It's more than possible for students to overcome the challenges of living a sustainable lifestyle while on a budget
A common misconception of waste-free living is that it means producing zero garbage whatsoever. It is impossible to live completely waste-free. If you search far enough down the supply chain, all products (even sustainable ones) produce some form of waste. Waste-free living is less about being the perfect environmentalist and more about reducing consumption, saying no to plastic, and forming sustainable habits.
However, making small changes to your daily routine can be expensive, especially for students whose financial priorities lie elsewhere. With rising costs in tuition, housing, food, and gas, being environmentally friendly may not take precedence. In addition, students must balance course loads, jobs, friends, family, and more - all before taking the time to make waste-free lifestyle transitions.
Making the switch can be daunting when you have a busy schedule, live on a budget, or don't have a lot of money in savings. But don't give up hope. For those who are looking to become more environmentally conscious, there are many ways to navigate the financial challenges.
Step one is to abolish any perception you have of minimalist living. Social media inaccurately depicts the waste-free lifestyle by turning it into an aesthetic rather than a philosophy of life. Reducing your consumption won't be glamourous. Our society is structured for convenience, meaning that plastic is everywhere. Finding alternatives for single-use items might be messy and that's okay.
Step two is to come to terms with the fact that this transition cannot be done overnight. Replacing everything you own with something sustainable in one go will deplete your wallet. Those who claim being eco-friendly is too expensive, are likely trying to do too much too fast. The trick is to make the lifestyle switch slowly by using what you already have first. I've been making this transition for three years and still have much work to do.
Contrary to popular belief, waste-free living actually saves you money. Yes, alternatives are more expensive short term, but unlike single-use products, sustainable goods aren't purposely designed for the dump to keep consumers consuming. Instead, they are crafted to last a long time. For example, a menstrual cup, which has a lifespan of up to ten years, can save someone roughly $600 dollars on tampons in that same period of time.
Step three is to set realistic goals. My top tip for this step is to think about accomplishing zero-waste living based on the different rooms in your house. Tackle your bathroom first, then your kitchen, then your bedroom, and so on. Think about the various items in these rooms that can be replaced with ones that have longer lifespans.
My waste-free journey started in my bathroom. I switched to bars of shampoo and conditioner. While they do cost slightly more, they last about three times longer than the bottled kind. I also switched from single-use razors to a reusable one. Again, in the short term, it was more expensive, but I've been using the same one for two years and it will probably last me two more.
As for my kitchen, I started freezing my food scraps to make broth I could later cook with. I do this because, although composting is excellent for the environment, food waste produces a harmful greenhouse gas called methane. The average Canadian household loses $1,100 dollars in food waste each year, so just by making homemade broth, I am saving both the planet and money.
In the long-run living waste-free is not as expensive as it seems. All you have to do is remember that there is no perfect environmentalist, to make the transition slowly, and to set attainable goals. If, as a student, this lifestyle is not accessible because of finances the easiest change that still makes a difference is to say no and refuse unnecessary single-use plastics.
Waste colonialism is a prime example of how racism is a root cause of the climate crisis
By: Emma Shemko, Opinion Contributor
Waste colonialism is the practice of hegemonic nations dumping their excess waste into the hands of economically subjugated developing states predominantly made up of BIPOC communities.
When discussing the climate crisis, it is crucial to frame it as more than just an oil or plastic crisis because doing so erases the voices of BIPOC people who are bearing the brunt of climate changes. Understanding who generates waste, where it ends up and the connections between environment and racism are key to achieving mitigation.
Looking closely, the countries receiving these never-ending imports of waste are typically already overwhelmed with chronic symptoms left over from 19th and 20th-century colonialism, including civil conflict, severe economic debt and political instability.
Several countries, such as Liberia, Kenya and Tunisia, have attempted to create laws banning illicit imports of toxic waste. The dumping of garbage on foreign soil compromises the living conditions of people of colour and reproduces the conditions that characterized the colonial era. But because economically powerful countries are dependent on plastic and oil production these laws are disrespected time and time again.
After waste is dumped, little regard is given to the lives of those who work in unsanitary and hazardous conditions as informal waste pickers. An estimated 20 million people worldwide make up the informal recycling sector earning only a daily average of $2 to $3 US dollars. In addition, waste pickers are predominantly women and children. In Pune, India 73 per cent of workers are women and half of these women work up to 12 hours daily.
To combat overflows of waste, a trend has emerged among developing countries who are now threatening to return waste to its original exporters. In 2019, the Philippines threatened to send 60 containers of rotting household waste back to Canada.
To put this into perspective, between 2013 and 2014, Canada shipped 103 containers of garbage to the Philippines. In 2018 Canada generated 35.6 million tons of garbage. Waste is not piling up in streets is because much of it is shipped away.
Not only has Canada has continuously been a big offender in foreign waste dumping. It also negligently dumps waste into Indigenous communities within its own borders. For example, arsenic pollution from the oilsands tailing ponds in Alberta continue to destroy the health of the environment and of the Indigenous communities living along the Athabasca River.
Not only has Canada has continuously been a big offender in foreign waste dumping. It also negligently dumps waste into Indigenous communities within its own borders. For example, arsenic pollution from the oilsands tailing ponds in Alberta continue to destroy the health of the environment and of the Indigenous communities living along the Athabasca River.
Toxic chemicals from the ponds have been seeping into groundwater and affecting the Fort Chipewyan Métis community since 2009. Governments continue to neglect complaints despite knowing that the tailings ponds contain 1.4 trillion litres of toxic waste.
Once I began to realize how commonplace waste dumping is and how this practice is deeply connected to racism, neo-colonialism and the climate crisis, I could no longer unsee it. It infiltrates all aspects of life and is inescapable for BIPOC communities worldwide.
Wanjiku “Wawa” Gatheru, founder of @blackgirlenviromentalist on Instagram, is a youth climate activist passionate about protecting BIPOC people who lack access to the resources or clout needed for combating exposure to toxic waste. Wanjiku highlights these notions as a reflection of society as the truth is, the same throwaway culture that disposes our planet disposes of people, especially people of color.
The disproportionate levels of waste in BIPOC communities alongside the lack of governmental action to outcries about climate change and human well-being are clear indications of environmental racism. I believe that without racism and the mindset that one’s race makes them superior to another, there would be no incentive to dump waste in BIPOC communities and nations. Therefore, there would be no climate crisis without racism. The climate crisis is not rooted in a plastic or oil crisis but in ongoing racial injustices.
Environmentalism begins with antiracism because the two social justice movements are inextricably linked. Environmentalism without intersectionality is like exterminating a weed without pulling up the root, allowing the weed to continue expanding.
Environmentalism begins with antiracism because the two social justice movements are inextricably linked. Environmentalism without intersectionality is like exterminating a weed without pulling up the root, allowing the weed to continue expanding.
Racism is the root of the climate crisis weed, and it is high time that it is uprooted if we are to mitigate environmental emergencies.
By: Saadia Shahid
On Feb. 27, the McMaster Students Union promoted its three-day education campaign “Compost at Mac” which highlighted several composting bins around campus. The campaign encouraged students to locate areas within the university where compost bins should be placed.
This was done in efforts to reduce the waste produced by students and also to promote composting.
Another table that I came across in the McMaster University Students Centre asked students to make pledges to limit their use of disposable items. I pledged to limit my use of plastic cutlery, but how feasible is that really?
As a student, making sustainable choices is difficult when there are plastic straws and cutlery distributed all over campus. It is hard to make the environmentally-conscious choice when those items are so easily accessible.
It is easy for the MSU to put up boards encouraging students to help combat climate change, but would it not make more sense for McMaster Hospitality Services to abolish the use of plastic cutlery and disposable items altogether? This would probably help reduce the carbon footprint of the entire university.
This may seem like a drastic change, but the ease lies in switching to more environmentally-friendly and sustainable options like steel cutlery and straws. Reusable mesh grocery bags should be also sold on campus to make it easier for students to adopt sustainable habits.
In making these changes, the MUSC eating area could be also revamped into a proper food court with steel cutlery and plates given out in La Piazza. Students can then return to these items to workers stationed at the food court.
A system like this is already implemented at plenty of malls with food courts and helps to reduce waste due to the availability of reusable cutlery. The cost may seem a little high, but it is not higher than the one we will have to pay due to the effects of climate change.
This initiative can start during Welcome Week with new students introduced to the green changes.
Speaking from a student’s point of view, these changes would make things easier for us and also be more beneficial for the Earth. An institution equipped with the funding makes a bigger difference than opposed to individual students struggling to find sustainable alternatives.
The MSU has done a lot of things that students didn’t vote for, such as starting the composting initiative. They encourage us to follow along as it is a change for the better, but they must at least make it easier for students to adopt.
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By: Neda Pirouzmand
On Feb. 27, the McMaster Students Union sustainability education committee began their three day “Compost at Mac” education campaign in partnership with the academic sustainability programs office and the MSU Maroons.
The campaign marked the beginning of a movement to create more opportunities for students to engage with long-term investment towards changing McMaster’s sustainability practices.
The committee set up a booth in front of Union Market in the McMaster University Student Centre for students to take home herb plants for free.
In addition, the committee distributed cards highlighting the locations of the new compost bins that have been installed across campus.
The new bins have been placed on the first and second floors of Mills Memorial Library and the H.G. Thode Library.
Bins can also be found in front of Union Market in MUSC, in Burke Science Building and in the Michael G. DeGroote Centre for Learning and Discovery near the Tim Hortons cafe.
Tasneem Warwani, the MSU associate vice-president (University Affairs) and a member of the MSU sustainability education committee, acknowledges the importance of coordinating efforts within the MSU to achieve sustainability goals.
“I think the MSU definitely plays a role in advocating for issues such as no waste. We represent the needs and wants of our students, and this is definitely an important and topical issue,” she said.
According to Warwani, system-wide changes will only be effective with the combined effort of many teams as the task is simply too big otherwise.
Warwani expects the committee to undertake work in the near future that could set the stage for a wave of change in sustainability practices at McMaster.
Without compost bins, solid and organic waste go straight to landfills. The piling of waste in landfills prevents oxygen from reaching buried food waste, causing food waste to produce methane gas.
According to the Canadian government, methane is 25 times more powerful than carbon dioxide in contributing to global warming.
Diverting organic waste from landfills prevents hazardous effects while simultaneously allowing for the proper harnessing of methane gas for renewable energy.
The Ontario government has publicly available information on its major landfills. Currently, Hamilton houses one of the largest landfill sites in Ontario in the Glanbrook district.
Based on available information, there are less than 200 years left until this landfill runs out of space. This creates another reason to remove unnecessary organic waste from landfills.
In addition to green bins, McMaster also has electronics recycling bin drop-off locations in a number of campus buildings, including the Arthur Bourns Building, John Hopkins Engineering Building, Information Technology Building and the Ivor Wynne Centre.
Created because electronics contain harmful chemicals and cannot be easily responsibly disposed of, drop off centres take products like computers, hair dryers and microwaves.
“We are interested to see what other initiatives we can encourage next year’s committee to run. We got a ton of great feedback about the reusable cutlery,” said Connor Maclean, the chair of the committee. “I think making sustainability convenient for students can get so many people engaged in environmental protection and preservation.”
Over the next few weeks, the MSU sustainability education committee will be taking the feedback it received from last week’s campaign to advocate for more green bins on campus.
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