So I started thinking, what made me start out on this zero waste journey? And I guess it all came down to the effects the human race are starting to have on the planet. I totally think we are causing climate change. The thing that really gets me is the warming of the oceans and all the coral that is being bleached and dying. Because I am pretty much a fish and am in love with the ocean, it really makes me sad. So I actually got really excited about making little changes in my life to help reduce my household waste.
I now have a family of 4. Me, my husband Kurt, Archer who is an energetic 4 year old and Lucas who is just about 4 months now (wow where has the time gone?!) We are probably now at the point where we are putting out a rubbish bag about once every 3 months, which is a big improvement on one a week! I have found that composting food scraps made the biggest difference. We have been using a Bokashi bin, worm farm, compost bin, shopping at food refilleries to eliminate packaging, growing our own vegetables, baking our own bread and cookies every week, using reusable coffee cups, utensils and straws, making our own cards or gift wrap, using bars of soap with no plastic packaging, using bamboo tooth brushes, using cloth nappies (diapers), using compostable and refillable floss, trying to buy products with glass packaging rather than plastic and I'm sure there are other things I haven't thought of but we are gradually adding more to the list. We do still recycle packaging that we can't avoid, including soft plastics.
Sometimes it does seem like a mission, especially when it comes to taking all my jars to the refillery while carrying a baby and trying to control my 4 year old. So I have been experimenting with their delivery services to make it a little easier.
I am happy that I am making a difference to the planet. So many people say to me "wow, you are amazing, I could never do that" but you know what? If you just make a start, even with something small, it really isn't hard at all.
