Why Low Waste?

I want to touch base on why I live a low waste lifestyle.
Aside from making me feel better about my personal impact on the planet, there are a number of reasons why I, and you, should live a low waste lifestyle.
First things first, a lot of people wonder why the low waste movement is even a thing. You may think that my efforts are going wasted, and that everything I do is so minimal that I will never make a difference.
However, when I was little, I was always stressed out about the environment, I always felt like I wasn't doing enough. Every time I threw something in the trash, I felt so guilty and ashamed because I knew as a society we could be doing better, I never even considered that my individual action could make that much of a difference. I never even considered that I could make all the changes that I wanted to see, and encourage others to change small things in their every day life, like taking a to-go cup to get your morning coffee.
Nowadays, I still produce some waste, but I only throw out about one grocery sized bag of trash every 2 weeks between my partner and I.
Again, you might be thinking, does this really make a difference?
Let me explain to you how it really, truly does.
Think about buying a bottled drink almost every day (which I used to do), that adds up to well over 300 bottles per year! That's not even including takeout, coffee cups that go straight to landfill, plastic bags, food containers etc...
There are so many things that we throw out without even thinking about where it goes!

The most important factor in why I live a low waste lifestyle, is how many people I have managed to influence over the past few months of doing it.
I post on Instagram, about once a week, and I have had multiple people reach out to me saying they want to follow suit and reduce their waste. And I have less than 300 followers!
So many people have committed to creating less waste, asked me for tips, someone I know even went vegan recently!
There is so much potential to influence others to do better and all it took was for me to post about my efforts on my story every once in a while, and have a few enlightening conversations with people.

There are so many people who are way bigger than me that are doing this too, who have thousands of followers and influence people to change every day!
There is an environmental revolution starting, and I know for myself that I would like to be on the right side of history. I want to be a part of the group of people who made a positive difference in the world, rather than just add on to its problems.
There is massive potential here to change our ways, to have a healthy thriving planet, and for the kids in the world right now to not be afraid for their future, to know that they are going to be okay and that their future will not be compromised by older generations actions in the past.

We still have time to turn things around, but the clock is ticking, fast.
Every time you spend money on a packaged product, you are voting with your money. You are telling companies, "I like this product enough to buy it, so keep producing it."
If majority of people used reusable bags, bought all their dry goods at bulk stores (beans, pasta, nuts, baking stuff) there would be a spike in bulk stores opening up because companies can recognize that the demographic is demanding it!! Companies always follow demand, so if you change the way you shop, they will change the way they produce.
Big change begins with individual action, if we demand ecological justice, we will get ecological justice. Many people think it's "too late" or they are too stuck in their ways to change, but those people are wrong. If companies simply stopped producing packaged goods, people would have no other choice but to follow suit.
Same goes for buying electric cars, using green alternatives in your home, not supporting companies who use palm oil, and everything else you can possibly think of.
The revolution is not about marching in the streets and destroying properties to make a statement, it's about changing our ways and demanding that major companies follow suit.

Many companies are beginning to change their ways already! Some major companies have even began producing their products in tins that you can send back to them to get reused!
I've seen more compostable packaging being introduced, paper straws, more naked produce at the grocery store, and many more!
Change is happening, we just need more people involved to show these big companies that we want healthier packaging options and greener production methods.

The way we are consuming as a society is going to change, whether you are willingly going to follow suit and help speed this revolution along, or you are going to be forced to make these changes whether you like it or not.
So my question to you is, which are you going to choose?