(lo-fi music)
- Hi everyone.
My name is Jhanneu and I'm a content creator here
on YouTube and Instagram.
And I use my platform to teach people
how to live a low waste lifestyle.
I think living a zero waste or low waste lifestyle
is all about being prepared.
So today I'm really excited
because I'm going to be sharing with you
my favorite zero waste swaps to take with me on the go.
My first swap we'll use coffee cups,
and instead go with a reasonable to go cup.
Each year, roughly 500 billion coffee cups
are produced worldwide.
Disposable cups are lined with a mixture of paper and
plastic in order to make them heat and leak-proof.
It requires special plants to recycle these lined cups,
so nearly 99% of them do not get recycled.
One of my favorites is the Carter Everywhere mug.
I love that it's double insulated,
so it keeps your drinks super hot or super cold,
whatever works for you.
And you can easily just throw into your bag
without having to worry about it leaking.
I know sometimes it can be hard
to bring your own reasonable cup,
but there are a lot of places now
that are actually starting to take them again.
And there are some coffee shops you can find
that will actually sanitize the cups for you,
and then still use them.
If you want something super lightweight to pop in your bags,
Dojo has a great option.
There are collapsible cups that can easily go in your bag,
and then when you need them, you can simply pull them out.
This cup can fold up and practically take up no space,
which I love because that means I can always have
a reusable cup with me when I'm on the go
Swap number two is instead of using plastic cutlery,
bring your own reusable cutlery set.
According to the plastic pollution coalition,
Americans use nearly a hundred million pieces
of disposable cutlery every day.
These single use utensils can be difficult to recycle
because they're usually contaminated
and so small in shape and size.
They typically fall through or get stuck
in the recycling machinery
and compostable utensils aren't necessarily any better.
Most compostable utensils are made from materials that
require commercial composting facilities
in order to break them down.
Most of the time,
these compostable products are tossed in the trash where
they end up in a landfill without proper exposure to oxygen.
Therefore they can take hundreds of years to break down
and off gas methane in the process.
I always keep reusable utensils with me,
whether my backpack or my purse when I'm on the go
so I'm always prepared.
Bamboo cutlery is a great option
because it's super lightweight
and it also can decompose at the end of life.
But what I also recommend to people is
to just DIY your own kit,
because the most sustainable thing you can do
is to use what you already have.
So just go into your drawer,
pick out your fork, knife and spoon,
get a little reusable towel that you already have and just
make your own DIY utensil kit.
So save money,
and you can also say the planet as well.
Another great swap is replacing single-use straws
with re-usable ones.
A 2017 study published in Science Advances
states that each year, 8.3 billion plastic straws
end up polluting the world's beaches.
I love the brand Final that has a reusable straw
that is made up of silicone and metal.
And what's so cool about it is that
it can fold up into a little container
and you can easily clip that to your bag,
so you are definitely prepared when you're on the go.
I can easily just whip it out,
use it, clean it and put it back,
and it's great because
now I don't have to worry about using
single use plastic straws.
The straw comes with a cleaning brush that also folds up,
which is super convenient,
so you can make sure you're cleaning your straw
when you're on the go as well.
Another great eco-friendly swap is
avoiding using disposable takeout containers
and instead of bringing your own reusable ones.
According to the EPA, containers and packaging,
including those used for food,
account for 23% of materials that end up in landfill
in the US.
Black plastic, which is popular in the food industry,
is often not recycled
because sorting systems are not capable
of recognizing black pigments.
Styrofoam, which is commonly used in the food industry,
is a petrochemical,
meaning it's derived from petroleum,
which is known to cause multiple health issues.
It's also very difficult to recycle
because it's easily contaminated by food
and often breaks apart into tiny pieces
that end up polluting the earth for centuries.
I love using Sojo's reusable food containers
because they are collapsible,
which means that you can easily store them in your bag
and whip it out whenever you need to use it.
And I love that it's lightweight
and it's just so convenient to have with me
when I'm on the go
and then all I have to do is put the food in it
that I don't eat at the restaurant.
And then I can take it home with me
and I don't have to worry about wasting any packaging
or containers that are going to end up in landfill.
Another really easy swap to make is instead of using
single use plastic bags when you're at the grocery store,
just bring your own reusable bag.
Americans use a hundred billion plastic bags in a year
which require 12 million barrels of oil
to manufacture.
A great option as a reasonable tote by Big ETOs.
What I really like about it
is that it can easily go into a little pouch,
so you can always have it with you when you're on the go.
If you're someone that's always forgetting
to bring their own reasonable bag,
it's just great that you can clip it to your bag
and always have it there.
Then it becomes one of your essentials
to just take with you on the go and it's super convenient.
And it really just cuts down on a ton of waste
and it saves you money because then you don't have to go
and spend 10 cents per bag as well.
I've definitely collected a ton of reasonable bags
over the years.
So you definitely don't have to go out and buy one
because I'm sure you already have one at home
that you can use,
or you can also upcycle ones that are plastic,
cause I know that there are plastic ones
that are pretty durable.
It's defintiely a great option
if you want to save some money.
Another great and easy eco-friendly swap to make
is to stop buying single use plastic water bottles,
and instead opt for a reusable water bottle.
According to a Forbes article from 2017,
we globally purchase 1 million plastic bottles a minute
and 91% of those bottles are not recycled.
Now I know it can depend on where you live in the world.
I was just in Mexico and you can't drink the tap water,
so it can definitely be a little bit tricky,
but if you're someone that has access
to clean drinking water,
I would highly recommend just refilling
your reusable water bottle
instead of using a single use plastic water bottle.
I know you've probably heard this swap a million times,
but it is really one of the best ways
to cut down those single use plastic.
So instead of relying on bottled water,
when I'm out I always keep my Clean Canteen
water bottle with me,
I love that as double insulated
and you're also saving money as well
because you're not spending money on water
when you can just refill it from the tap at home.
Another awesome swap is instead of using
plastic produce bags when you go to the grocery store,
you can just bring your own or not use bags at all.
Whenever I go into the grocery store,
I always see people using these plastic produce bags
for things like bananas that don't even need produce bags.
So I would definitely opt for using a reusable produce bag.
I love the Eco bags
because they helped to keep my produce clean
as well as helping me reduce my waste.
You can easily throw it in your bag
or put it in your reusable bag.
Living a low waste or zero waste life
can seem very overwhelming,
but if you start making small changes,
it really does make a big impact.
Another great swap is to stop using disposable napkins
and instead bring your own
reasonable cloth napkins from home.
According to a 2019 Business Insider article,
the average American uses 2200 standard,
two-ply napkins a year.
It requires a lot of resources to produce these napkins
and oftentimes napkins aren't actually composted,
so they just end up sitting in landfills.
So it's a really great option to just use cloths
that you already have around your house.
And it's really all about being prepared.
So those are some of my favorite zero waste swaps
for when you're on the go.
Thank you so much for watching
and let me know in the comment section below
if there are any swaps that you love,
that I didn't mention.
(lo-fi outro music)