Add Your Idea: What Is Your Relationship with Waste? by EarthGen

earthgen4649 — 2024-02-27 16:32:37 UTC

When I think about my relationship with waste I realize that once I throw things into the trash can or dumpster I just trust what happens next. I stop asking questions or doing my research.

2024-03-02 15:04:15 UTC

My relationship to waste depends on my habits and practices regarding waste generation, disposal, and recycling. It involves my choices in terms of reducing, reusing, and recycling materials to minimize environmental impact. Assessing my waste management practices can contribute to sustainable and eco-friendly behavior.

2024-03-07 17:16:20 UTC

I know that I feel guilt every time food is wasted. Over the past year, I have tried to be better about planning grocery trips and meals. I have also researched ways to preserve food, so that less is being wasted.

2024-03-07 18:02:37 UTC

I try make responsible choices about reducing, reusing, and recycling. Recently, I have been hearing a lot about how "fast fashion" negatively impacts the environment. I have been trying to resist the urge to buy clothes, shoes, and accessories. I am trying really hard to only buy what I need and when I do buy I purchase pieces that can be part of a capsule wardrobe and can be worn for years to come. I am also beginning to research companies and be more aware of where I buy from.

2024-03-07 21:55:21 UTC

I could do better at reducing food waste. Creating a weekly menu and sticking to it can help me focus on portioning and not buying extra food that may go bad before I eat it. One way I reduce waste is not buying new clothes that often. This habit is not necessarily on purpose but I hope it has a positive effect.

cpedersen25 — 2024-03-08 01:56:19 UTC

every single time I clean out my fridge and throw away graying cilantro and moldy leftovers I declare that we will have FOOD WASTE NO MORE and I am manic for a couple of days about planning and shopping effeciently... then a few weeks later I have to declare everything all over again.

2024-03-08 21:00:11 UTC

I formerly lived in Hong Kong, SAR. There is a very dense population living in a very limited amount of land. Nearly all food is imported, and especially in the western and international grocery stores that my family shopped at. We often were concerned about the amount of waste (packaging, food waste, etc.) used within this process in addition to the amount of energy spent in transportation and preservation of the food we'd consumed! I also have a lot of guilt connected with technology, clothes, and especially furniture waste, but I'm not sure what to do with these "necessary" items that we use daily and eventually "use up" and need to replace.

2024-03-09 20:17:54 UTC

I have a green bin at my house which I throw my food waste into. I find myself being okay with wasting food since I'm putting it in a green bin which will get composted. However, I often forget about the emissions that can occur for improperly composted waste materials. And the idea that reduction is the first step in preventing the need for recycling/compost. Outside of food waste, I've tried to become more cognizant of buying or using materials that are reusable, but then will be easily compostable or recycled at then end of their life. Another area of my life I think about waste is in being a pet owner. I literally deal with my dogs' waste everyday, and they are the primary "meat-eaters" in my household.

We try and limit our waste. It is challenging in our society. Getting others to waste less is frustrating - it seems in our culture its a major blind spot.

mlanders5 — 2024-03-09 20:41:06 UTC

2024-03-10 00:40:46 UTC

We try to have as little waste as possible. We have a garden, we compost, we have chickens, we use reusable bags, we use reusable cleaning cloths as much as possible, and we should have solar by the end of the year. We love going to farmers markets and shopping locally as much as possible. We could do a better job of walking and riding our bikes more.

2024-03-11 00:26:51 UTC

I work to limit the waste my family produces. We recycle, reuse, and have reduced over the year. It is unfortunate that we live in an area where we are always on the go. The amount of driving my family does in one week is crazy.

2024-03-11 02:06:27 UTC

I really try to eliminate as much waste as possible in my daily life. I rarely/never waste food and buy clothes second-hand and repair what I have. It frustrates me that big companies have not made more of an effort to reduce waste. One change of their would make more impact than an adjustment I could make in my lifetime. I would love to buy food/materials in bulk and refill container I already have, rather than buying new ones constantly.

2024-03-11 03:28:38 UTC

We purchased a personal, indoor composting machine three years ago. I felt good knowing more of my waste was going to be used productively to help grow plants. We also recently purchased an electric car, reducing our dependence on gasoline. However, the challenge to move to a more plant-based diet and reduce flight travel are difficult to imagine. For these reasons I think my relationship with waste is one of convenience...when it's convenient for me, I'll waste less and do more for the environment. However, when my personal comfort is threatened, I more often choose the easy way over the best way. This is something I need to ruminate on more.

2024-03-11 15:52:52 UTC

I have a 3 bin composting system in my backyard I made out of wood pallets, and also a worm bin in my kitchen. We've been composting food scraps (non meat/fat) for 15+ years, and when I go over to others' houses who don't it is shocking to me the idea of putting a banana peel in the trash. We put out the smallest offered trash bin once a month, compared to our neighbors who put out double sized ones weekly as a result. And all of our food waste ends up as compost we put on our garden beds next year. It's a no brainer for me, but has just become part of our routine, and requires a 30 second walk to the compost bin out back once a day. For recycling, in Pierce County the options are more limited than King County, so I keep clamshell tubs for example in my basement until I make a trip to visit family in King County and use their recycle bin for those items... but I do always question if they actually are recycled or end up in a landfill anyways. I keep plastic bags that I can no longer reuse (from mail, grocery) and drop them at the bins in front of most grocery stores... but again, the same question... are they actually recycled, or is it some kind of greenwashing to make us feel good about using plastic all the time?

2024-03-11 16:56:37 UTC

I am definitely guilty of food waste. My family and I try to buy only the food we will need for that week, but with their only being 2 of us in the house, we sometimes (okay, more than we should) allow food in our fridge to go bad. I would like to start composting so that we can put our food waste to good use in the garden.

Growing

2024-03-11 20:20:18 UTC

This like many have said here, I have a sense of guilt when it comes to food waste. Whether it's knowing I could be doing more to compost or reduce my plastic consumption, or reduce our dairy and red meat intake. All of the things are challenging to do in real practice and take time to implement sustainable changes. Now that I am a new mom, I'm finding it even more challenging since so much of our lives right now is Go, go, go with a hungry toddler. I would like to learn more about methods to reduce efficiently. What has the highest effect size and what are some simple things to begin building up to a better consumption.

2024-03-11 21:53:41 UTC

My relationship with waste is definitely something I could focus more on in my life. I am still relatively young (and poor) so I daydream a lot about my future situation and how I want a garden and a compost and an electric car and solar panels, etc. I forget that there is still a lot I could be doing now to help. It was interesting reading in the article about how my financial situation is actually helping my carbon footprint. My house is very small, everything we have is electric and we can't afford to go on vacation so we rarely fly anywhere, so we're helping in that way, but I am curious to learn more about what I can do now and other ways to educate the people in my life ways that we can help our planet.

2024-03-11 23:26:27 UTC

I know that I could do a much better job overall with waste. Whether it is food or just general trash I throw a lot away. When I had the opportunity to visit Hanford and learned that the radioactive waste would just be buried in the ground never to be worried about again I was aghast. However, how different is it for me to simply throw away a trash can's worth of trash 52 days a year and never worry about that again either?

Relationship with waste

2024-03-11 23:56:24 UTC

I hate feeling wasteful! I would love to reduce the waste from my home and classroom. I feel so guilty when I throw things away rather than compost or recycle but I know I am not always doing either one properly. When I think about waste, I usually think about people who are going without rather than how my waste is affecting the planet.

I will continue recycling in my school and teaching my students how to do it. I was told that I was wasting my time doing that because at the end they mixed everything up. Some people are not doing it right and they don't want to deal with it. I spoke with my colleagues and we will find out if that is true.

2024-03-12 00:55:02 UTC

Food is my households biggest waste when we try new recipes especially. In response, my husband and I have been reducing the servings each recipe yields. My residence doesn't offer recycling, so we've otherwise been stocking up our recyclables and take them to families' houses. I'm also big on public transportation to reduce vehicle emissions.

2024-03-12 01:34:47 UTC

veronicaparedes1 — 2024-03-12 03:04:53 UTC

Beginning with me at home. I need to not waste food, electricity, water, etc. Saving in different ways will help the planet and your economy.

2024-03-12 04:06:17 UTC

Plastic waste and food waste is problematic. Especially having kids and the packaging around food and snacks (and lots of other things). Trying to find a balance is tricky.

Food Waste

2024-03-12 20:40:39 UTC

Having been brought up by a penny-pinching mom, food waste has been a minimal concern -- I literally see money when things go to waste (and have eaten my share of questionable items!). Helping kids (including my own) see the connection between the work, effort, time and money it takes to get food on the table continues to be a challenge. And a packaging (especially concerning convenience) is equally challenging.

I think that the timing of taking this course is very good for me, because I honestly have not really ever worried or been concerned about the amount of food waste that myself or my family has.

2024-03-12 22:54:16 UTC

2024-03-12 22:59:28 UTC

Food waste is something I hope to improve on in the future. I have started to move away from most meats and dairy but often times when I go shopping, I forget what I purchase throughout the week. Eventually the food will spoil. Other times, I intend on meal prepping and consuming everything I purchased but then I'll get busy/ tired after a school day and the food again eventually spoils.

2024-03-12 23:01:08 UTC

In my family, we compost food waste for the garden. We also have chickens, so rarely are left overs wasted, even if the humans don't eat them. I am mindful of using less plastic containers. But it seems hard to eliminate all together. I want to continue to make positive change to decrease the amount of waste we produce.

2024-03-13 00:23:41 UTC

I have been working hard in the last year or so to do a better job of reducing food waste. I try to be really intentional about planning out the meals I will be cooking throughout the week and make my grocery lists to only include those things. Even then, sometimes I get busy and do not end up cooking what I had planned and some produce goes bad. I hate having to throw things away so I have tried to find ways to save it if I know it is close to going bad. Like freezing produce if it still has not gone bad and I know I might not use it as soon as I had planned. My next goal as a future homeowner is to research and be able to set up a compost bin. It's important to me that I take the time to research this topic well and make sure I take the necessary steps.

I try to reuse any containers that started out as something else. I heat my home with wood, so most paper is saved for firestarter. I have a garden and freeze or can most of the extra. I also repurpose items to use other ways, and items that can be donated are given to local shops.

2024-03-13 19:58:35 UTC

Zero Waste

2024-03-14 02:50:52 UTC

I have made attempts to be "zero waste" which were much more effective in college than they are today. Our society is fast pace and prioritizes going places and getting things done, which is much easier with a car and fast food to pick up along the way. Several years ago I gave up waste for lent, which obviously still had waste which I kept in a jar. It is definitely possible to live a life intentionally not consuming products that come with waste, but those ways involve slower cooking, access to a functional kitchen, and the financial ability to afford bulk products instead of getting products from a food pantry or other sources. Most of my waste comes from food packaging. I choose to compost at home, which is a big source of waste for many people. However this means that I have a green bin that I pay extra for. I used to live in a place where I had a compost pile, but I cannot do that where I live now. I believe composting should be accessible for all.

I try to waste as little as possible. It drives my family nuts.

2024-03-16 04:06:44 UTC

2024-03-17 21:56:00 UTC

I have a decent relationship with waste. I regularly recycle and compost. I also try to limit my garbage output. I don't live far from a transfer station so it's convenient to recycle on a regular basis.

Food waste! Growing up our family always repeated, " a good party dinner is one with lots of leftovers". Phrased with pride, we prepared exhausting amounts of food because food = happiness. Have you ever been to a party and the host didn't make enough for the guests? This is what everyone would remember and talk about for years. The ultimate party shame.

2024-03-17 22:13:50 UTC

2024-03-20 15:31:03 UTC

I really try my best to limit our waste at home! We recycle and reuse whatever we can. I hope we can also improve more in the future.

Waste

2024-03-20 20:49:57 UTC

When I think about the amount of waste I have, I do feel guilty. There is more that I can do and want to do to help reduce my waste, but it comes with challenges that I can't meet at the moment. However, I do think it is somewhat irresponsible to put the blame totally on the consumer for waste mitigation when there are larger entities that contribute more to this problem. We should do what we can, but we can only do so much.

We compost all of our compostable material for our Gardens. And anything that can be recycled gets recycled. My Son and wife actually do upcycling at farmers markets with most of the stuff that doesn't get recycled.

2024-03-22 01:58:20 UTC

2024-03-26 05:11:53 UTC

I know that I have a long way to go in reducing waste of all kinds. I often buy too much food and some goes to waste, but I have been trying to get better about it. I try to eat more leftovers and I have a list of items in my refrigerator and freezer and their best buy/use by dates to help me avoid waste. I could find a better way to dispose of my food leftovers though. I have joined group on social media where I can give away/trade items that I have that I no longer need in hopes that someone else can use it. I have also been trying to get better at not buying as much stuff.

My relationship with waste is peculiar. Every time I see a documentary or a video about how other countries charge if you waste food or are just wasteful, I try to improve my garbage trail. Re-use as much as possible before its real waste.

2024-04-02 23:39:20 UTC

2024-04-06 20:46:54 UTC

We work diligently to not waste food at home. I try to instill this with my students also. We have a share table at school and we take or leave food as needed. I have seen a huge decline in the amount of trash we are leaving in our classroom.