What we will bring home…
What is zero waste?
One of the fundamental topics of ‘YOUth footprint” was zero waste. But what is Zero Waste philosophy? It is a goal model that is ethical, economical, efficient and visionary, to guide people in changing their lifestyles and practices to emulate sustainable natural cycles, where all discarded materials are designed to become resources for others to use. It is practically waste prevention and it aims at no-trash.
Bea Johnson: example of Zero Waste lifestyle
Bea Johnson is a Franco-American minimalist, internationally bestselling author, and inspirational speaker, known for initiating the movement of waste-free living in the 21st century. She is a Grand Prize winner of The Green Awards and the founder of Bulk Finder, a web-based app which points to thousands of bulk locations worldwide. Bea Johnson is “the mother of the zero waste lifestyle movement.”
In the Ted Talk watched during one of the session, Bea Johnson explains how she changed her lifestyles and managed to reach a happy, zero-waste life by drastically reducing the number of her clothes, the items she had in the house… Today, Bea, her husband, Scott, and their two young sons produce just one quart of garbage a year, and their overall quality of life has changed for the better: they now have more time together, they’ve cut their annual spending by a remarkable forty percent, and they are healthier than they’ve ever been.
Blazhka Dimitrova presentation:
In one of our sessions we had the greatest pleasure of having Blazhka Dimitrova as a guest. She is a Bulgarian entrepeneur that made a transition to the Zero Waste life and started her own activity, a Bulgarian Zero Waste restaurant.
She told us how we changed her life: she was throwing the trash one morning as always, but on the way she focused on her image in the mirror and realised that it was an action she was doing as a habit, without thinking, and understood she wanted to be more active. So she made researches about zero waste philosophy and put a note in her wallet saying “do you really need it?” so that she would think twice before purchasing anything.
She made a critical speech and we thought about the reasons behind all our waste and our own behaviour.
She gave us good examples of being in a zero waste life by showing us reusable items that she uses (for example, wax for food in place of plastic paper, reusable sphere to wash clothes) and made us do a game of creativity, to educate us finding new uses for objects.
Consideration:
It was really inspiring to hear such an example talking about her history and giving us the proof that this lifestyle can be reached and it takes just a little effort.
The group consideration is that everyone should help about zero waste, as much as they can because its a small effort for a big change in the world!