Closing the Loop: Part 2 - Practical Applications for Adopting a Low-Waste Home Lifestyle

Jan 11

Written By Sofia G

Inspired by the people of Kamikatsu, Japan? Let’s explore how we can apply their low-waste lifestyle to our everyday lives, and take action to protect Earth.

In 1997, the town of Kamikatsu, Japan began its ambitious initiative to become zero waste by 2030. Through cooperation and collective efforts, the residents in this community have embraced this vision - and it shows! After 25 years of consistent efforts - they now reach 81% recycling efficiency.

Be sure to read part 1 of this story here(link) for a deeper analysis of their efforts and achievements. Now, it’s time to dive into a conversation about how we can learn from the bold sustainability initiatives of the people in Kamikatsu, Japan. Let’s talk about how anyone can apply this to their own life & community.

Practical Application

Of course, each city around the world has its own waste management regulations and systems, so you may be wondering “how does all of this apply to me and what can I do about it?”.

Well, a revolution always starts with one individual: you can kickstart your waste-free journey by applying Kamukatsu’s practices to yourself.

Be Kind to Yourself - You Can Do It!

Firstly, you must remember to be patient and to have perseverance: Kamikatsu was not built in a day. In fact, it may not be the best idea to immediately ban yourself from purchasing all single-use plastic products (if you can kudos to you!), because it may deem incredibly difficult and discouraging to try and go “cold turkey” when plastic (sadly) plays such a big role in our day to day lives. Shifting gears to try and immediately become 100% waste-free may also diminish your own personal incentive to be consistent over time or discourage you due to the difficulty of attempting such a large lifestyle shift.

Take Things Step-by-Step

Instead, take this journey step by step. If you’re used to purchasing packaged food from the supermarket, you may want to start going to a whole food zero-waste shop more often. Purchase glass and paper-based containers. Start choosing to purchase items made up of upcycled materials instead of virgin plastic, etc. But do so at your own pace to ensure you can accommodate your lifestyle and habits to this new pace and practice.

Make Conscious Purchase Decisions

Secondly, although obvious, purchase fewer (or no) new items. Find places like a Kuru-kuru shop in your community where you can exchange items or purchase repurposed items, similar to a vintage or charity store. One person’s trash is another person’s treasure! Adopting a zero-waste life is not just about recycling and purchasing recycled items, but also inherently consuming less.

Lastly, one of the most important insights into Kamikatu’s story is how they leveraged the sense of community trust and respect in order to keep a zero-waste lifestyle and continue to find innovative ways to improve it.

Find Your Community

This may be easier said than done, of course. But by starting to adopt a zero-waste lifestyle, you will most likely be able to connect with like-minded individuals that are trying to do the same thing as you. If not, join online movements and communities. This will help you feel supported and appreciated for your efforts. It will also inspire you to take more action and learn from others. It will keep you accountable and encourage you to keep up your great work!

You may want to consider starting up your own community/movement. Take for example Google’s effort to cut down on food waste. It started with sourcing imperfect food that would otherwise be tossed and food products from upcycled ingredients. Then it started collaborating with agriculture and food service partners to increase the transparency and traceability of the food being sourced. Through these efforts, Google was also enabled to monitor food waste and ensure excess food is sent to people in need instead of the landfill. It all starts with an interest to serve your community (e.g. your work colleagues) and trickles down to other communities around you (e.g. people without access to food).

No matter where you are, with a little bit of patience, awareness, and community support, you too can adopt a waste-free lifestyle.

Key Takeaways

Adopting a zero-waste life is not just about recycling and purchasing recycled items, but also inherently consuming less.

Be patient and have perseverance: Kamikatsu was not built in a day.

Make changes at your own pace to ensure you can accommodate your lifestyle and habits to this new pace and practice.

No matter where you are, with a little bit of patience, awareness, and community support, you too can adopt a waste-free lifestyle.

Sofia G

I chose to work with Kayo (and Carom) because I'm passionate about supporting the growth of sustainability-focused innovative businesses and projects, which is very much aligned with Kayo's (and Carom’s) mission. I always enjoyed writing and learning about sustainability in a variety of industries, so I decided it could be a fun and rewarding activity to write sustainability-focused content for Kayo's clients to help their growth and outreach. I have always worked across the public and private sectors on sustainability-related initiatives. I initially worked within NGOs, and international organizations such as the UN, OECD, and development banks in project management, advocacy, research/writing, and as a policy analyst. But for the past 3 years, I have worked in business development for an ESG data company providing sustainability information to global financial institutions. My academic background is in international relations and development economic - I love to question how the world works and how we could make it better! I call myself a 'tired nomad', I'm always going off to travel/live somewhere new. I feel my best self when I'm in contact with the sea and animals. In my spare time, I love reading, drawing, dancing, discovering new music and spending time with other interesting humans!