I’ve started my journey toward being a Zero Waste citizen. So, mostly for my own reflection, I’ve decided to blog about my findings and life changes. Like it’s 2003 or something.
More details in future posts for anyone who stumbles upon this and is looking for specific substitutions for plastic in their life. The first step on this journey has been a long time coming for me. I won’t pretend that this blog is a recommendation for everyone — it’s not! The reality is that giving up plastic (and striving for zero waste in general) isn’t an accessible goal for so many people.
So let me start by acknowledging a few things:
1. I am privileged to have money to spend on becoming Zero Waste
Unfortunately… this is expensive. Often, I’ll be paying people to take my waste. Even though I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and recycling happens curbside (even at my apartment complex!), so so so much of what I consume isn’t accepted at curbside recycling.
Until the world changes to Recycling-as-a-community-service model… Well, recycling is a capitalist’s game. It’ll cost me (and anyone else with the privilege of money) to safely dispose of many things.
2. I am privileged to have time to dedicate to becoming Zero Waste
Even though hundreds have been writing about their own journeys and blogging on this for decades… figuring out what’s right for you and in your community takes a lot of time! Many people don’t have the ability to spend hours on researching how to become Zero Waste. Hopefully, if you’re reading this, my blog can still be a guide for you even though I’m:
Writing in the 2021 lockdown-era
Living in the San Francisco Bay Area
Starting out as like a C+ skilled person in consumption
Some of this may be dated, and some of it might not apply to your community. I’m also a happily-married queer man. I’ve already seen tons of good resources on reducing your waste impact for women’s products. I have zero experience in this area and I’ll acknowledge that it’ll be a big blindspot for this documentation if you’re looking for help. The good news is that there are lots of women with better resources than mine to help people on this journey!
3. I am privileged to already own most things
The biggest impact we can all have to reduce our waste is to buy less.
Sounds simple, right? And for me it is. Given the two privileges above… I’ve already had the opportunity to buy almost every middle-class convenience I could think of. Lots of people don’t have that luxury and may be wondering what a sustainable vacuum cleaner looks like. Spoilers: I don’t know.
I already own many things for my household that are long-term plastics. I’ll have to figure out the answer to that sustainable vacuum cleaner one day! But hopefully my current vacuum lasts a long time.
4. I am privileged to already have most of consumer culture geared toward me
There will always be a need for plastic. Many people rely on multi-use (and single-use!) plastic simply in order to live. I am an able-bodied cis white man and privileged that I can reduce my waste impact on this earth so that there can be room for others to have what they need.
What Next?
We’ll see how this journey actually takes shape in written form! My goal is to break it down by room/use so it’s a little more coherent for anyone who happens to be reading this. I hope to make big changes in my consumer habits for:
The bathroom
The kitchen
The bedroom / laundry
The living room / home office
The great outdoors
The mode of transportation and the job
I also hope to round-up my solutions for outgoing waste material, and incoming consumer materials. Where you put your dollar matters. As convenient as it is to be able to run to the nearest general store and pick up what I need… I can use my privileges (outlined above) to go the extra distance and reduce my impact.