Everything We’ve Been Taught About the “Three R’s” is Wrong.
Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. These three words are supposed to guide our sustainable actions. They’re simple, catchy, taught to children, and even have a matching “chasing arrows” logo. But, they are also fundamentally and intentionally misleading.
Reflect back on the past week. How often did you intentionally Reduce your consumption? What about consciously and creatively Reuse an item? Now, consider how many items you tossed in the recycling bin. Is your bin overflowing with Amazon’s cardboard boxes? Often, recycling tends to be the most frequent of one’s daily “3-R” actions.
The New Five “R’s” of Sustainability!
However, the idea that the “3-Rs” are equivalently important is wrong. Instead, imagine an upside-down pyramid, with the highest value actions at the top. It would look something like the image to the right.
Did you notice another difference? Yes, there are two more “R’s”! Repair and Rent & Share. These two important additions deserve their own mention and also require the most proactive engagement. Fortunately, we have amazing tools at our disposal and these two actions will help your wallet, too! Did you know that the average power drill is used for a total of 7 minutes throughout its entire life!?! We all have that neighbor or friend who seems to have every tool or piece of outdoor equipment imaginable. If not, Facebook neighborhood groups are great for asking to borrow an obscure item (maybe in exchange for some homegrown veggies?). Why spend hundreds of dollars on a one-time-use tool that will collect dust in your garage for the next ten years?
Repairing an item is often easier than expected, remarkably affordable, and beneficial for the environment. YouTube is a great resource for learning how to repair anything. There is something empowering about keeping an item in use longer, plus the personal attachment to the item is so much more intimate, where you have used your hands and to the best of your abilities to problem solve and return it to a usable state. But honestly, it can also be pricey, tricky, and time-consuming! Repair is such a powerful concept, we’ve devoted a separate upcoming blog post to it.
As we go about our day, don’t be content with “recycling” being our sustainable action of the day. Without a doubt, recycling is the least impactful of the 5-Rs. Let’s focus on the higher impact R’s, get creative, reach out to our neighbors, and get our hands dirty fixing something. Not only will our wallets and planet Earth be thankful, but you will have met new neighbors or learned a new skill.
However, if there’s still an opportunity to improve your recycling effectiveness, consider signing up for The Happy Beetle. We strive to get every collected material type on to its next best usage, whether that’s upcycling, downcycling, reuse, or responsible disposal. Click below to get started.