We waste so much! We as humans have to be more conscious of the environmental footprint and being more resourceful. Millions of things that could be reused or recycled end up being thrown away. Instead of creating more waste, we should recycle our household materials or old products into new ideas. Waste is everyone’s problem and we all have a role to play in order to solve the problem. Businesses and the entire population should work to change behavior permanently by focusing on problems and providing innovative solutions.
Refuse – what you don’t need!
Refuse to buy products that can harm you and the environment. Don’t buy products with unnecessary packaging. Try to see if you can find a carton packaging so that it can be recycled or a biodegradable one that is safe and zero waste. Don’t use any plastic bags or support to buy them. Stores are trending to ban the plastic bags and only have paper or reusable bags that can be purchased, so you can reuse them over and over again. As a society that is constantly wanting new things and earning a variety of goods, it is best to see a minimalist and zero waste lifestyle.
Reduce – what you do need!
Buying durable products, like I mentioned before, reusable bags that are handy to use for grocery shopping or preparing for a day trip in the city. The key is to avoid single use items to reduce the impact we leave on the environment. Similarly, using less energy on electronics can help us become more active, but it also can also improve ecological efficiency.
Reuse – using what you have!
Take something you already have in your home and use it for something else. It can test your creativity and also for businesses it’s a great new product. Reusing glass cups and going to coffee shops with reusable mugs is a very good way of being resourceful. Also, reusable water bottles save more energy and reduce the amount of plastic in the world!
Recycle – what can you do!
Paper is a huge source when it comes to recycling. We still use paper to write notes, or sign contracts and we still keep copies of documents just to be safe. Thus, going paperless is definitely beneficial for the environment. Even though it’s established among many Universities, businesses, and hospitals are going paperless, we still see paper everywhere. We receive magazines in the mail, flyers on the street, and even use them for photo printouts! It’s time to cancel all paper products and use online equipment. For students, we are involved in the paperless world by using google docs, one drive, and word for note taking and saving all documents electronically. Reading e-books and saving important documents that are saved locally on a network or the cloud saves time and can be easily accessible when we need it.
Rot – the rest!
When I hear rot, I think of things going bad. When it goes bad doesn’t mean it can’t be used for something else. Compost is very important and can be beneficial to the earth in many ways. It can build a more rich soil, it can protect against drought, and help many living species. Living in Switzerland made me appreciate the use of a clean water system in the tap. I love using my reusable water bottle and it’s more beneficial to use it and be more resourceful than I was in the United States. Using beeswax paper is recyclable and biodegradable. We eat and save so much food and cover it with plastic containers, plastic wrap or foil which is bad for the environment. Using beeswax paper is a safe and environmentally friendly option.
I hope you enjoyed reading my blog and stay tuned for the next post!
(Image Source: https://twitter.com/4ocean/status/1019715447661432832)
great article, excited to read more !
I try to reuse as much as possible. In Thailand I even had my own metal straw for coconuts. Still people tried to give me a plastic one all the time as a part of good service.
Love this! Such an important topic! Excited to read more!
Great post and so true! Now more than ever we need to be focusing on these things!
Hey Victoria, great post. I always try to keep myself informed about recycling, I’ll follow your blog to get new inputs!
Great that you attract attention to a very important problem! I like to use reusable containers for food and other stuff too.