Have you heard of the zero waste movement? I’m sharing a lovely interview with Laura Cahill, a environmental advocate in Dublin. I ‘met’ Laura through blogging many years back and reconnected with her on Instagram. Her work advocating for zero waste options in Dublin created a lot of change and spawned a growing and engaged zero waste community. Thank you Laura!

The first time I heard about the concept of zero waste was 2002. My mum bought us a steam cleaner and some microfibre cloths as a housewarming gift. Back then, however, neither my mum, nor I knew the phrase “zero waste”. As a doctor and an environmentally conscious person she just knew it is healthier to use water and steam to clean than shop-bought cleaning products. As a minimalist, I immediately enjoyed reducing the amount of bottles, cloths, mop and bucket I had in my cleaning cabinet.

The challenge in being a Zero Waste household initially were that until recently we did not have package free products available in this country. Later on the challenge came from balancing between saying “No” to the children when they wanted to buy eg. a Magnum and allowing them the freedom of choice. Luckily my husband is on board with creating an environmentally conscious home. He was the one who was using his water bottle and refused plastic bags back in the 80s. Yet, there are products that he is not ready to give up. Is it a challenge to make him use a soap when shaving instead of his shaving cream? No, I don’t take it as a challenge I need to carry. All I can do is give him and everyone else examples, and if and when they are ready, they will change.

When I joined the Zero Waste Ireland group, I felt that while we were talking amongst ourselves. While we wished we had bulk stores, zero waste supplies etc, we did not do much. I approached Bèa because I knew her passion has had encouraged people in other countries to open bulk stores. During the time we were fundraising money for and advertising her visit and talk in Dublin, the Zero Waste Ireland group has significantly grew.

Small, Irish, zero waste businesses (selling menstrual pads, beeswax wraps etc) started to advertise in the group. They offered raffle prizes to help our fundraising effort. Within a few months after her visit, shops selling bulk products started to open. People felt encouraged and asked for package free produce in shopping centres. They asked for their coffee, water, fruit and veg into their own cups, bottles, produce bags. Businesses cannot refuse the same request of thousands of customers.

There are lots of ideas in the Internet as regards what immediate actions families can take to move towards a Zero Waste home. Our very first ones were:

– reusable bottles and lunchboxes,

– reusable bags when shopping

– using a steamer or cloths with bicarbonate soda and/or vinegar for cleaning the house. (recipes on my Instagram)

Want to dig deeper into Zero Waste? Check out Bea Johnson’s book Zero Waste Home: The Ultimate Guide to Simplifying Your Life By Reducing Your Waste.