Opportunity Card

Waste Less, Live More

Most things get used once, then forgotten. Rethink how your town uses, shares, repairs, and reuses everyday resources.

2 billion+tonnes of municipal waste are generated globally each year

~9%of the global economy is currently circular

SDG 12calls for responsible consumption and production

50%of household waste is typically organics that could be composted

About this challenge

Most things get used once, then forgotten. Most things we toss still have value: they can be repaired, reused, shared, or turned into something new.

This challenge asks you to rethink how your town uses, shares, repairs, and reuses everyday resources.

Everything thrown away was paid for twice: once to buy it, once to dispose of it. Waste is money leaking out of a community.

The circular economy, where materials keep circulating instead of being dumped, is one of the fastest-growing areas of business.

Watch

What's a smartphone made of? (TED-Ed)

Tap to play · loads from YouTube

Think about

Question 1What does your town throw away the most?

Question 2What gets thrown out that someone else could use?

Question 3Could things be shared instead of everyone owning one?

Question 4Could repair become a business in your town?

Question 5Could waste from one business feed another?

Question 6What would zero waste look like with your town's quirks?

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