Hello, my name is Evelīna Plīkša, and I want to talk about the zero waste movement and how can you make better choices for our future. I know this probably isn’t your first time hearing about zero waste and the waste problem that is happening all around the world, but have you ever thought about where your waste is going? Have you ever thought of the importance of change for the better? There are many simple ways you can make your everyday purchases, your waste minimalistic and even save some money by buying in bulk without plastic packaging. The reason for this piece is not to shame you, but introduce you to this thought of maybe changing your habits, making the world a better place, and to feel proud of yourself for being a part of this movement.

Have you ever wondered where that small plastic packaging of candy wrapper for example is going to if not recycled? Only 9% percent of all plastic waste has been recycled, so where is the other 91% percent of plastic waste? Well, mainly in landfills, ocean, seas, and all around the place. It’s not escapable but it is manageable, because how many times have you seen plastic waste all around our city or even worse — in forests, and people throwing their trash somewhere just to escape from paying for the actual garbage they are making? Also, microplastic is a problem, getting in our water supply. We can’t see microplastic, but it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist, because by washing our clothes, small particles of plastic get brushed of off our clothes, by using scrubs with microplastic particles, also from driving and tires deteriorating, making these small particles of plastic which can even cause health problems by inhaling them. It’s crazy how much waste we make. Just think about how much waste you created today, or this week, and then multiply that with 7.8 billion people. The pandemic presents another threat of creating more waste because many people choose to use single-use masks, but cloth masks are great alternative for those who are able to use them for everyday use.

Even though the zero waste movement dates back to 1998, it has reached Latvia fairly recently, but I think it is necessary to educate people on this topic so they can be aware of this problem. The zero-waste movement ideology is to create as little waste as possible. Reduce, reuse and recycle are the three goals of this movement.

There are many choices you can make to have less waste. A great choice to make is for you to shop locally in a produce market or even shops specifically made for the zero-waste movement, such as “Ber un sver” in Jelgava, which is a great alternative for your everyday shopping. The small things that you can do are changing your shopping habits, like using a reusable cloth bag for your groceries, and using a reusable water bottle so you don’t have to buy a new bottle every time. You can also buy in bulk; for example, at “Ber un sver” you can buy stuff like buckwheat, pasta, cereals and different types of spices in bulk or as much as you need without overbuying or using single-use packaging. The great thing is that you can also buy shampoo and conditioner bars for your hair there, and also other products which are reusable like bamboo cloths, straws and many more. What is also great is that you can reuse your own packaging to refill them or take those that are already in store, which people bring from home for other people to reuse.

Another way to follow the zero waste movement is to buy second hand. I’m glad that the stigma of second hand being for poor people is slowly disappearing, because thrifting and donating are great for the environment. You can thrift in a lot of different places like RDA, Humana, Kilomax and Tuvu, in which you can also donate your old stuff and clothes; not only that, but all the money goes to different charities.

You don’t have to buy everything new to be zero waste; you have to see what you already have and use the things before throwing them out, and buy more sustainable options. As I mentioned before, one of the goals is also to recycle, which you can do easily at home, recycling, or composting produce. For example, I make small steps to help the environment by reusing, recycling and thrifting — that also helps me to save some money. It makes me feel proud of myself and I recommend it for you too.

I want to mention that you don’t have to be extreme about zero-waste and suddenly not buy anything, because it is important that you just start step by step and slowly start to adapt to making less waste because small changes eventually add up to huge results. Next time when you buy a single-use item, think about how long it will actually live on, after you throw it out.