who says though that individuals can’t make a positive change right in their own communities? three women share their journeys to living a more sustainable lifestyle. read on to hear their stories, from their inspiration to how they incorporated these alternative changes into their lives. 

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arlington, virginia, resident fidan karimova, 33, is on a personal journey to live a plastic-free and zero-waste lifestyle. she will be the first to admit that it can be intimidating and says, “you can’t be perfect all the time, but making little changes, at least, slowly gets you to where you need to go.” 

karimova was inspired by a book she read in 2017 called “zero waste home: the ultimate guide to simplifying your life by reducing your waste,” written by bea johnson. since then, karimova has incorporated these switches into her life and says it “saves money and saves a lot of plastic going into the trash and filling up our landfills.” 

many of these changes center around products used in her daily life. in her bag, she always has a reusable cup, bamboo utensils, and a cloth napkin because although paper towels are easier to recycle than plastic, “it adds up” she says. 

she uses a refillable deodorant which allows her to keep the plastic encasing and reuse it, instead of purchasing a brand new product over and over. her floss comes in a glass container with the string itself shipped in compostable packaging. additionally, her lotion and shower products come in reusable containers. even her phone case is compostable! 

at home, karimova uses dishwasher drops that come in a paper box and wool dryer balls to replace disposable dryer sheets. in terms of wardrobe, karimova is in the process of shifting to a closet of only 50 clothing items. this feat has been difficult in a world where fast fashion brands mass-produce cheap quality and low priced items. 

these are small switches in the sense that anyone can choose to spend their money on them, but they require effort and research to get there. by being conscious of where she spends her money and avoiding single-use items, karimova says, “i’m ensuring that our environment stays cleaner longer.” 

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kristy halvorsen, 42, had lived in florida her whole life. while working as a firefighter-paramedic in 2015, she had a dream of traveling the world. not wanting to wait until retirement for her adventure, she created a five-year plan to downsize her home and move into an airstream full-time.

then, one year into the plan, “i just suddenly realized we don’t have to plan everything and life kinda has our backs and we can be more in the moment,” halvorsen said. her vision ended up only taking two years before she was out on the road. 

her portable home attaches to her truck and lets halvorsen to stay at national parks, campgrounds, and friends’ driveways. this lifestyle allows her to lower her water and electricity use and her total cost of living. halvorsen also had solar panels installed on her trailer to give her power when off-grid. she’s since realized, “i don’t need more than the sun gives me…it almost forces you to be more cognizant and more conservative.” her trailer holds just 60 gallons of water — but that lasts her, one person, about three weeks. 

“i’m a drop in the bucket. i’m sure there’s many more people living like me out there. the more there are, the less impact we have, the smaller the footprint,” she said. 

“one of the biggest things i’ve seen in the journey is we need so much less than we think,” she said. through her time on the road and her new habits, halvorsen has noticed just how much stuff we buy — whether from the grocery store, shopping, or even buying souvenirs on vacation. she said she wishes she could cut her already tiny closet in half, but admits it’s hard to get over the very human worry that we might “need it someday.” 

halvorsen acknowledges that this lifestyle isn’t for everyone, but encourages even those who aren’t living on the road to aim for a more gentle footprint. now in her third year living full-time in the airstream, she has become so close to nature and says, “(i) don’t want to waste things; hurts my soul.” 

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karen mcmanus, 62, and rich mcmanus, 68, haven’t lived on land for the past five years. quite literally, their home is on the water, in a sailboat with 300 square feet of living space. they moved to their energy-efficient boat, named free spirit 2, to travel during their early retirement. this new living situation quickly taught them to reevaluate the way they used their space, what they owned, and how they used electricity and gasoline. 

free spirit 2 provides the mcmanus’ an environmentally friendly way to travel and is a more affordable way to live in pricey washington, d.c. the sailboat has solar panels which provide most of the power they use, with the option to run a generator for air conditioning. karen mcmanus says, “it’s not like an apartment where you can just flip a light switch.” on cloudy days she says they are especially cautious of their usage. 

with limited living and storage space on their boat, prior to moving the couple got rid of an entire closet of clothes and donated extra kitchen supplies. they’ve since even switched to e-books over physical copies. (they quickly become damp and moldy on a boat.) but their life on the water also has been cheaper in a few ways for them. the daily cost of living, including boat slip fees, are relatively cheap. but maintaining a boat and doing repairs can add up fast. 

mcmanus said living on a boat leads you to become more aware of your environment, since there’s no escaping the weather changes. she stays very attuned to how the weather and seasons change — and how they impact the tide. mcmanus said she and her husband enjoy living at a marina, and have met people from many different walks of life. 

she says she also has become more mindful of how much waste ends up in our waterways. “how much trash i have picked up out of the ocean, made me very aware of our society’s use of plastic. also, no longer a fan of helium balloons,” which she said she’s found miles offshore floating in the ocean. 

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in almost every facet of life, people can make product or lifestyle switches that are better for the planet. from changing the place you call home to not eating animal products, buying reusable products, shopping for sustainable clothes, actively protesting, picking up trash, and more. the more people that make these smaller-scale changes, the bigger the positive trend that can result. as halvorsen said, it’s all “a drop in the bucket” toward a livable future. 

“is everything of plastic? almost, ” a video advertisement for the futuristic dream house boasts. 

we are past that future now. so where is the house?

well, depending on the type of plastic, pieces of the house may have ended up in different places around the world. since plastics can take anywhere from 20 to 500 years to break down, elements of the house are likely still somewhere on this planet, negatively affecting animals and plants alike, and likely ending up on our plates.

microplastics have been found everywhere, and are now thought to be ubiquitous in the environment.

microfibers from house of the future’s synthetic fabrics could be falling out of the sky with snow and rain. microplastics have now been found to undergo transportation via the atmosphere and be deposited back down to earth.

some of the synthetic materials, once weathered into smaller pieces by other forces could easily be ingested by all sorts of wildlife, especially since research shows that plastics immersed in ocean water emit a chemical signal that seabirds smell and easily mistake for their other sources of food.

some of the more dense plastics from the house might more easily sink in aquatic environments, like this high-density polyethylene bucket at the bottom of the ocean.

even if the entirety of monsanto’s house of the future was properly disposed of in a landfill, it could still be wreaking havoc on the environment. landfills have been found to leach chemicals and have the potential to contaminate groundwater sources. or, like the scene shown in this photo, the elements can weather away at the manmade features and eventually wash them out to sea.

how can we change?

while we cannot undo the creation of the house of the future, all of us can pursue actionable everyday steps to help curb the deleterious effects of plastic on our environment and its inhabitants.

• before you buy something made of plastic or packaged in it, try to find a secondhand or zero waste alternative to it. always have your bottle or mug on you and think ahead for food or snacks so that you don’t catch yourself in a pinch having to purchase plastic-wrapped food.   
• contact companies you support about reducing their plastic footprint. this handy guide walks you through how to go about contacting businesses—complete with a script!
• if contacting businesses is not up your alley, call them out on social media about excessive packaging. outreach is key to solving the plastics problem
• contact your representatives and urge them to support the break free from plastic pollution act of 2020.

this is not to dissuade anyone from getting as close to this point as possible or to say that being eco-friendly is futile, but rather to show some flaws in our modern society that so often go unnoticed. when you limit the products that you are allowed to buy and use purely by the packaging and how it is disposed of, it’s like taking a flashlight and shining it on the shadowed, hidden and inconspicuous defects in our production and distribution of items. for one, it’s difficult to find any sort of product with reusable packaging, especially packaging without any plastic. cereal, clothes from amazon, my ninja bullet and its various parts that i got for christmas, papyrus mailing cards and countless other items that have no business needing plastic packaging all seem to have them! the epa estimated 14.5 million tons of plastic containers and packaging were generated in 2017. by being overexposed to this kind of material and seeing it on everything, eventually, we become numb and “blinded” to the sight of it and don’t notice it anymore. it is only until forcing yourself to see it that it becomes apparent that there is unnecessary packaging everywhere. 

on instagram and over social media, it has become popular to show pictures of a mason jar full of trash and title it “my waste of one year” or “how my family and i haven’t touched plastic for 6 months”. while the shock value of this is impressive and draws people into the concept of living more sustainably, it doesn’t quite tell the whole story of waste in this country. for example, lauren singer who has a channel on youtube shows her trash for four years that has come out to one mason jar. this is incredibly impressive and something we should all aspire to. as i was watching this video, though, i couldn’t help but think of the methods that go into making these products. in the mason jar, there are produce stickers from fruit, which most likely, have come from fruit that has been imported and been grown with pesticides. in addition, the clothing tags, usually come from clothes that have also been imported and contain harmful dyes. the crux of this is that the material waste created isn’t the only problem. i would suggest that people also consider the methods that are being used to create these items and look to the manufacturers to also make changes.

in regard to what citizens and consumers can do, as far as packaging is concerned, a lot of good can be done by reducing and eventually eliminating packaging, especially when it comes to food. currently, i am in the process of creating and establishing a “to-go” program where food containers are taken home with restaurant leftovers and then are returned, reused, and washed and can be used again by another patron. these “eco-go” containers would save on the styrofoam and plastic “to-go” containers and would create a more sustainable and eco-friendlier world. there are also so many companies who are taking a stab at this problem. “from 2020 to 2025, nestlé will phase out all plastics that are not recyclable or are hard to recycle.” even washington d.c. passed legislation in 2009 that required all businesses that sell food or alcohol to charge 5 cents for each carry out or plastic bag.

for those who have concerns about the state of our future, there is hope and it is everyday people who care that really make a difference and inspire change. by attempting to go zero waste and monitor what is being disposed of, we become more aware and cognizant of our daily waste and as a result can be more proactive in our steps to affect climate change in a positive way.

the report brings an honest interpretation of the current state of the recycling industry and just how many levels in which it is faltering. especially since countries in eastern asia have started to refuse accepting recyclables from the united states, according to media reports. in a press release from the public interest network, which operates more than 15 organizations including the u.s. pirg, several states have been “failing to both reduce unnecessary waste and to adjust to a changing recycling landscape.”

according to alex truelove, u.s. pirg education fund zero waste program director and report co-author, the main thing he wants people to take away from this report is that it is going to take multiple facets to fix the waste problem.

“we can’t rely on recycling alone to fix our waste problems. our systems were not designed to process many of the items we dispose of — single-use plastics in particular,” truelove said. “to truly achieve a zero waste society, or anything close to it, reducing our waste and transitioning toward more reusable materials have to be the priorities moving forward. recycling plays a role, but it should be a last resort, after reduction and reuse.”

at the 2019 planet forward summit, tom szaky, the founder and ceo of terracycle, addressed how recycling is not enough in solving the waste problem. it is also going to take clean-up efforts and rethinking single-use items in its entirety. 

“recycling is the solution to the symptom of waste but not the cause of it,” szaky said at the summit. “it’s not plastic that’s the problem it is using all this stuff once.”

truelove offers what he thinks needs to be done in order to solve the waste problem.

“a mix of good public policy and corporate action. from bottle bills to single-use plastic foam bans, we know better policies can reduce waste and drive corporations toward better practices,” truelove said.

“we also know that meaningful corporate actions can influence the market and lay the groundwork for better policy. we need more of both,” he said. “consumers cannot be expected to move the market alone, we need to enable them to make better choices.”

policy change is another area that needs work to help correct the problem, according to truelove.

“there are also opportunities to work with other countries to establish international laws and better practices, like ‘prior informed consent.’ in other words, agreeing to divulge what materials we’re sending to other countries,” truelove said.

even though there are still plenty of materials that are being exchanged on the global market, truelove said, plastic continues to be an issue.

“plastic is the outlier, and i don’t envision that market recovering because plastic — especially disposable plastic — remains low-value and hard-to-recycle. that’s why we need to reduce our use of single-use plastic, first and foremost,” truelove said.

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see the full state of recycling national survey (pdf).

we address why composting is so important to the environment, and esf’s history when it comes to sustainability on campus. the program is off to a fast start, and we believe the campus’ total diversion rate could be close to 47% by the end of the spring semester.

she assures us that through food and flies, or the distinct lack thereof, composting is attainable for anyone, whether at home, work, or on a college campus. 

we broke it down so that you can break it down too.

single-use items are designed to be used for minutes and will still be on the planet for hundreds of years to come. each and every single piece of plastic that has ever been produced is still on this planet here today. plastic in the ocean chokes, entangles, poisons, and or starves wildlife and marine birds. humans are not immune to the chemicals found in plastic and the toxins that they may collect over time either. harmful toxins have been found to seep into our foods and drinks which are stored in plastic containers.

we are ready and willing to make positive changes in order to generate less plastic waste. businesses and manufacturers should offer consumers more sustainable packaging and products. in addition, they should take responsibility for the plastic waste that they create during business operations. we as single human beings have the power to create massive waves of change, even more so when people with the common goal of reducing plastic come together.

a quote from the zero waste chef, anne maroe bonneau, that has helped me through my zero-waste journey is, “we don’t need a handful of people doing zero waste perfectly. we need millions of people doing it imperfectly.”

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art installation created by anna lindquist.

video created by angelique herring.

according to the “zero waste” perspective, literally everything created, used, and discarded can be recovered through recycling, compost, reuse, or donation. the movement centers around three goals: diverting waste from landfills, educating the community, and assisting those in need.

programs vary in size and structure. most zero waste move out programs divert 5 to 65 tons of waste from landfills yearly, leading to cost savings and fundraising.

discarded items are often similar to those purchased by incoming students. according to the national retail federation, the typical first-year college student spends $300-$400 outfitting their dorm room. students can experience significant savings by purchasing these items at move-out drives where discounts are 50% or greater.

in 2016, ohio university diverted 20 tons of reusable furniture and household items and four tons of food. the food drive helped over 800 local families avoid hunger that summer. california state university east bay repurposed hundreds of bed mats for the homeless. university of missouri’s move out program raised more than $10,000 to fund summer camps for underprivileged children in columbia.

umass amherst professor arianna moscone said their new2u program has provided an alternative to business-as-usual waste disposal. knox college’s year-round free store has led to 50% waste reduction and over $1,000 savings from hauling alone. a similar program saved harper college $9,300 in office supplies during its first year.

universities structure programs around their target audiences. programs focusing on incoming students might hold onto donated goods until august or install year-round thrift stores. csueb operates a free thrift store because 60% of students are low income.

most institutions serve the surrounding community and operate only in april and may. they gather, inventory, and organize collections during the last three weeks before move-out. campuses often host one to three large sale days and then donate remaining items to charity. others who donate to charity first still raise thousands of dollars.

handling literal tons takes a lot of manpower. universities often log up to 400 volunteer hours. although volunteers are critical, they “are not a reliable resource,” says alec cooley, director of recycling programs for keep america beautiful.

many campuses hire 10-20 student workers to manage the project and assist operations. student volunteers engage participants at dumpster sites, directing them towards donation and recycling stations. volunteers help organize materials and transfer them to central locations.

moscone said undergraduate involvement at umass builds “an engaged network of students who are committed to changing the wasteful, throwaway culture that persists on college campuses. showcasing how much is thrown away that can be reused affects decision making and living practices while benefiting everyone.” university of wisconsin-madison and ursinus college drastically improved student involvement by integrating move-out into coursework.

colorado state university found that investing in staffing directly increases diversion results. although labor is the largest expense for programs such as colorado state, these costs are offset or completely covered by savings and revenue from sale events.

community partnership is foundational because these organizations deliver large volumes of goods from the program to those in need. partners assist the organization, execution, and visibility at every level.

a large portion of start-up costs typically go towards marketing. puget sound’s initial budget was spent entirely on one-time physical advertisements. due to its marketing success, the puget sound’s budget has grown and is now spent on other expenses.

the most successful programs take advantage of all media channels, including mass emails, social media, radio, television, signs and flyers. ohio university partnered with a best-selling pizza restaurant to turn pizza boxes into 5,000 additional advertisements.

pilot project budgets range from $500 to $7,000. budgets often grow after results are calculated and profits from the previous year are applied. many projects find additional funding through state or university grants. stacey white credits the successful diversion of 35 tons at the university of minnesota to a $15,000 grant.

university of missouri claims that 95% of the work occurs during the last three weeks. however, for most programs planning often begins in february. coordinators select sites for donation stations and sale events. they contact stakeholders and partners throughout march and establish involvement and needs. training occurs in april after student leaders are hired and volunteers are recruited.

the last three weeks are filled with facility prepping and establishing donation stations, and intense marketing starts two weeks before sales. they often add action items for programs that have august sales.

success ultimately depends on cooperation, communication, and dedication. each program is built upon interaction within a web of stakeholders: housing, waste management, facilities, sustainability office, community organizations, the city and, of course, the public.

cooley said move-out programs can fail when stakeholders avoid special operations, are spatially restricted, or disregard such movements as low priority. student program manager marcella heineke provided advice: “focus on the main goal, the resale, and do not get caught up in the bureaucracy of school politics.”

alicia lavaute from the sustainability office at missouri adds that all parties must be engaged with the project, know their role, and follow through.

interaction with the public is the cornerstone to a move-out program’s success. the theory of planned behavior suggests people are most affected by the time required to act sustainably, followed by convenience and cost.

university of wisconsin and university of iowa promote self-efficacy using posters that display program achievement, donation locations, and acceptable products. coastal carolina university’s bold graphics direct participants to 25 portable on-demand storage units, assist workers with organization and inventory, and help shoppers navigate the sale. they also offer incentives such as t-shirts and reusable water bottles.

overall, the best move-out programs promote environmental awareness, build shared economies, and support social equity. their results are impactful, fighting hunger and poverty. the best programs are well-scheduled, quickly implemented, scalable and self-sustaining.

knox college’s free store manager ramona vanriper says move out programs “establish a culture wherein resource stewardship is habitual. excitement and engagement increases with participation.”

what this study doesn’t include is the trash that is discarded on the sides of roads, beaches, oceans, and other waterways that can harm wildlife and leach chemicals into the environment, according to going zero waste. due to the impact of trash on the environment, a new movement called the “zero waste movement” aims to reduce waste produced so much that some people can fit their yearly trash in a mason jar. most daily products we use are produced to be disposed of, rather than reusable everyday products, such as tupperware for storing food rather than plastic wrap.

the zero waste movement even tries to reduce recycling because, as going zero waste says, many containers or local recycling programs aren’t actually recycled into being used again. in this podcast i discuss how plausible it is for a college student to contribute to the zero waste movement.

citations:

about zero waste. (n.d.). retrieved january 28, 2018, from https://www.goingzerowaste.com/zero-waste-1/

11 facts about recycling. (n.d.). retrieved february 18, 2018, from https://www.dosomething.org/us/facts/11-facts-about-recycling

municipal solid waste. (2016, march 29). retrieved january 28, 2018, from https://archive.epa.gov/epawaste/nonhaz/municipal/web/html/

according to the epa, an american produces a daily average of 4.5 pounds of solid trash each day, pushing us to the top of the list for greatest annual per capita trash generation. these statistics mean more than needing extra muscle to take out trash in the u.s. compared to other countries. it means that we are suffocating our earth and are far from living as sustainably as we should. we’ve all heard the words “reduce, reuse, and recycle,” but what exactly can we as college students do to lighten our trip to the trash chute and give mother earth a breather?

as college students, we have the power to change the world for the better. with a few minor change-ups in your weekly routine, you can help start this change and prove that living sustainably is achievable for even those stuck in a dorm. 

here are a few tips and tricks for college students to reduce their waste (and save some money)!

1. ditch the paper towels. we all need these to clean up the spilled easy mac in our microwave and to wipe up the coffee spilled on our laptops. but, paper towels will fill up your trash cans fast and at around $1.50 a roll, they’ll empty your pockets even quicker. pick up some wash cloths or kitchen towels at a nearby store for $5 and throw them in your weekly wash once they’ve cleaned up all your spills. bonus points if you let them air dry instead of using the drier!
2. ask your bartender to hold the umbrella. going out to get drinks with friends or to happy hour with coworkers is something we’ve all done. your regular fruity drink might come with umbrellas, a straw, and a plastic sword plunging through a maraschino. ask your bartender to hold the decorations and i promise that your drink will still taste the same. bonus points if you’re using a cloth napkin instead of a paper one!
3. pass on the plastic. if you typically grab a dasani for $2 in between classes to stay hydrated, this is your wake up call! you’re not only wasting money on water that is extremely similar from what you would get from your tap, but you’re also contributing to the approximately 19 billion pounds of plastic that clog our landfills. if you switch to a reusable water bottle, you’re saving yourself a lot of money and doing the oceans a favor. if you’re one of those people who likes to keep their water cold, there are reusable water bottles that insulate your beverage and prevent condensation from occurring outside of your bottle. “you’re welcome” in advance for saving your textbook from water damage!
4. fill your own box. each time you go to the dining hall to fill up a disposable container with food, mother nature sheds a tear. try bringing your own tupperware to the dining hall for your next meal. since it’s airtight, you can bring extra food home and save it for some midnight snacking. additionally, speak to the manager if you’re planning on doing this – many stores and hot food bars offer discounts if you use your own containers!

by taking these little steps and working on reducing your waste every day, you are inspiring others to do the same and making a world of change. good luck!