23-year-old hasn't produced any trash in two years | General Homesteading Discussion | Forums

Good for her, that has to be extremely difficult in today's world.

At first glance, Lauren Singer seems like a typical 23-year-old post-graduate living in New York City. Clad in slouchy black slacks, black crop top and leather moto vest, Singer's style is congruent with her stylish one-bedroom apartment in a South Williamsburg development.

But a closer look beyond the shabby-chic decor and fresh flora revealed something unexpected. A small mason jar filled with a few colorful wrappers and bits of plastic sat behind her atop the pristine, white kitchen counter.

"It's been two years, and that's my trash," she said with a smile.

Singer has barely produced any garbage since she began subscribing to a zero-waste lifestyle two years ago, which meant eliminating anything that will end up in a landfill or can't be composted from her day-to-day –- a process she's documented in detail on her blog Trash is for Tossers.

As an environmental studies major at New York University, she felt like a "hypocrite" for promoting sustainability but having an apartment full of plastic packaging. She decided to remove plastic from her life altogether -- a drastic choice many might find impossible.

"Quitting plastic wasn't just reducing the amount I used. It actually meant eliminating a lot of the plastic that I was buying, so not buying things like toothpaste or deodorant packaging," she said.

That meant finding alternatives to everyday items and making a lot of them herself. Her bathroom is now lined with mason jars of different sizes filled with various homemade products, and her refrigerator is filled with organic, perishable items. She also makes secondhand purchases to avoid any firsthand packaging.

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