40 ways to go zero-waste!

After explaining the 5 reasons to live a zero-waste lifestyle, let's go on with the tips. Do you wonder how people make only a jar of trash a year? Here are the 40 eco-friendly tips that you can easily adapt in your life.

Principles of zero waste - 5Rs

One of the first things that we learned during my bachelor degree at environmental engineering is the 5R! Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Reproduce or Rot and then Recycle! These are a sequence of steps on how to manage waste properly.

1. Refuse what you don't need! We need to say NO to plastic, single-use items (STRAWs) that will immediately go to landfill and stay there forever.

2. Reduce what you do use! This equals less waste generating in everyday. We need to simplify our life by reusing the items and avoiding to buy a new one.

3. Reuse whatever you can. We can repair or recondition something.

4. Rot what's leftover. Kitchen scraps, paper, wooden or bamboo items can compost and return nutrients and fibre back to the earth.

5. Recycle what you can’t refuse or reduce. We should separate our recycling waste properly and send them to recycling facilities.

Here are just a few to get you started zero waste lifestyle!

1. Refuse the single-use or non-compostable products, such as plastic water bottle, coffee cups or plastic straw.

2. Use bamboo or wooden toothbrushes instead of a plastic one.

3. Exchange the beeswax and cloth food wrap with paper or plastic wraps.

4. Use silicone bowl covers rather than plastic or aluminium coverage.

5. Obtain a glass, bamboo, metal straws!

6. Don't use the air conditioner, just open a window to cool down your room or air it out.

7. Use a french press or coffee maker to avoid filter paper.

8. Get glass jar instead of plastic containers.

9. Minimize food waste. You can compost it or share it with other people or animals.

10. Don't buy any new clothes for a year/month/week depending on your shopping habits. We are all stuck at home; I think we do not need more another shirt/dress/pair of shoes, don't we?

11. Think second-hand first when purchasing something.

12. Turn old sheets and towels into handkerchiefs, rags, napkins, and cloth produce bags.

13. Donate your unused items in good condition.

14. Barrow before buying! You can hire a dress for special events that you can just use once or get a library card to borrow a book from there.

15. Carry a full reusable water bottle and your coffee cup. Most of the coffee shops charge extra for disposable cups. You can also save money if you go with there with your own mug!

16. Carry reusable shopping bags and just don’t use plastic bags.

17. Start composting your food, paper, wooden or bamboo items.

18. Stop buying packaged foods and cook your own meal.

19. Ask for no plastic and reused packaging materials while giving an online food order.

20. Buy in bulk with your own reusable containers.

21. Walk, ride a bike, carpool or take public transport.

22. Produce your biodiesel. Don't pour used cooking oil down the drain (it causes clogs). However, you can donate cooking oil to be recycled into biodiesel fuel or you can produce your own biodiesel at home.

23. Make your own detergent, deodorant or even make-up tools.

24. Go with rechargeable batteries instead of disposables.

25. Choose a real Christmas tree from your local farm rather than a fake one.

26. Switch tea bags for loose leaf tea in a reusable strainer.

27. Choose to receive online receipts and avoid to be printed.

28. Go paperless for all your bills!

29. Swap single-use makeup remover pads and cotton in reusable makeup pads instead.

30. Wash your clothes in cold water and run the machine when it is a full.

31. Avoid using a dryer.

32. Exchange from a plastic disposable razor to a metal safety razor.

33. Eat more greens, veggies and legumes, less meat.

34. Choose your local farms to reduce carbon footprint coming from the transportation of food.

35. Carry your own containers for takeout.

36. Make your multipurpose cleaner. In a spray bottle, combine 1⁄2 cup white distilled vinegar with 1 cup water, and add 10 to 20 drops of tea tree, lavender, lemon or eucalyptus essential oil. Shake well before using.

37. Recycle all unbroken glass, plastics, paper and cardboard, tin and aluminium cans!

38. Use the solid soap, it is plastic-free and long-lasting than liquids.

39. Choose reusable menstrual products like washable cloth pads and menstrual cups.

40. Don’t buy anything impulsively! if you feel anxious, take a walk, do meditation or call your family or friends and distract your attention.