Nina Rumbines
User Experience Designer - San Francisco, CA

Notes about design, social innovation, and my journey to sustainability

Notes about design, social innovation, and my journey to sustainability

The 6 Rs

 
EmojiOne card set by yours truly. Message me for the downloadable copy.

EmojiOne card set by yours truly. Message me for the downloadable copy.

 
 

Technically, there are only 5 Rs in the zero waste movement, popularized by Bea Johnson. I highly recommend her blog and her book the Zero Waste Home. The 5 Rs are simple efforts that you can do lessen your carbon footprint, meaning you help battle climate change. There are other benefits to challenging your self to live more sustainably:

  • Clutter free home. You only own and use things that you need.

  • Save money

  • Deepen your connection to what you care about he most, whether this can be experiences, or selected material belongings that “sparks joy”.

  • Less stress

In this example I added another R for repurpose. You can upcycle or redesign an object to something else. You don’t have to buy something new, if you can repurpose something that you already have — a creative mindset helps. There are tons of repurposing ideas online. If you want to level up your eco-waste knowledge a bit more, read about life cycle thinking. It is a systemic framework that considers the entire life cycle of a product from raw material extraction, to manufacturing, shipment, usage, and end of life disposal. It will help you understand the social, economic, and environmental impact of the things you use and own. Don’t worry! I’ll talk about life cycle thinking in a different post.

Thanks to the 6 Rs, I’ve been making good progress in living more sustainably. Here’s how I did it:

1. Mindful grocery shopping (Refuse, reduce, and reuse)

  • Purchased only what was needed, mainly food for the week and some containers for my compostables. I’ve utilized my personal grocery/shopping tactic to keep me from buying items that I don’t need. I’ll write about it in a separate post.

  • Visited the Saturday farmers market here in Hayward, which has become my Saturday morning ritual. They have a good selection of locally-grown organic fruits and vegetables.

  • Avoided using plastic bags for my fresh produce. I also bought Unni compostable bags from Amazon for my compostable waste. Do you typically forget your reusable bag when grocery shopping? A simple trick would be to keep a couple of reusable bags in your car.

  • Trying out 100% recycled unbleached Seventh Generation paper towels & tissues. Yes, they are a bit pricey but my goal is to slowly transition to no paper towels at all. I noticed that they take up most of the space in my trash.

  • Purchased a fridge produce keeper so my vegetables will last longer. It also helps maintain their crispness. You won’t end up wasting soggy veggies.

 
Week 2 farmers market produce & grocery items

Week 2 farmers market produce & grocery items

 

2. Sewn my own produce bags (Refuse and repurpose)

Purchased $5 secondhand bedsheets from Goodwill and repurposed them to produce bags. A twin size sheet can create over 16 bags. Cloth bags are reusable, eco-friendly, and they are more durable than single or multi-use plastic bags. Think about it, 16 bags to replace single-use plastic bags. That is amazing! You can also repurpose old curtains or any type of mesh fabric for more breathability.

If sewing is not your thing, mail or drop-off your secondhand sheets to my place. I’ll sew and mail them back to you. You can also purchase them on Etsy or Amazon.

 
 

3. Composting (Rot)

I purchased 2 dispensers for my weekly composts; one for veggies and fruits and the other one for processed foods, paper towels, dairy, and oil-based compost. I also built a bigger composting bin so I can mix the organic compost with soil for my balcony plants. I tried vermicomposting, but the first batch of worms that I bought died. Hopefully, the next time I do it I’ll be able to figure out the proper temperature, moisture, and air circulation for the worms to survive.

Also, contrary to my initial assumption about the smell, it isn’t bad at all.

 
 

4. Opted out of all paper mail to cut down my trash (Refuse)

Goodness! Receiving unwanted mail, coupons, magazines, — etc. is annoying and a total waste of paper! Here’s a good a list of websites to opt out of paper mail:

Note that it might take 6 weeks before you completely stop receiving mail from them.

5. Research

Read a couple of online sites about sustainability and waste management and followed curated Instagram accounts like zerowastechef and zerowastecollective for inspiration.

I also finished reading Thinking in Systems by Donella Meadows, the goddess of systems thinking. If you haven’t heard of systems thinking, I recommend watching the TedTalk by Leyla Acaroglu about Rethinking Environmental Folklore. Systems thinking may mean different things to different people. I think it is an awareness, amindset, and an approach to solving problems by acknowledging the interconnected and circular nature of the world we live in.

Cool! Week 2 progress report done! I encourage you to try it out for yourself. I recommend doing it slowly—one step at time. Pick something that you can focus on for a week or even a day. For example, try using reusable bags everything you go shopping or bring your own reusable water bottle. It’s all about building a healthy habit by being extra mindful of your actions. When you’re done, repeat until it has become second nature. I hope you discover that you hold a powerful role in protecting this planet.

 
 
Sustainable LivingNina RumbinesSustainability, zero waste, produce bags, composting, lifecycle thinking, systems thinking