Zero Waste Week is Coming Up…

You know me…any excuse to bang on about waste and I’m onto it! Which is why I’m super excited to be an ambassador for Zero Waste Week 2014. Zero Waste Week is…yes, you guessed it…a week of living with less waste, and it runs from 1st – 7th September.

Click here for National Zero Waste week 2013

As part of the challenge, you need to make a waste pledge, and the theme this year is “one more thing”. I’m already reasonably close to zero waste and I had a go at a completely zero waste week back in June with reasonable success (completely zero waste meaning no landfill and no recycling – only compostable waste), so I wasn’t sure what my pledge should be at first.

What extra thing could I manage?

Then I realised, I’m actually away from home that week, and it’s always much harder to keep standards up when on holiday. So I decided I’m going to commit to not sending anything to landfill during Zero Waste Week, although recyclables are acceptable.

No matter how zero waste I try to be, there’s always something that sneaks into the rubbish bin, so I think this will be a good challenge!

Lindsay Treading My Own Path Zero Waste Week Pledge 1

Do you like my Zero Waste Week pledge? I wrote it on the back of the cardboard packaging from an empty box of pasta! (Which then went into the worm farm.)

The challenge began in the UK, but you can take part no matter where you live. The problem of waste is global, after all, so let’s make this an international challenge! There’s still plenty of time to make a pledge. Check out the Zero Waste Week website for some more inspiration, and then join us and sign up for the challenge yourself : ) There’s no excuses: you still have almost two weeks to prepare!

Once you’ve decided what your “one more thing” will be, please leave a comment below telling me what you’ve pledged. I’d love to hear from you!

23 replies
  1. Kathy
    Kathy says:

    Hi. I’m here in Florida in the US. Love your blog and have started following this as well as Bea Johnson’s Zero Waste Home blog. I’d like to take part in the challenge and my one more thing will be to make my own bread to avoid the plastic bread bags.

    Reply
    • treadingmyownpath
      treadingmyownpath says:

      Hi Kathy, nice to meet you and thanks for your kind words! I love baking bread – homemade is so much better than store-bought and the process is so much fun! totally worth it. I haven’t baked any for a while… I must get back to it. Good luck!

      Reply
  2. Rachelle Strauss
    Rachelle Strauss says:

    Thanks so much for the brilliant write up. You’re right; going zero waste when on holiday is so much harder than when at home in familiar surroundings. Good luck! Can’t wait to hear how you get on x

    Reply
    • treadingmyownpath
      treadingmyownpath says:

      Thanks Rachelle. Fortunately it’s the last week of my holidays so I’ve had time to do a bit of planning/investigating beforehand : )

      Reply
  3. smallftprints
    smallftprints says:

    Wow … you are an inspiration! Most find it hard enough to achieve zero waste at home but … vacation? Forget about it! So I’m impressed and can’t wait to hear about your efforts. I hope you’ll post some tips and ideas … I’m sure that we’ll all benefit from your zero waste vacation! :-)

    Reply
      • smallftprints
        smallftprints says:

        You know … there is no wrong in this. Setting your standards high just means that you have much to explore. If you don’t achieve complete zero waste, you’ll surely learn a great deal about waste associated with vacations … and that’s very valuable. Just by making your plan, you’ve already succeeded!

        Reply
  4. sarahn
    sarahn says:

    Go on you! My first foray into having a cleaner, and I specifically asked her not to take out the trash (though she emptied the bins nonetheless) – can’t believe how much paper waste she generated (not to mention chemicals)! I wonder if I can turn her to vinegar and my fabric rags?

    Reply
    • treadingmyownpath
      treadingmyownpath says:

      Definitely! If she’s cleaning your house, you don’t want all those nasty chemicals leaving residues all over the place. Let me know how it goes : )

      Reply
  5. eva szauter
    eva szauter says:

    Have a glorious time in the countryside . Enjoy every second of it !! You are amazing !!

    Kindest Gratitude ; eva

    Reply
  6. John Perrie
    John Perrie says:

    Lindsay, your blog is amazing! My pledge for the Zero Waste Week was to avoid purchasing food or any other consumptives that come in plastic packagings, and I did it. Now, I’m gathering ideas for the next Zero Waste Week, which I’m considering to turn it into a Zero Waste Month for me :)

    Reply
    • treadingmyownpath
      treadingmyownpath says:

      Thanks very much John! Great to hear you gave up plastic packaging for the week. Awesome achievement, and your bin must have been thankful! Good luck with the Zero Waste Month! : )

      Reply
  7. Casey Fleming
    Casey Fleming says:

    That is so inspiring. After recently we bought a composter, now I am trying to minimize the use of plastic in our household. But it can be hard though, it is really everywhere. With some efforts I convinced my family to do a plastic free week. If it was up to my husband and I, we surely would have succeeded, but with kids around, our challenge lasted only 3 days. So, what is next, Zero Waste Year? I know my family will not participate in it, not until the kids go to college :)

    Reply
    • treadingmyownpath
      treadingmyownpath says:

      Thanks so much Casey! I’ve just got a composter too – I think it will be the missing piece of the puzzle (just got to dig it in and get it started). Just keep chipping away at it, you still make a big difference : ) It does get easier over time, although I’m sure the kids are your biggest challenge! Maybe as they get older they will get on board more? Another challenge many people sign up for is giving plastic up for lent – interested in trying that?

      Reply
  8. Andi Pepaj
    Andi Pepaj says:

    Wow really good blog, very inspirational. We should raise awareness of reducing, recycling our waste, not just that also we should look at other things like how we use water, electricity.
    personal story happened last week when our toilet flush stopped working i realize how much water we actually waste every time we flush water down the drain.

    Lets strive to make our moto of 2016 in London: Reuse – Recycle – Reduce.

    Reply
    • Lindsay (Treading My Own Path)
      Lindsay (Treading My Own Path) says:

      Thanks Andi! I agree completely! Waste is a much bigger issue than simply how much we throw in the bin – all the energy used in making and transporting the things we buy, and our energy and water use at home, at work… I could talk about it for days ; )

      We have a very modern eco toilet – and it still uses 3/4.5 litres per flush (depending if you use half or full). There is a sink on the top so the clean flush water can be used for hand washing first – but it is still a waste. But better than nothing!

      Nah, let’s make the motto Reduce Reduce Reduce! What do you think?! ; )

      Reply

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