How I Fit 5 Years of My Trash In This Jar

Summary

Lauren Singer, a resident of Brooklyn, New York, and founder of the zero-waste lifestyle blog 'Trash is for Tossers', shares her journey towards sustainability. An Environmental Studies major at NYU, she was inspired to make a change after realizing her own consumption habits were as harmful as those she criticized. Singer transitioned from a plastic-free to a zero-waste lifestyle, which involved composting, shopping at farmers' markets for packaging-free food, and creating her own beauty and cleaning products. She addresses common criticisms, such as managing menstruation and bathroom habits without waste, by using a menstrual cup and a bidet. Singer emphasizes the significant impact individuals can have on the environment and climate, encouraging small, collective steps towards reducing waste to make a substantial positive difference.

Takeaways

• 🌿 Lauren Singer is the founder of a blog called 'Trash is for Tossers' and a company called 'The Simply Co', promoting a zero-waste lifestyle.
• 🏛️ She was inspired to live a zero-waste lifestyle after realizing the contradiction between her environmental studies major and her own plastic use.
• 🎓 During her senior year at NYU, she was motivated to change her habits when she saw a classmate producing a lot of waste despite studying environmentalism.
• 🚫 Lauren decided to first go 'plastic-free' and then adopted a 'zero-waste' lifestyle to align her actions with her values of environmental sustainability.
• 🍱 She eliminated food packaging waste by composting, shopping at farmers markets, and making her own beauty and cleaning products.
• 🥤 To reduce waste, she avoids single-use items like straws and uses a menstrual cup to manage her menstrual cycle sustainably.
• 🚽 Addressing the criticism about toilet paper, she mentions using a bidet as an alternative to reduce waste.
• 🛍️ Lauren emphasizes the importance of being prepared with reusable items like stainless steel containers to prevent trash generation.
• 🌱 She believes that individual actions, such as reducing personal waste, can collectively have a significant positive impact on the environment.
• 👥 Initially, she thought political solutions were the answer to environmental problems, but now she recognizes the power of individual choices.
• 🇺🇸 She highlights that the average American produces 4.5 pounds of trash per day, contributing to climate issues, and advocates for small daily changes for a bigger impact.

Q & A

What is the name of Lauren Singer's blog?

Lauren Singer's blog is called 'Trash is for Tossers'.

What is the name of the company Lauren Singer founded that makes organic vegan laundry detergent?

The company is called 'The Simply Co'.

What is the name of the zero waste lifestyle store that Lauren Singer has?

The zero waste lifestyle store is called 'Package Free'.

What book influenced Lauren Singer's passion for environmentalism?

Rachel Carson's book 'Silent Spring' influenced Lauren Singer's passion for environmentalism.

How did Lauren Singer realize she was not living in an environmentally friendly way?

Lauren Singer realized she was not living in an environmentally friendly way when she saw all the plastic packaging in her fridge and around her apartment.

What was the first step Lauren Singer took towards a zero waste lifestyle?

The first step Lauren Singer took was to go plastic free.

What are the three main sources of trash that Lauren Singer identified?

The three main sources of trash are food waste, food packaging, and product packaging.

How does Lauren Singer eliminate food packaging waste?

Lauren Singer eliminates food packaging waste by shopping at the farmers market for unpackaged food.

What does Lauren Singer use instead of single-use menstrual products?

Lauren Singer uses a menstrual cup, which is a washable silicone cup.

What alternative does Lauren Singer propose for toilet paper to maintain a zero waste lifestyle?

Lauren Singer uses a bidet as an alternative to toilet paper.

How does Lauren Singer feel about the impact of individuals on environmental problems?

Lauren Singer believes that individuals have a huge impact on the world and the climate, and that every small step taken by individuals can make a big positive impact.

What is the average amount of trash produced per person per day in the United States according to the script?

According to the script, the average American produces four and a half pounds of trash per day.

Outlines

00:00

🌿 Introduction to Zero-Waste Lifestyle

The paragraph introduces Lauren Singer, a resident of Brooklyn, New York, and the founder of a blog called 'trashes for tossers', focusing on a zero-waste lifestyle. She also owns 'the Simply Co', which produces organic vegan laundry detergent, and has a zero-waste lifestyle store called 'package free'. Singer's journey towards zero waste began with her realization that despite her environmental concerns, her lifestyle was not reflecting her values. As an Environmental Studies major at NYU, she was inspired to change her ways after noticing her own consumption of products packaged in plastic. She decided to adopt a zero-waste lifestyle to align her actions with her values, which involved significant changes in her consumption habits, such as composting, shopping at farmers markets, and making her own beauty and cleaning products. Singer emphasizes the importance of individual actions in contributing to environmental sustainability and reducing waste.

Keywords

💡Zero-Waste Lifestyle

A zero-waste lifestyle is a commitment to minimizing waste by avoiding the use of disposable products and packaging, aiming to send nothing to landfills or incinerators. In the video, Lauren Singer emphasizes her transition to a zero-waste lifestyle as a means to align her actions with her environmental values, which is the central theme of the video.

💡Plastic Pollution

Plastic pollution refers to the accumulation of plastic products in the environment, causing harm to wildlife and ecosystems. The video discusses Lauren's realization of her own contribution to plastic pollution through her use of plastic-packaged products, which led to her decision to change her lifestyle.

💡Environmental Studies

Environmental Studies is an interdisciplinary academic field that examines the relationship between humans and the environment. Lauren's background in Environmental Studies at NYU is mentioned as a foundational interest that eventually led her to adopt a zero-waste lifestyle, highlighting the role of education in shaping environmental awareness.

💡Silent Spring

Silent Spring is a book by Rachel Carson that raised awareness of the environmental impact of pesticides and is often credited with starting the environmental movement. In the video, Lauren cites reading Silent Spring in high school as a pivotal moment that sparked her passion for environmentalism.

💡Simply Co

The Simply Co is a company founded by Lauren Singer that produces organic vegan laundry detergent. It represents her entrepreneurial efforts to provide sustainable alternatives to conventional products, which is a practical example of how she is applying her zero-waste philosophy in a business context.

💡Package Free Shop

A package-free shop is a type of retail store that sells products without packaging, aiming to reduce waste. Lauren's establishment of a package-free lifestyle store is an extension of her zero-waste lifestyle and serves as an example of how she is creating solutions to the problem of packaging waste.

💡Composting

Composting is the process of decomposing organic waste into a nutrient-rich soil amendment. In the video, Lauren mentions composting as one of the strategies she uses to eliminate food waste, which is a key component of her zero-waste lifestyle.

💡Farmers Market

A farmers market is a place where local farmers sell their produce directly to consumers, often allowing for the purchase of food without packaging. Lauren shops at the farmers market to obtain food without packaging, which is a practical step in reducing her environmental footprint.

💡DIY Beauty and Cleaning Products

DIY, or Do-It-Yourself, refers to the act of making items on one's own rather than buying them pre-made. Lauren makes her own beauty and cleaning products to avoid the packaging and waste associated with commercially available products, showcasing a hands-on approach to reducing waste.

💡Menstrual Cup

A menstrual cup is a reusable device made of silicone or rubber that is inserted into the vagina to collect menstrual blood. Lauren uses a menstrual cup as an alternative to disposable sanitary products, which is a sustainable solution to the challenge of menstrual hygiene in a zero-waste lifestyle.

💡Day So

A day so, or bidet, is a bathroom fixture that sprays water to assist with cleaning after using the toilet. Lauren mentions using a day so as a way to eliminate the need for toilet paper, which is a significant source of waste in many households.

💡Individual Impact

Individual impact refers to the effect that an individual's actions have on the environment or society. The video emphasizes that while policy changes are important, individual actions can also have a significant impact on environmental issues, such as reducing waste and adopting sustainable practices.

Highlights

Lauren Singer, founder of 'Trash is for Tossers', lives a zero-waste lifestyle in Brooklyn, New York.

She also founded 'The Simply Co', which produces organic vegan laundry detergent.

Singer operates a zero-waste lifestyle store called 'Package Free'.

She was inspired to go zero-waste after realizing her own environmental impact as an Environmental Studies major.

Reading Rachel Carson's 'Silent Spring' in high school sparked her passion for environmentalism.

A college classmate's wasteful habits made Singer reflect on her own lifestyle.

Singer's personal epiphany led to her decision to eliminate plastic from her life.

She transitioned to a zero-waste lifestyle to align her actions with her environmental values.

Food wrappers, straws, and clothing tags were identified as her main sources of waste.

Singer composts, shops at farmers markets, and makes her own beauty and cleaning products to eliminate waste.

She uses reusable containers and a stainless steel coffee cup to prevent trash generation.

Singer addresses the challenge of menstruation in a zero-waste lifestyle by using a menstrual cup.

She uses a bidet as an alternative to toilet paper, further reducing waste.

Singer initially believed political solutions were key to environmental issues but now sees individual actions as impactful.

The average American generates 4.5 pounds of trash per day, contributing significantly to climate issues.

Small steps in waste reduction by individuals can collectively have a large positive impact on the environment.

Lauren Singer's journey from recognizing her own waste to leading a zero-waste lifestyle demonstrates personal change as a form of activism.

Transcripts

this is all of my trash from the past

five years

[Music]

I am Lauren singer I live in Brooklyn

New York and I'm the founder of a blog

called trashes for tossers it's all

about living a zero-waste lifestyle I

also have a company called the simply Co

where we make organic vegan laundry

detergent and may have a zero waste

lifestyle store called package free I

realized that I cared about the

environment but I wasn't living that way

so I decided to go zero waste I was an

Environmental Studies major at NYU and I

always was really passionate about

environmentalism since I read Rachel

Carson's book Silent Spring in high

school but it wasn't really until my

senior year of college when I was in a

course called the Environmental Studies

capstone course which is the last class

II of to take as an Environmental

Studies major and in that class there

was a girl that every day would bring a

plastic bag full of food a plastic

clamshell plastic fork and knife a

plastic drink and a bag of chips and she

would eat her whole dinner and then

throw it in the trash and I thought she

was the worst person that I've ever seen

for being an Environmental Studies major

but making a lot of trash but one day I

went home after class to make dinner and

I opened my fridge and I realized that

every single thing that I had in there

was packaged in plastic and I looked

around my apartment and found that all

of my beauty products were packaged in

plastic my cleaning products were

packaged in plastic my clothes

predominantly were made of plastic and I

realized that I was just as bad as the

girl that I was staring at and in class

thinking that she was the worst and so I

decided to make a change first I decided

to go plastic freak but then I learned

about the zero waste lifestyle and I

decided to go zero waste to really align

what I cared about which is

environmental sustainability with my

day-to-day actions and really live my

values wrappers of food that I had in my

house before I started going stairway

straws that I got from restaurant I've

learned to ask for my drink without a

straw things that connect pricetags to

the clothing protective seals tags that

come on like the inside of clothing

silica packets a credit card present

ribbon band-aids and lots of festival

bracelets my three main sources of trash

for food waste food packaging

and product packaging and so to

eliminate those I just started

composting I started shopping at the

farmers market so I could get food

without packaging and I started making

all of my own beauty and cleaning

products and by doing those three things

I eliminated essentially all of my waste

for me how I do that is by being

prepared by leaving my house with my

stainless steel containers and my

reusable coffee cup and all of these

multi-use items that help me prevent

trash in the first place so I don't even

have to make it at all

one criticism is how can you have a

menstrual cycle and live a zero-waste

lifestyle but I use a menstrual cup

which is a washable silicone cup that

enables you to go completely single-use

disposable free on your period another

criticism that I get is toilet paper how

can you go to the bathroom and live a

zero-waste lifestyle well I just got a

day so you can actually stop using

toilet paper all together haha so there

I used to think that the solution to

environmental problems was through

politicians and proactive policy

decisions but I realized that

individuals have a huge impact on the

world and the climate and so with every

American making four and a half pounds

of trash per person per day we

contribute to this overall climate issue

and so by us taking simple steps to

reduce our waste if we all take little

steps and all make little changes that

has a big positive impact and I believe

we can make a difference

[Music]

[Music]