastic (how cool!). They work amazingly, and they’re ideal for the environment.
5. Deodorant and Toothpaste are two plastic packaged products I have yet to run out of, and I’m having a hard time coming up with other options other than plastic packaging. Lauren Singer makes her own toothpaste and deodorant;, I think I’ve decided I will also be making these products myself. Saving time, money, and the world. For toothpaste, by making your own, you are keeping harmful chemicals out of your body and the landfill, and surprisingly, it’s less expensive to make your own toothpaste than to buy it. In buying toothpaste, you pay for the labour, the packaging, and then the actual product itself. By making it, you cut out the middleman. In terms of deodorant, you may want to make your own because many of them have potentially harmful chemicals such as aluminum and propylene glycol that have been linked to cancer, Alzheimer’s, and damage of the central nervous system. Not only that, but the method of processing these chemicals is extremely detrimental to the environment. I will certainly be making my own deodorant, because there are so many problems with current deodorant, including packing, that deter me from buying it again.
6. Shopping in general I try to bring my own canvas/reusable bags with me to the supermarket. I usually end up getting discounts because of this habit. Resuable bags are sturdier, and, duh, they’re not going to be tossed in a landfill. Also, I always try to shop second-hand, meaning I am not contributing to a new production of clothes that could have possibly been wasteful to make.
7. Take out/Blanchard Cafe– often, I find myself in Blanchard getting food, and often, I am posed with this common problem of plastic utensils, plastic chip bags, plastic bottles. All big no-nos. Instead, I bring my own silverware and cloth napkins wherever I go in my backpack, and use them as needed. It’s something so simple and so small you can just pop in your bag and use daily. You just wash them as needed. I also try to bring little stainless steel containers just in case I don’t finish something, then I can just stick it in one of these containers to bring back with me.
8. Tissues are a big source of controversy. While I love the lotion infused tissue, it’s so easy to just buy hankies. Hankies?! Yes, hankies. They’re better for your skin and you’re not throwing away a million little pieces of paper in the wintertime when you have a stuffy nose. You also save up to $20-$40 a year by using them. If you get a bunch of them, you can put them in your bag, on your nightstand, on your desk, in your jacket pocket. Wash them with your regular load of laundry, and perfecto! You’re good to go (just as long as you do your laundry once a week).
9. Laundry is also difficult. I haven’t yet finished my plastic and chemical-ridden detergent, but once I do, I will switch to Seventh Generation boxed laundry detergent. Seventh Generation is a great company where their products are fairly made and harmful-chemical free. Instead of dryer sheets, I will be using wool dryer balls. They actually have rated higher than drier sheets, because they make your clothes softer, plus you don’t have harmful chemicals in organic drier balls.
10. Makeup… gosh. I love makeup. I love makeup so much, and yet, I’m running out of mascara, powder, lipstick. I’m panicking. Or am I? I’m not! You can make your own lipstains and blush from beetroot, make your own mascara, and there are so many companies that are getting on-board with the waste-free makeup train. Some of these companies include Elate Cosmetics and RMS Beauty as my two favourite. To remove makeup, you can also instead of using makeup remover, make your own cotton rounds and use organic coconut oil, jarred, which you can find in your local Target.
These are just some ways to start going zero-waste. Soon, you will be a pro, and you’ll get the hang of it. It will become second nature, but everyone has to start somewhere. If you want to learn more about Lauren Singer, this is her website where you can find out more about all the ways she went zero waste. If you have a road block, and you can’t think of a zero-waste alternative (deodorant for example) you just type in deodorant, and she’ll have a blog post about what she did to switch over. You could follow exactly what she did, or you could get your own ideas from there.
A lot of people are probably fearful that this lifestyle is expensive. Buying organic? Chemical free? Local? I’ve seen those prices, and they’re astronomical. Perhaps you’re right, but have you also though about how much less of these products you will be buying in the long run? Organic materials, such as milk or cloth bags, tend to last longer than processed materials, such as plastic and inorganic milk. Shopping locally will support business in your area, inevitably putting money back into your pocket. Glass, and stainless steel, while more pricey than plastic, lasts longer and will, again, save money in the long run. You’ll need to buy fewer items when you go out shopping. You will get money back by recycling, you will end up buying in bulk, you will cut out the middleman in a lot of cases. While it seems more expensive and time consuming by looking individually at the prices online and in store of organic, fair trade, glass, stainless steel, chemical-free products, you can actually save over 40% of your overall spending. If nothing else I said makes you want to switch to a zero-waste lifestyle, maybe this number will!
Here are some more helpful links to getting started on your zero-waste lifestyle:
An Online Store called Life Without Plastic
An Inspirational Video by Bea Johnson on her attainable Zero Waste Lifestyle
Lauren Singer’s Company The Simply Co.
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