The RISE and FALL of Zero Waste
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- Опубліковано 6 чер 2023
- The Zero Waste movement hit the internet in the mid 2010’s with a new way to save the planet and, thus, changing the direction of the environmental conversation online. But over five years after the movement first started, did it actually do anything?
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Script: Estelle Walton
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we don’t need a bunch of people leading a perfectly zero-waste life, we need everyone leading an imperfect limited-waste life
Ya, they could have said that in 60 seconds and saved us the other ten minutes. ZZZZZ
@@Nicksonian The climate crisis, waste crisis, and related issues are very nuanced. Sure, the core of the story can be said in 60 seconds. But a lot of important information would've been left out.
I'm not often very interested in the 'what'. I'm way more interested in the 'why'. That information is also necessary to build solid arguments which can be used to convince people
One of the most important comments!
@@Nicksonian TikTok and short form content really rotted peoples attention spans.
@@nihilriv3r I'm a retired journalist and back in the day we'd call this dumbed-down content...or infotainment. My argument with this channel is that it's marginally informative and marginally entertaining, trying to do both but neither well.
zero waste is just another way of blaming the consumer when we should be targeting corporations
so so so true.
The goal for corporations is by design, maximum earnings and not a better world. Otherwise it can’t survive.
The goal of a government (who would have the power to make important changes) is to be re-elected and with that to keep the people content and with that to keep them employed, therefore also keeping the companies content.
The consumer are the people who’s goal should be to reproduce and stay alive as long as possible. This therefore should include how long as a species we can stay alive and make us care more about the environment. Since surviving now is more important though, only the ones with too little “survival” problems are pretending to care but unwilling to change (enough).
If we consumers would care enough, governments and companies would have made real moves for significant change, long time ago.
We all love convenience to much though, so it’s all hour problems. Easy to blame others.
@@mrcsrkcrz That is a pretty easy way to blame the consumers for the problem. I think a better way to describe the goal of a consumer is "to enjoy life", to one really thinks that just surviving is enough when you have the option to do more than that. So:
1. Consumers want to enjoy life as much as possible. To do that they must survive and ensure that the planet can sustain life;
2. Governments want to be re-elected. To do that, they politician not only needs to survive (getting the clause above) but also needs their voters to survive as well, double reason to make sure that the planet survives
2.1 A politician's desire is to maximize their own money, and one way to do that is to continue to be elected
3. Companies want to maximize profit for shareholders. For that, the share holders need to survive, they need to ensure the politicians that give them tax benefits survive, and need the consumers who give them money to survive; triple reason to want the plant to be good.
Companies should be the the thing that tries the hardest to be green, but since that is not good for short-term profit, they tend not to. Governments in theory should be next, but what a politician really wants is more money, so if a company bribes them hard enough, they'll let that slide because once again, short term profits are king. That leaves the consumer, which needs to spend time they could be enjoying life to instead have to read up on and understand complex proceses of supply chain and networks of influences. And since the consumers do it for free, companies and politicians have even more reason to push that blame onto us and remove themselves from the equation by implying that "if you cared enough, you would spend the extra time researching/working a second job to afford the more expensive version". Don't fall for that propaganda BS
@@mrcsrkcrz yeah you sure wont stay alive without a single use coffee cup. Also corporations shouldnt exist if thats their goal
Except look at how big of an impact the consumer demand of the zero waste movement had on our culture! There is so much more compostable packaging at restaurants and grocery stores. Businesses like Blueland, Dropps, etc. arose from a DEMAND and growth for these alternatives. Capitalism got us into this shit hole and to deny the role it has to play to get us out is wishful thinking. When people want something, the market abides and companies listen. The issue is that not enough people care to demand the change from the companies so things rarely change.
As someone in healthcare, the amount of medical waste that is created from sterile packaging is such a necessary evil ☹️
Same with science! I feel guilty about all the gloves and sterile packaging, but it keeps so many infections from occurring.
If we had only the plastic in the medical sector we'd be good xD better than accidentally giving your patient sepsis
But the health field was never a problem in ZW comunity. The issue is the amount of unecessary plastic we bring home everyday.
A patient dying of infections probably produces more medical waste though.
Did you not put gloves and equipment into big cleaners after every time you used them back in the 70's and 80's?
Albeit the only thing prompting me to say it is scenes in hospital films.
My point being that these things can be reusable if they're better quality and cleaned properly.
I would like to add that I think part of the problem with zero waste is that it was too black and white and ignored the whole life cycle of a product. It focused so much on packaging. I'm a lot of cases plastic packaging is the best option for preventing even more waste. When food spoils before it even gets to the consumer it wastes all the water, fertilizer, land use, energy picking and processing it, energy transporting it, etc. That's more in total than the container. Some thing with consumer goods. I Hate how a lot of things are packaged, and there are better ways to do it in a lot of circumstances like using cardbosrd vs Styrofoam, but packaging is necessary because it prevents the thing from arriving to the store damaged and then just being wasted. So the message got muddy. We all want simple stories like buy a metal straw and save the planet but real environmental work is complex and nuanced and requires a thorough analysis. Most people don't have time or expertise for that but we need to amplify the voices that do. And we need to trust and listen to them. We need to change our minds in the face of new evidence and we need to stop viewing that as a weakness and see it as a strength.
Thank you for your insight. What you shared really makes sense
We TOTALLY agree here, somebody else in the comment section mentioned how the term Zero Waste was originally coined for companies to assess their product's life cycles, not for individuals. It's a great point because a lot of us got hung up on that terminology and took it to believe that if we owned anything in "incorrect" packaging then it was a personal moral failing, instead of one of many components to judge a business on. Thanks for sharing!
In short it got Woke…
Amazing comment 👏 some people also don’t realize this was very pushed by many companies or people who don’t understand enough and probably don’t care enough to do research, but would rather be part of the solution. And greenwashing is not always just a company that doesn’t care but does better because they know it sells. Many times it’s actually worse. I don’t know how many plastic straws I’d need to buy to reach a similar footprint the metal straw (again looking at the full cycle, including cleaning etc.) has and I never missed not having them. Buying a heavy reusable net that has way more plastic and can still easily get lost, broken or simply forgotten at home and then you might also buy a few per year possibly using more plastic, while you could have just used nothing for the veggies. I’m not doing the math but yeah I love how you described how plastic or spraying chemicals might not be great but it might help more than it damages. If someone doesn’t understand the full cycle of things it’s not worth going hard for it. You might do even more harm.
W
the first time i knew 100% zero waste life is a sham is when Lauren Singer said in an interview that she uses contact lenses. as someone who's been wearing contact lenses for 15 years, I know solution packaging and the lenses themselves are not recyclable and her little mason jar would actually be a lot bigger. the tiny mason jar is a lie she's selling to create a brand.
I think the biggest reason why zero waste failed, is because it became popular and an aesthetic. all you'd see are perfectly matched mason jars, cutlery, shopping bags, etc. but in reality, a real zero waste lifestyle is using old t-shirts as drying cloths, glass jars of different sizes for pickled fruits and vegetables, grains, and so on.
you can never be 100% zero waste, but the image they sold us made a lot of people more wasteful, bc you can't show off your pantry if it doesn't look ''aesthetically pleasing''.
Yeah I imagine these people buying Mason jars made in China probably in a labor camp, delivered via Amazon spending tons of Diesel and gas and underpaid workers that have to pee in bottles, with tons of foam packaging and a shiny box probably using chemical in the packaging ink, coveted by the Amazon box with the big "Rings Of Power" ad so they can exhibit in their zero waste kitchen, while throwing away the perfectly fine Tupperware that they inherited from their mothers. Also sending to "recycling" all the jars of jam, pasta sauce and hellmans that they could have used instead.
@@thevikingbear2343yup it just became another brand of consumerism. True anti -consumerist content is always going to struggle on platforms like UA-cam
it’s possible she’s using rigid gas-permeable contacts, but yeah while they can last over a year they’re still not recyclable
Zero waste is impossible. We should all strive to minimize our waste and be more environmentally conscious, but having NO waste while living in today's society is impossible.
yes !! influencers had a pretty aesthetic but the reality is using : a old ugly tupperware container or miracle whip container until it breaks down, ugly worn out cleaning rags, clothes with patches , cutting up worn out sheets to make into other things, the blood and poop stained flannel wipes for drying your rear after the bidet, the stained menstrual cups, that cloth diapers need to be stripped with bleach sometimes , and package free food just it 2x more most times in grocery stores then something in a plastic bag . it reeked single living , privilege and of classism . I still made some swaps and some of them did help my budget but a lot of it is unattainable for a family of 4 who make only $50,000 usd a year in a part of the country were being green =thrifting and recycling . my house will never look pinterest/ instagram/etc worthy . but I'm trying my best !
I think “mindful waste” is a more practical way to go. Idk if that’s a thing but that’s basically what I do. You can’t eliminate all waste but you can certainly be mindful about how much garbage you’re responsible for.
One step better like filling your water bottle before you leave so you don't buy water in a plastic bottle while you are out save you money and the plastic bottle. Even 1% is better and some things we don't always get a choice on due to company packaging or the stack of papers we got at work we will throw away after the project is over. Anything is better than nothing.
Remember not to blame yourself. It's a company's job to cut back on their waste - not you.
I come from a country (Philippines) where there are a lot of products sold in sachets -- from shampoos and lotions to cooking oil and vinegar. I remember many zero waste advocates admonishing the use of sachets as it produces a lot of waste that doesn't get recycled, and usually end up clogging waterways. What these advocates usually forget is that buying items in bigger packaging that produce less waste or switching to shampoo bars is just too expensive for a big part of the population, especially those that earn minimum wage (or less) and get their pay on a day to day basis. It's not that people don't care per se; they literally can't afford it. Instead of pressuring the big corporations and industries to switch to more sustainable/environment-friendly practices, advocates usually put the burden on consumers who really don't have much choice given their limited resources.
Shampoo bars etc are not necessarily more expensive. They last for a long time and personally, I saved money by switching to shampoo bars. Also, a lot of other packaging is just not necessary. Obviously, it is a question of consumer choices, and I don't blame people in the Philippines: If people in western countries would use shampoo bars etc more, there would be more companies offering them and cheap options would establish, which could then also be used in countries with more poor people. If those who can afford it do afford it, it will become affordable for everybody at some point.
I think slowly corporations are getting the message that we want to buy things in better packaging but it's slow. Even here in Australia where we have Costco, where you expect things to be in big packets, sometimes they just get multiples of a small item you would see at a normal store, use more plastic to wrap them up together and make it ''bulk" for Costco.
Exactly. It was first world privilege, telling the majority of the world who didn't even cause this, they were doing it wrong.
@@manuelpopp1687 The idea is, that yes, they are, if your store does not stock them. Now, you have to drive to a different store, that only has a probability to stock them, and of course, online retailers carry them all the time, and so on, so vias the advertisement of shampoo barts, you are killing local stores....
IT usually shows a highly problematic america centric view of the world, where everybody eats burger, knows what pumpkin spice tastes like, and drives around the block once, to get fresh air, tipping the homeless guy.
The usual cure for that is that I will eat, in front oif the camera, a breadroll with ground beef and pork, 50 50, that I purchased at a gas station, just to see the horrified faces of the americans. Maybe have a nice sip from my kitchens tapwater afterwards. Pure ground beef and pork, slightly chilled, non cooked, and just water from the tap. Other countries have similar tactics to shut the hyper privileged voices of continental america up.
The first lesson that you have to get through the privilege is that Other countries means other rules. what is good in your country does not neccessarily work in other countries. IF you do not understand this, your voice should be removed from all international channels, and restricted to national channels only.
In a similar spirit to this, I am now going to go out, buy some raw pork from the local gas station that I am going to eat straight away, I am then going to take the train to see my doctor, just because I feel a bit under the weather, and I am going to enjoy the fact that my university education did nhot come at all with student loans.
Just because I can.
You can use eco enzyme to replace shampoo. There's tutorial about it.
Trying to live a "zero waste" life caused me a huge amount anxiety. It ended up really worsening the quality of my life and affected my mental and physical health (I ended up underweight and malnourished because sometimes it was too expensive or difficult to eat zero waste so I would regularly skip eating). Now I focus on minimising my waste but embracing imperfection.
I've had the same story. At first, I was so into the zero waste but at some point it started to make me incredibly anxious. As I lived with my parents, I could not regulate their habits. And looking at all the waste, which was produced by others you cannot control, drove me crazy. It is so hard to separate yourself from others and ignore the unnecassary consumption.
@@VeronikaAndersonI feel the same way, and maybe some would call that anxiety, but with the way things are headed, I don't know how everyone else isn't worried at all the meaningless consumption. I know people want to say "blame the corporations," and that might be true for things like plastic shampoo bottles, but in the end most people are just buying too much shit and wasting too much shit.
Yes yes anxiety and guilty trap
I already have depression and i wont compromise my mental health for anything
Wars and chemical factories around the whole world and iwas anxious about my coffee cup ,, so damn zerowaste infleuncers who make a profit from selling swaps we dont even need
I'm glad you brought up how it was completely inaccessible for most people. I was in the middle of going hard-core zero waste when my daughter was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. The guilt that I felt with all this new medical waste coupled with postpartum depression was tremendous. I'm very careful now not to watch anything on UA-cam that shows these "perfect" people doing whatever the latest trend is. I wish more people just posted real life shit. I now use paper plates because it saved my sanity when I couldn't get the dishes done and I’ll never feel bad about that again, we all have to do what we can where we can.
Self compassion seems left out of the conversation much of the time. 🙁 What should be a universally accessible movement becomes classist and ableist. ❤You did what you needed for you and your family in a system that is broken ❤ and your community should support you, not attack you. The focus should be on fixing the broken system and supporting our neighbors when they are in need.
Thanks for sharing this here. Everyone is going to have to approach things from where they're at. Hopefully you're finding a balance. 🙏🏻❤️
my husband is type 1. I save all his reservoirs that go into his pump and take needle syringes and put them back into empty bottles so none of the insulin goes to waste. I've gotten 10-15 units out of each reservoir that the pump cant push out the neck of the reservoir 😬 I don't feel as guilty about the waste and it helps our budget
Use old clothes as cloth,its what we do,We also use old bottles as planting cups.
We also(livign in italy) use salsa glass bottle to store grains or nuts.
Its done because we were poor as a child and it just stuck around I guess,but its quite enviromental friendly now that I think about it.
@@ah5721DONT FUCKING RECLICLE INSULIN.
Being environmentally save shouldnt be done whit medicine,ITS TOO DANGEROUS AND YOU RISK SECOND HAND INFECTION only for a bit more waste.
You risk your child dying for a minimal amount of carbon THE RISK OUTWEIGHT THE BENEFITS
,tackle other more valuable area,use less water, dont use AC as much,drive less
Personally I DONT mess life treatening “waste”,
The funniest thing I remember seeing about the founder is she would ask shops to take any trash from her purchase to relieve her of the burden of disposing it later. It was quite hypocritical and she saw zero issues letting someone else throw stuff away for her.
Exactly! She just fobbed off waste that she produced (by buying something new) on places she bought from. Just because she didn't "claim" the trash doesn't mean she wasn't in any way responsible for generating it. That irked me, because she wasn't being honest. However - I do think it's a good idea for companies and stores to be held to task on their waste. It can't be 100% on the consumer.
My sister used to run a zero waste store and one day I was helping her with inventory and learned that the dish soap pods she sells out of a huge mason jar came to her individually wrapped in plastic and she would unwrap them so the customers didn't know. It made me so mad that was just a lie, which keeps people from seeing the real impact of their purchases.
The idea behind that was supposed to be to send the message to corporations that customers want to reduce the amount of trash that comes with their purchases. In practice it just adds some unnecessary tasks to minimum wage workers who have zero say in how things are packaged.
@@Disney8272Are you serious- 😬
@@thetiredworm2100 sadly, yes
11:04 "Don't give up"| _My input_ : It is not your responsibility to save the planet. It's your responsibility to *_do your part_* .
Straight up
like Shelbi says "do your best advocate for the rest"
One time I bought a ton of beeswax paper in place of plastic wrap for that sweet sweet hit of zero waste dopamine. The beeswax paper sucked and the "3-5 uses" was really more like "1-2 of rapidly degrading quality"
I was heartbroken and started looking for more zero waste alternatives...until I remembered that I have pyrex dishes with lids sitting in my cupboard, and I can just put my food in those.
There are some zero waste things that make sense (I use a safety razor, and found a shampoo bar that actually works better with my hair than what I was getting in a bottle) and then there are some that really feel like the modern equivalent to putting on a hair shirt as an act of penance when you've got a perfectly good robe sitting in your closet.
My local (ha) Wally World sold beeswax paper for several years. $11 would get you 2 reusable bags. I WANTED it bad but, alas...couldn't justify the expense. It's now on clearance for $3. I never use it.
Same here. In my case, I fell for a Kickstarter for silicon sheets that could be reused, hundreds of times. What I learned was that storing it was almost impossible because it would stick to itself, and any speck of dust in the air would stick to it, rendering it dirty again. These days I use one as a glorified dust cover for my KitchenAid mixing stand bowl.
I have a sort of recycle reuse issue that I ran into. My Mom died and she had two fur coats (one is fox, one is mink). I never wear fur. But… they’re actually really warm. So do I wear them knowing I’m not helping out the fur industry because it’s not a new sale, and they’d just molder in the closet anyway? Or do I not wear them because that’s tacit approval of fur?
@@AmaraJordanMusic the fur is second hand use it stay warm ! and if properly cared for it can last 3 generations . real fur at least is biodegradable , unlike synthetics faux fur and pleather they pollute the planet with microplastics and its lasts 200yeas . If you don't feel comfortable wearing it find a vintage lover/ SCA person /Reenactor who will wear it or use parts to line something. if I could find a fur coat that fits properly and I could afford it I'd wear it. I live in a cold climate and nothing but wool and fur would keep me warm especially since I've experienced 20F down to -9F --20F !!
@@AmaraJordanMusic The problem is buying this stuff. Using second hand is ideal, not wrong. I have a leather bag and a pair if shoes found on trash, just would never have bought them.
The zero waste movement was a great boost for companies to make reusables for people to barely use more than their disposables. Took me many years to build up the habit of actually reusing the things I bought to be better about my trash
Big time, so many reusables ended up being bought just to stay at home forgotten tbh 😴
Many times you can actually reuse single use items (at least a few times) and many times they’re unnecessary items to begin with. Many times a reusable item uses way more material and energy than single use ones. And as you said not necessarily for it to be heavily used enough to make up for the difference. I think the movement possibly made more trash than it saved. As most people just like the trend and see a reason to buy new fancy stuff and on top get to say they’re part of the solution. While just very few actually got deep in it with necessary research etc. to actually make a positive difference.
@@mrcsrkcrz Oh, absolutely. Plastic Chinese takeout containers have become my *favorite* for food prep and for sending people off with leftovers. At this point, the only things I use frequently enough to justify purchasing are spice jars for my spice rack (I get spices in little packets) and reusable bags. Basically everything else I specifically purchased as a reusable has been a waste of money and resources
@@HolliNiesen and even the spice jars could be reused from empty spice containers or other jars (eg. from friends and family if you didn’t have). And many things can be bought second hand or gotten for free depending on the community/place where you live. Anyways though, I think most people are aware now of the problems, but what we need is broad education for this stuff! So everyone knows and understands the cycles and all and with this extra awareness way more change could be reached. We don’t need to try to be perfect but we can all do or not do what works for each of us and still have a great(er) impact. So this channel is a great start! I wish sometimes they’d go more in depth and focus less on trendy stories but you also need to gain audience I guess.
I have some stainless steel straws and and use them when at home. I got one set with bent tops in a subscription box, and more recently just bought some straight ones.
I'm glad you briefly touched on how the zero waste movement was very inaccessible to disabled people. I'm disabled myself and rely on fair amount of trash producing products just to survive. Similar, many other disabled folk were upset about the plastic straw bans happening because for some, plastic straws are the literal only way to drink and the alternatives just don't work (Jessica Kellgren-Fozard has a GREAT video about this). We should just stop personally blaming individuals and blame corporations for not taking responsibility for their stuff and work on inventing more products that can fit a variety of needs
You can get a drink hat with a wooden or metal straw attachment I'm sure. There's gotta be someone who made that by now.
@@Hauntakuhere is no one-size-fits-all solution for drinking difficulties for disabled people, but the plastic bendable straw is about as close as you can get.
You need something cheap, durable, easy to sanitize, not a hazard to the user, and not an allergy risk.
Metal, bamboo, pasta/rice, and silicone all fail on allergy.
Glass, metal, acrylic, some other plastics, and pasta are injury risks - if you use them with shaky hands they will hit your teeth, and can either chip the teeth (injury) or be chipped, and then cut up your mouth on the next hit.
All of the reusable are hard to sanitize. It only takes a couple minutes for an abled person to clean them, but a disabled person may not have the dexterity to clean their own straws, and even if they do, the fatigue that comes along with many disabilities makes hand washing dishes far more difficult.
Paper, pasta, and biodegradable straws aren’t durable. They dissolve or degrade too quickly (even for many people who don’t have issues drinking, and people with drinking difficulties drink slower), and pieces that come off can become a choking hazard. They also aren’t safe to use with hot liquids because they dissolve even faster.
Acrylic and metal also aren’t safe for hot liquids, because they’ll heat up and burn your lips.
And price. In the US, if a disabled person has more than $2000 in their possession at any time, they lose all their disability benefits. An $8 straw (or several, since you’ll probably need more than one in a day) is an expense that is obtrusive for many disabled people.
It would be nice if manufacturers of products were required to take their containers back and recycle them or pay for legitimate recycling programs.
We have that for bottles in Croatia. And a lot of countries in Europe do it as well. I wish we did it for almost all packaging. But we do it only for plastic bottles that contain drinks.
It would be nice but it would increase prices further. No company will take that type of commitment for free.
In Sweden you have a thing called producer responsibility, producers are by law required to make sure their packages are collected and recycled.
Regular citizens are also required to recycle. Even schools, kindergartens etc have several different bins.
You also hace what you can find in most of Europe, return your plastic bottle or soda can and you get a few cents back.
Yes, plastic tax!
MGA the owners of LPS are planning to cut back on their plastic waste. Granted, cardboard also needs to be changed to be more eco-friendly. They should make bamboo boxes.
I think the zero waste movement actually did help. The movement looked for and figured out alternatives before society started to catch up. Where you needed to go to special websites before, now I see a lot of these alternatives being more accessible in "normal stores".
Also: To this day I still stick to my fabric tote bags, fruit/greens bags, metal straws, metal tongue cleaner, glass water bottle, glass lunch boxes, mason jars, bidet, bag free vacuum cleaner, the furoshiki fabrics I wrap gifts in, the little towels I clean my ears with and so on. Simply because they're good and long-lasting product that fits into my lifestyle.
After realising that plastic waste is essentially unrecyclable, I tried to switch to cans and if I do need to use plastic switching to larger containers where possible, so my net plastic consumption is low as possible.
I think that's the best anyone can do, single-use plastics are almost always to be avoided where possible.
Governments and businesses need to really make the changes to actually move the needle any significant way
Metal cans do have a plastic layer though.
@@michakamelski9535but at least the metal in the cans is easier to recycle. Some plastic is pretty much imposible to recycle depending on where you live, but cans are more likely to be recycled.
@Francisco Pereira agreed, it's not about 100% elimination of plastic, as it's not realistically possible, but minimising where possible the amount of plastic being used.
It's not perfect. It's mostly symbolic when you compare the volume of plastic the average person uses in a lifetime and how much ends of being created in a day.
I hope one day we will see a universal standard for plastic packaging where only recyclable materials are used or more biodegradable materials are used. Or we go back to using more paper, cardboard, and glass, which I'd something I am noticing some brands have started doing.
@@lardyman2 exactly
I try to reuse some of those giant plastic containers to store my rice and some other food items as well. But you're right its pretty difficult to avoid unless you live near a refill store or farm, etc. Even if you had the time and money to grow most of your produce and make your own soaps, you can't do everything 😅 so as long as we're mindful, I'm good
I think the most important thing you said there was that it's transitioned from a trend to a culture, and that's ultimately a good thing. As a trend (if anything) it encouraged more consumption and defeated itself. As a basic habit, it's really positive for a lot of people.
What I find really funny about it all though is that we needed "zero waste" as like a social media friendly name for it. Really what a lot of it boils down to is run your household in the same sorts of way your grandmother or great grandmother would have done before the ubiquity of the disposable.
Absolutly agree.
Occasionally I see this addressed, but not often: in order to live that "zero waste lifestyle you absolutely cannot live in a rural area. The resources to buy locally are limited, there are no bulk food bins anywhere, and we have to drive over an hour to get to a recycling center. I've seen these zero waste articles and videos for years, but for great numbers of us they are impossible.
I live in a small city and as long as you can make it to downtown then you'll be able to grab high quality stuff at a good price and even in bulk
I've found the exact opposite to be true. There are so many environmentally friendly options... unless I'm stuck in the city.
I got into the zero waste movement around this time. I'm grateful that I followed some pretty authentic influencers, like Shelbizzle, and was given the message that I didn't have to be perfect. She also goes into detail about "greenwashing" and how to look out for it. As a result, I've completely eliminated fast fashion and 99% of my wardrobe is now second-hand (the only exception being underwear, which I buy new). Maybe I'm not making a massive difference or saving the planet, but whenever I feel like my contribution to waste reduction is meaningless, I think, "what if the straw in that turtle's nose was my straw? What if a child in a sweatshop hurt their fingers making this shirt?" It helps me to think that I'm at least reducing the suffering of one or two lives on this planet by doing what I do.
Excellent comment, I completely agree.
for those looking for a 'zero waste' alternative to a paper towel, let me please introduce you to my good friend: a towel.
Don't buy new ones for it, because if you're like me, you'll feel bad when you use them and they get ugly stains. Here's another little life hack: take almost any disposable product, remove the paper/plastic from the name and you will have reusable version. You probably already have it at home. I think the biggest take away I got from the zero waste movement was the silliness of consumerism as a savior.
Step 1: Go to thrift store.
Step 2: Find a towel you like.
Step 3: Buy the towel.
Step 4: Return to your home.
Step 5: Enjoy using your towel!
@@Hauntakutoo many steps…. For the chinese ant old clothes = rag. You don’t need a towel for all that dirty stuff.
Try sodium percarbonate and hot water to remove stains in old towels. Works well for me.
That outfit you don't usually wear? Put some scissors to it and call them rags.
I enjoyed watching Americans discover tea towels
I had followed those zero waste influencers and wanted to be like them. I wanted the metal straws, reusable cups, all my trash fits in a jar. Well, I realized that the location I was in it wasn’t conducive. We didn’t have bulk stores. If the stores did have bulk bins, it was for candy and nuts.
I realized eventually it was not in my lifestyle to fully go zero waste but I still try to do what I can.
The bulk sections lost their appeal once I started comparing the per-kg pricing. Buying bulk was more expensive at every store I checked! This is something that can put sustainable living out of reach for lower-income families.
@@dragnflye3797 I know I am one of those where those bulk bins means I get less /oz per $ than I would in a box /bag etc . its like hmm spend $4 a pound or get 5lbs for $4 ? my broke self is going to get more for my money so I and my family dont go hungry even if its in plastic
@@dragnflye3797 That's because the rich have destroyed many people's idea of money. You think buying local costs more because you are unfairly comparing it to a multi-billion dollar company's prices.
My biggest beef with Zero Waste "lifestyle" videos is these replacements are not cheap and implies you can buy your way out of a wasteful lifestyle. I cant watch many of these videos because they still push consumerism, which is at the root of the problem. When I started my own journey in the early 90's, before it was labelled zero waste, I would think about what people did in old-timey times. For example, you don't have to buy expensive products like period undies. A frugal, low-waste and reduced consumption solution in between is to fold up your own rags, just like great-grandma used to do. I used my kid's old cotton diaper squares when he was done with them but you could cut up and fold old t-shirts that are too worn to wear.
Yeah.. ur fucking crazy
Had to do the rugs pretty recently in terms of a generational time, like in 2000’s, because my poor mother didn’t know or care to know about the discovery of sanitary pads so she taught her daughters what her mother taught her. I hated it with passion. You are never safe from leaking through, to take more input the rug should be thicker, so on a bad day you end up with a literal diaper between your legs, with a rush and damaged skin on the legs. As a child I didn’t really understand the concept of having a spare cloth for the emergency, so it wasn’t as easy as having a pad in your purse or asking one from other girls, it was a nightmare of making a new piece of rug on the spot. We also reused the cloth, so there was this awful duty on somebody to wash through all the family women’s period rugs
@@maryianna912 OP's example is scaring me a bit... I personally don't think this "zero waste" thing should affect any hygiene or medicine stuff, including period products... it's just gross and unsafe.
Buy less
I'm in a zero waste facebook group and a lot of folks have an all or nothing attitude. If you request or suggest something that isn't entirely zero waste, you get treated like a poser or guilt tripped which has caused me to mute the group fairly often. It's super discouraging. Instead, I've shifted my focus to "Buy it for life" which feels like a more long term and meaningful way to approach living more sustainably while also saving money in the long run.
I grew up in the 70s, and I miss packaging that was designed to be reused. I remember margarine coming in bowls, cups, and tumblers, jelly in drinking glasses, and we even re-used the plates in some of the old microwave dinners - I remember one brand even had a sturdy lid, so they were always dad's lunch plates.
Like many commenters, I believe in a middle ground: if everyone did a little better, the world would be a lot better. Everyone doesn't have to go to "family roll" instead of toilet paper, but learning to only cloth towels whenever possible and saving the paper towels for things like cat puke that you don't want in the wash would help.
The burden of care for the environment needs to be put back on the manufacturers instead of just on consumers. We don't all have the luxury of speaking with our wallets, we can't all afford to buy only the best, sustainably made products, and we don't all have the resources to research every item in our life to ensure it's responsible.
I see some of that stuff in thrift stores and it's still good stuff.
I have a cheese wizz glass jar still from the 1993 Mario Movie in my kitchen. That's 30 years old and still being used as storage.
Your right, we need more middle ground from the manufacturers and an affordable middle ground. I can't even wash out most jars with lukewarm water without melting anymore.
THIS. i remember cola bottles were still glass even in the 2000s, the company took it back from the sellers, sanitize it, put cola back in it. companies CAN do it, they've DONE IT before, so why not just revert back to that? it's not like it's a whole new business model they've never ever done before
@@felix-xd4mxthey can sanitize and reuse the plastic bottles too. Finland has a very low rate of recycling plastic bottles, because most are reusable. The system is that bottles and likewise aluminum cans can be returned to the store, and you get paid, or essentially some money back, for returning them. For the small ones it's 10 cents a piece, for bigger ones more. Sure, some people still throw the bottles away, but beggars and others have made it a profitable job to collect them. Back when I was a kid, it used to be us kids trying to earn some money by collecting bottles, but the world has changed.
I think the zero waste movement was a good idea but like so many things it came at a cost which in turn made it exclusive. I tried to explain this on a zero waste group page once that until these things were ubiquitous and available conveniently and at a reasonable cost then it was always just going to be a few wealthy (by comparison) people being able to live this way.
Exactly! If the sustainable option isn't also the most convenient and affordable unfortunately there's a huge demographic left out of participating :\
100% it just isn't feasible for use on a tight budget who don't make "that kind " of money . so many swaps were expensive until the lower branded store started to get trickle down effects liek walmart selling metal straws in the drink isle 3 years ago
It's mostly frustrating because influencers make it trendy which causes people to get a wrong idea in their heads about that "trend". Minimalism for example isn't about buying stuff to replace other stuff. Minimalism is about keeping what sparks joy and letting go of what doesn't. If you buy something then you should find 2 things to let go of.
I don’t think so. Sorry. Now a lot of these zero waste swaps are available at regular stores for a fraction of the price. Now nobody wants to buy it anymore. Because it is everywhere and not exclusive and trendy.
My parents grow up in China and is now in their 60s. They recently came to live with me in Australia and they reuse almost everything: plastic containers from buying meat, milk bottles, jars and glass bottles... They never buy extra 'storage products' and store everything either in their original packaging or in recycled packaging. They also composting using these recycled containers for their small garden. It's very refreshing to see how they live as real people who are really environmentally conscious, although for them, it's just good old frugality.
I also fell off the movement when the pandemic happened, it was impossible to sustain with everything going on for me. Instead I turn my energy towards regeneration of the heart, and I clean green spaces around my town ( pick up trash ). I feel like this has way more impact than the packaging my things come in.
I went so far as to get another college degree and start a career in biochemistry so I could engineer bacteria to eat plastic. I was so hardcore I would only buy fresh produce and dry goods in bulk or cardboard packaging. It got to the point where it felt a bit like an eating disorder and I became a huge annoyance to my friends and coworkers because I kept calling other people out on their behavior. I eventually hit that "fuck it" wall when I went to grad school and saw how much money and mental effort it was, and almost gave up entirely. I still think the idea that "it's the company's responsibility" is flawed, and that individual choices have a HUGE impact on the direction of markets though. Many of the habits I developed stuck with me, and we now have a society much more cognizant of the waste they create. I personally still create a lot less trash than most people, but I also am not obsessive about it and it feels psychologically much healthier.
Same. Not for going to do a collage degree focusing on environmentalism… but it did feel like an eating disorder. Especially when the plant based diet is so unnatural for my area and causes waste as well because the products aren’t produced here. Also the restrictions were horrible cus first off no one couches you properly in nutrition for you to know in general what to eat and how much of it. So moving to a plant based diet and not relying on food you have eaten that was passed down traditionally because it was a better option for the area meant that I did not consume enough protein among other things on a daily basis. Plants also made me nauseous sometimes cus the food is bad and to get enough grams of protein in you had to consume more food… so I ate even when I was sort of full. I didn’t feel full but I felt like I didn’t want to put more in. That was probably because I lacked nutrients. I realized that vegans ate mostly powders with lots of concentrated nutrients that I didn’t have in my area and were purposely misinforming to fit the ethical cause. Recently I said fuck it cus everything became too expensive and I lost my period so I looked up all the things my gynecologist gave me and realized Im probably lacking nutrients. Same with single use plastics. I was starving myself cus I didn’t want to buy something packed in plastics, but I was also trying to be plant based with only raw ingredients and I was also learning how to cook and live on my own by balancing out a tough collage assignment schedule while also trying to cook and plan out all those meals the hard way with no packaging. So it was bad… and extreme. Now I try my best and just shop local from local businesses cus well at least I live in a country thats still traditional in those terms. But Im not beating myself up over the meals Im eating and if it came in plastic
Same witg me, i take Environmental services in forestry faculty for master degree after completing Bs. In Intl. Relation 😭 and i suddenly judging my surrounding based on my little knowledge i gain, i know its complicated in practise for the society but still i cannot figuring the answer, my only effrot is to write thesis about environmental education for boarding school as it was my target for crossing degree 😢
bro had plasticorexia 💀
omg i want to get an education that directly contribute like you too. going to biochemistry is amazing
I think the movement did manage to change some everyday items that used to be disposable, like water bottles and coffee cups. Most people have their own water bottle that they fill up at home, work, or you can just ask for some tap water in a cafe. Obviously not the case everywhere in the world, but in Europe, having your own bottle and cup is commonplace. Wasn't as common a decade ago.
I agree with you on so many points. I was so close to a zero waste life in Australia, with a high enough income to always buy organic, bulk products, & a big garden for composting & a worm farm. Then I became ill, single, poor, & moved to Central Europe. At first I was paralysed by not having appropriate choices in my budget, then I discovered that organic farms use plastic sheets to avoid weeds without using pesticides (the average temperatures in Southern Spain have rised by 2°C because so much of the land is white & reflecting the sunlight), & I was so ill that if I didn't stop pressuring myself so much, I was going to end up in hospital where everything I ate & drank would be either single use plastic, or wrapped in it. I wanted to live in the countryside, where I could continue my composting, & grow some of my own food, but the population growth where I needed to live (for family reunification residency requirements) meant that I could only afford a flat in town, rather than anywhere in a nearby village, so I rely on our not-very-well-separated recycling bins. I've been like this since 2019, & have gradually accepted that I can only do so much. If the infrastructure is not available, one person living in a city on a low income just doesn't have many options. And once you find out that various industries use as much plastic per day, or season, as you will in your whole life, it's time to stop making your life a misery about it. I also question the zero-waste influencers' authenticity. They're making UA-cam videos with their Mason jar, bur I don't see computer or mobile phone packaging jammed into that jar, or an acknowledgement that when they buy bulk groceries, those products come to the shop in large, thick, plastic bags, which often can't be recycled. I wish it wasn't so hard to live a low-impact life, but unless we go completely off-grid, we have to accept that we are having an impact on the climate, & that's OK.
You know for certain things the alternative is not having the thing and that is probably the thing most people don't want to hear.
That said, a lot of the zero wast trend became well that a trend and a way to sell things. It was less about where does it make senese to reduce and more about what ever you have should be replaced. Which quite frankly is stupid. Yes, my containers are plastic and not glass and yes that sucks. But you know what would suck more? Throwing perfeclty good containers out to buy new ones. that is just about the worst thing I could do if I want to save the planet.
SO MUCH THIS! I have annoyed the piss out of people by saying that zero/low waste means using up what you have and not tossing everything out to buy more of pretty aesthetic glass and bamboo and whatnot. Of course they always say that they "donate" it, and then I'm like ...do you think anyone is buying your old tomato-stained tupperware at the thrift store? The thrift store is throwing it out. We can't buy our way out of this. The greenwashing on this trend is STRONG.
Yeah, you can reuse your plastic containers but not for food because plastic will break down into your food over time and can lead to cancer.
Exactly! I am in the process of slowly replacing my tupperware with glass, but only as the plastic ones give out. No point in just throwing out my plastic tupperware for no good reason.
I'm a little disappointed that you didn't include that the term "zero waste" actually started as a term manufacturers would use to describe the lifecycle of a product. It's no wonder that it cannot accurately describe a person, it wasn't meant to.
THIS! 🙌🏼
We hadn't heard that! Sounds about right though... 🤦🏻♂
@@FutureProofTV Hell, Shelbi has pointed this out in a few of her videos. She's also pointed out that zero is actually impossible although one can take steps to minimize waste.
Zero Waste might be direct proof that there's so much more we need to do for the environment. Keep up the good work as always.
😂
Ultimately it was one of many ways humanity has tried to show their compassion for the world we live in, even if a lot of the elements were a little misguided. Glad we're moving forward!
The aesthetics and consumerism of the instagram version of zero waste did a huge amount of damage
I realized that it was impractical for me to go totally zero waste because some of the swaps didn't make sense for me, so I just reduced and changed my spending habits, and reuse items as much as possible when it makes sense to do so.
Yep, buy less things and buy smarter. That's the life of a minimalist like me. I am currently cutting back on buying video games.
I'd love to shop at one of those bring-your-own-container bulk stores. Unfortunately it feels like those are almost exclusively in huge cities :(
I know right! I would love to hav some of those stores as well. But only available in popular neo-cities like LA or NY.
Even as he was talking about companies sucking, I was picturing The Good Place tomato bit. Great reference and well done. A great explainer on why ethical consuming is such a damn minefield.
For me, the movement really helped me see how i could make little changes that helped my family do our part. We didn't change every little thing but what i did do was look at what we could change that made the most impact for our family. The whole mason jar thing just wasn't super impactful for us because of the way we eat but by far using reusable ziplock type bags was way more beneficial. We also buy better quality clothes because they last longer and ultimately save money. We also ALMOST totally stopped buy bottled water buy sometimes you just have to add I'm not going to beat myself up but we almost always have our yeti knockoff cups with us when we're out and about. Recycling truly is a pain in the ass and i just don't do it anymore like i used to. I just try and be mindful of how things are packaged and buy appropriately when i can. One family can only do so much, but we try to do what we can.
I'd like to see the zero waste movement turn into a reduced waste movement with more activism
I’ve been zero waste since 2019 and I just try my best. I’m not as hardcore about it as I used to be because I’m so busy now but I’m so used to the habits now that I don’t even think about it anymore.
I never liked the term "zero waste" because it feels like it's holds people to too high of a standard. I think low waste is a better name for the movement. For example, I live in a rural area where the nearest grocery store is 20 minutes away so I don't have that many options when it comes to packaging or buying in bulk. However, I use reusable grocery bags, try to use rags instead of paper towels and use a reusable coffee tumbler and water bottle every day. I can't do everything perfectly, but it's the thought that counts.
I do like a lot of aspects of the ZW movement (some of the swaps are legitimately better), but yeah - the toxic perfectionism was not one of them. I will say, though, that navigating and learning about ZW made me learn so much about supply chains that I might as well have a degree in it now!
Influencers ruin everything
I think social climate also played a part in this. Most of our zero-waste ambitions can only be successful in community and in the West we're divided by people prioritizing individuality. I blame media and marketing that is so self-centered. The thing is, most of us don't have enough money to hire out for all the tasks we could do that would seriously impact our waste. So unless you can convince several unselfish friends to live with you or join a commune... our modern lives are not cohesive with our zero-waste dreams.
I work just a few hours a week right now, the rest of my time is spent in my garden, working my compost pile, sewing my own clothes, repairing and building what I need whenever possible. I cook everything from scratch and I make many of my own herbal medicines and hygene products... but I can barely keep up with the workload of taking care of just my own personal needs because each of these skills takes time and energy. If I did have a regular job I'd quickly have to go back to eating out more, buying pre-packaged foods, I'd reduce what my garden can produce by only putting in time on the weekends.
But if I did have a dozen friends each doing one of those tasks? Well, it doesn't take much longer to cook lunch for 4 instead of for 1. I could easily expand my garden to feed more people if I could have friends show up at harvest time to do the chores that are time-sensitive and to preserve the harvest together before it spoils. Having company while I do household chores would be better for my mental health.
Humans super-power has always been what we're capable of as a group. That's why we start talking as babies before we can do any other skill: cooperation is to being human as swimming is to fish. I think that's also why so many of us struggle with mental health. Western culture has us hustling to prove we have value because as a society we've decided it's not enough to just believe our lives have value simply because we're God's children. We're each trying to earn a measure of fame or fortune... or to prove we can even just survive on our own. Only together can we thrive. Until enough of us remember that, we're just going to hang on to our sanity by a thin thread. Good luck out there, I hope you find your tribe ;)
Thank you for making this video. I came to terms with the problems of zero waste at the start of my uni degree (7 years ago) when I thought zero waste was the only way to be an "environmentalist" (I was in a sustainability undergrad program). I got SO mad at myself, my friends and family, and my community for not being zero waste. Then I had a big realization in 2019 about how complex waste actually is and how elitist it is to live "zero waste," not to mention the amount of time and energy I was devoting to such a small "solution." I now try to live as low waste as possible, but don't beat myself up and my community when the broader system we are a part of makes this idealized vision of life less practical and accessible. And I try to educate and empower others to do the same.
I adopted a lot of the zero waste principles without collecting my trash in a mason jar. Most of it had to do with a more consciously aware approach to consumption. I followed Bea Johnson for quite a while, but she has also seemed to have disappeared along the ZW movement.
I followed Bea, too!
I remember this trend and I was always fishy about it. Btw can you make a video on how paper and paper products are changing the environment. I think it’s quite a interesting topic that’s not really looked on
Whoever is the editor who was assigned to this video, THANK YOU. Now I want THAT tote bag!
It turned into a contest, everyone in any social media ruins everything with competition. Holier than thou "influencers" make everything seem either "you go 100% or you are a terrible person!" So that dissuades everyone from even trying to start making ANY change
I've been living a Zero Waste lifestyle since 2016 and I don't care what others think about my choices. I regularly give away my possessions, the new clothes I buy are only underwear, I recycle everything that I can't give away, and I buy food package-free whenever possible. That said, I'm not a purist. For example, I was just told by a doctor I need to consume brazil nuts to address a vitamin deficiency and when I couldn't find them package-free, I bought them in a plastic container rather than doing without. I can't change others but my lifestyle aligns with my beliefs and of course my purchasing power affects corporations, even in a small way.
Thank you for explaining it this way - and big thank you for mentioning that for many people who have disabilities and things, zero waste really is impossible.
What made me worry that it was too good to last was the way it was marketed on social media and the like as a "trend" or "aesthetic." As we know, no trend lasts forever. Fashions change. Sustainability really wasn't marketed in a sustained way. And you're right, more responsibility should lie on corporations instead of consumers.
One positive legacy is that we are indeed more aware of where our stuff comes from and we are making an effort not to go back to mindless, wasteful consumerism like we once did.
I had heard that zero waste was for manufacturers not consumers. It was so that those making things figured out how to have as little waste as possible. This benefited both as it saved them money and helped the environment.
So I came from a very hippie city in Canada, where it was really easy for me to take some mason jars and extremely reused paper bags to the store and fill up with all my groceries and stuff... and then I moved to the UK, and supermarkets just don't do that anywhere here. There was a shop in my city that ran a trial for a few months of removing the packaging from their fruit and veg and offering other bulk goods you could bring in your own containers for, and it was really well-received and people loved it... and then they just sort of quietly shelved it again. And then the local organic farm subscription changed delivery cyclists and stopped delivering to our postcode. One does one's best, try not to feel bad about it, that's all. OH SHIT I just remembered there's a paper bag of spelt flakes in the pantry that I bought from the one Whole Foods that has bulk bins on a trip to London 3 months ago I should probably make into granola before it goes stale oh shit oh damn
I do use my steel straw everyday 😂 It's good to protect you front teeth from certain beverages. For me that and the reusable coffee cup have been two swaps that have changed my life for the better (bc I already used reusable water bottles before).
I use my metal straw also at home. It’s true though that I don’t carry it around with me and use it in place of the plastic straw I get with a soda or iced coffee on occasion.
I use metal straws as well.
I can see your teeth getting chipped on the straw tho. Accidents happen 😅
I tried keeping a steel straw and I wound up leaving it at a resturant. I have a silicone one but the mouth feel is awful
@@stellastarfield1111 lol, I sip on the straw not chew.. I've never been harmed by it 🤔
Though, yes, I've left my straw twice at a restaurant and couldn't come back to retrieve it. But twice since 2018 I don't consider it a big deal. I bought a set of them and all of them are good as new. I haven't tried silicone or bamboo bc metal works for me perfectly fine. And since most restaurants nowadays have shitty paper straws, I'm the envy of my friends when my straw doesn't fall apart after a couple of minutes 😂
But I get that not everything works for everyone. Some people think that is a pain in the ass to carry a straw always with you, but for me is a habit as carrying tissues, sweetener or a bottle of water. The reusable cup is the only thing I only take with me if I know that I'm going to have a drink. Otherwise I leave it at home and don't punish myself if I have some starbucks in a disposable cup 😉
Instead of a metal straw, you can buy a sippy cup because they're more fun imo
I started my way to a zero waste life style with a single thing in mind: I will not be perfect at this but it can make a change. And it kinda worked, I replaced a lot of single use plastic, but I have enough plastic in my life. And I try every day to limit it.
And in this trend not even me as a person I am perfect. I'm NOT vegan and I did not make compost (but I wish to do it in the future). All I want is to make the change easier for every day people and be a good influence with this and not force someone to adopt my life style.
Future Proof tote bag with a photo of Levi almost barfing while cleaning his shower drain: WANT 😆
Ironically I started doing zero or rather minimal waste when I looked at my lifestyle when I had time DURING the pandemic
Oh jeez, you got me crying man!! I was just about to make a video about this ... about how IMPOSSIBLE it is to live Zero Waste without the help of the entire world
I’m only here to say I really liked that dynamic head swap moment. It was so funny
I live near a park where all the trash cans are segregated for recycling, each one is split into four sections, there's also an array of posters that say "we collect the trash separately", "dispose of your trash appropriately", etc. When I walk there, around 5 am, to catch the sunrise, I get to see them empty the trash and they totally mix the contents of the bins together; they just pour them all out into the same trash bag and move on. It's all a scam
I also study Environmental science, the stuff you learn and the models you use are genuinely scary. I dont lead a zero waste lifestyle because its expensive and unsustainable for me, all i do is try and make better choices, repair clothes, make sure my food waste is minimal and thrift.
When i was watching the movement online it just seemed as an aesthetic and rampant consumerism under a "green" face, in other words it was just greenwashing for middle class people who drive everywhere in an SUV.
Yes there are things you can do, but you have to acknowledge that the system is shitty and the problem is the corporations and governments barely doing anything, no average person can leverage them or conduct themselves in a way that is sustainable, only the rich can do that. So all we can do is basically try and shop more responsible and hound the corporations and government to act because no amount of mason jars or bamboo straws is going to offset "big oil" from destroying ecosystems and pumping a lot of carbon into the atmosphere.
You’re thinking about it and you’re aware. That’s more than a lot of people. Go easy on yourself and keep smiling. 👍🏼
And I'm really enjoying the complexities being discussed in the comments
You forgot reusable toilet paper 🧻
Or here me out, a bidet.
I never get why some people use toilet paper.
I’m happy that you’ve continued to do the best things despite the fad dissolving. That’s my story too: I’m anti-corporatism so I don’t do anything that’s faddish if it’s not supporting my values. I never did zero waste because it’s impossible (our National flag is the plastic bag-just look on any barbed wire fence for evidence) but I still maintain behaviors to reduce my waste FAR below the typical developed world citizen, regardless what’s trending. I feel good about it even while I continue to look for sustainable (not just Sustainable) ways to improve my footprint. A video on the carbon footprint fad might be another niche dive that’s not discussed anywhere.
I am greatful for the zero waste movement tho. The fact that I can get wool balls instead of dryer sheets, and reusable baggies at my military base's shop goes to shows how far the movement reached. 15 years ago, we didn't have low waste options even available. It did make many reusable options more accessible.
I am just here to express my gratitude for the Levi head cutouts on different bodies.
Sending this to our editor rn lol
Love your videos, they just keep getting better!
I'm not sure why plant-based diets are getting grouped with zero waste here, but I'd like to kindly make an important distinction that often gets conflated in popular discourse:
- Plant-based is a diet
- Veganism is a social justice movement
While all vegans eat some kind of a plant-based diet (there's an infinite number of ways to eat plant-based ranging from junk food to healthy whole foods), most people on plant-based diets are not vegans. The latter are trying to lose weight, get healthier, contribute less to environmental harm, while vegans are primarily concerned with non-human animal rights.
💯
The editor did a great job with this video 👏👏👏.
Being an ethical or environmentally conscious or zero waste consumer is great, as long as you are rich. The problem is that most of us aren’t so sacrifices have to be made
I really enjoyed and appreciated this video, especially coming from you who I first started following when I was starting low/zero waste! Thank you!
Man, I adopted a lot of zero waste practices not being aware of the movement just because, as you said, they are better alternatives, however, you are getting screwed by those amazon prices.
I feel called out, I definitely asked you about paper towel alternatives once LOL
We moved to new Orleans from new york. Every month i have to take all the cans and glass weve collected to 2 separate places to get recycled (the cans get returned out of state and the $ fills charity kitchens. The glass gets turned into sand for costal restoration) both very good reasons to recycle but omg what a hassle!
Funnily enough, we both majored in the same subjects in college. I knew something about your understanding of these topics gravitated me to your channel. Great video, and it encapsulates a lot of the challenges--and maybe unreality--associated with living a true "zero waste" lifestyle. It's an evolving spectrum of responsibility and trying to find direct solutions to very, very complex problems. The fight is still ongoing.
finding out recycling is fake broke my brain. I legitimately went into a multi-day depressive spiral because of that. At the very least knowing corporations are the problem makes me feel a whole less guilty about getting some products in single use plastic. If I eliminated all plastic from my life it wouldn't make a single ounce of impact, so why bother losing sleep over it. I'll just keep taking the train and eating mostly plant-based and hope that does at least something...
yeah it did a doozy on us too... At least you're not a dick though right?
Proof it's corporations is easy
No one in soviet union had anything single-use except for doctors probably
"Don't be a d!ck" - words to live by.
As someone with ecoanxiety. Thank you for point out that it isn't in the individual but corporations and because of our lifestyle (and late capitalism) it's kinda impossible to be zero waste, it makes me feel better when we understand we can't do perfect, but we can try our best with the given conditions. Also we need to observe that those corporations have boardmembers and most of them will prefer to bury thousands in debt, disease or unlive them instead of having any minor inconvenience in their generational-wealthy surroundings. They don't understand this is the same boat. Who is reading this, please keep your mind clear and do what you can while everything crumbles.
You are 100% right on! I jumped on the bandwagon 10 years ago . We try very hard and now its alot easier that we have a soap refill store near us but when you are on a budget and not solidly upper middle class and one step above working poor its difficult to switch 100% to doing ALL the things spending that $6 more for non plastic deodorant that has less product in it etc. the most insidious thing now is companies claiming to have less packaging to help reduce their carbon footprint and that they haven't changed their amounts but in reality they are charging more for less product inside- I've seen it because I just happen to be a stickler for prices and how many oz etc are in stuff . it's a cop out !- we are being robbed of product and being charged more .
I just looked it up and apparently in my country (Austria) the recycling system is one of the best worldwide and we recycle 70-85% of plastic, paper and glass. The US just seems to fail at so many things when it comes to politics and systems 🙈
Infrastructure in America is overshadowed by individualistic political power. If you are of the general population it doesn’t matter if those infrastructures would benefit you, because the most rich and powerful will never have to think about those inconveniences.
I really enjoyed visiting Austria, and I think the differences are partially from individualistic vs communal society structures.
Political corruption has been an issue for us.
The 🇺🇸 is a warmonger, all the rest comes far behind.
I think a big part of zero waste "failing" is that people felt like they had to buy ALL the replacements all at once and that wasn't (and still isn't) true. I have a sizable collection of reusable freezer bags. I did not buy them all at the same time. If I saw a set of three at TJMaxx, I'd grab them for like $5. I saw some at Walmart for dirt cheap, grabbed a couple sets. Now, several years after starting the endeavor, I have enough that I don't ever get "disposable" bags anymore. It just took some time.
This is my approach too. You're just deciding from now on when I need something/ replace things, I will choose wisely. Eventually you won't have plastic if all your new purchases are natural products. And if we choose something that requires more of a time investment than the 'convenient' choices of the past, we need to make sure we have time for it. It's very stressful if you don't consider the impact on your life too.
Thank you for summarizing so well. I'm part of a recycling / upcycling data group in Asia, and it is indeed still a journey.
The best advice I heard from a professor (paraphrased): "Your zero waste, your recycling, your buying better, your compost - they matters nothing! I don't care about it. They are just there to make you feel good and not pursue real societal change. What does really matter is influencing politics, forcing industries to change. That is where the big change is."
And as provoking it is, she is completely right.
I found zero waste as a lifestyle and have changed a lot in my household. I think its doing a good job. I see it more as a reduce waste then no waste at all. Minimalism is cool too.
Best quote "just don't be a dick!"
I'm an aspiring Zero-Waster and have done everything imaginable to reduce or eliminate my paper and plastic consumption. But since Covid (and a broken back), I don't shop in the grocery store, so must be satisfied with groceries delivered to my car in plastic bags. YIKES!!! Including kitty litter (equine pine, actually) my household of two puts out only a gallon of trash a week, and we share a trash collection account with a neighbor. I no longer pack my refuse in commercial plastic trash bags, but in those grocery bags -- one every week. The remaining bags are donated to thrift stores so they have something in which to pack their customers' purchases. Once my spine is fixed, I'll be cruising the aisles for my groceries and packing them in canvas again.
One of my issues with the zero-waste movement is that while individual efforts are important, I feel like the trend put too much emphasis on it. Blame shifting from industry to individual consumer behavior is an essential part of the plastics industry's strategy. It's not that we shouldn't try to reduce our waste, but, god, we as a society need to put the emphasis on big companies and pressure our governments to force change.
It's definitely an interesting topic. I do think the aesthetic, trendy aspect made zero-waste feel unachievable at the same time as it made it feel (ironically) wasteful. There's no way I'm fitting all my trash in an empty jar. I have to burn gasoline to go to the nearest shop with a bulk section. I don't want to get rid of things that are perfectly functional. I'm not going to starve myself to avoid food that's touched plastic. I'll never be 'perfect' and that's OK. I still try my best - I try to buy things that are more likely to last. I reuse jelly jars and turn old towels into reusable face wipes and dust mops. I do clothes swaps and mend and try not to buy new unless I have to. I think the most important part is being aware and making the swaps that work for YOU and YOUR life, not for the curated video from someone in a completely different city, continent, or lifestyle.
Also, I grew up with the Depression-era mantra 'use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without' often repeated whenever I wanted something new. It fits the sustainability movement so well (if not the zero waste movement) but man, it's HARD when you don't HAVE to do without, when you COULD just go buy the thing you want and especially when you're bombarded with targeted advertising. And when zero waste videos are/were full of advertising for shiny clean zero waste products that you don't NEED, but make you feel like you'd be saving the planet if you bought anyway and failing if you don't.... well. A bit ironic.
Do what you can, but don't feel like by living life you are failing yourself and your planet. That way lies madness, despair and nihilism.
Well safety razors and menstrual cups are two very bad examples for avoiding waste is expensive. Because both are actually SAVING you money very quickly.
I started buying my milk on glass bottles from a local store. It still has a plastic cap, but it's less than the whole jug. It's not zero waste, but its moving in the right direction.
The photoshop of Levi on the tote bag at 3:50 and 5:28 got an ugly laugh out of me :3
I may not know how to do Zero Waste but hells yeah Bidet community unite!
Safety razor was too hard. I had one from a trip into a temporary hipster store. And when I pulled it out recently, it was just a bunch of scrapes and slices. For the required finesse, I might as well learn straight-razor. And then if I wanted a plastic-free version of multi-blade, I was still stuck in the proprietary-parts limbo. So I alternate between electric, and a major-brand with disposable blades and permanent handle.
My perspective from someone who very briefly worked at a timber company: Sustainable forestry paper products are fine to use and then to throw away. Doesn't matter if it takes them a year to break down, a hundred years to break down, or a thousand..... they are acting as carbon sinks. Trees are carbon sinks! Paper products are carbon sinks! Whenever possible, use paper that hasn't been treated with wax or plastic. We're incredibly good at growing trees, especially in North America. The southern US is one of the few places on the planet that is actively being reforested, and those trees are destined to become everything from paper to houses to cardboard boxes. Anything made of paper is a heck of a lot better than petroleum based plastic products, since petroleum is not a renewable resource.
It's just ironic considering that for so many years, it was the opposite: "Using paper and wood contributes to deforestation, so let's use as little of that as possible."
Kudos to you for using an Arrested Development clip-I loved that show!
a lot of marketing and brands were selling sustainable "swap"items to the US customers as these innovative new and cool eco thing, what the rest of the world has been doing for forever..
... regular plates that can be washed instead of paper plates, glasses instead of plastic cups, dish rags????
and then selling these for premium prices to the people who were just trying to improve their lifestyle.
it turned from a well Intentionen positive movement to just another branch of capitalism.
Yeah I live in a developing nation and the habits of consumption differ a lot from the US.
I like the idea of Less Waste or Zero Waste, but the execution... It was extremely easy for me to switch and still do things like not buying kitchen towels (I already had the cloth kitchen towels, that has been used the same way since I remeber), buy produce without packaging, reusing and recycling... the thing is, I used to live in a country, where no packaging on produce was a norm and every single household has a drawer with kitchen cloth towels and a bag with plastic bags in it, our recycling system is generally very good.
Then I moved to a place, where recycling is great but "Reduce" part is nonexistent. Now I live in a country that doesn't care most of the time. If the only way to buy food, is to get the food directly in a plastic bag, that's the way you go. If I give my cup to a drink vendor, they make it in plastic and pour it to my cup.
On another note, I was woring in a coffee shop in the US for some time (I'm not from there). Customers would come for coffee, get two cups in one instead of a sleeve, mix in sugar from a little packet (even though we had a sugar shaker/dyspenser next to), stir with one stiring stick, throw it away, ad more sugar and repeat the whole thing a few times. Just to drink it at the counter and throw the cup away inside. While all along we offered ceramic mugs.
My point - reduce when stuff is unnecessary, accept when it's the only option. If you're in a place, where the only way to buy cookies is to get them in a bag, and then individually packed plastick inside of the bag, just buy it. But if you don't need to bag each piece of fruit in separate plastic bag, then why not do it?
The tomato scene from The Good Place highlighted the main challenge: reading information about products costs time. Sorting through criteria takes time. Sure, a store could highlight information on tags, or if you were lucky a website might have useful filters. The internet provided blogs and videos on how to cut waste. But we ultimately lacked a requisite description of all products and services for anyone at any location. And we lacked the means to build and maintain such a catalog efficiently. And such a digital catalog is the foundation for good planning and accelerated planning via software.
Interestingly, we tried Zero waste. We live in middle-eastern europe and our city has very few recycling infrastructure, and only one packaging-free shop (which closed 4 months ago, FML). We never managed to reach it. Not even Low waste. Don't get me wrong, we reduced our trash output to one trashcan a week. But it's not easy, financially. For some reason, plastic wrapped things are just more financially available to us, than not.
What rubbed me the wrong way was that a lot of those things weren't new or revolutionary and/or not though to the end.
For the new and innovative ideas: Ask a soviet grandmother. She gives you so many alternatives because they hadn't much stuff and had to make it last.
E.g. a life cycle of a Shirt was: 1. new and good to wear outside, 2. close holes and wear it at home/as pyjamas, 3. To dirty and worn out? Wear it in your garden or dirty work. 4. Too dirty and run down? Make rags out of it. Use it from kitchen to bathroom to garden/car workshop. Only after that you get rid of the shirt or whatever is left.
Not though through: the new biodegradable plastics are a just wrong. Bamboo mixed with a polymer? Do i really have to explain why it's not good to mix wood and plastic to create new green washed plastic? Which is also much harder to recycle. Buy new stuff which won't solve the problem but ad a new layer to it.
Also the recycling part. I live in Germany and have roots in the Soviet Union. Here in Germany we make recycling quite simple. Every household has 4 bins. Blue for paper, yellow for plastics, brown for compostable stuff like food and black for the rest. For glas and textile you have separate Containers in the streets around you. Batteries you could return to the stores and they collect and recycle them. And for glas and plastic bottles? You pay 25ct more for the bottle but you get the money back, when you return it. Somehow it works. But with the new wave of new mixed materials it's getting harder to recycle. A simple paperbag won't go a long way. It needs a coating. Coatings are made of plasics. Plastic and paper are now bond together and both have to be burnt. So no recycling for the paper 😕
So yeah in conclusion the whole zero waste trend was nice to see in the USA and it seems like it helped out there. To see how wasteful it was and to understand how other countries handle the probelm. But other countries have already some good ideas too.
I still recycle my shirts that way.
Also: net bags. Return jars.
I would probably even reuse a plastic bag at least twice.