The BEST Parts About Living Zero Waste

In recent months, I’ve been ranting maybe a bit too much about the worst zero-waste swaps and just general things I hate about the zero-waste movement. Enough negativity! Let’s chat about our FAVORITE parts of an eco life. Be sure to leave yours below!

Learning so many new skills

Truly, I have learned so many new skills thanks to a zero waste life! For me, this looks like:

• Many forms of mending

• Making tshirt yarn to make my own upcycled rugs

• Using a sewing machine

• DIY kombucha

• Making sourdough

• Cooking and baking a plethora of dishes

• Fermenting

• Making paper

• Dyeing with food waste

And so much more!

I find it so fulfilling to learn new things in general, but especially when it helps me reduce my waste and save money at the same time. You can use this link to check out Skillshare, a site dedicated to teaching people so many new skills, from knitting to photo editing, and so much more. What skills have you learned thanks to zero-waste living?

You can save $1000s!

The core of my channel has been about zero waste on a budget since its inception in 2019. And over the years, I’ve proven that there are over 475 ways to live zero waste totally for free, and with just a handful of zero waste swaps, you can save many thousands of dollars EVERY single year! How?

Zero-waste swaps are designed to be reusable! That means you only have to make the purchase once (hopefully), and for years it will save you money since you no longer have to buy the disposable version of it. From a reusable water bottle to reusable tissues and diapers to simply just buying less (more on this in a moment). Even things like conserving energy and water will add up the savings year after year! Being more conscious will lead you to save money, but also living on a budget will inherently be more sustainable for the planet than overconsuming.

More content with what you have

Speaking of, when you stop overconsuming in order to protect the planet and your wallet, you become more content with what you have. You stop filling the void with shopping. You stop wasting your precious time adding things to a cart and stop wasting money when you no longer hit “buy” on a cart full of impulse purchases. You start to cherish your favorite clothing, shoes, books, and more.

I also find that when I take the time to make a purchase, that item has a history, and it leads me to be more mindful of it. A bowl I got from a local potter is so much more special than whatever I can find on the shelves of Target. I will handle it with care and make it last as long as possible since it has meaning to me.

My patrons agree that this also leads to better coping skills. Instead of being sad or lonely and instantly shopping, we can fill our cup with friendship, with a hobby, or by reading a book instead.

Supporting local businesses

But when I do shop, I shop secondhand, and I shop small. This brings me such fulfillment knowing that I supported a neighbor and my direct community instead of sending my hard-earned money to another person who lives elsewhere and may just hoard that money while exploiting their workers. There are so many benefits to shopping small, and for me, one of them is my conscience.

I can’t speak for all small businesses, but for mine here, so many of them also support one another! Our local bar uses herbs from the local herb store to make their own simple syrups. The local restaurants get their produce directly from the farmers’ market. Our local cooperative store highlights locally made businesses to encourage us to buy them over out-of-town brands. You can really start to see how $1 spent locally can influence the entire community and how much power you truly have by voting with your dollar.

Less cluttered home

Since I’m not buying so much, my home is nowhere near as cluttered as it used to be! That means less to clean, less to move, less to store, and less to declutter when the time comes. That doesn’t mean my home is perfect; I still love to hold onto the occasional box or toilet paper tube for an upcycling project. But I’m so much more intentional with what I bring into my home, in part due to zero-waste living and also because we used to live in an RV. I thoroughly think through my purchases to ensure I love that item, will use it, and have a space for it in my home instead of buying it on impulse and then experiencing buyer’s remorse.

More time for building community

And also, with less shopping comes more time for building community! I find such joy and fulfillment going out dancing with friends, on a hike, or hosting a craft night instead of browsing Amazon for the latest finds. Both give us a hit of dopamine, but building community is long-lasting with real, tangible results. Not to mention, it can be done for free and with zero waste!

Not only do I have more time to build my physical community, but it has also allowed me to find such a lovely online community, too! I think both serve their roles, and we should all seek out both, not just the online community. From starting my Eco Book Club (join here) to following people who follow me and engaging with one another’s work and DMing folks about how to be an activist and book recs and so much more, I find such value in this cultivated online space. It gives me hope that so many of us want to use tech and social media for good during times like these. Thank you for giving me hope! That leads us into the next one…

I don’t feel so alone

It can be isolating to feel climate doom or climate anxiety and feel like no one else can relate. So it’s nice to see that I’m not alone, thanks to being part of this movement. AND it gives me such hope to see SO many people taking small actions every day to improve their own homes and communities. It’s nice to have a group who understands my thoughts and feelings, be it good or bad. It’s so lovely to have a community to celebrate and mourn with, but also to fight with. When our public lands or clean water are under attack, it’s so encouraging to see so many folks stand up, call their reps, take to the streets, volunteer, and so forth.

Standing in solidarity with others and building a coalition gives me such hope and a sense of belonging. It reminds me that our small actions matter, of course, but collective action is where it’s at!

Better Mental Health

This is not a guarantee, but here is my experience:

First, I get outside a lot. Be it a walk around town or a dedicated hike, getting outside is wonderful for my physical and mental health. I learn about the plants and animals with whom I share an environment. I get to breathe clean air, and it reminds me to fight for that right. Getting to feel the sun on my face and observe the weather brings me such joy! And as a subpoint, it brings me a greater connection to the planet.

I’d also like to quote one of my Patrons, Tiarna, here. They say, “I feel better when I act and treat the earth as a friend that I work in collaboration with, rather than an adversary I'm in competition with.” I couldn’t have said it better myself!

Plus, when these are in conjunction with building community and having like-minded friends, it all compounds for good!

Seeing how small actions add up

I say it all the time, but you can also see it with your own eyes: our small actions make a huge difference over time and when we do them collectively. I suppose it can be actually hard to physically see with your own two eyes how many disposable water bottles you’ve prevented from the landfill, for example, since you didn’t consume them in the first place. But we can imagine:

If I drink at least one 32-oz water bottle per day, that’s 2 disposable water bottles I prevent per day. That’s 730 bottles per year…just me! My household would be 1460 per year on the low end. If we both use our reusable water bottles for the next 50 years, that’s over 73,000 disposable water bottles that two of us can prevent over our lifetimes!

I feel like I never thought about this before I went zero waste. It motivates me to take more action when I use this line of thinking! It reminds me that my vote matters, every dollar I spend matters, and every eco action I take matters…and so it does for you, too!

That’s my list. What’s yours?

Thank you so much for reading along and remaining hopeful during times like these. Remember that you have power alone, and it’s even greater when we all work together.

As always, remember that your small actions make a big difference in the long run :)

Emma