Let's dive more, I promise this is an interesting trend that you want to learn more :)
Start from the definition, what is zero waste lifestyle?:
Zero Waste is a set of principles focused on waste prevention that encourages the redesign of resource life cycles so that all products are reused. The goal is for no trash to be sent to landfills, incinerators or the ocean.
So in simple words, zero waste lifestyle means trying your best to live this life without waste. Waste can be anything you think of: product packaging, common trash, food, unused clothes, etc. The ultime question is can humans live without producing waste? I mean come on, we poop, pee, eat, using stuff, making things, all of them cost waste and how on earth we can be zero waste at all!! Some people also get angry and labeled people who do this lifestyle as "hipster" or "hippies".
But wait, don't close this tab yet because the lifestyle has nothing weird and actually a solution to some major problems that many people ignored! Ever heard of climate change or maybe millennials are familiar with global warming. Zero waste lifestyle is important and it's an open-armed invitation for anyone who cares to preserve the only home we have - earth. By reducing waste to almost zero, hopefully, big bad industries will reduce their harmful products and we can heal the environment together.
So answering the question: Can humans be zero waste at all? NO. But one human can reduce their waste to the maximum level that is nearly zero. So having zero waste lifestyle does not means live without producing waste since that's doesn't make any sense.
OK. That's some brief background on the definition of zero waste lifestyle. A little bit story of mine, since I live in Vancouver, Canada, everything to anything is possible. I can be or have anything I wanted here. For example say diet preferences like gluten-free, or vegan, or ketogenic, everything is possible in Vancouver since there are a lot of restaurants that provide such meals. Another example, let's say I choose to be a Lesbian, no one is gonna judge me here, there are even a lot of communities that support the people. The same thing applied to have zero waste life.
I think it's nothing to lose to try this (some people said "extreme") lifestyle. Because why not? I truly sincerely care about my world and the environment. I never thought about reducing waste at all before, though I hate when people using plastic all the time.
Anyway, another ultimate question: how to reduce waste aka zero waste examples that we can start with? Easy, start with something you think you can. For me, it's the beauty and cleaning stuff.
Creative direction and photography by Gita Lesmana www.gitalesmana.com
That's just one simple thing. Another example that I've been switching lately is the cleaning stuff for my kitchen. Every single dish soap comes with plastic packaging, and they are harmful to the environment (we all knew about this), but also did you know that those liquids are also chemical and unhealthy for us? I just wanna try to live longer in this world because I love my life, it's a gift from God. So I do my best to take care of my life, I hope it makes sense to you lol.
Well, as I said living in Vancouver is convenient, even for zero waste lifestyle. There is a shop nearby called The Soap Dispensary and they sell anything refillable and reusable. Check their super cool website! These are some haul I bought from The Soap Dispensary. The store is super beautiful, clean, and all the staff is very helpful. You may be lost in your mind when you are going to this kind of store for the first time, those products are not things that I used to but they helped me so much to understand and choose only what I need! Cheers to them!
this bulk section was closed due to the Covid19 situation, usually, you can refill stuff here with your own containers, now you need to fill online orders and they'd do it for ya.
Covid19 changes how everything works.
all cutie stuff, i can spend hours here
castile soaps
feels like in the chemistry lab, but all natural stuff
tiny eco friendly products that help us change our lifestyle
Oh side note, just because Covid19, the protocol is changed, it's limited to 4 people inside the store, and you can't bring your own container anymore, instead order them online and the staff will pack it for you~
Check their website and you can find their price list as well, or follow them on Instagram: @Thesoapdispensary
My starter pack to begin the Zero Waste Lifestyle movement
Castile Soap
This soap is multipurpose and versatile, you can read this well written article here: Why Castile Soap is Good for You. We just need to mix this liquid castile soap with water, and turn it into hand/body/face soap, dishwasher soap, floor soap, and baby soap. It is infused with natural essential oil of your choice. Very gentle, formulated so natural and harmless to the skin and the environment. Most of soap in the market use SLS as the main ingredients, and they are not a good friend for our bodies. Please read your products ingredients before buying and learning from the internet cost nothing but wifi connection.
Anyway I bought the mix of lavender and eucalyptus. I used Dr Bronner's Castile Soap before, but it's more cheaper to buy bulk in this store.
Natural Toothpaste
I have to be honest to you and admit that this tastes like spicy salt paste, sorry! Truth hurts but the truth set me free! Free from nasty chemicals that commercial toothpaste contains! You can read more about it in this cool article: Toxins in Your Toothpaste. Natural tooth cleaner is yucky I know, but those toothpaste you see in the market is having aspartame to trick your tongue and that's NASTY! So I'd rather spent 3 minutes in uncomfy brushing session than trade my health with sweet toothpaste. Think about this seriously my friends!
Dishwasher Soap Block
This is very the most item I wanted to try, since I never use this kind of soap to wash my dishes. The seller said I can use this for anything else but I want to dedicate this soap on my kitchen for the dishes. It looks super cute and quirky, and most importantly, it has NO PACKAGING at all, so happy that I'm not causing plastic waste for washing my dishes! This soap name is Savon de Marseille, it's a famous French brand that produce natural things. And I got the plant-based brushes from Net Zero Company as well. It is super easy to clean the dirty dishes with this soap, and this big boy costs 15$ but replace up to 8 bottles of liquid soap! Hell yeah, I will never ever buy the commercial soap anymore! (proud to be frugal).
Organic Castor Oil
The Soap Dispensary also sells so many DIY oils, super cool! I'm not a DIY person (for now) but it's always fun to make your homemade stuff, tried couple of times for myself and work, always a good experience. No nasty ingredients and reduces so much waste! I am using this lovely organic castor oil for my brow and eyelashes (since I don't have any lol), hopefully I can have thicker eyelashes! You can also mix castor oil with shea butter to make your own body lotion or body butter, beautiful and cheaper than Sephora HAHA.
French Clay Mask
Let's still be beautiful and taking care of the earth at the same time~ We all know the power of pampering skin with clay mask once a week. You just need to mix one tbsp of this clay mask with water, apply to face for 10-13 mins, rinse it off, and apply your moisturizer. Do the mask routine for once a week and you will get all the beauiful benefits that a French Clay Mask can give!
So that's all my story about going zero waste in my beginning. I hope this post can inspires you, I'm not trying to sell anything, just think about this very well while you are free. It takes a second to make a decision that will change the world. Well, the mission was never "change the world" but "change ourselves" to become better, and the rest will follow!!
THANKYOU so much for reading, let me know what do you think about zero waste movement and do you feel you can do this with me? :D
Me and this cutie squirrel say thankyou!
Till next time~
xx
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rhea