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Zero-Waste Basics

How to Normalize BYO Containers in the US

Posted on February 9, 2023February 11, 2023by Anne-Marie Bonneau

Grassroots initiative US Reduces connects eco-conscious consumers with local businesses that accept BYO containers. Join us!

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Zero-Waste Basics

Why Bother?

Posted on May 1, 2019May 2, 2021by Anne-Marie Bonneau

fresh produce in homemade zero waste and plastic free cloth produce bags

You completely change your lifestyle on your zero-waste journey but those around you don’t seem to care. Why not simply throw in the paper towel?

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Rants

You Make a Difference

Posted on March 12, 2019March 14, 2019by Anne-Marie Bonneau

You may feel that your zero-waste changes don’t make an impact. But you do not work alone. Together we will change the world.

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"The most important thing an individual can do is

"The most important thing an individual can do is be a little less of an individual and join together with others in movements large enough to make change." — Bill McKibben, 350.org founder

Yesterday's IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) report is a summary of the previous sections of the IPCC's mammoth sixth assessment. It shows we haven't done enough to address the climate crisis but also that we have never been better equipped to tackle it.

You may be asking yourself what you can do. One thing we can all do is find our people by joining a climate-focused group such as @350org, @sunrisemvmnt, @indigenousclimateaction, @nrdc_org, @earthjustice ... There are many. And if you have eco-anxiety, working with other concerned citizens can help.
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#IPCC #IPCCreport #globalgoals #keepitintheground #loveearth #noplanetb #strikeforclimate #thereisnoplanetb #plasticisfossilfuel #climatecrisis #climateemergency #extinctioncrisis #climatechangeawareness #climatecrisisisreal #climatechangeisreal #environmentalactivism #climatechangesolutions #climatesolutions #climatejustice #climateactionnow #globalwarmingisreal #drawdown #drought #wildfires #environmentalracism #climateaction #actonclimate #loveyourmother

I’m out of dish blocks and dish soap 😮 No pro

I’m out of dish blocks and dish soap 😮 No problem! I can make dish soap! Here’s how:

🫧 Heat 2 cups of water.
🫧 Turn off the heat and stir in 3 tablespoons of shredded bar soap.
🫧 After the soap melts, stir in 1 teaspoon of washing soda.
🫧 Let the soap sit for several hours or overnight. Add 15 drops of essential oil if you’d like scented dish soap.

If it’s too thick to use, give it a whir with an immersion blender. Store in a pump and use as needed. I made this batch with Good Soap. Dr. Bronner’s is good.

This is not super sudsy like the commercial stuff but it gets the job done and doesn’t cost very much to make.

If you can’t find washing soda, you can make it by heating baking soda. See my recipe index for that and this dish soap.

Out of baking powder? If you have cream of tarter

A lower waste lifestyle should save you money, not

A lower waste lifestyle should save you money, not bankrupt you. Yes, some aspects of zero-waste living cost more (unpackaged farmers' market produce versus a discount grocer that packages everything in plastic). But others aspects will save money—eating all the food you buy instead of throwing some out, eating lower on the food chain, buying in bulk when you can (for many items, not all). These nine ideas are just some of the ways to reduce waste and save money.
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#frugal #thriftlife #secondhandfirst #makedo #buyless #sustainablelifestyle #simpleliving #foodwaste #zerofoodwaste #lovefoodhatewaste #wastefreeliving #lowwasteliving #slowfoodmovement #slowlivingmovement #artofslowliving #plasticfreeliving #plasticfreelifestyle #breakfreefromplastic #plasticfreejuly #plasticpollutes #zerowastejourney #zerowasteliving #zerowastelifestyle #zerowastetips #kitchentips #zerowastechef #climateemergency #thereisnoplanetb

UPDATE: The 200 spots have filled! Thank you to ev

Clean rust from jars and lids with DIY citrus scou

The homemade citrus scouring powder I posted last

The homemade citrus scouring powder I posted last week calls for washing soda, which can be hard to find. Fortunately, you can transform easy-to-find baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) into washing soda (sodium carbonate) in the oven.

⚡️ Heat the oven to 400°F. Spread the baking soda evenly in a clean baking sheet.
⚡️ Bake the baking soda for 1 to 2 hours, stirring every half hour. The finished product will look gritty and contain fewer clumps than the finely textured baking soda it began as. You can also weigh the washing soda to check for fineness. The finished product will weigh 2/3 the original.
⚡️ Remove from the oven. When cool, pack the washing soda into a clearly labeled, airtight glass jar.

The second photo shows the finely textured baking soda before baking and the last photo shows the gritty washing soda after baking.

Although some recipes do call for sodium carbonate (such as ramen), you don't want to mix it up with baking soda and eat it. The two substances do differ slightly in appearance but to avoid any confusion, I've glued a label on my jar with my homemade wheat paste because I love making all the things.

See my recipe index for the full instructions for transforming baking soda into washing soda and what you can do with the stuff. Those instructions include links to wheat paste and rice glue if you'd like to make a similar labels for all the jars.
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#bakingsoda #DIYcleaning #selfreliance #wastenotwantnot #wastenot #sustainablelifestyle #simpleliving #wastefreeliving #kitchentips #lowwaste #lowwasteliving #slowfoodmovement #slowlivingmovement #artofslowliving #plasticfreeliving #plasticfreelife #breakfreefromplastic #plasticpollutes #plasticisfossilfuel #packagefree #zerowastejourney #zerowastelifestyle #zerowasteliving #zerowastetips #zerowastekitchen #zerowastechef #climatecrisis #thereisnoplanetb

Think of reducing wasted food as—sometimes liter

Think of reducing wasted food as—sometimes literally—the low-hanging fruit of combating climate change. I've been obsessed with this for over a decade and I still have not come up with a single downside to reducing wasted food, only benefits.

Reducing wasted food:

🍏 Keeps food out of landfill, where decomposing food emits methane gas, a greenhouse gas much more potent than carbon dioxide
🧅 Helps reduce the number of trips to the grocery store
🥦 Conserves resources that go into producing food
🍞 Saves money
🍋 Makes us more creative cooks
🥔 Results in more delicious food (see creativity)
🥑 Boosts cooking confidence and enhances cooking skills
🍎 Ensures more food remains for those who need it most
🌽 Doesn't require special equipment, an outlay of cash or advanced skills

Start reducing wasted food today with your next meal.

See my recipe index for loads of waste-reducing recipes.

Co-housing, ecovillages, communes student co-ops a

Dry out citrus zest to add to homemade scouring po

Dry out citrus zest to add to homemade scouring powder.

Citrus peels contain d-Limonene, a natural compound that breaks down oil, making it an effective cleaning agent. Many commercial cleaning products contain d-Limonene—and other ingredients you may not want to use.

We eat lots of oranges and have a lemon tree and I zest lots of citrus before eating or cooking it. This is one more use for that zest. I stash some zest in the freezer and some I dry out on covered dishes at room temperature. You can also dry zest in the oven at a very low temperature (our lowest temp is 170°F). Break the clumps up with a fork every 15 minutes and dehydrate for about 45 minutes or until dried out.

To make your own “Now with d-Limonene!” scouring powder, combine the following (or scale it up for a larger batch):
🍊1/2 cup baking soda
🍊1/4 cup salt
🍊1/4 cup washing soda
🍊1 to tablespoons ground up dried lemon and orange zest Sprinkle, scrub and rinse.

Washing soda is sodium carbonate. Look for it in the laundry aisle of grocery stores. I bought this in bulk at @rainbow.grocery . If you can’t find it, the baking soda + salt + citrus combo will still work very well to scour surfaces clean. You can also “make” washing soda out of baking soda by heating it. Maybe an upcoming Reel? 🤔

Put all the food scraps to use, save money and enjoy citrus scent that comes from real citrus.

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