Reducing waste during the pandemic

Many Sustainable Macleod members are passionate about reducing waste. Some of us have a particular focus on food; others have their sights on plastic, paper and cardboard, chemical, textile, electronic and other categories of waste.

During the pandemic, it’s become an even bigger preoccupation for many as we stay at home, declutter and re-evaluate how we want to live our lives. Whatever your ‘waste interest’ there are many resources available to help you and other waste warriors only too happy to spur you along.

Zero Waste Victoria (ZWV) has 9000 members and is a fantastic organisation that has created a thriving community of like-minded people sharing information about reducing waste. The philosophy of the group extends beyond the usual “Reduce, reuse, reclaim and recycle” to promoting a “Repair, share and care economy”.

In June, ZWV held a large virtual conference. Many resources and videos from the event are available online. Upcoming online events include a visible mending workshop, a session on creative ways to reduce food waste, and an aptly titled workshop “Environmental Anxiety – turn overwhelmed into empowerment.”

Finally, Sustainability Victoria has a number of waste management resources aimed at householders. And if you love a good map and would like to see how, as a community, we are performing on waste management, there is a waste data mapping portal for each local government area. We are making progress in some areas, but we have a long way to go.

If you are a waste warrior and want to share some tips (not landfill!), we’d love to hear from you.

Written by Amanda Tattam.