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I’m saving lots of money in the long run by going zero waste. But in the short term, some of the alternatives can be a bit pricey. So what if you’re on a ramen-noodle-every-night budget, with save-the-planet aspirations? Here's 10 ways to reduce your waste without spending any money at all.
I woke up this morning in a mood. It happens sometimes, you know? I just woke up and immediately was feeling kind of out of place, maybe a little sad for no reason, unmotivated. I suddenly remembered a Yoga Girl podcast about creating an Emergency Toolkit for Wellbeing for these moments. Today I'm making my own.
As I watched Tidying Up with Marie Kondo, I found myself wondering about the environmental impacts of this movement sweeping the Western world, and whether the KonMari method addresses the root of the “stuff” problem - overconsumption and devaluing of our possessions. I spent hours pondering this question, and now I am jumping on the Marie Kondo and KonMari bandwagon.
Earth Overshoot Day is the day each year that we use more resources than the planet can support. In 2018, Earth Overshoot Day fell on August 1. I calculated my personal Earth Overshoot Day and ecological footprint for the first time last January, and revisited the tool this week to see how far I’d come in the last year. The results were surprising...
It was almost exactly two years ago today that I embarked on my first ever zero waste grocery shopping adventure. I’ve learned a lot in the last two years, and I’m still constantly learning as I go. Looking back on my journey, here are six things I wish I had known then.
There’s so much that I’ve stopped buying since I started on my zero waste journey two years ago. Some were easy to ditch, and others took a bit of adjustment, trial, and error. Some were a success immediately, and others needed some tweaking. But overwhelmingly, I feel more at peace with my life as I live in line with my values, and I’ve saved a ton of money in the process.
If you haven’t seen the buzzword “plant-based” somewhere on your social media or news feed, I’m impressed. It’s being used everywhere from the diet sphere to the zero waste sphere. But what does it actually mean? Is it the same as “vegan”? What about “vegetarian”?
An article was recently published in the New York Post arguing, in summary, that zero waste is expensive and zero wasters won’t settle for “regular” grocery store foods, and instead want to pay $10 a pound for pasta. As a zero waste wannabe myself, I’m saying oh hell no to that.
I've been seeing more and more "I tried zero waste for a week" videos, and I have such a love/hate relationship with them. Here's why we can't - and shouldn't - go zero waste within a week.
With the plastic free, zero waste, and low impact movements gaining traction, plastic has become vilified, but plastic isn’t really the problem. By only addressing the plastic problem, we ignore the root cause. Here's what we need instead.
Ah, the mason jar. Like any zero-waster, I adore mason jars. They’re great for nearly everything. I use them for beverages, leftovers, as a toothbrush holder, for lunch transport - the list really is endless. The one thing I don’t use them for? My trash. Here's why.
We’re about to get very real up in here. I know that this post is going to be difficult for my parents, grandparents, and other family members to read, but I do feel that it is important to share these experiences, and have honest and raw conversations about mental health, and in this instance, how it relates to living zero waste.
Tis the season for travel! School breaks, family vacations, holiday visits - the works. I don’t fly frequently, but I fly enough to have a few tricks up my sleeve that keep the trips low waste and low stress. I hope that these 6 tips help you keep your holiday travel as zero waste as possible as well.
With the holidays upon us, I'm sharing my favorite zero waste DIY gift - a coffee and sugar body scrub. Just three ingredients, and only moments to make!
After the pie has been devoured and the tryptophan-induced naps have been had, the whirlwind of Black Friday madness and holiday gift-giving begins. To help us all navigate the craziness that is coming upon us, I have compiled the ultimate list of zero waste gifts.
Big things are happening! Find out what's coming next for A Drop in the Ocean and be part of the zero waste process.
It’s easy to say you care about the environment, and it’s easy to say that someone else should adjust their life to be better for the environment. I was guilty of it my whole life...
Like many people, I carry all of my stress in my neck and shoulders. I decided I needed some way to ease the tension but I didn’t feel like spending the money on a heating pad - so instead I searched my apartment (and the bulk bins of my local grocery store).