How to reduce your family’s waste in 4 easy steps
I remember back when I was in elementary school, l learned about our environment and the 3Rs of waste management we needed to follow to help save our planet. Today, many years later, we’re in a place where Reducing, Reusing and Recycling is more important than ever.
I know it’s imperative we stop the next generation from making the same mistakes that we have made. Because of this, caring for our environment has become an essential life skill we share with the girls. With our lives having changed to be mostly in our home environment, we have taken the time to educate them on how to build a better and more sustainable planet by making it part of our everyday lifestyle. While it may not always be clear or easy, making small changes like putting a waste management system in place at home can really have an impact. Showing the girls that the environment is important, and getting them motivated to consciously recycle and manage waste in our home is a way of teaching them about the importance of diverting waste properly. Here are some little things we do as a family to help do the best we can.
Label bins to help kids learn
With more meals being cooked at home nowadays, it takes the help of our entire family to properly manage our waste in the kitchen. We teach the girls about waste diversion, which encompasses garbage, recycling and compost, including what should go where and why. To help the girls easily know what goes where, we have our recycle, food waste, and garbage bins labeled.
Produce less waste
We also explain to the girls that recycling is a viable way of reducing waste. Things like paper, aluminum cans, and glass bottles can be recycled many times and made into something new.
My husband, Jason, and I also lead by example by limiting food waste when having meals. We show the kids how to cut down on packaging and unnecessary plastics when grocery shopping. We encourage the girls to take the amount of food they need to limit waste. The girls also know to put their scraps from school lunches and meals at home in the food-waste bin so that they can be composted.
When in doubt, check it out
In our home, while we typically know what goes where, there are times we may have to check with our local municipal waste-management service. Not all collection and disposal services are the same in all regions and there are some great resources like apps that can help you clarify your question. Be sure to check your local service.
Use durable products you can rely on
When it comes to managing waste in our home, we use GLAD products. The brand is an ally in the fight against waste, and our family participated in the #GLADforChange movement this past summer, which encouraged families to join the challenge by picking up litter in their neighbourhood. GLAD offers a wide range of strong, reliable products that help everyone do their part in managing their household waste.
We love GLAD 100% Compostable Lemon Scent Bags because they help keep our bin clean. They’re guaranteed strong (to keep all that icky food waste contained), and they also keep our bin smelling fresh. For recyclables—like milk, juice and fruit containers—we place them in recycling bins, and for those times when our blue bin gets full, we use GLAD Blue Recycling Bags with ForceFlex drawstring to prevent rips and tears.
By coming together and having easy-to-follow waste-management systems in place in our homes, we can change our behaviour and protect the environment. Making a small change can help the planet. We want to be part of the GLAD mission to help divert 3 million tonnes of waste from landfills by 2030—creating a brighter future for our kids. For more information about GLAD’s commitment for change as well as their waste-management products, visit their website.
