I have to admit it, when I heard about a zero waste lifestyle, I thought “impossible”. Well, when you pay attention to the objects you consume and use, a big percent of them will end up in the trash in just a few minutes. Almost all of them will eventually end up in a landfill, even if it takes years. The incredible amount of waste we generate is something to worry about... deeply. A while ago, someone asked me: “what are you most afraid of?” I couldn’t think of anything, so she said “death?” I said “no” There’s life after life, but that’s another story. Now, if the same question was asked, I would say, undoubtedly, that it’s plastic. It’s abominable! Brought to us by the fossil fuel industry, the most profitable, powerful, and dangerous industry in history.
We think that is just as simple as throwing everything into the garbage bin; that by getting rid of it we will make it disappear. But hey... there’s actually no away in the throw-away. If the youngest person on earth reached the average lifespan, at the moment of his or her death, most of the things we throw away would still exist, even the first piece of plastic ever made. It takes 1000 years for plastic to degrade! Since it was created 152 years ago, it will take 800 more years for that first piece of plastic to degrade. So the next time you throw that plastic bottle or wrapping into the trash can, please don’t lie to yourself again. This doesn’t mean it’s not your problem anymore. It will be around for ages... literally. Actually, the fact that you throw it away makes it a bigger a problem because it’ll be the whole biosphere’s problem. Either it will end up contaminating the soil, hence polluting groundwater which is indispensable for human life, or it will float across rivers and oceans, decomposing into tiny pieces that fish eat and end up in our food chain, choking turtles and seals and releasing toxics into the water. We are part of an ecosystem which is composed of interdependent relationships. Everything is connected, and if things are not right in a part of it, they’ll start breaking down everywhere. Indirect damage is all around us: poisoning, climate change, pollution of potable water, and the list just goes on.
We are a distracted society. How do you think the need for entertainment emerged? Some systems are so unfair and wrong that distraction has become a necessity. What would happen if everybody knew what’s really going on? It’s not about making things more interesting. Isn’t nature entertaining enough? Have you ever contemplated trees? Leaves? Our bodies? Your eyes? Isn’t that incredibly intricate and interesting? I think there’s no need for entertainment when trying to figure out how nature works. Those who are in control of industries which have money as the only priority don’t want the truth to be constantly present in our minds. They won’t put a label in a plastic bottle that says: “you’re only paying 4 cents for the water, the rest is for the bottle which will break down into smaller pieces as time goes by, polluting water and soil, for 1000 more years”.
It’s not that I hadn’t heard about the problem of waste before. I had read, heard, and talked about it at school. I just hadn’t assimilated it. The dimensions of its damage are enormous! It’s horrible! A few days after the challenge was posted, it was hard for me to go out in the streets and see everybody carrying a disposable cup, bag or package. I could only think about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, or the images of animal’s stomachs full of plastic caps. I could imagine us drowning in plastic. Actually, I didn’t even have to go outside to see these things. I entered my kitchen, opened the counter and... guess what I saw? Plastic packages. I felt like crying. Actually, I did cry... a lot. But the fact that there are changes to be made and that all that it takes to pursue a zero waste lifestyle is determination comforted me. Sitting around, knowing why things are wrong, and still not doing anything is the most frustrating thing I can think about. That’s why, I made changes and got rid of the idea that things are impossible, including a zero waste lifestyle. You can make everything simple!
These are some changes I've made:
Collection of bottle caps for the SANAR foundation
SANAR is the alliance for the prevention and treatment of cancer in children. It’s a Colombian non-profit organization that for nearly 30 years has been devoted to accompany children with cancer and their families in the diagnosis and comprehensive care of the disease . Thus transforms hope and the meaning of life. With the initiative “tapas para Sanar” the foundation collects caps to sell to recycling centers and raise money to fund programs supporting psychological and social support and health of children and adolescents with cancer. Whenever my parents or my cousin buy plastic bottles, they leave the caps here:
Turning my garbage bin into a compost bin
Making compost is fairly easy. You just need 'activators', which can be added to your compost to help kick-start the process and speed up composting. The activators are also called “browns”. You need a 50/50 proportion between browns and greens. I've just started collecting my organic residues.
Cleaning
Instead of those toxic cleaning products which come in dense plastic containers, I proposed the multi-purpose cleaner I made for the clean challenge in my house. My mom accepted. It consists of water, sodium bicarbonate, vinegar and lemon. I store it in the vinegar glass containers. It was not so easy to convince my mom, I don’t know if it’s her generation’s way of thinking, but she thinks everything is SO complicated. It is really hard for her to make a change, changing how it’s always been. She argued that at least the cleaning products she bought smelled nice, and I said my cleaner wouldn’t even have a smell and that these fragrances are nothing but chemicals, that she was being tricked into the lie of marketing. For the clean challenge, I cleaned my bathroom with my cleaner and showed her it worked and that it smelled of lemon, just a bit. She approved... finally.
Seed starters
Here’s a great way to take advantage of egg shells and of those seeds that sometimes bother you when you’re eating fruit! These biodegradable eggshell planters are perfect for starting seeds! You just need to crack the top third of the eggs and store them, you don’t even need to wash them because the egg will give nutrients to the soil. Fill the eggshells with moist potting soil and add seeds. Now, when I eat an apple, make orange juice or cook beans I store the seeds.
Reusable shopping bags
At home, we’ve collected bags from previous purchases and bought some to replace plastic bags at the grocery store. We keep 4 at home, my mom carries 2 in her car and 1 in her purse for casual shopping. We shop at the marketplace, where everything is unpacked. They sometimes use plastic bags to weight and separate fruits and vegetables, but me and my mom just tell them not to give us bags. There are fruits like blackberry that need to be separated, otherwise it would be a squished mess. We didn't think about this before going to the marketplace, but next time we'll just carry glass containers.
Collecting glass containers
Now I don’t throw away glass containers. They are always useful! To can homemade jam or oeanut butter, or to use as containers when you buy in bulk!
NO plastic bottles!
Around school, I carry my stainless steel thermos and fill it in the water fountain. Before I go out of my house, I fill the thermos with tap water to the top so that it lasts for the whole period of time in which I’m out. This is so easy and saves a lot of money. The only thing I have to do to avoid buying a water plastic bottle, no matter how thirsty I am, is to think about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
Zero waste eating
I’ve discovered that packaged food can be replaced with food that has a billion times more nutritional value and doesn’t generate waste. For example, replacing cookies, granola bars or crackers with fruit! At first, my body tricked me and I felt like I needed those cookies or that brownie. It’s like a processed food abstinence syndrome. But, after a while, my body accustomed to my new eating habits.
Now, for breakfast I make a fruit smoothie. Instead of sugar, I use bananas and instead of water, I use orange juice. This makes it an energy smoothie! In between breakfast and lunch, I eat fruit that I carry in my lunchbox or nuts. For nuts, I avoid single packaging and buy a big bag that will last for a whole month. My nails and my hair are starting to grow really fast! I have lunch at school or at home, neither one of these includes packaged food.
Toothpowder
I got this recipe from http://zerowastehome.blogspot.com/
It’s sodium bicarbonate and stevia powder.
This is my cousin washing her teeth with the toothpowder!
Sometimes, the traditional way is the sustainable way. Instead of throwing all those kleenex away, I made these handkerchiefs from an old blanket I found in my closet. This was so easy, it takes no time at all. When I did it, I was actully in a hurry to go to school. I needed to blow my nose, but I refused to use a kleenex, so I opened the closet and found this blanket I hadn't seen in years, got scissors and cutted three hankerchiefs. It took 3 minutes!
