So this is my trash jar.

這是我的垃圾瓶。

- Two years of trash in this tiny little jar? - Yep.

- 這個小瓶子裡面裝的是兩年份的垃圾？- 沒錯。

That's crazy. I mean I probably produce 20 times this much in a day.

這太誇張了，我可能一天就製造出 20 個玻璃瓶的垃圾吧。

Yeah, this is everything basically that I couldn't compost, or couldn't recycle, or couldn't figure out what to do with.

基本上這裏面裝的是無法用來做堆肥或是無法回收，或者我不知道該怎麼處理的東西。

Where did you get this idea to become zero waste?

你怎麼會有零垃圾生活的想法？

It kind of all started when I was a senior at NYU studying environmental studies.

大概是從我大四還在紐約大學主修環境研究時開始的。

And one day after class, I went home to make dinner, and I opened my fridge, and I saw that everything in there was packaged in plastic, and I felt like such a hypocrite.

有天下課後，我回家做晚餐我打開冰箱，然後發現裡面每樣東西都用塑膠包裝著，我覺得自己很虛偽。

We're supposed to be saving the planet, and here you are making all of this trash.

我們應該要拯救地球，但卻仍在製造這些垃圾。

I feel like it's really important to live your values, and my values are having a really low environmental impact. I have to live like I want that, and so that's why I decided to change my lifestyle.

我認為力行自己的理念真的很重要，而我的理念就是要真的降低自己對環境的影響，我的生活必需跟我想要的一樣，所以這就是我決定改變生活方式的原因。

What was the easiest part about reducing your waste?

你減少垃圾最簡單的部分是什麼？

I think it was just like seeing that I didn't have to do that much to produce very little waste, and by composting and buying in bulk, I essentially eliminated 80% of my waste.

我覺得就是知道我不用做很多事就能夠製造非常少的垃圾，光是製作堆肥跟選擇購買散裝物品，我基本上就已經降低 80% 的垃圾量了。

Buying package free means needing to have containers to buy things that you can't hold with your hands, for instance, like I buy bulk olive oil, so I bring a Mason jar to fill it up; I'll pick up some beer from a local shop that sells it in growlers that are actually reusable, so that's like a totally waste free way to drink.

購買無包裝商品表示你必須自備容器去裝，舉例來說，我買散裝的橄欖油會帶玻璃瓶去裝；我會去有玻璃瓶裝啤酒的本地商店買啤酒，那些玻璃瓶都可以再使用，所以喝啤酒也不會製造垃圾。

- I imagine you get asked a lot of questions about how do you do this. I've been curious about a few things, so I'm gonna throw out a few questions too. - Sure.

- 我想應該有很多人問你一堆關於你怎麼做到的問題，而我對某些事情很好奇，所以我也要問你一些問題。 - 沒問題。

- Plastic toothbrushes? - I use a compostable bamboo toothbrush.

- 塑膠製的牙刷？- 我用的是可分解竹製牙刷。

- Sponges? - I use a compostable dish brush.

- 海綿？- 我用可分解碗盤刷。

- Paper towels? - Cotton napkins.

- 廚房紙巾？ - 棉質餐巾。

- Plastic cookware? - Wood or stainless steel utensils.

- 塑膠廚具？- 木製或不鏽鋼廚具。

- Cotton balls? - Reusable cotton rounds.

- 棉球？- 可重複使用的棉質圓墊。

- Dryer sheets? - Dryer balls that I make myself.

- 防靜電紙？- 我自製的防靜電球。

- What about shampoo? - Bulk castile soap.

- 洗髮精呢？- 散裝肥皂水。

- Makeup? - Organic vegan makeup in recyclable packaging.

- 化妝品？- 用可回收包裝盒的有機植物製化妝品。

- Feminine products? - Menstrual cup.

- 女性生理用品？- 月亮杯。

- Gift wrap? - Why?

- 禮物包裝？- 為什麼需要呢？

- Okay, so you are going to teach me how to make toothpaste. - Yes.

- 所以接下來你要教我怎麼自製牙膏。- 沒錯。

What do I do?

我要做什麼？

So we're gonna mix two tablespoons of organic coconut oil, and then a tablespoon of baking soda, and then about 20 drops of the organic peppermint oil.

我們要把兩大湯匙的有機椰子油和一大湯匙的小蘇打，還有大概 20 滴有機薄荷油混在一起。

- So this is how you make your toothpaste. - Mm-hmm.

- 所以你就是這樣做牙膏的。- 沒錯。

- Let me see your teeth. They look very nice. - Yeah.

- 讓我看看你的牙齒。看起來狀況很好。- 對啊。

What does your dentist think about this?

你的牙醫對此有什麼看法？

They haven't gotten mad at me yet.

至少目前為止他們還沒對我生氣過。

So I'll just take this spoon and scoop it onto my toothbrush.

所以我會直接用這支湯匙挖一些牙膏到我的牙刷上。

It's not bad. It's actually kind of salty.

還不錯，其實有點鹹鹹的。

Yeah, that's the baking soda.

沒錯，那是小蘇打的味道。

Yeah, my teeth really do feel cleaner so, thank you.

我的牙齒真的變乾淨了，謝謝你。

So do you have any garbage cans in your home here?

那你家裡有任何垃圾桶嗎？

No, I don't have any garbage cans in my home.

沒有，我家裡沒有任何垃圾桶。

- Because you don't have any garbage. - Exactly.

- 因為你沒有垃圾要丟。- 沒錯。

It really does compel me to wanna try to reduce my waste, so what tips can you give me or somebody else that wants to do that as well?

這樣真的會讓我想要試著減少我的垃圾，那你有什麼祕訣可以跟我或其他想這麼做的人分享嗎？

Yeah, I would suggest, you know, look in your garbage can and see what your garbage is, and until you do that you don't really know what you're reducing, right?

我會建議你們先看看自己的垃圾桶有哪些垃圾，只有這樣做你才知道你要減少什麼垃圾，是吧？

Step two, using a reusable bag instead of a plastic or paper bag. Just like easy one time changes.

第二步是用環保袋，不要用塑膠袋或紙袋，這是一次簡單的改變。

I mean, and then the last one would be to actually make your products yourself, so learn how to make toothpaste, learn how to make deodorant. It's a really fun thing to do.

然後最後一步是自製你需要的產品，所以學會做牙刷，學會做除臭劑，這其實很好玩。

What is your ultimate goal?

你最終的目標是什麼？

Before I lived my lifestyle, I wonder, you know, why is there all this trash and why is that okay? And we have to find solutions before it gets out of control.

在我開始這樣生活之前我常想，為什麼會有這麼多垃圾，而為何這樣是正常的？ 我們必須找到解決方案，在一切失控之前。

I've never told anyone, oh, you should live this lifestyle or you have to live this way. I kind of just live my lifestyle, put it out there, and see what happens.

我從來沒有跟其他人說過，你應該這樣生活或是你一定得這樣生活，我就只是過自己的生活方式然後推廣它，看看結果怎麼樣。

Be sure to check out another episode of "Going Off Grid" with Mike Basich and his 225 square foot tiny home.

記得看看另外一集「活出欄外」拜訪 Mike Basich 和他 225 平方英尺的小房子。

I like to think of it as getting back to the basics of humanity. I like feeling connected to the Earth.

我認為這是回到人性的最初點，我喜歡感受與地球之間的連結。

This episode is a part of "Seeker Stories".

這是「Seeker Stories」系列中的一集。

We're trying to bring you cool stories from around the world, but in order to do that, you need to subscribe. So please click on that button, and thanks for watching.

我們試著將全世界有趣的故事呈現在你眼前，但要做到這點，我們需要你的訂閱，所以請按下訂閱鈕，感謝收看。