Just a few hours into my “five days to zero waste” Earth Day challenge, I realised transforming every aspect of my life might be a marathon, rather than the sprint I had been anticipating. A bank holiday was perhaps an ambitious place to begin and a night out in Peckham at the end of day one meant I failed almost immediately (I used a plastic cup because no, I didn’t think to take my reusable mug to the pub).
The basic premise of zero waste is that nothing we come into contact with should be sent to a landfill. This is harder than it sounds. It’s not just opting for a reusable water bottle or a tote bag for groceries (though they are both good starting points), it’s about assessing every aspect of our lives to find ways to reduce, compost or upcycle — embracing a circular economy so that nothing we use or buy is ever wasted. Sound easy? Here’s what happened when I tried it.
